Take charge of your own life and career
This may seem obvious, but most of you don't really
do it.

If you're blaming President Bush, Big Business, the
economy, Alan Greenspan, the CEO of Enron, Martha
Stewart, your astrology sign, the Flying Fickle Finger of
Fate, your boss, your former boss, your employer,
your former employer, the Capitalist Class, the
White Man or White People, affirmative action,
your husband or wife, your mother or father, your
children, your friends, your neighbors, unions,
outsourcing, contracting out, downsizing,
the recession, September 11, Osama bin Laden,
the high price of gasoline, immigrants, the war,
Democrats, Republicans, the lines on the palm of
your hand, God, the Devil -- or
anybody else for your failures, you have not
taken responsibility for your own life.

If you're counting on John Kerry to be elected
President and stop all outsourcing and to tax the
productive "rich" and give some of that money to
you or at least force them to hire you, on winning
the lottery or for your union to ride to your
rescue, for President Bush's tax cuts to be
made permanent or for The Revolution, you have not
taken responsiblity for your own life.

Grow up, get over it and move on.

Resolve that no matter what obstacles and temporary
problems you face (and you will face some), you will
overcome them and find a way to succeed.

Think about it logically -- if you are not responsible
for where you are in life right now, then how can you
get from where you are to where you want to be?

If you don't accept the responsibility for your future,
if you choose to look upon yourself as a mote of dust
blown hither and thither by the rise and fall of the
economy and world events and some power beyond your
control -- you are lost before you begin.

And when you are old and close to death and you look
back on your life and you see you did not do one
tenth of the things you wanted to, you didn't travel
to one tenth of the places you wanted to see, you
didn't have one tenth of the fun you planned to
have, you didn't provide one tenth as much for your
loved ones --

When all is said and done, who's going to die
frustrated and bitter -- except you?

You can choose to comfort yourself with excuses for
your failures -- many people do.

But it will still be you who know deep in your heart
you did not live the life you truly wanted and could
have had.

OK, that sounds like a lot of positive thinking
preaching and most of you don't give a rat's behind
and think it's hokey.

So be it.

Be laid off. Whine. Complain about Indians who take
your job because they're willing to work hard for
12 hours a day. Even vote for John Kerry.

When things don't go your way, you'll find
plenty of excuses and plenty of other losers to
share them with.

Keep on peeing into the wind, never mind that wet
feeling on your legs!

OK, OK -- beyond "positive thinking," -- what can you
do for yourself in today's economy?


best,
Rick Stooker, author
Secrets of Changing to a Computer Career
- posted by RickStooker @ 8:05 AM