Success Through Discontent
Success is conceived in the womb of the mind the moment you look around and say, “I don't belong here. These are not my people.” And it is born when you cogently express – to yourself and to the world – who you really are.
So who are you, really, and how will you express it? Will you rise above your circumstances? Please understand I'm not talking about money.
For the person born with privileges, success may be to rise above the shallowness that so often accompanies aristocracy and do something meaningful with his or her life. William K. Vanderbilt Jr. was this sort of success.
For the person born into a family of redneck bastards, success may be to develop an open and curious mind and become familiar with the arts. Such a success was William Jefferson Blythe IV.
For the person who feels unloved, success may be to love others with such fierceness that their love is multiplied exponentially in return. Clara Barton succeeded using this technique.
As ad writer H. Jackson Brown once said, “People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost.”
Your rocky sidewalk to Success will be found by:
(1.) knowing who you are.
(2.) identifying the itch you need to scratch.
(3.) overcoming the factors that block your progress.
Accomplish these things and you will have discovered your destiny and answered the question: “Why am I here and what should I be doing with my life?”
That's why lottery winners so often become despondent; who they are hasn't changed, but they can no longer pretend their unhappiness is caused by a lack of cash. These sad souls exemplify the pithy observation of Frank McKinney Hubbard, “It's pretty hard to tell what does bring happiness. Poverty and wealth have both failed.”
Any goal that begins with the words, “My goal is to have…” is certain to bring unhappiness. Goals that scratch your life-itch are the ones that begin, “I will serve people by….
gathering what they want and having it in stock when they need it. – Sam Walton
making them feel good about who they are. – Oprah Winfrey
designing an automobile they can afford to own. – Henry Ford
creating worlds of fantasy into which they can escape. – Steven Spielberg
having hot food available for them at a moment's notice. – Ray Kroc
writing songs that help them celebrate life. – Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein
People who live only for the consumption of pleasure are the walking dead. But you care about others. So who are your people and how do you plan to serve them?
What is holding you back and how will you overcome it?
Where do you belong and when will you go there?
Why not 2005?
Happy New Year.
Roy H. Williams
“Often people attempt to live their lives backwards; they try to have more things, or more money, in order to do more of what they want, so they will be happier. The way it actually works is the reverse. You must first be who you really are, then do what you need to do, in order to have what you want.” – Margaret Young
“If only we'd stop trying to be happy we could have a pretty good time.” – Edith Wharton