Life is a struggle between failure and success, stepping back and moving forward. I must hold back to what I am at, and where I am, and never to get lost at negative results and discouraging events.

I must have something at my grip always, something to visualize, something to plan out, and something to pray for. I realize that I do not lack ideas; I have enough and more potential. It will be to my great surprise and joy that I have tremendous possibilities. Also, there is great power in the universe, an array of opportunities and resources, only I have to harvest, select, gather and develop. I must keep my mind and vision ever open and sensitive and receptive. 

I must think in terms of prosperity, achievement, and success. This is very optimistic and confidence-building. I must believe, do and succeed. I must learn to throw out all negative thoughts and failure syndrome and be aware of success in all my endeavors and undertakings. I should not get lost if I feel everything is gone wrong or out of control. In any fresh attempt my source and approach must be right: morally, spiritually, and ethically, and it should appear so to anyone outside of me. What is right is transparent and vibrant, as goodness diffuses itself. No one should hide what is right and vibrant. 

For an apparent wrong objective, I cannot take a wrong route or means. If I sow negative thoughts, I should not expect positive result. I will get what I sow. It may be a matter of time, now or later. A person’s life is what one’s thoughts are. As I think, so shall it be for me. I need to flush out old, tired, worn-out attempts and fill the mind with fresh, dynamic and most acceptable ones. Negative thinking is wrong thinking and it has to be totally changed. I must be aware that there is constant inflow of fresh and new thinking.

Further I should relax for normal strength and activities. Relaxing is not to be sluggish or inactive. Our system needs it, and I must respond to the call for relaxing. A few years ago, it was reported that every night in the United States more than six million sleeping tablets were required for one day to put the American people to sleep. It is said that every other hospital bed in the US is occupied by a patient not because of he/she encountered a germ or had an accident or developed an organic malady, but because of his/her inability to organize and discipline his/her emotions. What a pathetic health situation! 

There are people who under the pretext of study or hard work turn night into day, and gradually land up into severe health problems. Normal sleep is one of the best means for relaxing. Apart from sleep, therapies of prayer, faith, and love are excellent for relaxing. This we read in the life of Jesus, where Jesus found time to relax in prayer, deep communion with his Father and loving company with his followers and even the sick people. 

According Ignatius Loyola 15 minutes of intense prayer is enough to keep one relaxed and motivated for the whole day. The great Acharya Vinoba Bhave, immersed in Bhoodan Movement, once replied to a journalist that for him looking into the face of poor farmers around him day and night were moments of deep relaxing as he could see God in each one of the clients.