Do you wonder how to get ahead

[mjstrand]

Today I'm in the middle of a month long major rewrite of our player software - and it is fighting me - and almost winning. I am writing about my philosophy so that I can have a marvelous day enjoying the challenge instead of the non-productive dread that I feel now... To get ahead, I think that it is mostly about your responses and perception to life's little "opportunities".

Every person in the world is different in many ways. I believe that every person - no matter their differences - has the ability to make their life wonderful, so-so, gruesome or somewhere in between. So many people that I talk to (and I must admit I go down this road sometimes) think that life is putting us in the position we are in. If you can remember that It is all in the choices you make every day.

I have the choice to look at complex coding as a major struggle that fights me for days to get it right or I can look at it as challenging way to enhance our product for better support for our many customers. I can look at my weekly post as something I don't have time for this morning, or I can write about something that will improve my perception of life today (and positively impact my employees and family in the process).

Remember that your daily choices are many. You have the choice to see on an opportunity that crosses your path. Every day brings hundreds of opportunities for you to get ahead and enjoy life. You have the choice to take action on one or several of these opportunities. You have a choice to have future goals written down that help decide the opportunities to take. Once you start down a path, you have the choice to continue or not. You also are able to see the best or the worst parts of the path. Obviously focusing on the best parts gives you a more productive and better day - getting you ahead of the alternative. I believe that if the bad parts continue to overshadow the good, you should get out of it - at least temporarily. If it continues to make you unhappy, it is time to stop going down the path - no matter what the short term cost. Being miserable is your choice, and is definitely putting you way behind in all areas of your life for the short and long term.

So, to get ahead in life, you need to "see" your life with rose colored glasses and enjoy it. With that, you will be rewarded by heading down the path towards your life goal. Without it, your life may head below the so-so category.