# 31

"Some people dream of success....while others wake up and work hard at it."

A speaker was to address the annual banquet of the Chamber of Commerce. It had been a bad year for the small town, many people had been laid off and business was hurting. The speaker was asked to be motivational since the community was discouraged.

During the presentation, the speaker took a large piece of white paper and drew a black dot in the middle with a marking pen. He then held the paper up before the audience and asked, "What do you see?" A man replied, "A black dot." "That's good", said the speaker. "What else do you see?"

Others chimed in, "A black dot". The speaker asked, "Don't you see anything but a black dot?" The audience responded with a resounding, "No!"

"But, you have overlooked the most important thing. You've missed seeing the sheet of paper," stated the speaker. He went on to say, "In our lives we are often distracted by the small dot-like failures. They keep us from seeing the blessings, successes, and joys that are far more important than the disappointments that try to monopolize our energy and attention. I encourage you to focus on the big picture of what is right rather than the small view of what is wrong."

Are you so preoccupied today with what is, that you have lost sight of what can be? Step back and see the BIG picture!

"Any fact facing us is not as important as our attitude toward it, for that determines our success or failure." Norman Vincent Peale

Contact Tom at: tomhughes@motivationNmore.com

Visit the Motivational Moments Archive

Subscribe to "Motivational Moments" Today