TAKE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR CHOICES

Have you ever looked at your business or life and thought to yourself, how on earth did it ever get to this? Why do I keep going from one crisis to the next? I know I have, on countless occasions. I have had to learn some very harsh and painful lessons along life's way and I dare say there will be more to come. It is not easy admitting to yourself that you are where you are because of the bad choices that you have made along the way. Granted, there are times when life deals us cruel, cruel blows, but I have learnt that whatever the circumstances may be it is how we choose to respond to these setbacks that will be critical to the outcome.

However bleak things look now, take heart. All is not lost. If we have the courage to take responsibility for our bad choices our lives can change. If we don't and insist on blaming everything and everybody but ourselves, nothing changes. It stays the same or it gets worse.

So, we have done the right thing and taken ownership. Now comes a whole set of  new challenges. We need to exit our comfort zone and do what is necessary to make the changes that will take us from where we are to where we want to be. This is not going to be easy, but your future self will thank you for this.

There are numerous practices that one can take to bring about the necessary changes. These are the ones that I found good for myself.

1:   Take a long hard look at what you did to get you here in the first place

2:   Why did you act as you did

3:   Know what has to change

4:   Make the necessary changes, however difficult.

5:   Don't make the easy, fun choices. Make the right choices. However difficult.

Know that  both now and in the future every choice you make will have a consequence. Be it good or bad. Our lives will always be a reflection of the total number of choices we have made. Let  your choices be good and may you live an extraordinary life.

LET LIFE BE EXTRAORDINARY

Do you ever get that feeling deep down inside that you are just bursting to do something different? Something extraordinary? Like myself, and so many others, do you catch yourself looking at people who are living their dream, living life on their terms, and think to yourself  how lucky they are. Finding yourself secretly wishing it was you? In reality however, the chances of luck having played any part in their success is very small.

 Success doesn't just happen. You have to plan it, work for it. Therefore you can be certain that the person who is living their dream, living life on their terms, is doing so because they had a dream, a goal, and then went to work to make it happen! They did not think long and hard about their dream only to put it on the back burner never to be seen again, because they believed that dreams like theirs do not come true for people like them, that they only happen to others. Nor did they collapse back onto their favourite sofa when they realized that work and probably some sacrifices in the beginning were necessary. Instead they went to work to make it happen, despite any deep fears and uncertainty that they were feeling.

  This realization is powerful and important for us, because it enables us to open up our minds to the reality that all these amazing possibilities and opportunities are there waiting for us, if we are prepared to put in the work and effort to turn them from dreams into reality. Unfortunately, this is where most of our dreams die, because too often, when we see what is involved we walk away. 

Don't let that be you. Don't let that be me.