Show p alk TAKING STOCK By Dy DOROTHY DIX Cop Copyright 1922 by the Wheeler Syndicate Inc This Is the time of or year ear when all good business men take stock of or he goods on their shelves and balance their books and find out just ir where they stand commercially follow their example and have a spiritual stocktaking and dit I Let nt us I vU Vh av hant takes stock he Is honest with himself He lie does not credit himself with having automobiles automobiles automobiles automo automo- biles when he has only two tao In his storeroom nor docs does he list his calico as brocades He knows that to Credit himself with do 10 business business busi bustS more capital than he has to ness on i is the first aid to ruin Follow his example in this and when we sit alt down to calmly and dispassionately dispassionately take stock of ot ourselves let Jet letus letus us begin by trying tring to rate our abilities J bl abili abilities ties at their true worth Let us not magnify our our aptitudes Into talents nor glorify our into genius and thus put put a value ourselves far In In excess of ot our worth CONCEITED HUMANS tenths Nine-tenths of tho the failures In the I world orld arc aro the result of ot self conceit of ot otI people thinking more highly of ot themselves theta them I selves than they have a right to them them-I think and trying to do things beyond the tile I scope of ot their ability All AlJ of ot us know J men and women who are near writers writers writers writ writ- ers and near singers and near actors ac ac- ac- ac tors tors men men And nd women with a tiny talent talent talent tal tal- tal- tal ent but without the tile big ability to accomplish accomplish accomplish ac ac- ac- ac anything worth while who are starving starving- along trying to write or sing or act We Ve know doctors without without without with with- out patients lawyers without clients preachers without churches who eat out their hearts wondering why they never succeed i I igl I The answer would be self evident self evIdent if it they would only onty honestly take stock of ot themselves and admit to themselves themselves themselves them them- selves that the goods on ore their shelves was homespun Instead of ot chiffon They are failures because they are trying to do the thing for which nature did I not equip them but the they would be successes in the line for which the they were wee destined Nothing would do more for the happIness happiness happiness hap hap- and well-being well of or multitudes of people who have ov o valued r Yalu r-Yalu d thaline tho tha tholine line of goods they carry than to mark markIt It down to Its real value alue For man many manya a woman who cannot earn her bread and butter by painting dauby pictures could make mato a fortune as a a. dressmaker or milliner many a one who Is a poor pool actor on the stage would be bo a good actor as a boarding housekeeper or ora a saleswoman many a man who lacks the executive ability to run a business business business busi busi- ness for himself could command his own salary as an an in a big business many a poor doctor and anti tiresome preacher would make crackerjack crackerjack crack- crack business men JUNK OLD STUFF When the business man takes stock he junks the articles that are worn out that are out of ot fashion that are arc obsolete No Xo good business man clutters clutters clot clot- up his factory with out of date machinery No o successful merchant takes up the space on his shelves with hoop skirts and bustles hustles and the sort of ot clothes that his mother used to wear He knows he must be continually continually con con- getting in a a. new stock of or merchandise and keep up with the times or else he ho will go to the wall all When Then we take stock of ourselves we will win do well if jf we do likewise and cast Into the discard our moth moth- moth eaten aten ideals and our old fashioned prejudices that do not fit this age and generation The Tile theory that the old days das were the best da days days' days and s and that especially tile the times wh when n we were young were the days day when all aU human wisdom and virtue flowered the idea that because we weare weare weare are middle-aged middle or old we are infallible lible Uble In our opinions the fond belief that we have a a. right to sit In Judgment judgment judgment Judg judg- ment on the young oung and to dictate their manners and morals and general general general gen gen- eral conduct the conviction that the youth of toda today toda- is degenerate degenerateS and is going to the devil all of ot these no notions notions notions no- no we ought to chuck out into the ash can I NO GOOD The They are old stock unusable un un- un- un saleable no good to anybody and the they take up so much sp space ce In our heads that they leave no room for tor new fresh ideas and Impressions ge A-ge is fa nothing noth noth- ing lag but an inability to change ones one's viewpoint As long as we keep a I continual turnover er of ot the latest Ideas i we are young no matter how many years we have been doing business at the same old stand I A good business man after acter he has audited his accounts writes off oU his losses They are bound to occur to ex even en tho most prosperous concern He pays them and the incident is closed Surely we do well to follow his example ex ex- cx- cx ample In this also when we balance our book of ot life at the end of ot the year ear No human existence can be all sun sun- shine To each of ot us there must come com sorrow and disappointment Some of ot our most roost cherished plans go wrong Fi Friends lends we have trusted betray us Love we have counted on fails tails us Let us not brood over our wrongs or cherish our sorrows Let t us charge It off ort to profit and loss lose an and 1 wipe off the slate and start afresh with the hew year |