THE BASICS:
- Life consists of choices, every minute and every second of the day. The right choices will lead you to success; the wrong (or bad) choices will give you failure. Your choices are the reason for your future circumstances. The world will view you accordingly.
- You need to be clear about what success means to you. Write down your own definitions of success and failure.
- Living life on your own terms means being clear about what is important to you. (a) Recognizing what is important to you gives you a framework for thinking, behaving, and acting accordingly. (b) Living life on your own terms also means living as per conditions acceptable to you. In the beginning, these are conditions set by others, but acceptable. Later in life, you may have the power or the opportunity to set and create your own conditions.
THE HARD TRUTHS:
- Survival is the first imperative of life. Survival is easier now than it was in the stone age, but it is not enough to just survive.
- Comfort (or prosperity) is the second great imperative; it is the plateau where most people stop. You can rise above this plateau if you make the right choices. Don’t stop rising because you find yourself living at some level of comfort.
- No one else will feed you or give you money. You must have money and you must make it yourself. The purpose of money is to buy the things you need to live; in that sense it is an essential resource but has no value other than that. You must make your own money, because you cannot just find it anywhere and no one will give it to you.
- No one can save you if you are in criminal trouble or in hardship. Your family may be able to help you to some extent if your issue is financial. Generally, you may find that you must fend for yourself in a harsh and uncaring world. There are good Samaritans, but don’t expect them to show up. (A good Samaritan showing up to save you is a miracle!)
SELF-RELIANCE AND YOUR LIFE:
- Education gives you the knowledge and skills in a discipline of study. Employers and other people value this knowledge and will pay more for it. Education prepares you for better-paying jobs; lacking in education, you will only find menial and low-paying jobs.
- Skills can be general or particular to a field. You learn some and you acquire others by experience. Skills are very necessary, and they enable you to do anything better. You must acquire more skills if you want to be valued.
- Your time is your life. Every second that passes by is a second that cannot be recovered. And when your time is done, you are done. Value and use your time effectively. (Even money can be made, but not time.) Don’t waste a minute.
- You must create your own luck. Yes, you can. (Winning the lottery is a miracle; don’t wait for it to happen.) You get lucky when your positive thoughts, planning, education, skill development and hard work all come together. Then some good things start happening for you. This is called luck, and it is created by you.
- You have to live your own life. No one else can live it for you. Whether you create your own luck or you don’t, you will be living what you create.
