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Andy Andrews

Andy Andrews Biography

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“Despite popular belief to the contrary, there is absolutely no power in intention. The seagull may intend to fly away, may decide to do so, may talk with the other seagulls about how wonderful it is to fly, but until the seagull flaps his wings and takes to the air, he is still on the dock. There’s no difference between that gull and all the others. Likewise, there is no difference in the person who intends to do things differently and the one who never thinks about it in the first place. Have you ever considered how often we judge ourselves by our intentions while we judge others by their actions? Yet intention without action is an insult to those who expect the best from you.”

InspirationalWisdom
Book:The Noticer: Sometimes, All a Person Needs is a Little Perspective
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“Wisdom can be gathered on your downtime. Wisdom that can change the very course of your life will come from the people you are around, the books you read, and the things you listen to or watch on radio or television. Of course, bad information is gathered in your downtime too. Bad information that can change the very course of your life will come from the people you are around, the books you read, and the things you listen to or watch on radio or television. One of wisdom's greatest benefits, is accurate discernment- the learned ability to immediately tell right from wrong. Good from evil. Acceptable from unacceptable. Time well spent from time wasted. The right decision from the wrong decision. And many times this is simply a matter of having the correct perspective. One way to define wisdom is THE ABILITY TO SEE, INTO THE FUTURE, THE CONSEQUENCES OF YOUR CHOICES IN THE PRESENT. That ability can give you a completely different perspective on what the future might look like... with a degree of intelligence and a hint of wisdom, most people can tell the difference between good and bad. However, it takes a truly wise person to discern the oh-so-thin line between good and best. And that line...[gives you the] perspective that allows you to see clearly the long-term consequences of your choices.”

Wisdom
Book:The Noticer: Sometimes, All a Person Needs is a Little Perspective
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“Most folks greet confusion with surrender. Most people, when they don’t know what to do, do nothing. The average person meets an obstacle and tells himself, "This is not for me," or "I am not the kind of person who does things like this." Average people respond to confusion in an average way. They stop. But people who achieve extraordinary results think differently. They understand something very significant about confusion. Confusion precedes learning. The anxious thoughts that seem so puzzling or discouraging are actually your very gateway to understanding. Only by persistently doing battle with the things you cannot yet do or that which you do not yet understand can you ever hope to achieve what average people never accomplish. A sign of a person’s maturity is his ability to live with — even in — confusion. The average person meets the edge of confusion and turns away. He runs from confusion at its beginning, at its first appearance. He will not live with or even near confusion and seeks an easier path. The mature person—the high achiever — will understand that life’s grand prizes are guarded by confusion. The mature person senses the victory that exists beyond confusion and says, "I cannot do this... yet. I am not good at this yet, but I will work and learn and become better until I am competent, then excellent, then great! I will struggle and persist through confusion until I break through to the understanding or greater skill required for victory." It's a thought process. It opens up new possibilities for almost everything. The whole concept of "confusion before learning" means that confusion guards the answers we seek. You've got to be willing to enter into and do battle with the confusion in order to reach the victory on the other side... to take your life in a new and incredible direction.”

AttitudeLearningConfusionPersistence
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“Learning’s purest form is realized by the individual who continues a quest beyond the classroom, fueled by a passion to discern wisdom. Wisdom — genuine truth — holds the key to refining one’s thinking. One seed, carefully tended, contains within it the power to change the world, for that single seed can yield an uncountable and ever-increasing number of seeds just as valuable”

Learning
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“Despite the ebb and flow of our feelings, we can control the way we act. Patience, for instance, is not a feeling. Patience is the description of a behavior. One can choose to act patiently even while the feeling of frustration tempts him to choose inappropriate behavior. It is impossible to feel frustrated and feel patient at the same time, but one can be inundated with feelings of frustration and still display patience. Patience is a discipline. It is an action. Patience is a chosen response.”

Patience
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“The current of life never stops,' he'd say. 'One can choose to swim downstream. That's an easier trip, of course, and there's always lots of company, but sooner or later it's also where all the garbage collects. 'Upstream, on the other hand, is where the water is pure. The things that make life special and worthwhile are all upstream, and to get there, you must discipline yourself to swim against the current. 'Be most aware,' Jones would say, 'of the danger of treading water. Many people believe there are three choices: swimming upstream, swimming downstream, and holding in place by treading water. 'In reality, the choices are only two. One can struggle upstream or travel downstream, but when a person chooses to stop swimming midstream, there is no such thing as holding in place. Water - like a life without purpose - always flows downstream, and everything that does not struggle from its grasp goes downstream too.”

LifeSuccessChoicesFailure
Book:Just Jones: Sometimes a Thing Is Impossible . . . Until It Is Actually Done
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“The way a person thinks is the key to everything that follows, good or bad, success or failure. A person’s thinking — the way he thinks — is the foundational structure upon which a life is built. Thinking guides decisions. Thinking — how a person thinks — determines every choice. Choices and decisions create action. Action is what a person does or says. Action is when a thing is done and how well or how often it’s done. Action is what a person says and to whom and with what tone of voice. A person’s actions lead to good results, bad results, and no results. And don’t forget that ‘nothing’ is an actual result. A person's thinking is what he is. There's no getting around it.”

ThinkingChoicesResultsActions
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“If you can understand and believe that you have made choices that took you to a place you don't like, doesn't it make logical sense thatyou can now make choices that will take you to a place you do like?" ..."So now your game becomes one of seeking wisdom and harnessing the power of that wisdom in order to make better choices.”

WisdomChoices
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“Our choices now - this week, this month, this year - are very sticky. Once made, their effects never go away. Rather, those choices about how we think and what we do are a constant presence. Every thought, every action is a choice, and even now the choices you have made in your life thus far are shifting and combining in order to create who you really are. Therefore, simple logic says that by paying careful attention to our choices from this point forward, we can create a future we choose instead of a future that 'happens.”

ChoicesFutureAndy Andrews
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“If you are doing what everyone else is doing, you are doing something wrong. Why? Because most people are not obtaining results that are considered extraordinary. "If your thinking is causing you to do what everyone else is doing, you are only contributing to the average. Even if you are contributing to the average at a high level, it is still...average. "Do you want to be average? Do you want an average life span or an average lifestyle? Do you want an average marriage? Do you want to raise average children? Do you want an average spiritual life? Do you want average financial results? Do you want an average amount of influence for good in your community? "...to produce results that are extraordinary - you cannot afford to think like average people think. You cannot act like average people act. You cannot be what average people are...which is normal.”

Extraordinary PeopleAverage PeopleAndy Andrews
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“Darkness commands an inordinate amount of attention from a person who is unprepared and unprotected. Attention to darkness produces doubt. When a person is distracted and weakened by struggles, doubt whispers a message logically urging surrender; and soon, that person’s focus is on his own discomfort, his fear and anger, regret and resentment.”

FearDarknessDoubtRegretSurrender
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“Little things do matter. Sometimes, little things matter the most. Everybody pays a lot of attention to big things, but nobody seems to understand that big things are almost always made up of little things. When you ignore little things, they often turn into big things that have become a lot harder to handle.”

LittlesMadeSometimesMatterBigsSeemsTurnsPayAttentionHarderHandleLittle ThingsBig Things
Book:The Noticer Returns: Sometimes You Find Perspective, and Sometimes Perspective Finds You
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“For centuries, dreams have been used to communicate instruction and direction to people of purpose - great men and women. God used dreams to prepare Joseph for his future as a leader of nations. He gave battle plans to Gideon in a dream. Joan of Arc, Jacob, George Washington, Marie Curie, and the apostle Paul were all guided by their dreams.”

PeopleMenHas BeensDreamMotivationalUsedPurposeNationsLeaderPlansCenturyGreatnessBattleMen And WomenCommunicatePreparationGreat MenInstructionApostlesArcsJacobMarieGideonApostle Paul
Book:Traveler's Gift; Mastering the Seven Decisions
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“We are all in situations of our own choosing. Our thinking creates a pathway to success or failure. By disclaiming responsibility for our present, we crush the prospect of an incredible future that might have been ours.”

ThinkingHas BeensMightMotivationalResponsibilitySituationIncrediblesCrushTaking ResponsibilityMight Have BeenPathwaysSuccess Or Failure
Book:Traveler's Gift; Mastering the Seven Decisions
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“The words It's not my fault! should never again come from your mouth. The words It's not my fault! have been symbolically written on the gravestones of unsuccessful people ever since Eve took her first bite of the apple.”

PeopleShouldFirstsHas BeensMotivationalSuccessResponsibilityWrittenMouthsFaultsApplesBitesSuccessful PeopleTaking ResponsibilityUnsuccessfulGravestone
Book:The Young Traveler's Gift: Seven Decisions That Determine Personal Success
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