Robert C Slayton - Grief to Joy and Inspiration

Written 9/7/2025 I had my first “second date” since 2022 yesterday. I wasn’t sure if it was going to happen. I do know wonderful redhead enough that I can’t push her to nail something down. It’s up to her to make that decision. I had planned my Saturday out without her. I was going to ride my motorcycle to pick up a raffle prize I had won. Go to Theosofest at the Theosophy Society, then test ride...

This is a quote by W. Clement Stone. “Bondage is subjection to external influences and internal negative thoughts.” So many times, we look at social media and we get upset by it. A lot of times our internal negative thought process is constraining us from doing what we're called to do. What can you do to break free of the bondage? Let me know. Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. T...

This is a quote by Sallust: “Every man is the architect of his own fortune.” Do you agree? Do you believe that your fortune, what you've created in your life, not just financially, but every aspect of your life, is because you architected it? My personal opinion is yes. Prove me otherwise. Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becom...

Written 9/5/2025. I just read a lovely article entitled Ancient Wisdom: How to Die Well (click on the link to go to the article). Riding motorcycles, I’m confronted with death on a weekly basis. We ride because we love to. We accept the risk and do it anyway. Within the last month no less than 4 people have passed away, two of which are adult children of friends and clients. We all treat death as...

This is an Omaha Indian saying: “Dreams are wiser than men.” I don't know where to go with that. What do you think? Let me know. From Sacred Hoops p95 Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episode...

Written 9/4/2025. One of the duties of an Ambassador for the Naperville Area Chamber of Commerce is to attend ribbon cuttings. This is for both new businesses and businesses who had something significant happen. Tonight, it was for the total refurbishment of the Fairfield by Marriott in Naperville. The sky was a crystal blue with puffy white clouds with the temperature hovering around 65 degrees....

Quote by Beethoven: “Misic is a higher revelation than philosophy” Sometimes when I hear the strains of music, I am enraptured. When I learned how to waltz and I heard the Moonlight Sonata playing and waltzing next to it, it was transcendent. Absolutely transcendent and everything just made sense. How about you? Is music better than philosophy? Give me your thoughts. Robert’s Substack is a reader-...

This is a quote by Andre’ Guide. “It is better to be hated for what you are than to be loved for what you are not.” I agree. Be yourself. Be unapologetically you. Don't live by somebody else's standard. Don't have that success where it feels hollow and empty inside. Become who you are always meant to be. Do you agree? Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and su...

Quote from Arnold H Glosow: The key to everything is patience. You get the chicken by hatching the egg, not smashing it. When was the last time you had something that you really wanted and it happened immediately? Versus when was the last time you got something that was really important to you and you worked at it? Let me know in the comments. Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. T...

This quote was submitted by a friend. He found it on Florida State College's webpage back in the 90s. “In times of change, learners inherit the earth, while their learned find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists.” Are you an active learner, or did you learn everything and your kind of stuck in the past and nostalgia? What are your thoughts? Robert’s Substack...

Written 9/1/2025 Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is written to several very special women I know, each having their own unique struggles. I see you. I see you busting your ass every day and feeling like the world is conspiring against you. That no matter what you do, like nothing is hap...

This is from my 5th book which I’m in the process of writing. The working title of the book is as follows: A Journey Back to Passion, Purpose and Peace . A sacred and strategic journey for high-achieving men and women ready to break free from the illusion of “success” and rediscover who they really are. Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work,...

This is a quote by Auntie Mame. It was a movie, and I love it. “Life is a banquet, and most poor suckers are starving.” There are so many positives about life. If we focus on the positives, it's a banquet. It's a feast. You need to get a job. You can get a job. The question is whether you're going to get a job that you want to get or feel like it is at your station versus below your station. If yo...

This is a quote from Daily Guideposts way back in the 90s. Mary Jane Clark is the one who did it, and it was her African friend who gave her this quote. “In America, everyone has a watch, but no one has the time. Over here in Africa, few of us have a watch, but we all have time.” How about you? Do you have time in your life for others? It's a challenging thing to carve out that time and have space...

Quote by Marilyn Vos Savant “To acquire knowledge, one must study. But to acquire wisdom, one must observe.” So, if you really want to acquire that wisdom, what do you need to observe? And how will that influence your thought and perspective? The better we perceive reality, the more accurately we will act on it, and the more successful we will be. What are your thoughts? Robert’s Substack is a rea...

Quote by Kierkegaard “People demand freedom of speech as a compensation for the freedom of thought, which they seldom use.” What are your thoughts? Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes,...

Quote from Nikki Giovanni “I'm glad I understand that while language is a gift, listening is a responsibility.” It's everyone's responsibility to actually listen and be influenced. It's okay to learn, unlearn, and relearn based upon the facts. How many of you agree with me? Or do you prefer just the Dunning-Kruger effect? Think about it. Blessings, Robert Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported pu...

The Dunning-Kruger effect aside, this quote comes from Oliver Wendell Holmes. “It is the providence of knowledge to speak. It is the privilege of wisdom to listen.” Think about how it is today. A lot of people speak. Very few people listen with the intent to be influenced. So next time you're listening to somebody, think about it. Ask those four questions at Rotary International, the four-way trut...

I don't know who said this, but it's a really cute quote. “Nostalgia is like a grammar lesson; you find the present tense and the past perfect.” Hindsight is 20-20. Once you get through a major issue, what happens? You think about it, and you have a great story, but you got through it. Now when you're thinking about the present, it means you're thinking about the future. That's anxiety. And so, re...

Good morning. Happy Monday. I was thinking, what could I give to you that might help you during the week? So, this is called the Enhanced Pause. What I'd like you to do is before responding to any external demand, take three deep breaths. Then ask yourself these three questions. * Is it truly urgent or does it just feel urgent? * Am I responding from anxiety or from a centered place? * What would...

Quote from Edmund Burke. “Food for thought. To read without reflecting is like eating without digesting.” Think about today's society when we read something. There's something Rotary International has, which is called the four-way test, ask these four questions. If you pass these through a lot of what you read, you'll just realize how crazy everything is. Number one, is it the truth? Number two, i...

Written 8/23/2025. This has been a whirlwind of a week. Pretty much what I planned to happen got changed. In prior years, I would have been much more stressed about the situation. Maybe it’s being better grounded, but I was only a little stressed. My daughter went back to college this week. Move in was Wednesday, yes you read that right. In the MIDDLE of the flipping week. Couldn’t they have sched...

Here's another quote from Country Magazine. “The greatest mistake you can make in life is to be continually fearing you will make one.” Think about that. How much energy is spent in fearing that we're going to make a mistake? The reality is we make mistakes. It is perfectly normal. What differentiates us from everybody else and the great people from the average people are what they do when the cra...

Written 8/21/2025. I’m starting to go out on dates. That’s a good thing as I need practice and am meeting some really nice people. At the same time, I’m scared to death. Scared that if I actually find “the one” that my life will change. This might sound strange, but I’ve gotten into a groove. I know what I’m doing, I do what I want, etc. If I find “the one” then it will change to we and compromise...

Quote about experience, I’m not sure who said this. “Experience is a hard teacher because she gives the test first and the lesson afterwards.” Do you agree? Robert’s Substack is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus e...