"Listening is such a simple act. It requires us to be present, and that takes practice, but we don't have to do anything else. We don't have to advise, or coach or sound wise. We just have to be willing to sit there and listen."
-- Margaret J. Wheatley, writer and management consultant

"When it comes to getting things done, we need fewer architects and more bricklayers."
-- Colleen C. Barrett, president of Southwest Airlines

"The happiness that is genuinely satisfying is accompanied by the
fullest exercise of our faculties and the fullest realization of the
world in which we live."
-- Bertrand Russell

"When you think you can change someone, you end up failing because you
don't have the power to change another person. You will always have the
power to change yourself, when you figure out that something is not
right. With another person, you can't figure that out. I know I can't
change my mom, a boyfriend, or even a friend, but I can change myself."
-- Leah from Oregon, in The Forum

"Most people have a hard time delegating, or even wanting to delegate, because you have been justifying your existence through your hard work, and you equate success with struggle; you equate results with struggle. And so, you sort of wear your struggle like a badge of honor. And all of that is opposite of allowing the Well-being. The only thing that ever matters in success or achievement is your achieving the things that you want to achieve. So if you are setting standards and you're feeling uncomfortable about the standards that you've set, tweak the standards back a little bit. Ratchet it back a notch. Give yourself a break. Give yourself the benefit of the doubt. Lighten up. Be easier. Go slower. Take it easy. Have more fun. Love yourself more. Laugh more. Appreciate more. All is well. You can't get it wrong. You never get it done".
-- Abraham-Hicks

"What has happened before has brought you to where you are. Yet the past has no control over where you can go from here.

Your past history does not create your future. The choices you make right now are what create the substance of that future.

Learn from your mistakes, but do not agonize over them. There is nothing you can do to change the fact that they happened, yet there is much you can do to move positively beyond them.

When you dwell on the past it holds you prisoner. When you let it go, that allows you to go anywhere you now choose.

People change, circumstances change, and you can change too. With each moment comes the opportunity to shake off the old assumptions and limitations, to give new purpose and meaning to life.

Give new energy, new effort, new commitment and determination to this day that you have the good fortune to be living. See the bright future that can be, and you will make it so."

-- Ralph Marston

"You are the creator of your own reality, and so you are not in
jeopardy. You do not need to control the behavior of others in order for
you to thrive. Your attention to things that you think they do that
keeps you from your thriving is, in fact, what keeps you from your
thriving... It is not what they do to you; it's what you do to you in
fear of what you think that they will do to you".
-- Abraham-Hicks

"When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace."
-- Jimi Hendrix

"My Twelve Commandments


1. Be Gretchen [Myself].
2. Let it go.
3. Act as I would feel.
4. Do it now.
5. Be polite and be fair.
6. Enjoy the process.
7. Spend out.
8. Identify the problem.
9. Lighten up.
10. Do what ought to be done.
11. No calculation.
12. There is only love.

-- The Happiness Project

"Rather than asking myself whether I am happy or not, a more helpful
question is, 'How can I become happier."... We need to recognize that
happiness is an unlimited resource and then focus on ways in which we
can attain more of it. Becoming happier is a lifelong pursuit."
-- Tal Ben-Shahar

"Please, don't squeeze the Charmin."
-- Dick Wilson, 1916-2007, as Mr. Whipple.

"Sometimes, I am called upon to accept unpleasant realities. I may wish to avoid disappointments, but I find the only way to serenity is to become willing to accept the things I cannot change. Acceptance gives me choices."
-- Courage to Change.

"Peace. It does not mean to be in a place where there is no noise, trouble or hard work. It means to be in the midst of those things and still be calm in your heart."
-- Unknown.

"Consider the little mouse, how sagacious an animal it is which never entrusts his life to one hole only. "
-- Plautus

"we can not change the cards we're dealt, just how we play the hand."
-- dr. randy pausch

"The most successful people are those who are good at Plan B."
-- James Yorke, as quoted by DAAve.

"What is urgent is rarely important. What is important is rarely urgent."
-- Courage to Change

"The man who says he is willing to meet you halfway is usually a poor judge of distance".
-- Laurence J. Peter

"As the holidays approach, it's so essential to prepare yourself - body, mind and soul - for the faster pace of the coming six weeks. This is the time to take extra special care. While you're giving to others, make this the time to give to yourself as well...

"If you were going to make this the best holiday season ever, how would you do it? It won't happen for most people, because most people won't have that as their #1 intention. And it's unlikely that you'll have the life-changing holidays that you could have if you don't create a powerful intent."

-- Debbie Ford

"The opposite of talking isn't listening. The opposite of talking is waiting".
-- Fran Lebowitz

"Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps, for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be".
-- William Hazlitt

"Most people have a hard time delegating, or even wanting to delegate, because you have been justifying your existence through your hard work, and you equate success with struggle; you equate results with struggle. And so, you sort of wear your struggle like a badge of honor. And all of that is opposite of allowing the Well-being. The only thing that ever matters in success or achievement is your achieving the things that you want to achieve. So if you are setting standards and you're feeling uncomfortable about the standards that you've set, tweak the standards back a little bit. Ratchet it back a notch. Give yourself a break. Give yourself the benefit of the doubt. Lighten up. Be easier. Go slower. Take it easy. Have more fun. Love yourself more. Laugh more. Appreciate more. All is well. You can't get it wrong. You never get it done".
-- Abraham-Hicks

"Striving for excellence motivates you; striving for perfection is demoralizing."
-- Harriet Braiker

"Listen as though you have no opinion".
-- Sign at Northwest Unity, as per Scott.

"The obstacles you encounter are not preventing you from reaching your dreams. They're merely blocking one particular path that you mistakenly assume is the only way to reach those dreams".
-- Ralph Marston

"We are supposed to forgive everyone; everyone includes ourselves."
-- Denis Waitley, as quoted by dAAve

"One of the secrets of a long and fruitful life is to forgive everybody everything every night before you go to bed."
-- Bernard Baruch, as quoted by dAAve

"What's the quickest way out of a negative attitude? Have something ready and waiting that you can immediately and genuinely appreciate.

"How do you find the hidden value in any situation? Look for something to truly appreciate.

"When you seek to find things to appreciate, what you'll discover are hidden treasures upon which you can build great value. Look for what you can appreciate, and you'll find positive, powerful tools that will pull you forward.

"Get in the habit of starting each day by thinking of something for which you can be thankful. Then, whenever you catch yourself falling into a negative thought pattern, you'll already have something positive toward which you can redirect your thoughts.

"Each time you meet a new person, make it a point to find something, at the very outset of the relationship, that you can sincerely appreciate. Every time you find yourself in a new place or situation, look first for what you can appreciate about it.

"Find something to appreciate, and your effectiveness will increase dramatically. Find something to appreciate, and you'll uncover real treasure".

-- Ralph Marston

"To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness."
-- Robert Muller, as quoted by dAAve.

"Find the best in everybody. You may have to wait a long time. Sometimes
years, but people will show you their good side".
-- Professor Randy Pausch