It’s What You Learn After You Know It All That Counts

My Uncle Mike always told me, “Change is inevitable – except from a vending machine.”

He also observed that some people are so narrow minded they can look through a keyhole with both eyes at the same time.

The world changes constantly. Unless you change with it, you’re destined for mediocrity or worse.

If you don’t stay abreast of new developments in technology and changes in the marketplace, you will be left far behind … or, at best, you’ll experience only a portion of the success that might have been yours.

The good news – make that the great news – is that you don’t have to live your life “just like always.” You can choose to build a successful business. You can choose to change careers. You can choose to get better.

You can choose to change.

Status Quo – That’s Latin for “The Mess We’re In”

Change. Every time I heard the word as a kid, I would flinch a little. It usually meant Ihad to fix something – as in change the tire or change the oil in the car. I’m not the handiest guy around so, sooner or later, I was going to be in grease right up to my elbows.

More often than not it meant I had to fix me – as in “You’d better change your ways!”

Either way, I was in trouble.

Today the word doesn’t bother me at all because I realize that you cannot grow without change. If you can’t change your mind, you can’t change anything. Change is the hinge on which your life turns. And when you’re building a spare-time business, don’t kid yourself … your life is at a turning point.

What all business builders want is progress – but you can’t have it without change. The person who never changes his opinion, never corrects his mistakes. And the road to success is always under construction.

What succeeded yesterday often fails today. Consider what the founder of the IBM, Thomas Watson, once said: “There is a world market for about 5 computers.” Luckily, Mr. Watson was able to change. Would there even be an IBM today had he not?

You can’t become what you were meant to be by remaining what you are. I’ve heard it said that only fools and dead men don’t change their minds. Fools won’t. Dead men can’t.

When you change, your opportunities will change. The same kind of thinking that got you to where you are, will not necessarily get you to where you want to go.

But when patterns and tradition are broken, new opportunities come together. Progress comes from those who are not satisfied to leave well enough alone.

Only Hungry Minds Can Grow

Have you ever noticed how many people you know are literally in the same place they’ve been for years?

They have the same dreams, the same opportunities, the same problems and the same alibis they’ve always had. They have simply refused to change.

Why?

Because their minds are like concrete – all mixed up and permanently set.

It’s a hard truth, but whatever you’ve got, you’ve traded time for. Whatever you’re not, you haven’t made time for. The secret of your future is hidden in your daily routine.

I’m sort of a fanatic about this. I always have something to read or write whenever I have any spare time.

I’m always trying to learn something and I’m not real picky from whom I learn it. It’s been said that the passion of the protégé can be measured by his pursuit of his mentor.

From one person, I may learn what to do, while from another, I learn what not to do and why not to do it. I try to learn from the mistakes of others, because I’ll never live long enough to make all the mistakes myself.

You can learn more from a wise person who is wrong than you can from a fool who is right. The best way to keep growing is to never stop learning. Only hungry minds can grow.

Life changes and teaches us by giving us new problems. Your rewards in life are determined by the kinds of problems you solve for others.

With learning you gain knowledge. Act on that knowledge and you gain experience.

Experience is a permanent possession that keeps us from repeating the past in the future.

With knowledge and experience you gain wisdom. If you want to increase your wealth, you have to increase your wisdom.

Automotive designer and motorcar racing legend Carroll Shelby once asked, “Speed costs – how fast do you want to go?”

It’s the same with your professional education. Gaining wisdom takes time, effort and money. But if you think education is expensive – just try ignorance.

Source:  awaionline.com /  By: Tom Kavala