What do you have to be grateful of in life? Look closely. There is a lot more there than you normally recognize. Perhaps it is a beautiful family, wonderful relationships or simply the pattern of your career.

Even if you are experiencing tough times, especially if you are experiencing tough times it is so important that you center yourself from a point of gratitude. To do so lowers your center of balance toward frustration and disappointment.

Gratitude is natural counteraction to depression. The realization of gratitude helps to fortify self-value and self-esteem and strengthens the quality of character.

When Michael Phelps won his 8th gold medal the first words out of his mouth were “thank you”. He understood and was grateful for the efforts of his teammates that allowed him to succeed in his goals.

Here are some things I always remember to be grateful for:

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Certainly those efforts yield better results in life, career and influence, but if not for our kind words of encouragement little else might be said about the patterns of our children and family members.

My oldest daughter is certainly deserving of a gold medal for her living patterns while growing up. She was a wonderfully delightful child, a gifted student and never strayed from her goals and determination to excel as a person.

My youngest two girls are following in her footsteps as strong students with great personalities filled with happiness and love.

Each is no less deserving of a gold medal for their efforts and hard work than any athlete. However, their reward will eventually come in a better career, higher income and a solid fulfilling family life. I couldn’t be more proud of all three if they had true Olympic gold medals hanging around their neck.

As parents you should celebrate the living efforts and victories of your children and family members. Take the time to place them on the family winner’s podium and acknowledge the quality results they are getting.

Sometimes it’s a special dinner just for them or perhaps a minor reward of something that brings them happiness just to say thank you for being a quality individual that isn’t afraid to work hard to achieve success.

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It is all but impossible for me to remember the number of times I have been confronted with someone who claimed they had forgiven another for some perceived personal wrong and yet they still harbored some hidden minor ill feelings over the matter. Forgiveness of this kind isn’t forgiveness at all.

If you break off the root of ill feelings leaving some behind in your thoughts and emotions the opportunity is there for those feelings to grow again into an inhibiting pattern of interaction with the person in question and others related to the matter.

True forgiveness is a clean break that leaves nothing behind.

Seek to forgive others for perceived transgressions that they may not even be aware of and make certain that your forgiveness doesn’t have any lingering hidden conditions or roots of ill feeling.

You will be able to move on with your life and won’t have a multitude of emotional strings tied to past people, events and feelings.

Making the world a better place starts by making yourself a better person.

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I still consider it one of, if not the single greatest individual athletic performance of all time in any sport.

What an honor it has been to live to see both Mark Spitz and Michael Phelps in their prime. One must remember that Michael Phelps is breaking world records that would have also won by a wide margin back in 1972.

The finely tuned quality of performance patterns held by Michael Phelps are simply amazing and teach a lot about getting the most out of human potential if one is looking for lessons in life.

Before it is all over stop what you are doing and watch this young man swim into history as the best.

You’ll remember it for the rest of your life.

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These are truly gifted individuals and amazing human endeavor.

However, I awoke yesterday to see the headlines on one news channel:

“Heartbreaking loss for U.S. women gymnasts“

I was so disappointed to see this as our response to a silver medal winning performance by some extremely talented and determined young women athletes.

It seems almost normal now that when things don’t go the way people expect they start pointing fingers and finding fault. A pattern polished to a fine gloss everyday by children all around the world.

Even if the other competitors MAY be underage they are still there and accepted by the Olympic Committee as qualified to compete. Even if the scoring MIGHT seem biased or slow in coming it still met the standards of Olympic competition.

Each of the competitors from every nation badly wanted a medal around their neck. Some even held high expectations of gold because of their past performances, but nothing is guaranteed in sports competition.

Expectations are just that, expectations and hopes.

To characterize the accomplishments of the US Women’s Gymnastics team as a loss is to turn your back on all of the hard work these young ladies have endured and the achievements of their efforts.

What message are we sending to these athletes and our future children who become athletes? That only a gold medal performance is considered a win?

Every athlete in the Olympics is a winner just for being good enough to get there.

So, I celebrate the WIN of a silver medal performance and continue to wonder what in the world has happened to others that would make them so jaded, suspicious and demanding that they would think otherwise.

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Here are the generic meanings of the word:

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It was the quality of their living patterns.

After the astonishing men’s 4 X 100 Freestyle Relay I watched Michael Phelps immediately compose himself enough to comfort the French team that must have been terribly disappointed and emotionally hurt at that moment.

Each competitor on that pool apron is successful at what they do because they have adopted such high quality standards for their training, competition and after race patterns. Their personal drive to excel won’t let them quit even when faced with almost certain defeat.

How much further could you go, where would you be right now if you had that self-demanding quality in your personal and business life?

You may not compete in the Olympics, but there is no reason you can’t put on a gold medal performance in the living experience. If you do, wear it proudly.

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1. Taking ethics for granted. You need then, should have them and must refine them.

2. Having hidden agendas. This dilutes the ability to commit yourself fully to the matter at hand and is often sensed by others around you.

3. Being self-centered. To grow you must expand into the world of others. Self-centered people are trapped in a delusional prison of their own making where fair is always heavily slanted their way.

4. Refusing to change. Plants change as they grow and so must people. Unfold and bloom.

5. Being lord and master of all. If you cannot truly delegate responsibility you will not be able to leverage your thoughts or efforts.

6. Give more than you get. The person who cannot spare a cup of water to the thirsty stranger will be pressed to ever call that stranger a friend or customer.

7. Be approachable. If you are always hidden within a protective world of position and authority it will be difficult to foster the interaction or loyalty of others.

8. Be positive. I know this may sound simplistic, but if you are always focused on the negative side you will rarely see the positive, or potential and opportunity.

9. The sword cuts both ways. If you are continually slashing out at the people around you it is a safe bet they are stabbing you in the back.

10. Prove yourself. Don’t just tell people you are willing or going to do something, show them.

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There are times when despite all of our high technology and academic degrees we stand mouth agape in stunned silence at the wonder of the purity of a child’s curiosity.

Children see the world from a place that is not tainted by hidden feelings and obscure meanings. They seek very basic answers in their wondrous exploration of the world around them.

In fact, children lack the comprehensive maturity that naturally allows complexity to seep into the mind of the adult.

Things are blue, red and yellow to them. There is no subtle mixing of the base colors of life and emotion into shades until they are exposed to the adult world of thought. Often when faced with a difficult decision or situation I have sought out the counsel of a young child.

The intelligent teacher quickly becomes the student again in search of meaning and direction and that intelligence is defined by their ability to subvert themselves to the knowledge and words of their student or subordinate.

Most adults would never consider asking a child their take on a very adult matter, yet I am almost always astounded by the clarity and truth that the child has in their vision and thought.

Children have a way of bluntly getting to the heart of a matter because they don’t yet know about or carry the confusing mix of experience and feeling that will layer upon them as they age.

Need a true clear take on the matter? Ask a child!

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However, the individual personalities and thought patterns I so often talk about in my seminars slowly began to pull the cohesion of this group apart.

Today I was surprised and pleased to see that even though these men have mantained the integrity of their personal patterns they have matured in comprehension to a point where they can transcend the individual differences to create the art of music all over again.

After almost 100 concert dates together on the recent worldwide tour they have risen above petty words to accept who they are individually and as a unit.

Few people ever reach this point of mental and emotional maturity especially under the social microscope of celebrity.

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