Make Your Own Bed (Little Things That Can Change Your Life and Maybe The World) by Admiral William McRaven

This book is a New York Times Best-Seller!
Admiral McRaven served in the Navy with great distinction. Thirty=seven years as a Navy Seal, he commanded at every level.

This is a summary of his commencement remarks shared with the 2014 Graduates of the University of Texas in Austin.

Admiral McRaven shares 10 Lessons he learned from basic Seal Training that can be of value to you as you move forward in life.
I am going to mention 5 of these lessons that impressed me the most and that will pique your interest!

Lesson #1: Start Making Your Bed
If you make your bed every morning, you will have accomplished the first task of the day. The Seal Trainees would have their beds inspected every morning by their drill instructors.

Lesson #2: If You Want To Change The World, Find Someone To Help You Paddle
During Seal Training, the students were assigned boat crews, consisting of three students on each side of the rubber dingy with the coxswain to guide the boat. You cannot successfully paddle alone! You need the help of others and you cannot change the world alone!

Lesson #3: Measure A Person By The Size of Their Heart, Not The Size of Their Flippers
It was not always the biggest guys or the strongest that finished at the lead. It was the heart and will of the man. Often times it was the smallest Seal students with the biggest hearts!

Lesson #4: If You Want To Change The World – Don’t Back Down From Sharks
The author describes the stage of training in which the trainees are flown down to San Clemente Island, off the coast of San Diego. They must complete a series of long swims, one of which is at night. According to their instructor, the only thing they have to look out for is the great White Sharks! This is a known breeding ground! The instructor assured the young trainees that no student has ever been eaten by a shark -at least not recently!

McRaven writes, “There are a lot of sharks in the world. If you hope to complete the swim, you will have to deal with them.”

Lesson #5: The Seal Training Brass Bell
In Seal Training, there is a brass bell that hangs in the center of the compound for all the students to see. All you have to do to quit is ring the bell!
** Ring the Bell and you no longer have to wake up at 5 AM.
** Ring the Bell and you no longer have to do freezing cold swims.
** Ring the Bell and you no longer have to do the runs, the obstacle course, the physical training.
** Just Ring the Bell!

The instructor told the trainees, “If you quit and ring the bell, you will regret it for the rest of your life. Quitting never makes anything easier.”
Of all the lessons McRaven learned, this one was them most important. Never quit, never ring the bell!

McRaven lists 10 Lessons, which are applicable to most of us no matter how young or old we are, in his #1 New York Times Best Seller.
I highly recommend this great read to learn more about these important 10 Lessons.