It’s called a “self-fulfilling prophecy” when something occurs because we believe it will. The mind is constructed so that it constantly seeks to bring into physical reality the things it thinks about most. Most of us will never realize the tremendous potential we possess-because we are unwilling to believe that we can accomplish things that others believe are impossible. “Impossible” jobs require more effort and greater concentration, but when they are completed, the rewards-both financial and psychic-are commensurate with the effort required. You may not be able to achieve everything you’d like, but you won’t accomplish anything unless you believe you can.

This article was featured in Newsweek, for the original article go to: http://www.newsweek.com/blogs/the-human-condition/2010/07/20/10-ways-facebook-can-ruin-your-life.html?GT1=43002

This week Facebook will register its 500 millionth member. It’s a milestone both significant and meaningless: yes, it’s a reminder of just how big the social-media giant has become, but really—did we need reminding? That Facebook is a part of many Americans’ daily lives is clear. But how it’s affecting those lives is still being examined. We know that Facebook can be good for your health, and that it can make everything from networking to sharing photos easier. But there’s also a potentially sinister side, even aside from dubious privacy issues. Below, 10 ways that Facebook can do more harm than good.

1. You’ll be reunited with your biological parents. This can be good news, but it’s not always. Take Prince Sagala, who found her biological children on Facebook—children she alleges were kidnapped more than a decade ago by her ex-husband. The mom and kids are now reunited. The only problem: the kids grew up with their dad and don’t want anything to do with the parent who now has custody. And in an even more horrifying story, Aimee Sword was sentenced to nine to 30 years in prison recently for sexually abusing her 15-year-old biological son, whom she tracked down on Facebook.

2. Your creditors can track you down. Creditors use Facebook as a way to both track the movements of debtors and keep their eyes on any potential assets that could be seized to cover those debts. At first, lenders may use Facebook to determine whether you’re a worthy candidate for a loan. But should you come to owe a creditor money, the company can track you down and discover your assets by monitoring your Facebook feed.

3. Your insurers can deny your claims. Remember the woman who was receiving workers’ compensation for depression, only to be “outed” by Facebook pictures of her smiling? Her insurance benefits were cut off, with insurers saying that her photos showed she was ready to return to work. That’s left attorneys who argue for disability benefits concerned. Many now advise against giving away too much on Facebook.

4. Your ex can use it against you in a divorce. Facebook is a popular tool for divorce attorneys, who comb pages of their clients’ spouses for evidence of neglect, infidelity, or deception. (One study suggests that Facebook comes up in one out of five new divorce petitions). Mashable says a woman lost custody of her children after her ex proved she was spending time tending her crops on Farmville instead of spending quality time with her kids, while divorce lawyers have given multiple interviews extolling the site’s virtues as a way to air damaging dirty laundry.

5. It could make you depressed. Researchers from Stony Brook University in New York found that teenage girls who spend the most time discussing their lives with friends were more likely to be depressed. Apparently, spending too much time dwelling on gossip and your problems can make you feel worse, not better. The researchers didn’t study Facebook in particular, but they indicated that social-networking sites such as Facebook made it easier for people to be in constant contact with friends and perpetuate the unhealthy discussions.

6. It can cost you a job. A British survey of employers found that half of those polled had turned down job candidates once something unsavory about that candidate surfaced on Facebook. (Examples include tales of drunkenness, photos of illegal activity, and bad grammar.) In the U.S., 20 percent of employers admit to scoping out the Facebook pages of potential job candidates, while 9 percent say they’re going to start soon.

7. It can out you to your family. Even if you’re discreet on Facebook, your loose-lipped friends might not be and could post comments on your wall that betray your secrets. But there are also more insidious outings going on: MIT students designed an algorithm that successfully pinpointed gay users by analyzing how many of their friends were gay.

8. It can make it easier for your stalker or abusive partner to follow your movements. Let’s be honest: if there weren’t Facebook, abusers would find another trigger to set off their rage. But Facebook has made it easier for these people to keep tabs on their victims and respond to their movements, even after the victim has tried to sever ties. In one particularly sad case, a woman who changed her Facebook status to “single” was killed by her husband, from whom she had separated. After seeing her status, he broke into her home and stabbed her repeatedly.

9. You can be sued for libel. There are already several cases of libel suits over content posted on Facebook. In Britain, where libel is easier to prove than in the U.S., a businessman won £22,000 when a former classmate created a fake profile full of defamatory information. Stateside, an Ohio-area band sued a Facebook “hate group,” and a Michigan towing company sued a student who created a Facebook page alleging that the company tows legally parked cars. (The company says those claims are false.) So far, the law appears to be on the poster’s side. But it’s still a hassle.

10. Your kids could be targeted by predators. After a teenage girl in England was murdered by a sex offender who posed as a teenager on Facebook, the British version of the site added a “panic button” that allows teens to report any unwanted attention—including cyber-bullying—directly to the authorities. But the button is not yet on U.S. or other international versions of Facebook, and it’s unclear whether the company plans to add it.

Know of other examples? Leave them in the comments below.

When you have the potential for success within you, adversity and temporary defeat only help you prepare to reach great heights of success. Without adversity, you would never develop the qualities of reliability, loyalty, humility, and perseverance that are so essential to enduring success. Many people have escaped the jaws of defeat and achieved great victories because they would not allow themselves to fail. When your escape routes are all closed, you will be surprised how quickly you will find the path to success.

There is no such thing as failure, unless it is accepted as such. Every defeat is temporary unless you give up and allow it to become permanent. In fact, temporary defeat often makes us stronger and more capable. Each time we try and fail, we learn something that helps prepare us for eventual success. Only in the classroom is there a single correct answer for every problem. If you try an approach that doesn’t work, try something else. When you view adversity as nothing more than a learning experience, your successes in life will far outnumber your failures.

It’s hard to say which would be more discouraging: drifting from job to job because you’re always the first to be laid off, or laboring in monotonous obscurity at the same job. The first results from not doing what you are told to do, the second from doing only what you are told to do. You can “get by” for a time following either approach, but you will never get ahead. Personal initiative is more important in today’s enlightened, high-tech workplace than it was during the Industrial Age, when the ability to follow orders was a critical skill. As technology makes many supervisory functions obsolete, every one of us is expected to do more with less, determine what needs to be done, and do it. Don’t wait to be told. Know your company and your job so well that you can anticipate what needs to be done-then do it! Stop explaining and start doing!

Dale Breckenridge Carnegie was an American writer and lecturer and the developer of famous courses in self-improvement, salesmanship, corporate training, public speaking and interpersonal skills. Born in poverty on a farm in Missouri, he was the author of How to Win Friends and Influence People, first published in 1936, a massive bestseller that remains popular today. He also wrote How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, a biography of Abraham Lincoln entitled Lincoln the Unknown, and several other books.

One of the core ideas in his books is that it is possible to change other people’s behavior by changing one’s reaction to them.

The most successful people are those who serve the greatest number of people. It doesn’t take money……..all it takes is ingenuity and a strong desire to be of genuine service.  Helping others to solve their problems will help you to solve your own.

What is money? It is a medium of exchange. What does it do? It ensures the success of exchange by being the one item on offer that is ALWAYS acceptable. Why is it necessary? Because human beings must exchange to live together in peace, and to prosper.

That covers the concept or idea of money. But an idea, as such, does not exist as a physical entity. Money must be a physical entity. Neither the “electronic” money of today nor the notes and coin which circulate as cash has any official or legal connection with Gold and Silver. But they once did, and most people think that they still do. As long as that situation persists, the modern monetary system will function.

George Bernard Shaw was born in 1856 and was the first person to have been awarded both a Nobel Prize for Literature and an Oscar.

He was most angered by what he perceived as the exploitation of the working class, and most of his writings censure that abuse.