INVE$T in YOUR$ELF!
When my son Bobby and I were out one Friday night enjoying each other's company, along with yet another savory pepperoni pizza, he asked me which book would help him most in life. I was shocked and excited, because from the time he retired his last diaper, I'
ve been strongly encouraging him to make a positive investment in his mind and his future by reading empowering and uplifting books and articles. For the past two decades, his response had always been the same, "No thanks dad, I'm not really interested in that stuff. Besides, thinking isn’t my strong point!"
I asked him why he had developed a sudden interest in the subject of
self improvement and he told me that a friend of his was reading a book called "Think and Grow Rich" by Napoleon Hill. He went on to explain how the book had
turned his friend's life completely around. Instead of getting high with a
little help from his friends, his good buddy had discovered a transforming thirst
for knowledge and wisdom. I told him that while that was very good read, the
one book that had the greatest impact on my life, both personally and
professionally was "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" by Steven Covey.
When I explained how that book helped me create better relationships
and achieve greater wealth, he said, "Great, I'll get that book first, then
agreed to go to the bookstore with me that evening!" I was thrilled by his
desire to follow up on his inspired idea and sensed a real turning point in his
young life. In the past, he would have said something like, "No thanks dad, I'll
order it online and save some money," then fail to follow through. In my mind,
awareness without action is like driving a Ferrari without gasoline. It looks
amazing in your driveway but it won’t take you where you want to go.
When we arrived at the bookstore, I found a book written by one of my
favorite author's, Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul books) that seemed to
scream at me. "The Success Principals" is a guide and a workbook that was created
to help readers get from where they are to where they want to be. For the past several
months, I had been brainstorming about what my life's primary purpose really was.
When I got to chapter 2 titled "Be Clear Why You're Here," I knew that synchronicity
had once again worked its way back into my life. When I got to the end of the
chapter, I worked my way through the four part "Life Purpose Exercise" which
helped me really refine my purpose for why I'm sharing this spec of dust with
nearly 7 billion other souls in a cosmic sea of shining stars.
While there is a big part of me that would love to experience a wide
variety of interests that would require financial wealth, I know in my heart
that my primary purpose is to use my creativity and unique insights to inspire
others with lighthearted humor to become the best possible version of
themselves. I really like the feeling I get when I truly believe that I can
have it all, that as long as I follow through by living my purpose with passion
and a sense of urgency every day, I will eventually earn a life where limitless
possibilities exists.
One of the best ways to achieve my life purpose is to ask all of you
for help by sharing your life's purpose and/or unique and inspiring real life
stories. If you've had one or more positive life changing experiences that you
believe would help encourage and inspire our readers to live their lives to the
fullest, we want to read all about it. Personally, I love nothing more than a
good laugh, so we welcome all articles that are seasoned with insightful, humorous
and lighthearted wisdom. Email us your article to the address below and we will
do everything we can to publish it in the next issue of Go For It Magazine. Please
limit your story to 500 words, and we will do our best to find a business
that's willing to sponsor your article. All submitted articles become the
property of Go For It Magazine.
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