Stairway to Success: The Complete Blueprint for Personal and Professional Achievement

12

GET READY MENTALLY AND EMOTIONALLY

The mind is its own place, and in itself can make heaven of Hell, a hell of Heaven.

—JOHN MILTON

Rudyard Kipling, the British writer, once penned a poem of basic advice for young people, in which he maintained that the world and everything that’s in it is yours:

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,Or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch,If neither foe nor loving friend can hurt you,And all men count with you, but none too much.

Kipling was describing mental and emotional balance. To succeed you must be able to deal with people of all sorts, listening to their ideas and observing their values without compromising your own principles. You must deal confidently with those above you in the chain of authority, while maintaining open communication with those below you. You must be secure enough in who you are to take criticism from friend or foe. When someone you love disappoints you, you can’t let that disappointment destroy you. You must respect the values and opinions of others without allowing others to control your life.

You can achieve this mental and emotional balance by following these steps:

1. Recognize your own self-worth.
2. Destroy the Gloom Bug.
3. Acquire proper perspective.
4. Be patient.
5. Acquire a sense of humor.
6. Learn to deal with conflict.
7. Expect to succeed.

RECOGNIZE YOUR OWN SELF-WORTH

One of the greatest mistakes you can make is to underestimate yourself. It’s far worse to underestimate than it is to overestimate. ...