For the first 200 years our country was in existence, character was the foundation upon which everything was built. Then, at the turn of the century, personality entered the realm, and by the time we were in the middle of this century, personality was the “in” thing.

Today, the pendulum is swinging again and now people are going back to character, belittling personality. That’s too bad, because personality is the sum total of all of our qualities and characteristics.

There are certain innate advantages to having a great personality. First, people relate to you from the beginning of a relationship, and that’s important because it’s difficult to make a permanent friend until you have made a temporary one. It’s hard to make the sale until you get into the good graces of the person with whom you’re dealing. A pleasant personality is definitely an asset.

Another advantage to a pleasing personality is that if people like you, they are more likely to trust you. They are also less likely to lie to you or deceive you. When people genuinely like you, they will be more than fair with you and will help you expand your business.

All of us like to help our friends and want to do things with and for them. Who knows — some of us might even invite them to play a round of golf with us or go to dinner or to the ball game.

Over the long haul, being a trustworthy person with a pleasing personality leads to good, long-term relationships.

525,600

You’ve probably never seen a headline with only a number and nothing following. 525,600 is the number of minutes you have in your bank account at the beginning of each year. The major question is: What use will you make of all of those minutes?

Needless to say, you’re not guaranteed any of them, but what are you doing with the ones you have at this precise moment? Since you’re reading this, I believe you’re making beautiful use of this minute and the next few to follow.

How many times have you told someone or been told by someone, “I just don’t have any time!”? We repeatedly hear that couples are busier than ever and have less time for each other and their families, etc., despite the fact that we currently have more labor-saving devices than any people in history.

Dishwashers, garbage disposals, microwave ovens, computers that automatically wake us up, turn lights and appliances on and off, sound alarms, open doors, etc. We have hundreds of clocks and watches all around, telling us what time it is, but we seem to have none for ourselves. On the other hand, in many Third World countries, particularly in the interior, there are few, if any, watches, but they seem to have plenty of time.

Why do we say we “have no time” when, since the beginning of time, there have been 24 hours in everybody’s day? Could it be that we’re not using our time wisely? It is true that if we don’t plan our time, somebody else will take it. I’m confident you’ve noticed that people with nothing to do, as a general rule, want to do it with you. The message is clear: Organize. Establish your priorities. Follow them to the best of your ability. You’ll get ‘er done and get your candy corn, RIGHT ON TIME!