“Sometimes a noble failure serves the world as faithfully as a distinguished success.”   
 
Dowden
 
Can you fail and begin again without breathing a word of your loss? Leave a comment about what you learned from your biggest failure.

“The person who respects themselves is safe from others; they wear a coat of armor that none can pierce.”   
 
Longfellow
 
Do you respect yourself enough to always do the right thing? Leave a comment about how you respect yourself.
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 “I am not here to make a living; I am here to make a life.”  
 
Helice Bridges
 
Is what you do for a living leading you to an unbelievable life? Comment on your unbelievable life.
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Fourteen Ways to Improve Your Self-Discipline
 
 
Sadly, your natural genius and an occasional burst of hard work are not quite enough to guarantee success in this life. It takes a lot of consistency and determination to get your great ideas recognized. It is ironic, then, that self-discipline is often a feature that the brightest people among us lack the most.
 
If you are concerned that your lack of self-discipline is holding you back from fulfilling your potential, you can remedy this by trying a range of techniques to sharpen your focus. Self-discipline is a muscle you can exercise and strengthen.
 
 
Number 1: Start on Monday. Researchers found that setting a date or event to mark the start of a new regimen can make you more likely to follow through on your goals.
 
Number 2: Write down your reasons for self-discipline. Affirmations strengthen self-control by focusing on higher values rather than on immediate impulses.
 
Number 3: Visualize how you will benefit from your own efforts. Studies have shown that your willpower lasts longer if you motivate yourself with positive effects of your self-control.
 
Number 4: Prepare a plan of what you’ll say and do if temptation arises. This is a proven technique taken from self-regulation strategies. For example, “If someone offers me dessert, I’ll ask for fruit.”  
 
Number 5: Combine something you want to do with something you need to do. A published study from Management Science found this forms good habits by pairing a “should” behavior with a “want” behavior.   
 
Number 6: Hide temptation in hard to reach places. Test have repeatedly shown that hiding candy from view makes you more likely to resist indulging.
 
Number 7: Set an alarm for bedtime to get a full eight-hours of sleep.  Sleep deprivation can impair the way your prefrontal cortex works, which is the part of your brain where self-regulation takes place.
 
Number 8: Ask friends to keep an eye out for bad habits you fall easily into. One study showed you’re better at self-control when given repeated reminders.  
 
Number 9: Weigh all your options before making a decision. Psychology Today states that making an instant decision can result in poorer choices.  
 
Number 10:  Drink hot water, lemon and a tablespoon of honey. Science shows that a fall in willpower can be tied to lower glucose levels.
 
Number 11: Avoid drinking alcohol. Research shows alcohol can compromise self-discipline by reducing your ability to reflect on the consequences of your actions.
 
Number 12: Use visual reminders. Data shows that leaving meaningful cues around your home can remind you to stay strong.
 
Number 13: Surround yourself with self-disciplined people. Research has shown that undisciplined people wishing to improve, gravitate towards people with more self-control – these people can form an effective support group. 
 
Number 14: Make sure your self-discipline is for you and not someone else. Studies show your willpower is depleted when you try to please others instead of focusing on your own goals and desires.
  
 
From the article: 14 Ways to Improve Your Self-Discipline by SUCCESS Staff – May 23, 2017 – SUCCESS Magazine

“The rung of a ladder was never meant to rest upon, but only to hold a person’s foot long enough to enable them to put the other somewhat higher.”   
 
Thomas Huxley
 
Haven’t you rested long enough? Isn’t it time to take the next step toward your dreams? Leave a comment about how you will take that next step.
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“Public sentiment is everything. With public sentiment nothing can fail. Without it, nothing can succeed.”   
 
Abraham Lincoln

Are you persuasive enough to get others to believe in your ideas?
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“There will always be a frontier where there is an open mind and a willing hand.” 
 
Charles F. Keeting
 
Is your mind open and your body ready to ride across your personal frontier?

“When you can do the common things of life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world.” - George Washington Carver
 
What common things do you do in an uncommon way each day?

“Your talents are God’s gift to you. What you do with them is your gift back to God.”    
 
Leo Buscaglia
 
How are you using your talents to bless others?

“Wise men learn more from fools than fools from the wise; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the success of the wise.”   
 
Cato
 
What was the last thing you learned not to do?
 

"God didn’t make me like this because I couldn’t handle it. God made me like this because I CAN!!” Those were the words spoken by Sebian Holiday. Sebian lived seventeen years on this earth with a form of muscular myopathy that left his body twisted and contorted. Since doctors told his family he most likely wouldn't live past nine years of age, just waking up each day was a victory for Sebian. The disease may have distorted his body, but his mind remained untouched. Sebian was the epitome of mental toughness.
In a world where so many young people ask, “What’s in it for me?”, Sebian asked a different question. Sebian wanted to know, “How can I make a difference?”
With the help of his father, Keithan Holiday, who Sebian described as his best friend, they opened Seb’s Recreations Center in Aurora, Colorado. The Rec Center was Sebian’s vision of providing a place for all abled and disabled people to go to improve their mind, body and spirit. Seven months after opening the Center, Sebian would be gone from this world.
But the love he had for his family and those in his community would live on in the form of his Rec Center. He was truly a remarkable young man who God provided to us as a gift to learn what love and courage looked like. To learn more about Sebian and his Rec Center and to find out how you can help Keithan continue Sebian's legacy, please visit sebsrec.org.