April 1, 2024

During my junior year in college, a guest speaker who spoke about Ducks vs. Eagles attended our lecture hall. He emphasized the importance of having an eagle attitude and not settling for duck-like qualities. His message was clear: "You can't send a duck to eagle school." This applies to all aspects of life, starting with us. We should look for this quality in our close relationships and hire for it. It matters greatly.

Recently, I read a story that perfectly complements this message. A taxi driver named Wally picked up a customer at the airport in New York City. He greeted the customer by introducing himself and offering a cold drink, that day's newspaper, and the choice of music. The customer was amazed and asked if he always served his customers like this. Wally responded that he used to complain like the rest of the cabbies, but one day, he heard a motivational speaker on the radio who said, "If you wake up expecting to have a bad day, you rarely disappoint yourself. Don't be a duck. Be an eagle. Ducks quack and complain. Eagles soar above the crowd." That day, Wally decided to start soaring like an eagle.

Let's try an experiment together. For the next 24 hours, let's avoid complaining and see how our lives and attitudes shift. If we look for something to criticize and complain about, we will find it. But if we look for something to compliment, we'll find that too. Our words reveal our hearts' attitudes toward most things.

Intentionally Own It! Let's choose to live an inspired life by being an eagle!

P.S. The image used for our Monday message is the handout we received in our classroom many years ago!!