Why good enough may ultimately, never be good enough.

My children are now both sixth-formers and thinking about (hopefully) where life might take them. As they are autistic, that path is unlikely to be traditional or smooth.
Thinking back to myself at a similar age, I was struggling to see the value in anything. I didn't even know who I was or what I might be capable of achieving

It's exam results season, AS last week for us and today, GCSE. Youngest has literally not slept all night. I have been searching for inspiration for them and this morning I have found some on Quora, the question and expert answer site.

I love Quora, I've said this before.

This particular answer to the question, "Why did Google create Alphabet" (Google's new holding company for innovative product creation) is so in line with my own beliefs of what I hope every young person, including my own sons, should realise before it's too late, that I wanted to share it.

It has thousands of Quora Upvotes, and so it should. It's long, but it's worth reading if you want to be inspired and truly understand why being "good enough" is never truly "good enough".

As a special needs mum, and someone living with chronic illness, I have often had to accept that 'good enough' really is the best I can do at that moment, which in fact, makes it also the best I could have hoped for. No point in feeling guilty about it. 

Even so, we should always strive to do our best- whatever that is - to help others and to wake up, "uncomfortably excited" about our plans. Go beyond your comfort zone; no one ever did anything memorable doing the same old thing they did yesterday, or the day before.

You don't have to be great, or become a billionaire (though that would be nice!). You DO have to think laterally, seek better solutions to every problem, innovate and think creatively. Never settle for easy. Wake up hungry for better, go to sleep knowing you did something towards that.

Some days, if you're like me, that might just be getting out of bed. I might not have been able to yesterday. I am, if nothing else, an optimist. 

But while you're striving, remember: Don't Be Evil. Don't exploit or take advantage of those weaker than you. Live your life for the service of others because ultimately, helping humanity into a better future is the best we can hope for.

Here's the answer from Quora: 

Read James Altucher's answer to Why did Google create Alphabet? on Quora

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Adding a G+ Badge to Blogger

Are you on Google+? See at the bottom of this post I have a G+, add to circles badge? Want one? Here's how: 1. Go to this Google developers page. Add your Google profile id (a string of numbers) into the box. It gives you the option to click a link nest to it to autofill for you, which is handy.
2. Then choose whether you want an icon or badge. It's previewed so you can see what it will look like.
3. You can then choose your size. If you want it in a sidebar, make sure you choose a size that's smaller than that.
4. Then, in the 'Get the Code' section, there are two parts to the code. The top part is to be added into your blog's section. Copy this piece of code, then go to your blog. It's always a good idea to back up your blog before you make any code alterations.
5. Next, go to Template> Edit Html (below the picture of your blog). Click that, then click 'Proceed'.
6. Scroll down past the code carefully until you see this:   . This is the closing tag for your code and you should paste the code you copied directly before this. Click Save Template.
7. Next go back to the Google developer page and copy the rest of the code. You are going to paste this where you want the badge to be, either in a text/html widget in your sidebar, or at the bottom of your post template. To post it in a widget, go to 'Layout' then 'add a gadget' where you want it and select the text widget. Paste in and save. I have added mine at the bottom of each post. To do that, I went to Settings> Posts& Comments>Post Template and pasted it there. Now every time I open a new post, the code is ready pasted in and I just add my post above it.

If you have a Google+ page, you can do the same; the customisation link is just above the profile link on the developers page.
Bear in mind, this is for Blogger. If you have a wordpress.com site, you cannot add javascript. Instead, just choose a badge image (scroll to the static badge section) and add it to an image widget in your sidebar with a link to your page - not as fancy but it still takes them there.
If you are on wordpress.org, you can find a plugin to do the job for you.

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