Why
should anyone else be the
Master of your Destiny? It's all about you.
It's all about choices.
Some
people talk a lot about the kind of
life they'd like to have. Other people
do something to make it happen. Which
kind are you?
Deciding to Take a Chance on Yourself
About
ten years ago, a friend of mine named
Melissa made a decision that changed
her life. Her school counselor offered
her the chance to become an exchange
student in Europe. She would be living
in Germany, France, and Denmark, learning
all about each country's customs,
meeting new people, and picking up
some of each language.
No one in Melissa's family had ever
traveled far out of the state they
lived in. Her parents were skeptical,
and told her that she should forget
it-they didn't have any extra money
to help her with such foolishness.
In fact, no one in Melissa's working-class
neighborhood had ever considered going
to Europe. They just hoped they'd
have enough money to pay the rent
each month and buy groceries each
week.
Melissa knew it would be easier to
stay home, to keep working part-time
and going to school part-time. "After
all," she thought, "who
do I think I am? I really don't know
what to expect. I don't know any foreign
languages. I'd probably just make
a fool of myself." If Melissa
went to Europe for a year, she wouldn't
be able to work, and she'd be spending
the money she'd worked so hard to
save. It would be her first time ever
away from her family and friends,
too. What if she got homesick? And
the thing that scared her most was
that when she came back from her adventure,
she'd be broke. She'd have to live
at home and rely on her parents until
she could get a job and save enough
to move out.
Still,
she couldn't quite forget the idea.
Why shouldn't it be her? After
going endlessly back and forth, she
finally decided to take the risk.
She could always come back early if
she hated it. She called her school
counselor, who was delighted when
Melissa said "Sign me up!"
The counselor was about the only one
who seemed happy. Melissa's family
offered no support, emotionally or
financially, and her friends just
laughed when she said she was going
to Europe. They finally realized she
was serious when she closed out her
savings account and asked the counselor
to drive her to the airport. "We'll
see you in a couple of weeks,"
her dad laughed as she walked to the
car.
Lessons
Learned
The trip began poorly. The airline
bumped Melissa's entire group, and
told them they'd have to wait until
the next day to leave. Although she
had never flown before, Melissa decided
if she didn't leave that very day,
she'd chicken out completely. She
went from one ticket counter to another
until she found a connection, spending
10 hours in the airport before leaving
on her first-ever flight. It took
so long and she was so nervous that
she began to wonder if she should
have listened to her parents and her
friends after all. When she arrived
in Germany the next afternoon, she
was exhausted. She guessed that the
weird sleep-deprived feeling she was
experiencing was what people called
jet lag. Oddly, it pleased her somehow
to know first-hand what it was. No
one back home knew what jet lag felt
like! She handed the address of her
new apartment to the taxi driver,
and paid him in Euros when he dropped
her off. Then she slept for a long,
long time.
The
next day, Melissa began exploring
her new neighborhood. She wasn't nervous
at all. She found her way to the nearest
travel agency and bought a train pass.
Nearly everyone spoke English and
seemed helpful, and the trains made
it easy to get around.
The
next week, she ventured further-to
Switzerland. She went alone because
the other students in her group were
apprehensive about traveling outside
the "base" country. Melissa
wasn't exactly radiating confidence
herself, but she wanted to see as
much as she could during her time
in Europe, and the only way to do
that was to summon up her courage
and go. She loved learning what was
beyond the sheltered world she had
left behind. She found that all she
really needed was common sense and
a map. From then on, when Friday came,
Melissa was packing her bag for another
destination. She saw the ruins at
Rome, the Eiffel Tower, and even the
great pyramids in Egypt. Sometimes
she felt like she must be dreaming-that
she'd wake up from this new feeling
of independence, freedom, accomplishment
and success. But she was wide awake,
and enjoying every minute.
Melissa's year of travel was a year
of revelation for her. As she studied
different cultures and met so many
new people, she realized she had always
had an adventurous spirit and a thirst
for knowledge. And if Melissa had
decided to stay in the US, she would
never have met her future husband.
She helped him run his restaurant
in Berlin-a new enterprise they enthusiastically
shared, and with great success. They
stayed in Germany for another year
before they returned to the States.
As it turned out, Melissa was far
from being broke!
So
what's the lesson here? People who
don't take risks don't go far. People
who let others make their decisions
for them are rarely happy. And
fear is what keeps 99% of people from
leading fulfilled, successful lives.
You don't have to let that
happen to you. Figure out what you
want, and then go for it!
What
You Need To Know
You
should be steering your own ship.
While there will always be some factors
that are out of your hands, it makes
little sense to worry about what you
can't change. Instead, worry about
what you can
control - you and
your actions and your
thinking.
Points
To Remember: Be
receptive to all possibilities. Most
new ideas sounded crazy the first
time they were introduced.
Fear
of failure can be very powerful. It
can cause you to stay in a rut, to
procrastinate, and to miss out on
opportunities to change your life.
If you are dominated by fear, learn
to be brave.
Realize
that risk-taking is a necessary part
of success. Learning to negotiate
risks leads to more self-confidence
and more triumphs along the road to
the life you would like to lead.
Always
be on the lookout for new opportunities.
Define success for yourself. Most
people believe it's about finding
inner peace, satisfaction and emotional
balance, as well as financial stability.
You can't achieve those unless you
start thinking out of the box. You
have to be willing to take some risks.
You must be willing to step out of
your "comfort zone." This
applies to business as well as to
your personal life.
Some
Of The Pillars Of Success: Plan
your work, and work your plan!
Make
every effort to be the best you can
be at what you do. Don't compare yourself
to others. Set your own goals.
When
you make a commitment, stick to it!
Acknowledge
that disappointments are part of life.
Instead of allowing setbacks to keep
you from moving ahead, overcome them
and forge ahead. This will make you
stronger.
Remember
that every experience, whether good
or bad, can be a learning experience.
It's all in what you take from it.
Live
each day as if it were your last;
have no regrets.
Some
Final Words…..
So
have you decided yet if you're a talker
or a doer? Do you wait
for things to happen to you at the
whim of others, or do you make
them happen? Are you just thinking
about how great your future could
be if only...? There is no
better time than right now to stop
just thinking about making
a change that will secure your future
success and time. Right now is the
time to do something about it.
Starting a home based business is
one of the easiest first steps you
can take to begin working on your
financial independence.
You may have heard people derisively
say, "Oh, she's only looking
out for number one." But be honest.
If you don't look out for yourself
first, who will? Are you ready to
take control of your own destiny-to
look out for number one? I can help
you find the path to success, but
you need to make the decision to take
the first step down that path. Your
first step will take you just a few
minutes. Take the time to fill out
the form below to get started on your
new path to success today. Like my
friend Melissa, you will discover
a whole new way of life that you never
imagined-and a sense of independence,
confidence and accomplishment that
is beyond your fondest dreams.
About
ten years ago, a friend of mine named
Melissa made a decision that changed
her life. Her school counselor offered
her the chance to become an exchange
student in Europe. She would be living
in Germany, France, and Denmark, learning
all about each country's customs,
meeting new people, and picking up
some of each language. 
Lessons
Learned
Be
receptive to all possibilities. Most
new ideas sounded crazy the first
time they were introduced. 
So
have you decided yet if you're a talker
or a doer? Do you wait
for things to happen to you at the
whim of others, or do you make
them happen? Are you just thinking
about how great your future could
be if only...? There is no
better time than right now to stop
just thinking about making
a change that will secure your future
success and time. Right now is the
time to do something about it.
Starting a home based business is
one of the easiest first steps you
can take to begin working on your
financial independence.
