EINSTEIN– A Scientific Genius or Spiritual Master…or both ?

Albert Einstein was born in 1879 in Germany, a physicist who developed the general theory of relativity in 1915, which he considered the culmination (peak) of his life research. In 1921, he won the Nobel Prize for physics for his explanation of the photoelectric effect. He was immigrated to the U.S. when Adolf Hitler came to power in 1933 and, being Jewish, did not go back to Germany; he died in 1955, in U.S.

He is considered the most influential physicist of the 20th century.

Einstein clarifies that he does not believe in a God who rewards and punishes humans. Furthermore, he expresses certainty in the view that there is no afterlife for humans, and that people who believe in such a hope do so either because of “fear or absurd egoism.” 

               pic - Einstein discussing Science and God with Indian spiritual teacher Tagore

Why did Einstein, Feynman and Hawking all conclude that the past, present and future all exist simultaneously?

 Surprising as it may be to most non-scientists and even to some scientists, Einstein concluded in his later years that the past, present and future all exist simultaneously.

Einstein's belief in an undivided solid reality was clear to him, so much so that he completely rejected the separation we experience as the moment of now.

He believed there is no true division between past and future, there is rather a single existence.

His most descriptive testimony to this faith came when his lifelong friend Besso died. Einstein wrote a letter to Besso's family, saying that although Besso had preceded him in death it was of no consequence, "...for us physicists believe the separation between past, present and future is only an illusion, although a convincing one."

Most everyone knows that Einstein proved that time is relative, not absolute as Newton claimed. With the proper technology, such as a very fast spaceship, one person is able to experience several days while another person.

 simultaneously experiences only a few hours or minutes. The same two people can meet up again, one having experienced days or even years while the other has only experienced minutes.

The person in the spaceship only needs to travel near to the speed of light. The faster they travel, the slower their time will pass relative to someone planted firmly on the Earth. If they were able to travel at the speed of light, their time would cease completely and they would only exist trapped in timelessness.

So in summary, the universe we see is just a fragment (piece) nested in a timeless whole (everything). All universes exist without beginning or end in the ultimate arena of time, and each moment we experience exists forever.

From the book ‘’The World As I See’’………by Einstein

Question - What is the meaning of human life, or of organic life altogether?

Einstein Answered - Society and Personality When we survey our lives and endeavors we soon observe that almost the whole of our actions and desires are bound up with the existence of other human beings. We eat food that others have grown, wear clothes that others have made, live in houses that others have built. The greater part of our knowledge and beliefs has been communicated to us by other people through the medium of a language which others have created. Without language our mental capacities would be poor indeed, comparable to those of the higher animals; we have, therefore, to admit that we owe our principal advantage over the beasts to the fact of living in human society.

The individual, if left alone from birth would remain primitive and beast-like in his thoughts and feelings to a degree that we can hardly conceive. It looks at first sight as if our estimate of a man depended entirely on his social qualities. It is clear that all the valuable things, material, spiritual, and moral, which we receive from society, can be traced back through countless generations to certain creative individuals. The use of fire, the cultivation of edible plants and the steam engine--each was discovered by one man.

Of Wealth I am absolutely convinced that no wealth in the world can help humanity forward, even in the hands of the most devoted worker in this cause. The example of great and pure characters is the only thing that can produce fine ideas and noble deeds. Money only appeals to selfishness and always tempts its owners irresistibly to abuse it. Can anyone imagine Moses, Jesus or Gandhi armed with the money-bags of Carnegie?

Einstein Quotes on Science

"Imagination is more important than knowledge."

"People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly (willfully) persistent illusion."

"The only reason for time is so that everything doesn't happen at once."

"Any intelligent fool can make things bigger and more complex... It takes a touch of genius --- and a lot of courage to move in the opposite direction."

"When forced to summarize the general theory of relativity in one sentence: Time and space and gravitation have no separate existence from matter."

"I don't believe in mathematics, science is a wonderful thing if one does not have to earn one's living at it."

"I maintain that the cosmic religious feeling is the strongest and noblest motive for scientific research."

“If we want to improve the world we cannot do it with scientific knowledge but with ideals. Confucius, Buddha, Jesus and Gandhi have done more for humanity than science has done.’’

 “I believe that we don’t need to worry about what happens after this life, as long as we do our duty here—to love and to serve’’

“I like to experience the universe as one harmonious whole. Every cell has life. Matter, too, has life; it is energy solidified. Our bodies are like prisons, and I look forward to be free, but I don’t speculate on what will happen to me.’’

Einstein Quotes on Religion

"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."

"I want to know God's thoughts...the rest are details."

"I cannot conceive of a personal God who would directly influence the actions of individuals, or would directly sit in judgment on creatures of his own creation.

"Strange is our situation here upon this earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to a divine purpose."

"Human beings, vegetables, or cosmic dust, we all dance to a mysterious tune intoned in the distance by an invisible player."

"Do you believe in immortality? No, and one life is enough for me."

"Scientists were rated as great heretics by the church, but they were truly religious men because of their faith in the orderliness of the universe."

"When the solution is simple, God is answering." 

Einstein Quotes on Humanity

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has exceeded our humanity."

"I know not with what weapons World War III will be fought, but World War IV will be fought with sticks and stones."

"Only a life lived for others are a life worthwhile."

"The world is a dangerous place, not because of those who do evil, but because of those who look on and do nothing."

"Try not to be a person of success, but rather a person of virtue (quality)."

"Try not to become a man of success but rather to become a man of value."

"So long as there are men there will be wars."

"I believe in standardizing automobiles, not human beings."

"Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character."

"The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained liberation from the self." 

Einstein Quotes on Education

"Teaching should be such that what is offered is perceived as a valuable gift and not as a hard duty."

"Example isn't another way to teach, it is the only way to teach."

"Wisdom is not a product of schooling but of the life-long attempt to acquire it."

"We know nothing at all. All our knowledge is but the knowledge of schoolchildren. The real nature of things we shall never know."

"You teach me baseball and I'll teach you relativity...No we must not You will learn about relativity faster than I learn baseball." 

Einstein Quotes on General

"Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler."

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."

"Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one."

"Great spirits have always found violent opposition from mediocrities. The latter cannot understand it when a man does not thoughtlessly submit to hereditary prejudices but honestly and courageously uses his intelligence."

"The intuitive (natural) mind is a blessed gift and the rational mind is a faithful servant. We have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift."

"We have to do the best we can. This is our sacred human responsibility."

"Where there is love there is no question."

"I think and think for months and years, ninety-nine times, the conclusion is false. The hundredth time I am right."

"Those instrumental goods which should serve to maintain the life and health of all human beings should be produced by the least possible labor of all."

"The search for truth is more precious than its possession."

"I have no special talents. I am only passionately curious."

"Few are those who see with their own eyes and feel with their own hearts."

"Isn't it strange that I who have written only unpopular books should be such a popular fellow?"

"He who joyfully marches in rank and file has already earned my contempt. He has been given a large brain by mistake, since for him the spinal cord would suffice."

"Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results."

"Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow. The important thing is to not stop questioning."

"I never think of the future. It comes soon enough."

"I have deep faith that the principle of the universe will be beautiful and simple."

"The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing."

"Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving."

"I am neither especially clever nor especially gifted. I am only very, very curious."

"If A equals success, then the formula is: A = X + Y + Z, X is work. Y is play. Z is keeping your mouth shut."

"The ideals that have lighted my way and time after time have given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty and Truth."

"Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new."

"Do not worry about your problems with mathematics; I assure you mine are far greater."

"Intellectuals solve problems; geniuses prevent them."

"Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. THAT'S relativity."

"The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of thinking we were at when we created them."

"I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world."

"Joy in looking and comprehending is nature's most beautiful gift."

"There are two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle."

"As punishment for my contempt for authority, Fate has made me an authority myself."

"I want to know how God created this world. I am not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of this or that element. I want to know His thoughts; the rest are details."

"We are in the position of a little child entering a huge library filled with books in many different languages. The child knows someone must have written those books. It does not know how. It does not understand the languages in which they are written. The child dimly suspects a mysterious order in the arrangement of the books but doesn't know what it is. That, it seems to me, is the attitude of even the most intelligent human being toward God. We see a universe marvelously arranges and obeying certain laws, but only dimly understand these laws. Our limited minds cannot grasp the mysterious force that moves the constellations."

"The value of a man resides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving."

"When you sit with a nice girl for two hours, you think it's only a minute. But when you sit on a hot stove for a minute, you think its two hours. That's relativity of time."

"The problems that exist in the world today cannot be solved by the level of thinking that created them."

"I admit that thoughts influence the body."

"A photograph never grows old. You and I change, people change all through the months and years but a photograph always remains the same. How nice to look at a photograph of mother or father taken many years ago. You see them as you remember them. But as people live on, they change completely. That is why I think a photograph can be kind."

"I am content in my later years. I have kept my good humor and take neither myself nor the next person seriously." 

KEY TO SUCCESS

Success is no mystery, but simply the result of consistently applying some basic principles. The reverse is just as true: Failure is simply a result of making a few mistakes repeatedly.

HOW DO WE MEASURE SUCCESS?

True success is measured by the feeling of knowing you have done a job well and have achieved your objective.Success is not measured by our position in life but by the obstacles we overcame to get there.

Success in life is not determined by how we are doing compared with others, but by how we are doing compared with what we are capable of doing. Successful people compete against themselves. They better their own record and keep improving constantly.

Success is not measured by how high we go up in life but by how many times we bounce back when we fall down. It is this bounce back ability that determines success.

EVERY SUCCESS STORY IS ALSO A STORY OF GREAT FAILURE

Failure is the highway to success. Tom Watson Sr. said, "If you want to succeed, double your failure rate."

A man who failed in business at the age of 21; was defeated in a legislative race at age 22; failed again in business at age 24; overcame the death of his sweetheart at age 26; had a nervous breakdown at age 27; lost a congressional race at age 34; lost a senatorial race at age 45; failed in an effort to become vice-president at age 47; lost a senatorial race at age 49; and was elected president of the United States at age 52. This man was Abraham Lincoln.

Would you call him a failure? He could have quit. But to Lincoln, defeat was a detour and not a dead end.

In 1914, Thomas Edison, at age 67, lost his factory, which was worth a few million dollars, to fire. It had very little insurance. No longer a young man, Edison watched his lifetime effort go up in smoke and said, "There is great value in disaster. All our mistakes are burnt up. Thank God we can start anew." In spite of disaster, three weeks later, he invented the phonograph. What an attitude!

LIFE IS FULL OF CHOICES AND COMPROMISES

How is Life Full of Choices?

When we eat too much, we make a choice to be overweight. When we drink too much, we make a choice to have a headache the next day. If you drink and drive, you make a choice to risk being killed or killing someone in an accident. When we ill treat people, we make a choice to be ill-treated in return. When we don't care about other people, we make a choice not to be cared for by other people.

Choices have consequences. We are free to make our choice but after we have chosen, the choice controls us. We have equal opportunity to be unequal. The choice is ours. Life can be compared to a pottery maker who shapes clay in any form he wants. Similarly, we can mold our lives into any shape we want.

How is Life Full of Compromises?

Life is not just party and pleasure; it is also pain and despair. Unthinkable things happen. Sometimes every­thing turns upside down. Bad things happen to good people. Some things are beyond control, such as we cannot choose our parents or the circumstances of our birth. So if the ball bounced that way, sorry. But what do we do from here; cry or take the ball and run? That is a choice we have to make.

We can choose our attitude even though we cannot always choose our circumstances. The choice is either to act like a victor or a victim. It is not our position but our disposition that determines our destiny.

It takes both rain and sunshine to create a rainbow. Our lives are no different. There is happiness and sorrow. There is the good and the bad; dark and bright spots. If we can handle adversity, it only strengthens us. We cannot control all the events that happen in our lives, but we can control how we deal with them.

Richard Blechnyden wanted to promote Indian tea at the St. Louis World fair in 1904. It was very hot and no one wanted to sample his tea. Blechnyden saw that all the other iced drinks were doing flourishing business. It dawned on him to make his tea into an iced drink, mix in sugar and sell it. He did and people loved it. That was the introduction of iced tea to the world.

When things go wrong, as they sometimes will, we can react responsibly or resentfully.

Human beings are not like an action which has no choice. An action cannot decide whether to become a giant tree or to become food for the squirrels. Human beings have choices. If nature gives us a lemon, we have a choice: either cry or make lemonade.

QUALITIES THAT MAKE A PERSON SUCCESSFUL

1. Desire

The motivation to succeed comes from the burning desire to achieve a purpose. Napoleon Hill wrote, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve."

A burning desire is the starting point of all accomplishment. Just like a small fire cannot give much heat, a weak desire cannot produce great results.

2.       Commitment

Integrity and wisdom are the two pillars on which to build and keep commitments. This point is best illustrated by the manager, who told one of his staff members, "Integrity is keeping your commitment even if you lose money and wisdom is not to make such foolish commitments."

Success is not in the achievement but in the achieving. Some people never try because they are afraid to lose. At the same time, they don't want to stay where they are because they are afraid to be left behind. There is a risk either way. Ships that go out into the open water face risk from a storm. But if they sit in the harbor, they would rust and that is not what they were built for. That is the difference between playing to win and playing not to lose. One cannot be committed and not take risks. People who play to win thrive on pressure and those who play not to lose don't know how to succeed.

Pressure makes people who play to win, prepare harder. For those who play not to lose, the pressure saps the energy. They want to win but they are so afraid to lose that they can't reach their full potential. They lose energy worrying about losing instead concentrating their efforts on winning.

Losers want security, winners seek opportunity. Losers are more afraid of life than death. Failing is not a crime but lack of effort is.

The quality of a person's life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.

Vince Lombardi

Conviction Leads to Commitment

There is a difference between preferences and conviction. Preferences are negotiable; convictions are not. Preferences give way under pressure; convictions become stronger. That is why it is important to have a good value system so that our convictions are worthy because convictions in turn lead to commitment.

3. Hard Work

Success is not something that you run into by accident. It takes a lot of preparation and character. Everyone likes to win but how many are willing to put in the effort and time to prepare to win? It takes sacrifice and self-discipline. There is no substitute for hard work. The world is full of willing workers, some willing to work and the others willing to let them.

One cannot develop a capacity to do anything without hard work, just as a person cannot learn how to spell by sitting on a dictionary. Professionals make things look easy because they have mastered the fundamentals of whatever they do.

The average person puts only 25% of his energy and ability into his work. The world takes off its hat to those who put in more than 50% of their capacity, and stands on its head for those few and far between souls who devote 100%.

--Andrew Carnegie

Success is the result of believing in asking how much work and not how little work, how many hours not how few hours. The best musicians practice every day. Winners don't need to apologize for winning because they work hard and long. It didn't come easy. Everything that we enjoy is a result of someone's hard work. Some work is visible and other work goes unseen, but both are equally important. Some people stop working as soon as they find a job. Regardless of the unemployment statistics, it is hard to find good people to work. Many people don't understand the difference between idle time and leisure time. Idle time amounts to wasting or stealing time; leisure time is earned. Procrastinating amounts to not working.

Excellence is not luck; it is the result of a lot of hard work and practice. Hard work and practice make a person better at whatever he is doing.

Hard work is both a beginning and an end in itself. The harder a person works, the better he feels; and the better he feels, the harder he works. The best ideas will not work unless you work the ideas. Great talent without will power and hard work is a waste.

There is no magic stick for success. In the real world, success comes to doers, not observers.

A horse that pulls cannot kick; a horse that kicks cannot pull. Let's pull and stop kicking.

4.        Positive Believing

What is the difference between positive thinking and positive believing?

What if you could actually listen to your thoughts? Are they positive or negative? How are you programming your mind, for success or failure? How you think has a profound effect on your performance.

Having a positive attitude and being motivated is a choice we make every morning. Living a positive life is not easy; but then neither is negative living. Given a choice, I would go for positive living.

Positive believing is a lot more than positive thinking. It is having a reason to believe that positive thinking will work. Positive believing is an attitude of confidence that comes with preparation. Having a positive attitude without making the effort is nothing more than having a wishful dream. The following illustrates positive believing.

5. Give More Than You Get

It is easy to succeed today. We have no competition. If you want to get ahead in life, go the extra mile. There is no competition on the extra mile. Are you willing to do a little more than you get paid for? How many people you know are willing to do a little bit more than what they get paid for? hardly any.

Most people don't want to do what they get paid for and there is a second category of people who only want to do what they can get by with. They fulfill their quota just to keep their jobs. There is a small fraction who are willing to do a little bit more than what they get paid for. Why do they do more? If you fall into the last category, then where is your competition?

The advantages of doing more than you get paid for are:­

¨    You make yourself more valuable, regardless of what you do and where you work.

¨    It gives you more confidence.

¨    People start looking at you as a leader.

¨    Others start trusting you.

¨    Superiors start respecting you.

¨    It breeds loyalty from both your subordinates and your superiors.

¨    It generates cooperation.

Always think in terms of giving value added whether to customers, friends, your spouse, parents or children. Whenever you do anything, ask yourself, "How can I add value to what I am doing?" or "How can I give added value to others?"

The key to success can be summed up in four words: "and then some more." Winners do what they are supposed to and then some more. Winners do their duty and then some more. Winners are courteous and generous and then some more. Winners can be counted on and then some more. Winners put in 100% and then some more.

Why are some highly intelligent people, with impressive academic qualifications living failures, or at best practicing mediocrity? Because they become experts at why things won't work and build a reserve of negative energy. They don't want to do what they get paid for or they only want to do what they can get by with. No wonder they are living failures. When we give or do more than what we get paid for, we eliminate our competition. In fact, we become the competition. This attitude is much more important than intelligence or a degree.

6. Understanding of Nature's Laws

Success is a matter of laws and these are the laws of nature. Change is nature's law. We are either moving forward or we are going backward. We are either creating or disintegrating. There is no status quo.

A seed, if it is not planted in the earth to create, disintegrates. Change is inevitable. It is going to happen whether we like it or not. All progress is change but all change is not progress. We must evaluate change and accept it only if it makes sense. Acceptance without evaluation amounts to conforming behavior, a sign of lack of confidence and of low self-esteem.

Laws of Attraction

We attract to ourselves not what we want but what we are. The old phrase, "Birds of a feather flock together," holds true.

Negative thinkers are dangerous. They attract other negative people, react negatively, expect the worst and they are not disappointed.

Have you observed how at any social occasion successful people attract other successful people? Failures attract other failures, and together they will moan, groan and complain. Our friends are not the kind of people we want but the kind of people we are.

Law of Karma / Law of Cause and Effect

In order to succeed, we need to understand the law of cause and effect. For every effect, there is a cause. The law of cause and effect is the same as the law of sowing and reaping.

The law of sowing and reaping says five things:

¨    We must have the desire to sow. Desire / thought is the starting point.

¨    What we sow, so shall we reap. If we sow potatoes, we are only going to reap potatoes, not tomatoes.

¨    We must sow before we reap. Sowing takes place before reaping; we must give before we get. We cannot expect the fireplace to give us heat before we put in the fuel.

      Some people are constantly looking to get before they give. It does not work this way.

¨    When we sow a seed, we do not reap a fruit--our harvest is manifold. If we sow a positive seed our harvest will be manifold in the positive, and if we sow a negative one the harvest shall be manifold in the negative. It is not uncommon to see people going against nature's law.

¨    A farmer knows that we cannot sow and reap in the same day. There is always a period of gestation.

It is like the law of physics. For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Most of the time people are trying to change the effect while the cause remains. Either we feed our mind with positives constantly or negativity automatically fills the vacuum.

Many ancient sages have said - A man's mind is like a garden. If we plant good seeds, we will have a good garden. But if we don't plant anything, something will grow and they will be weeds. That is nature's law. The same is true in our lives. I would go a step further. Even if we plant good seeds, weeds will still grow. The process of weeding goes on forever.

Our thoughts are causes.

                                        You sow a thought, you reap an action.

                                         You sow an action, you reap a habit.

                                          You sow a habit, you reap a character.

                                           You sow a character, you reap a destiny.

It all starts with a thought.

7. Pride of Performance

Excellence comes when the performer takes pride in doing his best. Every job is a self-portrait of the person who does it, regardless of what the job is, whether washing cars, sweeping the floor or painting a house.

Do it right the first time, every time. The best insurance for tomorrow is a job well done today.

8. Willingness

Life is like a ten speed bicycle. Most of us have gears we never use. --Charles Schultz

Success involves taking calculated risks. Risk taking does not mean gambling foolishly and behaving irresponsibly. People sometimes mistake irresponsible and rash behavior as risk-taking. They end up with negative results and blame it on bad luck.

Risk-taking is relative. The concept of risk varies from person to person and can be a result of training. To both a trained mountain climber and a novice, mountain climbing is risky, but to the trained person it is not irresponsible risk-taking. Responsible risk-taking is based on knowledge, training, careful study, confidence and competence which give a person the courage to act while facing fear.

The person who never does anything makes no mistakes. However, he doesn't realize that not doing anything is his biggest mistake.

Many opportunities are lost because of indecision. It is habit-forming and contagious. Take risks but don't gamble. Risk-takers go with their eyes open. Gamblers shoot in the dark.

Once someone asked a farmer if he had planted wheat for the season. The farmer replied, "No. I was afraid it wouldn't rain." Then the man asked, "Did you plant corn?" The farmer said, "No. I was afraid of insects eating one corn. Then the man asked , " What did you plant ? " The farmer said, "Nothing. I played it safe."

Everyone has a will to win but very few have the will to prepare to win--Vince Lombardi

Preparation

Most people spend more time planning a party or vacation than planning their lives. Confidence comes from preparation, which is nothing but planning and practicing. Winners put pressure on themselves. That is the pressure of preparing and not worrying about winning.

If we practice poorly, we play poorly; because we play as we practice. The difference between success and failure is the difference between doing exactly right and almost right.

Several years ago Lockheed introduced the L-1011 Tristar plane. In order to ensure safety and test the strength of the jetliner, Lockheed exposed the plane to the roughest treatment for 18 months, costing $1.5 billion. Hydraulic jacks, electronic sensors and a computer put the airplane through its paces for more than 36,000 simulated flights, amounting to 100 years of airline service, without one single malfunction. Finally after hundreds of tests the aircraft was given the seal of approval. *

There is every reason to believe that this plane would be safe to fly, because of all the effort put into preparation.

9. Ability to Recognize Opportunity

Opportunities come disguised as obstacles. That is why most people don't recognize them. Remember that the bigger the obstacle, the bigger is the opportunity.

10. Overcome to Fear Factor -

Fear can be real or imaginary. It makes people do strange things and primarily comes because of a lack of under­standing. To live in fear is like being in an emotional prison.

Fear results in insecurity, lack of confidence, procras­tination. Fear destroys our potential and ability. We cannot think straight. It ruins relationships and health. Some of the common fears are:

¨    fear of failing

¨    fear of the unknown

¨    fear of being unprepared

¨    fear of making the wrong decision

¨    fear of rejection

Some fears can be described, others felt. Fear leads to anxiety, which in turn leads to irrational thinking, which actually sabotages our solution to the problem. The normal response to fear is escape. Escape puts us in our comfort zone and reduces the impact temporarily, while keeping the cause. Imaginary fear magnifies the problem. Fear can get out of hand and destroy happiness and relation­ships.

Fear of failure often can be worse than failure itself. Failure is not the worst thing that could happen to someone. People who don't try have failed before attempting. When infants learn to walk, they keep falling; but to them it is not failing so they get up. If they got disheartened, they would never walk. It is better to die on one's feet than to live with fear on one's knees.

11. Have Discipline

Have you ever wondered why some people never reach their goals? Why they are always frustrated with reversals and crises? Why some people have continued success, while others have endless failures? Anyone who has accomplished anything worthwhile has never done so without discipline, whether in sports, athletics, academia or business.

People without discipline try to do everything, but commit themselves to nothing. Some so-called liberal thinkers have interpreted lack of discipline as freedom. When I am in an aircraft I want a pilot who is disciplined and does what he is supposed to do and not what he feels like doing.

Generally children brought up with excessive freedom and a lack of discipline grow up not respecting themselves, their parents or society, and have a hard time accepting responsibility.

12. High self-esteem

Poor self-esteem is a lack of self-respect and self-worth. It leads to abuse of one's self and others. Ego takes the driver's seat. Decisions are taken more to satisfy the ego than to accomplish anything worthwhile. People with low self-esteem are constantly looking for identity. They are trying to find themselves. One's self is not to be found but to be created.

Idleness and laziness are consequences of poor self­ esteem and so is making excuses. Idleness is like rust that eats into the most brilliant metal.

Greed comes out of poor self-esteem, which manifests itself as false pride, pretense or keeping up with the Joneses. The way out of greed is to learn to live within your means and be satisfied. Being contented does not mean lacking ambition.

13. Improve Knowledge

The first step towards knowledge is awareness of areas of ignorance. The more knowledge a person gets, the more he realizes what areas he is ignorant in. A person who thinks he knows everything has the most to learn.

Ignorant people don't know they are ignorant. They don't know that they don't know. In fact more than ignorance, the bigger problem is the illusion of knowledge, which can mislead a person.

14. Effort Does it

Life without vision, courage and depth is simply a blind experience. Small, lazy, and weak minds always take the easiest way, the path of least resistance.

Athletes train 15 years for 15 seconds of performance. Ask them if they got lucky. Ask an athlete how he feels after a good workout. He will tell you that he feels spent. If he doesn't feel that way, it means he hasn't worked out to his maximum ability.

Losers think life is unfair. They think only of their bad breaks. They don't consider that the person who is prepared and playing well still got the same bad breaks but overcame them. That is the difference. His threshold for tolerating pain becomes higher because in the end he is not training so much for the game but for his character.

15. Set a Purpose

If we read stories of people who overcame serious disabilities, it becomes evident that their burning desire to succeed was their driving force. They had a purpose in life. They wanted to prove to themselves that they could do it in spite of all odds--and they did.

When people lack purpose and direction, they see no opportunity. If a person has the desire to accomplish something, the direction to know his objective, the dedication to stay focused, and the discipline required to put in the hard work, then other things come easy. 

16. Courage

Successful people are not looking for miracles or easy tasks. They seek courage and strength to overcome obstacles. They look at what is left rather than what is lost. Wishes don't come true; beliefs and expectations supported by conviction do. Prayers are only answered when they are supported with courageous action. It is courage and character that is the deadly combination for success. This is the difference between the ordinary and the extraordinary.

When our minds are filled with courage we forget our fears and overcome obstacles. Courage is not absence of fear but the overcoming of fear. Character (justice and integrity) without courage is ineffective, whereas courage without character is oppression.

SUCCESS SUMMERY

¨    Play to win and not to lose.

¨    Learn from other people's mistakes.

¨    Associate with people of high moral character.

¨    Give more than you get.

¨    Don't look for something for nothing.

¨    Always think long term.

¨    Evaluate your strengths and build on them.

¨    Always keep the larger picture in mind when making a decision.

¨    Never compromise your integrity.