You don’t have to settle for same old, same old. You can have an extraordinary life. You just need to learn the art of creating possibilities. The journey starts with your internal dialogue. (the things you say to yourself) Your attitude isn’t just something. Your attitude is everything! If you think you can or can’t, you’re absolutely right. You need to believe that you deserve to be happy. You need to believe that you don’t have to feel guilty about all the good things that come your way. I know this sounds like tree-hugging and cappuccino drinking; but it’s true. You are what you repeatedly do. The more you do of what you’re doing , the more you’ll get of what you’ve got. If you’re not satisfied with where you are in your life, then you need to change your behaviour to change the result.

“The good Lord gave us mountains so we could learn how to climb” is a lyric from the title track of Lonestar’s CD, “Mountains” (if you don’t have the CD yet, go out and buy it. It’s a must have for all serious music lovers). Every time I hear that song, it lifts me up. It opens up my mind to the world of possibilities. It helps me to stay focused on what is important to me, and reminds me that I am on a journey and that there will be obstacles to overcome. As long as I stay committed to my goals, I will overcome those obstacles. It helps me to remember that where I am at this moment in time is not where I am going to end up.

I am a graduate of the Larry Winget School of Thinking. “Shut-up – Stop Whining – and Get a Life” is my theme song. Larry is absolutely right. Your inner dialogue – those things that you say to yourself – will either propel you forward or hold you back. You need to realize  that you are the only one who gets to decide what success, and being successful, looks like to you. Don’t settle for anything unless it is what you really want. Don’t set out to maintain the status quo unless that’s what you really want. Success in life (and for that matter success in any undertaking) is choosing not to settle for anything other than what you truly want.

I am a behaviorist by training so there are two things I believe for certain about people: Life is all about ‘WIIFM’s’ (what’s in it for me), and ‘Attitude is Everything’. People are self-motivated; they are motivated to action based on what they think they will get, or what they would like to get out of the exchange. In other words, you do things for your own reasons. You need a reason to get out of bed in the morning. You need a reason to get off the couch and put down the remote.

If you want to change what you’re doing to get a more favourable result, then you must decide what it is you want. “You need to name it, to claim it”. After you’ve named it (which includes writing it down on a piece of paper and posting it in a location where you’ll see it every day) you must put together an action plan outlining the steps you need to take in order to achieve your goal. Getting what you want out of life is a series of SMART targets (specific, measurable, action-orientated, realistic and time-bound) strung together. Life is a planned event.

What I’m talking about here is not easy to do. But trust me, “wishing and hoping will not make it so”. Going about changing how you do what you do is difficult. (likely the most difficult thing you will ever do) . Your attitude and how you react to any given situation is 100% in your control. How you act and react is the art of creating possibilities. You can have an extraordinary life by acting and reacting in a way that is going to get you what you want. Remember: it’s never too late and you’re never too old to start a new beginning so you might as well start right now. Go out and live your dreams!