John Soforic

We transform our lives by altering our direction. ––the Wealthy Gardener

We always have a new life every five years. And we can always choose the direction of the next five years.

We may not be able to instantly change our unwanted conditions, but we can instantly begin to steer in a new direction. Our destination is decided by the slightest turns.

Like a cruise ship at sea that alters direction by a slight rotation of its steering wheel, we too can begin a slow arching turn toward a new life with a single decision followed by steady action in a new direction.

We transform our lives by altering our direction.

We can sign up for one class and aim toward a career. We can pay down one credit card and veer toward freedom from debt. We can save one dollar a day and steer toward prosperity.

We may need to endure an unwanted situation for a while, but we can always do one thing to begin a sweeping change.

It is the use of days, and the impact of hours, that provides the foundation for the direction of our lives.

“The great thing in this world is not so much where we are,” said Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., “but in what direction we are moving.”

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AMAZON: Look inside the Book

An inner wisdom will guide your ways if only you pause to listen.  ––the Wealthy Gardener

The inner voice is waiting to guide us if only we ask good questions and stay attuned to our feelings during our days.

Socrates claimed to listen to an Attendant Force. In his mind he was guided by a Spirit presence. But his Attendant Force didn’t lead him by passion. Rather, he believed it spoke through negative emotions.

In other words, his Attendant Force guided him not by what felt right, but rather what felt wrong.

It’s an insight for those who feel lost, who feel like they can’t figure out what to do with their lives, and who are trying to find their passion.

What feels wrong to you?

What will you regret (what feels wrong) if you don’t do it, see it, or try it? The answer, when it comes, and most importantly when it stays, is commonly the inner voice. We can be guided by regret avoidance.

“We all have an inner teacher,” expressed Dean Ornish, “an inner guide, an inner voice that speaks very clearly but usually not very loudly. That information can be drowned out by the chatter of the mind and the pressure of day-to-day events. But if we quiet down the mind, we can begin to hear what we’re not paying attention to. We can find out what’s right for us.” And we can find out what’s wrong for us.

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AMAZON: Look inside the Book

I’ve got a great ambition to die of exhaustion rather than boredom.  ––Thomas Carlyle.

“There is no such thing as work-life balance,” said Alain De Botton. “Everything worth fighting for unbalances your life.”

Why do we honor the athlete, the medical student, or the exhausted mother of three who lives an unbalanced life? And then we vilify the full commitment that comes with an ambition for wealth?

I’ve always had an ambition for wealth that I never defended to anyone except my family. Behind closed doors, however, my wife and kids were told that I wanted wealth to provide and protect them.

I explained my financial fears, my future challenges, and my desire to pay for their college tuitions. I hoped they’d be the first generation in our family tree to graduate from college without debt.

Wealth was a practical way to provide this blessing for them. I was willing to sacrifice for them. I was willing to work in my free time.

“If your energy is as boundless as your ambition,” said Dr. Joyce Brothers, “total commitment may be a way of life you should seriously consider.” Everything worth fighting for unbalances your life.

My children graduated college without debt, and their tuition was paid for by my free hours. It’s the blessing of an unbalanced life.

We pay the price of an extraordinary life, or we pay the regrets of an average life. An extraordinary life requires a sacrifice of our leisure hours, but an ordinary life requires a sacrifice of our cherished dreams.

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AMAZON: Look inside the Book

It’s a lot easier to stick to familiar routines than to face uncertainty.  ––the Wealthy Gardener

When we’re certain, we’re not learning. When we’re unsure, we’re in a place of possibilities. We crave security, but we need uncertainty.

It takes a big person to step forward into the unknown.

Deepak Chopra has a chapter worth reading about the wisdom of uncertainty in his classic book, The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success.

“I thought security was my friend and uncertainty my enemy,” Chopra wrote in a recent blog. “If only I knew then, as I know now, that there is wisdom in uncertainty. It opens a door to the unknown, and only from the unknown can life be renewed constantly.”

I hate uncertainty. Absolutely and innately, I loathe insecurity.

I recall a scene from Indiana Jones where the character closes his eyes, musters his strength, and steps off a cliff. Instead of falling to his doom, however, Indie’s foot lands on an invisible bridge.

Behind the defining moments of our lives, we will surely look back at a decision when we once took a risk and walked directly into uncertainty. We chose to accept whatever trials we had to endure, and we were willing to bet on ourselves to handle the adversity.

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AMAZON: Look inside the Book