We are exactly where we have chosen to be, by the people we associate with, the things we watch, read, and hear.
A speaker had said that at a leadership conference and I wanted to argue with him; I did in my head a little bit. I thought… I didn’t choose to have the job I did at the pay that I got; I would have chosen more! I didn’t choose to be very shy. I didn’t choose for the air conditioning in my car to break!
But then I got to thinking about the people I hung around with up to that point, and other than my A/C not working, they were all in similar situations. You might say we were all just trapped in the financial matrix (which we were), but the main reason I was stuck in it was because I was always around others who were too!
I’ve learned that our results come from our actions, which comes from our thinking, which is influenced by the people we listen to, and the advice we get.
Where do you get your advice from?
Be careful who you listen to; you might end up with their results!
When it came to finances, since it’s not taught in schools I got it from the media, the banks, and the people around me. The media is the advertising, trying to get me to buy their stuff now and pay later, while the banks are happy to help out and make me their slave for my debt. The people around me were other people who were broke!
I don’t know about you, but I wanted to be rich. If that’s the goal, I needed to stop taking financial advice from people who were broke like me! If they had the solution, why were they still broke?
How about relationships? Does it make sense to get relationship advice from someone who has been divorced 5 times? They may be able to tell you what NOT to do, but unless this person has now been happily married for 10-20 years, they may not have the right advice yet.
Sometimes it’s tempting to take the easy way out though, and take advice we shouldn’t.
I remember when I just started college, and I had to take a class in which I had absolutely no interest. At this time I hung around with people who loved board games like me, and who also thought that telling me to skip a class to finish a game was good advice.
I did just that. In the class I missed, the teacher gave us the main class project, explaining what we had to do for something that was worth 50% of our mark!. I had made a new friend in that class though, and asked him what we were supposed to do, and he gave me what I thought was a satisfactory answer
I did what my friend told me, and gave my paper to the teacher on the last day of class. The teacher looked at the paper, looked at me, and said “THIS isn’t what I asked for!”
I took advice from someone who didn’t have the results I was looking for, and got the same results. I failed that class along with my friend. Years later I found out that this friend missed the same class as me! He didn’t even have the information I was looking for, let alone the results!
Be careful who you listen to; you might end up with their results.
This goes for listening to ourselves too. For most of my life I was a very shy person unless you were a close friend that I was comfortable with. I was constantly telling myself that I couldn’t talk to people, so I never did. After all, why would I bother trying to talk to someone if I didn’t believe I could?
I needed to start listening to people with the results I wanted, which in this case was people who could talk to people.
I have since been going through the program put together by Life Leadership, and listening to people who have what I’m looking for in all the areas of my life. By reading good books and listening to CDs like those found in the public speaking pack, I can now talk to people.
By going through their Total Personal Development program, I improve in my ability to lead people, to resolve conflict, to have confidence, to be persuasive and to just win in general. I’ve been able to build the belief that I CAN win and that I will. In essence, it has changed my thinking. It has changed me from thinking like I am who I am and stuck with what I have, to thinking like I can be who I want to be, have what I want to have; if I just follow the formula for high achievement!
By going though their Financial Fitness Program, I’ve started learning financial principles from the millionaires, from those who have the results I want from the principles being taught. I’ve learned how to save money, how to make more money, and even how to pay less taxes!
Be careful who you listen to; you might end up with their results.
Be purposeful in who and what you listen to; you can end up with their results!
Leadership to Freedom 