Season’s Greetings!

by Kurt Salomon December 1, 2011

2011 is coming to a close. I think of November as a month of thankfulness. Last month on Nov. 11, we took time to honor the men and women in our armed services, past and present, for their time and commitment and sacrifice to allow us to be free and live in the greatest country in the world, the United States of America. Later in the month, we took time to give thanks. We gave thanks for our individual and collective blessings.

To me, December is a month for getting started on next year, not wrapping up the old year. Yes, we give and receive presents at Christmas, most of which will be used in the next year. For those of the Jewish faith, Hanukkah is a holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple. We are redirecting ourselves to the future and next year. As a trivial side note, there is a strange tie between Christmas and Hanukkah. December 25 celebrates the birth of Christ. The name Hanukkah comes from “they rested on the twenty-fifth,” referring to the fact that the Jews ceased fighting on the 25th day of the Jewish month of Kislev. This is the first day of Hanukkah. Strange, but true.

Most of us had a more trying year in 2011 than in previous years because of the economy and the poor real estate market. We survived. Why and how did we survive? We survived because of hard work and attitude. Attitude is everything. Let me submit seven rules of attitude from a book by Vicki Hitzges, “Attitude is Everything.”

Attitude of gratitude

Count your blessings and jot them down. Hug a loved one each day and say how much they mean to you. Having a strong feeling and not expressing it is like wrapping up a present and then never giving it. Learn to say thank you and mean it. This will pay large dividends. When was the last time you said thank you to your clients or friends?

Joy will boomerang

Do something for someone else. The good you do for them will boomerang back to you multiple times over. When I ran an AYSO soccer league, one of the awards we handed out stated: “No man stands so tall than when he bends over to help a child.” I am sure many of you can relate to giving to others.

Learn to say NO!

Each day, each of us starts out with 86,400. Is that dollars? How I wish so! But at the end of the day, we have zero. The 86,400 comes from the seconds in a day. We have to decide how we are going to spend these precious seconds. We have to learn how to limit our time, energy and interests. On the surface, no sounds like a negative term. It can be used in positive ways.

Health is your wealth

If you lose your health, you lose everything. Eat right and take time to exercise frequently. Treat your body right; it’s the only one you have. One of the qualities it takes to be successful is energy. Recharge your batteries frequently.

Power of discipline

If you discipline yourself today, you will enjoy yourself more tomorrow. Hold yourself responsible for a higher standard than anybody else can expect of you. When there are things to do, pick the most important to do first, not the easiest to do and get out of the way.

Wait to worry

Only 8 percent of what we worry about ever comes true. Worrying about the future should be replaced by positive activities today. Anxiety does not empty us of tomorrow’s sorrows, rather it drains us of today’s strengths. Do you want to worry or act?

Surround yourself with positive people

Ms. Hitzges suggests you find people who will challenge you, believe in you and inspire you. David Viscott said, and it is so true: “To love and to be loved is to feel the sun from the front and the back at the same time.” Some of you know that in addition to being a home inspector, I also am a professional ski instructor at Brighton Resort, Utah. Our ski school has a positive philosophy. Rather than saying: “Don’t do this,” we say, “Try this”.

To all, I wish everyone a festive December and a healthy, happy, successful and prosperous 2012.


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