Impossible: Breaking the Four-Minute Mile

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July 11, 2011 a project of CharityFocus What we need is more people who specialize in the impossible. - Theodore Roethke - Impossible: Breaking the Four-Minute Mile In 1954, England's Roger Bannister ran the first sub-four-minute mile. Today, of course, the it is routine among the top runners, but until Sir Roger (knighted in 1975) accomplished it, it was considered beyond the realm of human possibility -- like climbing Mount Everest or walking on the moon. Bannister though, being a medical student at Oxford at the time, recognized it more of a global, psychological barrier. Sure enough, after he broke the record, within 3 years, 16 others had done it. He disappeared from the track scene shortly after his record run, and upon graduating, devoted his life to medicine. A near-fatal car accident in 1975 kept Bannister from running again, but gave him perspective. "The car accident said, 'Well, if there's something you want to do, you might as well do it, because after the next car accident, you might be dead.'" { read more } Be The Change An article from Wharton: "What's Behind the 4-Minute Mile, Starbucks and the Moon Landing? The Power of Impossible Thinking" { more } COMMENT | RATE               Related Good News Can You Teach Emotional Intelligence? How We Can Change Our Minds Squeeze Out Your Creative Juices Live Boldly DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers "good news" to 106,741 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here. Other CharityFocus projects include: HelpOthers  //  CF Sites  //  KarmaTube  //  Conversations  //  More

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The Science of Self-Control

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July 10, 2011 a project of CharityFocus Most powerful is he who has himself in his own power. - Seneca - The Science of Self-Control In the classic Stanford Marshmallow Experiment, researchers gave children a choice between one marshmallow right away, or two later. Most struggled to resist the treat and held out for less than three minutes. "A few kids ate the marshmallow right away," Walter Mischel, the Stanford professor in charge of the experiment, remembers. "They didn't even bother ringing the bell. Other kids would stare directly at the marshmallow and then ring the bell thirty seconds later." About 30% of the children, however, successfully delayed gratification until the researcher returned, some 15 minutes later. These kids wrestled with temptation but found a way to resist. The most interesting results came years later: children who waited fifteen minutes had SAT scores that were, on average, 210 points higher than those of those who waited only 30 seconds. This New Yorker article delves into the mental processes behind self-control. { read more } Be The Change Make an effort to remain "in your own power" today. COMMENT | RATE               Related Good News 9 Ways to be Happy in the Next 30 Minutes How a Wandering Mind Affects Your Mood The Power of Touch Go Easy on Yourself, New Research Says DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers "good news" to 106,697 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here. Other CharityFocus projects include: HelpOthers  //  CF Sites  //  KarmaTube  //  Conversations  //  More

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The Gift Economy

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July 9, 2011 a project of CharityFocus If you're really mind-full, and if you underline that aspect of fullness, wholeness, or wholeheartedness, it reveals the gift character of everything. - Brother David Steindl-Rast - The Gift Economy "Want to fix the economy? Next time you buy coffee, purchase a cup for the person behind you. Or as you grind your way through the morning commute, pick up the tollbooth charge for the driver behind you, draped over his steering wheel and ranting at the long delay. You've heard that famous Gandhian quote about being the change, well these are good measures to start with, packing more punch than you might imagine. This approach to life starts with the following premise: What exactly did I (or you) do to deserve to be alive? If you can process that question and come out thinking it was a gift that you can't ever pay back, then beginning a life of greater giving is the only logical and remotely reciprocal way to go." Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Paul Van Slambrouck reflects on the gift economy. { read more } Be The Change Think of an experience of gifting (either receiving or giving) that has stayed with you, and share it with others here. { more } COMMENT | RATE               Related Good News The Benefits of Single-Tasking Oprah: A Case Study Comes Alive Leadership Through Solitude Retailing With Heart DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers "good news" to 106,664 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here. Other CharityFocus projects include: HelpOthers  //  CF Sites  //  KarmaTube  //  Conversations  //  More

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High Schooler Pays Forward $40,000

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July 8, 2011 a project of CharityFocus Service doesn't start when you have something to give -- it blossoms naturally when you have nothing left to take. - Nipun Mehta - High Schooler Pays Forward $40,000 They wanted to show kids in Compton, CA, one of the most dangerous cities in America, how to create community spirit, and so organizers put on a basketball contest for top academic students. But following a tear-jerking gesture from the winner -- it appears the true lessons learned were by the adults. Senior Allen Guei won in front of a packed house. And three months after winning the $40,000 top prize, he donated all of his winnings to the seven other finalists. Guei, a star player on the basketball team has a full scholarship, and wanted to give his classmates a chance to make their academic dreams come true, too. "I've already been blessed so much and I know we're living with a bad economy, so I know this money can really help my classmates," he said. "It was the right decision." { read more } Be The Change The next time you receive something, consider how you could share it. COMMENT | RATE               Related Good News The Impossible Floating Village Football Team Human Spirit Rises to Meet Japan's Tsunami 25 Visionaries Changing Your World Change Your Life with a Thank-You Note DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers "good news" to 106,646 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here. Other CharityFocus projects include: HelpOthers  //  CF Sites  //  KarmaTube  //  Conversations  //  More

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Bill Moyers: Naomi Shihab Nye

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July 7, 2011 a project of CharityFocus Walk around feeling like a leaf. Know you could tumble any second. Then decide what to do with your time. - Naomi Shihab Nye - Bill Moyers: Naomi Shihab Nye Renowned poet Naomi Shihab Nye writes about button-hooks, onions and her grandmother's tea. Her poems speak of ordinary things -- things we take for granted until it's almost too late. For her poetry is a "conversation with the world, conversation with those words on the page, allowing them to speak back to you -- conversation with yourself." The daughter of a Palestinian father and an American mother, she's lived in old Jerusalem, in St. Louis, and now with her own family in San Antonio, Texas. Bill Moyers carries a poem of hers in his wallet, and interviews her here. { read more } Be The Change Ponder on the power of words. A poem of Naomi Shihab Nye's, "Before You Know What Kindness Really Is:" { more } COMMENT | RATE               Related Good News The Reading Promise: An Extraordinary Father-Daughter Story Monday is the New Sunday 30 Years of Work Bears Fruit The Artist Who Gives It All Away DailyGood is a volunteer-run initiative that delivers "good news" to 106,659 subscribers. There are many ways to help. To unsubscribe, click here. Other CharityFocus projects include: HelpOthers  //  CF Sites  //  KarmaTube  //  Conversations  //  More

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