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Your next ten years - what will they bring? Sorrow - problems - joy - challenge - opportunity - failure- success. Yes, all of these and more. If you could look back on these next ten years, what would you see? It's up to you. You now hold the keys to a rich and rewarding life as well as to a life full of failure, rejection, or disappointment. Which keys will you use, and which keys will you discard? Let's only talk about the keys that will guarantee your life will be fully human.
The Key of Opportunity
Opportunities are every where, all the time. Our ability to recognize them in personal situations is directly related to our attitudes and preparation. People speak of 'good luck'. I believe that good luck is when preparation meets opportunity.
Our vision and perspective also play an important role in our ability to recognize and take advantage of each opportunity as it arrives. We usually don't get a whole lot of time to see opportunities, and they rarely come around a second time.
An opportunity awareness and a willingness to act and to risk are essential. Learn to see opportunities in every event, problem, and situation.
The Key of Purpose
What do you stand for? What would you give your life for? What drives you from inside?
Purpose is the starting point of all achievement, growth, and success. If it is vague and weak, your accomplishments will be little, short-lived, and of small value to you and mankind. If your purpose is intense, directed, and meaningful, your rewards and contributions will be evident and valuable.
Your goals, use of time, happiness, and inner peace are signs of your purpose.
The Key of Goals
Goals are the stuff of life. You either move forward or backward; you can't stand still. Your goals change as your values and needs change. When a winner doesn't reach a goal, he changes the time frame. When a loser doesn't reach a goal, he changes the goal.
Goals that set you on fire come from a healthy purpose. Irresponsible goals that get you what you want at someone else's expense usually cause inner conflict. On the other hand, goals of service bring contentment, fullness and peace. The ultimate success of your goals depends on how they relate to the laws of God, man, and human decency.
The Key of Balance
Most people in life are sacrificing one area of their lives for another. They are successful business leaders but have had three marriages by age 45; they are mental wizards but are in very poor health; they're social busybodies attending functions and meetings of all types but don't know their own children.
Complete balance in life may be a worthy goal, but difficult to reach. However, I believe that most of us could achieve a better balance in all areas of our lives if we would:
- Better understand our own values and maintain an improved awareness as they change.
- Set more realistic goals in all areas of our lives.
- Communicate better with the people in our lives.
- Understand the importance of balance and a well- rounded life.
Balance takes effort, the ability to say no, and a genuine desire to have a full and complete life.
The Key of Growth
What is growth? It is pain. - It is loneliness. - It is dedication. - It is sacrifice. - It is commitment. - It is unanswered questions. - It is excitement. - It is a challenge. - It is late nights and early mornings. - It is isolation. - It is alienation. - It is accomplishment. - It is a heightened awareness. - It is necessary. - It is never-ending once you start. - And growth is a desire to know more, learn more, and do more than you'll ever have time for in one lifetime.
The Key of Giving Back
Everything you have comes from God, and sooner or later you'll have to give it all back, even your life. Only those people who have learned how to serve and give back are truly happy. Life is a unique combination of giving and receiving: you can't just give and you can't just receive.
You really never give and not receive more in return. Try it! Give a smile; you'll get one back. Give love, and you'll get love in return. Give understanding, and you'll be understood. And so it goes from beginning to end.
The Key of Peace
Be Still. Listen to yourself, that inner voice. It guides you, directs you, and keeps you on course.
Peace and contentment are by-products of a healthy self-image, life, and purpose. When you are in that quiet place from time to time, when it is only you and your soul, be honest in your appraisal of your life and its purpose.
My dear friend: a contented heart, a peaceful mind, and a quiet soul are the rewards of a well-lived life. It doesn't matter where you live, what you do, or what you are worth, they are the priceless intangible gifts between you and God.
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