Another Big Step for Women

Rosa Parks, 1955

Manal al-Sharif, 1955

Since that day in December 1955 when one black woman refuse to give up her bus seat to accommodate the white passengers, many women have followed suit in defying convention. That lady was Rosa Parks, and her decision to say NO when the bus driver commanded her to give up her seat to white passengers, has given so many people - women and men alike - the courage to fight back for what they believe is their right.

We have inspirational women all around us - women who dare say no when needed, knowing well how much trouble it would eventually get them into.

Today, The Success Chronicles says Kudos to Manal al-Sharif, for saying no to the traditional Saudi belief that women cannot drive an automobile without consulting her male guardian. This belief, which also bans women from listening to music has been practised in Saudi Arabia for generations.

CNN.com showcased the story of Al-Sharif, who was trained to belief that listening to music was a sin. One day, she decided to, without a male guardian's permission, listen to her brother's cassette, and the Backstreet Boys song "Show Me The Meaning Of Being Lonely" playing at that time sounded like a message she had always needed to hear. No more isolating herself in a lonely world - get out there and do something.

That one song, that one instance, gave her the courage she needed to go one step further in defying convention. She drove a car. And just to rub it in, she posted her endeavor on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BT-3I5jg1xg)

I think it is a big step for women all over the world. We are a nation of our own. Women all over, of all nations have their own stories, no matter where they were born, how rich or poor they are, their choice of careers or their decision to start families. And together, we must know how to find strength from each other's stories.

Today, Manal al-Sharif is the strength many of us need. She is not merely a woman who dared to stray from the norm - she is a message to all us ladies out there, to be brave, be bold and to defy convention - because we can, and because sometimes, we must. Fight for what you believe is true. Fight for what is your right.

Thanks Manal - you have taken another big step for us women all over the world.
Thanks for being an inspiration.

Behind Every Successful Richard is an Eve

Eve and Richard Branson

I have had many parents call me up for the Young Entrepreneur Camp I organize annually, and ask if the camp can help their shy children. And based on the number of similar calls I receive, I'm guessing that there are a lot shy kids around.

So, if you are a mother of a shy child, what would you do?
Some parents apologize to people, saying "Sorry, my son is so shy" or "Oh dear, I'm truly sorry, she is just shy". If you approach this challenge this way, then read on.

Eve, mother of Richard was faced with this challenge years ago. She realized that her young child was extremely shy and would hide behind her dress and just refuse to speak to adults. It became so bad, it was disabling. One day, after a shopping trip, Eve asked her son to get out of her car about 3 miles away from home, and find his way home on foot. "What if I get lost?!" asked the bewildered child. "Well then, you'd have to ask for directions from the adults you meet along the way".

10 hours late, Richard came home. And his shyness was cured. He had asked many people for directions on how to get home (and stopped for awhile to play with bugs), but when he got home, he was a different child.

Today, this young boy is Richard Branson.
And he thanks his mother everyday for that experience he will never forget.

You cannot be an entrepreneur or a business person or succeed in any career if you are shy - or unable to share your thoughts with others or work in a team.

I for one, believe that an entrepreneurial attitude and business sense, if instilled in kids at a young age, will teach them the essence of life. Success come easily to whole-rounded individuals.

If you are a parent, here are some very important life lessons you can teach your kids:

1- Teamwork.
No matter what your child grows up to be, understanding the essence of teamwork if pivotal. Learning about teamwork is more than just listening to a lecture on why geese fly in a V shape. Theoretically, everyone is a good team player - but the raw truth is that many people cannot work in teams. A good way to start kids off in teams would be to put them in team sports.

2- Support their Skills.
From a very young age, you will know what your child is interested in. I like to spend time learning about human psychology by watching TV shows - and one of my favourites is Jon and Kate Plus 8 (now just Kate Plus 8), a story about a family of one set of twins and one set of sextuplets. I like how Kate, the mum, knows exactly what her kids are into. One boy loves trying to make things fit. He loves Lego. Another boy loves to make sure everything is organized properly before he plays his games, and picks up after himself. One girl simply loves attention, and gravitate to people naturally. So when you see your kids have certain interests, support them. In an interview I had with Norman from KRU, he shares how his father bought him a guitar at a very young age because he realized his boys loved music. There are many stories out there that prove the important roles parents play in moulding their children into successful people.

3- Etiquette and Respect for Others
Once, during my camp, I had a very aggressive 9-year old. He would strive to win every challenge, but I began to realize something in him - he lacked the element of respect. He pushed the girls in his team around, would speak rudely to the facilitators, but would only do so when I was not looking. In front of me, he was an angel. When his team did not win the final challenge, he was really angry. He came up to me, and in the heat of things, said "If we lose everything, then I'll tell my father never to send me to this camp again!". Why is having etiquette and respect so important? It may be true that when you rudely swerve in front of others in traffic or use the emergency lane when driving may get you to work on time, it is plain rude. Why succeed on someone else's expense when there can always be a win-win. This is an extremely important lesson to teach kids - and the best way is through leadership by example.

Every successful individual has stories to share about their parents.
While some rave about how their parents have helped them succeed, others share how their parents never gave them any support.

Of course, in the current day and age that we live in, doing what Eve Branson did to her son might not be the safest thing in the world. It's not what she did, really. It's why she did it; and we can definitely emulate the way she thinks.

The ball is in your court, so choose wisely!

This post is dedicated to all mothers and fathers, all the Eve Bransons who defied convention and sometimes gone against what they believed, to support their children to become the successes they are today.
Happy Mothers' and Fathers' Day!

Think KFC Before Quitting

Have you ever felt like quitting? Throwing in the towel? Like you've just had about enough?

STOP!

Have you heard of the KFC story?
If not, you must read this before deciding to give up.

Harland Sanders was quite contended with his little restaurant, where he served his fried chicken for a living. Things were going so well, he added a motel by his restaurant. When he was 45, the Governor of Kentucky awarded him with a Colonel title for his fabulous cooking skills. Things were going so well!

Then, IT happened. The government decided to build an expressway just in front of Sanders' restaurant and motel, making accessibility to the restaurant, an impossibility. He had to shut down, in fear of irrecoverable losses. So, he sat at home and received government support in the form of a meagre $105 a month.

During this time, Sanders' felt that there was definitely more to life than just sitting at home doing nothing. It was then, that Sanders' decided to do something he knew how to do so effortlessly - fry chicken! He grabbed a pan, some oil and lots of chicken, threw them into his car and drove off, he didn't know where to.

Quite directionless, he decided to stop at the first restaurant he came upon - and he tried to sell his chicken. "Just take them" he'd say, "and pay me if the customers like them". The restaurant owner tasted the fried chicken, agreed that is was amazing - but said no to him. No to free chicken.

So, he went back into his car and approached the next restaurant. Here too, the owner loved the fried chicken - but said no thanks to Sanders.

So Sanders went back and repeated this to every restaurant he came across that day.
But the days turned to weeks and the weeks to months, and months to years - no one wanted to sell his fried chicken. He continued the same routine - sleep in his car at night, and sell chicken in the daytime.

Let me ask you a question now :
If you were Colonel Sanders, how many restaurants would you have approached before quitting?
How many NOs would have been too much for you? 10? 50? 100?
How many days would you have stayed in your car before you decided that you've had just about enough and drive home to that $105 a month pay check?
How many more people would you have approached?

Do you know how many restaurants Colonel Sanders approached before finally hearing a YES?
1009. That's correct. He approached 1009 restaurants persistently until a restaurant bought his fried chicken. And he kept on going!

This is not just a success story to read and feel warm about.
Think about it - this man almost quit. He could've been satisfied just living by with the $ 105 check he received. But he didn't.

It's all about how far you will go.

How far will you go to lose that stubborn kilos off your body? Daily exercise? Eating only healthy food?

How far will you go to get that job of your dreams, no matter what 'people' tell you?

Ask yourselves:
How far will you go before you quit..
And when you decide to quit, think KFC.

Good luck!

Entrepreneurialize Your Life

I have been an entrepreneur for some years now, and the most amazing thing about being an entrepreneur is how much I have learnt about myself!

It's so true! When I embarked on this journey of entrepreneurship, I was wondering about what I would really learn, with business skills topping the list. But never in a million years would I have guessed that being an entrepreneur would open my eyes to who I really am as a person.

So, am I suggesting that everyone should drop everything they're doing, quit their jobs and become an entrepreneur to learn more about themselves? On the contrary, and as my fellow entrepreneur pals would agree, we do not need to be an entrepreneur to practise living an entrepreneurial life. All we'd need to do is be open to adopting an entrepreneurial mind and attitude and assimilating these into our daily lives.

Here are some priceless lessons I've learnt and would like to share with all of you.

1- Get up in the morning because no one is going to wake you up!
This is a very fundamental lesson I learnt in the early days of my entrepreneur life. Before being an entrepreneur, I used to dread the awful ringing of the alarm, in its (futile) attempts to snap me out of my sweet, sweet slumber, to get dressed for work. Because most entrepreneurs don't have specific work hours, we must learn to rely on ourselves to discipline our minds and bodies. Just because we do not have a punch card system and no boss to glare at us for strolling in 2 minutes too late, does not mean that we can sleep in. WE become our motivation. So whether or not the alarm rings waking up is a MUST! Else, there will be no business, and that means no moolah, and no retail therapy! Boo-hoo...

2- A pivotal lesson on money
Speaking about all that moolah, I think it would be the right time to say that at some point in most entrepreneur's life, they reach a point of having an absolutely or almost dry bank account - it happens, trust me. And when this happens, all hell starts to break loose! Everything we have ever believed in starts to crumble. We will start doubting ourselves and everyone around us. It is at this point in life, where we will learn to appreciate the finer things in life. And more importantly, it is at this point where we'll learn how to move on without money. We learn to accept this extremely insecure feeling, because we know that we can't get any worse than this, we know we've just seen ground zero - and we become filled with a hope that things can only go up from here. And after this point, money stops becoming something we cling on to. And that's a good thing. Want money, don't need it.

3- The Colonel Sanders attitude to selling fried chicken
I'm guessing you know who Colonel Harland Sanders is? He's the smart guy (with the really white hair) who invented KFC. But did you know that he was turned down 1009 times before he successfully managed to find a buyer for his fried chicken? (Full story on blog post entitled : Think KFC Before Quitting). And that's the reality of being an entrepreneur - people WILL say NO to you. They will. There is no doubt in that. Believe me, being rejected can make one feel extremely low about themselves. But instead of the chin-to-floor reaction, we must learn to pick ourselves up, and with all we have, take one step forward - because if you don't, then accept that that will be the death of your business. Just remember, that while some people love coffee, others get migraines just by walking pass a Coffee Bean or Starbucks. One's person's medicine is another man's poison. It is impossible to have a clientele of 'everyone in the world'. But we learn. We learn to keep on keeping on. Differentiating, strategizing, advertising - but most importantly, just keep on keeping on. And get that chin off that floor!

4- Be the Burger Ramly to the McDonald's
When we first start up as entrepreneurs, we were motivated by the Big Dreams, the Huge Possibilities, the "I Can Definitely Do Better That That Guy" attitude, the Success Stories. But it is only when we're knee deep in our business will we realize that it was not as easy as it was when we were thinking about starting up. One of the problems, stiff competition. Funny how these competitors seem so harmless and trivial when we were Dreaming Big, huh? Well, time for a reality check. Competition is an inevitability. It does exist and it is real. Trick is, to find a way to differentiate. How do you think Burger Ramly's founder would have felt about McDonald's? But he differentiated - we simply cannot get a Burger Ayam Special in McDonald's - even till today, can we? Don't ever be afraid or intimidated by competition - there is always something you can do better. If it's international competition you're worried about, think local. I remember what Resh Monu said in an interview, about how he got to where he is. "Always remember, that there is a Malaysian local market". Never give up just because you're not big enough or smart enough - you have something special to give. Spend some time finding that.

I hope these tips will help you entrepreneurialize your lives.
You don't have to be an entrepreneur - just adopt an entrepreneurial mind and attitude.

Good luck!

The Baseball Theory of Life

Have you ever heard the saying "Life is like a baseball game?" No? Well, neither have I.

But I thought about it once, and it astounded me how much life and living resembled what happens out there on the baseball field.

Well, though, admittedly, I am no expert on the Major or Little Leagues, but thanks to the silver screen, I think I got the basics of the game pretty much figured out.



One day, I shared this analogous theory of mine to my class of students, and I could've sworn I heard the "Click!" go off in their teenage minds, accompanied by the gaped "I Got It!" expressions. Miss those kids...


The Game - In Layman Terms
Baseball is a sport played with bats and balls. The batter (the one with the bat) stands in the centre, surrounded by 4 corners, known as bases, which are 'secured' by 4 players on the other team. The pitcher (the ball-thrower), who is from the other team, will throw the ball (can this get anymore layman??) to the batter. The batter, will, with all his might (and tactics...) hit the ball. The main aim of the batter is to hit the ball as far away as he can, to disable the opponent team from getting to it and reaching the base before they do.

The opponent team's main aim is to get the ball and 'touch' one of the 4 bases on the field - and when this happens, it's "STTTRRRIIKKKEE OOONNEEE" for the batter. 3 strikes, and he's out. Once the batter hits the ball, his aim is to make it to 2nd base and as many bases as he can before the opponent team reaches the base - or he's out. But if he manages to reach the 4th and final base, that's a Home Run.

Phheeww! Believe me, for a girl that doesn't play much sports, that was an accomplishment of magnitude proportions!

So here it is, my Baseball Theory of Life.


The Baseball Theory of Life

1. The Ball Is Coming...What to Do?
A Lesson in Facing Challenges
In baseball, if you are holding the bat, you will be faced with the inevitable event of the ball hurling towards you. In this instance, what do you do? Well, let's identify the options.

(a) You can do the most obvious thing and hit it
(b) You can duck or run away so the ball won't hit you
(c) You can do absolutely nothing, knowing well the ball will hit you
(d) You can catch the ball and throw it back

Life is very much the same.

In life, we are faced with an insurmountable amount of challenges - this is almost always certain. Challenges must come because we are alive.

Did you know that the word 'life' originated from the Proto-Indo-European word 'lip', which means 'to remain, persevere and continue'? So you see, being alive is more than just being alive - we have to work at it. It's more of a verb, an action rather than a noun, really, if you think about it. So to persevere at life is to keep at it - keep at what? Keep facing everyday in the face so we can still be alive the next day.

One of my favourite authors and self help gurus, Tony Robbins once said, that in life, we are either climbing or sliding. If we strive to improve our lives, we become better (climbing); or if we choose not to do anything to improve, we actually become worse (sliding). So basically, this means, that even if you were to remain in status quo, some work needs to be done. Interesting observation, wouldn't you say?

So in life, challenges are inevitable..but it's not so much what happens that determine what kind of a person we are - it's how we react to what happens that shapes us.

If you look at it from the baseball point of view, you'll see that the options we have when the ball is approaching us are similar to the options we have in life.

Ask yourself - how do you react to challenges around you?

(a) Do you face it head on?
(b) Do you run away so the challenge won't be able to find or hurt you?
(c) Do you do absolutely nothing, knowing well that you will be hit hard by the challenge?
(d) Do you get mad and fight back or retaliate?

What would YOU do?

2. Do you have what it takes to Hit and Run?
A Lesson in Trust and Risk TakingHere, we are looking at the element of trust.

We humans are rather complicated. More often than not, we want to know why we need to do things that are asked of us, before we decide whether or not we want to do it. And often, we want to wait and see the consequence of our actions before moving on.

Now here's a question - if there is a system in place, and you are but one element of this system, and you have your very own role to play, as in all the other elements in the system...can you just play your role without wondering what the consequence or outcome is? Can you trust that if you do your part, that the other elements and the system will follow through?

There is an interesting story in Greek mythology, which backs this up.

Orpheus, was a great musician - and he married Eurydice. Life together was filled with bliss, until one day, Eurydice died of a snake bite. In Greek mythology, it is believed that those who pass on go to the Underworld, ruled by Hades. So, finding himself unable to bear the painful loss of his beloved wife, Orpheus decided to travel to the Underworld himself, to get her back.

The grim Hades, the God of the Underworld was enthralled by the musical charms of Orpheus, that he granted him his wish of having his wife Eurydice back with him in the real world. BUT, Hades' boon came with one condition. Hades said he will send Eurydice with Orpheus, but when Orpheus walks out of the Underworld, he was asked not to ever look back to see if Eurydice is following him. So basically, Hades asked Orpheus to trust him.

Young Orpheus, filled with excitement and anxiety, knowing that it will only be moments before he'd be able to have his wife back, started to walk confidently out of the caves. He walked, and he walked for what may have seemed like days! And then, he saw the mouth of the cave. Just as he was approaching the cave opening, he started questioning Hades' promise.

Is Eurydice really behind me?
Can I trust Hades?
What if I walk all the way, only to know that Hades has cheated me?
Oh no..I can't even hear her behind me...am I fooled?
And with each step he took, his doubts started to become more unbearable. His mind was in a mess because of uncertainty. And he made the biggest mistake in his life.
HE LOOKED BACK!

And as he did, he saw his wife, who was in fact, just behind him, being pulled away back to the Underworld.

I remember first reading this story, and feeling immense sadness and guilt! I mean, can you even imagine being in Orpheus' shoes?

The lesson here is TRUST.
How many of us trust things that are going on around us?

In baseball, the term hit and run is used when there is a player on the 2nd base, waiting to run to the 3rd base when the batter hits the ball. Here's what happens: when the batter hits the ball, he runs to the 2nd base, the player currently on the 2nd base will run to the 3rd, the player on 3rd will run onto the 4th and final base, and the team wins a Homerun.

Here's the trick. The player on 2nd base will start running just seconds before the batter hits the ball, so he gains advantage of time. Now, if the batter is good, he will be able to hit the ball far enough so the opponents would not be able to get to it before they reach their respective bases. BUT, what can happen, is that the batter does not hit the ball hard enough. In this case, the player on the 2nd base would have started running. So he would neither be on 2nd nor 3rd base when the ball is hit. If the opponent gets to the ball before he reached 3rd base, he's out.

So if you understand the game, you will see that the player on the 2nd base runs without even waiting to see how successful the batter was at hitting the ball. He just takes the risk and starts to run! What is this, if not TRUST in its finest form? And this is not easy to do, because you'd know that there is a possibility that you might be out.

What would you do if you're on 2nd base?
Would you run slower, so if in case the batter failed to do his job well, you could run back to the safety of the 2nd base?
Or would you trust the batter with all your life, decide to take the risk and start running the fastest you possibly can to get to the 3rd base?

We all know that sometimes, a choice must be made - you either run slow, or run fast. Because staying on the fence without a decision is the worst choice yet!

Can you trust the system (the game) enough to be able to just play your role without seeing the outcome of it? Do you believe that you are, in fact a part of a bigger picture, without sometimes being able to see the bigger picture?

Ask yourself these questions:
1. When working for an organization, and you realize that your days are filled with repetition, where you basically do the same thing over and over again - you write recruitment letters everyday; you sell the same product everyday; you work on the same programme everyday; you teach students everyday - do you trust that you are an important part of a bigger picture, or that your work is so mundane, it's unimportant?

2. If someone comes up to you and says "Paint this picture" but all you see is a small scrap of paper that means nothing, but he says that 1000 other people are painting little scraps that will later be joined into a big picture that does make sense, would you do it? Would you do it if it took 3 days to complete? 5 days? A week? A year? Would you do it, trustingly?

3. When you are planning a trip with your family, do you organize everything yourself because you simply cannot afford to trust others, in case they make a mistake and forget to do certain things that might ruin the vacation?

4. If you are running the 4 X 100m event, would you trust that once you have passed the baton to your team mate, that she will be able to reach the finish line as fast as you might have?
Do you trust that everything will be ok even if you don't put your hands in everything?
Do you trust your team mates enough to delegate tasks to them?
Do you trust your teacher enough to know that he'll lead you to success?
Do you trust your boss enough when he says that the risk he took or a tough decision he made was going to benefit the organization and you in the long run?
The thing is, sometimes, we are required to trust whole-heartedly. And sometimes, this lack of trust can lead to our downfall, especially when we are working in a system as a part of one whole.


Conclusion
So what do you think? Life is very much like a baseball game isn't it?
It's amazing what and how much we can learn from unorthodox methods.
Remember that learning is not only something you do in the classroom of your school. The whole world is a classroom. And everything and everyone around you can serve as teachers, if you'd only open up your mind enough to want to learn.

Learn what people say, from books, from TV shows, from conferences, from a walk in the park, from shopping, from dining and of course, from games and sports like baseball.

Sharmila is the CEO of the Professional Excellence and Lifelong Learning Centre. The opinions expressed here are of her own, based on her personal experience. PELL is an organization that strives on the concept of learning that is unconventional. The author welcomes comments at sharm79@gmail.com

7 Books That Will Change Your Life Today

My Special Relationship...
I find myself constantly journeying on a never-ending quest to find my success and wealth - and as I am a self-proclaimed 'Reader of the Year', I gratifyingly do so by flicking and losing myself between the magical pages of books.

Yeap, though some people clearly steer away from the Self-Help section in bookstores, afraid of what 'people' might think of them, I happily gravitate there all the time. I think a big part of the reason why is because I have always, since I was a child, believed that I would be able to contribute more - to my family and the world - if I can improve myself first - and I still stand strong by this prophecy till this very day.

The 7 Titles That Are Transforming Me

Here are 7 titles of books that are helping me find my way to my success. I am sharing this here in hopes that they can help you too.

1- The Secret by Rhonda Byrne

It's funny how I was first introduced to The Secret. I was training the CEO of a company, and she (lucky for me!) took it upon herself to give me some pointers for success.

"Have you watched The Secret?" she once asked me.

"No, I don't believe I have," I replied, at the expense of sounding totally daft. She looked at me like I was from another world!

"You haven't watched The Secret??" I swear I heard her voice rise a little. "Well, I think you should!"

And that's exactly what I did. I headed to Kinokuniya, KLCC as fast as my feet (and the LRT) could take me there, walked on to the Self-Help section (which was, by then, my second home!)and lo and behold, there was an entire case on The Secret. How come I didn't realize that ever being there before?

Without thinking twice, I grabbed The Secret DVD, paid almost RM 200 for it, and went straight home (skipping my usual routine of getting one of those yummilicious Bisou cup cakes...sinful!). I put on the DVD, and excuse me if what I'm about to say is going to sound cliched - but

that experience must have been one of the most life-transforming ones in my life. It's true! I was introduced to the Law of Attraction.

As I don't intend to spoil the fun for readers who have yet to watch the show, I'll make this short - the Law of Attraction basically says, that you attract what you think of and feel. You're sad, you'll attract more sadness; you're angry, you'll attract more angry people in your life; and of course, if you're happy, you'll attract more things that make you happy. At one glance, it's easy to realize that all of us, at some point, have practised this Law before, and not realized it.

This DVD led me to want to know more about how to attract success, leading me to look for and find all the other 6 books listed here.

2- The Science of Getting Rich, Wallace Wattles

This is the book that inspired Rhonda Byrne to create The Secret, so after discovering that fact, I just had to read it. Albeit, the writing style of the author was not really my cup of tea, but what he said had a phenomenal effect on me.

Wattles basically mirrored everything that Byrnes captured (or rather, it was the other way round), but he did it with more depth.

"The race (of man) as a whole is always abundantly rich, and if the individuals are poor, it is because they do not follow a Certain Way of doing things which makes the individual man rich"

That profound excerpt is the idea that Wattles was trying to sell in his book.
In other words, the author was prophesizing that if we're poor, we did it to ourselves. A little "in your face" but it hit me like a tonne of bricks how true it was.

3- You Were Born Rich by Bob Proctor
Bob Proctor was featured on The Secret DVD, and he too, is a firm believer, practitioner and trainer in the Law of Attraction. Frankly, I had not heard of Proctor till then, but there was something about him - the conviction in his voice, the belief in his expressions, the surety of his nonverbal intelligence that made me want to know more about him and his work.

A visit to his website one day led me to this book. And as expected, what he said again, captured my fullest attention.

"Consider this - money will have a greater influence on your life than almost any other commodity you can think of. Indeed, the sudden loss or acquisition of money will affect your attitude to a tremendous extent. Therefore, you must agree that everyone should have a deep understanding of exactly what money is, and of the laws governing its attraction. Yet, the sad fact is, that not one person in ten does. Ninety-five people out of a hundred settle for whatever they get, wishing they had more all the way from the cradle to the casket, never understanding that they could actually have had all they wanted"

It doesn't take a genius to know how true his statement is. How we all go about life wanting more. How we get what we get, by looking forward to Fridays and dreading Sundays as it reminds us how we must get back to slugging at our jobs. Is this what we were created to do? Is this how we were meant to live?

This book made me question my direction and action plan of life. It made me analyze what was important, and realize what I would need to do get there. I am not there just as yet, but it has helped me realize that I need to be.

4- Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill

Bob Proctor too, had a mentor, and for him, that life changing moment in his life happened when he read this book by Hill. Proctor was leading a life of below-mediocrity and was poverty-stricken - and this book gave him a way out.

Hill was inspiring in his own lengthy-style-of-writing kind of way. His book is filled with tales and success stories of those who made it even though it seemed unlikely, and also of those who lost their chance of success by practising negative habits - like quitting too soon.

"When riches begin to come so quickly, in such great abundance, that one wonders where they have been hiding during all those lean years"

I actually smiled to myself after reading that sentence - "those lean years" is said. I wondered secretly, if I will be fortunate enough to one day, look back at "those lean years" and laugh, as it is all behind me. Maybe as I am being driven about in my black Rolls Royce Phantom, to look back at the lean years and bask in the happiness that those lean years are no more.

5- The Success Principles, by Jack Canfield
I love reading anything Canfield. It's straight to the point, written in simple English, and gets the message through. Canfield was also featured on The Secret, and he was on my list of people to know more about. I read so much about him and his work, as I did Proctor, and found this book. Reading a few pages of the book on Amazon led me to now be a proud owner of it. Retailed at RM 69.90, I would say that this book is a must-have manual to life.

Canfield highlights 25 life transforming principles, and the 1st one resonated very deeply within me.

"Take 100% Responsibility For Your Life", the first Chapter screamed out. And reading that led to a whole new self discovery experience for me. I finished this chapter in minutes, but have re-read it so many times, as I want it to be engraved in every fibre of my being - that I am responsible for my life. No more playing the Blame Game. No more sitting back and attending the Pity Party. Just buck up and take responsibility.

"One of the most pervasive myths in the American culture today is that we are entitled to a great life - that somehow, somewhere, someone (certainly not us) is responsible for filling our lives with continual happiness, exciting career options, nurturing family time and blissful personal relationships simply because we exist"

The reality of what Canfield stated in the first sentence of his book did take time to sink in, and is still in the process of. As I mentioned, this book (to me, at least), serves as a good manual to life. I have often wondered why, when we are born into the same world, we are so different - it is not the colour and creed, nor is it the race and religion - it is more so how we were brought up, what we were exposed to at what age, what we learnt, how we failed and how we bounced back. I have always wondered how much our lives would change if we were handed a manual on how to live the best life ever - and this book is my answer.

Well, for those of you out there who find themselves being lost in the humdrum of daily life, feeling like you're just performing meaningless routines, chancing about life - then you should give this book a try.

6-Awaken The Giant Within, by Anthony Robbins

To be frank, I was introduced to this book during my student days at the university. I was looking for answers, and it came to me through this amazing book. Robbins was the big hype back then - everyone knew who he was. I bought his book, and never got to the end of it. But I remember that it was an eye-opener.

Now, in my search for greatness, I chanced upon his 90-minute audio programme of the same name. And boy, it was just the kind of refresher that I needed! Robbins is a load of energy bundled up in his 6 foot frame of a body. He had a throat ailment that makes him sound the way he does today, but I think it served him well.

Robbins preaches about the importance of Decisions in our lives. How we must decide who we are in this life, decide what we want, decide what things mean to us and decide what we are going to do about them. He never literally mentions the Law of Attraction, but in the end, it's funny how all these successful people think alike. They must be doing something right!

7- The Strangest Secret, by Earl Nightingale

We begin the list with a 'secret' and end it with another 'secret'.
This book is actually based on a message which was played for a group of salespeople at Nightingale's insurance agency. But what was meant to help insurance salespeople succeed, ended up becoming one of the most inspiring success literature for the world.

"Have you ever wondered why so many people work so hard and honestly without ever achieving anything in particular, and why others don't seem to work hard, yet seem to get everything? They seem to have the "magic touch"...The difference is goals. People with goals succeed because they know where they're going. It's that simple. Failures, on the other hand, believe that their lives are shaped by circumstances...by things that happen to them...by exterior forces"

The funny thing about 'goals' is, that we all know we're supposed to have them, but really, how many of us do? How many of us actually have a list of written goals of what we want to achieve in life? How many of us read those goals daily? How many of us know what exactly we've achieved in life and how far we still have to go?

My uncle was admitted to the hospital recently, and when we went to visit him, he asked my sister, who is working in the same field as he is, what her goals were. "Have you reached your milestones?" he asked. The next day, my sister told me that she realized something very important from our uncle's question...setting milestones. See, it is not that we don't know it, it is that for some reason, we don't do it - maybe it's fear, maybe it's lack of confidence - but this book helps a great deal in helping readers understand the importance of goals.


In a nutshell...
We all need help - this is the inevitable truth.
We need help to set our life straight and to be living the life we truly deserve, not one that is mediocre, where we weave in and out of seconds, minutes and days, feeling incomplete, worthless and directionless.

We need to have goals, self confidence;
We need to eliminate our fears, our doubts;
We need to transform our uncertainties into clear paths;
We need to take responsibility and decide;
We need to believe that we are worth much, much more that we think we are;
We need to know that all the wealth, success and happiness in the world is ours if we'd only ask.

I hope these books help you as they have me, to start living with direction, hope and structure.

I wish you ultimate success.

Sharmila is the CEO of the Professional Excellence and Lifelong Learning Centre. All the opinions expressed here are her own, based on her personal experiences. She welcomes comments at sharm79@gmail.com