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“How
to Develop Self-Confidence
In Speech and Manner” eBook Online Version
The joy of work is enhanced by occasional periods of relaxation. Every man should have a "playtime" daily. It is well to let the mental and physical machinery down at frequent intervals in order that one may return to his labor rejuvenated. There is a world of philosophy in the saying, "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." A man who is merely a machine and money-grubber, who knows not how to play, misses much of the best in life. The railroad magnate who cuts his life in two through overwork, has failed to apply his business astuteness to the important matter of right living.
It is possible to take life too seriously and to blunt one's abilities by too constant use of them. The worker, however earnest and ambitious, should not overlook the law of action and reaction which runs through all nature. The flow and ebb of the tide, the rise and fall of the fountain, the alternating of day and night, remind us of this principle of work and play that should characterize a man's life.
It is easy to grovel. Men sometimes become so intent upon their work that they lose sight of the wonders all about them. The artist finds it necessary to stand off from his picture every little while in order that he may observe the proper effect of light and shade, of perspective and proportion. When a man turns his thoughts for a time entirely away from his regular work, he returns to it with renewed energy and clearness of vision.
It is an inspiration upon a clear night to stand and survey the stars as they seem to sing together. Here is music and mystery to satisfy the longing soul. There is no haste, no confusion, no discord, but a silent symphony of the skies. And the more intently we look the nearer they seem to come, until at length we appear to dwell among them. The lives of many men are like the wonderful stars, pouring down on us, as Phillips Brooks says, "the calm light of their bright and faithful being, up to which we look, and out of which we gather the deepest calm and courage."
Men are often possessed by their possessions. A Turkish wrestler, sailing from America toward his home, turned all his money into gold, placed it in a belt, and wrapped it around him for safe-keeping. By some irony of fate, the ship was wrecked, and the weight of the gold carried him more swiftly to his watery grave. When a man's possessions are a burden to him, he is not well off. Not how much, but how good and how useful, should be the criterion from which to judge what a man has. What end does it serve always to be coveting the things that are not ours, while neglecting to use what we have? Is it not better to own a Bible and a Shakespeare that we have read than a whole library of books with uncut leaves? A few years ago a book called "The Simple Life" had an immense circulation. It struck a responsive chord in thousands of lives. Men were feeling the strain and the responsibility of over-accumulation, of too many of this world's goods, and this appeal on behalf of simplicity profoundly impressed them.
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