As you progress on your life’s journey and create the success, relationships and health you desire remember, it’s yours to take control of. You have much responsibility to make the right choices and to put your focus on the things in life that really matter. In my early years, before the age of thirty, as with most people I looked for the silver bullet that would lead me to wealth, significance and success. I felt that I didn’t have the skills, abilities, talents or the lustrous education needed to go into the market place and contribute much.

I was slowly introduced to the amazing world of personal development and I started to apply what I could where I could. That’s when I started to produce the things in my life that I only could imagine would ever happen years earlier.

While sitting in my eighth grade history class my teacher asked the class, “Who among you think you could grow up and be President of the United States?” I raised my hand only to have my teacher pointing her finger at me. I was told by my teacher that I would never be much or do much with my life, because I was from a small farm town and from a poor family. That idea stayed with me for a long time. I began to believe that statement. It’s true that the things you think and believe will manifest in your life, good or bad.

I started to cut class then school altogether. I hung with the wrong crowd and got into trouble and almost went to jail for a while. I remember the disappointment on my dad’s face and how that made me feel. That was one of about five pivotal points in my life. I made a promise to myself that day that I would never ever do it again and I never did.

Before my dad passed away he told me how proud he was of me and proud of what I had done with my life. That was worth so much to hear him say that. So many people get bad programming from an early age and they don’t have a fair chance at building a great life for themselves. They get programmed by bad teachers, parents, media and other authority figures in their life. The great thing about bad programming is that you can change it. You can start now were you are. If you’re nineteen or ninety you can start to reprogram your mind by feeding it the messages you need.

I had a discussion not long ago about science with a student of science at a university here in North Carolina. I told him that every scientist I know and have spoken to are so arrogant and believe because of their intellect that they are the superior thinker and what they say is absolute and if someone has a different opinion from theirs, then that person must be an idiot.

Well of course he took offense, I have no idea why. He suggested that I may have misunderstood them. Then evolution was introduced into the discussion. He said, “If you know the facts and have another opinion, you are an idiot with bad judgment.” Oh, I’m sorry, my bad, I misunderstood the other scientist who said, “If you don’t share their opinion you’re an idiot.” You cleared that one up for me. I say that jokingly.

I don’t like the idea of others trying to impose their opinions on people by telling them they are idiots. I’ve never been a conformist and don’t think I ever will be. I form my own opinions by my own experience, judgments and research no matter what the subject is. What others think of you does not and should not define who you really are. Don’t take those things personally. Just move forward with confidence and grace.

I believe almost anything is possible. Not so many years ago if you were to say that America would have a Black man as their President you would have been laughed at. The 2008 Presidential elections put an end to that notion. So many people down through the years have been told that they were idiots and that their ideas were only far fetched dreams of impossibilities. Einstein was thought to be slow and some said stupid when he was a young boy. The Wright Brothers were thought to be fools by many. Many successful men and women through history have had their share of critics. But, it’s not the critics’ opinion that make the dream come true – it’s the ability to keep moving forward despite the odds.

You will always have people in your life that will never see it for you. That’s fine; just keep working on yourself and your dreams and do your part to contribute to this world.

Continue to be curious daily. Always be on the look out to learn new things, to go on new adventures. Be creative and resourceful in every moment. Invest about 5% of your income in yourself and watch your life change for the better.

The most important things you need for never ending improvement

1. Discipline yourself to work toward your improvement.

2. Focus. It’s easy to get side tracked. Know where you’re going.

3. Help others when you can.

4. Always take action. A life without action is a life without purpose.

5. Learn all you can about how your mind and body function.

6. Learn from past failures.

7. Get new information regularly and apply it.

“Anyone who stops learning is old, whether at twenty or eighty. Anyone who keeps learning stays young. The greatest thing in life is to keep your mind young.” – Henry Ford

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