As a Man Thinketh
Assessment by Henry Mark Lugobe (Uganda)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author of this book is trying to share his views on how our thoughts can shape our character, circumstances, health, purpose, achievement, vision and serenity. The author strongly holds that most of what we experience is due to our thought process. The idea shared is that we are the makers of our own selves. Circumstances do not make man rather man makes his own circumstances. In what ever we do and what ever happens to us we must see it as a result of our thought process. We must not to look at what has happened to us as being the problem. We must not look at the result as being the problem but rather how we got to that result. Health wise some one may look at obesity as being a problem but the broader question is how did one get to the obese state? May be they harbored a thought process that to them they had to eat until they fill satisfied. Thought draws us to a purpose full life. When your thought is well focused, it helps you overcome fear and doubts. The power of thought is unlimited. Thought is also important in achievement. You must think and believe you are a winner. It is such people who cultivate a winning mentality that would go ahead to achieve real success. Think it and you will receive it. Thought is also important in ensuring that we see our visions come to pass. When you set your success bar high enough, that’s the success you will receive. When your vision is small then your success will be small as well. Understanding people’s thoughts and your own thoughts brings calmness around you. You are quick to know why people behave the way they behave and so instead of being taken on by panic events, you remain calm.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
How thought shapes character: a man is literally what he thinks. His character is a complete sum of his thoughts. Good thoughts yield a good character. Bad thoughts yield a bad character. I remember when I was young I made a resolution to greet people. I made greeting part of me that I always tried to remember people’s names. Before long, everyone who came in contact with me became my friend. I was someone everybody found good. Little did I know that this was because of what I had cultivated. My thought of being a nice and good person has made me exactly that.
Our circumstances are due to our thoughts. You have heard people say, your circumstances do not make you. Being born of a poor family does not mean you must be poor. I am fortunate to be born of middle class parents but I am full aware that what I have is for my parents and not mine. My desire to have a similar lifestyle has led me to start enterprises knowing that this is what will shape my circumstances and not my family background. When we find ourselves in bad situations, it is possible that this is because of our bad thoughts and not misfortunes.
Thought affects our health and body. Beyond doubt this is true. There are times when it’s examination time and I want to read throughout the night. This unsettled mind and stress usually leads to unprecedented diseases. Most of the mental illness cases we receive in our hospital are due to patients who have failed to guide their thoughts. When a man has a misunderstanding with the wife, the man ends up drinking alcohol. This he believes is supposed to help him deal with his bad situation. But it does not. What we end up seeing are alcoholics, alcohol withdrawal symptoms and depressed patients. This ill health is purely due to our ill thoughts. The goods thoughts of exercise and a good healthy diet yield healthy individuals. Most people who think like this will take full responsibility of their health and are fully aware of what it takes to have it healthy.
Thought directs purpose. Having a purpose in life is very important in directing what tomorrow will look like. I personally want to be a missionary doctor. This simply means that I will offer time to service of disadvantaged communities. One time when I shared with my big sister, she asked where I would get money for my family if all I was going to do with my education was volunteer work. At this point I stimulated myself to think of different ways I can raise money through enterprises. This purpose and thinking have helped direct my life. I love charity but also work to get money.
Thought is important to achieve. I have watched Usain Bolt run 100m, and he believes he can make 9.4sec as record time for running 100m. For some people such goals are unrealistic. But in this book we are encouraged to set our bars high, to think faster than usual. Bolt who is currently the world 100m holder hit this achievement because he believed it and strongly held this desire at heart. Even us therefore can register success by harboring good thoughts.
Our visions and ideals are guided by our thoughts. A vision is where you see your self. An ideal is what one would consider the best standard. When you see yourself living in a good house, you will surely leave where you currently are to the new house. This is because the vision brings about a discontented thought which will push you on until you reach where you desire to be.
The thoughts help us in our serenity. Serenity follows a calmness around us. It helps us understand the thoughts of others and our own thoughts and why we end up in the given circumstances. When we understand our own thoughts, we become slow to panic and in control of our realities. Understanding other people’s thoughts also helps us understand their behavior. This also gives man self control which makes him attractive to other humans.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The ideas shared in this book show how important thought is. Thought can shape our character, purpose, circumstance and visions. The power of thought is that it can lift our organization from under performance to best performing. Thought can get us to a healthy life. In the work that we do with our organization, we get to inspire people and also give mentors hip programs and I see talking about the power of thought will have a very big impact. I have personally learnt that I can affect my results by changing the way I think. I can get financial freedom by thinking prosperity. There are people who blame their circumstances all the time. People who never imagine the contribution Thought has to our lives. This has been a great eye opener for me. I now know how important it is to keep positive thought in our daily activities. Now each time I will get a challenge I will ensure I keep positive about it.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
” A noble and God like character is not a thing of favor or chance, but is the natural result of continued effort in right thinking, the effect of long cherished association with God like thoughts” This was a statement the author made to explain how thought shapes character. I found this important because there are friends of mine who attend catholic mass weekly and when you get close to them, you surely realize that they are Godly in behavior. This has come due to their continued exposure to Godly thoughts. But there are also friends of mine who spend most of their time in bars and surely you can see the alcohol in them from the way they behave and walk.
“……. Man is the master of thought, the molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment and destiny.” There are times when I ask was I born this way? When I say why did this happen to me, when I feel I need someone to blame. But this reminds me that I am the exact expression of what I think. It also encourages me that if I want to be successful, I need to keep positive thoughts. It has made me understand myself better and know was I behave the way I do.
“Even if he fails again and again to accomplish his purpose, as he must until weakness is overcome, the strength of character gained will be the measure of his true success and will form a new starting point for future power and triumph.” This is important as it says a lot about the importance of having thought on purpose. Having focused thoughts on purpose helps one to overcome weakness. That even when the going seems hard, purpose is enough to get you through that particular challenge.
” To live continually in thoughts of ill will, cynicism, suspicion and envy is to be confined in a self made prison hole. But to think well of all, to be cheerful with all, to patiently learn to find the good in all. Such unselfish thoughts are the very portals of heaven, and to dwell day by day in thoughts of peace toward every creature will bring abounding peace to their possessor.” This shows that we can shape the future we want. We can tell what we believe is good for us. When we keep positive thoughts, we yield positivity. We can have the best by wishing the same for others. Peace of mind is also a result of our positive thinking. Thoughts are truly powerful.
” A man’ s mind may be likened to a garden which maybe intelligently cultivated or allowed to run wild, but whether cultivated or neglected it must, and will bring forth.” This reminds me of a saying, ” garbage in garbage out.” At some point what we cultivate as thoughts will come out as an action or circumstance. This therefore becomes important to know what we think about and know that it can and must be reflected in our ways. This is important to me cause there are times when my tasks seem so hard and I tend to think they are impossible. This kind of thought may reflect it self as a failure and so I need to see the positivity in every challenge and keep a positive mind set.
” Disease and health, like circumstances are rooted in thought. Sickly thoughts will express themselves through a sickly body.” Peace of mind is important to ensure healthy of mind. There are so many diseases associated with sickly thoughts. Mental illnesses are sometimes thought problems. There are also people who heal after they have changed their thinking. To some thinking is also important in managing long term illnesses e.g HIV AIDS or cancer. Some are up posed to be on long term medication and their thought is important in ensuring health.
” A man can only rise, conquer and achieve by lifting up his thoughts. He can only remain weak, abject and miserably by refusing to lift up his thoughts.” This has been my best quote. Our thoughts can take us places. Our thoughts can lift us from grass to grace. Change in thought can change your financial fortunes. An organization can change from under performing to the best by just changing the thinking of the employees. A losing team in football can turn its fortunes around by changing its thoughts.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and, if so, why?
There is nothing I found that I could not understand. It was clear and I understood it well.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
The book did not contain any exercise for me to do. So I had no exercise to do.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
No there is nothing of the kind really.
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 8
B. How helpful were the contents? 8
C. How easy was it to understand? 7
D. Would you recommend it to others? 8
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Henry Mark Lugobe (Uganda)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author is trying to convey the idea that you have to follow your passion. From the instances where people around you have a certain belief and you find your behavior odd, the author tells us that you still have to follow what you believe. Even when your own family says it is impossible, you have to stand up to the possibilities that are available. He also demonstrates that you can go to places where you are most appreciated and how it helps you get the best out of your passion. The author brings these words to life: Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous? Actually who are you not to be? You are a child of God. You have a purpose. Your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We were born to manifest the glory of God that is in anyone. And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give people permission to do the same. As we liberate ourselves from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others. This was shown by inspiring the other seagulls to fly.
2. What were the seven ideas which were personally most important to you and why? List these seven ideas followed by an explanation after each one as to why it was important to you. Use personal examples from your own life.
Never give up: This is a message I got from the persistence Johnson showed. He helped me appreciate the fact that you need to keep going even when people or your own family find you weird. Continue going no matter what people say about you or what you’re doing. There were times when Johnson felt that he was not good enough and that may be flying was not meant for him but he still continued to fly. Personally, when I was starting my magazine- Behind Every Face, it looked a task impossible to accomplish. It was hard. We had only one page which we would stick on notice boards. At this point 8 pages was just a dream. We finally got to the 8 pages and sold in the general public but this was not enough. Now we have 24 pages, full page with quarterly issues. To me this was a never give up attitude.
Practice makes perfect: I learnt that you can get even better than best if only you practice. He set targets for himself and was focused on hitting his target. He showed that once you work on what you want daily, the sky is the limit. I remember the time I run for guild president, I was not exactly a politician but I had to share my opinions with my team as per the manifesto. But what I remember telling them was that we cannot cram the manifesto but visit people and talk to them more often about the manifesto. By the time we were done with the campaigns, though we lost, my team and I clearly knew what the new generation stood for. Many of them had learnt how to interact with people and it was such a nice feeling learning through practice.
We are special: Another lesson I picked is that we are all created special. That there is a uniqueness that is in every one of us. What we have to do on our part is to try and discover that special element in us. This reminds me of a training I attended in 2009. We were being told about the love God and how he created us in his own image. The topic that day was that we each were created for a purpose. This book reminded me of that teaching as we may not all have been created not to fly but that there were those that were a little special.
There is no limit to how far you can get: What we read from this book is that even when you have learnt what you set yourself out to learn, there is still more. There was a time when I was a leader in most of the associations in my university including my church and class. This moment someone would say that I had reached my heights, but no I hadn’t. I set out to stand for guild president which though I lost at least proved to me that there were causes still worth living for.
Eagerness to learn: When I read this book I get a sense of urgency from Johnson to see that he learns as soon as he can. In fact it was an attribute that won him favor with his master because he showed that he wanted to learn how to fly. I see this with my employees. There are always challenges at hand but the team is always swift to act. They want to be part of the solution.
Freedom: Freedom was described to be perfection. Not to be limited by time or place. There is a time a friend of mine shared with me what he understood by financial freedom. To him financial freedom meant that state when you can afford to buy whatever you want without requesting for anyone’s money and going places wherever it was that you want to go. This is freedom and this book showed that it was possible to achieve this freedom.
Share with others: The concept of sharing came out clearly in this text. They demonstrated how much it is important to learn to love. That even when you are regarded an outcast, you can still go back and share with those that considered you an outcast. There were moments in my life when people didn’t want to have me around them because of my social status. They felt inferior around me but this never stopped me from helping out. I remember, I had to provide the projector at every lecture and this was ok with me because in me I had a love that was beyond our feelings and emotions.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
These ideas are so nice that they will surely help me in creating a better world. The author demonstrates that leadership is about helping others realize their full potential. I and my organization have set ourselves out to mentor youth into realizing and unleashing the potential in them. Our purpose is to help everyone do self discovery. I will live my life telling everyone of how high they can fly. These ideas also will help me to counsel anyone whose family or friends have discouraged from realizing the potential within them.
4. Quotes: Are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? If so, please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“We can lift ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures of excellence and intelligence and skill” This is an inspiring statement that tells us we can always get ourselves out of any unfortunate situation and be the best we ought to be.
“The trick according to chiang, was for Jonathan to stop seeing himself as trapped inside a limited body that had a forty-two inch wing span and performance that could be plotted on a chart. The trick was to know that his true nature lived, as perfect as an unwritten number, everywhere at once across space and time.” This touched me because it says that our physical nature must not be a limitation of what we can do. That we must go deeper within us to realize the potential that lies inside of us.
“You have less fear of learning than any gull I have seen in ten thousand years.” Sometimes we fail to achieve success because of the fear we have within us. But this is to tell us that actually the less fear we have, the faster we try new things, risk and even hit big success.
“…… You have to practice and see the real gull, the good in every one of them and to help them see it in themselves that’s what I mean by love.” The word love is brought to life in this quote. Love is about bringing the best out of others. It’s about telling the others the good that lies within them.
“….. The only difference, the very only one is that they have begun to understand what they really are and have begun to practice it.” The difference between the successful people and the other ordinary citizens is that a successful person has realized his reason for leaving. He has defined his passion, mission and vision of his life.
“…..it is right for a gull to fly, that freedom is the very nature of his being, that whatever stands against that freedom must be set aside, be it ritual or superstition or limitation in any form.” When we discover ourselves nothing else should get in our way. No one must stop you from realizing your full potential.
“You have got to understand that a sea gull is an unlimited idea of freedom. An image of the great gull and your whole body, from wingtip to wingtip, is nothing more than your thought itself.” This shows the power of your thoughts. Our thoughts make us or break us. The thoughts of success yield success. The thought of freedom yields freedom.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and, if so, why?
Everything I read in this book to me was clear and the ideas were spot on. There is nothing I would disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
There were no exercises there in for the reader so I didn’t fill any.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
Not really. The questions were exhaustive.
Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.
A. How interesting was it to read? 8
B. How helpful were the contents? 8
C. How easy was it to understand? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 8
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8