Change is earned, not given...

How else would you change the channel then?

Hold on...let me just recover from temporary blindness...

Ok, I'm fine now.

Change is important. However, many of us fear change...and for good reason too. We don't like to deal with the unknown. The unknown scares us because we have no control over it. Human beings have a natural tendency towards order and predictability. This tendency is both a blessing and a curse.

On one hand, this natural tendency is essential for society to function and guarantee the survival of the human race. You can't get anything done when there's chaos. On the other hand though, it makes us become our own worst enemies. How, you ask? By making us live a life of habit.

Most of us probably do the same things everyday. We wake up in the morning, go to school/work, do what we're told and then go home and maybe watch some TV or go on the computer. On the weekends, we hang out with our friends, talk about things, get wasted and stumble back home to nurse a hangover the next day....only to repeat the cycle again and again.

Rinse and repeat.

Picture a scenario for a moment. Lets say your TV was displaying a channel you didn't like (*COUGH* like the one above *COUGH*) Would you:

A) Change the channel?
B) Sit there, tolerate it and even convince yourself that it's actually good?

Most of you would say you would choose A. Words are nice. However, actions speak louder than words. Most people, through their actions, choose B every single day of their lives.

This brings me to the point. Change is earned, not given.

You can't change the channel unless you take some sort of action. You need to grab that remote control or go up to the TV and press the button. The same goes for life. You cannot change the "channel" of your life unless you get up and take action. The channel isn't going to change itself.

Many people I've talked to say, "Man, if I only had more money" or "I hope XYZ happens to me.." etc. If you want change, you need to act. By taking action, yes, your habits will be disrupted, things will become unpredictable. If history, religion and our lives have taught us something...it is this fundamental law of our existence: Nothing good comes without sacrifice.

I want you to remember this quote: "A courageous person is not a person without fear, it is a person who feels fear but overcomes it."

We're all afraid of things, it's natural. Those stories you read about great leaders? They were scared as hell, but they kept going. We like to remember them as fearless, almost god-like, because we like to revere things that are not like us. On the contrary, these men and women were just like us. We forget that every single one of us is human...and that we're ALL capable of great things.

Only YOU can change the channel. No one else can do it for you. Why? Because then you'll just keep relying on them...and nothing changes. You will not only be a slave to another, but a slave to your own inaction. An orderly, predictable slave. Anyone who tells you they can change you, make you successful, rich or happy is a LIAR. Only YOU can make YOU successful, happy and/or rich.

And I say to you: Get up and change the channel.

Perseverance

I wanted to interrupt the flow of the posts for today to bring up a very important topic that any aspiring entrepreneur should always embrace...and that is the topic of perseverance. Starting a business is not easy, neither is keeping it going. If it was easy, then everyone would be doing it. However, that is why successful entrepreneurs reap the rewards, because they take the path less traveled.

I met a blind man on the subway the other day. His name is Bob, and he was born blind. Yet, everyday, he has the courage to get on the crowded New York City subway to get to work. He also has a wife and kids too.

As I helped him get into the train, I looked at the face of this courageous man. I asked him, "How do you do it? Getting around I mean." He turned his head to the source of my voice, smiled and said, "Trial and error. Mostly error though" and laughed.

As we talked, I asked him about how he became blind and what he does. He taught me that you really don't need sight to see. Many people out there look but they don't see. Even this blind man was able to live a normal and happy life. He was able to see the good in his situation and in others.

But what he also demonstrated was something all entrepreneurs need to embrace. Perseverance. Even the most legendary of business leaders like Henry Ford failed multiple times before finally succeeding. Like the blind man, it was trial and error for them. Mostly error though.

Because truly, when you enter that newfound frontier of entrepreneurship, you could have the best plan in the world, but you cannot control everything. Like the blind man, sometimes you just need to feel around to make your way through. No one knows all the answers or the right ways to do things. The key is to do the best you can, and not give up. If the blind man gave up on life, he'd have nothing. He wouldn't have his wife and kids, he wouldn't have his friends. He would be a broken shell of a man, who would receive nothing but the half-hearted pity of others.

This is the same for entrepreneurs as well. If you persevere, good things will come. If you give up, nothing will come to you. You will be destined to work for someone else, always wondering what you could have done.

Before his stop came, I asked the blind man, "What would be the first thing you would do if you had sight again?" He smiled and said, "I'd look at my wife and kids." Just before the train door opened, he leaned over and whispered "And then maybe some Playboy magazine after that" and laughed.