Microsoft Word who will cry when u die doc

67. 
Be Unorthodox  
Rousseau wrote, “Take the course opposite to custom, you will almost always do well.” The brilliant ads for 
Apple computers inspire us to “Think Different.” Or as I tell audience at my leadership speeches, “If you follow 
the crowd, the place you will most likely end up at is the exit.” To live a richer, more rewarding life, it is 
essential that you run your own race. Stop being to the demands of social pressure at the expense of your 
uniqueness. When you study the lives of the world’s most enlightened and effective people, you will see that 
they did not care about what other people thought of them. Rather than letting public opinion dictate their 
actions, they had the courage to let their hearts drive them. And in taking the road less traveled, they found 
success beyond their wildest dreams. 
One of the best quotations about the importance of being unorthodox comes from Christopher Morley, 
who said “Read every day something no one else is reading. Think every day something no one else is thinking. 
It is bad for the mind to be always part of unanimity.” And perhaps the very best one comes from Emerson: “It 
is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great 
man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.” 
Over the next month, rethink the way you do things. Don’t just do things because everyone else does 
them. Do the things that are right for you. Being different for all the right reasons is a wise way to live. Just ask 
Einstein, Picasso, Galileo or Beethoven. 

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68. 
Carry a Gold Card 
Time and time again, I have witnessed high – functioning, top – performing men and women carrying a little 
gold card in their wallets that they can review during the quieter moments of their day. The card simply lists 
their top life goals along with clear deadlines for achieving them. The discipline or reconnecting to your highest 
priorities, whether they are personal, professional or spiritual, is a smart one. 
Montaigne said, “The great and glorious masterpiece of men is to live to the point.” The wisdom of life 
so succinctly expressed. And yet most of us live our lives like one long air raid drill, filling our days with 
activities that seem important in the moment but that count for little in the overall scheme of our lives. As I 
wrote in Leadership Wisdom from The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari, the person who tries to do everything 
ultimately accomplishes nothing. Having a goal card and coming back to it three or four times a day will keep 
your mind centered on the things that truly count. It will foster the self – control you need to concentrate only 
on activities that advance your goals, give you the discipline to say no to all the rest and, in so doing, restore 
focus to your days. I promise you that if you spend your life focusing on only the worthiest pursuits, it is certain 
to end in complete joy. 

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