Whatever you think, think the opposite by Paul Arden
If you always make the right, the safe decision, the one most people make, you will be the same as everyone else. Always wishing life was different.
The unsafe decision causes you to think and respond in a way you hadn't thought of.
And that thought will lead to other thoughts which will help you achieve what you want.
Start taking bad decisions and it will take you to a place where others only dream of being.
Everyone wants an exciting life, but most people are afraid to take the bull by the horns. So they take an easy option for an exciting life. They live their excitement through other people.
It's better to regret what you have done than what you haven't.
He said, 'Dad, I'm in trouble.'
The father asked, 'Are they going to kill you?'
He said, 'Oh no, no.'
His father said, 'Son, you don't have a problem.'
When we are young we jump into the pool whether we can swim or not.
We have no fear. Either we swim or we drown.
Before the age of thirty important things happen to us which shape the rest of our lives.
The 1st is:
We become aware of ourselves and our own thinking. We reach the age of reason.
The 2nd is:
In our new-found maturity we begin to think in a more adult way.
We become grown up.
Recklessness and risk are not compatible with age.
Risk becomes something which must be carefully considered.
The steady Eddie
The corporate non-risk taker rises fast on the freshness of youth; an open mind, a pleasant demeanour and good looks will accelerate this rise. His superiors are pleased to promote him since it reflects well on them. The candidate reaches a platform of responsibility, not something to be treated lightly. After all he is now a manager, albeit a junior one.
His salary rises in accordance with status, not ability, and he reaches board level. It is now time to appoint a joint or deputy managing director. Our man is considered to be a good company man, but he is a bit dull. He doesn’t produce innovation; he doesn’t do anything for the image of the company. There’s a very good young man in his department earning a third of his salary, who younger members of staffs respond to. Our man at forty is moved sideways, and at forty-seven he is out.
He didn’t reach the top of the ladder, he has fallen and there is no climbing back. He’s finished, yet he has done nothing wrong.
That is the problem.
He’s done nothing wrong.
The reckeless Erica
As a youngster she doesn’t have the charm of the previous character. Not the corporate type. She’s irritating but enthusiastic and popping with daft ideas. So they keep her on. Most of her ideas are regarded as impractical, too adventurous or plain silly. But somewhere in the company someone picks up one of her wilder thoughts and promoters it. It get noticed because it is different and fresh.
For the next three years she produces a series of unuseable ideas. She becomes increasingly irritating and is fired. Now the odd thing is that it is not as difficult for her to get a new job as she thought, because a number of people remember that rather good idea she produced three years ago. They prefer to gloss over the failures. Her name on the payroll adds a bit glamour to her new company.
But the same progress happens again. Once more she is fired, but now there are two pieces of work that make her memorable. She’s not just a one-off. Her whole life is lived like thism a series of ups and downs, more downs than ups. But when she reaches the age of forty she has a track record.
She has become a respected person.
Still reckless Erica, but more in demand than ever because she failed to conform.
Knowledge makes us play safe. The secret is to stay childish.
Too many people spend too much time trying to perfect something before they actually do it. Instead of waiting for perfection, run with what you’ve got, and fix it as you go.
Be your own worst critic. When things go wrong it’s tempting to shift the blame. Don’t. Accept responsibility. People will appreciate it, and you will find out what you’re capable of.
If you want to be interesting, be interested.
A young man worked as a runner in an advertising firm. One day he said to his manager, ‘I’m leaving. I’m going to be a drummer.’ The manager said, ‘I didn’t know you played the drums.’ He replied, ‘I don’t, but I’m going to.’ A few years later that young man played in a band with Eric Clapton and Jack Bruce, and it was called Cream, and the young man’s name was Ginger Baker. He became what he wanted to become before he knew he could do it.
He had a goal.
Some people have a gift for coming up with ideas. But for those that don’t it is a real struggle. Oddly, the people who struggle most are often the ones who become the most successful. Having too many deas is not always a good thing. It’s too easy to move on to the next one, and the next one. If you don’t have many ideas, you have to make those you do have work for you.
MUM! I’ve failed my exams. Disaster? It’s and achievement.
it’s commonplace to do all right or be somewhere in the middle. Being bottom ot near the bottom has merit. It means you are not interested in the run-of-the-mill way in which you are being taught. Your mind is elsewhere. Fantasizing. Many people who bottomed out at school have gone on to be rich and successful, not due to their pass marks, but because of their imagination. So in order to succeed in your failure, you have to think of your failed situation as a good place to start from.
Good marks will not secure you an interesting life. You imagination will.
The world is what you think of it. So think of it differently and your life will change.
This is not the end. It is a new beginning.
