By Jim Stovall

We live in a society that constantly focuses upon immediate rewards and instant gratification. We want microwave efforts with crock pot results. Nothing worth having ever comes quick and easy. There are three states that we can dwell on in our lives. These include being, doing, and having. In our world today, everyone is focused on having. They want to have everything now and worry about paying for it later.

When we understand that success is planted on the inside and manifests itself on the outside, we begin to realize that the knowledge we gain and the wisdom we apply are the keys to our success. We must be willing to be the kind of person who will then do the kinds of things that will allow us to have what we want. When we get this three-step process out of order, we are courting disaster.

Unfortunately, it is often hard to observe the being and doing stages of development. We see people who have the things we want to have, and these people appear to have accumulated everything they want overnight. What we often fail to observe is that these successful people spent many years developing their mind and skill so that they could go out and work hard as well as smart over a prolonged period of time which results in them having the things that they want.

I have known many successful actors, athletes, and recording artists. These people often burst upon the public scene and seem to be overnight successes. What we didn't see were the many years of rehearsing and practicing their craft and the prolonged period of paying their dues in minor roles and undesirable venues until they eventually emerge as the overnight success that we believe them to be.

If you focus on being the person who will do the right things, you can have anything you want. If you focus on having things, you are setting yourself up for a life of frustration.

It is great to learn from successful people, but as my late great friend and mentor Paul Harvey often said, you've got to get "the rest of the story." If you read fan magazines or watch entertainment television shows, you will learn about the glitz and glamour of seemingly instant stardom; but if you will read biographies of successful people, you will learn that it is a marathon, not a sprint.

As you go through your day today, be sure you have the being, doing, and having equation in order, and you will succeed.

Today's the day!

About The Author: Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network, as well as a published author of many books including The Ultimate Gift. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. He may be reached by email at Jim@JimStovall.com; or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jimstovallauthor.

See Also:

Don't Stop Chasing Your Dream!
In the mid 1970s, a man named Sylvester had a dream of one day becoming a movie actor, but couldn't find a talent agency in New York City willing to take a chance on him.

Fear is the Greatest Single Obstacle to Success
Fear can be a blessing when it raises its flag of caution so we pause and study a situation before making a decision or taking action.

The Power of Belief and Expectation
While you may not always get what you want, you will always get what you expect! The power of belief and expectation work just as effectively on your feelings of self-doubt and limitation as they do on your thoughts of success and achievement.