CBAs Motivational Collection for WEEK 8, 2007
Let me be the first to welcome you to the eighth week of the year 2007. You can probably count on one hand how many people actually welcomed you to this new week in your life! I’ve adopted the outlook (and inlook) of a fellow motivational speaker and great mentor of mine, Zig Ziglar, who states, “Saturday and Sundays are not a week (weak) end, but a strong beginning.” So, promise yourself to have a “strong beginning” as we continue with this week’s letter “s” in the CBAs, and the word: “success”.
If you ask 100 people for their definition of success, you’d undoubtedly get 100 different answers. Using my dictionary, I found 3 definitions that I’ll use as starting points and ways we can apply them to our personal lives; the favorable or prosperous termination of attempts or endeavors, the attainment of wealth, position, honors, and a successful performance or achievement. I’m choosing to think of each as 3 separate parts for our definition, each in chronological order: preparing for success, the journey and arrival.
With the first, we find that, not if but when we have a favorable or prosperous termination in our attempts or endeavors we are successful. What’s exciting is that at this very moment we can claim success. Why? Because, according to this, when we are determined, having our mind set in the positive direction for success, and are sincerely “attempting” or “endeavoring” toward our goal(s), we are successful!
In preparing for these attempts and endeavors, we need to set goals by asking exactly what we want to accomplish using our talent (last week’s “t” word) while “performing” on this rotating globe. Mark Twain once stated that he could show anyone how to get anything they wanted in life but he had such a hard time finding people who actually knew what they wanted! This week, make a list of what you want and when you want it in these areas: spiritual, family and relationships, mental and educational, social and recreational and financial, for this year, using a 2007calendar and then endeavor toward these things and you will have a better year- I guarantee it! Then at this very moment, think of yourself as already being successful. Congratulations! Isn’t that great? You are a success. Say, “I’m a success!” Wow, feels good doesn’t it? Success really is a journey and you really are successful.
The second part of success is the attainment of wealth, position, honors- with that big word attainment meaning, “having arrived”. I like to think of this stage as not yet fully attaining or totally arriving, as we are still attaining and arriving- until we take our last breath of life. We should always be in the “building or acquiring stage” in all areas spiritual, family and relationships, mental and educational, social and recreational and the financial goals we’ve filled in the blanks above. This is where many people trip on a stumbling block thinking that somehow “attaining and acquiring is bad” stubbing their big toe, and never get back up again. One definition of failure, which might be thought of as the opposite of success, is: “not getting up after one falls.” Don’t let this happen to you. Don’t stay in your comfort zone, and stay down letting your dreams die.
I know that many reading will think that they should not attain wealth, position, honors, and any worldly possessions, because this will somehow make them unspiritual or less of a person. But in attaining wealth, position, and honors in any of your goals you’ve listed in the areas we’ve talked about, can only make you and everyone around you better! Think about it, being successful is one of the most unselfish things one can do. You can’t pull yourself upward without pulling others with you! Also, no one has ever given anything away, without first having something to give. For example, the “good Samaritan” was a person who had attained wealth, position and honor in his life, and then turned around and used all of this to help another; (insert smile here), that is real success! A rising tide raises all ships. When one attains wealth, wealth is provided to others. When one attains position, or honor, one raises others to their level or even higher! We all hold hands in one big “success circle”. If more people were success oriented, the auto manufacturers would not be losing money and laying people off right now. There would be more money circulating, more people would be attaining dreams and goals and the world would indeed be a better place.
It is your responsibility to be wealthy; to reach for positions where you can do the most good and then be honored for what you’ve done. You set the example for those who come after you to do the same. Never be concerned with wanting or attaining too much, it’s not possible. If everyone dreamed, set goals and achieved all the success they could ever imagine, there would actually be more for others, not less! More would be produced and more families would be working and enjoy peaceful meals together at their homes without the stress of financial worries. It’s when success is stifled, that wants and despair looms. Remember, when you have the right motivation, you are not being selfish; you’ll do more to help others by achieving success than not.
This leads to the third part of our definition. Life is not a “dress rehearsal” as some may think as shown when they go through life without living. For the success minded person, we continue to practice and improve our “performance” on our journey to success, using what works and avoiding what doesn’t, gleaned from life’s lessons. Having a successful achievement or performance is the final part of success.
My life’s purpose, or job, is using my talents to help others use theirs. I sometimes joke with people because if that’s my job in life, I won’t retire until the day after I die. No one will know if they’ve really been successful until the final curtain is drawn after their life’s performance. When the audience disperses as house lights dim, each will invariably speak to one another about how we’ve acted with our attained wealth, position and honors. They’ll wonder at what manner of finess in how we used the props and scripts given to us from our life teachers, how we persevered, attempted and endeavored to realize wealth, position and honor in our life acts 1, 2, and 3. If they say that we helped ourselves by helping others- then it can be said that we truly learned, and lived, the true definition of success.
I welcome any comments and questions about this article and the CBAs Motivational Collection. Your input in invaluable to me as together we journey through the 26 weeks of letters with the corresponding word quote.
Let others know about the CBAs Motivational Collection so they too can receive a new article in their email box each week. Make it a great day! Ter Scott! |
