When you write it in permanent ink in cyberspace it is permanent

You probably should think about it before you hit send. Once you send it in cyberspace it will be written in permanent ink. Surely you know that. Recently I had received a message on Facebook from an old friend I had not seen in almost a decade. Before I responded I scrolled through their old post to see what they had been up to. It didn't take long to learn that where they were in life wasn't anywhere I wanted to go. Obviously I did not respond. Had they not posted all the chaos for me to see, I could have made a decision I would have regretted. Take a moment to go through your own social media accounts to see what your posts say to those that might read it. Are you someone who they would want to be around? Before you hit the send button, take a moment to think about what message that would send about you.

It's not only what you say that matters, how you say it also determines what they hear

If your tone of voice says your disappointed then they can't hear the compliment you said in your words. If your tone makes them go into "Defense Mode" their ears close. It's seven percent what you say and ninety three percent how you say it. Your words might be what they need to hear but if they can't hear you they won't be able to help them. If you are grouchy it is best that you save your encouraging words until you can say them in a encouraging way. I looked into the mirror and said the same message with different tones in my voice like happy, glad, proud, frustrated, disappointed, disgusted, and angry. I saw my face go through all kinds of distorted ways as I tried to show each of those emotions. And let me tell you what, if you try looking in the mirror you would see just how ugly and scary you can look when you say it in every negative tone. When you say it with a happy tone, everyone is happy. When you say it in a proud tone , they feel how proud you are of them. So remember that it is seven percent what you say and ninety three percent how you say it.

In tough times you have to make tough decisions

One thing is for sure, the pandemic has given us all a culture shock that will forever change us all. Nothing will be the same. Businesses will not return to business as usual. Until it is done reeking havoc, we will not know what will be left to build upon. Don't be so quick to make a decision that will narrow your point of view or make your options so limited when all is said and done. Keep an open mind to the possibilities so that you have a positive outcome when it's over. Don't let greed and fear change who you are. Don't lower your standards to get by during the pandemic or you won't have the moral support and pride to stand on your own two feet when it is over. Times are tough and we will all have tough decisions to make to get through these tough times. Even during a pandemic your future is determined by your actions today. Be kind to everyone you meet because you have no idea what they may be facing.

Without competition your opinion means nothing

Having competition will keep everyone to compete for your business. Without all the "Mom and Pop" stores to keep them honest they honestly don't have to care whether their customers are happy or not. They know that since the customers have no where else to even get what they need, they will have no choice but to come there if they want it. The pandemic has caused, and will continue to cause a lot of these "Mom and Pop" stores to close their doors for good. As that happens the "customer service" at those stores remaining open will not be necessarily good because they have no competition. They know that customers won't dare complain when they have no where else to get what they need. They will have to take whatever the store managers and employees do if what they need can only be purchased there. So keep this in mind when you need something now to support your local "Mom and Pop" stores so they can remain open. Because having competition will keep stores competing for your business.

Like they say, sometimes it is better to say nothing at all

I am sure you have  heard the saying, If you don't have anything nice to say then don't say anything at all.

To be the best you can be only takes doing your best

No one is good at everything, but everyone is good at something. To be the best you can be, takes doing the best you can. You won't be successful at everything you try but to be successful at anything you have to give it your best and try. If you can't do it you can at least say with pride, I gave it my best effort. Others may not see how hard you tried but all that matters is that you know that you did the best you could. Sometimes to be successful you have to first learn from the mistakes you make while trying. Keep in mind when you were young and you were trying to learn to ride a bike. Everyone falls down many times but because they want to ride the bike, they keep trying until they finally get the hang of it. Success doesn't happen in an instant, it comes from hard work.

When is going from a million to ten a good thing?

Our minds have an endless stream of thoughts clogging up our mind to the point where PEACE of MIND has no room to get in. If you can reduce a million thoughts down to ten, you immediately feel better and you can think more clearly. PEACE of MIND really is JUST a FLUSH away. All you got to do is take all but ten of the million thoughts that are clogging you up and JUST FLUSH IT out of your mind so PEACE of MIND has room to get in. To clearly see what you need to do you have to be able to clearly think about it to see what you need to do. Clearing the clutter of thoughts in your mind is the only way for PEACE of MIND to have room to get in, so JUST FLUSH IT. PEACE of MIND really is JUST a FLUSH away.

As long as you take care of your necessities in your life, you will have at least your necessities

Making your "to do" list with more than you can possibly do is a guarantee that you won't get your "to do" list done. Don't set yourself up for failure. You can be so overwhelmed just thinking about everything on your "to do" list that you can wear yourself out mentally and physically without doing anything. Have more than one list. One list of the things that are a necessity to get done and a "when I get extra time" I will do list. Separating things you need done into more smaller, manageable projects will motivate you, by not overwhelming you. You can only do what you can do no matter how long you write your "to do" list. To lessen your load start by taking everything that doesn't really need done off your list. It may be as easy as one, two three but not possible if there is also a four, five, six "to do" too.

The outcome is determined by how you react

Many of us all around the World from all walks of life are having to deal with uncertainty at these difficult times. Although we are each affected on many different levels, we are all affected. The pandemic has forever changed every single person in the entire World. Stress is a natural reaction to life experiences. But too much stress causes problems in nearly every system in your body. Including your immune system. It increases your risk of a heart attack or stroke. If it is not a life or death situation then don't stress about it to the point where you make it one. The outcome is not based solely on the situation you are facing but on how you react to the situation you are facing. Before you react STOP and think about what is the best possible outcome and then do whatever you have to do to have the best outcome possible. Learn how to reduce your stress so your immune system stays strong and you reduce your chances of a heart attack or stroke. Being mentally stressed out has a negative outcome on your physically well being as well. If it isn't important in the big picture of your life then JUST FLUSH IT out of your mind to ease your stress. If it doesn't really need to be done then don't stress about getting it done. If it has to be done, then get it done so you don't have to stress about doing it.

Without saying a word you are still saying something

If you look the other way, you are saying it is okay with you. If you ignore bad behavior when it is happening to anyone, you are saying that it is acceptable. By making it acceptable behavior, it will become a common occurrence. If you ACCEPT it then you can EXPECT it will eventually happen to you or someone you love. Choosing to do nothing is still a choice you make. Without saying a word you are saying something. If you wouldn't want it to happen to you or someone you love, then you must prevent it from happening to anyone. If you want to feel safe in your community, then you have to ensure that everyone in your community is safe. If you see someone who needs help then help them. Wouldn't you want someone to help you if it was happening to you or someone you love?

Is a junk drawer really full of junk?

The more time I spend at home the more "junk drawers" I find. I have also realized that "junk drawers" are not always in a drawer. I found "junk drawers" in baskets, in boxes, as well as drawers. There seemed to be a "junk drawer" in every room, tucked somewhere out of sight. As I needed things I would dig through a "junk drawer' hoping to find just what I needed. What I noticed was most of what was in these "junk drawers" was really junk. They were full of all kinds of things that I would never need or even use. I would find little tidbits of pieces needed for things that I didn't even own anymore. Have you looked at what you have in your "junk drawers" recently? It is a walk down memory lane as the tidbits bring up old memories. I decided to spend a few seconds each time I found myself digging through a "junk drawer" to enjoy the memory of an item then throw it away. Slowly but surely I got rid of enough junk out of the "junk drawer" to quickly be able to find the tools and the tidbits that I might need. By the time I get done, I hope to have only one "junk drawer" in the whole house not one in each room. You never know what you might find in a "junk drawer" but I guarantee you that if you look through your "junk drawer" you will find a lot of junk.

Not knowing what to expect is worse than expecting the worst

Like the old saying says, Hope for the best but plan for the worst. If you expect the worst then you start making a plan about what you can do if the worst happens. If you don't know what to expect, it will catch you completely off guard, knocking you down.  That is why giving someone an honest no does far less damage than telling them yes when you know you have no intentions of doing it. If you tell them no they will find another way to do it. If you tell them yes then they won't look for another way to do it, because they took you at your word that you would do it. If you know what to expect you know what you need to do. Being prepared for anything means you will be prepared for whatever comes your way.

You may forget what you said but they won't forget

My fortune cookie took me a minute to understand. It said, No one has a good enough memory to be a good liar. Suddenly as I realized what it was saying, I could see several images of people in my mind who I had run across throughout life. They would say one thing one conversation and the next time the details were different. I had often wandered if they realized that last time they said four and this time they said seven. But they always seemed to not remember as they continued on with their story. There had been a time or two where I stopped someone in mid conversation to say hey last time you said four. This only caused tension in the air as they tried to deny ever telling me four. Now I have learned to not bother to confront them. But what I did learn was I would never believe a word they said anymore. Like the Fortune cookie said no one has a good enough memory to be a good liar.