How to Stop Failing & Start Succeeding! (PART 3)

and part two of this article to bring you to this point. You now know how to build a solid foundation for success. And with that, you’re ready to learn the recipe for success.

Billionaire, J. Paul Getty, of Getty Oil, summed up his recipe for success this way.

• Get up early
• Work hard
• Find oil

I think he was joking when he said that, but if he wasn’t, he should have been. Certainly that’s not the secret to success. I know lots of people who live miserable lives who get up early and work hard. Have you ever known anyone who roofed houses for a living? They get up early, and, they work hard, but they do not have the life most of us want. So obviously that’s not the secret.

Personal development legend, Charlie “Tremendous” Jones got a little closer, when he said, “Five years from now, you’ll be pretty much the same as you are today, except for two things, the books you read, and the people you meet.”

And, Tony Robbins got even closer. He teaches a concept called CANI, Constant and Never-Ending Improvement. Those who enjoy a lifetime of success, are lifelong learners and, are committed to getting a little better every day of their life, for the rest of their life. (That’s a hint)

The skeletal version of the recipe looks like this: Reading –> Listening –> Attending –> Associating

Reading

Mark Twain was said to have made the following observation.

A man who does not read, is not better off than a man who can not read.

There is some debate about whether or not he is the one who coined that phrase, but there is no debate that whoever said it, was right!

Try this exercise some time.

Think of the poorest person you know. Someone who perhaps is living on welfare, and has been for many years. If you don’t know anyone like this, ask around until you find someone. Once you find him or her, ask them to show you their library, and watch them give you that crazy “What the @!#$% are you talking about” look. Those folks don’t have libraries. At least not a library of books.

Then, think of the wealthiest person you know. Someone whose life just works. Not only do they have limitless wealth, but they are healthy, spiritual and have great relationships. Ask them the same question, and they will light up and and eagerly and proudly show you one of their life’s prized posessions… their library.

It’s easy for someone whose not doing well financially to read this and think to themselves, “Well, if I was rich, I could afford to buy all those books too.” But which do you think came first. The books, or the money? I can tell you from my own personal experience, the books came first. The money followed.

Reading good books allows you to travel into the world of countless people, while yet physically remaining in your own world. It allows you peak into the minds and lives of successful men and woman. And as a result, your mind, your knowledge, your intelligence, and your belief are increased.

If a man or a woman is born into an environment of poverty or lack, they are surrounded by people with a poverty or lack mentality.

I wasn’t born into poverty, but I was born into a family that struggled financially a lot. My parents were good people. They had good middle class jobs. They worked hard for a living.  And they taught me a lot of very important things. They taught me to love God, respect woman, and not to eat yellow snow. I would not be the person I am today, were it not for the foundation my parents gave me. They loved me, and they meant well, but they did not know how to thrive in this world.

My teachers were great people too! They loved me, they too taught me a lot of things. But, they were all underpaid and struggling financially and would be hard pressed to teach me how to succeed in all areas of my life. (Though I must say, I had a couple of really, really great teachers who were amazing influences in my life.)

And then there were my friends. They could teach me how to roll a joint (which I never did), smoke a bong (which I never did), or get hammered on the weekends (which I never did), or how to terrorize the neighborhood (no comment), but they were as broke and messed up as I was, so they weren’t any help. (Note: I did have a few really solid friends. Not all of them were burn outs. )

So how is possible to know anything better, when everyone around you knows the same stuff you know? It’s not, unless of course you do the things we’re talking about; first and foremost, reading. As I said above, reading takes you out of your limited world and introduces you to any kind of world you chose.

One of the world’s richest men ever, Bill Gates, said this about reading, “I attribute all of my success to the reading of biographies and autobiographies of successful men and woman since the time I was a small boy.”

Several times growing up myself, I heard people talk about how important reading was. But I thought all the people telling me that were stupid, so I didn’t take their advice. It took me many years to learn I was the stupid one, and many more to learn for myself the power of reading the right books.

Once a person begins to understand that they need to be reading books in order for life to get better, they typically have a few questions. They are:

• What books do you recommend?
• If success is what you are after, you need to start by asking yourself what you want to succeed at? Do you want to be healthy and fit? Read, Body for Life. Want to succeed at relationships? Read, Men are From Mars, Woman are From Venus. Want to succeed in sales, marketing or network marketing, or in any line of work for that matter? Read, How to Win Friends and Influence People. Want to make more money? Read all of the books I give away free for registering on my website (see the top of my homepage). As a matter of fact, I recommend that everyone read every book that I give away for registering for my site. Three of the four book titles have the word “rich” in them, but you can use the information you will learn to, not only create wealth for yourself and others, but also to master any other part of your life.

How often should I read?

Read every day! Part of succeeding is committing to a lifestyle of success. You want to read at least 10 pages a day of a good book. 10 pages a day times 30 days a month, that’s 300 pages a month which is one good sized book, or several short books. You can’t possibly read at least one book every month (the right books of course) and not see significant improvement in your life.

C.S. HUGHES’S RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

Read 10 pages of a good book, every day

(Stay tuned for the next ingredients)

Regards,





C.S. Hughes
Chief Visionary Officer
Personal Development for Free
http://www.PD4Free.com
Success, one click at a time™