Failure is the opportunity to begin again  more intelligently. 
- Henry Ford

The problem for most of us is that we are more afraid of failure than we are of regret. Too often, by the time we wiseup, it’s too late. 

Failing at a task or a goal isn’t personal. You may have failed to achieve your intended result, but that doesn’t make you a failure. Redefine the word “failure”. 

Failure:

• Builds resilience
• Exposes blind spots
• Broadens you perspective
• Makes us humble
• Promotes creativity

Aren’t these all positive results?

Dream big, not to escape life,
but to keep life from escaping you!

 Having your head in the clouds and dreaming wildly isn’t an escape – it’s a necessity. Think about all the really big dreamers throughout history; Galileo, Martin Luther King, Walt Disney, Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerburg. Where would we be,, if these guys hadn’t dared to stick their heads in the cloud instead of in the sand. 

In times of drastic change, it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves fully equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.

Times of drastic change can occur at school, at home, at play, or at work. Prepare yourself for these times with five steps:

1. Take responsibility for your own education.
2. Learn as though you will live forever.
3. Get comfortable being uncomfortable.
4. Be a guru – a junction box for knowledge.
5. Play to win – vs. – playing to not lose.

These five steps will turn you into a life long learner. They’ll get you through times of drastic change as well as times when change is creeping up on you a little more slowly.

It’s pretty simple…
You are a product of your decisions, not your conditions.
You can choose to lead your life or let others do it for you.

This doesn’t mean we can all run around doing any dang thing we please without regard for others in or life or in our world. It does mean that you have the power to CHOOSE. When something happens to you – that’s a condition. How you react to it and what you do about it is a decision.

If you decide to react negatively, if you choose to have your life lead by the others in your life… You are not leading the life you were MEANT to life.

Make your own decisions and lead your life.

Over this Holiday Season, I was reminded several times about my “Thought Of The Week”. It made me feel good that folks remembered these thoughts. It also made me a bit sad that we haven’t seen these in awhile.

This weeks thought is

Who we are in the present is shaped by where we want to go, and who we want to become, and what we want to do in the future.

Rather than set New Years Resolutions, I prefer to set goals. Setting goals helps me focus on WHERE I want to go, WHO  I want to become, and WHAT I want to do.