A wise person once said that we teach people what we know, but we reproduce what we are. The prophet of long ago taught that the student is not above the teacher, but that the teacher has not taught until the student becomes as the teacher. Yet another person says that "people will not always believe what you say but they will always believe what you do.

While going through my files I came across a blurb from Catholic Digest written by Mary Kinsolving which is as relevant today as it was many years ago when it was written.  Ms. Kinsolving tells a story of living in Manhattan where, as a child, her mother walked her to school four blocks away every morning and then walked home with her again in the afternoon.

Basketball fans and in fact most people know the story, that Michael Jordan, considered by many to be the greatest basketball player who ever lived, was cut from the squad when he was a sophomore in high school.  Fortunately, he didn't quit playing and the results speak for themselves.

A Psychology Today article describes the results child psychologist Michael Rutter of the University of London got from studying 1,400 pupils in 12 secondary schools in London.  The findings are significant and eye-opening, but on reflection, not the least bit surprising.

The late comedian, Groucho Marx, said that "Whatever it is, I'm against it."  My dictionary says that criticism is "the art of judging with propriety of the beauties and faults of a performance; remark on beauties and faults; critical observation, verbal or written.

In his publication Better Families, Dr. J. Allan Petersen quotes C. Peter McColough of Xerox who says, "I look for breadth of interest.  Individuals with broad interests are best able to perform within a company today.  We face many societal changes, and a broad outlook and encompassing overview are more pertinent than the traditional circumscribed career preparation.

One morning, my long-time Executive Assistant, Laurie Magers, told me that she would probably not be in the next day because she had to take her mother's puppy, Muffin, to the veterinarian to be spayed.  This will surprise many people who have known me for so many years, but just a few months ago I would have thought to myself, "I just don't understand somebody taking off to have something done to a dog.

The title of this blog might seem a little strange and some readers will undoubtedly think to themselves, "That simply is not true.  Those are things which are extremely valuable and cannot be bought at any price."

I beg to differ as I look at some of the words of George Matthew Adams.

John Maxwell, one of the top leadership authorities in America, says that most people would rather work on their personality than on their character, and how right he is.  Perhaps that is because the personality development brings more immediate rewards, is less demanding and, in most cases, involves little sacrifice on our part.

The dictionary says that a "problem" is a question, especially a difficult question; a matter of doubt or difficulty.  As I read the definition of "problem," I'm certain the dictionary, as far as identification is concerned, is correct.  However, I much prefer to think of a problem as an opportunity.

My 1828 Noah Webster Dictionary says that comfort is "relief from pain; ease; rest or moderate pleasure after pain, cold or distress or uneasiness of body."  The basic problem, too many people seek a comfort level where there is no pain or discomfort.  The reality is that what you're able to accomplish in life is determined by the number of times you leave your "comfort zone" to take on new challenges even though you know you're going to experience some pain, grief, or even a failure.

Mr. Franklin Holmes is a volunteer chaplain working in prisons in Tennessee, Georgia and Florida.  Using a page from my book, See You At The Top, Chaplain Holmes is teaching a program in those prisons about the importance of looking for the good in every situation.