Developing a Lifelong Positive Mental Attitude — Now That’s Entertainment

Dear Readers and Lovers of All Things Inspiring,

As an avid reader, admirer, contributor and Board Member for Good News Toronto, I had the very good fortune to have a recent submission published in the May 2011 edition as a Letter to Editor, at http://www.goodnewstoronto.ca/2011/05/may-2011-editors-message/.

I'm sharing these words here too as it is my passion to promote Good News Toronto and to have the hope of inspiring anyone else who might marvel in the positive influence of the stories of the everyday heroes featured in its pages. I'm dually delighted with this entry as it graced me the pleasure of praising an everyday hero not from Toronto but who has had significant positive influence on Torontonians as well as others from all over the globe, Dr. Napoleon Hill.

As printed in Good News Toronto May 5, 2011:

Entertaining readers with stories of everyday heroes who live in our midst, Good News Toronto aims to foster the beautiful benefits of saturating souls with inspiration through the strength we draw from the achievements of others who reach their benevolent goals. The purpose of our affectionately termed Little Paper with a Big Heart was to complement mainstream media with real good news stories of the heroes among us who might otherwise have gone unsung. For readers, contributors, and heroes whose stories and charitable or not-for-profit organizations have been featured, the potential collateral gains are exponential.

For us who are on the lifelong journey to achieve success, inspiration is an indispensable means of fuelling the energy needed to reach our lofty goals. Daily doses of inspiration to keep us moving forward are as essential as routine stops at the gas station are to keep our vehicles going. Like eating, sleeping, bathing, and all the other to-dos we repeat daily to keep ourselves well, inspiration sharing can be engrained in our psyche as part of our Positive Mental Attitude (PMA.)

When where we are might feel like a struggle at times, a PMA can be the single most significant factor in determining what our destiny will be. A most salient benefit of PMA is that it helps us actualize the power of our potential to capitalize on challenges. Respectably noting the achievements of one of the greatest forces ever in the realm of PMA, an all-time most significant influence comes from Napoleon Hill. To kick-start a lifelong commitment, the greatest favour a neophyte to PMA can do for themselves is to read his flagship book, Think and Grow Rich. In the book, Hill recommends readers recite out loud daily a confidence formula he developed. An excerpt from the fifth component is most compelling:

“I realize that no wealth or position can long endure unless built upon truth and justice; therefore I will engage in no transaction that does not benefit all whom it affects. I will attract to myself the forces I wish to use and the cooperation of other people. I will induce others to serve me because of my willingness to serve others. I will eliminate hatred, envy, jealousy, selfishness and cynicism by developing love for all humanity because I know that a negative attitude toward others can never bring me success. I will cause others to believe in me because I will believe in them and in myself.”

These few lines capture the essence of the values of integrity, respect, and leadership to empower us with what we need to make all things possible. By simply asking ourselves, “What’s in it for everyone?” we can find the illumination and the clarity we need to stay on the right path in the lifelong journey toward success and happiness through service to others.

It is the honour of Good News Toronto to serve those who are looking for the inspirational fodder they need to fuel belief in their abilities to get to exactly where they want to be. Sweet success is when our own achievements serve in turn to propel others who bear witness and become inspired to recognize and accept invitations to succeed, especially when they’re cloaked in life’s challenges. This GNT contributor and beneficiary is thankful to the everyday heroes who have graced the pages and motivated a goal to respectably rival the monumental impact of Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen’s Chicken Soup for the Soul series. Celebrating the everyday heroes among us is the best live entertainment you can get. We hope you’re enjoying the show. Please stay tuned.

Kathleen Betts, mother of four, freelance writer, and blogger