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Assessment by hato Koogotsitse...
As A Man Thinketh
Assessment by Thato Koogotsitse (Botswana)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
When growing up you are told that you are in control of your life, your
future, but you never really know to what extent, it never occurred to me
that who I am today and my circumstances could be my own doing or even
because of my thoughts.
As human beings we tend to find fault with our upbringing, our parents'
inability to take us to the best schools, for our failures and when you
think of those individuals who had it worse than us but managed to improve
their circumstances and who they are then the question how they managed to
do that comes and we never have an answer, sometimes we think they are using
muti or traditional doctors to be where they are. From reading this book I
would say the message the author is trying to pass onto the audience is
that; man and his thoughts is the master of his universe and whatever he
thinks it shall be. The circumstances that we find ourselves in are our own
doing. This he made clear by saying man is the master of thought, the
molder of character, and the maker and shaper of condition, environment and
destiny. No one besides ourselves is responsible for who we are whether we
are in the best shape of our lives or not, content with who we are and where
you are either emotionally or physically, no outside force plays a role in
what will become of an individual in the future.
For us to have any chance in the future it all depends on our thoughts a
man's mind maybe likened to a garden which may be intelligently cultivated
or allowed to run wild: but whether cultivated or neglected it must and will
bring forth, our thoughts need to be fed with positivism for prosperous
results without that we are only going to have wants and wishes which will
never be fulfilled, because you can always want but without you pushing for
what you want and thinking you have no capability to get it you will never
get it.
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.
* A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of
all his thoughts; as a student I always want to get a particular grade at
the end of the semester but I have realized that as much as I would want
that grade, no matter how hard I work I never get it, I might get something
close and I have always wondered how this could be, until I read the above
statement, now I understand because all these times there was always a voice
inside my head saying ' you've got to be kidding you actually think you are
intelligent enough to get such a grade only certain individuals can get that
grade not you' my thoughts were my worst enemy. I gotten to the point where
I thought maybe I was not praying or not tithing enough and that was the
reason for my inability to get the grade I wanted.
* Man is made or unmade by himself. In the armory of thought he forges the
weapons by which he destroys himself. He also fashions the tools with which
he builds for himself heavenly mansions of joy and strength and peace; the
above statement hit a cord, because now I realize that I have the power to
be whatever I want. I have control of my circumstances and whether they turn
out to be great or not is all up to my thoughts, how are frame them to where
I want to be. It is also important to me because I'm at a stage in my life
where I'm discovering who I am and my being able to know that I can mold
myself to whatever I want is both a scary and exciting idea, as if I turn
out to be loser I won't have anyone but myself to blame and it will be very
difficult to take responsibility for my failures but if it goes the other
way I can always say its all me and be proud of myself as I would know that
I did not have to trick anyone to be where I am or had an advantage because
I knew someone at the top especially when it comes to employment.
* Only by much searching and mining are gold and diamonds obtained, and man
can find every truth connected with his being, if he will dig deep into the
mine of his soul; life is a funny thing because you will have people going
to the highs and lows to find truth and die in vain without realizing that
all this time they were searching for something that's already inside of
them. This comes as an enlightment to me because now I know that any pot of
honey that I want to find the answer is in me all I have to do is look
within myself not to the outside as the outside will only give me more
questions to ask.
* Circumstances does not make the man; it reveals him to himself: this
statement comes as a revelation because growing up I always believed that
circumstances determine who an individual is and their future but now
everything makes sense as I now realize that our character is revealed when
we find ourselves in certain situations.
* Let a man radically alter his thoughts and he will be astonished at the
rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions of his. This
statement is important to me because it tells me that whatever I think of
myself will materialize if I think my life will be a success story then
that's exactly how it will be and if I think I will never amount to anything
I never will
* A man can only rise, conquer, and achieve by lifting up his thoughts. He
can only remain weak, abject, and miserable by refusing to lift up his
thoughts.
* By the aid of self-control, resolution, purity, righteousness, and well
directed thought a man ascends. By the aid of animality, indolence,
impurity, corruption, and confusion of thought a man descends.
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?
For one thing these lessons will help me to lessen my blaming the next
person or circumstances for my misfortunes, funny enough all my successes I
tend to acknowledge myself for all of them, for instance, I have been
friends with this young woman for almost all of my life and I believe its
because we have a certain understanding of each other, as much as that might
be true whenever something goes wrong, I look at her for blame I forget the
saying it takes two to tango. Over the past two years she's been doing her
studies in a South African Universities so I had to develop acquaintances
with other individuals and most of them tend not to last but whatever the
reason for them falling apart, I always make myself out to be the good guy,
when it comes to the relationship with people of a different gender its even
worse I'll always go; he didn't call me enough, didn't give me the attention
I deserve, when the truth is really I get bored quickly of relationships
especially those that involve spending every second together but I avoid
that issue and that maybe it didn't work because I was not doing something
right in the relationship.
I read a motivational book once and it was talking about being the right
partner not looking for the right partner, now I realize that what I think
of myself will and carry myself will determine the kind of friends I will
have and how those friends treat me because I teach people how to treat me,
this also comes from a motivational book. The problem with motivational
books they will tell you be the right partner or you teach people how to
treat you and they leave you hanging you won't know where to begin, you
start wondering should I start smiling or do I toughen up so I won't have
everyone stepping all over me. These lessons give insight, that just lift
your thoughts a little higher and they will be a dramatic change in your
life whether you are in business, still in school or working it still
applies. And of course these thoughts have a ripple effect that starts with
you as an individual and your circumstances and moves to the people around
you as they say, the best advertisement you can get is through people that
is mouth to mouth, after reading something like these and applying it my
life and it has a positive impact in my life, like it already has over the
past couple of weeks, I'm going to recommend it to a number of my friends
and them to theirs and it will go on and they will be a lot of success
stories to be told.
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.
To put away aimlessness and weakness and to begin to think with purpose is
to enter the ranks of those strong ones who only recognize failure as one of
the pathways to attainment.
Thought allied fearlessly to purpose becomes a creative force. He who knows
this is ready to become something higher and stronger than a bundle of
wavering thoughts and fluctuating sensations. He who does this has become
the conscious and intelligent wielder of his mental powers.
Cherish your vision; your ideals. Cherish the music that stirs in your
heart, the beauty that forms in your mind, the loveliness that drapes your
drapes your purest thoughts. For out of them will grow all delightful
conditions, all heavenly environment of these if you but remain true to
them, your world will at last be built.
From the above mentioned quotes one can get that they are all about purpose
and one's vision because after reading this book, I realize that we are only
good as our thoughts, what we think of ourselves and that will determine the
things we think we are good enough to achieve. The measure of how we think
of ourselves will be revealed by the kind of dreams we have for ourselves
and the purpose our lives hold. Our dreams or visions and purpose are our
driving force; how hard we work will be the result of these.
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 would just like to say the author has put a new light onto my thinking of
what makes an individual successful and it makes sense, so there is nothing
I'm not unclear about or that I disagree with and I understood what the
author was saying.
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?
Besides the assessment that I was supposed to do there were no other
exercises that I came across that I was supposed to do.
7. Was there anything you read in the book that you would like to comment on
that was not covered in the previous questions? If so, please comment.
I think the previous questions covered everything that needs to be said and
I have no extra comment I would want to add.
Ratings
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
C. How easy was it to understand? 8
D. Would you recommend it to others? 10
E. What is the overall rating you would give it? 7
Jonathan Livingston Seagull
Assessment by Thato Koogotsitse (Botswana)
1. What is the main idea that the author is trying to convey in the book?
A lot of times we tend to limit our own abilities so much that it has become
human nature, and we always have reasons why we can't, it could be because
we do not have enough money or we were not fortunate enough to go to
universities or colleges or the best one, would be us thinking my
grandparents or my parents didn't make what makes us think we can, some call
it the generational curse, a many a times I have read motivational books and
most of them spread the same message, that we came into this world pregnant
with potential and we have been endowed we so much talent, of course its not
going to come to you as an individual presenting itself to you saying here I
am use me, we have to go out into the world, test yourself to see what you
can and cannot do but I've always thought when we start listing our
abilities or who we think we are in terms of, when you are in an interview
we are actually limiting ourselves and Richard Bach seems to agree with me,
I believe we can be whatever we want and can do anything we put our mind to,
all it takes is a little hard work and perseverance and us thinking out of
the box which is what I think is the main idea in this here book.
The message that is being conveyed by this book is we are beings with
limitless capabilities and we have the power to be what ever we want, as
long as we are willing to take the risks, there would not be any Bill Gates
or Donald Trumps, if these man had not taken a stand and said I'm going to
do this no matter the risk. As people we are so afraid of making mistakes,
that we lock ourselves in our own little box afraid that if we take peek out
of it we will be hurt, disappointed or we might fall and even the thought of
trying is just to scary for us. It took me a while for me to apply for this
programme because I was scared and even when receiving the confirmation that
my application has been accepted and the fact that I would be the first
Botswana to have applied and accepted, scared the living daylights out of me
because I started putting all the responsibility on my shoulders, that I was
a representation of all Botswana and what if I don't do well it won't be a
good representation but I realized the only thing that's going to make this
work out for Botswana would be for me, not to take that step and follow
through with this programme, for me to be a better leader of tomorrow, and
that if I had any plans of bringing any kind of change this would be a great
start.
If we are all going to hide in our little box how do we expect to experience
all the wonderful things in this world? Obviously not, Of course getting out
of the box is just the start we must be ready for all challenges we will
face, the scorn from the people around us, the failures we will go through.
The truth is those people who will be so quick to criticize will be the same
ones who cannot even try so they will try pull you down, to the level that
they are at, when you think of it the worst thing you can do would be not to
try as with every failure a lesson is learnt, the only thing that will keep
you going will be your goals and the spirit of perseverance; be willing to
try over and over again.
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.
We can list ourselves out of ignorance, we can find ourselves as creatures
of excellence and intelligence and skill. We can be free! We can learn to
fly;
Our lack of knowledge or information is just one of the many enemies,
keeping us from reaching our level best. Failure for us to realize that,
there is more to life than the little things that we do daily that's not
going to get us anywhere fast, denies us the opportunities out there in the
world, just waiting for us to grab onto. During my first year at university
I lived in my own little world, with no care of what was going on in the
world around me, did the same old thing everyday I would go to school,
attend the few lessons I had during the day and go home, that was the story
of my life. I hit an all time low and it helped me, in that when I lifted
myself from it I realized that there was more to life than what I was doing,
that moment and how I was not only denying myself but a whole lot of people
who were in need of my services and how I can bring so much good into their
lives. I did not want to have people at my funeral saying the same things
they say at funerals, just to humor those related to the deceased talking
about how good somebody was when, we know that's not the case I want people
to say such and mean them and tell of the changes I've brought to their
lives. And I know now that there is so much to learn in this world that you
can never say it's enough. There is this gentleman who is in Uganda almost a
100 years but he is going to school and that just an example of how we
should not let anything stop us from reaching excellence in our lifetime.
Most of us came along ever so slowly, we went from one world into another
that was almost exactly like it, forgetting right away where we had come
from not caring where we were headed, living for the moment;
As young person living today you find that we seem to put the idea of having
fun before anything else, there is this saying that we tend to use often
when someone comes along to try give us guidance, which is don't worry about
tomorrow for tomorrow will take care of itself, which is a misuse of it as
it wasn't meant to be used in that context. We are more into living for the
now and don't care about how the future will be.
We choose our next world through what we learn in this one. Learn nothing
and the next world is the same as this one all the same limitations lead
weights to overcome;
The reason behind every risk being taken is to make a mistake and learn from
that mistake for better performance on the next trial, being afraid to make
a mistake, is being afraid to learn, which the result is being stuck in one
place for the rest of our lives with no improvement.
Any number is a limit and perfection doesn't have limits;
Like I gave an example of a man in Uganda who is going to school at almost
100 nothing should be of a limit to us when you start feeling comfortable
where you are that's when you should start worrying as comfort will not
enable us to try something different
The gulls who scorn perfection for the sake of travel go nowhere, slowly.
Those who put aside travel for the sake of perfection go anywhere instantly:
The trick in life is to know how to do something to the best of your
abilities not to do it aimlessly.
Each of us is in truth an idea of the great gull, and unlimited idea of
freedom and precision flying is a step toward expressing our real nature.
Everything that limits us where we have to put aside;
I would not want to believe that we were brought in this world to have other
people succeed and others fail we are filled with potential, when we arrived
in this world it all depends on how far we era willing to go to release that
potential, despite the limitations that may come as our fears, doubts and
just our believe that we cannot surpass those who came before us.
Break the chains of your thought, and you break the chains of your body;
I think I have underestimated the power of my thought now I realize just how
my thoughts are holding me down to be the best I can be.
3. How will these ideas or lessons help you in a practical way, both in your
daily personal life and in helping you to create a better world? If so, how?
The first thing I will take from these lessons is that I can be whatever I
want to be if I remove all the limits I have created in front of me I should
not let my human body set limits for me and of course all of these limits
can be overcome with much practice
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 trick was to know that his true nature lived, as perfect as an unwritten
number, everywhere at once across space and time.
If our friendship depends on things like space and time, then when we
finally overcome space and time, we've destroyed our own brotherhood! But
overcome space, and all we have left is here. Overcome time, and all we have
left is now. And in the middle of here and now, don't you think that we
might see each other once or twice.
The gull sees farthest who flies highest
You have freedom to be yourself, your true self, here and now, and nothing
can stand in your way.
The above statements were especially important to me as they talk about how
we come into this world with a whole lot of potential, and how we have a
choice to live as the rest of the world or tap into that potential to reveal
our limitless abilities.
5. Is there anything in the book that you do not understand or are unclear
about, or are there ideas which you disagree with and, if so why?
There is nothing I'm not clear about and no ideas that I disagree with.
6. Did the book contain exercises for the reader to complete? If so, did you
complete all of the exercises and did you find them helpful?
There were no exercises in this book that required my doing.
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.
At this particular juncture I have no other comments that I would like to
add on to what has already been said.
A. How interesting was it to read? 9
B. How helpful were the contents? 9
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? 8 |