Tania French
My sister loves lists. She says they keep her on track and trigger her memory. So, she asked me to make a list detailing what it took for me to reach the level of success I have.
Actually what she really wanted is to learn what it takes to stay committed and focused on a goal. Her goals seemed to blur and then disappear after initially burning as bright as the sun on a summer's day.
This is quite common. So don't fret.
But now forget that you were once a goal-setter-trasher. Go into unfamiliar territory and cast off those shackles of procrastination. Be fearless and eager to learn.
Let's start with the basics:
1. Turn off the TV. You won't change your life if you keep watching the world go by. So get off your couch, or bed, toss the remote, walk to your tube and press the OFF button. Better yet, put it behind closed doors. It's addictive. Seeing it might disturb your creativity. Now, I know you might feel deprived and suffer from withdrawal, but, when your life changes you'll get over it.
No legislation can suppress nature; all life rushes to reproduction; our procreative faculties are matured early, while passion is strong, and judgment and self-restraint weak. We cannot alter this, but we can alter what is conventional. We can refuse to brand an act of nature as a crime, and to impute to vice what is due to ignorance.
—Tennessee Claflin (1846–1923)
2. Go to a bookstore. If you don't have a good dictionary and thesaurus, Walk to your local bookstore and purchase these two indispensable items. While your browsing, check out the Biography section to read books written by people you wish to emulate. Equally as important, buy How To/Advice books on the subject your interested in.
3. Read. Back home on the couch, sans remote, read, read and read. Underline, highlight and take notes. Write down what you are learning.
4. Grab a pen and notepad. Now that it's quiet, start listening to your thoughts. Write. Write anything that comes to mind. Write about the life you want. Describe it in absolute detail. This should not be a hardship. Make it fun. Feel yourself living the life you always wanted. If you can't handle it, go back and start from the top.
5. Ask questions. Ask experts who have succeeded in what you want to do all the questions you have. Commit this Rudyard Kipling poem to memory: "Six honest serving men--they taught me all I know--their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who."
6. Pick a product you want to sell. Remember - all forms of art must be successfully marketed into actual products or services. Create your first niche product.
7. Watch your thoughts and words. In order to maximize success, remember: the words you choose and use create your life's news.
Your full commitment is changing your life for the better. The more creative fuel you emit towards your goal, the faster you'll reach it. You know your life is in your hands. Now get those hands dirty. Watch your fears melt away.
It isn’t that I want to hold the children here, it’s just that I worry about what our life will be like. I don’t know what we’ll talk about, just the two of us, after all these years.
—Anonymous Parents. As quoted in Women of a Certain Age, by Lillian B. Rubin, ch. 2 (1979)
That is the power of Creative Action.
About the author:
Click here for your common-sense guide to living a fulfilled and wealthy life.
Tania French is a composer who has enjoyed performances and radio broadcasts of her music worldwide.
© 2005 Tania French. All Rights Reserved.