The Wood Cutter Story

Once upon a time, there was a very strong woodcutter. He asked for a job from a timber merchant, and he got it. The pay was really good and so were the work conditions. For that reason, the woodcutter was determined to do his best. His boss gave him an axe and showed him the area where he was supposed to work.
 
The first day, the woodcutter brought down 18 trees. The boss was very much impressed and said, "Congratulations, go on that way!"

Very motivated by the words of the boss, the woodcutter tried harder the next day, but he only could bring down 15 trees.
 
The third day he tried even harder, but he only could bring down 10 trees. Day after day he was bringing down less and less trees. "I must be losing my strength", the woodcutter thought to himself. He went to the boss and apologized, saying that he could not understand what was going on.
 
"When was the last time you sharpened your axe?" the boss asked. "Sharpen? I had no time to sharpen my axe. I have been very busy trying to cut trees."

 
The moral of the story:
 
Our lives are like that. We sometimes get so busy that we don't take time to sharpen the axe. In today's world, it seems that everyone is busier than ever, but less happy than ever. Why is that? Could it be that we have forgotten how to stay sharp? There's nothing wrong with activity and hard work. But we should not get so busy that we neglect the truly important things in life, like our personal life, taking time to care for others, taking time to read etc.
 
We all need time to relax, to think and meditate, to learn and grow. If we don't take time to sharpen the axe, we will become dull and lose our effectiveness. So start from today, think about the ways by which you could do your job more effectively and add a lot of value to it.

Danny Foo
www.danny-foo.blogspot.com
hp:97968648

 

Advice from 2nd Riches Man in the World

Warren Buffet>> There was a one hour interview on CNBC with Warren Buffet, the second richest man who has donated $31 billion to charity.>> Here are some very interesting aspects of his life:
1. He bought his first share at age 11 and he now regrets that he started too late!
2.He bought a small farm at age 14 with savings from delivering newspapers.
3. He still lives in the same small 3-bedroom house in mid-town Omaha that he bought after he got married 50 years ago. He says that he has everything he needs in that house. His house does not have a wall or a fence.
4. He drives his own car everywhere and does not have a driver or security people around him.
5. He never travels by private jet, although he owns the world's largest private jet company.
6. His company, Berkshire Hathaway, owns 63 companies.
7. He writes only one letter each year to the CEOs of these companies, giving them goals for the year. He never holds meetings or calls them on a regular basis.
8. He has given his CEO's only two rules. Rule number 1: do not lose any of your share holder's money Rule number 2: Do not forget rule number 1 9. He does not socialize with the high society crowd. His past time after he gets home is to make himself some pop corn and watch television.
10. Bill Gates, the world's richest man met him for the first time only
11. 5 years ago, Bill Gates did not think he had anything in common with Warren Buffet. So he had scheduled his meeting only for half hour. But when Gates met him, the meeting lasted for ten hours and Bill Gates became a devotee of Warren Buffet.
12. Warren Buffet does not carry a cell phone, nor has a computer on his desk. His advice to young people: "Stay away from credit cards and invest in yourself and remember: A. Money doesn't create man but it is the man who created money. B. Live your life as simple as you are. C. Don't do what others say, just listen them, but do what you feel good. D. Don't go on brand name; just wear those things in which u feel comfortable. E. Don't waste your money on unnecessary things; just spend on them who really in need rather. F. After all it's your life then why give chance to others to rule our life?"

Never Forget Your Dreams

What are your dreams? To some people it's to have a beautiful Condo by the seaside with full facilities, some like to own a ferrari or maserati, some like to own many businesses. But somewhere along the way, our dreams somehow become smaller and smaller and seems to diminish over time as we constantly meet failure after failure, meet obstacles after obstacles.

Remember when we were young? We all have huge ambitions and dreams. Remember when your parents asked you what you wanna do when you grow up? We would yell out very excitedly that I wanna be a pilot! or I wanna be a Doctor! I wanna be an Engineer! Does that sound familiar? What's happened now is that in the real world, as we go about making a living day in day out, we tend to forget our dreams.

So this is not only a reminder for you but also for myself that however much negativity that you faced, however much difficulty you get, always tell yourself that you're one step closer and when you finally succeed, Victory will be sweet. Last but not least, Never forget your Dreams!