There are many different routes to most every place we want, or need to go in life. There are many different kinds of people that we may be traveling with, as well. There also are many methods of transportation that we could take to reach our destination safely. Regardless of the place, the people, the way, we should always travel with kindness and mercy for our fellow travelers. Too, let us be kind to ourselves, even forgiving, because there will be many bumps and detours in the various and many routes we will travel. P. J. O’Rourke stated; “May the world be kind to you, and may your own thoughts be gentle upon yourself.” How can our thoughts be kind to us and how may we be able to direct our thoughts to be gentle upon ourselves? I believe we can accomplish that by following the advice of Augustine “Og” Mandino who wrote, “The Greatest Salesman in the World”. Mandino decided to join the United States Army Air Corps where he became a military officer and a bombardier. He flew for thirty bombing missions over Germany on board a B-24 Liberator during World War II.
After his military duties Mandino became an insurance salesman. One wintry November morning in Cleveland he contemplated committing suicide. After recovering from that bout of depression, he read hundreds of books that dealt with success; a pastime that helped him alleviate his alcoholism. It was in a library in Concord, New Hampshire, where he found W. Clement Stone’s classic, ‘Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude’, a book that changed his life. Mandino’s works were inspired by the thoughts of a few friends as well as the Bible. The story is, “that if we will let his wisdom seep into our ‘other mind’, that mysterious source which never sleeps, which creates dreams, and often makes us act in ways we do not comprehend. As the words of these scrolls are consumed, our minds will begin to awake each morning, with a vitality we have never known before. Too, our vigor will increase, our enthusiasm will rise, and our desire to meet the world will awaken and we will overcome every fear at sunrise. We will be happier than we ever believed possible for us to be in this world of strife and sorrow.”
‘Being kind to ourselves’ is in fact, a process of awakening our knowledge of our worth and value. Mandino developed twelve, what he called scrolls, with basic principles on them that were designed to replace bad habits. Habits he claimed were threatening to imprison his future. Those twelve principles are:
- I must practice the art of patience, for nature acts never in haste.
- I will form good habits and become their slave. Only a habit can subdue another habit.
- I will greet each day with love in my heart. No one can defend against its force.
- I will cherish my body with cleanliness and moderation – love myself.
- I will persist until I succeed.
- I am nature’s greatest miracle. I have unlimited potential.
- I will live this day as if it is my last. I will greet the sunrise with cries of joy, as a prisoner who is reprieved from death.
- Today I will be master of my emotions. Unless my mood is right I will fail. Trees and plants depend on the weather to flourish – I will make my own weather.
- I will laugh at the world (keeping perspective). No other creature can laugh except man. I will laugh and my life will be lengthened.
- Today I will multiply my value a hundredfold by setting goals and acting on them. Action is the nourishment for success.
- I will pray, never for material things but only for guidance.
Mandino claimed that all successful people take on their own lives by “charting” or consciously choosing both the desired destination and the path to reach it.
Being kind to ourselves is preparing ourselves to be successful, at home, at work, or where ever we may be. There has to be a conscious awareness of ourselves and our needs in order to be kind to ourselves.