Key to Self-Improvement

I believe that one of the keys to self-improvement is reading the words of wisdom written by those who have traversed this journey before us.

One of the many authors I have been reading recently is Og Mandino (1923-1996) whose nineteen books, have sold over fifty million copies and have been translated into over twenty-five different languages. No other author that I have read has been so articulate in getting his message of hope across utilizing a combination of his own life’s wisdom with true to life characters (usually modeled in part from his own history).

His books show us the many sides of humanity and the turmoil that ‘we’ create for ourselves. In an excerpt from The Greatest Miracle in the World (written in 1975), Mr. Mandino affirms the dilemma that much of humanity finds itself struggling with through the eloquent words of the books protagonist, Simon Potter. He says, “You see, Mister Og, most of us build prisons for ourselves and after we occupy them for a period of time we become accustomed to their walls and accept the false premise that we are incarcerated for life. As soon as that belief takes hold of us we abandon hope of ever giving our dreams a chance to be fulfilled. We become puppets and begin to suffer living deaths. It may be praiseworthy and noble to sacrifice your life to a cause or a business or the happiness of others, but if you are miserable and unfulfilled in that lifestyle, and know it, then to remain in it is a hypocrisy, a lie, and a rejection of the faith placed in you by your creator”.

Here are my questions to you based on Simon’s words.

Are you living in a self made prison?

Have you created a life for yourself, of which, you believe the circumstances cannot be changed?

Do you feel that you are sacrificing the life of your dreams for the sake of another’s wishes for you?

Have you become like the puppet whose strings are manipulated at the discretion of someone else?

I hope that you were able to (truthfully) answer no to these questions, but if you were not please understand and recognize that there is always another way and that you have the freedom to choose again. Never allow another to hold you back from the life you were meant to live. Never allow your own doubts or fears to hold you back or to keep you small. Norman Vincent Peale said, “Hold an image of the life you want, and that image will become fact”.

You are special, you are unique in all the world as Simon goes on to say later in the book; “never, in all the seventy billion humans who have walked this planet since the beginning of time, will there be another such as you…you are the rarest thing in the world. You are the greatest miracle in the world”.

We as humans are graced with the freedom of choice and it is within the power of each of us to live life on our own terms. Never abandon your dreams. Celebrate life, celebrate you!

Other Books written by Mandino

The Greatest Salesman in the World
U.S.A. in a Nutshell
Cycles
The Greatest Secret In The World
The Gift Of Acabar (with Buddy Kaye)
The Choice
The Christ Commission
Mission: Success!
The God Memorandum
The Greatest Salesman In The World Part II: The End Of The Story
The Ten Ancient Scrolls For Success: From The Greatest Salesman In The World
He Is Tough
University of Success (Compilation from other works)
A Better Way To Live
The Return Of The Ragpicker
The Twelfth Angel
Spellbinder's Gift
The Greatest Mystery In The World
Secrets For Success And Happiness
The Greatest Success In The World