Build a Cage and the Bird will Come

“If I keep a green bough in my heart, the singing bird will come.” Chinese Proverb

Paul J. Meyer tells the story that he bought a beautiful, ornate, antique birdcage, which he proudly hung in his home. Every time people visited his home, they asked him, “Where’s the bird?” Eventually, he went out and bought a bird for the cage. When we prepare to succeed, expect to win and believe in our goals, it’s almost inevitable that we will accomplish them. What we think about comes about. Our minds are mental magnets. It pays to be an optimist.

A good illustration of the power and benefits of an optimistic attitude is that of two wheels rolling over the same, bumpy road. The road represents the troubles and tribulations, which everyone has to face in life. One wheel represents an optimist. It’s a big wheel. The other wheel represents a pessimist. It’s a small wheel. As you can imagine, the big wheel rolls easily over the bumps. While the small wheel (the pessimist) has a tough, up and down experience. Optimists don’t suffer to the same extent as pessimists do, even though they handle the same difficulties.

Life is simply easier when you choose optimism. The sun shines brighter and fear gives way to faith. One has more energy and one certainly attracts excellent people into one’s life. Optimism, like enthusiasm, is contagious; it spills over. Winners don’t hang around with pessimists. Calvin Coolidge said, “If you see ten troubles coming down the road, you can be sure that nine will run into the ditch before they reach you.” We really do attract things into our lives with our thoughts. In addition, optimism makes it easier to deal with the difficult times, which we all face. Walter Winchell described an optimist as a man who gets treed by a lion but enjoys the scenery.

The easiest way that I have found to remain optimistic is to mix with winners, only allow positive input into my life, and to manage what I say. I focus on what I want, instead of what I don’t want. I believe in myself and my goals and I generously share the benefits I receive with those who work with me. And, of course, it helps to be married to best woman in the world.

I’ll end off with this quote. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, “The essence of optimism is that it takes no account of the present, but it is a source of inspiration, of vitality and hope where others have resigned; it enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself, and not to abandon it to his enemy.”

Robin J. Elliott www.DollarMakers.com