You Determine Your Destiny!

I've written several articles over the last year about being aware of our self-talk and living our purpose.

I shared a story about an incident that occurred where I talked myself out of a potentially great opportunity to network with Chris Gardener, author of Pursuit of Happyness.

While I might have missed out on the chance to work with an influential man who has done great things, I haven't missed out on my chance at greatness.

The truth is that no one person has the power to determine where you end up in life. Your boss might fire you, but it's up to you to bounce back and find another job. Your coach might cut you from the team but it's on you to get back in the gym and work on your game.

Success or failure in life is a result of cumulative decisions that you make. Yes, God, the universe, and other people work with you, but it is you who was given free will to choose to be who you are.

Yeah, there may have been people in your life who hated on you and second-guessed every move you made.

But, the dreams and goals that live in you were planted there by an unlimited Creator, not by people with limited vision.

If one person doesn't like your idea for a business does that mean you shouldn't do it? Of course not! Many of the most successful enterprises in the world - like Microsoft, Apple, Mc Donald's, and the whole hip- hop culture - were initially discouraged by those in "power" who said that their ideas "would never work" or were "stupid".

C'mon, look at YouTube, Facebook, and Myspace! People are becoming stars and getting book and TV deals from creating silly videos and songs. NONE of us ever thought that would happen!

Let's put the responsibility where it belongs - on ourselves. Most people go through life blaming someone else or life's circumstances when things don't go right.

I'm not trying to discourage you from listening to good counsel, however we need to take back our power. We can't let other people's negativity get into our heads.

I'm also not saying that the criticisms of our family and friends don't affect us, but we must stay strong and learn to look inward toward God when other men are trying to bring us down.

Never fear, though, because I have two simple solutions to help us have extraordinary futures, gain more control over our lives, and determine our destinies:

Read and Get Started.

The first simple change is to get on a reading program. In the next few years you will be the sum total of what you put in your mind. If what you are allowing into your mind on a regular basis is not in harmony with where you want to be in the future you may want to make some changes.

I could quote you some recent studies that speak to how little we read nowadays and how it affects our well-being, but I'll hold off on that. If you want the info email me and I'll send it to you.

What we focus on expands in our lives. If we put positive information into our minds we can more easily block out naysayers and increase our chances of attracting positive circumstances.

Too many people spend their lives "getting ready" to do something or waiting for the time to be "just right" before they will initiate a change of course in their lives. Yes, I know getting started is not always so simple and can be the most difficult and scary thing.

I've got news for you: the time is never perfect. You're never going to have 100% of the answers so you may as well get going.

You don't have to sky dive into getting started. Just take baby steps. But, get it crackin'! (If you want to know more about how to do this, email me and I'll send you the "1% Rule" newsletter from September.)

That's pretty much it. Sounds very simple, right?

Just remember, when other folks are shooting your plans and ideas down and the doubt is creeping in, you are who God says you are!

Derek

How to Stand Out at Work

Me and a friend were talking about work yesterday during MLK day. It's amazing how even on holidays when you're supposed to be chillin' "the office" comes up. Anyway, we were discussing what makes a person a superstar at work.

There are may factors that go into it: working somewhere that values your ideas, staying away from gossip, having a supervisor who understands her team member's talents, actually doing work that you're good at, and having the desire to stand out. It also helps if you stay at a job longer than a month!

So if you're looking to get a raise, earn a promotion, get a letter of recommendation to graduate school, or even transfer to a new department as smoothly as possible, here's a list of things I thought might help you:

1. Do work that floats your boat. There is no substitute for actually being passionate about your chosen field. I spent the first 4 years after I graduated from college searching for something that would excite me. No wonder why I was ready to quit almost every job I had less than two months into it.

2. Come with some original ideas. Yeah you can simply sit and wait for your boss to give you something to do. You can also be the best team player in the world. But, if you don't come with some spine-tingling ideas that get you and your boss excited, you'll constantly see other people getting promoted ahead of you.

3. Speak up. Being the cool, quiet person at work who you don't hear a peep from all day might be okay if you're a librarian. But, this rarely gets you anywhere in a corporate setting. Have something relevant to say in meetings; when you see problems, fix them and let your supervisor know.

4. Keep a record of your accomplishments. Yes, your boss saw you take the initiative to change the water cooler. But, what else have you done that you can document? If you helped organize an important event or if your activity has increased your company's sales, make a detailed note of it in your files. When it comes time for your review you'll have a complete dossier of all the good you've done that year.

Do these simple steps and you'll be raking in the dough and movin' on up in no time!