Julius Charles – Assessments – International Institute for Global Leadership

As Man Thinketh
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

I believe the message is, what we think we become. How we think will ultimately impact our lives and those around us.

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. The idea that thoughts can remain secret, but they cannot as they eventually manifest themselves outwardly for others to see.

ii. Changing one’s mindset to positive thinking will drastically alter one’s situations for the better.

iii. Bastille thoughts manifest into drunkenness and sensuality thereby causing destitute situations and even disease.

iv. Impure thoughts manifest into confusing and distracting habits.

v. Thoughts of fear and doubt will manifest into indecision and irresolute habits leading to failure and indigence.

vi. Laziness manifests into uncleanliness and dishonesty.

vii. The idea that our minds are like a garden.

What we water and care for will grow into something beautiful and pure rather than negative bad thoughts that grow into weeds and shrubbery.

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 will help me in my life as I am able to relate to all these in some way or another. I believe these principles or ideas will help me by serving as a reminder that it is easy to slip into such thoughts thereby manifesting them outwardly. In keeping these principles and applying them to my life I believe I can then help others and educate them along their journey as I believe we have all at some point in our lives struggled with some of these if not all.

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 statements that were made in regard to what are thoughts eventually lead to in answer #2 are what stuck out to me the most, as stated previously I can relate. I have been lazy which did cause me to be dishonest such as: Not wanting to go into work so I would make up reasons of not wanting to go due to wanting to party instead or partying the night before with friends and drunkenness. Or having to feel enslaved to people that I was borrowing money from. Or I could use the example of fear and doubt which would cause me go be indecisive about things thereby causing me to lack confidence etc. For me it all made sense. In reading this section each thing the author mentioned made sense to me and I was therefore able to reflect on my life to see if it all fit and it did. All the fore mentioned thoughts of what the negative thoughts crystallized into was true for me even with the drunkenness causing disease. I once got Chlamydia from my actions and not to mention my actions in the past hurt a lot of women with my lack of self-awareness in how I treated them.

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 book was easy to read and understand. It was very insightful as I will be referring back to this book often.

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 obvious exercises however I do believe that there are indirect exercises to do and practice such as practice changing our mindsets and practicing gratefulness rather than thinking negative when things are not going our way.

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 comments other than maybe the title. I feel that this book can be read by not just men but also women, unless there already is a women’s version. The title may deter women from reading it but both sex struggle with a lot of the same things.

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? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 7
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10

Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

I believe that the author is conveying the message of, do not conform to this world or that of society. Chasing after what you believe in is more important and should be at the forefront, not society’s standards or money ( I think the food in this book was referring to money. I also think the description the author gives is pretty insightful. The flying that Jonathan begins to do is going well at first then doubt creeps in; the doubt is the wind. As soon as the gust of wind comes it throws him off and he is no longer able to fly. Perhaps that gust of wind can be described as the subtle voice in our heads that tell us we can’t, when in all actuality we can if we choose too.

i. Not to give in to a false narrative that it is better to go with the flock but rather it is best to do what is best for you.

I grew up in Boston, a city were it was very common to follow the norm, paly sports which I loved, go to college graduate get married , stay within a “bubble” and not venture out and be your own person so others would not think you to be “strange.”

ii. Pressure form others can lead to you losing or missing your purpose in life.

Trying to make others around me happy. Fulfilling their goals for my life. I thought I was living the life I was supposed to be living.

iii. Not finding your purpose will only make you unhappy.

Jonathan sought to try to please his parents and meet their expectations for his life. I have been there and tried that only to prolong my spiritual journey.

iv. Some may shun you or criticize you for your decisions as Jonathan was cast out from his family and flock.

When I chose to go on my spiritual journey my mother assumed I was no longer “Christian” and was practicing “evil” things to which she tried to preach to me in which I rebutted with other scriptures. I tried to teach her with an open mind whereas she was trying to get me to conform.

v. Sometimes following your true path can be difficult and feel lonely but if we stay the course, we will find that those that we are meant to find will find us or we will find them.

Along my journey I lost some friends and felt out of place but in staying on my path I found my Tribe so to speak.

vi. Money isn’t everything as Jonathan began to focus on his true calling, he did not focus or concern himself with eating his knowledge and learning was his sustenance.

We live in a world where we are taught and trained to work and work hard for money as this is how we are labeled in our success rather than those things that are not tangible.

vii. During our struggles in trying to “find our true self” we lose sleep or find ourselves lacking sleep.

At times I have found myself to be restless due to knowing that I am not meeting my full potential. I noticed when Jonathan met his tribe, the author mentions that Jonathan fell asleep. I took this to mean that he was at peace.

viii. Reaching “perfection.”

It is not perfection in the way that we think it to mean but perfection I believe is being used in this book to mean purpose. It is a reminder that we all move at our own pace and also not to give into the peer pressure of others or even the pressures of our parents. As Jonathan’s mother seem to be focused on him meeting the standards of society and that of others. Upholding an “image” seem to be more important to her than what her son wanted. She seemed to think his goals and aspirations were to “low” as if to say, “aim higher.” The idea of keeping up with the Joneses is what comes to mind.

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?

What stuck with me the most was the idea that people look at what we do as not good enough or as if our goals are “low hanging fruit” as did his mother. She thought he was “too good” for what he was doing, as if to say you’re setting your expectations too low which translate in reality to, “your life’s choices are embarrassing me. It was important to me as it reminds me of my past relationships with my mother.

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.

Also, what caught my attention was how they talked about past lives;

“How Jonathan had learned so much in this life, so he did not have to repeat so many things over again in past lives.”

I am hoping to finally learn in this life how to handle money better and to have that relationship with money that will free my mind and that will give me that capability of flourishing that I may help others.

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?

I was a little confused with what the meaning was during Jonathan’s transition from when he decided to give up and the part where the author mentions him seeing a bird or flock with short wings? Yes, that’s the answer says the author. This somehow gave Jonathan an idea and he was then able to fly. I don’t quit get that analogy or what it was supposed to symbolize.

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?

No there were not any exercises that I saw in the book

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.

It wasn’t the greatest book or most enjoyable to read. However it did have a great message
Contents were overall straight forward and easy to read
Easy for the most part. Somewhat hard finding some of the meanings the author was trying to relay
It wouldn’t be my first choice

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? 5
B. How helpful were the contents? 5
C. How easy was it to understand? 5
D. Would you recommend it to others? 5
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 5

Keys to Success
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

That success is obtainable and that it is only not obtainable, when we have self- doubt and choose not to make the right choices.

i. The activation of faith.

I liked how he said it is to be used in conjunction with other things but not a stand-alone. Faith is a state of mind that must be cultivated.

ii. The Bang Theory

I like how he talked about the big bang theory without saying it he talked about the watch and how you could take apart a watch and put it in a bag and it could not in million years put itself together. He too believes that it was an infinite mind that created all things such as the universe moon stars humans.

iii. Overcoming disbelief, which goes back to faith.

iv. Definiteness of purpose.

He explains that no one will create it for you nor will it create itself. We must act on things we want.

v. Poverty

He talks about the fear of poverty. He gives suggestions on how to combat that. For instances if you are lazy, find ways to combat it by thinking of ways not to be lazy, holding ones self accountable, and not to procrastinate and to work to make ones life better.

vi. Thinking positively and taking care of your mental health.

vii. Aging.

I like the spin he puts on it by saying that instead of looking at life as yrs wasted, look at it as years of wisdom you’ve learned and the lessons that life has taught you. He says when one thing is taken, it is always replaced with something else. In this section he says that youth is replaced with wisdom and not to look at it as old age. I found that to be very insightful as I’ve never heard it put like that before.

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?

It will help me to keep things in a better perspective. In regards to getting older and my past I will no longer look at life the way I have in regards to getting older. I will say I have gained wisdom over the years and learned how not to repeat some of the same things that I have kept me back or from being successful. I no longer feel guilty for not sitting around and just praying but pushing myself to achieve my goals. There is an old school of thought that we pray and “wait” on God and to not do so would be us “ wavering” in our faith because we are not waiting but rather choosing to make things happen rather than wait on God. Overcoming disbelief speaks more to myself in self doubt and thinking I cannot achieve certain things because of my past or the false thought of “ I’ve wasted to much of my life to make something of it” Thinking positive is great also because it keeps the mind sharp and clear of any toxicity and dullness. It keeps the mind motivated wanting to achieve the goals we set for ourselves. Definiteness of purpose, this idea has served as a reminder that only I can push myself to success and that no one can and will do it for me no creator or infinite being is going to do it for me.

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.

Yes, what spoke to me were the examples he gave of famous people making their own paths despite what others thought of them; such as Chrysler buying a vehicle with his life savings and bringing home the vehicle only to take it apart in his garage and people thinking he was crazy, or the fact that Edison only had 3 months of schooling and yet still became one of the greatest inventors.

I would just say the whole idea that we have the power to change things in particularly our life’s situations.

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?

No, everything was clear and understandable. I look forward to using this book as a guide and a resource that I can refer back to often or at lest once a week.

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?

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.

Nothing else that I can think of.

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? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 10
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 10

Success through a Positive Mental Attitude
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

That positive mental attitude is the way to achieve your goals along with prayer. His goal in this book is to motivate us into desirable action and lastly there are no “secrets “ to success.

i. The ability to change our outcomes.

For example, when SB Fullers mother told him, “we are not poor because it is Gods will but we are poor because your father never developed the desire to become rich.”

ii. Being rich is not the meaning of life, I understand what she was getting at.

This is important to me because so often I would hear in southern churches that Jesus lived a “poor” life did not care about riches so therefore Christians are to live the same and so whenever you had money or were “rich” some churches would look down on you for it saying that that is not Gods will for us and that we should live a “meek” and “simple” life as Jesus did.

iii. Negative mindset (NMA) opposed to a positive mindset (PMA), is not the way to go.

I like the idea that he brigs up the Bible, God and Prayer. He mentions that reading the Bible was one of his inspirational books along with prayer and a few other books. I liked reading this because I feel that we live in a time where people are trying to remove God and prayer form every occasion and to make it seem like you can achieve great things without God and or prayer to which I don’t agree with.

iv. Being God Centered

I liked reading that his fundamentals were God centered. I believe God and prayer goes hand in hand with everything and that you cannot have it any other way and be success, in my opinion.

v. Success is achieved and maintained by those that keep trying with PMA.

It is a good reminder because it is easy to lack consistency, thus the words Keep Trying, which for me means not to give up and also it is important to note the other key ingredient which is PMA.

vi. Control

Also it will help me in remembering that that I am in full control of my destiny, success and financial freedom. Also this would allow me to share this with other fellow Christians and possibly help them free their minds from all the generational lies about what it is to be a true Christian.

vii. Positive Mental Attitude vs. Negative Mental Attitude.

So going forward I will practice a Positive mental attitudes everyday and look for the changes/improvements in my life.

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?

Simply put it will help me by not feeling guilty in the Christian world. Amongst other Christians who believe that the more poor you are the better and that it shows some kind of true Christianity because it shows trial and tribulation and without those things present then you are not being a true Christian, which to me sounds crazy.

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.

Not so much statements, but just the stories of others that have come before us that have held on to these same or similar principles. Like the story of tom Dempsey who was born with half a foot but his dream or desire was to play football and he defied the odds because he had a PMA. He later went on to play for the Colts in the NFL and recorded the longest field goal kick at that time. Never underestimate the power of NMA which is something I tend to do sometimes.

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?

None.

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?

Yes the book does have a list of exercises to try which are meant to help reprogram our minds thinking and how to do things the right way so that we may achieve our set goals. This will be something that I will continue to challenge myself to do going forward and the best way for me to do that is to use my necklace that I bought from Costa Rica I will use it like a talisman and remind myself that the front side is PMA and the NMA is the back of it which is funny because the back of it just is not as pretty and looks as if it needs to be turned over so people can see the full beauty of it. So going forward I will practice this everyday and look for the changes/improvements in my 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.

This was a great reading with a lot of great insight into how to change ones mindset.

Please rate the following questions on a scale of 1 to 10. Ten is good and One is poor.

Giant Steps
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

That if we change our mindset along with some daily exercises, we can take giant steps towards a better quality of life.

It was important to me because it made me think about my life personally and made me think of what things do I link pain and pleasure to? And, how that has caused me to fear certain things or avoid them (pain) or how those things have gotten me in trouble or bad situations (pleasure)

ii. The idea that he asks us to hold ourselves accountable by making a public commitment.

That’s important to me because I know it’s something I need to do more of.

iii. Pick goals that are exciting enough that they truly inspire our creativity and ignite our passion.

To me that’s important because if something is not exciting to me or doesn’t stir up my imagination and I can’t see myself doing great things in that idea, then I am not interested, and I will not stay committed in it thereby only sticking to it for a short time before I quit.

iv. Persistence overshadows talent.

I like that because we are not talented in all things, at least I am not. So, it’s nice to know that persistence is key. It reminds me of when I started playing basketball at 12. I was not the best at all, but one of the worst to be honest and I got laughed at because you couldn’t look at me and say I had talent other than the fact that I was somewhat tall for my age but I was very persistent on getting better. I later went on to junior high, played in college and became an all American won MVPs throughout the yr I played starting in junior high.

v. Nothing changes until we change the sensation we link to an experience in our nervous system.

The pleasure aspect, bad decisions and choices. Therefore, this statement was important to me. It explains why I kept doing the same things in my relationships/choices.

vi. Changing our vocabulary with transformational vocabulary as he calls it.

He says to adjust our habitual vocab. That’s been one of my biggest hurdles, so it was important for me to let that sink in and apply that idea, it still is.

vii. The idea that if you feel hurt, not to interpret it as malice but rather ignorance could be the explanation.

This is important because I have read many other self-help books that have helped cope with this idea so I do not over-react, or think the worst of people and even if they are actually that way? to still let them be who they are but rather condemn, meet them with love and just tell myself this is not a person I can or should associate without any judgment. Second, realize that my rules may not always be the right rules, Important for me due to the fact of raising two daughters is not easy. This has been an issue for me in the past. I have learned over the years to step back and look at a situation and ask myself, “is this really working?” and if it wasn’t, “why not?” I would then look for ways to adjust what needed to be adjusted. Lastly, interrupting our anger by asking ourselves a series of questions. The one I really like is, “will this matter in 20 years?” This is important because I believe it really helps put things into perspective.

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?

First, these concepts will serve as a daily reminder. Next, share that knowledge with others through action rather than words.

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.

“What we link with pain or pleasure shapes our destiny.”

My example was stated in point one in Question Two above.

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?

Yes, he says what stops people from achieving their goals are mixed emotions, which I understand but he also says mixed associations. I’m not sure if he is referring to social groups, as in mixed social group, surround yourself with same like minded people. I’m not too sure what other mixed associations he would be referring to.

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?

Yes, still using them as of recently and yes because it has shaped and help change my way of thinking when it comes to certain things.

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.

Nothing else I can add.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

How to Win Friends and Influence People
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

In my opinion, I think what the author is trying to say is, treat others the way you would want to be treated. It’s an old principle but still true today. Even if people are mean and nasty, as we find to be so true in this day in age, these people would still want to be treated well.

i. Be generous with praise.

It is a fundamental mindset that I have read in the Bible and one that has been reminded to me throughout my spiritual journey and I believe it works and is so important because it helps steer the mind away from those things that are negative.

ii. Remember other people’s names.

This is important to me for the simple fact that it is something that I must work on. I am great at remembering a face it’s a gift but names I am bad with, and I do know that it does something to someone when you can remember their name after meeting them once or for a short moment. So what I try to do in my head is think of something that I can relate their name too whether it be a movie, song or someone I know with the same name.

iii. Be genuinely interested in other people I love to know about other people and their lives, and I know how special it is when you have someone’s full undivided attention. It makes them feel important, it makes them feel like you care.

iv. Know the value of charm.

This is important because for years I did not know I had it but when I did realize it, I would take it for granted or use it selfishly and so for me knowing the value of it means to use it wisely and for the right reasons rather for selfish gain.

v. Know when to acknowledge your own mistakes.

So important because you can never develop a good solid relationship when hardheaded and when one cannot admit their mistakes, there can be no growth and it fractures relationships, friendships.

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?

First, it will serve as a daily reminder. Next, share that knowledge with others through action rather than words and it will help me to remember the saying of treat others how you want to be treated, which is something I do live by that I use often. It convicts me many times when I remind myself of this.

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.

“When one yells the other should listen because when 2 people yell there is no communication just noise and bad vibrations.”

This is important to me based on what I am currently going through with my daughter and sometimes it has been hard for me due to her current rebellious state.

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?

Nothing I didn’t understand.

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?

I would say not really but at the same time I believe the whole book is an exercise. Like when he says never start by saying to someone, “I am going to prove something to you,” because its like an insult saying I am smarter than you. A lot of times he mentions to us to be careful with our words or how we address someone. He also says never say things that will arouse opposition and can be seen as a challenge. So even though there were not any actually exercises, its important to remember what was read and how we must make the decision to apply what we have read.

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 further comments.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is

Nonviolent Communication
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

That through the affect of non combative communication we can deescalate any situation by using this technique which are Fact, Feeling Why and Request, along with empathy.

i. I’m not too sure of but I liked how he humanized the example by using himself as an example by giving a personal experience.

He mentioned how he went to see his mother and in visiting her, she started being difficult and he explained what kind of person his mother was. During this interaction with his mother, it initially did not go well at first but then he remembered NVC and he describes how he did it and how it did not work right away because he was trying to figure out why she was upset. It took him a couple guesses and even then she had to tell him why she was upset. In the end it worked, he was able to calm her down. This was important to me because 1. The description of the mother reminds me of my mother.

ii. He showed us how you the person practicing this will not be perfect at it every time.

iii. The author’s personal experience with these ideas.

It was also important to me because he made it personal because for me, so many times when authors or teachers talk about these things I always wonder if its something they’ve tired and I love that not only did he try it but he explained with a personal experience.

iv. Timing to use NVC.

There is a time and a place to use it with intention

v. Listening at a deeper level.

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?

I am currently going through a tough time with my youngest she refuses to rebel and is not listening she only hears what she wants to hear. So I will be implementing this practice on her until I have mastered it. I feel this is the perfect situation to use this in and it could not have come at a more perfect time I am glad that I have been reading this book during this time. I feel confident that I can use it and hope that it will be affect for me as I’m sure it has been for so many other people.

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 fact that it is going to take time to master and to not get frustrated or give up and that sometimes the other person might not be receptive to it which is good to know.”

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?

No.

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?

Yes, to practice NVC, and noting that there is a time and place for it. For example it is not something that is needed when hanging out with friends having a good time

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.

None.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Goal Mapping
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

The main idea of this book is to show us that through proper strategic planning, we can map out our goals and become successful. This is not just referring to business or careers but I believe based on what the author is saying, we can use goal mapping in our personal lives as well, whether we are setting goals for fitness or even relationships. I believe that goal mapping is also about the interaction between people along with the knowledge and determination to be a successful person. Goal mapping can also be for empowering and inspiring people to become a better person and achieving their life goals.

i. Dream, Order and Draw.

The dreaming is important because everything begins in the mind. I tend to daydream often and fall into some of the types of dreams mentioned in this reading such as: Material dreams ( not that I believe all material things make you happy). I believe they can help fulfill you to a certain point to where you are happy for the moment or up to a certain period of time. For me the material things are a reminder of how hard I worked. I am currently dreaming of a new Ford Bronco Raptor or Everglade. One of the other dreams that I am dreaming of even though it has already manifested itself in the past few weeks (Career Dreams), is becoming a police officer. I am continuing that dream in my mind during the day, which is the other type of dream (day dream). Perhaps as I continue to have these day dreams, they will become actually bedtime dreams and may help give me some insight into what path I must take or how to map out my goals for the future , career, personal life and fitness goals for this year. There are a few ideas with along with dreaming, ordering and drawing that the author brings up that are important and without these, I believe our goals are not achievable.

ii. The first thing we have to do is Believe it. If we can believe the dream or vision we see for ourselves, than the dream can be achieved. By believing in the dream we give it life but when we see it as negative, then we cast doubt and kill the dream whether we realize it or not.

iii. See it.

I think this speaks for itself.

iv. Tell it.

When we speak something into existence I believe we give it life. The more we tell people about our goals and visions the better chance they have of coming together.

v. Plan it.

Every vision, every dream, every idea, needs a plan and that is where goal mapping comes into play.

vi. Work it. Don’t just have a ideas or plans, but put them to work, map out your goals and start doing the footwork. So often people will just have ideas or fantasize about them but will not do the footwork but would rather do nothing, expecting the universe to just manifest it to them without any effort.

vii. Enjoy it.

Enjoy your hard work. Be proud of the accomplishments and achievements that you have successfully been able to reach, even if it is with material things (ie. Material Dreams)

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?

I believe these new teachings, ideas and lessons will help me use this new knowledge in my career as a police officer. There are many young people and many colleges and high schools in the area where I will be patrolling and serving as a police officer.

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.

Not so much quotes, but the author explains how to activate the right brain which I found interesting and insightful, as I am not familiar with how to do this so this is a practice that I will implement.

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?

No.

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?

Yes. There are a list of questions that we are to ask ourselves and within those questions map out our goals, along; along with activating our right brain through meditation and breathing. These questions are: What does success look like for me?
What are some of the important areas of my life?
What are the major activities that make my day?
What type of home am I living in and where is it?
What style of car do I drive?
What kind of work do I choose?
Who are the people around me?
Who are you being as a person?
What are some of the major emotions and qualities you experience when seeing yourself achieve your dreams.

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.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Leadership for Dummies
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

Great leaders have certain qualities that motivate those around them. But beyond leadership qualities, you have to develop your mission as a leader and then continuously examine your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, an acronym that is used in this reading is SWOT, to keep yourself and your team at the top of your game. All great leaders have certain characteristics in common. Being a great leader has nothing to do with how you look or how you speak; leadership involves preparation and accepting responsibility, even when you don’t want to. These skills are necessary to be a leader and motivate people to follow.

There were many guidelines, suggestions and ideas in this book.

i. Some of the guidelines were, don’t take the hill less traveled. It is too costly.

ii. Approach your mission incrementally.

Do many small things well, and you’ll have a big success. Bring your group into a mission development mindset and planning at an early stage. Listen to what they have to say, and make the modifications you need at the start. Work to get ownership of the mission from everyone in the group. Your followers are going to do the heavy lifting, so they have to know what they’re in for.

iii. Make certain that you have a “point of no return.”

If the mission is not going well, know how far you can go and still regroup.

iv. Lastly, lead people; manage events. Keep your troops motivated.

v. Embracing Responsibility.

I felt this to be one of the most important things to me based on the time we are living in. I have found that we are living in a time where no one in society, as a whole, wants to take responsibility for anything. So it sounds like a novelty now a days. People see those who are willing to take responsibility as mature, responsible and as someone that will be a great leader because they display that attribute. One of my biggest pet peeves are people who cannot accept responsibility. Without that there is no growth. That is something that I am still trying to teach my daughters which I have found quite difficult. Even in leading by example and taking responsibility for my own actions or outcomes. Yet, they still do not seem to understand that and I blame that on our society. However, a story comes to mind when I entered boot camp. I had a good friend at a church I was attending and he gave me a piece of advice and said whatever I do, do not volunteer for anything because if you fail everyone gets in trouble and he had explained the whole process to me so I took that mental note and promised myself that I would not embrace responsibility or raise my hand for any duties. Well, this plan did not work as I was given a job based on my demeanor and how I carried myself and it paid off. I got promoted in boot camp which in turn gave me a higher ranking when I entered the fleet. So I do believe that choosing to embrace responsibility shows others around you that you WANT to lead and Can lead.

vi. Listening.

I think this one speaks for itself. You cannot get anywhere in life if you cannot listen, never mind being a leader. There have been so many times that I have been thanked by people even strangers for my listening ability and I have found that in listening to people helps them and it helps you also because it teaches us how to communicate better with people. Also, I think it minimizes frustration. No one likes to not be listened too, especially if it is something that is important to them.

vii. Planning

This one I find important to me because it has not allows been my strongest skill but I have learned over the years that planning is very important in life in general. No one wants to follow a leader with no plan. I can remember there was a job I was doing when I lived in VA and my supervisor who was in leadership position was a bad leader in that he had no planning skills. There was a lot of time wasted which caused my day to be longer so because we ended up started off late in the day due to poor planning I would sometimes get out much later than I was supposed to. It caused me to become frustrated and I later quit the job.

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?

After reading this book, I believe that it will help me to be a good leader, or a better one as well as help me to inspire people around be to do their best. It will also help me to advance my own career which is perfect for my new career as a police officer.

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.

There a few like:

“Listen!” “Don’t get angry at anger.”

That quote, I am still processing because I am trying to understand what that means or would even look like.

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?

No.

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?

Yes, the SWOT chart. This chart is a tool for assessing and accomplishing your mission as leader. It says you can also use a SWOT chart to list strengths and weaknesses of the team you’re leading and even your opponent.

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.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Maximum Achievement
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

That with the right steps and mindset we can all unlock our potential and achieve are own personal ideas of success with provided exercises on how we can transform our self-esteem boost our self-confidence and actually take control of every aspect in our lives.

i. Overcoming self-limiting beliefs.

This is important to me because a lot of times I would self-sabotage my mind into thinking I could not do something or complete something and because I would self-limit beliefs on myself it would sometimes cause me to lie to myself by making empty promises to myself. I would find myself telling myself all the reasons why I could not accomplish that goal. I would think back to my childhood or early adult years even. Hearing my mother’s voice will also come into my mind making it worse. “What if you fail, you’re going to fail would be the thoughts that would creep into my head.

ii. Reinventing the expectations you have about yourself.

This spoke to me because it reminds me of when I used to have to give presentations in school all the way up to college. I hated it I was so nervous and would find all the ways to skip it. When I got to college, my first class was intro to college, it was an orientation class. We all had to give a presentation on that first day. It was a big class, and I was of course very nervous. The instructor gave me some great feedback. I had never received feedback like that before, but it prompted me later on in my other classes going forward to take the lead whenever the professors would ask, “who wants to go first?” I always remembered the professors voice with the feedback she gave me, and it most definitely helped my confidence. I would say even today I still have the confidence.

iii. Consciously develop new habits and attitudes to improve self-confidence.

This is important to me also as this has been a bad habit of mine. Always starting something or buying something with the idea that I was going to use it but never did. So I would begin to envision what it would look like or what I would look like in the end of completing that thing and it would always look so great in the end that it motivated me.

iv. Visualize your future to maximize your chances of success.

This one is probably most important to me because this is what I am always doing. It almost goes hand in hand with number 3. I am always visualizing what I want my potential outcome to look like including what steps I am taking. I have done this with many of the things in life. The most recent I would say is joining the police force. This was an opportunity that escaped me last yr for several different reasons. However, even though this was the case, I still would visualize myself in the uniform, doing good in the community and being that “rescuer.” Now I believe because of that mindset and continued vision, it has granted me another career opportunity with a police agency that I will be starting shortly at the end of this month.

v. That is important to me is writing your goals down, so you stay focused and to revisit those things that you’ve written.
This is important to me because I can relate to it and I have done it and know it works. However, the first time I had done this it was maybe without knowing what I was doing. I didn’t know at the time in writing them down what I was doing. I had taken my Bible and at the end of the Bible on a blank page I had listed off 5 things that I had wanted. All these things however did not have an exact time of when I wanted them to come into existence, but they all happened within 5 years. I had not realized that until I found the Bible and looked at the last page and I was astonished.

vi. To achieve your goals learn how to control your negative emotions better.

This is important because as I have mentioned I use to be great at sabotaging and thinking negative. For instance, the police hiring process, I would think to myself what if something goes wrong what if what if what if. All negative thoughts because of things that happened prior. Over time I have learned not to respond to those triggers that would lead to negative external emotions. This time I would remind myself this is not like before and that this time it will all work out because this is meant for me, this is my purpose!

vii. To maintain success one must in the long term, accept responsibility for their life.

This was also personal to me because in my early adult life I would always blame my parents for my shortcomings in life, even though they may have been somewhat valid or completely valid I learned that at some point I had to take responsibility and change the outcome and or trajectory of where I wanted my life to go. This also extends to my life later on. There would be some decisions I would go on to make that weren’t the greatest and would set me back quite a bit. At the same time as my life went on, I began to achieve many things and I would be proud of myself and take on the responsibility of knowing A., I did this and B., with this achievement would come more opportunities and or responsibilities.

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?

By reminding me that if I continually choose to face my problems honestly and objectively, I will become more confident and a more competent person, thereby empowering me to be a more self-reliant and stronger person.

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.

“You can never be better or different on the outside than you believe yourself to be on the inside.”

I said to myself, “Wow!” That was powerful to me and it reminded me of last year when I decided to get back serious in the gym and started doing bodybuilding shows and I ended up winning awards and then my pro card. With that being said I will be taking on that challenge again this year!

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?

No. Everything in this book was pretty easy to understand and process.

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?

Yes, there were quite a few my favorite one is, focus on creating a vision of your perfect future. In the past I have made vision boards or had a section on my bedroom wall of pictures and things that I wanted to achieve. I have not done this yet but I will be making another on sometime this wk. I am excited to do this because I know it works.

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.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

PsychoCybernetics
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

The author is trying to convey the message that a lot of us have programmed the wrong self-image about ourselves and that with the corrected self-image crafted into our minds, along with machine principles, we can affect our minds in a positive way to achieve success, happiness and a fulfilling life with the correct data, thereby steering us away from negative thought and data.

i. We all have a self-image a blueprint that describes what kind of person we are.

Our conception or misconception of self-contain the beliefs we hold about ourselves based on our past experiences, successes and failures. This idea to me is important. It is one that I learned a few years, while enrolled in an online seminar called Success Insider. The instructor and founder Tim Han was a great teacher. I discovered a lot about myself and so when reading about this idea, I could definitely relate to it. I believe this idea is true because it allowed me to reflect on my past growing up and why I felt the way about myself and also how important it was to reprogram my mind and the data that had been programmed in my mind. For me growing up, it seemed I could never do enough to please my mother or make her proud. There was never any praise from her unless it was something that made Her look good. It was always about her image. So consequently, there was often some indirect criticism that was unwarranted and over the years it would be engrained in me that I was never doing well enough even though the proof that I was enough or doing well was all around me. At the time however, because of her I believed that I was a failure, so therefore because it was engrained in my subconscious, I think what was happening is that it began to show consciously in my life thereby causing me to be a failure in life.

ii. We are hypnotized by negative beliefs; the power of rational thinking however can erase those false narratives from our minds.

I think this is also important because it is or can become a trap if we allow ourselves to fall victim to it. I have found myself over the years drifting off in my mind thinking negative thoughts. Mainly they would start with my childhood and then the timeline would filter into my adult life. For example when I left the military. I struggled with that decision for a few years and thought myself a failure but rationally when I thought of it, I knew that I was not. My reasoning for exiting the military early was to take full custody and raise both my daughters.

iii. We can stimulate creativity and make ourselves happy.

This belief is one that I try to live by and also one that my oldest daughter can relate to as well. We are most happy when we can create something or when we put the idea of a creation in our minds. For me it builds an excitement and gives me a new found purpose, even if it is only something that will take me an hour to do. I had the ability to create some extra wooden boards for underneath my bed this past month and a few summers ago I got the great idea that I wanted to build some outdoor furniture with wooden crates which was a fun hobby. When completed I did feel happy but also as if I had accomplished something.

iv. My favorite one however, was, when the author talked about, being aware of what causes failure is key to achieving success.

With that failure mindset comes the frustration first, that false narrative that we cannot not do something or accomplish that which we are trying to succeed in. For me, I had to acknowledge that I was frustrated with myself then proceed to beat myself up and then talk negative through my mind about myself. I would remind myself why I couldn’t do something then it would just escalate. Instead, I have chosen to remind myself opposite of that mind thinking and somewhat adopt my fathers way of thinking as he was always a positive person and always confident. It showed in his life. I would say the past few years it has finally began to show in my life due to the way I now choose to think and how I have reprogrammed my mind and my thoughts.

v. Failure

Today when I fail, I remind myself that there is always tomorrow, if the Lord wills it and I take all the lessons of what caused me to fail and I correct them and I try again. I always find that works for me. Prayer is also key in this matter for me.

vi. The acronym for F.A.I.L.U.R.E.:

These are important to me because they will serve as symptoms or indicators that there is something wrong and before I go down that rabbit hole of negative thought, I will address any one of those symptoms to avoid going down that negative path.

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?

They will be day to day practices that I use every day, such as the concept of, release and forgive then relax. The forgiving part especially for me is most important. I have learned that it is easier for me to forgive others than it is to forgive myself. Many times, its just something that just forget to do or feel is unnecessary.

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.

“I wouldn’t say quotes, but the acronym for failure; frustration, aggressiveness, insecurity, loneliness, uncertainty, resentment, emptiness.”

Also, I liked the statement that, “our brains do not distinguish between imagination and reality, instead it acts based on the information we send it through our 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?

Everything in this book was pretty easy to understand and process. On the other hand, there was one thing I was not too sure about and had a hard time comprehending, mainly because I could not relate it to anything nor was I able to think of an example or something personal I could tie this too. There was mention made of the human body containing success mechanisms that’s driven by imagination. I’m not quite understanding that.

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?

Yes, the first one is repetition, the author encourages the reader to read the first chapter of the book at least 3 times a week for 21 days and then memorize the basic principles. Another is to set a goal and after the goal is set, focus on that goal and another is to not always plan a goal but sometimes try to improvise that plan a little bit. I have begun some of these today and will continue going forward.

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.

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? 10
B. How helpful were the contents? 10
C. How easy was it to understand? 8
I gave it a 8 due to the section I was not sure about
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 8
I feel it’s a book that I would definitely have to read over again as I feel some concepts and ideas may have been missed or maybe misunderstood if that makes sense.

Goals
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

What the author is trying to show in this book is how to show you how to unleash the power of goal setting to help you get or become whatever you want, identifying ways to set goals that lead you to success by being specific, challenging yourself, thinking positively, preparing, adjusting your timelines on big goals. I believe every big life change, achievement, or personal win starts with a goal. In my belief, nobody just suddenly is ready for a marathon or has a successful business. These things take time, effort, and most importantly, a specific goal and plan to get there. I think we all know a lot about goals and have set some ourselves but some of us have failed in the past, I know I have and at times I’ve either wanted too or have given up. But in reading this book I’ve come to learn that it’s not because I didn’t want those goals bad enough, it’s just that I hadn’t learned how to make them stick. I feel confident now that I know how to do that or at least I know the direction I must take to achieve those goals.

i. For me personally, I found these 3 meaningful and also convicting because in the past and even sometimes now I find myself falling victim to the opposite of these 3 things that help me achieve the goals that I set for myself.

A few of those ideas were: to get your mindset right. I think that is so important because it is impossible to focus on a goal if your mindset is not where it needs to be. I experienced that in 2021. I was in a bad relationship and I wanted to do so much set, so many goals for myself and do to where I was in that relationship, I was not able to achieve many of the goals I had set because of this individual. My mindset was not there. I thought it was, maybe perhaps at first but shortly as I started on that journey to accomplish those goals, somehow some way I would get distracted due to the stress and bad energy.
Set deadlines, challenge yourself, and be specific when setting goals. Due to the fact that my mindset was not where it needed to be, I was unable to set the necessary deadlines. The challenges were most definitely there, in some good ways and some bad ways. I found at times that I was not specific but rather I would think “wing it” and as you go on the specificity will just present itself. Foolish thinking but I think I was so desperate based on where I was at the time that I couldn’t think clearly. The Last one was, dig deep to examine yourself. Ask yourself If you really want to achieve your goals. As I sit here writing this paper I think about how true everything is that I read in this book for example, everything, whether it’s the device in your hands or the chair I am sitting in, was a thought in someone’s mind before it became a reality. The importance of getting the mind right and focused on a vision or idea or goal is key. I think as human beings, we all have to proactively fight the tendency to concentrate on the negative. This is what I believe causes us to be unsuccessful. I can personally attest to that. I would tend to spend time thinking about what I don’t want, worrying about problems, and blaming others, and if I continued that pattern then that is all I would get out of life. I have a lot of goals and or have tried to set goals, some I have achieved some I have not and all due to my bad planning or lack of properly understanding how to make those goals as effective and attainable as possible.

iii. There were many other ideas the author gives on how to properly set goals; there were 6 that he spoke of: 1.Specific: Set goals that are concrete that you can easily visualize and nothing like “emotional’ goals like being “free” or “happy.” 2.Measurable: Attach amounts to your goals. Like saying I want to make $100,000 a year. This is much better than saying I want to be rich because you can measure whether or not you reach $100,000. 3.Time-Bound: Add timelines for when you’ll complete these goals you’ve set.

iv. Set deadlines, but make sure they are realistic ones.

v. Challenging Goals

Good goals get you outside of your comfort zone. Applying some pressure can be a good thing like how they make gold, is what comes to mind. I know that being comfortable is never a way to help someone to grow or achieve anything.

vi. Be In Harmony with Other Goals.

One example would be, if you have set a goal that you want to do a fitness show or competition, you have to make sure that you are eating properly and healthy. You also have to make sure that you are training regularly. You cannot set this desired goal and eat fast foods and train only 1 or 3 times a wk. You’d fall short of that goal.

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?

It will help me avoid certain mistakes and yet at the same time help create a better life for myself while giving me confidence. I find that in achieving my goals it helps my confidence. I feel accomplished when I can meet the goals I set for myself. I am looking forward to pitting this new found knowledge to work to see how well it’ll make a difference in my life compared to previously.

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 greatest enemies of success and happiness are negative emotions, of all kinds.”

This one perhaps is my favorite one because I am still learning how to “master” the art of not letting anything negative deter me from my goals or even enter my mind, but rather when something does not work out, believe that it is for a greater purpose and find the lesson in it, rather than allow myself to be a “victim’ in it.

“Goal setting is so powerful that the very act of thinking about your goals makes you happy, even before you have taken the first step toward achieving them.”

I like this one because I can relate to it. There have been times when I have felt depressed or felt trapped that I would in my mind begin to devise a plan or a goal and even though it was in its early stages, it made me happy. Maybe perhaps that was because it was redirecting my mind and thoughts away from that negative thing I was dealing with at the time. I later found myself motioning towards the idea in the physical.

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?

No, everything was easy to understand.

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?

I would say everyday lessons for someone who is getting ready to set any type of goal. Change your mindset, set deadlines and examine self, as in ask yourself those honest questions of why and the purpose of those goals.

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, but however I would like to say that one of the goals that I have set recently was that in the beginning of 2023, I would like to dedicate some appropriate time studying and reading this course so I could then complete my assessments in a timely fashion. I would say that so far I have been meeting that goal!

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Seven Habits of Highly Effective People
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

The idea that the way we see the world entirely based on our own perceptions and In order to change a given situation, we must change ourselves, and in order to change ourselves, we must be able to change our perceptions. This is a man that studied for years the ways to achieve success. During this time Covey identified a very important change in the way that humans have defined success over time.
In earlier times, success was defined as character ethic (things like integrity, humility, fidelity, temperance, courage, justice, patience, industry, simplicity, modesty, and the Golden Rule). That later changed around the 1920s. The way people later viewed success shifted to what Covey called “personality ethic” (where success is a function of personality, public image, attitudes, and behaviors).
“The way we see the problem is the problem,” Covey writes; “We must allow ourselves to undergo paradigm shifts to change ourselves fundamentally and not just alter our attitudes and behaviors on the surface level in order to achieve true change.”

There were a few ideas that Covey speaks about.

i. Being Proactive.

He speaks about being proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek first to understand, then to be understood, synergize and lastly, sharpen the saw. The first habit that Covey speaks about is being proactive. What distinguishes us as humans from all other animals is our innate ability to examine our own character, to decide how to view ourselves and our situations, and to control our own effectiveness. In order for us to be effective one must be proactive.

ii. I have found that people who are reactive, are usually pretty passive they believe the world is happening To them.

They will usually say things like: “There’s nothing I can do. “That’s just the way I am.” They seem to always be the “victim” of some unfortunate circumstance or situation. That mindset alone is half the problem. Proactive people, on the other hand, understand that they have responsibility or “response-ability,” which Covey defines as the ability to choose how you will respond to a given stimulus or situation. The idea of being proactive is important because I believe it helps you get far in life. It paves the way for success. If you are on a job and you take action rather than being told when to do your job, You have less of a chance to get advanced. However, those who take initiative, those who are proactive, are more likely to get advanced.

iii. Begin with the end in mind.

I have found that envisioning an end or having an end in mind is a motivator. It puts the goal or idea into a picture. It’s like running a race, you turn the corner and now you can see the finish line, the end is now in mind and you can see it, therefore you are now motivated and believe you can achieve that goal.

iv. Put first things first. Simply put prioritize what is most important.

Taking care of those things that need to be completed first based on priority will help us to be more successful in achieving our goals. For example, when I wake up I have a list of things I need to do. That list has a number of things that are important but there are some things that are before others on the list. If I put, clean up the house, split wood for the woodstove, grocery shop, continue with my assessments, and meal prep. I would have to put first things first. First I would complete my assessment, clean up the house, split wood for the woodstove, grocery shop and lastly meal prep. In this order I have set myself up to be successful. I’ve been able to complete my assessment first thing in the morning so not to be distracted by the day. Then I am able to clean up the house and chop some wood for the woodstove keeping my house warm and comfortable so when I get back from grocery shopping the house is properly heated thereby leaving me to do the last thing which is meal prep so I can eat and then enjoy the rest of my evening. In doing this it makes me feel successful because I have accomplished my goals for the day by putting first things first.
v. These days, people are always looking for quick fixes.
They see a successful person, team, or organization and ask, “How do you do it? Teach me your techniques!” I see this all-over social media, such as Facebook and especially Instagram, but these “shortcuts” that we look for, hoping to save time and effort and still achieve the desired result, are simply band-aids that don’t have long term solutions. I feel this is affecting more of our young people 28 and younger but there are also people who are even older falling victim to this type of laziness or instant gratification idea. The quick fixes do not address the underlying condition.

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 will help boost my productivity. I believe it will also help me better communicate with others and strengthen my relationships. The concept of, seek to understand, then seek to be understood speaks to the last 2 parts

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 quote that stood out to me was, “In order to be proactive, we must focus on the Circle of Influence that lies within our Circle of Concern.”

This stuck out to me because essentially what Covey is saying we must work on the things we can do something about rather than focusing on the things that we can do nothing about.

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?

Yes. I was unable to fully understand the, “think win-win and the synergy concept.”

I don’t believe that everything is a win-win situation nor do I believe that you can look at everything as a win-win so therefore I was unclear on this.

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?

Yes, there were some exercises that were recommended. I have not implemented any of those exercises yet. Some are: Identify an activity that I have been neglecting. Write it down and commit to implementing it. Some others are created my own time management.

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.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

The Law of Attraction
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

What the author is presenting here is that “Each one of us sends out either a positive or negative vibration” and when we are emitting these vibes, it is to be assumed that the same type of vibes come back to us in a sort of ‘boomerang’ type of way. What goes around comes around. The idea is very simple but powerful. The strategy he offers is to change our vocabulary and use words which emit positive vibes while omitting words with negative connotations such as “don’t, not and no.” Simply put, we can attract whatever we desire if we properly follow and apply the steps of, Law and Attraction.

There are many in this audio. What I love most about this audio is that he keeps the concepts simple so anyone can easily understand and apply the Law of Attraction into their lives.

i. In the 3-Step Formula for Deliberate Attraction, it easily shows:

Step 1: Identify Your Desire Step 2: Give Your Desire Attention Step 3: Allow It! The audio helps you gain more clarity about what you Do want (which seems to be difficult for many) but I think the 3rd part makes an enormous difference with Step 3: Allowing. This is the step that is usually more difficult for people. Some of the other ideas I thought that were really helpful were: “Your job is not to try to figure things out intellectually but to let the Law of Attraction figure it out.”

ii. There are a few phrases that can help you even more with the allowing process. They are to “Use the Expression;” “I’m in the process of;” “I’ve Decided;” “Lots Can Happen.”

iii. The Formula for Creating Allowing Statements.

I found this to be very helpful and important. This is to help release limiting beliefs: “Start by asking yourself if there is anyone currently doing what you want to do or having what you want.” “If so, then how many people have been doing this today? Yesterday? Last week? Last month? Last Year?” “Write your statements in general terms (3rd person), because making reference to yourself may create more doubt.” I can relate to what the author is saying in this audio. The whole general feeling from this audio is entirely positive. The “allowing” piece is important to me because sometimes I find myself, I think doing a lot of the steps but then I believe in the process what I do is I put my hands in the process and I either mess it up with my impatience or I tend to cast doubt on it somehow instead of Allowing It!

iv. Trust the process.

I need to let the process play out, trust God and God’s universe to give me that which I have believed for, prayed for, envisioned and set to motion with good intention. I am great at giving that desire attention. I will envision, obsess, fantasize and even picture myself already there but then I fall back into 3D and things get a little convoluted then the doubts set it. Identifying the desired is the easiest part. However sometimes in identifying that, I tend to go back and forth then question if it is really what I want then I always ask myself, “Is this really what I want?” and “why?”

v. Sometimes, because I am human, I do question if the ideas of Law and attraction are really that simple.

I find it a bit foolish to do that because I believe that in times past without knowing it I have applied the law of attraction. The most memorable one I would say was when I was in junior high, and I started playing basketball. I would envision myself playing and flying through the air like Michael Jordan. I was obsessed and later on, I never turned into him, but I did like him quite a bit and I would later on get a nickname associated with Michael Jordan.

vi. Visioning

I have envisioned myself doing a lot of things that I have attracted through this idea and I would say even over the last few years, so I do know that it does work.

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?

It will help me get back on track to attracting the things that I want rather than the things that I do not want. It will also help me with applying the idea of positive self-talk, visualization and changing my bias of how I see things to create a world that I enjoy and want to live in.

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.

“Remember, the Law of Attraction does not care whether you are remembering, pretending, celebrating, playing, creating, complaining or worrying.”

I like this quote because what I think it means is that simply LOA is none bias, and as long as you go about the law in the right way you will get what you’ve asked for.

“Notice that when you say “No” to something, you just gave it attention, energy and focus.”

I like this one because it reminds me to be mindful of what I am saying no to. However, I am not sure if that includes doubts?

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?

“A positive affirmation can have a negative vibration. I’m not sure what this means exactly. Perhaps what he is saying is, a positive affirmation can result in a bad outcome or undesired vibration?

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?

Yes. Simply to practice the concepts of LOA and to not get discouraged if you are not doing it right the first time and understanding that it takes time to receive and to master LOA and most importantly Not to Give Up! This can sometimes be my biggest downfall. I am making a promise to myself to start this again and to Not Give Up!

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.

This is a great audio and I would have to say the idea, concept or practice of Law and Attraction is my favorite. I believe a lot of it goes back to the teachings of the Gospel and in what Jesus was trying to teach us when He was here on earth.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Unlimited Power
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
The Author believes that unlimited power is the ability to produce the results you desire the most and create value for others in the process and action is what unites every great success. Nothing has any meaning except the meaning we give it. This is the main idea of the book the author is trying to convey. Also, the idea is that by implementing the ideas of Unlimited Power, one can overcome fear, uncertainty and the feelings of unworthiness that can affect our lives in a negative way. With a few mental and physical exercises to help generate positive thoughts and improve body language, Robbins believes that we can achieve the goals in life that truly matter to us. Basically, this book is saying that our personal development or lack there of plays a major role in our success.

i. “How you feel is not the result of what is happening in your life—it is your interpretation of what is happening.”

This spoke to me resoundingly. There are times that I get in my head and if I am having a bad day or a “flat” day as I like to call it, I relate it to me being lazy or thinking negative thoughts as in my life is going nowhere, but is that true? No but it is based sometimes on my mood and how I feel.

ii. “The way we communicate with others and the way we communicate with ourselves ultimately determine the quality of our lives.”

I had to stop and ask myself how this was important to me? Sometimes we can lie to ourselves, thereby lying to others. If we are hard on ourselves in how we talk to ourselves then that is how we will talk to others also. Even though I am somewhat guilty in that aspect, I would say more so with the lying. For example, I would tell myself, today I am going to start this or complete that and then I never do it. I only put it off thereby not keeping that promise I made to myself which turns to a lie. That would tend to come out in my relationships or friendships. I would promise my partners something only to not commit or do it or I would promise a friend something only to not commit to that thing I had promised. Something as trivial as a call back or rendezvous.

iii. In order to achieve an extraordinary quality of life, you need to consistently put yourself in a state that supports you and your achievements.

State of mind in my opinion is half the battle. I find this one important because my biggest hurdle in life has been my mind and not putting myself in the right state of mind which can also be affected by the people you associate with also. Those very same people can also alter your mind into a state that will not help you to be successful. The key word there for me is Consistently! It is easy for me to Get there but staying the course seems to be the problem. That is why these lessons readings and assessments could not have come at a better time. These all help me to be accountable to the goals that I want to achieve, new promises that I have made for myself and hope to achieve. What I also like about this course is that I can refer back to them. I have humbly learned that just because I have overcome something, it does not mean that those challenges old desires or bad habits can’t and won’t come back. But when they do refresher courses are always good and necessary.

iv. When handled effectively, beliefs can be the most powerful forces for creating good in your life.

If I believe that I can, than I can achieve anything I put my mind too as the expression goes. This would be the most important because it all starts in the mind. What we believe about ourselves and what we can do starts in our heads. If I can see the vision of me doing it then I believe that I can do it. If I have any self-doubt than most likely it will take me a while to achieve that goal.

v. Ask yourself, “What would I attempt to do if I knew I could not fail?”

I would start a business of some kind but truth of the matter is I have not done that because I make excuse and do not have the confidence that I would be successful and there are many other excuses I can make. Although these are true statements and feelings, I do believe in the near future I will overcome these fears as I continue to apply everything I have read in all these books that I have read and or listened to, along with the copious amount of notes that I have taken, aside from the assessments I have written. Robbins mentions a few fundamental beliefs that he believes is helpful to achieving the personal development that we need to be successful: Passion, belief, strategy, clarity of values, and bonding power. I will work on these, study them more persistently so that I can effectively implement them into my personal development.

vi. 7 Lies of Success Section

Yes, in the section where he talks about the 7 lies of success, he mentions a cliché that I hear all too often. One I think people use a crutch, one that I hate to hear even now, Everything happens for a reason and a purpose, and it serves us. I am glad to know that he does not believe that and the mentioning of that was satisfying to me. Like he mentions; “We are the creator of our circumstances, not chance or someone else.” Also, “there is no such thing as failure. There are only results.” I have come to learn and understand that failing is not indicative of who you are but rather an opportunity to learn, improve or sharpen ones skills in achieving whatever that ultimate goal is.

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?

Simply put, it will help me keep things in better, or true perspective. Both about myself, my goals, my progress and my achievements, no matter how great or small.

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 difference between those who fail to achieve their goals in life and those who succeed is the difference between those who cannot put themselves in a supportive state and those who can consistently put themselves in a state that supports them in their achievements.”

This spoke to me because in the past when I was not successful in some endeavor or goal, I would put myself down. I would not encourage myself to keep going but after some short time I would encourage myself to quit without realizing it. So now I have learned that when I fail, it does not mean that I cannot achieve, it only means that I must learn from the mistake and keep going until I have achieved that which I am trying to achieve.

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?

No. The reading in this book was easy to comprehend and practical

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?

Yes, and I have not completed any yet, however I am in the process of implementing them in my daily life towards improving my personal development

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.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.

Creating your Path through Leadership
Assessment by Julius Charles (USA)

1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?

I think what the authors are trying to convey in their writings is first, how they started on their journeys. Next, what road blocks they had to overcome. Third, what it took for them to achieve their goals and how they started. Finally, their beliefs in what they think IIGL stands for and the power the IIGL has on an individual in transforming their lives.

i. One idea that is shared by Michael is that of the Universe and of our emotional thoughts and beliefs.

He talks about the idea that the Universe operates in accordance with our individual and collective beliefs and attitudes. What comes to mind here is order. The universe is and works in complete order and is perfect in its design so therefore it would not work in our favor if things in our lives are not also in order. Also the universe feeds us what we put out into its atmosphere, both good and bad energy, if that is what we are putting out there. Later he talks about a philosophy that states that circumstances are essentially neutral. In it he says, It is our beliefs and attitude that give them meaning.

ii. It is the meaning we give them which causes our emotional or physical reaction. I believe this to be true for example, if I get pulled over and get a ticket, depending how I react will determine my behavior, my mood, how I think the rest of the day or even how it will affect me the rest of the day. I could choose to let it ruin my day or I could look at the good in it and say, “it could have been worse,” based on the climate that we are living in unfortunately. I could even apply the teaching, Ho’oponopono, which teaches us to take accountability for our actions and outcomes.

iii. I like the idea that all other IIGL family members do have the same thing in common?

According to Debs’ introductions, “We have the same vision for the world and many of the same values related to peace-building and leadership.” I do believe in the thought that those who are of the same mind and accord can help others within the same group achieve their goals and help others outside the group achieve their goals also.

iv. I have to be Intentional

As Noeline Kirabo says and understanding that this journey is a life-long one as this author also says. This is not a, “ok I graduated and I going to be successful right off the bat type of experience.” We are still going to be frustrated, make mistakes but we can use all of you as examples and references in our own day to day lives and experiences as we go on this journey.

v. Success

We all should strive to be successful in every part of our lives; how we treat others, how we communicate, how we go about finding our paths in life, our careers, relationships, you name it. Success should not be defined or only associated just with financial means or prestigious careers. It can, and should also be defined or associated with the fore-mentioned. However, none of these things mentioned can be obtained, such as a healthy relationship, good health, affective communication, finding our paths and or purpose, if we cannot or choose not to take Responsibility. That is why I believe that success is about taking responsibility.

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?

I think it will help me both through conviction and passion. What I mean by that is, sometimes we feel unmotivated or we forget what we’ve learned or choose for whatever reason, to stop applying what we’ve learned. I believe the conviction will help me to not give up but to keep pressing forward and to apply all that I have learned. The conviction comes from the passion that I have read in, “Creating Your Path Through Leadership.” Reading the Authors’ passion of IIGL and what it means to them is enough to convict me on the days that I feel unmotivated.

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.

“It is better to light a candle, however small, than to curse the darkness.”

It reminds me of the verse in the Bible Matt 5:39, where Jesus says resist not evil. That is what this quote reminds me of and it speaks to me also for the simple fact that we so often have a tendency to focus on the negative or bad things but rather what we should do is cast a light on that dark thing, that negative situation rather than dwell on it. It is better to light a candle means to me, that is better to look for the good in things instead of the bad. In doing this, we are not focusing on the negative or darkness.

“In Felix’s piece he mentions that he learned in IIGL that leadership is about taking responsibility.”

In today’s day in age I take it one step further. I say Success is about taking responsibility. I mean that in every facet of life. I say this because I look at today’s generation. I look all around me its easy for me to see. This is mainly due to the fact that I have 2 daughters that I have raised mainly on my own since they were very little up until now. I see their generation. I see how lost they are, the excuses, the blame, the victimization, the way that it is always someone else’s fault. I see how lazy they have become. I see the entitlement, the disregard for authority and yes, the lack of responsibility. I see this even in my daughters, not just in their generation. It grieves me to see this. It grieves me partly because my daughters have chosen to be part of this horrible illusion of what true freedom is and the other part is because it is setting up the next generation to follow suit. It is not setting a good example for the next generation to follow. I say success is about taking responsibility because this speaks to every part of someone’s life.

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?

No, everything was made clear and I thoroughly enjoyed this part of the study as I have gotten the opportunity to read up a little bit on Deb Rosen’s background and that of Felix Iziomoh. Michael Lightweaver however, is a good friend of mind and is some one that I consider a spiritual brother, but it was still a pleasure to have the opportunity to read his story rather than hearing him tell it to me.

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?

No. However, it was a great reflection on the course, the assessments that have been written and most importantly the readings. Having access to all the books whether on audio or in hand will be great advantage as well as something that I can refer back to when I need too.

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.

Again this was a great reading. It allowed me through Deb’s reading see how far IIGL has come but also how successful they have become and how much further they have to go with their mission of bringing IIGL to every continent. I believe that this is indeed an achievable goal. As I had stated previously, having the same mind and one accord will help push that dream into reality.

Please rate the following questions on a scale from 1 to 10. Ten is good and one is poor.