Standing behind the base line, my eyes were focus on the yellow ball on the opposite end across the net. As the tennis ball angled toward the deep right corner, I rushed to cover and returned it with a sharp cross-court forehand. It was a good return as I put it deep into the opposite corner. I rushed toward the net knowing that my opponent won’t be able to put much of a return if he gets to it.

I was right; he barely put his racquet to the ball. But the soft stroke went over my head, and I leaped up the air for it. As I came down, my footing was off. My hand somehow took my body weight and scraped against the concrete floor. Blood were dripping from my fingers and my hip took a major blow. I was shaken but in the heat of the moment, I wasn’t gonna quit, not when I’m about the win the match.

After the sweet victory, I went to wash the blood soaked fingers. The pain that wasn’t felt before started to come as I let a stream of warm water through it. The sting was surely there as I felt the soft tissue at the end of my right pinky finger. My mind went berserk as I realized that my nail was gone. I was shocked for it didn’t hurt that much at the time I fell. After a trip to the emergency room and a few days of rest, I realized something about this whole episode. Our action depends on our perspective. If I were aware that I lost a nail at the moment, I would have stopped playing for sure. It’s amazing how our mind can do wonders over our body. What we focus on controls our mind. If we could learn to control our thoughts and focus on only what we want to achieve, who knows what we can accomplish. How far would we go in life, if we let it loose and just pursue on?

Popularity: 97%

Recently, Warren Buffett was named the richest man on earth. He is one of people I most admired because he became unbelievably successful starting from nothing. The most amazing thing about him is that wealth did not change who he is. The guy still lives in the same house he bought 30 years ago for $31,500. Even with the richest man on earth, the law of nature still holds true. He will turn 78 this year and will be gone some day. This is the reason he decided to give most of his wealth to charity and plan for successors to run his business.

This brings us to one of the truth in life. Time does not wait for anyone. No matter how old or how young we are, one certainty in life is that there is no guarantee for tomorrow. This is not to say that we should not dream and plan for our life. What I’m saying is that we should not put things off for tomorrow when we can do them today.

I do it too. I put things off in hope that it will go away. We hope that the things we need to get done can be taken care of later at another more convenience time. But, what if there is no tomorrow? What if there is no such thing as a “convenience time”? What if today is our only chance? Would you do it? Would you start it? Would you get it done? Opportunity comes and goes. The ones who take advantage of the opportunity will be the ones who get the rewards. Successful people take action while the rest wait for “convenience time.” They try and fail and try again until they succeed while the rest is still waiting. What can you do today to better yourself? What can you do right now to make it happen? The next time we get the urge to put things off, think of this question; what if there is no tomorrow? What would you do today?

Popularity: 93%

Ever hear someone say, “You can’t be rich and still be a good person,” or “You can’t have a high paying job and still have the time for your family.” Although this may often be the case, it’s not always true. Our conditioning tells us that we can’t have it all. We were led to believe that we have to choose. Now what if someone were to say that you can have it all?

For every person who says that it can’t be done, there is always another person who had done it. If there is a will, there is a way. Your mind controls your action just as the title of the book by James Allen says, “As You Think, So Shall You Become.” When you believe that it can be done, your actions will begin to find a way to make it happen.

Imagine a life with everything you ever wanted. Imagine yourself in a dream job. You know… the one you really enjoy doing and can’t wait to get up every morning to go to work. Imagine yourself with a dream spouse, the one you love with all your heart. Every time you are with her/him, you get the butterfly feeling. No matter how hard you try, you can’t keep your eyes or your mind off of that person. Imagine yourself with a dream family, with the kids and everything. When you spend time with them, you feel like you are young again…for they make you laugh, they make you smile, and they make you happy. Imagine yourself with a dream house, the one you always wanted. It’s your sanctuary, the place that restores your energy and life force. It’s not a house, but a home. Imagine your dream life. Imagine it all. What if you can live your dream life? What if it’s not just an imagination? What if it can be done? Would you want it? Would you take it? Would you live it?

Popularity: 90%

As I fed myself and the two ducks, my supply of food went by quickly. Good thing I usually eat a lot and brought sandwiches and other snacks. Upon finishing the first sandwich, there were some bread crumbs sticking to the plastic wrapper. I decided to not waste these crumbs and shook them off the plastic wrapper for the ducks to eat. At the moment I held out the wrapper and started shaking, the two ducks spooked out and flew to a safe landing nearby. I was stunted! These were the two ducks that came so close to me I could easily grab their necks and bring home some Peking ducks -. And now they are scared of the wrapper shaking?

They came back though. They must have decided that the plastic wrapper shaking was harmless and they weren’t about to let some other ducks enjoy the bread crumbs. But it happened again with the second sandwich. They got spooked with the plastic wrapper shaking, flew away, and came back again. What’s the deal? I thought to myself.

As I pondered upon this, it became clear that they simply reacted out of their natural instinct. A duck doesn’t have much of a weapon compared to other animals. It doesn’t have sharp teeth like a shark, powerful claws like a bear, or fierce combination of both like a lion. When faced with danger, a duck can only fly away. A duck doesn’t have much of a chance against us human, who can think and use our tools. Taking these things into account, the two ducks really took their chances when they got real close to me. And they knew it too, for they were ready to flee at first sign of danger. Fear must have been on their mind for sure. We can relate to this as we face many forms of fear in our lives. It can be a fear of rejection, fear of failure, or even fear of success. Fear is like wind resistance. The faster we move forward in our lives, the more wind resistance we face. The only time when there is no wind resistance is when we’re not moving. And the only time there is no fear is when we’re not doing anything. The trick is to not let fear stop us from getting to where we want to be. Successful people do have fear but they conquer it with action. And where there is action, there will surely be the results. So be like the ducky and go for the things you want in life.

Popularity: 37%

Living in Seattle, a place where it rains 9 months a year, sunshine is like manna from heaven. There was lots of sunshine last week and it sure looks like spring is just around the corner. So I decided to take in as much sun as I can, packed my lunch, and went to a park by Lake Washington for my own mini picnic. The atmosphere at the park was more than I could ask for. The soft spring sun reflected off the water behind a backdrop of vivid blue sky was a pleasing sight. There were not a lot of people at the park since it was a weekday. I settled on a bench right next to the water and prepare to enjoy my sandwich, for I was a little hungry.

Before I even took a first bite, I saw from the corner of my eyes two ducks walking toward me from afar. Walking may not be right; it was more like running (if there is such a thing for ducks). In any case, they were moving fast. I could tell from the colors of their feathers that it was a male and a female duck; they must be a couple. As they paced toward me, I could clearly hear their loud quacking sound. It seemed that they wanted me to notice, and make no mistake about it; they got my attention all right. Feeding wild animals is not usually my thing. But as they stood 1 foot from my feet and I look into their eyes, I could tell that they were hungry… real hungry. So I began to give them small portion while I eat.

As I fed myself and the two ducks, I began to ponder about what just happened. I mean, what was it about these two ducks that made me give them food? Then I realized that it was their attitude that made the difference. Looking around the lake, I could see four other ducks and several seagulls hanging out by the lake. None of them approach me like the two ducks that stood by my feed. In fact, the other ducks and seagulls did not do anything. What I saw in the two ducks that approached me was that they really wanted it. They were hungry and they took action to get the food. Their attitude clearly showed when they ran toward me, quacking all the way to make sure that I know they were there. Although they cannot speak, they weren’t afraid to look me in the eyes, communicating what they want. And those who ask usually receive. The most amazing thing is, they were just ducks! And we, human, as a more developed species, can still learn from them. What I learned from these two ducks is that to get what we want in life, we need to first be hungry… real hungry for it. Attitude is very important and it will show through. That’s when things start to happen. So be like the ducky, and be real hungry for the things you want in life.

Popularity: 32%

With a Life Google Map on hand and the LifeMobile prepared, we are ready to start. But as we all know, things always come up at the last minute. Isn’t it funny how the parking lot near the health club would always seem to be full which leads us to not go exercise more? Ever wonder why we always seem to run out of time which leads us to not read or learn new skills to improve ourselves? Or, how come the other person wouldn’t just understand our point of view which leads us to not resolve the conflict? The truth is there will always be a reason that will cause us to not start building our dream life. But just like a coin, as long as there is a head, we can be sure to find a tail on the flip side. For every reason for us to not take action, there is always a reason for us to do it. The key is what are we focusing on?

There is a saying that whatever we focus on it’ll grow. Think about it. When we haven’t eaten for days and are starving like mad, what is the only thing we think about? We think about food, right? And what do we do? We look for food and wouldn’t stop until we had eaten and are satisfied, right? It’s the same way with our dream life. If we can train ourselves to think about it every single breathing moment, we will surely find a way to get the life we want. It won’t matter what obstacles we face or what reason people say against it. If we know what we want and believe without a doubt in our heart that one day we’ll get what we want, we will find a reason to go out and make it happen.

The most important decision we can make right now is to just do it now, not tonight, not tomorrow, not next month, not when everything is ready and perfectly planned, but right now. What can you do right now to help yourself? One characteristic of successful people is that they take action. I’m sure Warren Buffett did not know everything there is to know about the stock market when he bought his first stock at age 11. Charlie Munger, Buffett’s long time business partner, said that one of the reasons Buffett is so successful is that he got an early start. Tiger Woods is the same way. He hit his first golf ball when he was 4. Of course, Warren Buffett and Tiger Woods do have the unique ability and talent to succeed. But remember also that we didn’t know how to do the most basic things, like walking and talking, when we were born. Everything can be learned. To go back to our road trip analogy, the ones who start their LifeEngine and take off early will most likely get to where they want to be first.

Popularity: 33%