988. "Better be wise by the misfortunes of others, than by your own."

"Better be wise by the misfortunes of others, than by your own." Aesop

In a past post I wrote about learning from your mistakes. The truth is that mistakes and misfortunes happen to everyone and you must learn from them to become better. However, you are not always required to be the one who makes the mistake. Many mistakes can be avoided by studying others. In school I was always told that we take History courses so we do not repeat the past. I believe this should relate to all aspects of life. If the mistake has been made, why not try to learn about it?

The only way you can learn from others mistakes is to either see it happen or read about it. This is why I encourage reading a lot of books, especially autobiographies and any book that the author gives insight about his trials and tribulations. Also mistakes are made everyday but many people, so be observant and you can avoid these same incidents.

Mistakes are part of life, and you will certainly make many in your life. The goal here is to avoid all that are possible, and by learning from others you will be more equipped to spot and avoid a mistake before it happens. So start reading about other people mistakes and start observing people as they make and recover from their misfortunes.

990. "A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval."

"A man cannot be comfortable without his own approval." Mark Twain


I believe this goes with being comfortable and having confidence. If you're low in self confidence or uncomfortable with yourself, you will continue to lack confidence and be uncomfortable in life. What I encourage all to do, is try to improve yourself everyday. Set longterm goals and use everyday as a short-term approach. What I mean by that is set large objectives for yourself; lose 20 pounds, or be able to talk to women comfortably, or learn a new hobby. Then each day do something small to help towards these goals. Perhaps exercise or not eat dessert, maybe talk to the girl next to you when you're getting coffee or pumping your gas, and for a new hobby read a new article on the subject or ask someone about it. 

Each of these small tasks will eventually lead you to your ultimate goal. Remember my older post "Every artist was first an amateur." In order for someone to have lost weight, they had to have taken small steps. In order for someone to be a ladies man, they had to have started with small conversation. And in order for something to learn a new hobby, they must have started at the beginning. When you finally accomplish these goals, you'll be amazed at the self-confidence you receive and you will begin to become more comfortable with yourself. Setting goals, and accomplishing them is one of the greatest ways to build confidence, and when you're confidence you will certainly be comfortable with yourself. So start making that list of goals today.

993. "Every artist was first an amateur."

"Every artist was first an amateur." Ralph Waldo Emerson

Practice, Practice, Practice. Going off my last post about having role models and heroes, this post is about how to because others role models and heroes. At one point in time, every CEO was a high schooler, every MLB player struck out for the first, second, third time, etc, and every actor was in his first play. Not many people are born into the limelight (unless your Paris Hilton). 

To become famous, or enviable, you have to put in your time. The "Mona Lisa" wasn't Da Vinci's first attempt at art. His first ever drawing was probably just as bad as yours or mine (maybe a little better). If you have an interest, but think you won't be good at it, just try and keep at it. I'm not musically incline, so I didn't think I could play the harmonica, but now I can. If you want to be good at something, just keep practicing and hustling and you will be eventually. However, you have to start somewhere. Just thinking you would like to be good at something will get you nowhere. So act on you desires, act on your dreams and hustle and practice until you drop. Don't worry about failing and falling, pick yourself up and keep working. Eventually you'll succeed.

994. "As you get older it is harder to have heroes, but it is sort of necessary."

"As you get older it is harder to have heroes, but it is sort of necessary." Ernest Hemingway


Think back to when you were a kid. Most of us had heroes, idols, or role models. I know I had many. I idolized Ken Griffey Jr. and Chipper Jones. Every chance I had, I tried to emulate these guys. I had Griffey's swing down pat, and I batted righty. I also looked up to Shaq. Since I was taller than everyone in 7th grade, I beasted the boards. The fact is, I probably wouldn't have been as good of an athlete if I learned on my own, instead of emulating this guys. So why stop having role models and heroes when we grow up? It's important to look up to someone at any point in your life. 


People who we regard as heroes are almost always great at what they do. They reached this point not without making mistakes either. So if we aspire to be them, we can possibly avoid the mistakes they made in their life. I currently have taken on a new role model, Richard Branson. The way he puts the customer first in his business endeavors is something I aspire to do (his ability to always leave room for fun is also something I admire). 


Role models and heroes don't have to be in sports, or in business, they can be anyone in your family, Mother Theresa, Christopher Columbus, etc. No matter what age you are, I encourage everyone to always have a hero and aspire to emulate aspects of their life. This will always give you a goal and something to strive for.

995. "A great man is always willing to be little."

"A great man is always willing to be little." Ralph Waldo Emerson


Great leaders are born and made, in my opinion. There is a certain knack for leadership, that some people just have. It's hard for you to define leadership but a wise man once told me the best definition ever. He said, "you can't define leadership, but when you see it, you know it." And strongly believe this is true, when you see a leader in action, it resonates with leadership. There are those who lead with an iron fist (but you need an absurd amount of power to do this), there are some who lead from a high pedestal (but you also need a lot of power). And the fact about both of these types of leaders is that their subordinates do not like them much.


In those two examples, their subordinates follow because they must, but at first change they will leave or kill the leader. The best way to lead is in the midst of your follows. Julius Caesar would never send his men to do what he wouldn't do himself, Lieutenant General "Chesty" Puller made sure to always fight with his men. The fact of the matter is, if you want to be a great leader, you must be with the majority. This is for three reasons. 


The first reason is because you will know your followers needs and wants more closely, and without your followers, you are nothing. The second is you will earn the respect of your followers because they know you are right their with them, feeling the same things they feel. And third and possibly most important is that you will be able to bond with your followers, there is nothing greater than a close, tight knit "family". This doesn't just apply to war scenarios but any aspect in life where you want to be a leader. Be it in a group project, a group of friends, an organization you belong to. If there's one thing to learn from this is to never let power go to your head, stay the little guy while being the leader and earn respect along the way. Have a good weekend and ill be back on monday!