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Guidance |
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Our lives are shaped by the influence of our teachers.
How many teachers have you had in your life? The answer may surprise you. Thousands is a good guess. A teacher is someone who taught you something about life, about yourself, or about the world you live in, regardless of whether he/she was paid for it or not. So who qualifies as a teacher in your life? How about the guy who cut you off on the highway - he taught you lots of things. For starters, he taught you defensive driving techniques - he was now too close to you, so you had to apply the breaks. He taught you about cause and effect - his actions caused you to be angry. He taught you that your day is not always going to go as planned. He taught you to appreciate the times when a nice driver lets you in the lane you are trying to enter. He taught you that no matter where you are, there is always a jerk nearby. He taught you that it is important to pay attention to the road while driving. If you had been fiddling with the dials on your stereo, you might have crashed into him. He taught you that your emotions are not fully under your control. He taught you that giving someone the finger feels pretty good at the time, but because his 5 year-old daughter was in the backseat watching you and returned the gesture, he also taught you that children will imitate the actions of adults. All of these are great lessons, and helped mold you into who you are. And this is just from one person, and all during the 2 seconds it took him to cross your path.
We have learned something from everyone we have ever come into contact with. Our friends and families have taught us how to act, how not to act, how to acheive, how to fail, how to cope with grief, how to keep milk from flying out of your nose when laughing. Seriously. When I saw milk fly out of my friend's nostrils I decided right then and there that I never wanted that to happen to me. It wasn't like we were babies. We were 14. And there was a girl at the table, who at this point, dropped off the guy's list for any and all possible future dating activity. He taught me not to laugh while drinking milk. It was a great lesson, and he was a great teacher. Everything that you have ever experienced in your life has made changes to who you are--most subtle, some drastic.
When your computer decided to freeze, you learned that 1. Computers are awesome only when they work. 2. Again, your emotions are not fully under your control. And 3. It's probably a good idea to back up your files. Even if you still haven't backed them up, you learned that it was a good idea, and therein lies the main difference in the effectiveness of your teachers. Great teachers (this is strictly my own definition, so please do not send any emails regarding its inaccuracy :) - great teachers actually make positive changes in your life, and can be considered "Guides." Crappy teachers (again, purely my own classification and definition) make negative changes. A great teacher taught you how to read, and a crappy teacher taught you how to hate. All teachers have the potential to be guides. It solely depends on how you interpret the lesson, what you do with the knowledge, and how grateful you are for it. That guy who cut you off on the highway could have taught you patience and compassion. You learned that your brakes worked well enough to keep you safe, so he could have also taught you that proper vehicle maintenance is important and to regularly have your tires and brakes inspected, and then you could have THANKED HIM FOR IT! Yes, thanked him. He provided knowledge and guidance, and I have found that humble appreciation for the majesty of this world returns the greatest rewards.
I, like you, have had thousands of teachers in my life. This website is dedicated to all of them. At the bottom of this page I have posted links to my sources and references. I have also posted a bibliography of great books and authors I have come across. This is a partial and growing list. If you have come across a great book that taught you great things, feel free to email the title and author, and, if it deserves to be on this list, I will post it. Knowledge needs to be passed along. Keeping knowledge and secrets for self-empowerment will benefit the least amount of people - one. The best course of action is always the one that benefits the most people and does the most good. It is our responsibility to teach what we know and at the same time be great students. As teachers, we can all pass along what we have learned in order to guide those with open minds and the willingness to seek out knowledge. Be a student of everything and a guide to everyone. Everything I know about health and fitness will be passed along throughout this website, and will always be free. The personal training and massage therapy services I offer are for people who need some hands-on guidance getting started with a healthier lifestyle. I do not wish to be responsible for the health of my clients for the rest of their lives. I wish to pass along enough information and motivation for my clients to empower themselves, make great choices concerning their own health, and then inspire others to do the same. Our health must be the number one priority in our lives. It must, it must, it must! Without our health, our options dwindle. You have all heard the phrase, "Your health is your wealth," and it couldn't be more true.
1. Bibliography
2. Published Medical Studies
3. Online Resources (AKA - great websites)
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