Testing for Gossip

In ancient Greece, Socrates was well known as a great philosopher and was equally reputed for holding Knowledge in high esteem. On one of these days, one of his associates met him and said, “ Do you know what I just heard about your close friend?”

Socrates as usual being on his guard, asked him to consider waiting for a few moments until the associate could pass a test conducted by Socrates. A test that he referred to as “The Triple Filter Test.”

The associate was taken aback as he had never heard of such a test before.

To let matters be at peace, Socrates continued to explain to him. “Before you talk to me about my dear friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you are going to say. That is why I call it the Triple Filter Test. The first filter is TRUTH. Have you made absolutely sure that what you are about to tell me is true?”

“No,” the associate said, “Actually I just heard about it and…”

“Fine”, said Socrates. “So you don’t really know if it’s true or not. Now let us try the second filter test, the filter of GOODNESS. Is what you are about to tell me about my friend something really good?”

“No, on the contrary…”

“So,” Socrates continued, “you want to tell me something bad about him, but you are not certain it is true. You may still pass the test though, because there’s one filter test left: the filter of USEFULNESS. Is what you want to tell me about my friend going to be really useful to me?”

“No, not really…”

“Well,” concluded Socrates, “If what you want to tell me is neither true not good nor even useful, then why tell it to me at all?”

It is about "PEACE OF MIND..."

Dear Friends, here is an inspirational story that we can put into practical life. It just requires a small amount of patience on our part. Please share with me:

Once Lord Gautama Buddha was walking from one town to another town with a few of his followers. This incident took place in the early days. As they were travelling they came across a lake. Being tired, they stopped there to relax. Lord Gautama Buddha then told one of his disciples that he was very thirsty. So, could he get him some water from the lake that they came across?

The disciple walked towards the lake. On reaching there, he noticed a few people washing clothes in that lake and simultaneously a bullock cart also seemed to cross this lake, splashing all the grime and dust of the rickety road into the clean water. The obedient disciple felt it was not right to offer his master this water that was polluted. So, he returned and explained the same to Lord Gautama Buddha.

So they waited and after about half an hour, Buddha again asked the disciple to go back to the same lake and get some water to drink. Obediently, the disciple followed the command and having found the clear water, collected it in a pot and brought it to his master.

Lord Gautama Buddha looked at the water and then in turn looked up at his disciple and said, “ Look, what you have done to make the water so clean and pure. You let it be… and the mud and grime has settled down on its own. We now have clear water.” This is the same pattern with our minds when it is in utter confusion and turmoil. When we are disturbed and tense, we ought to let the situation be, and calm ourselves. We ought to give ourselves time to settle down on our own pace. There is no need to put in any effort on our part to calm ourselves. Let things take its own course.

What exactly did Lord Gautama Buddha try to emphasize here? He mentioned the word, “Effortless.” Having peace of mind is not an arduous task, and does not require any effort in the process. When there is peace inside each one of us, that peace permeates to the outside. It spreads around us and in the environment, in a manner that people around us start feeling that peace and grace.

I hope dear friends that you have enjoyed reading this short story.

A List That everyone Should Have

Dear Friends, here is a list that I came across written by Thomas Kinkade, and I would be glad if you too could have them in your mind everytime you come across any situation in life.

1. If you feel far away from God, guess who moved? 2. Fear knocked. Faith answered. No one was there. 3. What you are is God's gift to you. What you become is your gift to God. 4. I am God's melody of life and He sings His song through me. 5. We can never really go where God is not, and where He is, all is well. 6. No matter what is happening in your life, know that God is waiting for you with open arms. 7. God promises a safe landing, not a calm passage. 8. Do your best and then sleep in peace. God is awake. 9. God has a purpose and plan for me that no one else can fulfill. 10. The will of God will never take you to where the grace of God will not protect you. 11. We are responsible for the effort, not the outcome. 12. We set the sail; God makes the wind. 13. Begin to weave and God will give you the thread. 14. Sometimes when God says "no", it's because He has something better in store for you. 15. The task ahead of us is never as great as the power behind us. 16. Prayer: don't bother to give God instructions, just report for duty. 17. It's my business to do God's business and it's His business to take care of my business. 18. Serenity is not freedom from the storm, but peace amid the storm. 19. How come you're always running around looking for God? He's not lost. 20. God put me on earth to accomplish a number of things; right now I'm so far behind I will live forever.

EIGHT GIFTS THAT DON'T COST A CENT...

1. THE GIFT OF LISTENING...But, you must REALLY listen. No interrupting, no daydreaming, no planning your response. Just listen.


2. THE GIFT OF AFFECTION...Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handholds. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family and friends.

3. THE GIFT OF LAUGHTER...
Clip cartoons. Share articles and funny stories. Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."

4. THE GIFT OF A WRITTEN NOTE...
It can be a simple "Thanks for the help" note or a full sonnet. A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime, and may even change a life.

5. THE GIFT OF A COMPLIMENT...
A simple and sincere, "You look great in red," "You did a super job", or "That was a wonderful meal" can make someone's day.

6. THE GIFT OF A FAVOR...
Every day, go out of your way to do something kind.

7. THE GIFT OF SOLITUDE...
There are times when we want nothing better than to be left alone. Be sensitive to those times and give the gift of solitude to others.

8. THE GIFT OF A CHEERFUL DISPOSITION...
The easiest way to feel good is to extend a kind word to someone, really it's not that hard, to say, "Hello" or "Thank You."

Let us learn to be more flexible.

Dear friends, I am writing this article that I wish to pass on to you. How often we have come across situations that is so much similar to the one that I have just penned. These are the very situations that we encounter in our daily lives. But we can see the positive side of life and do our best to make our lives much more fruitful. So should we not start right away? Please read on:

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word 'refrigeration' mean nothing to you?

How often have your kids dropped in to talk or spend a few days with you and sat in silence while you were busy with some household chore? They do feel lonely and homesick, yearning for your closeness and love.

There are innumerable times when I cannot count the times I have been called by my daughter and heard her asking me, "How about going to lunch in a half hour?" The answer would be, "I can't. I have clothes to wash, My hair is dirty... I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast... It looks like it's going to rain."

We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect:

• We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get our kid potty-trained.
• We'll entertain - when we get the house in order.
• We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get our kids settled.

Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of "I'm going to," "I plan on," and "Someday, when things are settled down a bit."

My love for so many things to do in this life just hangs on a wild dream, simply because I am more busy with some chore or the other in the house or catering to my aged mother who just refuses to budge, knowing very well that there is a ready help on hand, in the house with a person like me.

Now ... go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to ... not something on your 'SHOULD DO' list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And, why are you waiting?

Ever told your child, "We'll do it tomorrow?" And, in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die, 'Cause you never had time to call and say, "Hi"?

When you run so fast to get somewhere, You miss half the fun of getting there. When you worry and hurry through your day, It is like an unopened gift... Thrown away.

A WORD OF POSITIVE ENCOURAGEMENT

dear friends, I would like to pass on a story to each one of you with a word of Positive encouragement. Please read on:

Michael is the kind of guy you love to hate. He is always in a good mood

and
always has something positive to say:

When someone would ask him how he was doing, he would reply, "If I were
any
better, I would be twins!"

He was a natural motivator. If an employee was having a bad day, Michael
was
here telling the employee how to look on the positive side of the
situation.


Seeing this style really made me curious, so one day I went up to Michael
and asked him, "I don't get it! You can't be a positive person all of the
time. How do you do it?"

Michael replied, "Each morning I wake up and say to myself, you have two
choices today.

You can choose to be in a good mood or you can choose to be in a bad mood.
I
choose to be in a good mood.

Each time something bad happens, I can choose to be a victim or I can
choose
to learn from it. I choose to learn from it.
Every time someone comes to me complaining, I can choose to accept their
complaining or I can point out the positive side of life. I choose the
positive side of life."

"Yeah, right, it's not that easy," I protested.

"Yes it is," Michael said. "Life is all about choices. When you cut away
all
the junk, every situation is a choice.

You choose how you react to situations.

You choose how people affect your mood. You choose to be in a good mood or
bad mood. The bottom line: It's your choice how you live life."

I reflected on what Michael said. Soon thereafter, I left the Towe
Industry
to start my own business. We lost touch, but I often thought about him
when
I made a choice about life instead of reacting to it.

Several years later, I heard that Michael was involved in a serious
accident, falling some 60 feet from a communications tower. After 18 hours
of surgery and weeks of intensive care, Michael was released from the
hospital with rods placed in his back.

I saw Michael about six months after the accident. When I asked Him how he
was, he replied. " If I were any better, I'd be twins.

Wanna see my scars?" I declined to see his wounds, but did ask him what
had
gone through his mind as the accident took place.

"The first thing that went through my mind was the well being of my soon
to
be born daughter," Michael replied.

"Then, as I lay on the ground, I remembered that I had two choices: I
could
choose to live or I could choose to die. I chose to live."

"Weren't you scared? Did you lose consciousness?" I asked. Michael
continued, "...the paramedics were great. They kept telling me I was going
to be fine. But when they wheeled me into the ER and I saw the expressions
on the faces of the doctors and nurses, I got really scared. In their
eyes,
I read 'he's a dead man.' I knew I needed to take action.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"Well there was a big burly nurse shouting questions at me," said Michael.
"She asked if I was allergic to anything. "Yes, I replied."

The doctors and nurses stopped working as they waited for my reply. I took
a
deep breath and yelled. "Gravity." Over their laughter, I told them, " I
am
choosing to live. Operate on me as if I am alive, not dead."

Michael lived, thanks to the skill of his doctors, but also because of his
amazing attitude. I learned from him that every day we have the choice to
live fully.

Attitude, after all, is everything.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about
itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Those little eyes that are watching you...

There are little eyes upon you 
and they're watching night and day.

There are little ears that quickly 
take in every word you say.

There are little hands all eager 
to do anything you do;

And a little boy who's dreaming 
of the day he'll be like you.

You're the little fellow's idol, 
you're the wisest of the wise.

In his little mind about you 
no suspicions ever rise.

He believes in you devoutly, 
holds all you say and do;

He will say and do, in your way 
when he's grown up just like you.

There's a wide-eyed little fellow 
who believes you're always right; 
and his eyes are always opened, 
and he watches day and night.

You are setting an example 
every day in all you do;

For the little boy who's waiting 
to grow up to be like you.

A Mother's True Love For Her Child!!

Dear Friends, I would like to share this true story with you that took place in the recent Earthquake at Japan. Please read on:

This is a true story of Mother’s Sacrifice during the Japan Earthquake.
After the Earthquake had subsided, when the rescuers reached the ruins of a young woman’s house, they saw her dead body through the cracks. But her pose was somehow strange that she knelt on her knees like a person was worshiping; her body was leaning forward, and her two hands were supporting by an object. The collapsed house had crashed her back and her head.

With so many difficulties, the leader of the rescuer team put his hand through a narrow gap on the wall to reach the woman’s body. He was hoping that this woman could be still alive. However, the cold and stiff body told him that she had passed away for sure.
He and the rest of the team left this house and were going to search the next collapsed building. For some reasons, the team leader was driven by a compelling force to go back to the ruin house of the dead woman. Again, he knelt down and used his had through the narrow cracks to search the little space under the dead body. Suddenly, he screamed with excitement,” A child! There is a child! “

The whole team worked together; carefully they removed the piles of ruined objects around the dead woman. There was a 3 months old little boy wrapped in a flowery blanket under his mother’s dead body. Obviously, the woman had made an ultimate sacrifice for saving her son. When her house was falling, she used her body to make a cover to protect her son. The little boy was still sleeping peacefully when the team leader picked him up.
The medical doctor came quickly to exam the little boy. After he opened the blanket, he saw a cell phone inside the blanket. There was a text message on the screen. It said,” If you can survive, you must remember that I love you.” This cell phone was passing around from one hand to another. Every body that read the message wept. ” If you can survive, you must remember that I love you.” Such is the mother’s love for her child!!

THE THIRTY MOST IMPORTANT THINGS TO STOP DOING TO YOURSELF

1. Stop spending time with the wrong people. – Life is too short to spend time with people who suck the happiness out of you. If someone wants you in their life, they’ll make room for you. You shouldn’t have to fight for a spot. Never, ever insist yourself to someone who continuously overlooks your worth. And remember, it’s not the people that stand by your side when you’re at your best, but the ones who stand beside you when you’re at your worst that are your true friends.
2. Stop running from your problems. – Face them head on. No, it won’t be easy. There is no person in the world capable of flawlessly handling every punch thrown at them. We aren’t supposed to be able to instantly solve problems. That’s not how we’re made. In fact, we’re made to get upset, sad, hurt, stumble and fall. Because that’s the whole purpose of living – to face problems, learn, adapt, and solve them over the course of time. This is what ultimately molds us into the person we become.
3. Stop lying to yourself. – You can lie to anyone else in the world, but you can’t lie to yourself. Our lives improve only when we take chances, and the first and most difficult chance we can take is to be honest with ourselves. Read The Road Less Traveled.
4. Stop putting your own needs on the back burner. – The most painful thing is losing yourself in the process of loving someone too much, and forgetting that you are special too. Yes, help others; but help yourself too. If there was ever a moment to follow your passion and do something that matters to you, that moment is now.
5. Stop trying to be someone you’re not. – One of the greatest challenges in life is being yourself in a world that’s trying to make you likeeveryone else. Someone will always be prettier, someone will always be smarter, someone will always be younger, but they will never be you. Don’t change so people will like you. Be yourself and the right people will love the real you.
6. Stop trying to hold onto the past. – You can’t start the next chapter of your life if you keep re-reading your last one.
7. Stop being scared to make a mistake. – Doing something and getting it wrong is at least ten times more productive than doing nothing. Every success has a trail of failures behind it, and every failure is leading towards success. You end up regretting the things you did NOT do far more than the things you did.
8. Stop berating yourself for old mistakes. – We may love the wrong person and cry about the wrong things, but no matter how things go wrong, one thing is for sure, mistakes help us find the person and things that are right for us. We all make mistakes, have struggles, and even regret things in our past. But you are not your mistakes, you are not your struggles, and you are here NOW with the power to shape your day and your future. Every single thing that has ever happened in your life is preparing you for a moment that is yet to come.
9. Stop trying to buy happiness. – Many of the things we desire are expensive. But the truth is, the things that really satisfy us are totally free – love, laughter and working on our passions.
10. Stop exclusively looking to others for happiness. – If you’re not happy with who you are on the inside, you won’t be happy in a long-term relationship with anyone else either. You have to create stability in your own life first before you can share it with someone else. Read Stumbling on Happiness.
11. Stop being idle. – Don’t think too much or you’ll create a problem that wasn’t even there in the first place. Evaluate situations and take decisive action. You cannot change what you refuse to confront. Making progress involves risk. Period! You can’t make it to second base with your foot on first.
12. Stop thinking you’re not ready. – Nobody ever feels 100% ready when an opportunity arises. Because most great opportunities in life force us to grow beyond our comfort zones, which means we won’t feel totally comfortable at first.
13. Stop getting involved in relationships for the wrong reasons. – Relationships must be chosen wisely. It’s better to be alone than to be in bad company. There’s no need to rush. If something is meant to be, it will happen – in the right time, with the right person, and for the best reason. Fall in love when you’re ready, not when you’re lonely.
14. Stop rejecting new relationships just because old ones didn’t work. – In life you’ll realize that there is a purpose for everyone you meet. Some will test you, some will use you and some will teach you. But most importantly, some will bring out the best in you.
15. Stop trying to compete against everyone else. – Don’t worry about what others doing better than you. Concentrate on beating your own records every day. Success is a battle between YOU and YOURSELF only.
16. Stop being jealous of others. – Jealousy is the art of counting someone else’s blessings instead of your own. Ask yourself this: “What’s something I have that everyone wants?”
17. Stop complaining and feeling sorry for yourself. – Life’s curveballs are thrown for a reason – to shift your path in a direction that is meant for you. You may not see or understand everything the moment it happens, and it may be tough. But reflect back on those negative curveballs thrown at you in the past. You’ll often see that eventually they led you to a better place, person, state of mind, or situation. So smile! Let everyone know that today you are a lot stronger than you were yesterday, and you will be.
18. Stop holding grudges. – Don’t live your life with hate in your heart. You will end up hurting yourself more than the people you hate. Forgiveness is not saying, “What you did to me is okay.” It is saying, “I’m not going to let what you did to me ruin my happiness forever.” Forgiveness is the answer… let go, find peace, liberate yourself! And remember, forgiveness is not just for other people, it’s for you too. If you must, forgive yourself, move on and try to do better next time.
19. Stop letting others bring you down to their level. – Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs.
20. Stop wasting time explaining yourself to others. – Your friends don’t need it and your enemies won’t believe it anyway. Just do what you know in your heart is right.
21. Stop doing the same things over and over without taking a break. – The time to take a deep breath is when you don’t have time for it. If you keep doing what you’re doing, you’ll keep getting what you’re getting. Sometimes you need to distance yourself to see things clearly.
22. Stop overlooking the beauty of small moments. – Enjoy the little things, because one day you may look back and discover they were the big things. The best portion of your life will be the small, nameless moments you spend smiling with someone who matters to you.
23. Stop trying to make things perfect. – The real world doesn’t reward perfectionists, it rewards people who get things done. Read Getting Things Done.
24. Stop following the path of least resistance. – Life is not easy, especially when you plan on achieving something worthwhile. Don’t take the easy way out. Do something extraordinary.
25. Stop acting like everything is fine if it isn’t. – It’s okay to fall apart for a little while. You don’t always have to pretend to be strong, and there is no need to constantly prove that everything is going well. You shouldn’t be concerned with what other people are thinking either – cry if you need to – it’s healthy to shed your tears. The sooner you do, the sooner you will be able to smile again.
26. Stop blaming others for your troubles. – The extent to which you can achieve your dreams depends on the extent to which you take responsibility for your life. When you blame others for what you’re going through, you deny responsibility – you give others power over that part of your life.
27. Stop trying to be everything to everyone. – Doing so is impossible, and trying will only burn you out. But making one person smile CAN change the world. Maybe not the whole world, but their world. So narrow your focus.
28. Stop worrying so much. – Worry will not strip tomorrow of its burdens, it will strip today of its joy. One way to check if something is worth mulling over is to ask yourself this question: “Will this matter in one year’s time? Three years? Five years?” If not, then it’s not worth worrying about.
29. Stop focusing on what you don’t want to happen. – Focus on what you do want to happen. Positive thinking is at the forefront of every great success story. If you awake every morning with the thought that something wonderful will happen in your life today, and you pay close attention, you’ll often find that you’re right.
30. Stop being ungrateful. – No matter how good or bad you have it, wake up each day thankful for your life. Someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs. Instead of thinking about what you’re missing, try thinking about what you have that everyone else is missing.

What You Exactly Are.....

You are strong.....

When you take your grief and teach it to smile.

You are brave.....
When you overcome your fear and help others to do the same.

You are happy.....
When you see a flower and are thankful for the blessing.

You are loving....
When your own pain does not blind you to the pain of others.

You are wise....
When you know the limits of your wisdom.

You are true....
When you admit there are times you fool yourself.

You are alive....
When tomorrow's hope means more to you than yesterday's mistakes.

You are growing....
When you know what you are but not what you will become.

You are free....
When you are in control of yourself and do not wish to control others.

You are honourable....
When you find your honour is to honour others.

You are generous....
When you can take as sweetly as you can give.

You are humble....
When you do not know how humble you are.

You are thoughtful....
When you see me just as I am and treat me just as you are.

You are merciful....
When you forgive in others the faults you condemn in yourself.

You are beautiful....
When you don't need a mirror to tell you.

You are rich....
When you never need more than what you have.

You are you....
When you are at peace with who you are not.

Learn to Embrace Life...

EMBRACE LIFE: With all its flaws and imperfections, it's the only one you have.

KEEP SMILING: It brings a touch of sunshine to those who receive one.

LOVE FAITHFULLY: It's the secret of a happy life.

BE HONEST - CONSTANTLY: Honesty, integrity and trust are still worth more than silver and gold.

ENJOY - DON'T USE YOUR FRIENDS: They're a treasured gift.

ALWAYS BE KIND: It deposits love and worth into our hearts.

CRY A LITTLE - LAUGH A LOT: Tears cleanse the soul and laughter is good - like a medicine.

BE A REAL HERO: Care for someone who needs it.

DON'T JUDGE OTHERS ON THE FRACTION OF WHAT YOU SEE: A compassionate heart sees behind the mask of life.

MAKE TIME FOR THE ELDERLY: They're a reservoir of wisdom and besides, you'll be old one day.

HAVE FAITH: Faith, hope and love are the super glue of life.

HUG SOMEONE FOR NO REASON AT ALL: God gave us arms for hugging and lips for kissing.

BE HUMBLE: It truly is your greatest strength.

FORGIVE THOSE WHO HURT YOU: Unforgiveness is cancer to the soul - please don't be a carrier.

ENCOURAGE AT LEAST FIVE PEOPLE EVERY DAY: An encouraging word unspoken dies in your heart.

INVEST TIME IN YOUR FAMILY: It's the only thing you can take with you to heaven.

LISTEN TO YOUR HEART - LOVE WITH YOUR SOUL - FIND THE BEAUTY INSIDE YOURSELF - AND PLEASE - SHARE IT WITH THE WORLD.

We only have one chance at this life. Let's live it so that at the end of our days, we have very few regrets.

The Precious Gifts in Life

1. The Gift of Listening - But you must really listen. Don't interrupt, don't daydream, don't plan your response. Just listen.

2. The Gift of Affection - Be generous with appropriate hugs, kisses, pats on the back and handholds. Let these small actions demonstrate the love you have for family and friends.

3. The Gift of Laughter - Clip cartoons. Share articles and funny stories. Your gift will say, "I love to laugh with you."

4. The Gift of Solitude - There are times when we want nothing better than to be left alone. Be sensitive to those times and give the gift of solitude to others.

5. The Gift of a Favour - Every day, go out of your way to do something kind.

6. The Gift of a Written Note - It can be a simple "Thanks for the help" note or a full sonnet. A brief, handwritten note may be remembered for a lifetime.

7. The Gift of a Compliment - A simple and sincere, "You look great in red", "You did a super job", or "That was a wonderful meal" can make someone's day.

8. The Gift of a Cheerful Disposition - The easiest way to feel good is to extend a kind word to someone. It may be the young person on the supermarket.

9. The Gift of Good Manners - how important they are in showing others that

we think highly of them and wish to show them care and consideration.

SOME OF THE GREAT FAILURES

Dear friends, I would like to enlighten you about some great people who inspite of having failed earlier in their life have made a mark in history, thanks to their determination. Please read on:

1. Bill Gates founder and chairman of Microsoft has literally changed the work culture of the world in the 21st century, by simplifying the way computer is being used. He was the world’s richest man for more than one decade. However, in the 1970′s before starting out, he was a Harvard University dropout. The most ironic part is that, he started a software company (that was soon to become Microsoft) by purchasing the software technology from “someone” for only $US50 back then.
   
2. Abraham Lincoln received no more than 5 years of formal education throughout his lifetime. When he grew up, he joined politics and had 12 major failures before he was elected the 16th President of the United States of America.
   
3. Isaac Newton was the greatest English mathematician of his generation. His work on optics and gravitation made him one of the greatest scientists the world has even known. Many thought that Isaac was born a genius, but he wasn’t! When he was young, he did very poorly in grade school, so poor that his teachers became clueless in improving his grades.
   
4. Ludwig van Beethoven, a German composer of classical music, is widely regarded as one of history’s supreme composers. His reputation has inspired? And in many cases intimidated? Composers, musicians and audiences who were to come after him. Before the start of his career, Beethoven’s music teacher once said of him “as a composer, he is hopeless”. And during his career, he lost his hearing yet he managed to produce great music? A deaf man composing music, ironic isn’t!
   
5. Thomas Edison who developed many devices that greatly influenced life in the 20th century. Edison is considered one of the most prolific inventors in history, holding 1,093 U.S patents to his name. When he was a boy his teacher told him he was too stupid to learn anything. When he set out on his own, he tried more than 9,000 experiments before he created the first successful light bulb.
   
6. The Woolworth Company was a retail company that was one of the original five-and-ten- cent stores. The first Woolworth’s store was founded in 1878 by Frank Winfield Woolworth and soon grew to become one of the largest retail chains in the world in the 20th century. Before starting his own business, Woolworth got a job in a dry goods store when he was 21. But his employer would not let him serve any customer because he concluded that Frank “didn’t have enough common sense to serve the customers”.
   
7. By acclamation, Michael Jordon is the greatest basketball player of all time. A phenomenal athlete with a unique combination of grace, speed, power, artistry, improvisational ability and an unquenchable competitive desire. Jordan single-handedly redefined the NBA superstar. Before joining NBA, Jordan was just an ordinary person, so ordinary that he was removed from the high school basketball team because of his “lack of skill”.
8. Walter Disney was American film producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor and animator. One of the most well-known motion picture producers in the world, Disney founded a production company. The corporation, now known as The Walt Disney Company, makes average revenue of US $30 billion annually. Disney started his own business from his home garage and his very first cartoon production went bankrupt. During his first press conference, a newspaper editor ridiculed Walt Disney because he had no good ideas in film production.
   
9. Winston Churchill failed the 6th grade. However, that never stopped him to work harder! He strived and eventually became the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom during the Second World War. Churchill is generally regarded as one of the most important leaders in Britain and world history. In a poll conducted by the BBC in 2002 to identify the “100 Greatest Britons”, participants voted Churchill as the most important of all.
   
10. Steven Spielberg is an American film director. He has won 3 Academy Awards and ranks among the most successful filmmakers in history. Most of all, Steven was recognized as the financially most successful motion picture director of all time. During his childhood, Spielberg dropped out of junior high school. He was persuaded to come back and was placed in a learning-disabled class. He only lasted a month and then dropped out of school forever.
    
11. Albert Einstein was a theoretical physicist widely regarded as the most important scientist of the 20th century. He was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize for Physics for his explanation of the photoelectric effect in 1905 and “for his services to Theoretical Physics”. However, when Einstein was young, his parents thought he was mentally retarded. His grades in school were so poor that a teacher asked him to quit, saying, “Einstein, you will never amount to anything!”
    
12. In 1947, one year into her contract, Marilyn Monroe was dropped by 20th Century-Fox because her producer thought she was unattractive and could not act. That didn’t deter her at all! She kept on going and eventually she was recognized by the public as the 20th century’s most famous movie star, sex symbol and pop icon.
    
13. John Grisham‘s first novel was rejected by sixteen agents and twelve publishing houses. He went on writing and writing until he became best known as a novelist and author for his works of modern legal drama. The media has coined him as one of the best novel authors even alive in the 21st century.
    
14. Henry Ford‘s first two automobile companies failed. That did not stop him from incorporating Ford Motor Company and being the first to apply assembly line manufacturing to the production of affordable automobiles in the world. He not only revolutionized industrial production in the United States and Europe, but also had such influence over the 20th century economy and society. His combination of mass production, high wages and low prices to consumers has initiated a management school known as “Fordism”. He became one of the three most famous and richest men in the world during his time.
    
15. Soichiro Honda was turned down by Toyota Motor Corporation during a job interview as “engineer” after World War Two. He continued to be jobless until his neighbours starting buying his “home-made scooters”. Subsequently, he set out on his own to start his own company. Honda. Today, the Company has grown to become the world’s largest motorcycle manufacturer and one of the most profitable automakers – beating giant automaker such as GM and Chrysler. With a global network of 437 subsidiaries, Honda develops, manufactures and markets a wide variety of products ranging from small general-purpose engines and scooters to specialty sports cars.
    
16. Akio Morita, founder of giant electric household products, Sony Corporation, first product was an electric rice cooker, only sold 100 cookers (because it burned rice rather than cooking). Today, Sony generates US$66 billion in revenue and ranked as the world’s 6th largest electronic and electrical company.