Marty Floyd’s Weblog

Creighton University of Omaha has conducted a study that was focusing on calcium and bone cancer and in the process have found that vitamin D drastically reduces the risk of contracting cancer.

The sunshine vitamin, or D3 as it is known, is available as a suppliment for those who can not spend time in the sun. The multivitamins you can take have vitamin D2 which is a much less effective version of vitamin D.

It was also shown that there is a much less risk of cancers in southern states due to the amount of sunshine people are normally subjected to on average.

Seven is used frequently in the scriptures to signify completeness. It has reference to bringing a project or work to completion. It can refer to a complete cycle of things like in application development when the cycle is called a software development life cycle and it refers to a complete “start to finish” cycle.

Number seven is considered lucky among other reasons for being the number of perfection.

The Bible says that the Universe was created in 7 days.

On dice, where seven is a winning number, to get 7 you need one die on 6 and the other die on 1 of the opposite side. All opposite side numbers adds to 7. Pythagoreans called it the perfect number, 3 and 4, the triangle and the square, the perfect figures.

There were seven ancient planets. Seven visible planets and luminaries (Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn).

Throughout the ages the number 7 had defied the law of averages, the science of mathematics. For many of the most powerful and wealthy, the number 7 is a symbol of luck, of good fortune.

Perhaps that is why so many advertisements and “famous” lists contain the number seven (evoking the thought of good fortune by following the information). Such an example is “Some Rules for Success” sounds ok, but “The 7 Rules for Success” not only sounds easier to accomplish it is subconsciously almost a guarantee of completion and perfection.   

I can hardly count the times I have heard or seen lists or advertisements using 7 (seven) in the title or information like the “7 rules for dieting”. I decided to take some of the best ones I know and put them on my blog. Stay tuned as I will be adding a category (Make Your Luck) and posts for it. 

Laws of Success. I have read several books and articles that reflect on certain rules or laws that should be used when you are trying to define success.To me the first premise is that we are all free moral agents. I won’t go into detail on this topic other than so say that we all have the obligation to truly understand the core aspects that govern how we think and act. We develop and live by those rules we believe in like honesty, integrity, the golden rule, self determination and love.Though we should never blindly accept anything as truth, we are obligated to determine for ourselves whether we agree the ideals that are presented like “liberty and justice for all”.We hear statistics like 70% of workers are doing jobs they don’t like, had not planned on doing or just drifted into during their lives. I have not heard a statistic on the number of people who have heard the term “living on purpose” nor have I heard a statistic of the number of people who have heard the term without thinking about what it meant.I believe it is very unfortunate that so many live out their entire lives without an overall purpose or plan. As a software development project manager I would have a very hard time trying to accomplish anything without a purpose or without developing plans to achieve the goals involved.    One of the authors I read when I started trying to identify what success meant from a philosophic viewpoint was Herbert Armstrong who wrote a pamphlet titled “The Seven Laws of Success” in which he detailed his seven laws that one should follow to become a true success. Those criteria were:

1.      Fix the right goal. Be able to define success.

2.      Preparation. Education. How could one expect to accomplish his purpose unless he acquired the “know-how”?

3.      Good health. Mental attitude has considerable influence on physical condition. Diet has been named as the cause of 90-95 % of all sickness.

4.      Drive. Energy, drive and constant propulsion are necessary for true success.

5.      Resourcefulness. One must be able to solve problems without becoming overly excited to the point of losing perspective or taking unnecessary shortcuts.

6.      Perseverance. “Stick-to-it” attitude is required to perform and obtain the desired results.

7.      Have contact with, guidance and continued help of God.

He goes on to say that the seventh “law” has to be first or one’s efforts start and proceed on the wrong path towards success.

I would add that there are two more important aspects of this process that I found to be true for me.

The first one came from the story “Alice in Wonderland” when she was talking with the Cheshire cat. She asked the cat which way she should go. The cat said it depends on where you want arrive. When Alice said she didn’t know the cat replied that it did not matter which way she went because she didn’t have an end point or destination. This goes back to Armstrong’s rule or law number one.

The other thing was something I thought about and believe is that one must realize that success does include a happy and enjoyable journey because success is the endpoint or final destination. It does not make much sense to think that you could just haphazardly travel through life and just arrive at the destination called success. You have to have clear goals that provide a map, as well as, an enjoyable journey.

Brian Tracy said “To succeed greatly in business, and to become a self-made millionaire, there are additional habits you need to develop. One of these habits is the determination to win, to succeed, to outperform your competition and to ultimately be successful. This competitive instinct and determination to win in the face of any obstacle or difficulty is a chief motivating power that drives entrepreneurs and eventually assures successful careers.”

Napoleon Hill said “thoughts are things and powerful things at that when they are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a burning desire for their translation into riches, or other material objects.”

Lucille Ball said “One of the things I learned the hard way was that it doesn’t pay to get discouraged. Keeping busy and making optimism a way of life can restore your faith in yourself.”

H. Ross Perot said “Most people give up just when they are about to achieve success. They quit on the one yard line. They give up at the last minute of the game, one foot from a winning touchdown.”

Albert Einstein said “It’s not that I’m so smart, it’s just that I stay with problems longer.”

William James said “It is our attitude at the beginning of a difficult undertaking which, more than anything else, will determine its successful outcome.”

Maya Angelou said “Success is loving life and daring to live it. Success is hearing and being heard. Success is knowing and being known as a human being.”

Deepak Chopra said “”Affluence is the experience in which our needs are easily met and our desires spontaneously fulfilled. We feel joy, health, happiness, and vitality in every moment of our existence. The raw material of the world is nonmaterial - quantum field theory, quantum reality.”

MMB&T Health, Personal Development, Self Choices and Beauty

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LTIPS - Life Tips — thought and action with faith, peace and happiness

“Champions aren’t made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision.” — Muhammad Ali

“In essence, if we want to direct our lives, we must take control of our consistent actions. It’s not what we do once in a while that shapes our lives, but what we do consistently.” — Anthony Robbins

‘Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside them was superior to circumstance.’  — Bruce Barton

Henry Chester said, “Faith and initiative rightly combined remove mountainous barriers and achieve the unheard and miraculous. An enthusiastic attitude is nothing more than faith in action.”

If you seek to understand the whole universe you will understand nothing at all but seek to understand yourself and you will understand the whole universe. — Druidic Axiom

Success is really in the mind of the person as it is a personal attribute or “state of mind”.

Success may mean that I am living my life with no regrets, happy unto my own self. Success is the ability to be happy when alone, in a crowd or when looking into the mirror (introspection).

Success implies that I am rewarded in my endeavors by being happy with my efforts. This means further that my reward is that I am at peace.