Mutual confidence is the foundation of all satisfactory human relationships.
Most of us have two basic questions about others when we enter into a relationship. They are: Can I trust you? And, do you really care about me? Depending upon our previous success in partnerships with others — personal or business — the answers may be slow in coming. Confidence in another is often developed gradually as those involved in the relationship commit themselves to each other’s success and happiness. Although trust and confidence are the basic underpinnings of all successful relationships, they are fragile. A relationship that has endured for months or even years can be irreparably damaged by a few unkind words or a single thoughtless act. Don’t allow yourself to act in haste or to lose control of your emotions in important relationships.
Concentration
You cannot succeed in life by scattering your forces and trying to do a dozen things at the same time.
Your reputation is what people think you are; your character is what you are.
You want your reputation and your character to match, but concentrate on your character. You may be able to fool others about the kind of person you really are for a time, but it seldom lasts for long. The surest way to make sure your character and your reputation are the same is to live your life in such a way that nothing you do would embarrass you if it were printed on the front page of the newspaper. Good character means not ever taking ethical shortcuts, even though everyone else may be doing so. You build good character by doing the right thing because it’s the right thing to do.
Your mental attitude determines what sort of friends you attract.
If you want to be a positive, successful person, be sure you choose your friends carefully. Positive friends and role models will have a positive effect upon you, while negative friends will soon kill your initiative. Do not allow yourself to be lulled into complacency by the masses who believe mediocrity is an acceptable alternative. Focus on the possibilities for success, not the potential for failure. When you doubt yourself, talk the situation over with a positive, supportive friend. Everyone needs a boost now and again; make sure your friends are positive, success-oriented people who always build you up, not negative thinkers who always seem to find a way to tear you down.
The individual who only does enough work to get by seldom gets much more than “by.”
There is a cause-and-effect relationship between your actions and the rewards that accrue to you. When you put more of yourself into your career, your personal relationships, your religious faith, and any other aspect of your life, you get more out of it. If your ambitions are greater than simply “getting by” in life, you will never be truly happy with your company, your job, or yourself unless you do your best every day. Your harshest critic and your toughest competitor should be you.