Master Your Destiny

Thousands of people never live their dream because they've listened to what others said they should do. They have allowed other people to be the master of their destiny.

Who are these people of influence? Are they friends, spouses, brothers or sisters, or educators? It really doesn't matter who they are. The crucial fact is that you have succumbed to live a less fulfilled and full of stress caused by that nagging feeling of "what if".

Take my early life, for example. I really didn't like high-school, and I certainly didn't like being told by the Principal that I couldn't take courses that some of my friends were allowed to take because they happened to be sons or daughters of air force personnel. I knew this was an air force town and my father wasn't in the armed forces, but should this matter to what I considered to be a matter of fair play? It didn't matter that I could bring irrefutable examples to his attention. I was categorically refused the option to enrol in courses I wanted.

In my last conversation with this Principal, just before high-school graduation, he made it very clear to me that I would never amount to anything. How do you think that made me feel? Not full of self-confidence I can assure you. Instead of being excited about graduation and the uncharted road ahead, I was filled with a sense of despair.

My mind was filled with unsettling questions about my future. Was he right? Was I destined for a life of meagre proportions always having to settle for less than everyone else?

His statement nagged at my inner self for years causing me constant aggravation and stress. The more I thought about it, the angrier I became. Who was he to tell me what my future would look like? Who did he think he was to have control over my future by influencing what I thought?

My first few jobs were certainly unfulfilling, and leading absolutely nowhere. Some of my high-school chums were already in their second year of university, others had joined the military, and others had joined large corporations. Maybe the Principal was right after all about a destiny of meritocracy. But, I still had that nagging feeling that what one significant person said wasn't the be all and end all.

I'm happy to say, however, that the Principal was wrong. In fact, I used his less than stellar projection of my future as my catalyst to show him just how wrong he was. I knew I could do more, have more, and accomplish more than what I had been told I could be. After all, who did he think he was anyway? He wasn't the master of my destiny - I was. Rather than living a life filled with self-doubt and inner stress caused by someone else's decision, I would take control.

In short, there were many accomplishments that followed my decision to control my own destiny no matter what somebody else said including receiving a graduate degree, and professional recognition in many facets of the social and justice system.

The most important point in your life should be that you recognize that you are in control; you are the designer of your destiny. Avoid friends, family and any others who tell you that you are unable, or unworthy, or you are bound to fail. Remember, it's not their life - it's yours. Take charge right now. It's never too late to begin. Be more, do more, have more, and live the life you want not what somebody else wants.