In the last Dave Rave I talked about the five things you can’t be. Well the truth is, you can be those things but you can’t afford it. They’re too expensive. They diminish your life and rob the world of what you have to offer. So in contrast to that, here are the five things that you can be:
- You can be a winner. Winning is what you were made for: making something of your life that is more than just getting by or surviving. There are winning ways and you need to practice them. But remember, winning doesn’t mean coming in first, or out-doing everyone else, or leaving your competitors in the dust. Winning is based on what I call he WWONDA theory. Win-win, or no deal, always. The kind of winning you want is where everyone else in a relationship with you, working with you, benefitting from the service or the product you deliver, wins. We don’t win until all the people in our circle of influence win.
- You can be connected. Connecting is one of the most powerful things we do. We used to call it “Networking.” I like that word because building and maintaining strong relationships provides a safety-net. And you need to make sure your net is working, so to speak. What kind of connections do you need? Strong connections to your family, strong connections to the people you work with (and in some cases for, if you haven’t already started your own business), a strong connection to the people you meet everyday because everywhere you go people are hurting and longing for a word of encouragement and hope.
- You can be patient. Patience is not sitting around and waiting for something to happen. Patience is what happens when the farmer gets out and tills his ground, sows his crop, weeds, nurtures, and waits for it to grow. Patience means that I’ve done all I can do, and now it’s up to God and other forces to bring about the fruit of the good soil and the good seed that I’ve planted. Being fretful, fearful, anxious, and worried will only kill you early.
- You can be joyful. Every single day you have a choice. You can either enjoy life as it comes to you, or worry about life as you think it ought to be. You can either gather slights and hurts and become angry and bitter, or you can let things go and enjoy the miracle and the great gift of being alive. Because one day, you won’t be.
- You can make smart choices. One of the most difficult things about making choices, is that making bad ones doesn’t seem to be a big deal when you make them. For example, starting to smoke cigarettes doesn’t seem to be that big of a deal. As a matter of fact it is, believe it or not, not that pleasurable of a thing to do for most people. The trouble is, the consequences of smoking once you’re all in come many, many years later in life, when you’re older, usually more successful with more means to enjoy life, except physical well-being. If you’ve made a long string of stupid choices, maybe it’s because you have failed to take a long look; not just what does this choice do today, but what does it mean for me tomorrow?