Thought for the Day - TED Week - Schools Kill Creativity

Thought for the Day - Vince Lombardi Week - Power of Your Will

"The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather in a lack of will." -- Vince Lombardi

Thought for the Day - Vince Lombardi Week - Give More Than Anyone Else

"All right mister, let me tell you that winning means you're willing to go longer, work harder, give more than anyone else." 


-- Vince Lombardi

Thought for the Day - Lessons I Learned - A Prayer - John Duffy

A Prayer


"May I grow and become more and become bigger. May I contribute more, learn more, experience more, do more, achieve more and yet always be grateful and satisfied with all I am, have, done and am already. I have been blessed and lived a blessed life that keeps getting better. I am thankful for my journey from poverty in the South Bronx to success today. I am grateful for all that I have experienced in life including the good and bad."


-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - Lessons I Learned Identity - John Duffy

Who are you? How do you identify yourself? Are you a husband, wife, father, worker, employer, athlete ?
When someone asks you who you are how do you respond? Identity is one of the most powerful forces in our lives. How we are identified or how we choose to identify ourselves can either empower us or limit us. We have a choice to create a more powerful empowering identity.
I learned this distinction from Tony Robbins at one of his seminar and my decision to create new more empowering identities help me make the transition from who I was or thought I was at the time to who I have become and who I cam continuing to become.
At the time I took his seminar I saw myself as a postal worker, a struggling actor and an average person. I decided to step into a larger vision of myself and my life as a leader, a motivator and that journey led to my taking on many new identities as a counselor, public speaker, actor, writer, producer, motivator, husband , father. The large picture identity I stepped into was to see myself as a leader and a role model of possibility.
So I suggest you expand your identity and your vision of who you are and can become. It doesn't matter where you start but where you end up.

-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - Song Quote Week - Hope You Dance

Writer: TIA SILLERS, MARK D. SANDERS 

I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat but always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance 
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance
Never settle for the path of least resistance
Livin' might mean takin' chances, but they're worth takin'
Lovin' might be a mistake, but it's worth makin'
Don't let some Hellbent heart leave you bitter
When you come close to sellin' out, reconsider
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

I hope you dance 
I hope you dance
(Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along)
I hope you dance 
I hope you dance
(Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder, where those years have gone?)

I hope you still feel small when you stand beside the ocean
Whenever one door closes I hope one more opens
Promise me that you'll give faith a fighting chance
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance

Dance
(Time is a wheel in constant motion always rolling us along)
I hope you dance 
I hope you dance
(Tell me who wants to look back on their years and wonder, where those years have gone?)

Thought for the Day - Song Quote Week - Never Give Up on a Dream

(Rod Stewart, Bernie Taupin / Jim Cregan)

If there's doubt and you're cold,
don't you worry what the future holds.
We've gotta have heroes to teach us all
to never give up on a dream.

Claim the road, touch the sun,
no force on earth could stop you run.
When your heart bursts like the sun
never never give up on a dream.

Shadows fall, daylight dies,
freedoms never got a place to hide.
Search forever finish line
but never give up on your dream.

Crazy notions fill your head,
you gotta break all the records set.
Push yourself until the end
but don't you ever give up on your dream.

Now listen to me 
you don't need no restrictions yeah
Oh, sing it again
you can't live on sympathy.
You just need to go the distance,
oh the distance
that's all you need to be free, 
to be free, to be free, to be free.

Sing a song for me children 
you don't need no restrictions yeah
you can't live on sympathy.
You just need to go the distance, 
that's all you need to be free,

Now listen to me!
Inspiring all to never lose, 
it'll take a long long time before they fill your shoes 
it'll take somebody, somebody, who's lot like you 
who never gave up on a dream.
No, you never gave up on a dream 
no, you never gave up on a dream.

You never, never, never, 
never gave up on a dream.

Thought for the Day - Empowering Questions Week - Perspective

What is good about this problem or how can i learn and grow from this problem? Why are obstacles and challenges really a great thing?

-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - Empowering Questions Week - Gratitude

What am I grateful for? What could I be grateful for today? How will being grateful make a difference in my life and those around me? Can you make a list of 100 things to be grateful for? How about 500 things to be grateful for? What if you started out every day being grateful and remembering all the things you are grateful for?


-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - Empowering Questions Week - Learn

What can I learn from this experience? How can I improve my performance? What is great about this situation? What could be great? How can I grow from this?


-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - Empowering Questions Week - Goals

What are your goals? How often do you check in on them? Do you have written goals? Are you goals measurable, specific and achievable? Do you have small and big goals? What are your big five goals for your life? What is the one main goal you have for your life?

-- John Duffy

Thought for the Day - John Duffy Week - Maybe Yes, Maybe No

"Maybe Yes, Maybe No". That's a saying that I came up with whenever someone would come to me with a problem and a negative attitude about the situation. They would say something like "this situation is really bad" and I would respond Maybe yes, maybe no. A director I was working with even put up the sign with those words on my wall because he said that was always my answer. 
An example of this was when our lead actor dropped out two weeks before shooting and the director got depressed and expressed that this was horrible news. Of course I said maybe yes, maybe no. We cast another actor in time to begin filming and the 1st week of the shooting the actor who dropped out was arrested going through the airport with guns. So it turned out good that he dropped out. 
Only from a distance and time can you tell if something is good or bad news. I always look for what might be good in what on the surface seems like bad news.
So if you ask me if something is bad news expect me to say "Maybe Yes, Maybe No."


-- John Duffy