From the category archives:

Positive Thought

Daily Quote: Pushing Boundaries with Babe

by joi on March 16, 2010

in Daily Quote, Positive Thought

“All of my life I have always had the urge to do things better than anybody else.” - Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Babe Didrikson Zaharias was one of the greatest athletes to ever live – not just one of the greatest female athletes to ever live.  This gal was a phenomenon.  She could run, throw, jump, ride, play baseball, basketball, golf, and who knows what all!

In the 1932 Olympic tryouts, she won five first places in track and field. Five.  In the Los Angeles Olympics she placed second in the high jump, first in the women’s 80-meter hurdles, and first in the javelin throw.

Many people would have been satisfied with these achievements and simply lived out their life in the fame and glory that surrounded them.  I mean, why risk more?  If you’re on top already, why chance a slip?

Thankfully Babe didn’t think like most people any more than she played like most people.  She pushed the boundaries back even further by taking up the game of golf.

Preparation: Babe Didrikson  found herself a wonderful instructor and studied the game.

Practice: She worked on her swing until it was perfect.  She practiced on her long game and her short game.  She mastered the game by first studying the game, then practicing her mechanics until they were perfection in motion.  She spent hours on practice tees, sometimes hitting a thousand range balls in a single afternoon.

Push: Think about it.  Babe was known for her power and strength – but she pushed her boundaries with a game that now called for finesse.  Sometimes she would spend s much time hitting balls that her hands would become so red and sore that it hurt to grip the club.  She’d stop long enough to tape them up, then she’d push on. Determination is a beautiful thing, wouldn’t you agree?

Pay Off: Babe Didrikson won the U.S. national woman’s amateur and British woman’s amateur championships.  She became a symbol of courage all over the world, not just on the track and greens.  She faced cancer with the same gritty determination and courage.  She remains, to this day, one of our nation’s most beloved athletes.

Look at how they progress:  Preparation.  Practice.  Push.  Pay Off.  If we take any of the first 3 out, we’ll never see the 4th… and if we aren’t going to get to the 4th, why in the world bother?!?!

More Babe Didrikson Zaharias Quotes:

t has been argued that Babe Didrikson Zaharias was the greatest woman athlete ever. [u]More About Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Selected Babe Didrikson Zaharias Quotations

  • You can’t win them all — but you can try.
  • Study the rules so that you won’t beat yourself by not knowing something.
  • I am out to beat everybody in sight, and that is just what I’m going to do.
  • You have to play by the rules of golf just as you have to live by the rules of life. There’s no other way.
  • The formula for success is simple: practice and concentration then more practice and more concentration.
  • Before I was in my teens, I knew exactly what I wanted to be: I wanted to be the best athlete who ever lived.
  • The more you practice, the better. But in any case, practice more than you play.
  • It’s not enough just to swing at the ball. You’ve got to loosen your girdle and let ‘er fly.
  • Practice, which some regard as a chore, should be approached as just about the most pleasant recreation ever devised, besides being a necessary part of golf.
  • Good golf is easier to play — and far more pleasant — than bad golf.
  • Before I was ever in my teens, I knew exactly what I wanted to be when I grew up. My goal was to be the greatest athlete that ever lived.
  • As long as I’m improving, I will go on, and besides, there’s too much money in the business to quit.

And my favorite Babe Didrikson Zaharias quote? – - – -The Babe is here. Who’s coming in second?

Pushing Boundaries with March Madness

by joi on March 16, 2010

in Articles, General, Positive Thought, Self Help

When I named my first self improvement blog, I chose Out of Bounds because I’m in love with the idea of pushing boundaries.  The concept was, and is, to never allow yourself to be trapped in a restricted area – confined by boundaries set by anyone, including yourself.  Of course it’s a lot easier to say, “Go as far as you think you possibly can and then go further” than it is to actually do it.  Sadly, it is very easy to create these boundaries for yourself.  It’s easy to say, “I’ve gone as far as I possibly can – so leave me alone. Leave me comfortable. Hand me a Coke while you’re up.”

But, really, just how wonderful is stagnation?  How comfortable is it to cease to grow? If you ask me, few things are sadder than the individual with a world of potential who won’t get out of their own way. They take a look around and see boundaries that have been set either by others or their own insecurities and laziness.  Then, instead of summoning up enough fight to push the boundaries back – they go back to the couch.  How much are they missing out on?  What are they robbing themselves, and possibly the rest of the world, of?

Unless gumption finds them on the couch and taps them on the shoulder, we may never know.

In the world of sports, this sort of comfy cozy thinking seals athletes’ fates again and again.  You know the inspirational quote, Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results? Apparently, many more people are flirting with insanity than we ever thought possible.

Here’s one scenario: An NCAA basketball program sits down to make out a schedule for the coming year.  The coach and athletic director, who of course value their  job, take caution when scheduling other teams.  They often opt for more cupcakes than they do serious competition.   After all, wins are all that matter to them at that moment.   Then, along comes March and they find themselves again on the “bubble” for being selected into the highly coveted NCAA Tournament.  The experts play the familiar song of “a weak schedule” and how important it is to have a strong schedule.  Every.  Year.

The coaches and the athletic directors KNOW they have to play stronger teams to stand a chance of making the dance.  Yet, somehow they keep setting their own boundaries – then waiting on a miracle in March.  They make one of the worst mistakes in the world – leaving their fate in someone else’s hands.  Whenever possible, we should move Heaven and earth to control our own fate and make our own way… yes, even if that means pushing the boundaries back and taking chances.  Never leave your fate up to someone else. Stay behind the wheel of your own car.

Taking on challenges is like playing stronger teams – it makes you stronger, and isn’t that the whole idea?

Of course (sticking with NCAA basketball – partly because I eat, sleep, and breath it… I’m from Kentucky, it’s a birthright) the kids aren’t always completely blameless, either.  How about the games they throw away because they lose focus?  Sure it’s tough to have laser focus during final exams week or the holidays – but sometimes you have to dig deep and if you can’t find the strength – create it.

My own beloved UK Wildcats lost focus earlier in the season.  They achieved the coveted #1 ranking, got a call from President Obama (for raising an incredible amount of money for Haiti), were lead by candidates for player of the year, freshman of the year, and coach of the year, and were the last undefeated team in the country.  Distractions, much? They went to South Carolina to play a team who (on paper), while comprised of talented kids with a lot of heart, in no way, shape, or form, should have beaten UK.  No way. No way. No way.

But they did.

The South Carolina kids, coaches, and fans had a look of sheer determination and focus in their eyes and in their play.

Our guys lost focus for one game and – in the end – it could have cost them (months later) a #1 seed in the NCAA tournament.  At the time, the tourney was the farthest thing from their minds.  If the President had just called me, I’m pretty sure it would be far from my mind as well!  This lack of focus wound up drawing boundaries for them – locking them out of the #1 spot in the rankings.

They had to fight like crazy the rest of the year – especially in the SEC Tournament – to keep their top seed hopes alive.  Thanks to a team who was fighting for their NCAA life (Mississippi State), we could have easily lost our number one seed.

Although no one really wants to think about it (because it makes the head throb and the heart sink), if UK had kept their focus in South Carolina, they could have finished the year ranked #1 and gotten the very top seed.

When we lose focus, even for 40 minutes – we create our own boundaries.

Approach each day with more than just that day in mind.  Think of the big picture, what you’re working toward.  Don’t think about who you are, where you are, or what you’re doing, think about who you want to be, where you want to go, and what you want to be doing.   At the first of each season, and before each game, if the players and coaches all remembered that they were playing for top positions in the NCAA tournament (or even an invitation to the dance), they’d be SO much better off.

Thinking about it in March is too late.

  • If you want a promotion or a raise next year – it’s something you have to keep in mind each and every day.  You can’t wait for next year to roll around, then hope you did enough.  You have to think about it every single day and make sure you do enough!  Don’t let laziness or lack of focus create boundaries.
  • If you want to lose weight – you can’t slack off.  You have to commit yourself to the task each and every day – yes, even on weekends.  You know the smart decisions, just make them and make them and keep making them until you get to where you want to be.  Don’t set deep-fried or sugar-coated boundaries for yourself and don’t let laziness or a lack of focus fence you in.
  • If you want to grow your home business and make more money (who doesn’t?!), you can’t just think about it once or twice a week.  You can’t just focus your attention on it when the bills are due.  It’s something you have to focus on and commit to every day – 24/7.

When we lose focus, things that shouldn’t in any way defeat us sneak up on us.  Whether they’re Gamecocks or other forces of evil!

Stay focused and keep pushing yourself to go further, do more, and be more.  This is the only way to keep pushing the boundaries AWAY from you and to keep growing.  The alternative?  The boundaries won’t just close in on you – they’ll collapse on you and you won’t have anywhere to go…. or grow.  Keep pushing the boundaries.  Keep pushing the boundaries.  Keep pushing the boundaries.  Out of bounds is where the sweetest music is.

Dance on!

What We Can Learn From Subway’s Five, Five, Five Dollar Footlong

by joi on March 11, 2010

in Articles, Health, Positive Thought, Self Help

I heart Subway.  I, literally, could eat lunch at my neighborhood Subway each and every day.  I’ve tried each of their sandwiches over the many years I’ve been in love with them and I’ve never left a bite untouched.  My only request would be the addition of Guacamole… come on, I’ll pay more for it!

A few minutes ago, one of Subway’s catchy “Five Dollar Foot long… ANY Five Dollar Foot long….” commercials came on.  In addition to making me want a Veggie Delite with black olives, lettuce, American Cheese, cucumbers, banana peppers, pickles, and sweet onion dressing, it made me think about their successful advertising campaign.  This one took guts – and paid off.

If I had a Sales and Marketing blog, I’d applaud Subway’s brilliance for attacking the fragile economy head on with their infamous $5 Subways.  I’d point out that they know that they get that the best way to woo the public is to tap into into the things that matter most to them:

  1. Health and Fitness. Remember Jared?  He showed us how “one of us” (the guy or gal next door) actually lost weight while eating delicious food.  They’re also prominent sponsors of the popular show The Biggest Loser… again reminding us that they’re on our side.  They’ll provide us with delicious, healthy alternatives and save us from the fried, greasy stuff we might get elsewhere.
  2. Saving Money! A footlong sub (piled with goodness) for $5.00 is an excellent deal, just when we need excellent deals the most.  Brilliant.

Alas, I don’t have a sales blog because I know diddly squat about selling.  I’m on team buying, not team selling.  Which, I suppose explains why my husband is on team selling.

From a Self Help and Self Improvement standpoint, I think we can actually learn something from this popular, catchy Subway campaign.  Whether we use the lesson in our daily life, in our writing and blogging, in our work, or in the ways we try to make the world a better place – it’s right there, waiting for us to scarf it up as readily as we do the subways,  themselves.

Here are a few of the lessons I think we can learn from Subway:

  • Originality rawks and originality rawks hard.
  • We shouldn’t take ourselves too seriously.
  • We should often look for ways to renew, refresh, and reinvent ourselves.

Think about it.  Subway took a huge chance on this campaign.  They chose a jingle which, let’s be honest, is a little cheesy. Yet they went with it. In fact they ran with it – laughing at themselves in the process.  How cool is that?!   Jingles like this are very hit or miss.  Subway could have been laughed AT or laughed WITH.  They went over the top and landed in the zone.  Life is about taking chances and taking risks. Sometimes you have to just go for it – without hesitation and without fear.  Many times, these risks pay off better than you ever even hoped for.

Don’t ever be afraid to be yourself.  Don’t ever be afraid to stand out from the crowd. Don’t ever aspire to be a wallflower.

I also love the fact that this successful campaign doesn’t involve them trying to sling lettuce on their competition (though they have in the past gone down that yellow and red brick road).  These types of campaigns always turn me off.  It’s like, if you believe in what you have to offer, why bring the other guys into it?  In fact, some fast food restaurant recently had a campaign where they took a swipe at Wendy’s (by showing the back of a girl with big red ponytails).  Here’s the effect it had on me:  I rushed out for some Wendy’s chili.  I got an instant craving and addressed it immediately.

Hmmm, I seriously can’t even tell you who’s commercial it was.  For me, it was Wendy’s.

Brought to the world of self improvement and self help:  We will never climb higher by stepping on other people. Putting our footprints on others never adds value to them – it lessens what value they had. Every time.

If you value what you have to say and what you have to offer, what does it matter to you what others are doing or saying?  Why go to their blogs and leave negative comments or try to run their name down on yours’?   If you believe in yourself, believe all the way and keep the spotlight on yourself.  I suspect that many times insecurity is the reason people shine the spotlight on others.   Why else wouldn’t they want it on themselves?

I know that many things in life are gravely serious.  I’m as aware of that as anyone.  However, I also know that many people take things far too seriously.  Life should be enjoyed, not stressed over.  Let go of little things and you’ll find that the world is a beautiful, wonderful place.  Let it be.

Finally, Subway teaches us the value of reinventing yourself.  They knew that Jared’s campaign had kind of worn itself out.  The public had gotten pretty accustomed to his handsome face and winsome disposition.  I’m not saying he doesn’t have a lot of mileage left – I love the Jared commercials!  I am saying this, Subway knew it was time to mix things up a little and throw something unexpected out there.

Now, when Jared does come back, we’ll be more apt to pay attention.

Never allow yourself to fall into a rut.  Mix things up every now and then!  Be true to your message, your goal, your dreams, and your life’s mission…. but keep things interesting.  If you lull everyone to sleep, they’ll never hear a word you’re saying.

You know what makes me sad?  When people WANT to do something, learn something, or try something but hold themselves back.  No one else is standing in their way but themselves.

  • If you wish you kept a cleaner house, pick up the broom and make it happen.  Start now!
  • If you wish you knew more geography (or history, math, botany, a foreign language), what are you waiting for? As soon as you leave Self Help Daily, find some wonderful educational websites and/or head off for the library.  Learning new things is invigorating and makes you feel more alive than ever.  Have at it!
  • If you wish you were known for having an easy-going, laid back temper instead of being a hot head – start working on it.

You get the point.  If you aren’t happy with the path you’re on… make a new one.  No one’s making you stay on this one.  Pave your own path and, you know the rules by now, don’t just walk down it, dance.

Dance on!

Are Moods Contagious?

by joi on March 9, 2010

in Positive Thought, Relationships

Ever notice that some people are easier to be around and more enjoyable to hang out with than other people? It isn’t necessarily the things they say or don’t say or the number of times they make us laugh. Actually it all comes down to this: How do they make us feel? How do we feel about life and ourselves when we’re around them?

Scientists from Harvard Medical School and University of California at San Diego tell us that happiness is, indeed, contagious.  What’s more, we can actually “catch” other people’s moods. Their study of more than 5,000 people over a 20 year period found that people are more likely to be happy when the people they spend the most time with are positive and upbeat.

Grumble guts, Eeyores, and Negative Nellys do nothing but pull our moods down to their level. Whether you encounter them online or in person, you’ll find yourself wanting nothing more than to avoid their presence at all costs. They make you feel down, angry, sad, discouraged, tense….

The reason? Mirror Neurons. Mirror neurons are nerve cells in the brain that make us automatically adopt the mood of those around us. The funny thing is, you can even “pick up on” someone’s negative vibes online!  Although I can’t prove it, I personally think some people are more susceptible to these effects than others. For instance, I’m highly, highly, highly susceptible to mirror neurons and their mojo, for better or worse.  If, for example, I come across someone in a comment’s section of a blog who is obviously just trying to pick a fight or be difficult and argumentative – I can literally feel my neck muscles tensing. Their negative energy seems to jump right out at me.

On the other end of the spectrum, when I come across people with positive energy, upbeat attitudes, and great vibes – a smile appears on my face without me even telling it to.

You may or may not feel the effects as strongly or as easily as I do, but make no mistake about it – you feel them.  And if that isn’t reason enough to choose who you hang out with carefully, nothing is.

Here’s the thing.  Ultimately, we can’t make everyone around us play nice and, quite frankly, blowing sunshine up their  keester amuses us far more than it does them.  We can, however, choose how we react to people and their moods.  If there are people in your life who seem to get you down, frustrate you, or on a consistent basis bring about negative feelings – recognize it  and do something about it. Maybe you can’t avoid these people – heck, maybe you don’t even want to.  That’s cool.  Just be on guard against the effect they have on you.  Often, just realizing the tendency can help you keep it from happening.

Try to lift their spirits when you can – make them laugh, help them recall happy memories, smile warmly and smile often.  Approach the time you spend with them determined to have the stronger “mood germs” and make them catch YOUR good mood rather than the other way around!

Give them an ear, give them a shoulder.  But don’t give them the power to affect your day.

Daily Quote: Walt Disney’s Four C’s

by joi on March 5, 2010

in Daily Quote, Positive Thought

Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secret of making his dreams come true.  This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four C’s. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of these is confidence.  When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way.  – Walt Disney

The World as Viewed by Mother Teresa

by joi on March 3, 2010

in Book Reviews, Books I Love, Daily Quote, Helping Children, Make a Difference, Positive Thought, Spiritual

“In these times of development, the whole world runs and is hurried.  But there are some who fall down on the way and have no strength to go ahead.  These are the ones we must care about.” – Mother Teresa

The powerfully beautiful and beautifully powerful quote above is just one of the gems from Mother Teresa found in In the Heart of the World: Thoughts, Stories and Prayers.

Mother Teresa’s name and image will forever be associated with her kindness, gentleness, and compassion.  Her selfless work with the “poorest of the poor” should be an inspiration to all of us.  In the Heart of the World, written by Mother Teresa, is filled with her eloquent wisdom, motivation, and inspirational teachings.  Below are a few more examples.

Be kind in your actions.  Do not think that you are the only one who can do efficient work, work worth showing.  This makes you harsh in your judgment of others who may not have the same talents.  Do your best and trust that others do their best.  And be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength shines.

We too are called to withdraw at certain intervals into deeper silence and aloneness with God, together as a community as well as personally.  To be alone with him – not with our books, thoughts, and memories but completely stripped of everything – to dwell lovingly in his presence, silent, empty, expectant, and motionless.  We cannot find agitation.

If we were more willing to see the good and beautiful things that surround us, we would be able to transform our families.  From there, we would change our next-door neighbors and then others who live in our neighborhood or city.  We would be able to bring peace and love to our world, which hungers so much for these things.

As I read this book, I lost myself in the beauty that was and is Mother Teresa.  Reading her words was so incredibly peaceful and relaxing – yet, at the same time, an unrest crept up inside of me and stirred around.  I realized that there is far more that I can and should do to help others in the world who are far less fortunate.   While on the early pages, I kept thinking, “What the world needs right now is another Mother Teresa.”  But, as I approached the final pages, I thought, “What the world needs right now if for more men and women to start caring more about people and less about possessions.  It needs more hearts that are broken for the suffering of others.  And more people refusing to look the other way.”

We don’t need another Mother Teresa as much as we need to learn from the one we were blessed with.

“I must be willing to give whatever it takes to do good to others.  This requires that I be willing to give until it hurts.  Otherwise, there is no true love in me and I bring injustice, not peace, to those around me.”  – Mother Teresa

The Mother Teresa quotes are from In the Heart of the World: Thoughts, Stories and Prayers

Ann Curry, A Love Story, and Gambaru

by joi on March 2, 2010

in Positive Thought, Spiritual

I recently read an article in Guideposts written by the beautiful Today Show Anchor Ann Curry.  I’ve always been a huge fan of this particular journalist – her grace, compassion, integrity, and intelligence set her apart.

In the article, Ann Curry talks about her parents and her career among other things.  There were quite a few things about the article that stood out in my mind – I even wrote a few of them down.  Suffice to say, I came away an even bigger fan than I was before.  I’ll link to the article below, because I really hope you’ll read it – it’s absolutely beautiful.  But I wanted to share one part of Ann Curry’s story with you here on Self Help Daily.  I’ve thought about her mother several times since reading her story and I’ve written a new favorite word, colorfully, on a piece of paper that now hangs near my computer desk:  Gambaru.

Unless you’re Japanese or fluent in the language, you’re probably not familiar with this word.  I’ll tell you in a moment what it means.

Ann Curry’s mother, Hiroe, was the daughter of a Japanese rice farmer.  Bob Curry, Ann’s father, was a career Navy man who enlisted in the Navy right out of high school. After World War II, as part of the Allied occupation forces, Bob Curry was stationed in Japan.

The war left Hiroe’s family without seed to grow their crop, which obviously put them in a terrible predicament.   At the age of 18 Hiroe had to take a job as a streetcar conductor. Guess who happened to be on her streetcar one day?  You got it, the hero of our story, Bob Curry.  According to Ann, her dad took that very streetcar every day until he worked up the nerve to ask Hiroe on a date.

His efforts paid off and they went out for noodles.  They fell deeply and completely in love, but their road wasn’t paved with rose petals.

During this time, the Navy disapproved of marriages between American servicemen and Japanese women.  Sadly, Bob Curry was shipped out of Japan. It took two years, but he managed to get sent back to Japan.   You knew he wasn’t going to give up that easily, right?!

He later told his daughter that when he took Hiroe into his arms, he realized how painfully thin she had gotten.  As it turned out she had tuberculosis and wasn’t even expected to live.

Bob Curry ingeniously used her healthy sister’s lung X rays to get clearance from Navy doctors, and married her anyway!  Now that she was a U.S. military wife, she was able to get the medical care she needed.   Hiroe went on to have 5 healthy children, including the oldest, Ann Curry.

Hiroe endured bombing raids and starvation during World War II.   With the love of Bob Curry, she survived TB and lived to tell about it.  She also had to overcome language barriers and even racism when she came to the United States.  All of that is what makes the following (as well as the colorful word on my cork board) so special.

Ann Curry, thanks to financial struggles (five children on a serviceman’s income had to have been a challenge) and coming from a mixed heritage (during a time when that wasn’t very common or smiled upon), knew a few things about adversity.  Whenever she felt the sting of the challenges, Ann says that her mom always told her,“Gambaru.”

Gambaru  is Japanese for “Never ever give up, even and especially when there’s no chance of winning.”

This story is more than just a love story, it’s a story of perseverance and it’s most definitely a story of Gambaru.

Credit: An Act of Faith by Ann Curry

Mickey Mantle: The Man Behind the Legend

by joi on February 24, 2010

in Articles, General, Positive Thought

After I hit a home run I had a habit of running the bases with my head down. I figured the pitcher already felt bad enough without me showing him up rounding the bases. – Mickey Mantle

If there’s a better illustration of character, than the quote above gives, I’d love to see it.  In an era where most athletes love nothing more than gloating and showboating, Mickey Mantle could teach everyone a thing or two (or a gazillion) about what it really means to have character as well as talent.  After all, the talent will fade eventually whereas character never has to go anywhere.

As we lead up to Baseball season (I’m as big a baseball fan as you’ll ever find – whether it’s my St. Louis Cardinals or any random team, if there’s a baseball game on tv or the radio, you’ll know where to find me), I thought it’d be fun to look at a different baseball player each week and learn a little more about them.  I’ve pulled out some fantastic quotes and stories from some of these men and I know you’ll enjoy them, whether you’re a baseball fan or not.  (If you aren’t a baseball fan, please don’t tell me.  I… I… don’t want to see you like that.)

Mickey Mantle:  The Man Behind the Legend

Mickey Mantle was born in 1931 in Spavinaw, Oklahoma – a small town put on the map by the baseball giant.  Mickey’s parents were Elvin Charles Mantle and Lovell Mantle. Mickey’s dad, a huge baseball fan, named his son after Mickey Cochrane, a Hall of Fame catcher for the, then, Philadelphia Athletics.

Mickey Mantle always spoke very highly and lovingly of his father, calling him the bravest man he ever knew. “No boy ever loved his father more,” he said. Tragically, his father died of cancer in 1952 at the ridiculously young age of 39.  To compound the tragedy, he died just as his son’s amazing career was just getting started.

“A team is where a boy can prove his courage on his own. A gang is where a coward goes to hide.” – Mickey Mantle

Mickey Mantle was called up to the majors on April 7, 1951.   How’s this for high praise? – Joe DiMaggio, in his final season, called Mantle, “the greatest prospect I can remember.”

After a bit of a slump, Mantle was sent down to the Yankees’ top farm team, the Kansas City Blues. Possibly due to frustrations and putting too much pressure on himself, Mickey struggled and became so overwhelmed that he was ready to throw in the proverbial towel.   He even called his father one day and told him, “I don’t think I can play baseball anymore.”  Like any good father would, his dad drove up to Kansas City that very day. When he arrived, Mickey remembered that he said, “I thought I raised a man. I see I raised a coward instead. You can come back to Oklahoma and work the mines with me.”

The mines never saw the younger Mantle.

Mickey immediately broke out of his slump and after 40 games, he was called back to New York.  For good.

The great number 7 was retired by the New York Yankees in Mickey Mantle’s honor and he was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1974, as soon as he was eligible.

“I hated to bat against (Don) Drysdale. After he hit you he’d come around, look at the bruise on your arm and say, ‘Do you want me to sign it?’” – Mickey Mantle

Unfortunately, even great baseball players have their demons and Mickey’s was alcoholism.  He sought treatment and got the upper hand on the demon.  Sportscaster Pat Summerall was one of the main people who urged him to go to The Betty Ford Clinic.

Mickey Mantle spoke with great, deep-seeded remorse and heartache about his alcoholism in a 1994 Sports Illustrated story. He said that he was telling the same old stories, and realizing how much of them involved himself and others being drunk, and he decided they weren’t funny anymore.

“It was all I lived for, to play baseball.” – Mickey Mantle

He acknowledged that alcohol had caused him to often be hurtful or neglectful to his family, friends, and fans, and that he wanted to make things right.

Mickey Mantle became a born-again Christian thanks, in part, to his former teammate Bobby Richardson, an ordained Baptist minister who shared his faith with him.

Mickey died in Dallas on August 13, 1995.  During the first Yankee home game after his death, Eddie Layton played “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” on the organ because Mickey had once told him it was his favorite song.

In his eulogy, sportscaster Bob Costas described Mickey Mantle  as “a fragile hero to whom we had an emotional attachment so strong and lasting that it defied logic.” He added: “In the last year of his life, Mickey Mantle, always so hard on himself, finally came to accept and appreciate the distinction between a role model and a hero. The first, he often was not. The second, he always will be. And, in the end, people got it.”

“Somebody once asked me if I ever went up to the plate trying to hit a home run. I said, ‘Sure, every time.’” – Mickey Mantle

See Also: Quotes by Mickey Mantle

Respect: Is It a Word We’ve All But Forgotten?

by joi on February 23, 2010

in Positive Thought, Relationships

Every human being, of whatever origin, of whatever station, deserves respect. We must each respect others even as we respect ourselves. - U Thant

I’ve been thinking about respect lately. Not necessarily having respect for yourself and definitely not demanding respect from others. I’ve been thinking about respecting others and the blatant lack of this practice these days. I’m not a Pollyanna – I know we’ll all disagree with one another from time to time. I know there are some people who we’ll disagree with more often than we agree with them. Seriously, there are some individuals that I think would say grass was orange just to stir up a debate.

But this isn’t about the other person, is it? Respecting others begins in our own hearts and minds. If we consistently show a lack of respect toward others, the problem isn’t with them as much as it’s with us.

As you may know, I’m from the south – a fact that I’m very proud of… just as I’d be very proud to be from Minnesota or Iowa if my birth certificate boasted these states instead of Kentucky.   I think that being from the south often gives one a different view of the world. Maybe it’s the way we’re raised and the way our ancestors were raised, I don’t know. Anyway, where I come from….

  • men open doors for ladies
  • ladies appreciate the opened door, smile, and say “Thank You!“
  • men try very hard not to swear in front of women
  • men and women respect their Presidents, servicemen and women, Police Officers, etc.
  • The Bible is the Good Word – always has been, always will be
  • God is God.  He isn’t just a “higher power” or “the Man upstairs.”  (Come on, God isn’t such a hard name to say!)

The list goes on, but these are simply things I grew up with.  I suspect that many of you did as well – whether you’re from the north, south, east, or west.

Back to respect.

I am astounded lately at the number of people in the media, on blogs, in books, on television, and so on who show so much disrespect toward our Presidents -  Whether it’s President Obama or recent Presidents Carter, Clinton, Bush Sr. or Bush Jr.    I miss the day when people respected the office and the men in the office, whether they agreed with everything they stood for or not.

Yesterday, I was reading a really good (make that really, really, really good) book by an author who came across as highly intelligent, witty, and very gifted.  Then, out of the blue, this author referred to one of our recent presidents as a “fool.”  I re-read the passage again, to make sure I hadn’t taken it wrong.  This wasn’t even a political book for crying out loud.

A President.  In print.  A fool.  Not cool.

Men are respectable only as they respect. – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Again, I know I have different opinions than many people (including this author) and I have an incredibly idealistic view of the world.    I know that, I own it as surely as I own my obsession with chocolate.  I admit, I don’t even care for the comedians who mock President Obama or Sarah Palin.  I know that’s going too far on my part, but there you have it.  I also didn’t like a particular magazine cover that displayed Mrs. Palin in shorts (looking like she’d been working on a farm), with a headline asking what we were going to do about her. Where’s the respect in that?  You may not agree with everything she or President Obama do or say, but a level of respect isn’t so much to ask for.

After all, when we show respect to others it reflects directly upon us and the level of respect we command.  Do you respect disrespectful people? Neither do I.

Something else, while I’m on a roll.  I hate the unprofessional manner that a lot of people are doing business online.  To use your blog, forum, social media, or whatever platform to attack another person’s integrity, work, ethics, popularity, or even hairstyle (don’t know where that one came from to be honest) just isn’t cool.  You know what it’s like?  When one adult “calls out” another adult on their own turf, it’s like a 13 year old girl running down another 13 year old girl on her own MySpace.  It’s her turf, she can say whatever she wants about the other girl – vent, baby, vent!  What’s more, she can have her own friends respond and say, “You’re so right! I don’t like her either!”

But you can’t expect all 13 year old girls to have the maturity to take up disagreements and disputes face to face, without an audience.

Kids call names and try to create a “pick sides” atmosphere.  Adults don’t.  Adults shouldn’t.

Again, a lot of it comes down to our buzz word of the day: R-E-S-P-E-C-T.   Now I guess you found out what it means to me…

What does it mean to you?

Respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others guides our manners. – Laurence Sterne

Kicking Bad Habits to the Curb

by joi on February 22, 2010

in Health, Positive Thought

Every now and then, one of the always fascinating comments left on Self Help Daily will be so dead on that I just have to share it with everyone. Richard, from RWP Solutions, left a comment on the Is Soda as Bad For Us as Smoking post.  I’ve never smoked but I’ve been a first class Diet Dr. Pepper addict for years and years.  And years.

Richard had the following to say about smoking, “As a smoker I am finding that I am addicted to the act of smoking as much as I am the smoke itself. I crave picking something up, putting it in my mouth, stomping it out. I need to have something to do with my hands and I find myself using cigarettes as “thinking” aids.”

He makes an outstanding point – we often are more addicted to the actions than the results.  When I’m thirsty – water, tea, juice… any liquid satisfies the thirst.  It isn’t as though diet soda is the only drink that makes the thirst go away.   In fact, tea chases thirst out of town like Matt Dillon chases out cowboys with ill intent.

Sometimes when it comes to things that have a tight hold on us, I think it’s more of a habit than a preference.  The problem is, say what you will, habits are comforting.  If mashed potatoes and chocolate pudding are comfort foods – which they surely are – then habits are comfort feels.  I enjoy buying my bottles or cans of diet soda, I enjoy buying it in restaurants, I enjoy drinking it as I work at my computer.  It feels good.  It feels comfortable.

But I have finally gotten the upper hand.   I have pretty much outsmarted myself because I switched “holds” and switched “comforts.”  Now, instead of having a diet drink near me, my cat, and my coffee all day – I have iced tea (either black, green, or flavored tea) in the happy mix.

If you have an addiction or a bad habit that you’re trying to weed out of your life, try not to focus so much on the addiction or the habit, itself.  This only gives it strength, power, and increases its hold.  That’s the last thing you need!  Focus, instead, on your strength and your resolve.  Focus on things that give you similar comfort and happiness.  If smoking is YOUR Diet soda-type hold, find other things to do with your hands – especially during those critical times when you want to smoke the most.  Keep suckers or hard candy on hand.

Only you know what will work for you, because only you know what it is that you need.  I’m simply here to tell you that you are stronger than the addiction or the habit – after all, you’ve been around longer!  You created it, it didn’t create you.

Look it dead in the eye, lower your voice to an intimidating level and say, “I brought you into this world and I can take you out.”  Then back up the tough attitude with a tough plan.  I believe in you 100 percent and I raise my glass of iced green tea to your success.

A nail is driven out by another nail. Habit is overcome by habit. – Desiderius Erasmus

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