i just wanna share something i've read from Waukster Online

The Seven Keys to Success
Blas F. Ople

No public figure escapes the demands of the commencement season, which is the dominant event for millions of graduating students and their parents during March and April. The choice of guest speakers is based on their ability to inspire the graduates with their own successful careers. Most of the time, these would be public officials who are the symbols of upwardly mobile success and the power they wield in their communities. (There are few instances when losing candidates are invited to be commencement speakers.)

The speakers, most of them claiming to come from deprived backgrounds, are themselves supposed to be living proof that education can change the lives of the poor. Nor are they likely to miss the opportunity of extolling themselves by pointing out their humble origins. A commencement is not is not the place to condemn the iniquitous social order. It is about the talisman of learning and hard work, which transforms lives.

As one who has been to scores of commencement exercises throughout a long public career, I have learned to sum up the secrets of success for my believing audiences. The truth, however, is that such sweeping generalizations are not likely to penetrate the core of a graduate's own convictions. An ambitious young man or young woman must first internalize these secrets in their own lives, often through harrowing experiences, before they can understand the keys to success in the real world.

The first key to success, worldly or otherwise, is to set a goal for one's self. Most of mankind get born and die without ever knowing what they really want.

The second key is to develop a positive outlook in life. Problems are often opportunities in disguise. As someone has said, pessimism is just a state of mind but optimism is a strategy for living.

The third key is to develop an active, rather than a passive, view of one's environment. Successful men do not merely wait for things to happen to them. They try to make things happen. They create their own challenges and opportunities.

The fourth key is to stand by one's principles when life's crises must be faced. The test of character, in the phrase of William James, is not in choosing the path of least resistance but the path of the greatest traction. The temptation to make the easy choice must be resisted. This merely means that most times, the harder choice is the correct one.

The fifth key is to be absolutely dependable and trustworthy, so that your own colleagues know that they can trust your integrity even in the most difficult moments. The trust of colleagues and subordinates is what can propel you to success.

The sixth key is a commitment to continuing personal and professional growth. Most people stop growing after leaving school. Education is for life.

The seventh and last key is to live a frugal and disciplined life, shunning all forms of waste, whether of time, talent, money or other resources. Life itself is a finite and most precious gift, and wasting it through frivolity and self-indulgence must be offensive to the giver of life.

For most of us who speak at commencement exercises, of course, these formulas for success represent wisdom after the fact. I have never really sat down at any point of in my life to analyze the secrets of success. Most of those who are acclaimed for their success were too busy answering the challenges of the moment, which very likely they have themselves created, to bother about large and sweeping principles. But what else can you tell these young and impressionable audiences who hang by every word as a symbol of authority on the subject of success?

I still vividly recall my own graduation night in the plaza of my hometown, Hagonoy, Bulacan, on March 23, 1941. It was the first time ever that I gave my formal speech, as valedictorian of the graduating class, which I had composed with great care and committed to memory. It must have been a flawless delivery. But what the audience, including my classmates, did not know, was that I was wearing ill-fitting leather shoes borrowed for the occasion from an affluent uncle, and my aching feet nearly ruined my performance. I was left with little disposition to listen to the advise of our distinguished guest speaker, Venancio Trinidad, who was the Bulacan Superintendent of Schools.

Few of us will ever have the leisure that afforded Lord Chesterfield the opportunity to write the letters to his sons that, until today, represent the best advice on how to navigate the frail craft of one's life through the shoals of a dangerous and treacherous world. But the commencement exercises do afford such an opportunity. The commencement speaker is a surrogate parent giving frank but sympathetic advice to his own children who are about to leave on an exciting but dangerous journey – the journey of life.

Unfortunately or not, the advice will mean nothing until the principles of success are internalized in the convictions of a young man or woman setting-out on that all-important journey. He or she will have to weigh the counsels of fear and hope contending inside the heart. In the end, we are most answerable to ourselves and not to any jury. And that is the eighth key to success. To thine own self be true.

May 06, 2008 Tuesday

“FOR OLD TIMES SAKE”

                    Monday at 11 in the evening my phone beeped, it was a message alert. I’m used to my friends sending me messages at that time of the day but, it was an unexpected message from an old friend. A very special friend whom I lost contact with for years because she went to the U.S. by petition. She just came back here in the Philippines last October 2007 but we never had the chance to ask over and chat about each other’s lives after those years. She was asking me if I still have my notes about M.S. (medical-surgical nursing). Though I was a bit surprised because I thought she was busy with her review for the board exams I politely replied that I still have some notes and a pocket reviewer that might be useful for her review. I asked her when she wants to meet in order for me to give her that stuff; she replied that she’ll just text me when she will be available as soon as possible and then after that we bid each other good night.

                    7 in the morning I was awaken by a loud beep from my phone, it was her again. She asked if we could meet in the afternoon. Honestly, I was a bit happy because that’ll be the first time for me to see her again after she went to the states. She was the first girl whom I seriously fell in love when I entered college. We were both in the same circle of friends that is why I never had the courage to show how I feel for her though she knew that I like her. Maybe that is why up until now I was never conscientious on wooing girls because I never saw the same traits like hers.

                   After lunch I asked her if she will be bringing somebody to accompany her… I was expecting that she will be alone, because that’ll be great so we can have all the time for ourselves. I was a bit saddened when she replied that her boyfriend will be with her… haay… I thought it was the time for us to bond again as friends or maybe more than that, but I was wrong. It was just a false hope. I realized that it’s time for me to move on from my past. It’ll be good for me to see her even for the last time to mend my heart and release myself from that false hope. I called my best friend Ryan who was also a friend of hers back in college to come with me.

                    We met at a mall. Ryan and I was the first to arrive. We waited for a few minutes until I heard someone call my name, it was her. I saw her smiling while calling out my name. She didn’t change, it was the same smile that I can still remember when we were in college, how can I forget that bubbly smile that she always have when we were still classmates. The smile that I longed to see again even for the last time…

                   i just can't forget how bubbly she was...

"The Reasons Why I Love All That Is You"
(a freshman college romance...)
By Mark Louwie Ramos

I love your smiles,
I love the way you laugh,
I love when we make fun of ourselves during our chemistry lab experiments,
I love when you get a little crinkle in your nose when youre looking at me like Im nuts,
I love when we ride the same jeepneys after classes,
I love when theres only the two of us in the canteen when Im reviewing with you the fetal circulation for your anatomy exam,
I love every night when youre the last thing on my mind before falling asleep.

And its not because Im lonely,
And its not because it has been years since I last saw you,
It is because when you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want your life to start as soon as possible.
Still hoping for that day to come when we see each other again.
And when that day comes, Ill hug you, holding you so tight and never letting go, whispering to your heart the promise of my undying love...

Written: Aug.5, 2007 Sunday 9:00pm

Discovering My Purpose

                     Every human being is unique. Each and everyone have their own gifts and talents which makes them different from each other. That is why it is right to say that each and every human being has a role and purpose in life.

                     People should make use of these gifts and talents in order for them to excel in their chosen career or path in life while at the same time, making a mark or change on the lives of other people by influencing them in such a way that they become more aware of what they truly want to do with their life; therefore taking them closer on discovering their true purpose in this world.

                     As for myself, I do have my own gifts and talents which I use to express myself and influence other people’s outlook in life by sharing with them my thoughts and ideas on various matters in life. They are free to agree with me or not, but the point is that I didn’t imposed unto them the things that I’ve said. It’s like being a good model for them as best as I can, they could just follow or ignore. I share my thoughts and ideas in the form of writing like poetry and essays. I like turning simple topics into a more interesting and meaningful subject of discussion; making people understand wholly every aspect of the topic.

                     What I want is to be remembered as a person who loves to share his own ideas; a person who accepts criticisms positively and take them as part of the learning experience; and lastly, as a person who made people understand the wonderful meaning of life as it should be; and that would be my legacy.

written:June 3, 2007 Sunday 1:15am

“College: The four colorful years of my life”

PART I

College life is over. I’m a fresh graduate now and a new chapter in my life is about to begin. The four years full of good and not so good experiences contributed to the molding of the person that I had become today. I just want to share the memories that I had in those four colorful years of my life…

“Hindi madaling makalimutan ang mga taong nagbigay ng malalim na marka sa iyong pagkatao at nagbigay ng kulay sa tunay na kahulugan ng iyong buhay kahit sa maikling panahon lamang…”

1^st year ,Ito ang pinaka-exciting year and also I consider this as the most wonderful, dahil sa year na ito nakilala ko ang mga taong nagpasaya sa aking college life, sina Guia, Joana, Cherish, Mae, Grace,  Ryan,  Kaine and the whole section of BSN1-10. Dito ko rin nakilala ang dalawang taong itinuturing kong bestfriends, sina Ryan and Kaine. Sila ang dalawang taong hindi nagsawa sa mga kalokohan ko sa buhay hehehe hindi rin sila nagsawang I-criticize ako lagi kaya ang year na ito ang most fruitful in terms of academics dahil dito ako nag-excel sa tulong nila. Dito ko rin nakuha ang unang medal ko sa college. A medal in winning at the P.E. sportsfest in Lasalle hahaha( traditional sport yun, hulaan niyo na lang hehe) And also , the most exciting event  for me is when I played one of the lead roles in our dramatic presentation for the collegiate competition, hindi man kami nanalo, masaya pa rin kami because it was a great experience, tsaka talagang pinagbutihan namin yun sa pamamagitan ng disiplina at pagtitiwala sa kakayahan ng bawat isa.

Kung may masaya, syempre meron din malungkot na mga pangyayari, I consider it as the most tragic event in my lovelife haha. I was involved with two girls, masyadong complicated yung story kaya hindi ko na ikukwento. Pero pinagsisihan ko na yun. Nagpapasalamat ako because despite the tragic events that happened ay naging magkaibigan pa rin kami nung isa kahit na nasa malayo na siya ngayon. Isa rin sa malungkot na pangyayari eh ang pagtatapos ng taong ito dahil na-dissolve ang pinakamamahal kong section sa college, nagkahiwahiwalay na kami pero ganoon talaga ang buhay, people come and go. Buti na lang at nakasama ko pa rin sina Ryan and Kaine sa nilipatan naming section para sa pagsisimula ng 2^nd year, ang BSN2-6.

2^nd year, New section means meeting new people. May mga bagong taong makikilala kaya panibagong pakikisama. Buti na lang hindi ako nag-iisa, dahil nakasama ko sa bagong section namin sina Ryan and Kaine at hindi lang yun nakasama din namin sina Maynard, Sally, and Liza. Honestly, Hindi kami naging close noon nina Maynard sa pinanggalingan namin section, maybe because of lifestyle indifferences. But then, we still gave ourselves the chance to know them better, sino pa ba ang magtutulungan kundi kami din na mga nanggaling sa parehong section. Nalaman kong sila ay mga mabubuti at totoong kaibigan. Maynard is very religious kaya Brother Maynard ang tawag namin sa kanya, he’s always full of good advice whenever we needed it. Sally and Liza are both sweet and thoughtful at masarap kasama lalo na pag tumatambay lang kami sa school or gumagawa ng homework sa library, and also, my day wasn’t complete without seeing their sweet smiles.

Simula nang makilala namin ng lubusan sina Maynard, Sally, and Liza ay nabuo na ang bagong barkadahan namin. Lagi na kaming magkakasama kumain during vacant hours, Hindi kami makauwi hangga’t hindi namin naihahatid sa kanilang dorm yung dalawang girls, nagtutulungan sa mga assignments and projects, and nagbibigayan ng friendly advices kapag may problema ang isa sa amin, in short tunay na barkadahan. Naalala ko pa noon na kapag may nililigawan ako ay ipinapacheck ko pa sa kanila yung mga loveletters na gingawa ko and very supportive naman sila sakin lalo na sina Sally and Liza.

We had met new friends from our new section but I say that nothing compares to the friendship that Sally, Liza, Kaine, Maynard and Ryan gave me. It was the best. They were such a handful of wonderful friends, and I miss them...

3^rd year is nearing but I didn’t expect that this transition was the turning point in my college life. I was shocked and furious to the final grade that my professor gave me in my Microbiology subject because I had good grades during the prelim and midterm periods of that semester. A grade of 79.25% didn’t passed the standard requirement of 80% and above; plus the sad fact that my parents can no longer support my studying in a prestigious university. I felt so wrecked with the chain of events, so worried for the friends that I will leave at the university that I have learned to love…

I had no choice but to transfer to another school…

(TO BE CONTINUED)

written:May 14, 2007 Monday 1:00am

Unfinished topic: Infidelity

It has been long since my last entry on this blog. I was busy reviewing for the upcoming Nursing Board Exams this June that is why I almost forgot that I haven’t continued nor concluded the latest entry that I started… I kept it unfinished because I was thinking of so many ideas about the topic when suddenly; the writer’s block struck me. By the way, a writer’s block is a phenomenon that hits a writer when his in the middle of writing; rendering him unable to come up with the ideas that he needs, therefore forcing him to stop until the time that he’s ready to write again.

And now I must say that I can’t continue anymore nor finish the topic that I started due to some contradicting and conflicting moral-ethical issues that prohibits me from probing into much important and deeper parts of the topic. I also realized that it’s useless for me to discuss about the subject without experiencing it firsthand. It needs to be experienced to get the feelings and emotions that will give emphasis to the idea, and before experiencing it, “you need to love and be loved”; well obviously it is the hardest part.

I apologize for leaving the topic Infidelity, unfinished.

Written: February 11, 2007 Sunday 2:24pm

“Infidelity”

 Chapter I

Recently, a few questions came to my mind; why do people can’t escape infidelity? What are the reasons that made them engage on that act?

Up to now I didn’t have the answers to my own questions, but based on the observations I had on to some people that were involved in such act, I did my best to rationalize their reasons into a more understandable manner. So at least I have an idea on the matter at hand.  

Why do people cheat on a relationship?

Maybe because they are getting tired of their current relationship and they are wanting for more… more in the sense that they want new things to happen because the spark (“kilig” factor) isn’t there anymore. For people who are in the conservative/moralists side, they will affirm that this kind of reasoning is invalid meaning morally bad in the eyes of the Church. In the other side, the liberals might say that it’s alright to find another partner if the person isn’t happy anymore with his/her current relationship, suggesting that it’s just being realistic to oneself.

But another important query came, what could be the basis when a person is doing such acts, meaning how can we tell when a person is cheating on a relationship?

These are just few of the questions that I have for the moment…

(hindi na ako makapag-isip amp! Writer’s block amp!)

To be continued…

Written: Sept. 25, 2006 12:04am

Daydreamer

A daydreamer…

A person like me might never have the happiness in life I've always wanted…

I keep on giving the best of me, but its always lacking something…

Trying to do things to please people, but is always taken for granted…

All I asked is a bit of love and care from the woman I love…

Still, I'm here trying to hang on and continue w/ life…

Hopelessly dreaming of something I can't have…

†FATAL ERROR!!!

reformatting required!

reinstating back to reality

redirecting heart and mind...

"nabigla ako sa sarili ko kasi sa matagal na panahon, ngayon lang ulit ako nakapag-isip about love. eto yung mga sinabi/comment ko dun sa blog nung special lady in my heart."

---kaninang umaga, may napanood ako sa TV. a discussion about love at nung mabasa ko itong entry mo ay bigla kong naisip ung sinabi nung isa sa mga guest nung show:

"for me, love is not fair or equal because it is something that cannot be measured nor it must be categorized to any kind of measurement. for example, may niligawan akong isang babae, the girl has the right to reject me if she doesn't love me because it is her human right. therefore i can't say that love has become unfair to me only because of the reason that that girl doesn't love me."

para sakin, tama nga naman ung sinabi nung guest dahil sa tuwing ang tao ay nagmahal at nabigo, ang tanging naiisip nya ay ang mga pangyayari sa kanyang buhay na naging malupit or unfair sa kanya ang pag-ibig.

at isa pa, hindi ang PAG-IBIG ang malupit dahil ang tao ang gumagawa ng ikasasakit ng damdamin ng kanyang kapwa na syang bumabalot sa tunay na kahulugan ng pag-ibig kaya pag tayo'y nasaktan, minsan, ang pag-ibig ang ating nasisisi.

"kung pede lang sana mawala ang ugaling makasarili ng tao, wala sanang mga pusong lumuluha at nagdurugo ngaun".