The Time to Be Happy...

I came across a sundial that said: "The Time to Be Happy is Now. The Place to Be Happy is Here." Simple, yet this saying is at the heart of so much unrest for so many. I struggle with this one myself! Most people say, if only I had "X," things would be better. If only I had "X" amount of money I would start saving. If only I had "X" opportunity I would really be successful. If only I had the--fill in the blank--health, wealth, skills etc. life would be so much different! What is your X Factor?

Unfortunately we build our whole lives around our X Factor. We "if only" ourselves to the grave... when our lives are spent we finally look back and say, "Tomorrow never came." We then realize, when it is too late, that our time to shine was at our very fingertips. It was always ours for the taking. As Thoreau says, "Heaven is under our feet, as well as over our heads." And not just some days... everyday!

A few years ago I had the opportunity to escort Mr. Billy Ray Cyrus and his band mates around for a day in preparation for a free show he was putting on for the troops (Go Air Force!). At the time I had a fire-engine red electric guitar and was learning how to play. As we were heading over to the venue for the event one of Billy Ray's band mates (a guitarist) said, let me give you a tip: "Most people hear me play and say, 'If I could play like that I'd play all of the time.'" He went on to say that this thinking is flawed. "They don't realize," he said, "You have to play all of the time to sound like that!" So very true I thought! But knowing something is so and acting on that knowledge are two very different things.

You must act now to make a change! Today is the day. Do not fool yourself into believing that your success will come when you finally reach some imaginary plane of existence you have conjured because you fear the repercussions of immediate change. Here's a secret that was whispered into my ear a few years back... God doesn't put a dream in you that you can't make a reality, i.e. everything you need is already in you!

As Napoleon Hill said, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, he can achieve." It is the truth. Forget your X Factor. Toss your hesitations to the wind. Act now to make the change you wish to see a reality. If you don't know how to get to where you want to be find someone who has already achieved what you want and earnestly ask them for their advice, their encouragement, their support. More importantly shut your mouth and listen (two ears, one mouth for a reason, remember?). In short, put your ego aside and humble yourself.

So what are you putting off? What "if only's" do you have rattling around in your head? Decide today to be the winner you were born to be! When you start acting like a winner, you will become a winner... and other winners will find you! They will seek you out to hear you speak your truth. I leave you with this...

"Every life form seems to strive to its maximum except human beings. How tall will a tree grow? As tall as it possibly can. Human beings, on the other hand, have been given the dignity of choice. You can choose to be all or you can choose to be less. Why not stretch up to the full measure of the challenge and see what all you can do?" - Jim Rohn

Comments