CNN’s heroes of 2010 provide some inspiring role models for us all, especially this guy. How awesome would the world be if we all followed his example?

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Have you tried the most obvious option? Have you looked under your nose?

Perhaps you were too daunted to take the most obvious option so you didn’t even consider it. It’s probably still there, waiting for you to open your eyes and realise that it is the path you should take.

Sometimes the best answer is right in front of you. Look there first.

Image credit

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We like to think we are aware of our abilities. We like to think we know our limits. We know what we can do and we know what we can’t do. We see something difficult and say “I could never do that”.

But no matter how well we know ourselves, we don’t know what we are really capable of, that’s for certain.

Absolute certain.

We could do better than we are doing at present, that’s for sure. We could get better grades, a better job, a nicer house. We could help more people. We could make a difference in the world. We could change people’s lives. We could be happier, more fulfilled, more useful, better friends, better fathers…

If we can’t admit that then we’re only kidding ourselves.

It doesn’t matter what we say, who we are or what we’ve already achieved. It’s the same for anyone and everyone.

We could push our limits more.

If we really put our minds to it.

Image: Tom Grundy Photo

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Is the world a better or worse place for having had you in it?

It’s a simple question but one we should all think about.

We’ve all done stupid things in our lives, we’ve all hurt others in some way. But hopefully we’ve also helped people in some way too.

If you put the negative things you’ve done in your life on one end of a seesaw, and the positive things on the other end, what would happen?

Which end of the seesaw would touch the ground?

Image: nzgabriel

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…if you watched a video like this every morning before going to work.

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You can’t predict the lottery numbers.

You can’t even predict the weather these days.

So how can you predict the future?

Answer: By creating it for yourself.

If you work hard and study before the test then you will get a good result. If you work hard you won’t just predict the future – you’ll write it.

If you shirk responsibility and avoid challenges then you’ll also write your future.

But a very different one.

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Know people that make a fuss over small details? We all do.

They will fight tooth and nail over whether to use size 11 or 12 font for the company newsletter.

They will argue all day about whether the toilet roll should be put on with the paper coming down at the back or down the front.

They will make a mountain out of a molehill.

They are a pain in the ass.

Why do they do it? Who knows, who cares? The delicacy of their ego is not your concern. You can’t change them, as much as you’d like to.

Don’t get drawn in to their pettiness.

Don’t play their game.

Inhale, exhale, and allow yourself to just…

…let go.

Images: Wikipedia

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It’s good to relax. To unwind. To allow your mind to let go of your daily stresses. To allow your body to let go of the tension that your working week creates.

Breathe. Inhale, exhale…

Soften.

Strengthen.

Refresh.

Tune in to the beautiful sounds in the clip below and allow them to resonate throughout your body and mind.

Breathe them into you.

Feel them.

Chill out.

And just be.

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…it’s something to seek.

When you’re bogged down in the mud of the daily run of things it can be difficult to keep your head up. When your feet are so heavy with the daily routine that it’s hard just to keep putting one in front of the other it can grind you down.

What you need at times like this is some kind of upliftment.

Recently I spent some time in the US and now that I’m home I’m surprised at the tremendous effect this has had upon me. I’ve returned to my everyday life with a bit of a spring in my step.

I traveled to the other side of the world to find this, but you can also find it much closer to home. You don’t even need to take a holiday. It’s just a matter of escaping your daily grind to go somewhere different or simply to do something out of your ordinary.

It could be a hour here, or an evening there, a few days or maybe even longer. Whatever the case, take the time to get away and recharge, refresh, reinvigorate. You’ll come back so much better for it.

What did I do? I went and stood on top of a mountain (Castle Peak in Colorado, this is the view from the top) and said a prayer for world peace – I highly recommend it.

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Would you take financial advice from the guy who owns this car?

Yeah right.

You’d take financial advice from someone who has their finances in order and clearly knows what they are talking about.

If you want to know how to make a success of your life it makes sense to model people who are successful, people who’ve ‘been there, done that’.

They have proved they know how to be successful by their actions.

Talk is easy. Experience counts. Experience is proof that they know what they are talking about.

Read about them, learn how they think, see how they respond to challenges, see how they deal with change, get a feel for their attitude to life.

Read their biographies and find out how they have overcome adversity and risen to face incredible challenges. There are also lots of stories of ordinary people who have overcome incredible adversity. Like these inspiring people who don’t even have the usual number of limbs, or this guy, and here are some famous failures.

And there are plenty more to choose from: Lance Armstrong, Sir Edmund Hillary, Oprah, Winston Churchill, J K Rowling, Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, Louise Hay, Dr George King, Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Richard Branson…to name but a handful…

Image: Danilo Prates

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