Inspiring New Year Message from Helen

Hello Lovely Ann

Please pass on my love and gratitude to everyone who’s been supporting me over the last few months and let them know that my spirits are continually boosted by the messages they send.

Quick update is that I had my second chemo on 14th Dec. My intentions for the course are that “I receive the healing gift of chemotherapy with love and gratitude” & secondly that “It’s going to be a breeze”.  Such a different attitude to 5 years ago – its been amazing how the work I’ve been doing (with the help of some exceptional therapists) has given me such strong self belief.  The medics now tell me I have multiple tumours in both lungs as well as infected lymph nodes in my neck & around my trachea, and that the chemo course will be 6 months, with a scan to check progress half way through.  This was a bit of a surprise as we’d previously been told only 3 months.  I’ve told them this treatment is going to work so well I simply won’t be needing the second 3 months (besides I have a mountain to climb in June!).  I’m not sure they believe me.  That doesn’t matter really, because I believe me.  I’ve been feeling pretty good so far, and see myself as a well, healthy person with an amazing future ahead of me.

I wish everyone a happy, healthy & fun-filled 2010.

With love, as always

Helen

Helen is blogging again – read about her adventures at http://helencrowe.net/

(Helen had bowel cancer 5 years ago and last year made a trip to Peru to raise funds for the Bowel Cancer charity. On her return she was diagnosed with a brain tumour which was successfully removed in October. If you’d like to send Helen a message (even if you don’t know her – its OK) and don’t have her details, please just ask me or leave a message here or on her own blog http://helencrowe.net/)

Is imitation a form of flattery?

CopyCat

My friends have repeated this saying to me several times this week but I’m not convinced.

The world is a funny place. You come up with a good idea and work at it and do the research and hone it and make mistakes and work some more and get things working and then someone comes  along and sees what you’ve done and decides they’ll just copy it.

I’m not against competition and have always taken the view that there is enough work out there for everyone. When people are open and honest there is often a chance to co-operate rather than compete and to create new opportunities.

However when someone just copies your business model, pricing structure and pretty much everything else it’s a bit galling. When they set out to compete in an area where you’re already operating you have to wonder about their motives.

I started wondering if I’d been too open and shared too much and if I should be more cautious in future but then I found this and realised its not me that needs to change.

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people may accuse you of selfish motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you may win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today may be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable.
Be honest and transparent anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People who really want help may attack you if you help them.
Help them anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you may get hurt.
Give the world your best anyway.

Mother Teresa hung this quote on her wall and if it was good enough for her, its good enough for me.

Don’t imitate – innovate!

What do you think?