Comments for Self-Mastery

Comment on Self-Pity – The ‘Luxury’ You Can’t Afford by Garold N. Larson

Garold N. Larson — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 15:45:26 +0000

Cristina,

One of the most difficult things to do is to get other people to change. First they have to realize they need to change and second they have to want to change. Until those two things happen you have very little chance at influencing them. There is one classic book that could be of great help. It is “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie. We could all learn some great lessons from that book. I wish you the best in your efforts with your mother.

Comment on Self-Pity – The ‘Luxury’ You Can’t Afford by cristina

cristina — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 00:24:37 +0000

hi. i have my mom. she is a doctor and consels about 15 people a day and has improved lives by the hundreds! but she always seemed to be the one suffering. till some days back i thought i was the mean bitch who couldn’t even make her own mom happy. so i changed. and began to do just as mom has been wanting me. but then another month or so went by and what i realised was that the sadness and blaming was there to stay. being interested in psychology and getting to the bottom of problems i was able to keep aside my emotional grudges. thats when i realised it was self pity that she is suffering from. since that day i have been determined to bring her out of this downward spiral. i have read up a lot about it on the web. but the problem is how do u help someone who considers herself to be master of psychological problems!! how does one prove to the self pitier that they are a victim of victim mentality!

Comment on The Self-Mastery Muscle by Fred

Fred — Sun, 08 Mar 2009 04:41:39 +0000

Great post!

Comment on Master Your Priorities: Stop Being Sidetracked by henri

henri — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 17:20:04 +0000

Bravo sir. Our very selves could either be our worst enemy of best friend, depending on the choices we make. Procrastination is the road to nowhere, play when it should be work is the carnival and the limits we put on ourselves is the traffic.

Comment on Are You a Conversation Hijacker? by gMan

gMan — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 00:25:45 +0000

I don’t recognize it as being from a movie. Are you sure it’s from a movie?

Comment on Are You a Conversation Hijacker? by Michael

Michael — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 16:48:18 +0000

I was really interested what movie the picture was from, does anyone know?

Comment on Is it Best to Buy the Best? by Garold N. Larson

Garold N. Larson — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 18:40:11 +0000

Ashleigh,

Thank you for your comment. I appreciate your opinion and thanks for taking the time to share it with me. I was curious as to what credentials you feel a person needs to have to write about living a simple life or about perfectionism. I felt that living well beneath my means, being totally debt free and being able to pay cash for everything I buy should count for something.

My stated purpose of this web site is pretty clear as you can read on my ABOUT page:

“I believe that actions speak louder than words and that a proven track record holds more weight than a certificate or degree on the wall. So I tend to write more from personal experience than from theory. It’s easier and more credible to teach something you have already done yourself. I’m not an expert, coach, consultant or doctor. I write from real experience from real life.”

I deal and counsel with people every week who have fallen into the “Buying the Best” trap and see where it gets them. It breaks my heart to see them buy that $700 computer or other high end items and then not be able to buy groceries. If that’s judgmental then so be it.

And maybe you missed the part of the post where I said:

“The point I’m trying to make is this: If you have the money, great. I don’t have a big problem with you having nice things or even the best things. I do have a problem if you buy those things when you can’t afford it.”

That doesn’t sound too unreasonable to me. If you can afford to go on a cruise then do it. I can and do. But even better I also invest my money and contribute over 10% of my income to charity. Being judgmental of others goes both ways.

Have a nice day.
Garold

Comment on Is it Best to Buy the Best? by Ashleigh Thacker

Ashleigh Thacker — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:29:18 +0000

While I understand your point of this post and know that you have the best of intentions, it is my opinion that you may want to undergo a bit more of reflection prior to publishing. You come off as awefully judgemental in many of your posts and, quite honestly, lack the credentials to be offering advice on “living simply” or, much less, on “perfectionism.”

I feel for your friend with whom you spent the day playing golf, because instead of offering your friendship and enjoying his company, you were too preoccupied with his purchase of a $500 golf set (which I would have you know, is indeed a modest price for a set of golf clubs). Where you argue here under “Master your Money” that people often get caught up in buying “the best,” another could easily write a post in response with the thesis of using your money wisely (i.e. investing it, or making more charitable contributuions) However, just as you are excited to spend your excess money to go on a cruise with your wife “for fun,” your friend was probably excited to use his golf clubs twice a year “for fun.”

Comment on An Overpowering Mission in Life by Inspiration on New Year’s Day — Carol Chapman

Inspiration on New Year’s Day — Carol Chapman — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 19:39:24 +0000

[...] An Overpowering Mission in Life | Self-Mastery [...]

Comment on An Overpowering Mission in Life by Garold N. Larson

Garold N. Larson — Thu, 01 Jan 2009 19:35:52 +0000

Carol,

Thank you for your kind words. I wish you the best in pursuing your passion for creative expression and making movies.

Garold