WHAT DO YOU WANT IN LIFE? (Part 2)

IS WORRYING ABOUT MAKING A LIVING STOPPING YOU?

What often stops people from expressing their true desire is that they don't think they can make a living doing what they love to do.

"What I love to do is hang out and talk with people," you might say.

Well, Oprah Winfrey makes a living hanging out talking with people. And my friend Diane Brause, who is an international tour guide, makes a living hanging out talking with people in some of the most exciting and exotic locations in the world.

Tiger Woods loves to play golf. Ellen DeGeneres loves to make people laugh. My sister loves to design jewelry and hang out with teenagers. Donald Trump loves to make deals and build buildings. I love to read and share what I have learned with others in books, speeches, and workshops. It's possible to make a living doing what you love.

Make a list of 20 things you love to do, and then think of ways you can make a living doing some of those things. If you love sports, you could play sports, be a sportswriter or photographer, or work in sports management as an agent or in the front office of a professional team. You could be a coach, a manager, or a scout. You could be a broadcaster, a camera operator, or a team publicist. There are myriad ways to make money in any field that you love.

But first you must decide what you would like to do. Don't let yourself be concerned about the size or audacity of your vision. As Michelangelo said, "The greater danger for most of us is not that our aim is too high and we miss it, but that it is too low and we reach it."

(these contents are extracted from article written by Jack Canfield posted in Nightingle Newsletter)

WHAT DO YOU WANT IN LIFE? (Part 1)

What do you want to accomplish in life? What do you want to experience? And what possessions do you want to acquire? In the journey from where you are to where you want to be, you have to decide where you want to be. In other words, what does success look like to you? One of the main reasons why most people don't get what they want is that they haven't decided what they want. They haven't defined their desires in clear and compelling detail. They don't know what they want …

MAKE AN "I WANT" LIST

One of the easiest ways to begin clarifying what you truly want is to make a list of 30 things you want to do, 30 things you want to have, and 30 things you want to be before you die. This is a great way to get the ball rolling. Another powerful technique to unearth your wants is to ask a friend to help you make an "I Want" list. Have your friend continually ask, "What do you want? What do you want?" for 10 to 15 minutes, and jot down your answers. You'll find the first wants aren't all that profound. In fact, most people usually hear themselves saying, "I want a Mercedes. I want a big house on the ocean." And so on. However, by the end of the 15-minute exercise, the real you begins to speak: "I want people to love me. I want to express myself. I want to make a difference. I want to feel powerful" ... wants that are true expressions of your core values.

(these contents are extracted from article written by Jack Canfield posted in Nightingle Newsletter)

Perceptions of Success

A cruise ship docked in a tiny Mexican village. While at port, an American tourist complimented a Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked how long it took him to catch them.

"Not very long," answered the Mexican. "But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American.

The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, have a few drinks, play the guitar, and sing a few songs … I have a full life."

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat. With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge enterprise."

"How long would that take?" asked the Mexican. "Twenty, perhaps 25 years," replied the American."And after that?" "Afterwards? That's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can start selling stocks and make millions!"

"Millions? Really? And after that?"

"After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta, and spend your evenings drinking and enjoying your friends."

One could infer several things from this story. Some might see it as a justification to just accept one's life as is because wealth, success, and achievement don't really create happiness. However, some may see it differently that seeking wealth or success just for the purpose of wealth or success is fruitless, because the achievement will not contribute to your happiness. Before setting out to achieve a goal, make sure that the goal is one that will truly add to your happiness. As for the fisherman in the story, he already had the happiness he desired, and, therefore, spending more time in that place was the best use of his time.

So, have you asked yourself the simple question:

Is the goal you set, the one that truly bring you happiness you desired?

(Some of these contents are extracted from article written by Andy Fuehl posted in Nightingle Newsletter)

Do you have a target to aim for?

There is this young lady who is the world champion in open water swimming. She has this vision of becoming the first woman in the world to swim across the strait between her island country and the main continent. For the next 6 months, she trains hard and make sure she is well prepared for 3 months to get herself physically and mentally ready for the challenge.

Finally, comes the day for her to stamp her present in the records book. It is a cold and winding morning with thick mist and rough water when she plunges into the water. The mist was so thick that they hardly can see anything ahead of them. Her coach, mother and her sister ride on a boat and follow closely beside her. For the first 3 hours, it was tough where she has to swim against the current and beating the cold. She was so tired and exhausted that she looks back at her coach and tell him that she is too tire to carry on and would like to come abroad. Her coach tells here that her stroke is still good and strong and persuaded her to continue. So she bites her lips and continues to swim.

After another 2 hours. Once again, she feel her muscle straining and so tired and stress that she turns her back and requested her coach to pull her in. Once again, her coach convinced her to continue. SO she continues for another 1 hrs, and finally she ran out of breath and strength at that point. She once again, turns back and demanded her coach to bring her in. This time, she refused to listen and will not want to continue. Without any choice, he coach and family put her into the boat.

As they settling her down in the cabin and moving the boat forward, appear in front of them was the shore of the continent. Covered by the thick mist, she has failed to notice that she is only 200m from the continent shore.

How can a man reach his goal if he can’t see?

No matter how well prepared and how well knowledgeable he is, he can never reach and achieve his plan if he do not have a clear sight on his target. He will get lost on the way and easily quite when tough gets tougher. It is important that every important thing we do, we need to know where the ends are? That becomes the target we are aiming for.