Stories That Coach:

Two Choices.....

Please read, what would you do?

You make the choice! Don't look for a punch line; there isn't one! Read it anyway.


My question to all of you is: *Would you have made the same choice?*


At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning disabled children,the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended.

After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:

"When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?"

The audience was stilled by the query. The father continued. "I believe that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the
[FONT=Courier
New]world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it [/FONT]comes, in the way other people treat that child."

Then he told the following story: Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, "Do you think they'll let me play?"

Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.

Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked if Shay could play, not expecting much. The boy looked around for guidance and a few boys nodded approval, why not? So he took matters into his own hands and said, "We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning."

Shay struggled over to the team's bench put on a team shirt with a broad smile and his Father had a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys saw the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from
ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands.

In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game?

Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible 'cause Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing the other team putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few
steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least be able to make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed.

The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.The game would now be over, but the pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.

Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the head of the first baseman,out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, "Shay, run to first! Run to first!" Never in his life had
Shay ever ran that far but made it to first base.
He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled. Everyone yelled,"Run to second, run to second!" Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to second base.By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the
ball, the smallest guy on their team, who had a chance to be the hero for his team for the first time. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitchers intentions and he
too intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the
bases toward home. All were screaming, "Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay"

Shay reached third base, the opposing shortstop ran to help him and! turned him in the direction of third base, and shouted, "Run to third! Shay, run to third" As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams and those watching were on their feet were screaming, "Shay, run home!" Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the "grand slam" and won the game for his team.

That day," said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world."

Shay didn't make it to another summer and died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his Father so happy and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
*:*sToRiEs ThAt CoAcH *:* Three Tough Questions !!

There was a young man who went oversesas to study for quite a long time. When he returned,he asked his parents to find him a religious scholar or any expert who could answer his 3 Questions. Finally his parents were able to find a Monk

Young Men : Who are you ?Can you answere my questions ?

Monk : I am one of lords messenger and God willing. I will be able to answer your questions.

Young Man : Are you sure? A lot of proffessors and experts were not able to answer my questions .

Scholar : I will try my best with the help of Almighty..

Young Men : I have 3 Questions
Does God exist ? If so show me What is his shape ?
What is fate,why the same creation of god suffer or enjoy life differently ?

[FONT=Times
New Roman]Suddenly, the monk slapped the young mans face very hard. YOung men ( feeling pain) Why did you get angry with me ?[/FONT]


Monk : I am not angry . The slap is my answer to your 3 questions.

Young Men : I REALLY DONT UNDERSTAND

Monk ; How do you feel after I slapped you ?
YOung Men : Of Course , I felt the pain

Monk : So do you believe that pain exist ?
Young Man : Yes

Monk : Show me the shape of the pain !
Young Man : I CANNOT

Monk : That is my anwere for your first 2 questions. All of us feel God's existence without being able to see his shape.

Monk : Last night, did you dream that you will be slapped by me ?

Young man : No

Monk : Did you ever think that you will get a slap from me ,today

Young Man : No

Monk : That is Fate...My hand that i used to slap you,what is it created from ?

Young Man : It is created from Flesh
Monk : How about your face , what is it created from ?

Young Man : Flesh
Monk : How did you feel after I slapped you ?

Young Man : In Pain

Monk : Even though Rich and also the Poor were created from the same flesh , if God wants both the flesh can lead different life style and feel .



Aurthor Unknown
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories That Coach: Good Moral

GOOD MORAL....

There once was a man who had nothing for his family to eat.He had an old rifle and three bullets. So, he decided that he would go out hunting and kill some wild game for dinner.

As he went down the road, he saw a rabbit. He shot at the rabbit and missed it. The rabbit ran away.

Then he saw a squirrel and fired a shot at the squirrel and missed it. The squirrel disappeared into a hole in a cottonwood tree.

As he went further, he saw a large wild "Tom" turkey in the tree, but he had only one bullet remaining. A voice spoke to him and said, "Pray first, aim high and stay focused."

However, at the same time, he saw a deer which was a better kill. He brought the gun down and aimed at the deer. But, then he saw a rattlesnake between his legs about to bite him, so he naturally brought the gun down further to shoot the rattlesnake.

Still, the voice said again to him, "I said 'Pray, Aim high and Stay focused." So, the man decided to listen to God's voice. He prayed, then aimed the gun high up in the tree and shot the wild turkey. The bullet bounced off the turkey and killed the deer. The handle fell off the gun and hit the snake in the head and killed it. And, when the gun had gone off, it knocked him into a pond. When he stood up to look around, he had fish in all his pockets, a dead deer and a turkey to eat for his family.

The snake (Satan) was dead simply because the man listened to God.

Each thing in this story represents something we face in our daily lives. It may be our failures (missing the rabbit and squirrel), or the distractions and diversions we face each day (trying to decide which of the other 3 animals to shoot with the last bullet).

The man's hesitance to obey God's voice the first time represents
how we try everything humanly possible before we ask God to meet our needs, and how little faith we have that He will take care of the things we face each day no matter how small or big they seem to us.

Moral of the story:

> Pray first before you do anything, Aim and shoot high in your goals, and stay focused on God.

> Never let others discourage you concerning your past. The past is exactly that, "the past."

> Live every day one day at a time and remember that only God knows our future and that he will not put you through any more than you can bear.

> Do not look to man for your blessings, but look to the doors that only He has prepared in advance for you in your favor.

> Wait, be still and patient: keep God first and everything else will follow.
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories That Coach: Story of Deb

Story Of Deb........

Deb grew up in a comfortable home, attended private schools, toured Europe, and vacationed on Martha's Vineyard. After high school, she attended Smith, an exclusive college for women near Boston. But early in 1969, a lump was found in the back of Deb's neck, and she was hospitalized. An emergency operation removed the tumor, but the surgery left her totally paralyzed below the neck. Almost completely helpless, she could communicate only with her eyes.

But where others saw a ruined body as the main outcome of her ordeal, Deb concentrated on the fact that her life had been spared. Adamant that she would learn to become fully functional again, she saw a physical therapist several times a week, and at home she strained daily to re-teach her muscles to do what she wanted them to do.

For the next several years Deb courageously fought her way back toward normalcy, one painful step after the next. Then, almost imperceptibly, she began to lose ground. Surgery was advised, and she underwent two operations, but neither helped in the long run. For the last five years of her life she was confined to a reclining wheelchair, her body so weak that she could not support the weight of her own head and arms.

Even then, however, she refused to give up. Debilitated as she was physically, she remained mentally and spiritually alert. Refusing to play the part of a helpless invalid, she insisted instead on contributing something in return for the nursing care she received, and put in several hours a day - until a week before her death in 1982 - proofreading manuscripts for a local publishing house.
Deb's view of her suffering is summed up in her reply to a well-meaning visitor who told her, near the end of her life, "If you ask Jesus, he can make you well again." "I know," Deb said. "But he has given me something much more wonderful - my family, and the love of brothers and sisters." At her memorial service, her neurosurgeon said that of all his thousands of patients, he felt most privileged to care for Deb. He always felt as if he was ministering to Christ, because Christ lived in her so visibly .
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories That Coach: Am I fireman Yet ?

Am I A Fireman Yet? ............

HOW BIG OUR GOD IS

Stop telling God how big your storm is.
Instead tell your storm how big your GOD is!

In Phoenix, Arizona, a 26-year-old mother stared down at her 6 year old son, who was dying of terminal leukaemia.

Although her heart was filled with sadness,she also had a strong feeling of determination.Like any parent, she wanted her son to grow up & fulfil all his dreams.Now that was no longer possible.The leukaemia would see to that. But she still wanted her son's dream to come true.

She took her son's hand and asked,
"Billy, did you ever think about what you wanted to be once you grew up?

Did you ever dream and wish what you would do with your life?"

Mommy, "I always wanted to be a fireman when I grew up."

Mom smiled back and said, "Let's see if we can make your wish come true."
Later that day she went to her local fire department in Phoenix, Arizona,
where she met Fireman Bob, who had a heart as big as Phoenix. She explained her son's final wish and asked if it might be possible to give her 6 year
old son a ride around the block on a fire engine.

Fireman Bob said, "Look, we can do better than that. If you'll have your son ready at seven o'clock Wednesday morning, we'll make him an honorary
fireman for the whole day.

We can come down to the fire station, eat with us,go out on all the fire calls, the whole nine yards!
And if you'll give us his sizes, we'll get a real fire uniform for him, with a real fire hat - not a toy --
one-with the emblem of the Phoenix Fire Department on it, a yellow slicker like we wear and rubber boots.
They're all manufactured right here in Phoenix, so we can get them fast."

Three days later Fireman Bob picked up Billy,dressed him in his uniform and escorted him from his hospital bed to the waiting hook and ladder truck.

Billy got to sit on the back of the truck and help steer it back to the fire station.

He was in heaven.

There were three fire calls in Phoenix that day and Billy got to go out on all three calls.He rode in the different fire engines, the paramedic's van, and even the fire chief's car.

He was also videotaped for the local news program.

Having his dream come true,with all the Love and attention that was lavished upon him, so deeply touched Billy,that he lived three months longer than any doctor thought possible.

One night all of his vital signs began to drop dramatically and the head nurse, who believed in the hospice concept - that no one should die alone, began to call the family members to the hospital.

Then she remembered the day Billy had spent as a fireman, so she called the Fire Chief and asked if it would
be possible to send a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Billy as he made his transition.

The chief replied, "We can do better than that.

We'll be there in five minutes.
Will you please do me a favour?
When you hear the sirens screaming and see the lights flashing, will you announce over the PA system, that there is not a fire?
It's the department coming to see one of its finest members one more time.
And will you open the window to his room?

About five minutes later a hook and ladder truck arrived at the hospital and extended its ladder up to
Billy's third floor open window--------
16 fire-fighters climbed up the ladder into Billy's room.

With his mother's permission, they hugged him and held him and told him how much they LOVED him.

With his dying breath,Billy looked up at the fire chief and said,
"Chief, am I really a fireman now?"

"Billy, you are, and the Head Chief,
Jesus, is holding your hand," the chief said.

With those words, Billy smiled and said,"I know, He's been holding my hand all day, and the angels have been singing.."

He closed his eyes one last time.

Please pass this story to at least four people you want to be blessed. Uplifting stories are one of the best gifts we receive.There is no cost, but a lot of rewards, let's continue to uplift one another!!!
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'Recognition'

As the Master grew old and infirm, the disciples begged him not to die. Said the Master, "If I did not go, how would you ever see?"
"What is it we fail to see when you are with us?" they asked.
But the Master would not say.
When the moment of his death was near, they said, "What is it we will see when you are gone?" With a twinkle in his eye, the Master said, "All I did was sit on the riverbank handing out river water. After I'm gone, I trust you will notice the river."
by: Anthony de Mello, SJ, One Minute Wisdom
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'The Passionate Pursuit of Possibility '

Years ago, while unearthing an ancient Egyptian tomb, an archaeologist came upon
seeds buried in a piece of wood. Planted, the seeds realized their potential after more
than 3,000 years! Are there conditions in the lives of people so discouraging, so
defeating, that human beings - regardless of inherent potentiality - are doomed to lives
of failure and quiet desperation? Or are there also seeds of possibility in people, an
urge for becoming that is so strong that the hard crust of adversity is breached?

Consider this story that came over the wires of the Associated Press on May 23, l984:

As a child, Mary Groda did not learn to read and write. Experts labeled her retarded.
As an adolescent, she "earned" an additional label, "incorrigible," and was sentenced
to two years in a reformatory. It was here, ironically, in this closed-in place, that
Mary - bending to the challenge to learn - worked at her task for as long as 16 hours a
day. Her hard work paid off. She was awarded her (GED) high school diploma.

But more misfortune was to visit Mary Groda. After leaving the reformatory, she
became pregnant without benefit of marriage. Then, two years later a second
pregnancy resulted in a stroke, erasing her hard-earned powers of reading and writing.
With the help and support of her father, Mary battled back, regaining what she had
lost.

In dire financial straits, Mary went on welfare. Finally, to make ends meet, she took in
seven foster children. It was during this period that she started taking courses at a
community college. Upon completion of her course work, she applied to and was
accepted by the Albany Medical School to study medicine.
In the spring of 1984 in Oregon, Mary Groda Lewis - she's married now - paraded in
full academic regalia across the graduation stage. No one can know what private
thoughts went through Mary's mind as she reached out to grasp this eloquent testimony
to her self-belief and perseverance, her diploma that announced to all the world: Here
stands on this small point of Planet Earth a person who dared to dream the impossible
dream, a person who confirms for all of us our human divineness. Here stands Mary
Groda Lewis, M.D.

By James E. Conner
from A 3rd Serving of Chicken Soup for the Soul
Copyright 1996 by Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - CEO Reveals Secret

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]CEO Reveals Secret[/FONT]
For decades, Jay Thiessens hid a painful secret as he built his machine and tool company from a mom-and-pop operation into a $5 million-a-year enterprise. During the day he hid behind the role of a harried businessman, too busy to review contracts or shuffle through mail. At night, his wife, Bonnie, would help him sort through the paperwork at the kitchen table, in the living room, or sometimes sitting up in bed.

Other tasks he delegated to a core group of managers at B&J Machine Tool Co. who had no idea their boss couldn't read.

"I worked for him for seven years and I had no clue," said Jack Sala, now the engineering manager for Truckee Precision, a B&J competitor. "I was his general manager. He would bring legal stuff to me and say, 'You're better at legalese than me.' I never knew I was the only one reading them."

Few people knew of his shame and most burning desire: To be able to read a simple bedtime story to his grandchildren. But he couldn't keep his illiteracy secret forever. "It became too hard to continue to hide it," said Thiessens, who has begun to read at the age of 56. "Since I made the decision to let everybody know, it's a big relief."

On Wednesday, Thiessens will be honored in Washington, D.C., as one of six national winners of the 1999 National Blue Chip Enterprise Initiative Award. Sponsored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and MassMutual, the award recognizes small businesses that have triumphed over adversity.

Thiessens' torment took root when he was in the first or second grade in McGill, a small mining town in central Nevada. "A teacher called me stupid because I had trouble reading," he said. All through school, he was the quiet little boy in the back of the room.

"I think the teachers just got tired of looking at me so they passed me on," he said. He graduated from White Pine High School in Ely 1963, getting mostly C's, D's and F's. He made the honor roll once, in his senior year when he landed A's in auto mechanics and machine shop.

The day after graduation, Thiessens moved to Reno, where 10 years later he started a small machine shop with his last $200. Today, B&J specializes in welding, machine parts and precision sheet metal work. With 50 employees, the company conducts $5 million a year in business and just broke ground on a new 54,000 square-foot expansion.

Despite his success, the stigma of being labeled a dummy haunted him through adulthood. He compensated by being a good listener. He rarely forgets details and has a solid grasp of math and figures, a trait essential to the industry, others say.

"The majority of everything we do is technical," said Randy Arnett of A&B Precision, B&J's longest competitor. "It has more to do with math, geometrical shapes, than verbiage."

"He's always been a decent competitor," Arnett said of Thiessens.

Two years ago, Thiessens was invited to join a local chapter of The Executive Committee, a kind of CEO-support group where non-competing chief executives discuss business trials and tribulations in confidence.

Thiessens was reluctant. "He was concerned he wouldn't measure up to the rest of the group," said Randy Yost, committee chairman and former CEO of Placer Bank of Commerce in California. "About 6 months after we met, he told me he had a reading problem," Yost said. "At that time, he was very tight-vested about it."

Thiessens confessed to the rest of the group last year.

"He was a little teary. His voice was shaking," recalled Doug Damon, a group member and CEO of Damon Industries, a beverage concentrate manufacturer. "It was clearly a difficult thing for him to do." Damon was surprised by Thiessens confession. "I knew he was a high school graduate, and so I guess I automatically assumed he knew how to read. He'd been very successful in his business. Who would have thought?"

Thiessens feared titters and jeers from his college-educated CEO peers. Instead, he was overwhelmed by support. "As much as I respected him for what he accomplished, it enhanced my respect for him," Yost said.

Last October, Thiessens found a tutor to instruct him for an hour a day, five days a week. That's also when he told his plant managers. The rest of his employees found out last month.

Thiessens recently read "Gung Ho," a book on employee relations, as a management team project. It was slow going as he underlined all the words he didn't know and later sought help with. But he finished it. He wants someday to be able to rifle through mail as quickly as his wife and "round file" the piles of junk mail that comes across his desk.

More importantly, he hopes his story will encourage others to learn to read.

"There is no shame in not knowing how to read," said Mrs. Thiessens, his wife of 37 years. "The shame is not doing anything about it."

Sandra Chereb
Associated Press Writer
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - BE PATIENT

BE PATIENT (Unknown Author)

This is a true story which happened in the States.
A man came out of his home to admire his new truck.
To his puzzlement, his three-year-old son was happily hammering dents into the shiny paint of the truck.
The man ran to his son, knocked him away, hammered the little boy's hands into pulp as punishment.
When the father calmed down, he rushed his son to the hospital. Although the doctor tried desperately to save the crushed bones, he finally had to amputate the fingers from both the boy's hands.
When the boy woke up from the surgery & saw his bandaged stubs, he innocently said, " Daddy, I'm sorry about your truck." Then he asked, "but when are my fingers going to grow back?"
The father went home & committed suicide.

Think about this story the next time someone steps on your feet or u wish to take revenge. Think first before u lose your patience with someone u love. Trucks can be repaired. Broken bones & hurt feelings often can't.
Too often we fail to recognise the difference between the person and the performance. We forget that forgiveness is greater than revenge.
People make mistakes. We are allowed to make mistakes. But the actions we take while in a rage will haunt us forever.
Pause and ponder. Think before you act. Be patient. Forgive & forget. Love one and all.
If you judge people, you have no time to love them. -- Mother Teresa
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'A Fascinating Story'

A lady in a faded gingham dress and her husband,dressed in a homespun threadbare suit, stepped off the train in Boston, and walked timidly without an appointment into the president of Harvard's outer office. The secretary could tell in a moment that such backwoods, country hicks had no business at Harvard and probably didn't even deserve to be in Cambridge.

She frowned. "We want to see the president," the man said softly. "He'll be busy all day," the secretary snapped. "We'll wait," the lady replied. For hours, the secretary ignored them, hoping that the couple would finally become discouraged and go away.

They didn't. And the secretary grew frustrated and finally decided to disturb the president, even though it was a chore she always regretted to do. "Maybe if they just see you for a few minutes, they'll leave," she told him.
And he sighed in exasperation and nodded. Someone of his importance obviously didn't have the time to spend with them, but he detested gingham dresses and homespun suits cluttering up his outer office. The president, stern-faced with dignity, strutted toward the couple. The lady told him, "We had a son that attended Harvard for one year. He loved Harvard. He was happy here. But about a year ago, he was accidentally killed. And my husband and I would like to erect a memorial to him, somewhere on campus."
The president wasn't touched, he was shocked. "Madam," he said gruffly. "We can't put up a statue for every person who attended Harvard and died. If we did, this place would look like a cemetery". "Oh, no," the lady explained quickly. "We don't want to erect a statue.

We thought we would like to give a building to Harvard." The president rolled his eyes. He glanced at the gingham dress and homespun suit, then exclaimed, "A building! Do you have any earthly idea how much a building costs? We have over seven and a half million dollars in the physical plant at Harvard." For a moment the lady was silent. The president was pleased. He could get rid of them now. And the lady turned to her husband and said quietly, "Is that all it costs to start a University? Why don't we just start our own?" Her husband nodded. The president's face wilted in confusion and bewilderment. And Mr. and Mrs. Leland Stanford walked away, traveling to Palo Alto, California where they established the University that bears their name, a memorial to a son that Harvard no longer cared about.
"You can easily judge the character of others by how they treat those who can do nothing for them or to them."

Source : www.indiatimes.com
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'A Wake Up Call'

A WAKE UP CALL
by Catherine Pulsifer

[FONT=arial, sans-serif][/FONT]
[FONT=arial, sans-serif]The story below is a true story that happened in September.

During the month of September, a dear friend of mine lost her husband suddenly in an accident. The tragedy was a shock to everyone.
This accident was sudden and certainly unexpected. It drove home the realization that you just don't know when a loved one is no longer going to be with you. We sometimes take our love ones for granted, and we expect that they will be with us forever. However, as we all know, life does not work that way and sometimes we get a wake up call that shocks us and makes us stand back and realize how short life is.

In consoling her, I tried to imagine if I was in her shoes how would I feel. It was impossible to imagine what she was going through. What words do I say to help her?

Sometimes words just can not express our feelings. Sometimes our actions are much more meaningful than words. A hug can sometimes express more than our words will ever express. Sometimes, just being there to listen is more meaningful and helpful to people.

A SECOND WAKE UP CALL,
As I was leaving the funeral parlor, I ran into a Marilyn. (Marilyn has been a true friend to me over the years. She is one of those friends who is with you in the good times and is always by your side in the bad times. She has a sense of humor that makes everyone laugh and she makes everyone feel at ease.) We chit chatted for a few moments, and then she asked me how my job was. So I started talking and talking and talking (am sure she wished she had never asked, ha) I was having a stressful week with my job and I was telling her all the issues and how I was feeling. She listened to me as I was raving about my frustrations, then without saying a word, she took her hands and placed them on my face, and said to me,
"But at least you had a day."

The touch of her hands on my cheeks, the calmness in her voice, and the words she spoke,
"BUT AT LEAST YOU HAD A DAY",
hit me like a ton of bricks. All the frustrations, all the stress that was building up inside of me - came to a complete stop.
Since that day, when I start feeling stressed, I remind myself of Marilyn's words - but at least I had a day! Things could be a lot worse, the stress of the situation always could be worse, but I am alive and I have a lot to be thankful for - so I shall not waste my days with stress and frustrations - Life is too short!

Source : www.wow4u.com
[/FONT]
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'The Comfort Zone'

About 10 years ago, I started a job as a trainer for a

Telemarketing agency. In one of my first classes the head

trainer told a very motivating story that I would like to

share with you.


He began by drawing a diagram of a stick man standing in the

middle of a circle. To make it more interesting, he drew things

like a house, a car, and a few friends inside the circle.


He asked the question "Can anyone tell me what this is?" In a

long silence, one guy decided to throw out "the world?" The

trainer said "That's close, this is your Comfort Zone. Inside

your circle you have all the things that are important to you.

Your home, your family, your friends, and your job. People feel

that inside this circle they are safe from any danger or conflict.


"Can anyone tell me what happens when you step out of this circle?"

A strong silence came over the room. The same eager guy abruptly

announced "You are afraid". Another guy said "You make mistakes".

The silence continued and the trainer smiled and said "When you

make mistakes what can the result be?" The first guy shouts "You

learn something."


"Exactly, you are learning." The trainer turned to the board and

drew an arrow pointing from the stick man directly to the outside

of the circle. He proceeded to say "When you leave your Comfort

Zone you put yourself out there, in front of the world to be in

a situations that you are not comfortable with. The end result is

that you have learned something that you did not already know,

you expand your knowledge to become a better person." He turned

again to the board and drew a bigger circle around the original

circle, and added a few new things like more friends, a bigger

house etc.


"The moral of the story is that if you stay inside your Comfort

Zone you will never be able to expand your horizons and learn.

When you step out of your Comfort Zone you will eventually make

your circle bigger, to challenge your mind and grow to be stronger,

and all in all a better person."
Source : www.hoopsu.homestead.com
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'The Frog & the Scorpion'

One day a scorpion was walking along the riverbank trying to find a way to get across the river that separated him from his desired location when he came across a frog sitting alongside the riverbank. The scorpion walked up to the frog and asked the frog if he would take him across the river by giving him a ride on his back. The frog quickly replied, "no he would not give the scorpion a ride."

The scorpion then asked him why he would not give the ride. The frog replied, "because Mr. Scorpion if I were to give you a ride on my back we would only get half the way across and you would sting me and then I would drown." Quickly the scorpion replied, "but Mr. Frog, if I stung you then you would drown and if you drown then I would drown also.

The frog thought for a minute and then said, "I guess you're right, then I will give you a ride." The scorpion jumps on the frogs back and they start crossing the river. Half way across the river the scorpion just drills the frog with his stinger. The frog immediately starts to panic as he feels the venom race through his veins and he quickly begins to become paralyzed. Just as he is taking his last breath and about to go down, the frog looks at the scorpion and asks "but why?"

The scorpion replies, "because that is my nature".
Source : http:/hoopsu.homestead.com
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach : 'The Most Important Body Part, Think About It'

The Most Important Body Part, Think About It

My mother used to ask me:
"What is the most important part of the body?"

Through the years I would take a guess at what I thought was the correct answer.

When I was younger, I thought sound was very important to us as humans, so I said, "My ears, Mommy."
She said, "No Many people are deaf. But you keep thinking about it and I will ask you again soon."

Several years passed before she asked me again. Since making my first attempt, I had contemplated the correct answer. So this time I told her, "Mommy, sight is very important to everybody, so it must be our eyes. She looked at me and told me, "You are learning fast, but the answer is not correct because there are many people who are blind."

Stumped again, I continued my quest for knowledge. Over the years, Mother asked me a couple more times and always her answer was, "No, but you are getting smarter every year, my child."

Then last year, my grandpa died. Everybody was hurt. Everybody was crying. Even my father cried. I remember that especially because it was only the second time I saw him cry. My Mom looked at me when it was our turn to say our final good-bye to Grandpa.

She asked me, "Do you know the most important body part yet, my dear?"

I was shocked when she asked me this now. I always thought this was a game between her and me. She saw the confusion on my face and told me,
"This question is very important. It shows that you have really lived in your life.

For every body part you gave me in the past, I have told you was wrong and I have given you an example why. But today is the day you need to learn this important lesson."

She looked down at me as only a mother can. I saw her eyes well up with tears. She said,

"My dear, the most important body part is your shoulder."

I asked, "Is it because it holds up my head?" She replied, "No, it is because it can hold the head of a friend or a loved one when they cry.

Everybody needs a shoulder to cry on sometime in life, my dear. I only hope that you have enough love and friends that you will always have a shoulder to cry on when you need it."

Then and there I knew the most important body part is not a selfish one. It is sympathetic to the pain of others.

People will forget what you said...
People will forget what you did....
But people will NEVER forget how you made them feel.


True or not, the story makes you stop and think.
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'Dont Let Fear Hold You Back'

A man once went to a fortune teller, curious to know what she would say about his future. The fortune teller looked into her magic ball and then her facial _expression said it all. The man would die, she said, involved in a bus accident. This would happen within two to three months time, but she couldn't say exactly when. The man went home, depressed and worried telling himself how he never really believed in fortune tellers. Why should he now?

When two months passed, he had thought about what she said, day in and day out. Now he decided to lock himself in his house where he wouldn't come close to any busses for the next month.

Another 3 weeks went by when the man came down the stairs from his bedroom to make some coffee. His little son had left his toys on the floor of which one was a little toy bus. The man stepped on the bus, after his last step down the stairs, slipped and knocked his head against the stairway railing and died instantly.

Moral of the story: "Live life on the edge, don't lock yourself away."

--- Author Unknown
--- Submitted by Eben Van der Nest --- South Africa

Source : www.motivateus.com
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - 'The Man in the Moon'

THERE was a blacksmith once who complained: "I am not well, and my work is too warm. I want to be a stone on the mountain. There it must be cool, for the wind blows and the trees give a shade." A wise man who had power over all things replied: "Go you, be a stone." And he was a stone, high up on the mountain-side. It happened that a stone-cutter came that way for a stone, and when he saw the one that had been the blacksmith, he knew that it was what he sought, and he began to cut it. The stone cried out: "This
hurts! I no longer want to be a stone. A stone-cutter I want to be.

That would be pleasant." The wise man, humoring him, said, "Be a cutter." Thus he became a stone-cutter, and as he went seeking suitable stone, he grew tired, and his feet were sore. He whimpered, " I no longer want to cut stone. I would be the sun; that would be pleasant." The wise man commanded, " Be the sun." And he was the sun. But the sun was warmer than the blacksmith, than a stone, than a stone-cutter, and he complained, "I do not like this.

I would be the moon. It looks cool." The wise man spake yet again, "Be the moon." And he was the moon. "This is warmer than being the sun," murmured he, "for the light from the sun shines on me ever. I do not want to be the moon. I would be a smith again. That, verily, is the best life." But the wise man replied, " I am weary of your changing. You wanted to be the moon; the moon you are, and it you will remain."
And in yon high heaven lives he to this day.
Source : www.indianchild.com
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
sToRiEs ThAt CoAcH: Be a Lake

Be a Lake

The old Master instructed the unhappy young man to put a handful of salt in a glass of water and then to drink it. "How does it taste?" the Master asked. "Terrible," replied the boy.

The Master then asked the young man to take another handful of salt and put it in the lake. The two walked in silence to the nearby lake and when the guy swirled his handful of salt into the lake, the old man said, "Now drink from the lake."


As the water dripped down the young man's chin, the Master asked, "How does it taste?" "Good!" remarked the boy. "Do you taste the salt?" asked the Master. "No," said the young man.


The Master sat beside this troubled young man, took his hands, and said," The pain of life is pure salt; no more, no less. The amount of pain in life remains the same, exactly the same. But the amount we taste the 'pain' depends on the container we put it into. So when you are in pain, the only thing you can do is to enlarge your sense of things.....


Stop being a glass. Become a lake! Failure doesn't mean when we fail, but when we don't want to come up again.
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
'Stories that Coach' : Mahatma Gandhi as a HR Professional

This is a story of our great freedom fighter of India :

During the days of freedom fighting, when Gandhiji, Vallabhbhai Patel and Mahadevbhai Desai were in a 'Yarwada Jail', Gandhiji was emphasizing the word 'Training' to all the persons who were in the jail. It has been observed that, in every area of discussion, he use the word 'Training' and emphasized that, everyone should be trained for future challenges of the nation, there is a need to train youngsters of the nation for freedom fighting.

By its frequent use, the mind of Vallabhbhai Patel conditioned about the word 'Training" and he had started to understand it for the better cause of nation.

On one day, in the night, after the discussion, when Gandhiji said that, now I am going to sleep, then Sardar Patel replied that,

yes, yes, it is important to train yourself because one day everyone must have to sleep for a lifetime (i.e. death), so it is better to train yourself for the same......

after this incidence everyone laughed a lot, but the need has been realized by every person to train the second line under them and guide others (as a leader) for the noble cause of nation, Vallabhbhai Patel has mold him in the new role and initiated a movement called "Bardoli Satyagrah' which has established himself as a 'Sardar' of the nation. rest of the history we all are aware......

morale of the story :

The need of Training had been well recognized by the great freedom fighters for their goal of independent India, this story guides us that, it is important for every person to follow the successors and their words and also it is important for the leader to identify the potential leader from his team and train them for the goal of the organization.
 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach - Never give up on yourself or others!!

Never give up on yourself or others!!

One day I decided to quit...I quit my job, my relationship,my spirituality... I wanted to quit my life.

I went to the woods to have one last talk with GOD.

"GOD", I said. "Can you give me one good
reason not to quit?"

His answer surprised me... "Look around", He said.

"Do you see the fern and the bamboo?"

"Yes", I replied.

"When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took
very good care of them. I gave them light.
I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth.
Its brilliant green covered the floor.
Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed.
But I did not quit on the bamboo.

In the second year the Fern grew more
vibrant and plentiful.
And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed.
But I did not quit on the bamboo."

He said. "In year three there was still nothing from
the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.

In year four, again, there was nothing from the
bamboo seed. I would not quit." He said.

"Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged
from the earth. Compared to the fern it was
seemingly small and insignificant.........

But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over
100 feet tall. It had spent the five years growing roots.
Those roots made it strong and gave it what
it needed to survive.

I would not give any of my creations a challenge
it could not handle."

He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this time
you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots?"

"I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you."

"Don't compare yourself to others."

He said. "The bamboo had a different purpose
than the fern. Yet they both make the forest beautiful."

"Your time will come", GOD said to me. "You will rise high"

"How high should I rise?" I asked.

"How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return.

"As high as it can?" I questioned.

"Yes." He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can."

I left the forest and brought back this story.

I hope these words can help you see
that GOD will never give up on you...


 

nick18_in

MP Guru
Stories that Coach : 'Say a Prayer'

Say a Prayer - From Lee Ryan Miller
I was taking my usual morning walk when a garbage truck pulled up beside me. I thought the driver was going to ask for directions. Instead, he showed me a picture of a cute little five-year-old boy.
"This is my grandson, Jeremiah," he said. "He's on a life-support system at a Phoenix hospital."
Thinking he would next ask for a contribution to his hospital bills, I reached for my wallet. But he wanted something more than money.
He said, "I'm asking everybody I can to say a prayer for him. Would you say one for him, please?"
I did. And my problems didn't seem like much that day.
 
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