Advice from Grandpa’s Appendix (condensed)

The book follows the adventures of shy little Evie who discovers her passion and confidence during a summer visit to Grandpa’s farm and his observatory. There she meets and becomes “friends” with Angelina, the Magic Telescope. As she grows and gains experience, knowledge and confidence, she is reminded of advice from Grandpa on how to live a successful and joyful life. At the end of the book, in “Appendix 3,” Grandpa’s advice is summarized.

This article shows you what Appendix 3 is all about and how that advice can apply as well to government officials and employees as it can to moms, dads, grandparents and kids.  I hope you enjoy the advice, but more importantly, I hope you take it to heart and share it with others as they join all the rest of us in searching for fulfillment, joy and a legacy in their own lives.

1. Create your own army: The friends you make throughout your life along with colleagues at work and members of your own family form a powerful group of people who can come to your aid if you ever need them. Sometimes members of your own army will help you in ways you may not even realize or know about. The bigger your army, and the more it is filled with diverse people, the more successful you will be. In turn, you must be part of many other people’s armies and stand ready to help them. Your army makes a difference in your own life and in the lives of others.

2. The importance of respect: No matter who you are or how famous or successful you might become, your life will be enriched by always treating people you meet with respect and kindness. Whether they are rich or poor, tall or short, healthy or ill, no matter what their religion, race or gender, the most successful people treat others the way they would wish to be treated. It all begins by learning how to spell “R–E–S–P–E–C–T!”

3. Arrogance — our biggest enemy: Arrogance is what leads to great trouble and ultimately great failure for people, as well as for communities and countries. Arrogance means excessive pride. You think you are better than someone else, when you aren’t; you think your athletic team is better than every other one, when it may not be. You become a bully in the sense that you don’t listen to the opinions of others and you try to push your own thoughts and beliefs on others, even if they don’t want to agree with you. Ancient Greek people called excessive arrogance “hubris” and felt that it was this arrogance that threatened and harmed their whole civilization.

4. Humility in your life: Humility is the opposite of hubris. Being humble in the way you behave toward other people means acting so that other people regard you as being willing to listen to their viewpoints. They have confidence in what you are saying. People who are humble do not brag and do not treat other people with disrespect. They are kind and caring. Humility is a behavior that other people want to be associated with.

5. Get by with help from your friends: People who have friends and family to be around them and to spend time with them tend to be healthier and enjoy life more. You may not have a large family. In fact, you may have no brothers and sisters, and maybe even no parents. However, you can still make friends at school, at work and by joining civic groups and service clubs in your community.  “Friends” also include our animal friends. People who have pets, especially dogs and cats, exercise more and feel less lonely. They have another creature to cuddle with and to share fun and sadness. Having friends will make you healthier, happier and more successful.

6. The paralysis of inertia: The great scientist Sir Isaac Newton described laws of motion. His First Law of Motion tells us that an object will keep standing still or moving along in the same direction and speed unless some outside force moves it in a different way. The same is true of people. A person who keeps to a fixed opinion or way of acting and living will continue to do that same behavior unless some outside force affects them.

Inertia is a form of paralysis. It is hard to move forward when you never want to move at all. It is hard to change direction if you keep moving in only one way, even when circumstances all around you change and you should be adjusting. Without change — without overcoming inertia — the full potential of your life will never be realized. We overcome inertia by being willing to try new things and to adjust how we think and act as circumstances and needs change.

When we spend too many hours doing only one thing, like watching television or staring at screens of our smart phones or tablets, we miss out on a lot of other opportunities to learn new skills and meet new people. Never fall victim to the paralysis of inertia.

7. Become a renaissance person: The Renaissance in history was a time of renewal, rebirth, and reemergence of learning, experimenting and thinking about all the ways that things could be, rather than just how things were. It was a time, in other words, when the human spirit overcame inertia and created a more exciting future for itself. You can do that in your own life. In fact, you have to do that for your life to be as successful as you want it to be.

A renaissance person enjoys learning and practicing different skills. You may like science, for example, but you might also think about the arts. You may enjoy dance, drawing or music, but also learn about history and nature. You may want to be a teacher in your career, but also take up hobbies so you can do many other things you enjoy.

When you look at the totality of your life, you will see that a renaissance person with many different interests is a far more enjoyable friend to be with and certainly a better person to have on your team and in your life.

8. Find thyself a teacher: This is one of the very most important keys to being successful. Always look for ways to learn from other people and take advantage of opportunities to learn.

9. Seek out challenges: Challenges help us do things we might not otherwise do. If we are paralyzed by inertia, it may be a great challenge to learn how to play the violin, how to swim, or how to cook spaghetti. We may not be willing even to try.  However, we miss out on great possibilities when we let inertia win. The most enjoyable life is a life full of challenges that we have learned to overcome. Challenges certainly come to each of us, whether we want them to or not. We might become ill or injured and we have the challenge to heal and to regain the strength in our arms or legs. It is not only possible but very rewarding to seek out challenges and overcome them.

You may find it challenging to learn to speak Spanish or to enjoy the night sky, like Evie did. You will find your own challenges to overcome in life. When you do, you will be well on your way to becoming a renaissance person.Don’t be afraid of challenges. See them as opportunities to learn and grow. While you are there, remember that if you are nervous about some new challenge, that is the perfect time to find yourself a teacher or call out a member of your army to help you.

10.  Loving nature: Respect is something that goes far beyond how we behave with other people. It also means how we find beauty and amazement in the world around us. It means going out early in the morning and watching the sunrise or watching the sunset at the end of the day. It means learning about animals, the climate, mountains, rivers, the sky, and the valleys all around us. Smelling and feeling the beauty all around us, whether we live in a city or on a farm, can bring us not only a sense of amazement at the world, but also give us the time and the inner peace to relax our minds. Then we can begin that imagining and dreaming process that we know is so important to our success.

11. Confidence and bravery: We overcome problems and meet challenges first by learning about what those problems and challenges are really all about. Then it is very important to take what we’ve learned and the advice and help we get from our friends, and mix that information with confidence in ourselves. We have to know in our hearts and in our minds that we can overcome obstacles. A bit of bravery and confidence is available to all of us and can help in everything we do.

12. Have a sense of humor and a sense of fun: To be serious all the time is very unfortunate and does not make you the kind of person that other people want to be around. A speaker named Michael Josephson once said, “Some people brighten a room when they enter it; others, when they leave!”  If you have humor and a positive attitude it will be contagious. Other people will think of you as someone they want to listen to and want to follow. 

13. Don’t postpone joy: Find things that you really enjoy doing. Find hobbies you enjoy and charities you want to support. Then figure out how to get involved with them. Evie enjoyed knitting and music. These hobbies helped her relax even though she faced many pressures. Our lives are full of opportunities to do things and see things that make us smile and make us happy. We should not waste those opportunities. Figure out how to add a strong dose of joy into your life every day.

14. Saying thank you: When something wonderful happens to you or to someone else, take the time to thank the person who cared enough to do that wonderful thing.  There are many ways to say thank you. People enjoy being thanked and it encourages even more wonderful behavior. We don’t say thank you enough in the world, but you can make a difference and change that.

You can surprise someone by doing a kind thing as a way to thank them. In turn, they will thank you. Bring a flower to your teacher or to someone you work with. Take your mom or dad out for ice cream or do something they don’t even expect. A gesture like holding a door open for someone may seem like a small thing. Your kindness defines the kind of person you are for others.