CAREER
Going in the Wrong Direction?
By Dan Miller
48days.com
CBN.com
-- But I'm Making Good Time
I’ve always been a big proponent of being persistent. We hear the famous Calvin Coolidge quotation:
“Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan 'Press On' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”
And yet I often see people who are “persistent and determined” but are off track in what they are doing. If you are losing money on each watermelon you sell, don’t be determined to sell more. Stop what you are doing and change direction. If you are miserable in your job, persistence may just get you more of what you are already experiencing. Read a book or attend a seminar. There is a wealth of information about “seeing” the new opportunities, but you have to go get it. If you are an average tennis player, don’t just persist; take some lessons from a pro to learn how to be better. If you want a better marriage, ask to be mentored by someone who has a great marriage.
Being persistent is a tactic, but not a strategy. Make sure you have a strategy for the areas of your life where you want to see excellence. Wikipedia defines “strategy” as a long term plan of action designed to achieve a particular goal. Imagine you are driving in a Corvette at 80 mph headed straight toward Los Angeles – but you really want to go to Nashville. Accelerating to 120 mph may give you the sense that you are really making progress, temporarily. But what you really need to do is change direction.
Be careful of being “persistent” in the wrong direction. Develop strategies for right direction in your life.
Can these resources help you?
Inch by Inch
After many months of work and prodding, the 48 Days Career Kit has appeared in Costco stores across the nation this week. 48 Days to the Work You Love was released in January of 2005 – two full years ago. But the momentum has continued to build. Also released this month were the Spanish version, the full audio, the paperback version, and a 120 second infomercial.
Just last week I saw a client who asked, “Dan, what is the best idea you know of for making a lot of money quickly?” I always cringe when I hear this perspective. It’s likely to lead to frustration and disappointment.
Dave Anderson is the founder of Famous Dave’s – the great barbeque restaurants. Dave told me once that as long as he chased money, it stayed just out of reach. He finally gave up on being rich and just started doing what he loves doing – making great barbeque. At that point the money tracked him down and dumped truckloads on him. He is now able to fund children’s education and other worthy causes with the money that doing something he loves has brought him.
If I would have been looking just for ideas to make a lot of money, I would never have chosen to be an author. Look at these depressing statistics from Publishers Weekly for 2004:
• 950,000 titles out of 1.2 million tracked by Nielsen Bookscan sold fewer than 99 copies
• Another 200,000 sold fewer than 1,000 copies
• Only 25,000 sold more than 5,000 copies
• The average book in America sells about 500 copies
• Only 10 books sold more than a million copies
• Fewer than 500 sold more than 100,000
• Nearly 200,000 new titles are published each year
I should have chosen a whole lot of other things. But doing what I love and doing it with a clear strategy and tactics has brought me not only deep personal fulfillment, but also a level of financial success that few people ever experience.
Theologian Fredrick Buechner said, “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world's deep hunger meet.”
I encourage you to do the same. Find your deep gladness, create a plan, and success will find you.
Entrepreneur with a Cause
I like to be included in the growing number of “social entrepreneurs.” Here’s a definition:
“A social entrepreneur is someone who recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to make social change. Whereas business entrepreneurs typically measure performance in profit and return, social entrepreneurs assess their success in terms of the impact they have on society and often work through nonprofits and citizen groups.”
Next week my wife, Joanne, and daughter, Ashley, will begin leading a six-week 48 Days workshop for 40 ladies at the Tennessee Prison for Women. And we are making it possible for anyone leaving a Tennessee prison to receive the 48 Days materials.
Here’s another cool example. One Laptop per Child is an organization that has shipped a laptop computer that will sell for less than $100. These laptops were created for poor children in developing countries and are designed to withstand cold, heat, mud, dust, and daily abuse. And companies are lining up to provide free software.
Let us know what you are doing as a “social entrepreneur.”
Check ou the $100 laptops.
Quotes - Abundance
He who is plenteously provided for from within, needs but little from without. – Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe
Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted. – Albert Einstein
Not what we have but what we enjoy, constitutes our abundance. – John Petit-Senn
Reflect upon your blessings, of which every man has plenty, not on your past misfortunes, of which all men have some. – Charles Dickens
The harvest of old age is the recollection and abundance of blessing previously secured. – Cicero
Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into. – Wayne Dyer
Humor - Doctor in the House
A strained voice called out through the darkened theater, "Please, is there a doctor in the house?"
Several men stood up as the lights came on.
An older lady pulled her daughter to stand next to her. "Good, are any of you doctors single and interested in a date with a nice girl?"
Dan Miller is the bestselling author of 48 Days To The Work You Love and a renowned Life Coach specializing in career fulfillment. His weekly newsletter reaches 70,000 subscribers. Dan’s articles are featured here at CBN every Tuesday, and you can find out more about Dan at www.48days.com.
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