Creating Success
chapter
Life Direction
Support System
Self-Support
1
2
3
3
Chapter 3
/
Creating Success
196
Think
•
Build
•
Live
Success
TM
|
Self-Empowerment
Copyright © 2009, Best Effect
3
2
1
“People begin to become
successful the minute
they decide to be.”
— Harvey Mackay
(syndicated columnist and author of five business bestsellers)
What does this
quote suggest
about the nature
of success?
What would it
take to make that
kind of decision,
and then really
stand behind it?
How can simply
deciding to be
successful actu-
ally start to make
us successful?
Chapter 3
/
Creating Success
197
Think
•
Build
•
Live
Success
TM
|
Self-Empowerment
Copyright © 2009, Best Effect
Success means different things to different people. It can involve having a certain amount of
money or material comfort, the love of family and friends, good health, a fulfilling career, knowl
-
edge, social status, adventure, wisdom, or any combination of these or other things. While
pictures of success vary greatly, we all tend to experience it in much the same way, as a deep
sense of satisfaction at having accomplished something we set out to do. It leaves us feeling
good about ourselves and like we are capable of further fulfilling our potential. Success, how
-
ever, is not a solid, fixed destination; we may reach a place we had aimed for but then find that
challenges arise, or that we simply want to go further. Life is not static, it keeps moving, which
makes success a process we’re engaged in throughout our lives.
Depending upon our life circumstances up until this point, it may seem as though we’ve had
few real choices. We may feel we’ve done the best we can with what we’ve been given, but are
ultimately just being carried along by a stream of circumstance. We may see success as avail
-
able to others, but unattainable for us. The truth is, however, that each of us is already starring
in our own success story. That story is what has brought us to where we are today—working
this very moment to improve ourselves and our lives. Our success story may not be readily
apparent, but when we take stock of everything it took to get us to the point we’re at right now,
wherever that may be, it’s clear that we already have many of the ingredients we need to succeed.
Unless we’ve led a fairy tale life, every one of us has survived hardship, disappointment, disil-
lusionment and heartache. Every one of us has faced significant obstacles and challenges that
we eventually overcame through the force of our will. Our will is the most powerful of all hu-
man tools, and one whose only master is us. We’ve already put that will to work in improving
the way we see ourselves (our
self-picture
), the way we look at the world (our
outlook
), the way
we communicate with ourselves (our
self-talk
), and the way we communicate with others (our
self-expression
). Already well on the road toward success, we’re now in a position to do what’s
necessary to create the kind of life we can feel truly good about.
