NeverNormal.com

Life's Little Instructions #7

I'm on a role now, so here's some from 301-350.

301. Become an expert in time management.

303. Never go to bed with dirty dishes in the sink. (Literally or figuratively?)

304. Judge your success by the degree that you're enjoying peace, health, and love.

308. Make the bed when you're an overnight visitor in someone's home.

309. Contribute 5% of your income to charity.

312. When tempted to criticize your parents, spouse, or children, bite your tongue.

313. Never underestimate the power of love.

314. Never underestimate the power of forgiveness.

315. Don't bore people with your problems. When someone asks how you feel- say "Terrific; never better." When they ask "How's business?", reply "Excellent and getting better every day."

316. Learn to disagree without being disagreeable. (Working on this- not having much luck, however.)

317. Be tactful. Never alienate anyone on purpose. (Working on this- slow going, however. I have a bad habit of putting my foot in my mouth without meaning to and not much idea how it got there.)

318. Hear both sides before judging.

320. Be courteous to everyone. (ESPECIALLY the ones you don't want to!)

323. When there's no time for a full workout, do pushups.

324. DOn't delay acting on a good idea. Chances are solmeone else has just thought of it too. Success comes to the one who acts first.

325. Be wary of people who tell you how honest they are. (Wish I'd known this before I met Dirty D!)

326. Remember that winners do what losers don't want to do.

327. When you arrive at your job in the morning, let the first thing you say brighten everyone's day.

328. Seek opportunity, not security. A boat in a harbor is safe, but in time, its bottom will rot out.

330. Rekindle old friendships. (I would, if I wasn't worried how much I've changed would scare them off.)

332. Live your life as an exclamation, not an explanation.

333. Instead of "if only", try substituting "next time".

334. Instead of using the word "problem", try substituting the word "opportunity".

335. Every so often, push your luck.

338. Live your life so that your epitaph could read "No regrets". (I'm working on it!)

339. Never walk out on a quarrel with your spouse.

346. Be bold and courageous. When you look back onb your life, you'll regret the things you didn't do more than the things you did.

347. Never waste an opportunity to tell someone you love them.

Life's Little Instructions #6

Know it's been ages since I listed bits from this collection, but here's some more from 251-300.

251. Learn to show enthusiasm, even when you don't feel like it.

252. Take good care of those you love.

254. Keep it simple. (stupid lol)

258. When meeting someone for the first time, resist asking what they do for a living. Enjoy their company without attaching any labels.

260. Every day, show your family how much you love then with your words, your touch, and with your thoughtfulness.

261. Take family vacations whether you can afford them or not. The memories will be priceless.

264. Don't nag.

266. Beware of the person with nothing to lose.

269. Don't whine. (Why not? Can I have some cheese with it tho?)

271. When facing a difficult task, act as though it is impossible to fail. If you're going after Moby Dick, take along the tartar sauce.

273. Remember that overnight success usually takes about 15 years.

274. Leave everything a little better than you found it.

278. Don't expect money to bring you happiness

280. No matter how dire the situation, keep your cool. (Easier said than done!)

281. When paying cash, ask for a discount.

284. Never underestimate your power to change yourself.

286. Practice empathy. Try to see things from other peoples' points of view.

288. Discipline yourself to save money. It's essential to success.

289. Get and stay in shape. (Working on that...diet is becoming DIE with a T on the end tho!)

292. Don't burn bridges. You'll be surprised how many times you have to cross the same river. (Already found that out- to my detriment.)

294. Keep overhead low. (What exactly does this mean?)

295. Keep expectations high.

296. Accept pain and disappointment as part of life

297. Remember that a successful marriage depends on two things: 1)Findingh the right person and 2) Being the right person.

298. See problems as opportunities for growth and self-mastery.

300. Don't expect life to be fair.

Version 11

Finally got up off my ass and made a new layout for nn.com and also cleaning out my fanlistings...though I forgot when I transferred servers that the old cgi submit form was with my old server provider so I've gotta work on making a php version, so gimme a couple of days on that, but you can email me the submit info, but read through the rules on the adopt page.

Life's Little Instructions #5

Here's some more from 201-250.

201. Don't carry a grudge

203. Return borrowed vehicles with the gas tank full

205. Loosen up. Relax. Except for rare life-and-death matters, nothing is as important as it first seems (Yeah, but it's still really hard for me to truly relax...I'm much better at panicking)

208. Attend high school art shows and always buy something

210. Commit yourself to constant self-improvement (Isn't this kinda like a small step in the right direction?)

212. Don't allow the phone to interrupt important moments. It's there for your convenience, not the caller's

215. Don't plan a long evening on a blind date. A lunch date is perfect. If things don't work out, both of you have only wasted an hour

216. Don't discuss business in elevators. You never know who may overhear you

217. Be a good loser (I'm trying to get better at this)

220. Spend less time worrying who's right, and more time deciding what's right

222. Think twice before burdening a friend with a secret

223. Praise in public

224. Criticize in private

226. When someone hugs you, let them be the first to let go (I've been trying this a lot lately...it's fun)

227. Resist giving advice concerning matrimony, finances, or hairstyles (What if said advice is asked for? Does this still apply?)

228. Have impeccable manners

229. Never pay for work before it's completed (Dances don't count, cuz it's entertainment, not work! :P)

231. Keep a daily journal (So what do ya call this? lol)

232. Keep your promises (I'm trying really hard to be better at this)

234. Teach your children the value of money and the importance of saving (You can never start saving too early!)

235. Be willing to lose a battle in order to win the war (I've never understood this phrase...what's it really mean?)

236. Don't be decieved by first impressions

237. Seek out the good in people

240. Drink eight glasses of water a day

242. Be cautious about lending money to friends. You may lose both

244. Buy a bird feeder and hang it so you can see it from your kitchen window (I would, but the way my house is, the only trees are in the backyard, so I guess I'll put it there)

247. Tape record your parent's memories of how they met and their first years of marriage

250. Learn to show cheerfulness, even when you don't feel like it (This one's really hard for me)

Some of these have really given me room for thought....what about you?