As a Man Thinketh
Assessment by Matilda Nthenge (Kenya)
1. What is the main idea the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author is trying to convey that our mind is a very powerful tool that should be used wisely. Your thoughts define your outcome, our thinking is invisible it is only seen through the actions we do. We are anxious to improve our circumstances, but we are unwilling to improve ourselves. A man who is wretchedly poor, he is extremely anxious that his surroundings and home comforts should be improved, yet all the time he shrinks his work and considers he is justified in trying to deceive his employer on the ground of the insufficiency of his wages such a man does not understand the simplest rudiments of those principles which are the basis of true prosperity and is not only totally unfitted to rise out of his wretchedness, but is actually attracting to himself a still deeper wretchedness by dwelling in and acting out indolent, deceptive and dark negative thoughts.
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.
i. A rich man
A rich man who is the victim of a painful and persistent disease as the result of gluttony he is willing to give large sums of money to get rid of it, but he will not sacrifice his gluttonous desires such a man is totally unfit to have health, because he has not yet learned the first principles of a healthy life.
ii. We are the sole author of our condition.
We either make ourselves or destroy ourselves, we are totally responsible for our life, so anything we do it affects us either positively or negatively, the powerful tool we have its our mind e can think in any way we need without anybody controlling us.
c). A man may be honest in certain direction, yet suffer privation a man maybe dishonest in certain directions, yet acquire wealth, but the conclusion usually formed that the other prospers because of his particular dishonesty.
d). Good thoughts and action never produce bad results, thoughts and actions can never produce good results, this is but saying that nothing can come from corn but corn, nothing from nettles but nettles.
e ). Blessedness, not material possession is the measures of right thoughts, wretchedness not lack of material possession, is the measure of wrong thoughts.
f). Beautiful thoughts of all kinds crystallize into habits of grace and kindness, which solidify into genial and sunny circumstances, of temperance and self – control, which solidify into circumstances of repose and peace.
g). The body is the servant of the mind, it obeys the operations of the mind, whether they be deliberately chosen or automatically expressed. Our mind controls everything our body, our actions are all controlled by our mind, the mind directs you what to do, someone plans to steal by thinking and strategizing on how to do it after the mind plans perfectly how to do it, it sends signal to the other parts of the body, to carry a gun and go attack, it even gives it the best time to go and attack at the end the simple mind puts us in trouble of the law, we find ourselves in the hands of breaking the law because we didn’t tame our mind. It is the mind that makes you strike someone or start a fight, if you control it you will never fight and you will be at peace.
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?
This books is a key to a better result to our own life, our mind is very powerful and it determines the outcome of what we are today, we have to be careful on what we feed our mind, the mind is invisible but the outcome are seen, when we plant beans we are sure to harvest beans not maize so its our thoughts, we think negatively our outcome will be negative, the books is helps us to see the reflection of ourselves though our mind, it is high time for me to change the way I think the impossible is just a state of mind, to welcome success I have to think successful and work upon it by being positive in whatever I do.
4. Quotes: are there any statements which the author made that particularly got your attention? Iif so please quote them and comment as to why they were important to you.
“The people who live in fear of disease are the people who get it. Anxieties quickly demoralize the whole body and lays it open to the entrance of disease. Fears is a start of failure the more you fear to start what you are supposed to do, you fail even before you start we need to be courageous better fail trying than have the fear to fail, most of the accomplished project were done without fearing to fail.”
We need to week up and do what we are supposed to do not seeing our failure, good projects and proposals are dying inside our mind since we do not want to actualize them, we fear to fail, we fair what people will say about us, we fear the cost to risk to start a project, and we become captive of our mind.
“Strong pure and happy thoughts build up the body in vigor and grace. When you are positive and your goal is a achieved you feel good and happy, we need to conquer our thinking in order to achieve what we want the inner discouragement should be ignored if we want to achieve our goals, usually inside our mind we have dialogue some crossing thoughts of failure and what if?”
We need to ignore them in order for us to achieve our ultimate goal
“Clean thoughts makes clean habits. The so called saint who does not was his body is not a saint. He who has strengthened and purified his thoughts does not need to consider the malevolent microbe.”
“If you would protect your body, guard your mind if you would renew your body beautify your mind.”
Usually we have spoken words that later we regret why we did that, our mind is a powerful tool that can kill or destroy our universe just a simple word can cause disaster, people have killed each other just through utterance, family have separated or divorced just through utterance that was thought inside our mind, before we let any word come out our mouth its good to think about it, how will the other person feel if I tell her or him this, will it create good relationship, is it worthy to talk about it or just forget and keep it in my mind, the better we know this the better we control our mind and we will be happy and live a better life.
“Until thoughts is linked with purpose there is no intelligent accomplishment
though our thinking we accomplish our purpose in life, anything cannot be something until we think about it and later actualize it through action, so any outcome is through our mind and is reflected to us.”
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?
The books is very clear and easy to understand.
6. Did the book contain exercise for the reader to complete? If so did you complete all the exercise and did you find them helpful?
Our mind is very powerful and we should constantly feed it with goods information filter out what to digest and what not to digest, it’s a learning process to be focused and nurture our mind, the outcome of anything starts from our thinking, the crime we see in the world is through our thinking the good we see is though our mind outcome, so we can be what we want to be by controlling our mind so that we can make a better life and better world, also it is high time we start teaching our children the importance of our mind, the children usually absorbed what they hear if we use polite words, they will learn that people should be polite and kind, but if we show then that we do not need to be polite we spoil there thinking and we raise unresponsible citizens.
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.
The book is well covered and understood and very inspirational.
A). How interesting was it to read? 6
B). How helpful were the contents? 7
C). How easy was it to understand? 7
D). Would you recommend it to others? 7
E). What is the overall rating you would give it 7
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Matilda Nthenge (Kenya)
1. What is the main idea the author is trying to convey in the book?
The author is encouraging people to live their lives fully without listening on the opinions of others. People will see your weakness but not your strength and they will discourage you not to go for your goals and aspiration, in life before we achieve our dreams, we will meet people who will see our downfall and will not support your efforts, but the author tells us to be determined in whatever we do, it doesn’t matter even when people don’t believe in our achievement and aspirations. Once you are determined to do something just do it you have all it takes when you believe in yourself, associate yourself with people who encourage you and are positive in what you do practically we can see how other gulls were discouraging but he didn’t give up until he met those ready to support him fly higher and learn more skills in flying and indeed he achieved it. We can choose our friends wisely those who believes in us and we have common goals and target, show me your friends and I will tell you your character,” through friends we can achieve a lot or lose everything, if you associate with thugs you will end up being one or mistaken to be a thug.
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.
i. Lifting ourselves out of the impossible
We can lift ourselves out of ignorance nothing is impossible if we believe in ourselves, ignorance is a diseases, that kills mostly our failure is caused though our ignorance and fear, if you fear not to try then you will not achieve anything better fail trying than doing nothing, it is not usually easy we will meet obstacle in the process of trying to reach our ultimate goal but through consistence we will soon or later achieve what our heart desire.
ii. “We are from your flock, Jonathan we are your brothers, the words were strong and calm we’ve come to take you higher, to take you home.”
I have none flock I have none, in am outcast and we fly now at the peak of the great mountain wind, beyond a few hundred feet, I can lift this old body no higher. One school is finished and the time has come for another to begin. We have phases in life sometimes we struggle without result that is a learning lesson, whatever we pass through makes us strong it’s a learning process one schools is done and another begins, in business we struggle to set up a business once it picks we start dealing with client issues, employees and all sorts of manner, it’s a learning process after we are done with one process we face another one, it wasn’t easy when I started my tailoring and dress making business getting started wasn’t easy, moving along it has not been easy handling clients is another issue whereby some clients are impatient but I have to serve them, some have that attitude that tailoring and dressmaking is only for school dropout those who cannot make it in life, it’s a job that people looks down upon it, though it’s a noble job, and if well-established it creates employment and provides basic needs to oneself and others.
iii. We begin to learn that there is such a thing as perfection through constant learning and practicing.
The same rule holds for us now of course we choose our next world through what we learn in this one, learning nothing and the next world is the same as this one, all the same limitation and lead weights to overcome, we have the power to be what we want to be, through practice we can achieve it i have learnt a lot through my own self, every day is a learning day either positively or negatively in my work place I have learnt what I was not thought in school, the world is a book that we keep on discovering, my clients have exposed me to more challenges day by day, some will collect designs from the website or online and expect me to make them such a dress exactly how it looks in that picture, keenness will make me try my level best to satisfy the client, mistakes happens here and there but at the end of the day I achieve my goal and the clients desire.
iv. You can go to any place and to any time that you wish to go for:
Self-liberation, self-reliance allows you to be yourself you do not become victim of circumstances you can manage your time properly without follow ups, this is the beauty of understanding yourself you have no limitation, you can do what you want without asking permission because you believe in yourself.
v. To fly as fast as thought, to anywhere that is, you must begin by knowing that you have already arrived.
Visualize the picture of what you want to achieve feel it and have it draw your road map to your destination it works easier what you exactly know what you want to be. I want to be a greater charitable person by empowering single mothers and giving them knowledge on how to make dresses and clothes to sustain themselves and be able to assist more needy people in the society.
vi. Forget about faith you didn’t need faith to fly, you needed to understand flying.
This reminds me of one preacher a very wise one in that case, its not bad to go to church but there are some people who believes in miracles without working hard to achieve what they want, they prophesy that you will receive a house, you will receive a good car, but he further says if you want a car or a house you should have discipline on saving towards your goal and know how to manage your finances nobody will come and gift you a house or a car by confessing that indeed you receive without working towards achieving it.
vii. If our friendship depends on things like space and time, then when we finally overcome space and time we have destroyed our own brotherhood.
There are people who are your friend because of a certain purpose once it’s done you are no longer friends, its high time to know exactly why are we friends, is it short term or long term or for as long as we are alive, we need to understand our friendship and purpose a friend in need is a friend in deed.
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?
This is awakening call to me to fly higher and higher no limitation, I have all it takes to achieve whatever I want under the sun, to associate with friends that we have similar goals and dreams who encourage me rather than discourage me, make me be strong and give me a positive challenge, the world we are living is not for the weakness but for the strong, it’s a nice start up for me to reorganize my thoughts and life.
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.
“The gulls sees the farthest who flies highest.”
Once we push ourselves to do more and more e achieve a lot going extra mile makes all a difference doing things differently gives different result, so we have to push ourselves father and farther to be unique.
“There’s so much more to flying than just flapping around from place to place a mosquito does that.”
Whatever we are doing we will not be the first one to do it, even those without proper skills can do it, but how we do it makes a big difference anybody can do the work you are doing but the difference is how you do it, do you like it with a passion or you hate it, you just do it people to see you that you are doing something. Once you do it passionately you become better and more satisfied.
“Everything that limits us we have to put aside.”
Something that doesn’t go our way we need to leave it behind us, this is not only things but even people, those who doesn’t support your ideas, drop them and concentrate on a positive improvement.
“The only true law is that which leads to freedom, we have freedom in our thoughts, and once we put them in action we produce good result.”
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?
The books are very clear and easy to understand.
6. Did the book contain exercise for the reader to complete? If so did you complete all the exercise and did you find them helpful?
This is a life time exercise which is a learning process on how I will be using my thinking my thoughts to be productive in my work area and be able to assist others in their daily life.
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.
The book is well covered and understood and very inspirational.
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? 6
B. How helpful were the contents? 7
C. How easy was it to understand? 7
D. Would you recommend it to others? 7
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 7