A Tragedy --> A Triumph

On Independence Day, I spoke of getting out of bad situations, circumstances, atmospheres, and predicaments – in addition to getting away from those who perpetuate inclemency in your life. Sometimes, a lot of the times actually, it is easier said than done. Some events that happen will be out of your realm of control, blind side you, and not necessarily be events and/or circumstances that you prepare for. These tragedies, while they are often accompanied with a horrible set of emotions, must be overcome as well.

Tragedies, misfortunes, heartbreaks, calamity, disaster – whatever you refer to them as – usually strike so hard because of their shock value. That being said, you are expected to have some “depression” or “depressed states” afterwards. The key is to not let this valley linger on so long that it begins to alter you, or leave you in a vulnerable state and prone to slip ups. We all see it, time and time again, how mistakes and wrongs of a person’s long past show up and inflame their circumstance/ situation/ environment of present day. Never let chapter 3 have a direct influence on chapter’s 4, 5, 6, etc. in life – your life should be a direct continuum. Yes this or that may have happened in your past, but don’t let it be the paver of the road that is your future. If you let something that happen ten years ago hover as a cloud and cause turmoil in your present day life – you have essentially empowered that element. Use your knowledge, yourpower, and your keys to get out from under whatever storm clouds are over you, and turn your tragedy into a triumph.

Vow that whatever tragedy happens to you – that you will learn from it, it will mold you into a bigger and better person; then dedicate to create something great out of it. There is no end to the amount of good that can be created out of a personal catastrophe if we all adopt this mindset. Strive to leave a legacy in the honor of whatever misfortune and suffering you suffered. Your goal is to be able to say, “yes this incident happened/ is happening to me (and/or those you know) – but look at what I created out of my ashes of adversity.” You should always be superior to the grief you undergo. Your personal will and strength should always be greater than your surroundings. 

An important key is to turn anything negative that’s happened into something worthwhile. Shape-shift agony into a motivating fuel. Let me break it down with some examples... So someone told you that you can’t/ couldn’t do something? Questioned your skill, goals, purpose, etc.? Work hard to do that very thing. Get it done, BUT don’t do it just to prove your nay-sayers wrong. You do it to prove to yourself you can/could/will do “it” – whatever you set your goals to be. This goes for it all – death, disease, poverty, adultery, employment, disarray, and dysfunction, anything negative. Put a positive light on it. Tell yourself – I’ll accomplish (a, b, c) because of this – then press forward with those plans. Don’t plan for something, only to have the ship you build never take sail… 

I would rather be labeled a failure having dedicated to a great cause and purpose than have great success by supporting malevolence, deceit, and disorder. 

Another important element is knowing that the day you decide to turn over a new leaf that you don’t/won’t/can’t ever go back. Throw out the rear-view mirror. Take the past chapters and tear them out and start anew if you need to. What is the point in turning a calamity into a achievement, only to let your new-found accomplishment be a doorway for more woes in your life? Don’t stumble; keep moving forward even once you’ve reached disaster-induced victory. Lifting yourself out of the chaos and storm clouds doesn’t mean your journey ends. In fact, it’s one of the easier parts if you focus, have discipline, and set steady goals. Instead, you should start sending down “ropes of support” so that those important to you can climb out of the turbulence too.

Anything that causes you pain, disorganization, pessimism, ignorance, debauchery, to be addicted, to steal, to cheat, to hurt others, etc. – let it go. Take out your “mental scissors”, and cut it loose. Everything won’t be something physical, a lot of the times it will be mindsets, thoughts, prejudices, attitudes, and routines. Free up space for your triumph to grow…

The past is just that, the past. It isn’t a foreshadowing experience. It should not have any bearings on your present, or your future. Cut loose any anchors and leeches attached to your side; they’re weighing you down and zapping you dry of your life source. Let a healing onto yourself, get out of any “mess”, and transform your tragedies into triumphs. L-I-V-E….

JJR II, Unconquered.

July 7^th, 2011

Your Enemies Have Eyes

This week, I’m going to tackle the notion of defending yourself from negative attitudes, people, and perceptions – because in this day and age, they are all around you. Moreover, you must always maintain a course of integrity, because your enemies have eyes that are always watching. In mere seconds, one small mistake can cripple the mightiest dynasty build over decades. Your enemies have eyes, lots of them, that are always watching, waiting for you to slip just that once...

On the quest to do better and living unconquered, you will come across many pitfalls. Obstacles in your life are continuous and without end, so the best advice you could be given are to learn how to manage impediments, and progress in spite of. One of these obstacles will be those who seek to pull you down into the muck, speak ill of your labors, and actively attempt to disrupt your advancement. Your enemies, or antagonists if you will.

Always remember that misery loves company, so a miserable person has no better agenda than to cause desolation in your life. That is why it may seem some people are put on Earth just to hinder you; because in a way, they are – it becomes their scheme in life. While truly unfortunate – you would think someone who is truly despondent would instead seek out assistance from others verses seeking to snatch down those within reach, it is the way things operate and something you’ve got to learn to handle. Ignore malevolence, because the biggest fuel you can provide it is to let the source know you’re being affected by their insolent actions.

Try to avoid those who operate with reckless regard, because they’ll be the first to bring down your efforts. You cannot surround yourself with those who live life in contempt of others, because they have no true loyalties but to themselves, and sometimes they can’t even have loyalty for their own soul.

This all leads me to the title – your enemies having eyes. Someone who is an active antagonist to you will always be watching and waiting for the one crack they need to insert themselves (and their "agenda"). It avoid putting yourself into compromising situations. Even if your adversaries aren’t the ones actively watching, they have eyes in the form of minions, vultures, and associates that survey in their absence. Malevolence does not take a day off, so you cannot afford yourself any downtime, or the enemy will sneak in and strike you down.

Do not feel for one second that being on a “righteous” course will repel devious behaviors. In fact, it is opposite. The better you try to do for yourself and those around you, the harder the opposition will seek to bring you down. If you’re running a dynasty, you better run it with humility, because if it falls you don’t want to have scorched all the bridges around you. In this day and age, it would seem that no matter how good one is doing, a cloud of disarray will be lurking close by. All you can do is to ever-increase your “protective force-field” by always operating in truth, integrity, and be accountable. Don’t deviate to a road lesser traveled because it seems easier. Keep your eyes fixated on your goals, but not to the point you lose your sense of reason and ration (because an irrational action is just the “crack” in your foundation your adversaries need). 

Use sound judgment, and always educate yourself. The pool of knowledge is never-ending, so you should always continue to increase your intellect. The smarter you are, the better decisions you will make, and the more awareness you will have. Make sound and steady decisions on a constant basis, and no matter how many eyes your enemy has, you will be protected from their debauchery. Don’t let them bend you out of shape, but let them shape you. Better be than the disorder they promote. When all of your foe’s eyes are fixated on you, blind them with your brilliance; send them running into the cowardly shadows they belong, and continue on your quest to live unconquered.

Make it a great week.

J. Junior II

6/6/2011

Moving ^ and Moving >

Good evening everyone. Sorry for the delay in the posting, a little late getting it up due to problems with the Blogger log-in. The theme for this week is moving up out of the bad, so you can move on and move forward with the good in your life...

Moving ^ and Moving >

To have a positive attitude (two weeks ago) and to rise above ignorance (last week), there is one thing that you have to do in life, and that's move up, and then move on. More often than not, negative attitudes can dwell from past perceptions, actions, or events in your life. The best step to having success today is to let yesterday (and anything else beforehand) go. Letting go doesn’t mean you necessarily forget, but you forgive, which in turn allows you to move onto bigger and better things. Feeling scarred from bad friendships or relationships in the past? Move yourself up, and then move on. Annoyed about being undermined or stabbed in the back? Let it go and move forward.

Another thing you want to ensure is that you aren’t moving in reverse. Whether you’re moving forward at a snails pace, or at the speed of light—there is never a day in life that you want to say you lost progress. You should never take one step forward only to take two steps backward. Be sure to do a thorough analysis and ask yourself these questions if you feel like things aren’t progressing for you…

1). Why am I in a stagnant place and not growing/ developing?

2). What can I do to improve my situation without suppressing others?

3). Am I surrounded by a positive, encouraging, and winning team?

4). Have I become a victim of my environment?

5). Am I putting my best effort forward no matter the circumstances/ odds?

6). Are there negative things in my life that need removed?

7). Are there any antagonists/ anchors weighing me and my goals down?

8). Have I forgiven and let all my past ill-wills go?

9). What work do I need to done in order to surround myself with positivity?

10). Have I worked to empower those around me, or do I act as a suppressor?

You have to be aware of these in order to know what needs fixed, and begin your forward progress. Create a “starting point” today, and move forward from that point every day. It’s never too late to have an epiphany, whether you’re 25 or 75. It’s not the years in the life, but the life in the years. Be sure that you move on with your life and start the ball rolling on a forward moving path, and you’ll be one step closer to living unconquered…

Start living your legacy TODAY.

J. Junior II 5/16/11

Rise Above Ignorance

Last week I spoke of having a positive attitude, and this week I'll talk about rising above ignorance. You have to these days in order to maintain an attitude. Throughout the week, the average person faces more than their share of ignorance and ignorant type behaviors. First, practice the two wrongs don't make a right theory. Having an ignorant response to an attitude you don't like with only make situations worse. Be the better person, and keep it moving. Don't waste time and energy on waging senseless battles, or holding grudges over situations most everyone else had forgot about. If you have a grievance, say something and try to resolve it in a civil and adult manner, don't internalize it and have it to stew on some months down the road...

A big point to remember in rising above ignorance is to not empower an "ignoramus". This is someone with idiotic ways, behaviors, thought processes, beliefs, actions, and personas. Often someone you would think of as immature, shady, uneducated, and irrational. An "ignoramus" feeds off of anarchy, disorganization, disagreement, and strife. Cut their food supply off at the source. Don't buy into their schemes and childish ways. An ignoramus lives just for elevating your blood pressure and getting under your skin, but they can only do this if you let them. Strip them of their power; ignore them. Build your "dynasty" on stilts, to stay above the choppy waters an ignoramus can stir up. Remember - they travel in flocks. So if you find yourself surrounded by a herd of ignoramus...

More often than not, you'll find yourself around someone who lives off the glow of others, instead of going out and making their own glow. Don't let others steal your shine and glow, but don't think you always have to call them out on it. You should always remember that fool's gold will be proved false under both examination/ pressure. It may pass the eye test in the beginning, but whether given a more thorough screening or put under pressure, it will not hold up. True 24k gold will endure. It won't crack, weather, fade, peel, flake, or turn you green...

Take this week, and prepare a plan for making yourself a better all-around person. Call it your "Top Tier Candidate Program" - TTCP. You want to be the best candidate for whatever you're going to apply yourself for, so be sure to take this week to make a plan and lay out how you can do just that. Whether it's getting back in shape, furthering your education, repairing relationships and networking, etc. Call it your spring cleaning if you need to; your goal is to further your growth, and move closer to living unconquered...

Until next time,
J. Junior II  5/9/11

The Introduction

"The Dawn of a New Era"

A Word to Those in Need - The Beginnings

The purpose of this blog will be to help all, and give you the confidence and foundation necessary to "Live Unconquered" - to live prosperously, happily, confidently, free of stress and worry, focused on what's important and ignorant of negativity. Don't stress, just shake off the "mess".

I'll kick start my first blog off by asking a favor from everyone. This week, I'd like you to go out of your way to meet someone new, or strengthen a current relationship that's in your life. On top of that, show someone important to you appreciation, especially someone close to you who may feel unappreciated in regards to you. We tend to focus more on the negative than showing appreciation for the positive - and the first step to being positive and having a positive life/ outlook is to show examples of it. You never know, you could make someone's day by saying "Hey, I appreciate you and what you do". Even more, if you know someone who has been working hard (and doing a good job), let them know. "Job well done", or "Excellent work", - it only takes a couple of seconds.

 Today was another one of those dreaded Monday's, and worse yet, the Monday following a holiday. For those of you who returned to work today (myself included), we all know how it can be. We dread the return to normal, our bodies are soggy with candy, food, and liquid, and we're a little sleep deprived. As much melancholy as Monday can bring, I implore you to change it around. Try to start Monday with the same attitude as you do Friday (and my apologizes to those with unorthodox work weeks). Start positive, end positive. The beginning of the work week is a detriment to most, but try to serve as the up-lifter for those with a "case of the Mondays".

Relax, don't worry over what you cannot control, and maintain perspective for what you can. Everyday isn't going to be a piece of cake, but don't make things worse by harboring a negative attitude about yourself for everything that goes wrong. Do what you can to fix what you can, but not at the expense of your own sanity and safety. Try to stay within the ethical and moral boundaries that guide us, and always put your best foot forward in whatever you do. Success for you is right around the corner, no matter your situation - just keep working hard and doing what's right. "Live Whole..."

Last but not least - don't ever bow into someone else's pessimism. Maintain a radiant glow about yourself - stay out of drama and gossip (keep your head above the fray) - and be someone that's approachable and level-headed. Avoid being pompous, arrogant, and a person that talks down/ belittles others. Everyone's ideas, thoughts, and opinions are important - even if you think they're laughable. If you're in environments that lean toward the negative side of things - be the positive example. People will gravitate toward you, and you will slowly find that your positivity will take root and spread among those around you. Be a leader in all that you do, it's one of the many steps in living unconquered.

Be prosperous,

J. Junior II (4/25/11)

Live Unconquered