Some Taylor Swift Quotes I liked excited for Reputation to come out!

"I'm intimidated by the fear of being average" 

- I think a lot of successful people have this feel its been a common trend I've noticed 

"I think every girls dream is to find a bad boy at the right time when he wants to not be bad anymore"

"One element of Madonna's career that really takes center stage is how many times she's reinvented herself.  It's easier to stay in one look, one comfort zone, one musical style.  Its inspiring to see someone whose only predictable quality is being unpredictable."

- How can we constantly reinvent out lives.  My dad said that same thing about his Dentistry career. 

"There are so many emotions that you're feeling, you can get stifled by them if you're feeling them all at once.  What I try to do is take one moment - one simple, simple feeling - and expand it into three and a half minutes."  

- I wish I had a way to process my feelings like that.  Trying to figure it out... I'd like it to be productive like song writing 

"My confidence is easy to shake.  I am very well aware of all of my flaws.  I am aware of all the insecurities that I have."

- I can relate

"I've never gotten thick skin.  If you close yourself off and you get this protective armor, there is a price you pay with that - of not feeling."

"I don't live by all these rigid, weird rules that make me feel all fenced in.  I just like the way that I feel like and that makes me feel very free."

"Anything you put your mind to and add your imagination into can make your life a lot better and a lot more fun."

Sheryl Sandberg's commencement speech

A must watch (even though its a CAL commencement speech)- 

http://www.vox.com/2016/5/15/11676812/sheryl-sandberg-commencement-speech-uc-berkeley

Thank you for my wonderful family and loved ones.

3 p's

Kick the shit out of option B (if all you have is option B)

Be resilient 

Be thankful for all that we have. 

Become the best version of yourself. 

We are stronger than we ever imagined 

Big short

Great movie loved this quote -  "People want an authority to tell them how to value things, but they choose this authority not based on facts or results. They choose it because it seems authoritative and familiar. I’ve never been authoritative or familiar.” Dr michael burry 

Taylor swift - such an iconoclast

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/taylor-swifts-inserts-kanye-west-dig-in-cutting-grammy-acceptance-speech-20160216

"There are going to be people along the way who will try to undercut your success, or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame," Swift said. "But if you just focus on the work and you don't let those people sidetrack you, someday, when you get where you're going, you'll look around and you will know that it was you and the people who love you who put you there, and that will be the greatest feeling in the world."

A trip down the memory lane...

My good luck card to my teammate for pac 10s back in 2006.  A wise saying about being out of your comfort zone! It's the most fun.

Phil knight

There comes a time in every life when the past recedes and the future opens. It's that moment when you turn to face the unknown. Some will turn back to what they already know. Some will walk straight ahead into uncertainty. I can't tell you which one is right. But I can tell you which one is more fun.

Great speech about how great teams operate

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1027128327308571&id=121505091204237&refsrc=https%3A%2F%2Fm.facebook.com%2Fstanfordfootball%2Fvideos%2F1027128327308571%2F

Hall of Fame

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mk48xRzuNvA&feature=kp

You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle.

Parting your soup is not a miracle, Bruce. It's a magic trick. A single mom who's working two jobs and still finds time to take her kid to soccer practice, that's a miracle. A teenager who says "no" to drugs and "yes" to an education, that's a miracle. People want me to do everything for them. But what they don't realize is *they* have the power. You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle.

Bill Cosby Commencement Speech - Be You

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY-WFfajWq8

Run your race. Don't look around.

"So many people today spend valuable time and energy trying to make everyone around them happy. They want to be approved, accepted and affirmed. There’s nothing wrong with that, but you can’t let the opinions of others become your focus or distract you.

When a professional runner races, you don’t see them looking around at the other runners, wondering how they are doing. No, they have their mind focused on one thing: the finish line. They don’t waste valuable energy comparing themselves or wondering what’s going on around them. Instead, they focus on winning the prize. This is how we should be in life.

My challenge to you today is: run your race. Don’t let people squeeze you into their mold. Remember, you don’t have to try to play up to people. You don’t have to worry about what everyone else thinks. As long as you’re being true to what God has put in your heart, don’t look to the left or to the right. Stay focused on your goals."

- Calvin Thomas

It is not the critic who counts...

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. - T. Roosevelt

why liberal arts majors hire engineers

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/foremski/if-steve-jobs-were-starting-out-today-he-would-struggle-to-get-funding-hes-a-marketeer-not-an-engineer/2010

Facebook Movie

I thought this was an awesome scene-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uC5wVJrhzl0

"The VC's want to say... good idea kid grown ups will take it from here, but not this time.  This is our time.  You are going to hand them a business card that says, I'm CEO bitch..."

This could really be a good Life

I love this song!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdlTt3E7w4Y

Stanford Acceptance Letter

"For all the times you stayed up late to get it right; practiced, rehearsed, and gave it your all; studied something because you loved it, not because it would be on the test; took a risk instead of following the easy path; volunteered your time, talent, and energy."

Churchill - Never ever give up

"Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up."

To be successful in your life and business, here is what Winston Churchill told us: "The pessimist sees the problems in every opportunity. Whereas the optimist sees the opportunity in every problem" "Never give in, never give in, never; never; never; never - in nothing, great or small, large or petty - never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense"

"Never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, give up. Never give up. Never give up. Never give up."

Advice from Tech Crunch

Get it out of your head and onto paper—When I had to explain to Bill and the rest of my board that, as a public company, I thought that it would be best if we sold all of our customers and all of our revenue and changed business, it was messing with my mind. In order to finalize that decision, I wrote down a detailed explanation of my logic. The process of writing that document separated me from my own psychology and enabled me to make the decision swiftly.

Focus on the road not the wall—When they train racecar drivers, one of the first lessons is when you are going around a curve at 200 MPH, do not focus on the wall; focus on the road. If you focus on the wall, you will drive right into it. If you focus on the road, you will follow the road. Running a company is like that. There are always a thousand things that can go wrong and sink the ship. If you focus too much on them, you will drive yourself nuts and likely capsize your company. Focus on where you are going rather than on what you hope to avoid.

Climb every mountain, ford every stream, Follow every rainbow, 'til you find your dream!

Climb every mountain, search high and low
Follow every byway, every path you know.
Climb every mountain, ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow, 'til you find your dream!

A dream that will need
all the love you can give,
Every day of your life
for as long as you live.

Climb every mountain, ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow, 'til you find your dream!

Entrepreneurs

“An entrepreneur is defined as a person who is willing to live like no one else will so that one day they can live like no one else can.” – Anonymous

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c__ESApFGss

You never know how far you can go unless your run

Secretariat.  Penny Chenery, is an entrepreneur and goes against criticism in a male dominated world.  One great scene - All the investors reject her and she gets one to invest on the terms she believes in, and they all follow.  She gets rejected by all the investors at first, by her husband, by her brother, etc, but she continues to believe in herself. 
 
One quote - "You never know how far you can go unless you run." 

“I will not live the rest of my life in regret.” – Chenery

Are you limiting your creativity?

This is an interesting artcile: http://www.copyblogger.com/creativity-killers/

Some of what limits creativity:

• Creating and evaluating at the same time
• Fear of ambiguity
• Being trapped by false limit

Awesome article everyone should read

http://www.smarta.com/advice/starting-up/starting-your-own-business/10-lame-excuses-for-not-starting-your-own-business

She's a wild one

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WifpCsOQ3JM



"Wild One"

They said change your clothes
She said no I won't
They said comb your hair
She said some kids don't
And her parents dreams went up in smoke

They said you can't leave
She said yes I will
They said don't see him
She said his name is Bill
She's on a roll and it's all uphill

She's a wild one
With an angel's face
She's a woman-child
In a state of grace
When she was 3 years old on her daddy's knee
He said you can be anything you want to be
She's a wild one
Runnin' free

She loves Rock and Roll
They said it's Satan's tongue
She thinks they're too old
They think she's too young
And the battle lines are clearly drawn

She's a wild one
With an angel's face
She's a woman-child
In a state of grace
When she was 3 years old on her daddy's knee
He said you can be anything you want to be
She's a wild one
Runnin' free

She has future plans and dreams at night
When they tell her life is hard she says that's alright

She's a wild one
With an angel's face
She's a woman-child
In a state of grace
When she was 3 years old on her daddy's knee
He said you can be anything you want to be
She's a wild one
Runnin' free

Here's to the crazy ones.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmG9jzCHtSQ&feature=youtube_gdata_player

Here's to the crazy ones.
  The misfits.
    The rebels.
      The troublemakers.
        The round pegs in the square holes.

The ones who see things differently.
They're not fond of rules.
     And they have no respect for the status quo.

You can praise them, disagree with them, quote them,
     disbelieve them, glorify or vilify them.
About the only thing you can't do is ignore them.
      Because they change things.

They invent.    They imagine.    They heal.
  They explore.    They create.    They inspire.
    They push the human race forward.

Maybe they have to be crazy.
How else can you stare at an empty canvas and see a work of art?
Or sit in silence and hear a song that's never been written?
Or gaze at a red planet and see a laboratory on wheels?
We make tools for these kinds of people.

While some see them as the crazy ones,
   we see genius.
Because the people who are crazy enough to think
they can change the world, are the ones who do.

Always Love - Nada Surf

Always Love

To make a mountain of your life
Is just a choice
But I never learned enough
To listen to the voice that told me
Always love Hate will get you every time
Always love Don't wait til the finish line

Slow demands come 'round
Squeeze the air and keep the rest out
It helps to write it down
Even when you then cross it out

But Always Love Hate will get you every time
Always Love…Even when you wanna fight

Self-directed lives
I want to know what it wouldd be like to
Aim so high above
Any card that you've been dealt, you...

Always Love Hate will get you every time
Always Love Hate will get you

I've been held back by something
Yeah. You said to me quietly on the stairs,
I've been held back by something
Yeah. You said to me quietly on the stairs.
You said
Hey, you good ones.
Hey, you good ones.

To make a mountain of your life
Is just a choice
But I never learned enough
To listen to the voice that told me...
Always love hate will get you every time
Always love hate will get you

I've been held back by something
Yeah, You said to me quietly on the stairs,
I've been held back by something
Yeah, You said to me quietly on the stairs
You said..
Hey, you good ones

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ulU08Se7Qs

I'm not afraid

I'm not afraid (I'm not afraid) to take a stand (to take a stand)
Everybody (everybody) come take my hand (come take my hand)
We’ll walk this road together, through the storm
Whatever weather, cold or warm
Just let'n you know that, you're not alone
Holla if you feel that you've been down the same road

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5-yKhDd64s&feature=related

Jeff Bezos's commencement speech - cool

How will you use your gifts? What choices will you make?

Will inertia be your guide, or will you follow your passions?

Will you follow dogma, or will you be original?

Will you choose a life of ease, or a life of service and adventure?

Will you wilt under criticism, or will you follow your convictions?

Will you bluff it out when you're wrong, or will you apologize?

Will you guard your heart against rejection, or will you act when you fall in love?

Will you play it safe, or will you be a little bit swashbuckling?

When it's tough, will you give up, or will you be relentless?

Will you be a cynic, or will you be a builder?

Will you be clever at the expense of others, or will you be kind?

http://www.princeton.edu/main/news/archive/S27/52/51O99/index.xml

I'm gonna hold on-- 'cause what I believe in is so strong - Shania Twain

"I Ain't Goin' Down"

I'm gonna hold on--
'cause what I believe in is so strong
No matter how long, no one
Can tell me I'm wrong--I ain't goin' down

I had a baby at fifteen--
daddy never did forgive me
I never heard from the guy again
I had to drop outta high school--
everybody treated me so cruel
But I didn't give in and giver her away

Her smile got me through the day--
and every night I'd pray
I could give her enough
At night I'd lie awake and cry--
hopin' we'd get by
'Cause you can't live on love

I worked night and day to keep us goin'
Through the sweat and tears
without her knowin'
It was worth it just to watch her grow
Oh, oh, at least I was able to hold her
Whenever she needed my shoulder
I'm so glad I never let her go

Her smile got me through the years--
dried away the tears
And filled me with hope
At night I'd lie awake and cry--
prayed we would get by
And for the courage to cope
Oh, oh, oh

Her smile got me through the day--
and every night I'd pray
I could give her enough
- Shania

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_dSHeT99kPg

being uncomfortable is good

“It’s uncomfortable to stand up in front of strangers.

It’s uncomfortable to propse an idea that might fail.

It’s uncomfortable to challenge the status quo.

It’s uncomfortable to resist the urge to settle.

When you identify the discomfort, you’ve found the place where a leader is needed.”

don't let little things piss you off

Unsuccessful people are REACTIVE. They are a leaf blowing in the wind, the world is happening around them, and they are just trying to stay alive. When something bad happens, someone did it TO them and they take it personally. They get caught up in the victim mentality and take every opportunity to let people know it.

Successful people, on the other hand, are PROACTIVE. They make things happen in life and are on a mission. And by golly, they aren’t going to let some silly parking ticket take them off their mission. Instead, they say to themselves “these things happen” and move on to more important tasks.

http://www.startbreakingfree.com/226/how-to-stop-letting-little-things-in-life-piss-you-off/

what the bleep do we know?

quotes from a very trippy movie, What the Bleep do we know? you should definetly check it out - i copied and paisted the link to watch the movie bellow as well


Makes you wonder, doesn't it? If thoughts can do that to water, imagine what our thoughts can do to us.

you have to think in possibilities of conciousness

i wake up in the morning and i consciously create my day the way i want it to happen

this is a good assignment if you see it that way

i am at one with the great being that made me and brought me here that formed the galaxies and the universe, etc - how did that get taken out of religion?


http://quicksilverscreen.com/watch?video=54892  

Gross National Happiness

world leaders should start with GNH rather than GNP - measuring the intangible

http://www.ted.com/talks/chip_conley_measuring_what_makes_life_worthwhile.html

welcome to the future

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0Yg9wjctRw&feature=related

When I was ten years old
I remember thinking how cool it would be
When we were going on an eight-hour drive
If I could just watch TV
And I'd have given anything
To have my own Pac-Man game at home
I used to have to get a ride down to the arcade
Now I've got it on my phone

Chorus:
Hey, glory, glory, hallelujah
Welcome to the future

My grandpa was in World War 2
He fought against the Japanese
He wrote a hundred letters to my grandma
Mailed them from his base in the Philippines
I wish they could see this now
The world they saved has changed you know
'Cause I was on a video chat this morning
With a company in Tokyo

Chorus:
Hey, everyday's a revolution
Welcome to the future

Hey, look around it's all so clear
Hey, wherever we were going, well we're here
Hey, so many things I never thought I'd see
Happening right in front of me

I had a friend in school
Running back on the football team
They burned a cross in his front yard
For asking out the homecoming queen
I thought about him today
And everybody who'd seen what he'd seen
From a woman on a bus
To a man with a dream

Chorus:
Hey, wake up Martin Luther
Welcome to the future
Hey, glory, glory, hallelujah
Welcome to the future

Alice in Wonderland

"The Mad Hatter: Have I gone mad?
[Alice checks Hatter's temperature]
Alice Kingsley: I'm afraid so. You're entirely bonkers. But I'll tell you a secret. All the best people are. "

randoms

Any fool can criticize, condemn and complain and most fools do.
Benjamin Franklin

God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy. - Billy Currington
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKpQRjj_WbU&playnext_from=TL&videos=OWBcS6_nbAg&feature=feedrec

Positivity

If something has ever been done before why can’t you do it now.  If something is ever going to be done in the future why can’t you do it right now.  There is only one way in my mind to coach and that is with a positive expectation as a result. – 6 time Olympic Coach, Richard Quick

Criticism

this is the way steve jobs responded to a guy criticizing his iPad - i thought it was pretty cool.  "By the way, what have you done that’s so great? Do you create anything, or just criticize others work and belittle their motivations?"

Belief

My old swim coach Richard Quick, "Believe in Belief"

“Heretics must believe.  More than anyone else in an organization, it’s the person who’s challenging the status quo, the one who is daring to be great, who is truly present and not just punching a clock who must have confidence in her beliefs.  Can you imagine Steve Jobs showing up for the paycheck?  It’s nice to get paid.  It’s essential to believe.” – Seth Godin

"I think I can I think I can" - The Little Engine that Could

A little steam engine had a long train of cars to pull.

She went along very well till she came to a steep hill. But then, no matter how hard she tried, she could not move the long train of cars.

She pulled and she pulled. She puffed and she puffed. She backed and started off again. Choo! Choo!

But no! the cars would not go up the hill.

At last she left the train and started up the track alone. Do you think she had stopped working? No, indeed! She was going for help.

"Surely I can find someone to help me," she thought.

Over the hill and up the track went the little steam engine. Choo, choo! Choo, choo! Choo, choo! Choo!

Pretty soon she saw a big steam engine standing on a side track. He looked very big and strong. Running alongside, she looked up and said:

"Will you help me over the hill with my train of cars? It is so long and heavy I can't get it over."

The big steam engine looked down at the little steam engine. Then he said:

"Don't you see that I am through my day's work? I have been rubbed and scoured ready for my next run. No, I cannot help you,"

The little steam engine was sorry, but she went on, Choo, choo! Choo, choo! Choo, choo! Choo, choo!

Soon she came to a second big steam engine standing on a side track. He was puffing and puffing, as if he were tired.

"That big steam engine may help me," thought the little steam engine. She ran alongside and asked:

"Will you help me bring my train of cars over the hill? It is so long and so heavy that I can't get it over."

The second big steam engine answered:

"I have just come in from a long, long run. Don't you see how tired I am? Can't you get some other engine to help you this time?

"I'll try," said the little steam engine, and off she went. Choo, choo! Choo, choo! Choo, choo!

After a while she came to a little steam engine just like herself. She ran alongside and said:

"Will you help me over the hill with my train of cars? It is so long and so heavy that I can't get it over."

"Yes, indeed!" said this little steam engine. "I'll be glad to help you, if I can."

So the little steam engines started back to where the train of cars had been standing. Both little steam engines went to the head of the train, one behind the other.

Puff, puff! Chug, choo! Off they started!

Slowly the cars began to move. Slowly they climbed the steep hill. As they climbed, each little steam engine began to sing:

"I-think-I-can! I-think-I-can! I-think-I-can! I-think-I-can! I-think-I-can! I-think-I-can! I think I can - I think I can - I think I can I think I can--"

And they did! Very soon they were over the hill and going down the other side.

Now they were on the plain again; and the little steam engine could pull her train herself. So she thanked the little engine who had come to help her, and said good-by.

And she went merrily on her way, singing:

"I-thought-I-could! I-thought-I-could! I-thought-I-could! I-thought-I-could! I thought i could - I thought I could - I thought I could - I thought I could - I thought I could - I thought I could I thought I could --" - Watty Piper

Great Quote about Life

“Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to a divine purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know: That we are here for the sake of others...for the countless unknown souls with whose fate we are connected by a bond of sympathy. Many times a day, I realize how much my outer and inner life is built upon the labors of people, both living and dead, and how earnestly I must exert myself in order to give in return as much as I have received.”  - Albert Einstein

Happiness is in your mind

Happiness depends more on the inward disposition of mind than on outward circumstances.
Benjamin Franklin

No man is happy who does not think himself so.
Publilius Syrus

Our minds are as different as our faces: we are all traveling to one destination; --happiness; but few are going by the same road.
Charles Caleb Colton  

Happiness is not a matter of events, it depends upon the tides of the mind.
Alice Meynell

 -Source: http://www.inspirational-quotes.info/happiness.html

Who are you not to be?

"Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, 'Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous?' Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small doesn't serve the world. Thee's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It's not just in some of us, it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others."

- Nelson Mandela

My list of things to do today

I won't break my back for a million bucks I can't take to my grave
So why put off for tomorrow what I could get done today

Like go for a walk, say a little prayer
Take a deep breath of mountain air
Put on my glove and play some catch
It's time that I make time for that
Wade the shore and cast a line
Look up a long lost friend of mine
Sit on the porch and give my girl a kiss
Start livin', that's the next thing on my list

Raise a little hell, laugh 'til it hurts
Put an extra five in the plate at church
Call up my folks just to chat
It's time that I make time for that
Stay up late, then oversleep
Show her what she means to me
Catch up on all the things I've always missed
Just start livin', that's the next thing on my list

Under an old brass paperweight
Is my list of things to do today

- Toby Keith 

Click

Dance

 I hope you never lose your sense of wonder
You get your fill to eat
But always keep that hunger
May you never take one single breath for granted
God forbid love ever leave you empty handed
I hope you still feel small
When you stand by the ocean
Whenever one door closes, I hope one more opens
Promise me you'll give faith a fighting chance

And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance
I hope you dance
I hope you dance

I hope you never fear those mountains in the distance,
Never settle for the path of least resistance,
Livin' might mean takin' chances but they're worth takin',
Lovin' might be a mistake but it's worth makin',
Don't let some hell bent heart leave you bitter,
When you come close to sellin' out reconsider,
Give the heavens above more than just a passing glance,
And when you get the choice to sit it out or dance. - Lee Ann Womack
click

Laughing

"They all laughed at Christopher Columbus
When he said the world was round
They all laughed when Edison recorded sound
They all laughed at Wilbur and his brother
When they said that man could fly...

"They told Marconi
Wireless was a phony
It's the same old cry...

"They all laughed at Rockefeller Center
Now they're fighting to get in
They all laughed at Whitney and his cotton gin
They all laughed at Fulton and his steamboat
Hershey and his chocolate bar...

"Ford and his Lizzie
Kept the laughers busy
That's how people are
They laughed at me wanting you
Said it would be, "Hello, Goodbye."
And oh, you came through
Now they're eating humble pie..."

- George Gershwin

Conclusion: if you are being laughed at you might be on to something... 

I won't grow up

"Oh maturity's a wrapped up package deal so it seems
And ditching teenage fantasy means ditching all your dreams
All your friends and peers and family solemnly tell you you will
Have to grow up be an adult yeah be bored and unfulfilled
Oh when no ones yet explained to me exactly what's so great
About slaving 50 years away on something that you hate,
About meekly shuffling down the path of mediocrity
Well if that's your road then take it but it's not the road for me

And I won't sit down
And I won't shut up
And most of all I will not grow up
And I won't sit down
And I won't shut up
And most of all I yeah I won't grow up"
- Lyrics from Frank Turner song, Photosynthesis

I came across this band when I lived in England - i think his songs are great and if I was clever, I would sort out how to put a song in a post, but you should definitely check out his songs especially the one by Photosynthis if you are venturing out.  Check out his songs for free on his MySpace page.  Click.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

-Rudyard Kipling

Friends are the Inspiration.

Here is a shout out to my inspirational friends and their blogs / websites - check them out.

Katherine Bell - writes about her experiences at Stanford Medical School.  Click.

Meagan Donahue - Venture capitalist writes about her life experiences. Click.

Curtis Williamson - Entrepreneur.  Sign up for a race if you live between SD and SB. Click.

Ray Jones - Singer / Song Writer and Entrepreneur.  Click.

Larry Chiang - Author of "What they don't teach you at Stanford Business School." Click.

Elizabeth Heng - Future President.  Click