The Absence of Success

If knowledge is power and information is the key to success, then why are we not reaching our full potential?

Life's greatest tragedy consists of men and women who earnestly try, and fail. The tragedy lies in the overwhelmingly large majority of people who fail, as compared to those few who succeed.

My own experiences are proof why many of us fail, when correct application of simple principles would usher in great fortunes. Below is a list of descriptive causes of failure. As you read through the list, check yourself by it for the purpose of discovering how many of these causes of failure stand between you and success (this is just a partial list).

• The lack of a well defined purpose in life. There is no hope for success for the person who does not have a central purpose.
• Lack of ambition. Satisfied with mediocrity, someone who does not want to get ahead in life and is not willing to pay the price to there.
• Lack of self discipline. Discipline comes through self control. You must control all negative qualities before you can control the conditions. You must control yourself. You will see your best friend and greatest enemy by looking in the mirror. (Hence: keep your friends close and your enemies even closer).

• Procrastination. This is one of the most common causes of failure. Stop waiting for "the time to be right" and start doing something worthwhile now. You will find the tools you need as you proceed.
• Lack of persistence. Most of us are good "starters" but poor "finishers" of most things we begin. Moreover, people are more prone to give up at the first sign of defeat. There is no substitute for persistence; with persistence, failure is not an option.
• Fear. Fear of poverty, fear of criticism, fear of illness, fear of lost love, fear of old age, fear of death. Fear is a state of mind and a person who keeps an open mind fears nothing.

• Lack of Concentration. A jack of all trades and a master at "NONE" is seldom good at any. Concentrate your efforts on one main goal.
• Wrong selection of vocation. No person can succeed in a field or occupation they do not like. To reach your utmost potential you must devote yourself whole heartedly into your product, service or skill.
• Lack of enthusiasm. Without enthusiasm you can not be convincing. Moreover, enthusiasm can be contagious, and the person who posses this is generally under control, and is generally welcomed in any group of people.

• Wrong selection of associates in business. This is one of the most common causes of failure in businesses. When marketing yourself, surround yourself with those with like interests. We tend to emulate those with whom we associate with.
• Intentional dishonesty. There is no substitute for honesty. You may find yourself temporarily dishonest by force of circumstances over which you had no control, but able to recover from the situation without permanent damage. People who are dishonest by choice will have to face the consequences of their actions sooner or later, either by damage to their reputation and perhaps even loss of liberty.

• Egotism and vanity. These qualities serve as red lights and warn others to keep away. They are fatal to success.
• Guessing. Most people are too darn lazy to acquire the facts with which to think and speak accurately. They act on "opinions" created by guess work or snap judgment.

• Lack of capital. This is a common cause of failure among those who start in business for the first time, without sufficient reserve of capital to absorb the shock of their mistakes, and to carry them over until they have established a reputation, failure is the unfortunate result.

After reading this list, do a quick analysis of yourself and the effectiveness of marketing your services, as if you were an inventory of merchandise. What would you conclude? You should show a decrease in your faults and an increase in your virtues. Go ahead and meditate over this for a few minutes. As you go backwards in time you should be able to realize any advancement, and if so, how much. You should also consider any decisions you made that set you back. The effective marketing of your service or product requires you to move forward even if the progress is slow.