Monday Motivator | The Ben Franklin Follies

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Gabby Giffords Steps Down

January 23, 2012

Very few people ever take a bullet to the head and those who do rarely survive. If Rep. Gabby Giffords’ response to such a senseless act of hate doesn’t inspire you, nothing will. One year ago this month, my plane landed at Huntsville International Airport. I was returning home after a brief trip to Telluride, […]

We become…

January 16, 2012

Last week’s Monday Motivator focused on the power of our thoughts to shape our lives. But actions matter, too. We write our own destiny; we become what we do. Soong May-ling, Chinese political leader This is so true. We demonstrate what matters to us by how we spend our time, the choices we make, the […]

Make Miracles Happen

January 9, 2012

I recently spent a good bit of time going through several boxes of papers and miscellaneous items that had accumulated and needed to be dealt with. One item I found was a small pamphlet containing an essay by Norman Vincent Peale. I recalled that my aunt had given this to me several years ago. I […]

Lessons From David Copperfield

December 12, 2011

Last night I watched MGM’s 1935 version of David Copperfield on Turner Classic Movies. We can glean more than a few “life lessons” from the characters, as is typical of Dickens and much literature that stands the test of time. Here a few quotes from the film and book for today’s Monday Motivator post: “Never […]

Problem Solvers Survive

December 5, 2011

Another motivator, courtesy of Aesop’s Fables: The Crow and the Pitcher: “A Crow perishing with thirst saw a pitcher, and hoping to find water, flew to it with delight. When she reached it, she discovered to her grief that it contained so little water that she could not possibly get at it. The Crow tried […]

The Mouse and the Bull

November 28, 2011

This week’s Monday Motivator is the tale of The Mouse and the Bull from Aesop’s Fables: A Bull was bitten by a Mouse and, angered by the wound, tried to capture him. But the Mouse reached his hole in safety. Though the Bull dug into the walls with his horns, he tired before he could […]

A Cat in Gloves

November 21, 2011

A cat in gloves catches no mice. — Ben Franklin from an issue of Poor Richard’s Almanack. This may be my favorite of all the aphorisms compiled and published by Ben in Poor Richard’s Almanack. And, thusly: “A cat in gloves catches no mice” marks the launch of a new Monday feature on The Ben […]