Major highways are often named and numbered by the governments that typically develop and maintain them. Australia’s Highway 1 is the longest national highway in the world at over 14,500 km (9,000 mi) and runs almost the entire way around the continent. The United States has the world’s largest network of highways, including both the Interstate Highway System and the U.S. Highway System. At least one of these networks is present in every state and they interconnect most major cities. Some highways, like the Pan-American Highway or the European routes, span multiple countries. Some major highway routes include ferry services, such as U.S. Route 10, which crosses Lake Michigan.

Traditionally highways were used by people on foot or on horses. Later they also accommodated carriages, bicycles and eventually motor cars, facilitated by advancements in road construction. In the 1920s and 1930s many nations began investing heavily in progressively more modern highway systems to spurcommerce and bolster national defense.

Major modern highways that connect cities in populous developed and developing countries usually incorporate features intended to enhance the road’s capacity, efficiency, and safety to various degrees. Such features include a reduction in the number of locations for user access, the use of dual carriageways with two or more lanes on each carriageway, and grade-separated junctions with other roads and modes of transport. These features are typically present on highways built as motorways (freeways).

source form: greatachievements

1901 North America’s first oil gusher

North America’s first oil gusher blows at the Spindletop field near Beaumont in southeastern Texas, spraying more than 800,000 barrels of crude into the air before it can be brought under control. The strike boosts the yearly oil output in the United States from 2,000 barrels in 1859 to more than 65 million barrels by 1901.

1913 High-pressure hydrogenation process developed

German organic chemist Friedrich Bergius develops a high-pressure hydrogenation process that transforms heavy oil and oil residues into lighter oils, boosting gasoline production. In 1926 IG Farben Industries, where Carl Bosch had been developing similar high-pressure processes, acquires the patent rights to the Bergius process. Bergius and Bosch share a Nobel Prize in 1931.

1913 New method of oil refining

Chemical engineers William Burton and Robert Humphreys of Standard Oil patent a method of oil refining that significantly increases gasoline yields. Known as thermal cracking, the chemists discover that by applying both heat and pressure during distillation, heavier petroleum molecules can be broken down, or cracked, into gasoline’s lighter molecules. The discovery is a boon to the new auto industry, whose fuel of choice is gasoline.

1920s Fischer-Tropsch method

By using fractional distillation, two German coal researchers create synthetic gasoline. Known as the Fischer-Tropsch method, the gasoline is produced by combining either coke and steam or crushed coal and heavy oil, then exposing the mixture to a catalyst to form synthetic gasoline. The process plays a critical role in helping to meet the increasing demand for gasoline as automobiles come into widespread use and later for easing gasoline shortages during World War II.

1920s-1940s Nylon, acrylics, and polyester are developed

An assortment of new compounds derived from byproducts of the oil-refining process enter the market. Three of the most promising new materials—synthesized from the hydrocarbon ethylene—are polystyrene, a brittle plastic known also as styrofoam; polyvinyl chloride, used in plumbing fixtures and weather-resistant home siding; and polyethylene, which is flexible inexpensive, and widely used in packaging. New synthetic fibers and resins are also introduced, including nylon, acrylics, and polyester, and are used to make everything from clothing and sports gear to industrial equipment, parachutes, and plexiglass.

1920s-1940s New compounds derived oil-refining byproducts enter market

An assortment of new compounds derived from byproducts of the oil-refining process enter the market. Three of the most promising new materials—synthesized from the hydrocarbon ethylene—are polystyrene, a brittle plastic known also as styrofoam; polyvinyl chloride, used in plumbing fixtures and weather-resistant home siding; and polyethylene, which is flexible, inexpensive, and widely used in packaging. New synthetic fibers and resins are also introduced, including nylon, acrylics, and polyester, and are used to make everything from clothing and sports gear to industrial equipment, parachutes, and plexiglass.

1921 Lead added to gasoline

Charles Kettering of General Motors and his assistants, organic chemists Thomas Midgley, Jr., and T. A. Boyd, discover that adding lead to gasoline eliminates engine knock. Until the 1970s, when environmental concerns forced its removal, tetraethyl lead was a standard ingredient in gasoline.

1928 Portable offshore drilling

By mounting a derrick and drilling outfit onto a submersible barge, Texas oilman Louis Giliasso creates an efficient portable method of offshore drilling. The transportable barge allows a rig to be erected in as little as a day, which makes for easier exploration of the Texas and Louisiana coastal wetlands. More permanent offshore piers and platforms had been successfully operating since the late 1800s off the coast of California near Santa Barbara, where oil seepage in the Pacific had been reported by Spanish explorers as early as 1542.

1930s New process increases octane rating gasoline

U.S. refineries take advantage of a new process of alkalinization and fine-powder fluid-bed production that increases the octane rating of aviation gasoline to 100. This becomes important in the success of the Royal Air Force and the U.S. Army Air Force in World War II.

1936 Catalytic cracking introduced

French scientist Eugene Houdry introduces catalytic cracking. By using silica and alumina-based catalysts, he demonstrates not only that more gasoline can be produced from oil without the use of high pressure but also that it has a higher octane rating and burns more efficiently.

1942 First catalytic cracking unit is put on-stream

The first catalytic cracking unit is put on-stream in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, by Standard Oil, New Jersey.

1947 Platforming invented

German-born American chemical engineer Vladimir Haensel invents platforming, a process for producing cleaner-burning high-octane fuels using a platinum catalyst to speed up certain chemical reactions. Platforming eliminates the need to add lead to gasoline.

1947 First commercial oil well out of sight of land

A consortium of oil companies led by Kerr-McGee drills the world’s first commercial oil well out of sight of land in the Gulf of Mexico, 10.5 miles offshore and 45 miles south of Morgan City, Louisiana. Eleven oil fields are mapped in the gulf by 1949, with 44 exploratory wells in operation.

1955 First jack-up oil-drilling rig

The first jack-up oil-drilling rig is designed for offshore exploration. The rig features long legs that can be lowered into the seabed to a depth of 500 feet, allowing the platform to be raised to various heights above the level of the water.

1960s Synthetic oils

Synthetic oils are in development to meet the special lubricating requirements of military jets. Mobil Oil and AMSOIL are leaders in this field; their synthetics contain such additives as polyalphaolefins, derived from olefin, one of the three primary petrochemical groups. Saturated with hydrogen, olefin-carbon molecules provide excellent thermal stability. Following on the success of synthetic oils in military applications, they are introduced into the commercial market in the 1970s for use in automobiles.

1970s Digital seismology

The introduction of digital seismology in oil exploration increases accuracy in locating underground pools of oil. The technique of using seismic waves to look for oil is based on determining the time interval between the sending of a sound wave (generated by an explosion, an electric vibrator, or a falling weight) and the arrival of reflected or refracted waves at one or more seismic detectors. Analysis of differences in arrival times and amplitudes of the waves tells seismologists what kinds of rock the waves have traveled through.

1970s Mud pulse telemetry

Teleco, Inc., of Greenville, South Carolina, and the U.S. Department of Energy introduce mud pulse telemetry, a system of relaying pressure pulses through drilling mud to convey the location of the drill bit. Mud pulse telemetry is now an oil industry standard, saving millions of dollars in time and labor.

1980s ROVs developed for subsea oil work

Remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) are developed for subsea oil work. Controlled from the surface, ROVs vary from beachball-size cameras to truck-size maintenance robots.

1990s New tools and techniques to reduce the costs and risks of drilling

The combined efforts of private industry, the Department of Energy, and national laboratories such as Argonne and Lawrence Livermore result in the introduction of several new tools and techniques designed to reduce the costs and risks of drilling, including reducing potential damage to the geological formation and improving environmental protection. Among such tools are the near-bit sensor, which gathers data from just behind the drill bit and transmits it to the surface, and carbon dioxide/sand fracturing stimulation, a technique that allows for non-damaging stimulation of a natural gas formation.

2000 Hoover-Diana goes into operation

The Hoover-Diana, a 63,000-ton deep-draft caisson vessel, goes into operation in the Gulf of Mexico. A joint venture by Exxon Mobil and BP, it is a production platform mounted atop a floating cylindrical concrete tube anchored in 4,800 feet of water. The entire structure is 83 stories high, with 90 percent of it below the surface. Within half a year it is producing 20,000 barrels of oil and 220 million cubic feet of gas a day. Two pipelines carry the oil and gas to shore.

source form: greatachievements

1. Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa

A work of art that has captured the imagination of humanity. The mysterious smile, the penetrating eyes. The air of mystique surrounding the Mona Lisa cannot easily be explained but, it is more than just a supreme example of renaissance art, it encapsulates a unique spirit.

2. The Works of William Shakespeare.

“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages. ”

Despite producing one of the earliest body of works in English, few have come close to matching William Shakespeare’s mastery of English in articulating the poetic range of human emotion and experience.

3. Ave Maria – Schubert / Bach

It is music which has the greatest capacity to lift humanity from the ordinary earth bound thoughts and emotions. The loftiest music can touch the psychic core of man and expand the consciousness of man. We could have chosen from the works of Beethoven, Mozart, or countless other musicians, but, Ave Maria remains one of the loftiest pieces in the pantheon of music.

4. The First Flight

The Wright brothers finally achieved man’s eternal quest to achieve a powered flight. The short flight in 1901 revolutionised air travel in the twentieth century and remains one of the great technical achievements.

5. The Development of Vaccines.

For many centuries, the life expectancy of man was very low. Life was hard, short and painful. The great advances of medical science in the nineteenth and twentieth century have allowed people in many developed countries to have a much greater life expectancy. Some of the most important discoveries included the first vaccines developed by Louis Pasteur and the advent of Penicillin in the twentieth century. Perhaps our next greatest achievement would be ensuring access to this knowledge is widespread amongst all people on the planet.

6. Man on Moon.

It was a great scientific achievement to put man in space and then land on the thin atmosphere of the moon. It shows the horizons of man are not limited to this physical earth.

7. Four Minute Mile

Any great sporting achievement could have been used here. To run a marathon in close to 2 hours, is perhaps an even greater athletic achievement. Alternatively, we could have chosen the fastest 100 metre time of Usain bolts in under 9.6 seconds. Yet, no sporting record is more iconic than the first mile run under 4 minutes by British athlete Roger Bannister. For many decades doctors and learned people had suggested it was physically impossible for man to run a mile under 4 minutes. But, once Roger Bannister had broken the psychological barrier many others soon followed. It showed the spirit of self-transcendence intrinsic to man.

8. Climbing Mount Everest.

On May 29th, 1953 Edmund Hilary and Sherpa Tensing Norgay finally conquered the crown of the world reaching the top of Mount Everest. At 8,848 Metres, Mount Everest is the highest peak in the Himalayas, the Nepalese name it Sagarmatha – meaning Mother Goddess of the world.

9. The Great Pyramids.

Conventional wisdom suggests these were built with slaves, but, this view has become increasingly challenged. The truth is that there are many ancient structures such as Stonehenge which defy modern science even centuries later. The Great Pyramids remain a mystery but, they stand as a colossal and imposing figure in the sands of Egypt.

10. Michelangelo’s Pieta

It is a work of art which captures the beauty, poignancy, poise and emotion of the greatest human dramas – love divine and love human.

Declaration of Human Rights

After centuries of religious persecution, injustice and disregard for human rights, the acceptance of human rights enshrined in law is one of the great achievements of modern history. Some of the earliest declarations can be seen in the US constitution, drafted by Thomas Jefferson. In the twentieth Century, the United Nations declaration of human rights cemented its importance for modern history.

source from: biographyonline

At age 10 he set up a chemical lab in his home and it wasn’t long before he was operating a homemade telegraph set.

At 21 be became a free-lance inventor, soon earning a $40,000 fortune.

At 29 he opened a laboratory in Menlo Park, New Jersey and vowed that he’d create a minor invention every 10 days and a major one every 6 months. Soon he had 40 different projects going at once and was applying for as many as 400 patents per year. In the middle of all this he formed Edison Electric Light Company (now General Electric). By then he was a mere 31 years old.

His pursuit of the light bulb alone involved the testing of untold thousands of filament materials in order to find a long-burning conductor that would require the least electrical power.

The light bulb was invented simultaneously by Edison and by Britain’s Sir Joseph Wilson Swan in 1879. Swan was first to actually construct a light bulb. But the additional challenge was that the filament had to be housed in an oxygen-free environment, and Swan had trouble maintaining a vacuum.

Edison achieved a few hours of light with a platinum filament in a glass vacuum bulb. “We are striking it big,” Edison said. “Where this thing is going to stop, Lord only knows.”

The thousands of filament materials that Edison tested included the carbonized filaments of some 6,000 living plants. “I ransacked the world for the most suitable filament material,” he said after finally coming up with the one that started it all for the electric lamp.

Edison demonstrated the first carbon-filament lamp on October 21, 1879. And within no more than a year after that he had developed a 16-watt light bulbthat could last for 1500 hours.

So the gas lamp faded into history, and Edison went on to bigger things. Within three years he had developed and installed the world’s first large central electric power station in New York City. It rose as a contribution that facilitated the electrical illumination of entire cities in America and all over the world.

You can thank the extraordinary Thomas Edison whenever you switch on a lamp. Table lamps, floor lamps, desk lamps, porch lamps, garden lamps, street lamps, headlamps… we take them so for granted. But what would life be like without them?

No wonder America’s Thomas Alva Edison received the Congressional Gold Medal in 1928 for “inventions that have revolutionized civilization in the last century.”

Source: Free Articles

Many say a strategy does exist.

Think about what types of problems you would like to solve. As an inventor, that is your goal. The trick is to come up with a unique invention that is the solution to a specific problem. This will help put you on the path to inventing something with a higher profit value. You want your invention to be marketable so it must solve a problem.

Solving a problem is really what all marketable products attempt to accomplish. For the skeptics, let’s go through a few examples. Take aspirin. It attempts (and actually accomplishes for many people) to solve the problem of pain. A board game like checkers attempts to solve the problem of boredom. The Ginsu knife you see advertised on late night infomercials attempts to solve the problem of slicing and dicing food.

Essentially, all products attempt to solve a specific problem. Therefore, your first step is to determine what specific problem you want to work on finding a solution to.

One of the best ways to generate ideas for solving problems is to focus on the solutions that already exist. To accomplish this, you need to read up on your problem area of interest. If you know what is already available, you can recognize the unsolved problems that still exist. From there, you can focus on the existing problems and attempt to solve them with your own unique solution. This unique solution will ultimately become your invention!

Now, how do you become an expert in the types of products already existing in your area of interest? Here’s a tip; once something is patented, it must be fully disclosed and accessible to the public. Therefore, everything you need is actually right at your fingertips!

By searching through old patents and other publications (like magazines and journals), you will become an expert in your field. Keep track of the products that already exist for the problem you are interested in solving. Take detailed notes on the features of each of these inventions. Check to see who owns these inventions (this is available from the patent records).

Are these inventions currently marketed? For those that are, find out how much the item sells for. Look into how it is marketed. Is it popular? Who manufactures and sells it?

All this research is of the utmost importance. If you focus on doing something YOU like, and never consider whether or not anyone will buy your product, you won’t make any money. Successful inventors dream up a good product that is needed by consumers and has a solid market.

If you spend the time researching old and existing patents and pay attention to their marketability, you will not only generate ideas, but in all likelihood, your ideas will be profitable.

To summarize, the key is to recognize and focus on what consumers need and want in your area of expertise. Research patents, publications, catalogs and even the consumers themselves! Conduct surveys and determine what your consumers want.

Final note: Make a product based on the consumer’s wants and needs and you stand a good chance of becoming wildly successful.

Source: Free Articles

An interesting bunch overall. The cat probably could have been voted by Time as its Invention of the Year, but no. That honor went to a dog. And no, it wasn’t a robot dog, either. It didn’t follow commands or do any special tricks. It was just an ordinary living, breathing Afghan dog. Except for one thing: it was a cloned dog, the first of its kind in the history of science.

Yes, Snuppy the cloned dog was Time magazine’s “Invention of the Year” for 2005.

Snuppy has 45 fathers, namely a 45-man team of Korean scientists from the Seoul National University or SNU. And that’s where Snuppy got his name, from the combination of “SNU” and puppy. He was born on April 24 last year and, follows behind the footsteps of “Dolly the Sheep,” cloned in 1996, as only the second mammal to ever be cloned in the world.

There’s nothing really extraordinary about Snuppy except for the fact that he is a cloned dog. And that’s the most amazing thing about him – that there’s nothing odd or abnormal about him and that he looks as natural as any other dog conceived from its mother’s womb, except that Snuppy doesn’t come from a womb. He came from a cell in an Afghan’s ear from where thousands of dog embryos were created. Over a thousand of these embryos were planted into about 120 female dogs and this produced a grand total of three pregnancies. Two of the three died, one because of miscarriage and the other due to pneumonia. Snuppy was the sole survivor. It was his first big test.

Now, his next big test is to keep on living. Dolly the Sheep died after six years. And that’s the benchmark that Snuppy’s creators are looking at.

Snuppy’s creation has come under some controversy, considering that his chief creator, Hwang Woo Suk, has been under investigation for possible fraud in his experiments. However, a thorough government investigation of Snuppy and his DNA has shown without a doubt that he is a legitimate cloned dog.

Source: Free Articles

We use inventions every day of our lives in so many different ways. Some are very basic ways such as the shoes on our feet. Some are more technical ways but all began as someone’s invention.

Do You Have an Invention?

So what do you do if you have an invention or an idea for an invention? The first thing you are going to want to do is to apply for a patent. This is very important for different reasons. One is that the patent office will be able to tell you if someone else already has a patent on that or if there is a patent in the works even if you have not seen the item on the market yet.

Another reason to get a patent is to protect your idea. Just because you told yourself, your mom, your spouse or your best friend doesn’t mean you haveproof that you had the idea first. You need to register it first so you can claim it as intellectual property and you can be sure all rights remain to you.

If someone steals your idea and you do not have a patent, it will be very hard to prove that you are the original one to come up with the invention. You are better off playing it safe and calling the patent office.

Source: Free Articles

You don’t need to be an economist to see that things are not all black. In fact things are never all black, any more than they are ever all white. Stop and reflect for a moment on some of the industries and people that will thrive in a recession.
If you want to achieve goals you’ve got to believe there’s a way. You have to know in your heart that you can do it and that the odds are not stacked against you. If your goal is to climb Everest, you have to believe you can get there or there’s no sense in taking a single step up that mountain.

In fact, in the current financial climate, setting and achieving goals should become even more a way of life! When winter or war comes, for example, people gather together for comfort and support. In economic bad times, what better moment to gather a team of willing helpers?

Apart from anything else, you need to believe in yourself. Set the goal that you will find a way, and you’ll achieve that goal. On the other hand, if you start with self doubt and fear, setting goals will feel futile. You must get clear that the resource that has always achieved all the goals in your life has been you – not your bank balance or your job!

Set the goal that you can always think of something that others will want to pay you for. There’s only one you, and if you remain upbeat and positive, people will want not only your help – they’ll hire you for your genial personality! Never was there a better time to reinstate “whistle while you work!” (There’s a goal you can easily achieve!)
As a little food for thought, here are some examples of industries that are probably going to thrive in a recession. If you owned such a business, what goal setting would you be doing now?

The car repair industry. Fewer people are going to buy new cars for a while, so keeping the old ones on the road becomes paramount. Mechanics and second hand car sales people are probably going to easily achieve their business goals in the coming months!

How about the cheaper end of the beauty and glamour industries? Everyone wants to feel good, and a new hair-do doesn’t cost a lot. If you like wearing make-up, a new lipstick or nail polish can lift the spirits in a jiffy for the price of a cup of coffee or thereabouts. If your goal is for a quick pick-me-up, there’s one way to achieve it, whilst helping the beautician, hairdresser or cosmetics salesperson to keep their job!

Rental things – especially real estate – will flourish, won’t it? How about home entertainment? Cheaper than a night on the town! The whole family can rent a blockbuster DVD when it would have cost four seats at the movies not to mention outrageously priced popcorn! Goal achieved? Keeping the family spirits up.

Network marketing companies always do well in a recession as people search around frantically for ways to make money in their spare time.

Now, I didn’t set out to write a list and I’m not an economist. (Thank heavens for that – they hardly can take credit for keeping us out of trouble, can they?) The reason I wanted to point these observations out to you is not because I want you to change your job – I want you to change your mind! Personal and professional goals are just as achievable in the present climate as they are at other times. You simply have to apply your adaptability skills – a resource with which you have been equipped since birth.

When people are down, more than ever they need people who are up. Why were musicals so popular during the depression of the 1920s and through the war years? Because they made people feel good, that’s why.

If you want to achieve more goals, smile at more people. Be optimistic – life will go on, and rollercoasters are for riding – so point out to yourself and to the frightened people you meet that they have almost certainly already survived many of life’s challenges. You have the resources and so do they to achieve whatever goals they set themselves.

You cannot achieve your goals by joining people in their fear. No one is helped or served by that. Think outside the box, remember at all times that you are your own greatest resource and you will be not only inspired but you will become an inspiration.

Whatever you do, don’t give up! Keep on setting and achieving goals for the rest of your life!

source from: articlesbase

If you consider achievement and achievers, you hopefully would recognize that one piece of the goal achievement puzzle is attitude.

In most goal achievement writing I`ve seen, attitude is always discussed, often downplayed and typically misunderstood in the entire goal achievement puzzle; three good reasons to explore the ‘right` attitude!

In this brief article, I will outline what the right attitude is (to support maximum goal achievement), why it is important to us both as individuals and leaders and how to develop it.

So, what is the right attitude? I`m glad you asked.

Consider the three P`s of the right goal achievement attitude:

Positive. This is where most of these conversations start . . . and stop. Prevailing wisdom and much research show that having a positive attitude improves the likelihood you will achieve your goal, speeds your progress and, perhaps most importantly, makes you more resilient – All of which help you overcome obstacles and remain persistent in pursuit of your goal.
Possibility. The key to possibility is belief. Do you believe you can succeed and reach the goal? Do you believe we can earn it? Do you believe the goal is possible? If you think it is possible for others, can you see it for ourselves? This is more than just an extension of positive thinking. After all, if you didn`t think the goal was achievable, how likely are you to work hard to achieve it?
Proactive. The right attitude isn`t about thinking and belief alone. The right attitude includes realizing that you must roll up your sleeves and do something.

As you take action in the direction of your goals, you can build momentum, greater belief and enhance our attitude as we go.

All of this sounds pretty good, I realize, but what makes this the “right” attitude; or, more practically, how does this attitude help the situation?

The right attitude enables the right behaviors – behaviors of persistence, discipline and creativity.
The right attitude enables right focus – staying on mentally target and alert for opportunities.
The right attitude enables right results – it improves the likelihood of your success in reaching your goals.

Behaviors, focus and results. The right attitude can create all of them, both for ourselves and those we lead.

You know what the right attitude looks like (and you realize it is more than “just” positive mental attitude) as it relates to goal achievement, you may be wondering how do you create it? Another great question . . . here are some immediate steps -

1. Set the goal. This is the start. Before you can achieve a goal you must know what it is. This sets everything in motion. The size and nature of the goal will impact all three P`s described above.
2. Involve those who will be achieving the goal. If you want others to believe in the goal, you must involve them as much as possible. The right attitude comes easier when participants own the goal.
3. Create greater belief. Remind people of past successes; reward and recognize small successes on the achievement path. As you do this you create a momentum effect and the greater belief buoys the attitude.
4. Get excited about the goal. Actually this is a misstatement. Don`t focus on the goal itself, get yourself and others excited about the benefits that come from achieving the goal. When you know why you are doing the (hard) work of moving toward a goal, you are creating the right attitude.
5. Make the goals visual and vivid. Help people “see” the achievement of the goal. While this has already been mentioned, it is critical. Help your team make that picture as real as you can. Then, whenever possible, remind people of that vision.
6. Keep the goal in front of you at all times. Do you have a list of your goals that you read often? Do you have team goals “written down” or visually available to people in multiple places? Do you open team meetings by reminding people of the goals? When we are reminded of goals we are excited about achieving, it manages our attitude and keeps is “right.”

We all know the right attitude will make a difference. Now you know some reasons why, and how you can influence and nurture that attitude in yourself, and those you lead.

Once you get the attitude right, you are fast-forwarding your progress towards achieving your goals!

source from: articlesbase

This is often easier said than done. If you are not one of those people who just seem to have a knack for success – everything they touch seems to turn to gold – rest assured that achievement can be learned. I define achievement as simply doing the right things consistently over a sustained period of time. So once you know what those “right things” are, your journey to achievement comes down tochoosing to do those things consistently. It’s all about choice.

Every day you start with a clean slate. It is up to you how to utilize the hours in your day, whether you choose activities and attitudes that are productive and support your goals or you choose activities and attitudes that monopolize your time and do nothing for your overall achievement. In order to help propel you to practice achievement-supporting activities and attitudes each and every day, I’ve outlined a few achievement mantras.

#1 – I am not a victim of my circumstances.

You are responsible for your results and the choices that you make for your life. Some believe that if circumstances were perfect, they could achieve, and others wait for the perfect circumstances to come along. My experience with high achievers proves that they have difficult circumstances, just like everyone else, but they consistently respond with positive actions rather than negative beliefs. History is filled with stories of those who have overcome unimaginable circumstances simply by choosing to do so.

#2 – I must choose to develop a positive attitude.

The reason I say that you must develop a positive attitude is because this is not our natural instinct. Fear is a built-in survival instinct that, if left unchecked, will naturally lead to negative, unproductive attitudes. Your management of a consistent and productive, positive attitude will determine the degree of your future achievement but will also be one of the greatest challenges of your life. Don’t underestimate this important skill. Most dysfunction in business and personal achievement can be traced back to a root cause: ineffective thinking habits!

#3 – I must choose daily, effective actions to support my overall goals.

Effective actions are those predetermined activities that support the accomplishment of your goals. It’s not how much you do but the effectiveness of what you do that counts. High achievers have a unique ability to separate the common to-do items from the necessary, effective actions required to accomplish a goal. They understand that both types of actions are necessary, but they never confuse the two in planning their day. Don’t allow everyday distractions and obligations to sabotage you in your path to achievement.

Keep in mind that the effective choices you make will not feel natural right away. Over time, they will become more ingrained in your daily routine as you follow an achievement system. Be constantly on guard against negative attitudes and natural fear responses to your circumstances. You will encounter difficult situations, but you have the choice to consistently do the right things despite your natural tendencies.

Achievement is a choice – CHOOSE to achieve!

source from: articlesbase