Recording - The Art of Exceptional Living

In the middle of quarter two, we have been listening to the recordings of Jim Rohn’s speech – the art of exceptional living. I was very grateful that I got to hear such a motivating and inspirational speech, since I’m already a senior in high school; the track really got me thinking about my goals in university even my goals in life. I believe this track can be recommended to all seniors or for those who needs to start thinking about their goals in life. From the recordings, I also like how he bluntly established statements and pierced the bubble of truths. To me, the recording is like popping all those bubbles, and introducing all the inner and conceptual truth that I already know but I never “want” to acknowledge, so him speaking and talking about all the truth that we need to come in terms of really had me actively thinking. The recordings were all based on very simple easy everyday concepts that we can do and meet every day to help us reach our goal, such as keeping a journal, establishing a personal philosophy and establishing daily habits. He also talked about what success and failure means to him. Success for him means a few simple disciplines practiced every day, and failure is a few errors in judgment repeated every day. I also loved the part where he established the statement about us often blaming other for our failures. It tells a universal truth that everyone knows already, but having him put the idea into specific words was really on point. 

Tell All The Truth But Tell It Slant

We have read quite a lot of poems and stories this second quarter. To me the most memorable and motivational poem that really reached out to me deeply was this poem called Tell all the truth but tell it slant by Emily Dickinson. This poem is one that opened our eyes to the idea that we should reveal the truth or reveal any truth, especially those that may be too overwhelming, slowly and gradually, or else we may unintentionally hurt the one receiving the truth. This idea was compared to a bright light. If you turn on the light suddenly in a place where it is dark, your eyes will hurt immediately by the sudden bright light, however if you open and reveal the light slowly or shine the light gradually and not directly, a little bit at a time, it may not hurt as much or even not hurt at all. 

I believe this poem is extraordinary important to the society today. We may often forget to think before we speak and reveal the truth to people too quickly and directly, thus hurting the other person. light. 

Success Is a Journey Not a Destination

Success can be a very deep and abstract word to define. It can mean by reaching a goal, or by being the best what one does. Whether it is the former or the latter, everyone has their own definition and opinion of success, while I myself, at the age of seventeen, defines success as a continuation process. Like the quote from Arthur Ashe, "Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome."

To the majority of the people, success means achieving a certain goal that one or others has set upon oneself. This kind of success can be drove by the outcome of the work or motivation, and certainly projects the idea idea of hard works pays off.

To other people, success means being the best out of all or at what they do. They do not just wish to achieve a good result, they want to be the best. This statement is especially true to the people playing sports, and attending competitions. For example, an individual competing as a swimmer in the Olympics. You do not only want to be good and finish the competition, you want to be the best, you aim to be the best, to make the first place, or to mark your name on the world's record. This kind of success brings you great happiness and a feeling of completness, however if you fail, you could be more disappointed than just reaching the goal, because the requirements are higher, thus when you fall from such a high place, your are more likely to experience emotional breakdown.

In addition, success to some people means achieving their goal or giving their best shot, to other people it is aiming to be successful by all means. These are all true, however, in my opinion, success means two things. Firstly, it is the process of failure to failure without losing enthusiasm of perusing your goal. It is also the action when you feel like quitting but remember what got you started and the commitment you have already made. One of my favourite quote and motto is "Don't stop when you're tired, stop when you are done", I think this fits perfectly with my statement.  Secondly, success does not just end once you accomplish your goal, or when you are the best out of the best already. To me, success is the ongoing process of challenging and renewing yourself. It is possible, yes, that you successfully reached your goal, and is the best already, however the idea is that you need to go beyond your goal. Don't let your goals confine you into a box.

In conclusion, I believe there are two forms of commonly accepted definitions and concepts of what success is. Success can mean achieving a goal, trying your best, and by being the best. However, in my opinion, I believe success is the process of not quitting when you want to, and remember what got you started in the first place. I also believe that success does not just end after you have reached success, because to me success means an ongoing process of challenging and renewing yourself, therefore, success is a journey, not a destination. It is a journey of thousands of miles but begins with a single step.

Here are more information about success.