Self Help Books and the Head Start They Provide
At a speech I recently did for a residential course to Ex-Graduates in York, I asked "Why do you think you went to university?" The answers were mixed, some to do with their chosen profession such as Doctors, Accountants, Veterinarians etc. More thought they had little choice but to go because of pier or parental pressures but many said it was to simply get a "Head Start" over the masses.
It's true, education does give you a head start, but we can't think that our education halts as soon as we find work, this is when our education really starts. It's just on another level, the books may change but the input should increase, not decrease or halt! Now, more than ever before, we need to keep in front. We need more information and stimulation and self Help Books were the solution for me.
So what helped me to get from where I was to where I wanted to be? Firstly, it was making the decision to do things differently. There is a popular quote that says "If you carry on doing what you have been doing then you are going to carry on getting what you have been getting"; so I knew something had to change.
Second was the realisation that I needed help. I needed help, guidance, advice, knowledge - but where to go?
The obvious choice for me was to read as many self help books as was possible. I got business books, self improvement books and I even bought a book called "how to read a book" so I could get the best out of my reading time.
I then set about a plan, taking action on all the information I had read, digested, agreed with and felt would help.
I have a saying that says "if you want more, you firstly have to be more. To be more, you must do more". Taking action on what I had read was for me the first steps from mediocrity to success. I took my life on a new tangent with no looking back.
I firmly believe that we must all take quantum leaps in all directions of our life to move ahead. I found these shifts uncomfortable at first, to say the least, but they become exciting and then compelling as time was served.
As I read more self help books and listened to more personal development CD`s, I knew I had to continue to do things differently, I had to take more and different actions. Otherwise I would be in the same place next year, which is exactly where I didn't want to be. I realised it was going to take some time to get the results I desired, but I had wasted so much time already, surely it would be at least better spent now. All I really needed to do was make the decision and then move forward with this new found knowledge.
You see, if you haven't got a clear, concise and compelling plan for your life then the obvious thing to do is to use someone else's until it becomes clear what you want. Use the plan and actions of someone that has already achieved the very things you want.
There are thousands of self help books out there and, as I did, you have to "kiss many frogs" before you find the one or ones that resonate with you, your personality and what it is you want. You will buy many books, CD`s and DVD`s, if you have the desire to move ahead. My favourites were from the late great Jim Rohn. Even though I only met him in person twice, his words, his methodology and beliefs became part of mine and assisted me greatly in becoming who I am today; more of the person I wanted to become and less of the person I wanted to leave behind.
All the knowledge in the world is available to us, all we have to do is promise ourselves we will go out, find it and take action.
As Co-Author of the Book "Strength to Strength", Marc Thompson's goal is to help individuals reach and surpass their own ambitions. This book and the advice, tips and techniques it provides, will enable any individual to achieve a future of positivity, success and happiness.
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