In his book, How to Stop Worrying and Start Living, Author Dale Carnegie mentions his "F. T. D." file. "F. T. D." Stands for Foolish Things I have Done. Into this file Carnegie put a written account of all the stupid, useless, foolish things he had done. When he dug out the "F. T. D." file, which he did on a regular basis, and re-read the criticism he had written of himself, it helped him in the toughest job he has to face; the management of Dale Carnegie. For years Carnegie was just like you and me. He blamed most of his troubles on other people. As he grew older and wiser however he came to the painful conclusion that he himself was the author of most of his own misfortune. A great many people have discovered that fact as they grow older. Even Napoleon came to admit this fact when he said at Saint Helena, "No one but myself can be blamed for my fall. I have been my own greatest enemy – – the cause of my own disastrous fate." Well, if we are to be honest with ourselves, I think we are truly the architects of our own destiny. Most of us spend a good part of our lives falling into pits we have dug ourselves. I'm not so sure that keeping a "F. T. D." file is a bad idea. Man, if he is to grow spiritually, emotionally and intellectually, must from time to time indulge in a little introspection. When a man can look at himself and his life under the critical glass of self examination, and conclude that there are many, many occasions on which he was just a plain fool, then and only then can he feel prepared to come to grips honestly with the many problems that from time to time confront us all.
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