Valuing Yourself and Your Needs (As a Parent): This is about taking care of your OWN needs as a parent because when you consistently put yourself last to be taken care of and habitually continue to sacrifice your basic necessities to make everyone else happy…Essentially, what you’re teaching your children is that they’re here to be of service to others, then themselves. In other words, you’re teaching them to take advantage of you and use you as they please, which in turn communicates to them that they’re most likely to be used. To prevent this from happening, you need to set consistent limits that protect you from demands that could be overbearing and unfair. That way, you’re communicating that your basic needs are just as important as theirs. It’s true…often times parents that are constantly sacrificing themselves are idealized and praised by other parents. You know… the ones that have no hobbies, no friends and no avenue of enjoyment. Is this really desirable? Parents constantly stressed about the needs of others in the family are usually irritable, and unmotivated to try anything new, fun or exciting. How can parents do this long term with no outlet? Instead, us parents need to enjoy ourselves and focus on being re-energized. When you take good care of yourself, you provide the means to take better care of your children. Going out to dinner or cocktails, trips to the gym 3 or 4 times a week, date night with your spouse or even some alone time reading or going for a walk allows you to be a more productive, interested and patient parent.”

“rule, once again, is that every minute spent in planning and creating checklists will save you ten minutes in execution and getting the job done

“The biggest mistake we could ever make in our lives is to think we work for anybody but ourselves.”

“The more you seek security, the less of it you have. But the more you seek  opportunity, the more likely it is that you will achieve the security that you  desire.”

“Every minute spent in planning saves ten to twelve minutes in execution.”

“The foundation of self-confidence, the basis of boldness and self-assertion, is a deep inner trust, based on living a life of perfect integrity, and disciplining yourself to live consistent with your highest values in every situation.”

“The Keys to Courage and Confidence”

“The ability to concentrate singlemindedly on your most important task, to do it well and to finish it completely, is the key to great success, achievement, respect, status, and happiness in life. This key insight is the heart and soul of this book.

“Committing your goals to paper increases the likelihood of your achieving them by one thousand percent.”

“The more you discipline yourself to use your time well, the happier you will feel and the better will be the quality of your life in every area.”

“The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.”

“The great thing in this world is not so much where we stand, as in what direction we are moving.”

“Successful, effective people are those who launch directly into their major tasks and then discipline themselves to work steadily and single-mindedly until those tasks are complete.

“The most important contribution you can make to your company is to be a leader, accept responsibility for results, and dare to go forward.”

“Make a decision today that, from now on, you are going to eliminate all the “if only’s” from your life.”