Posted on 05/18/2008 7:46:21 AM PDT by McLynnan
By Ted Nugent, Texas Wildman
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Gather 'round, boys and girls, and listen closely. What I am about to tell you will help you immensely throughout the rest of your lives if you commit to practicing and living your Uncle Ted's proven modus operandi for quality of life.
You won't get this ironclad and loving advice in a classroom or from a textbook. Sadly, some of you will not have received this advice from even your parents. Here goes:
* Nobody owes you a thing. Nothing. Everything you will get out of life will only be based on what you put into it. Period.
The only free lunches are at the homeless shelter. If you want to dance, you have to pay the band.
If you work real hard at your favorite craft, you ultimately will succeed. A work ethic is the path to a rewarding life.
If you are paid a dollar, give your employer $10 worth of effort in return. Doing so will ensure you will always be gainfully employed.
If you are lazy, expect to be fired over and over again, no matter how smart or gifted you are.
* Find your passion, something you crave. Set a goal and never quit. Always push yourself harder. Walk through or over anyone who dares to tell you that you can't do something.
Avoid negative people. Surround yourself with positive people who will mentor, help and guide you honestly.
* Never miss an opportunity to say thank you to the men and women in our military and law enforcement. They are the defenders of freedom and are putting their lives on the line for you to reach your American Dream.
* Don't wait for someone else to motivate you. The best person for that job is you. Do it often.
* You will be tested constantly. Life is going to knock you down over and over again. The only person who is ever defeated is the person who gets floored with one of life's massive upper cuts and fails to get back up. Be tough and tenacious. It feels good.
* Never do anything just for money. Do what you do exceedingly well and thoroughly enjoy, and money will come looking for you.
* If you want to know how others perceive you, look around at who you associate with.
* In the end, all you have is your character and integrity. Do not ever compromise or sell them.
No one trusts a liar, most of all other liars.
* Do not complain. Any soulless whiner can do that. Instead, look for solutions to tough problems. This will earn you the respect of your boss.
* Do not be afraid to take chances and blaze new trails. Get in the arena where the dust is swirling and blood, sweat and tears pour forth. That is where the action is. Do not miss out.
* Engage life with unbridled passion. March to the beat of making your own statement. Those who follow trends and conform to peer pressure are mindless sheep and never happy.
* Be intelligently defiant. Defiance is the very spirit that gave birth to this country when our forefathers declared independence and fired the "shot heard round the world."
* Remember Rosa Parks. Be prepared to defy stupidity wherever you find it. It is your duty and responsibility as an American to let your voice be heard. Stand up against idiotic, illogical laws and restrictions. Raise hell. Vote smart.
* If you have not made a few well deserving idiots angry by the time you are 25, get busy. We live in a target rich environment of liberal denial. Drive idiots loony. It is much fun, quite easy and is still legal in all 50 states.
* Stand up for what you believe in. Remain polite and courteous, but never back down.
* You have an obligation to leave America in better shape than when you arrived. Work to ensure that future generations have a better shot at the American Dream, more freedom, more liberty and more pursuits of happiness than what you did.
* Trust your gut feelings. They will not steer your wrong. Only trust people who have earned your trust. Never trust the French.
* Take the time each day to show love and affection for your family and loved ones. The smallest gesture goes straight to the heart. A good life is maximized when shared with the ones you love.
* Don't keep discomforting things and thoughts bunched up inside. The only way to resolve conflicts is to tackle them right way without inhibitions. Don't worry about hurting feelings. Everyone benefits from open, honest discussions. There are no stupid questions.
* Aim small, miss small.
Have fun. Life is not a dress rehearsal.
Ted Nugent is a Waco-based musician and television show host. Contact him directly at tednugent.com.
Ted Nugent is 60?!?!? My G-d, that means that I am........
Depressed d;^)
Go to the tribute page I posted (in post #3) and guess who else turns 60..... that’ll really make you much more depressed.....
Well, Mark, you know how it is . . money talks . . it usually says “goodbye” more often than it says “hello”. - I know what you mean . . I really love Twinkies . . if I could figure out how to sit around all day eating Twinkies and get paid big money for it . . that would be nice.
great advice. Ted don’t forget about God though. As much as we humans intend anything and work for it, He has his own plans for us and makes it known, disregarding or overriding our own designs. Usually though His intervention is much more fruitful and enriching then even our own best fantasies. Summary . . . good advice, but we are not God just human. Plan for that too.
I love Ted and all... but he lacks a basic understanding of free market economics. All transactions are EQUAL exchanges of goods and services for compensation. Why should the employee come out on the short end of a screwjob just because they are providing the service.
“If you are paid a dollar, give your employer $10 worth of effort in return.
I love Ted and all... but he lacks a basic understanding of free market economics. All transactions are EQUAL exchanges of goods and services for compensation. Why should the employee come out on the short end of a screwjob just because they are providing the service. “
I think you miss the point he’s trying to make: don’t do the least amount you can do to get by.
I don’t ask for much - just a decent house in a decent neighborhood, an occasional vacation, and a useable car.
Even just that costs more than a lot of jobs pay. So don’t give me that “shame on you” bull.
I'm glad you are secure in your faith, but somehow I don't think that telling a collection agency, or a mortgage company, that "God will provide" is going to help.
That's not nice, I'm sure Ted does just fine usingAutoCAD. :)
I can say with all honesty that if my employer weren’t paying me to do what I do, it would be my hobby at home. If I won the lottery tomorrow, I’d stiil go to work every day. He’s right, it feels good.
Can I assume he's including marital fidelity in his use of the catchall "everything"?
That's my problem... I take naps, watch movies, and am generally lazy better than anyone I've ever met. In fact, I believe that I've elevated those passtimes to a new artform. The problem is that no matter how much I search, I just can't find anyone willing to pay me to do them!
So, I guess I'll just have to be a network administrator for the next 20 or 25 years, then do those things on my own time. :-(
Mark
Actually, it IS my hobby at home as well. My post was really sort of "tongue in cheek," but I have put off doing a lot of things in my life because I realized that to become really good at my job (which I do love) takes constant work and education. Those things that I've put off I'll eventually get to once I've retired. Things like travel, learning to really play musical instruments and write music, and maybe even getting some pets (once I'm done traveling).
Mark
If you have worked 60 to 80 hours a week for 25 years and have nothing to show for it, shame on you. If you have a certain lifestyle that you must maintain, shame on you.
I'm sorry that you missed that my post was really sort of "tongue in cheek" and a bit satirical. Actually, I do love my job. I certainly couldn't do anything for 60 to 80 hours a week for some twenty five years that I didn't enjoy. Actually, I rather love my job, for the most part. My job right now is as a network administrator, part of a 3 man team that manages some 200 or so servers and 600 remote locations. In fact, I'm taking a short break right now from upgrading the anti-virus software on 60 terminal services servers right now. And as I replied to another post, I enjoy my job enough so that it's also my hobby as well. I've been working with computers for some 25 years (professionally) in nearly every aspect, from programmer, to break/fix tech, to systems engineer, to educator - I was a math/cs tutor and TA in college, and spent 4 1/2 years as a Novell instructor (a Master CNE / Master CNI), to my current job as a network administrator. The only thing I've learned over the last 25 years that I can't do is NOT work. About 10 years ago I needed to have emergency back surgery, and wouldn't be able to work or even sit for 4 to 6 weeks. After 3 days I was starting to go nuts, and after 2 weeks I walked to a client site and begged them to give me something to do (at no charge) as long as there was no lifting or sitting. I was back at work in 3 1/2 weeks.
But I also realize that I've put off a lot of things in my life in order to become good at what I do. And those are the things I'm looking forward to once I retire, probably in about another 20 years or so.
Mark
I’m glad you were joking. It looks like you are doing the job you were meant to do.
It seems we may have found others who cannot let go.
It takes real faith and trust, and at times to reach the very bottom, to look up and reach out for a new start.
I felt I had to hold on to what I had, until I could hold on no more. I live with less now, but enjoy living so much more.
bump for Uncle Ted 8-) He rocks.
“Wildman of Wisdom”
Ted doesn’t need to rock anymore...He is solid as a rock!
You can thank feminism for the end of the "family wage". Before the advent of the 2 income household, almost ALL jobs paid enough for 1 man (college educated or not) to support a family of four in the manner you describe. Once the traditional housewife was fully mocked and discredited, and women were pressured to enter the workforce, wages began to universally be cut in half.
Eventually we ended up at the point we are now, where both parents pretty much have to work outside the home just to live in any normal manner, and the kids are forced into daycare - which was the radical feminists plan all alone. The goal of the left is ALWAYS to remove children from parents. Everything is designed around that goal.
We got used to seeing women in the workplace doing jobs traditionally only done by men during WWII. After the war, federal taxes began taking a bigger and bigger share of household income to finance the constant expansion of the federal government started by the New Deal.
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