HOW TO LIVE A BETTER LIFE

culled from:www.goodreads.com

A better life is virtually impossible without a succinct and clearly defined vision. What is a vision? A vision is a preferable picture of the future. A man without a vision is a man without a future, a man without a future will always go back to his past. Whenever you lack a clearly defined picture of the future, you tend to focus on your yesterday. Where are you going with your life? What is the direction of your life? The vast majority of people have not decided what they want. They have not decided their focus. They live life aimlessly. Their life has no focus. Picture a flight that has taken off with no destination in mind. Imagine jumping into a car and start driving with no destination in mind. This is how a vast majority of people live their lives. Can you imagine a football game with no goals in mind? Would you imagine with me for a moment a ruby game or marathon with no target in mind? For you to live a better life, your life has to have a clear direction and focus.

What is focus? Focus is the concentration of attention or energy on something. Focus is the law of a laser beam. The more focused the more the intensity. Focus creates blindness. Thomas Edison who discovered the filament was asked what distinguished him from other men. He said, “The only thing that distinguishes me from others is focus”. He went on to say that he only focuses on one thing at a time; others focus on many things at a time. The reason many have not attained some degree or level of success is that, they attempt too many things at the same time. You can never succeed in everything. Large numbers of people are the jack of all trades and masters of none. You have to focus your energies for maximum throughput.

Many have their lives scattered all over. They have not learnt to focus their energies on what is of utmost value and importance to them. Attempting to do many things at the same time always results in failure. A better life begins with preparation. Nothing happens without a causal effect. Preparation is paramount. The quality of your preparation will always be a determinant of the quality of your performance. Proper preparation promotes proper performance. Improper preparation promotes improper performance. Remember that you are not born qualified, you must become qualified. You must put great efforts to your preparation. Champions do not become champions in the ring. They are merely recognized in the ring. Preparation time is never wasted time. Please, do bear in mind that great efforts do not always produce immediate results. It is also important that you learn the ability to adapt. Adaptation is the ability to change or be changed to fit changed circumstances. Every species that fails to adapt to its environment dies. Imagine a person who fails to cooperate with a winter season. If you do not put the appropriate clothing, the winter will kill you. How many people have lost incredible opportunities because they were not willing to adapt? How many people decided to pursue divorce because of their unwillingness to adapt to their partners? Listen, adaptation is not synonymous with compromise. It is possible to adapt without compromising your values and what is important to you. Every opportunity lost can be traced back to the failure to adapt.