Every human being wants to live a great life. We have
dreams and aspirations. We have a picture of how we want
things to work out, and one of the essential tasks of adult
life is to find a way to make our lives work out well.
We all try a variety of strategies. We work for someone
else, or start our own business. Perhaps we choose a life
partner, or find a community to put down roots. Some of us
climb the "corporate ladder" while others choose life on a
farm or in a small town. Whatever our strategy, the task is
the same: To create the life we truly want and perhaps
leave a legacy for our children.
The question is, whether success starts with achievement in
the outer world, or whether it starts on the "inside" with
personal development.
While most people SAY they believe success begins with
personal development, what I notice is that we ACT as if
success is primarily a matter of outward achievement and
recognition. I find that most people start by focusing on
financial or other external success in the hope that inner
peace and personal fulfillment will come with it.
The question is whether this strategy actually works.
For hundreds of years, wise writers have said the natural
flow of success is from the inside out. Benjamin Franklin
had a list of 13 personal virtues that he worked on
throughout his life. About a hundred years ago, James Allen
wrote the classic, "As A Man Thinketh" and said that
success always begins with our THOUGHTS.
In the 1930's, Napoleon Hill wrote his famous, "Think and
Grow Rich." He argued that our actions are pre-determined
by our thoughts and noted that personal development is the
spring from which all success flows.
Few people seriously question that success is an "inside
job." It begins with our thoughts, with our values and
our personal integrity, and FLOWS TOWARD or RESULTS in
external success at every level.
I suspect most long-time readers of IMPACT agree with this.
And yet we still fall into the trap of thinking that
success is mostly or primarily based on external skills or
circumstances. We up-grade our computers, change jobs, or
in some cases we move to a new city or even change spouses,
hoping that if we change the right "things" our personal
lives will be transformed. It doesn't work that way.
First, be a person of integrity. First, "know thyself."
First, clarify your values and your priorities. First, know
your ultimate purpose, your long-term destination and your
most important values, then build on these things.
Success is only partly about marketing or money or getting
a promotion, and it has almost nothing to do with the size
of your house or the price of a new car. And the ultimate
irony is that those nice things (and there's no denying
they are nice and they are fun!) often come quickest and
easiest to those who start with personal development.
For every hour you spend working on your sales skills,
spend an hour getting to know yourself. For every dollar
spent on training and professional development, spend a
dollar on yourself or your family. For every new tool you
buy, read a book on relationships, spirituality or personal
growth. Success is an inside job and the best success comes
from a balanced, total approach.
dreams and aspirations. We have a picture of how we want
things to work out, and one of the essential tasks of adult
life is to find a way to make our lives work out well.
We all try a variety of strategies. We work for someone
else, or start our own business. Perhaps we choose a life
partner, or find a community to put down roots. Some of us
climb the "corporate ladder" while others choose life on a
farm or in a small town. Whatever our strategy, the task is
the same: To create the life we truly want and perhaps
leave a legacy for our children.
The question is, whether success starts with achievement in
the outer world, or whether it starts on the "inside" with
personal development.
While most people SAY they believe success begins with
personal development, what I notice is that we ACT as if
success is primarily a matter of outward achievement and
recognition. I find that most people start by focusing on
financial or other external success in the hope that inner
peace and personal fulfillment will come with it.
The question is whether this strategy actually works.
For hundreds of years, wise writers have said the natural
flow of success is from the inside out. Benjamin Franklin
had a list of 13 personal virtues that he worked on
throughout his life. About a hundred years ago, James Allen
wrote the classic, "As A Man Thinketh" and said that
success always begins with our THOUGHTS.
In the 1930's, Napoleon Hill wrote his famous, "Think and
Grow Rich." He argued that our actions are pre-determined
by our thoughts and noted that personal development is the
spring from which all success flows.
Few people seriously question that success is an "inside
job." It begins with our thoughts, with our values and
our personal integrity, and FLOWS TOWARD or RESULTS in
external success at every level.
I suspect most long-time readers of IMPACT agree with this.
And yet we still fall into the trap of thinking that
success is mostly or primarily based on external skills or
circumstances. We up-grade our computers, change jobs, or
in some cases we move to a new city or even change spouses,
hoping that if we change the right "things" our personal
lives will be transformed. It doesn't work that way.
First, be a person of integrity. First, "know thyself."
First, clarify your values and your priorities. First, know
your ultimate purpose, your long-term destination and your
most important values, then build on these things.
Success is only partly about marketing or money or getting
a promotion, and it has almost nothing to do with the size
of your house or the price of a new car. And the ultimate
irony is that those nice things (and there's no denying
they are nice and they are fun!) often come quickest and
easiest to those who start with personal development.
For every hour you spend working on your sales skills,
spend an hour getting to know yourself. For every dollar
spent on training and professional development, spend a
dollar on yourself or your family. For every new tool you
buy, read a book on relationships, spirituality or personal
growth. Success is an inside job and the best success comes
from a balanced, total approach.
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