Who you are today is a product of your experiences. It is these experiences that have brought you to this point in your life and will influence your decisions going forward. Take a moment to reflect on those events which have shaped who you are today and have brought you to the present time and place. Each and every decision you have made in your past has somehow had an effect on who and where you are today. There are sure to be things that you would have done differently but you cannot change those decisions. In reflecting upon your past you can appreciate and learn from those events in hopes of making better decisions in your future.

Each and every experience builds upon one another and as we grow and expand our knowledge, our foundation also expands and allows us to grow exponentially. The problems or situations that once may have seemed insurmountable should not appear to be so overwhelming now. The more we push the envelope and make those difficult decisions the more we become comfortable with adjusting to unexpected outcomes. Not every decision is going to be correct but we cannot know for sure unless a decision is made. It is a fact the too many "million dollar" ideas are taken to the grave because the individual failed to have the courage to take action and make a decision. Nobody likes to fail but it is these failures that we learn from. The legendary golfer Bobby Jones is often quoted as saying "One learns from defeat, not victory." If every decision ended in a victory there would be no challenge in pursuing the unknown. While it is true that we learn more from defeat, we can also learn from our victories. Each and every event whether it be a success or failure allows us to adapt and pursue new challenges from a new perspective.

Its is the mere act of making a decision that allows us to move forward. It may be a good decision or a bad one but it all starts with that one act. Often people hesitate and fail to get anywhere because they cannot or will not take that next step. We need to be aware of what is holding us back from making that decision. Is it fear of failure? Is it or fear of change or just plain laziness? Once we acknowledge what it is that is holding us back we can address the situation and work around that which is holding us back. There is a book by Mark Goulston called "Get Out of Your Own Way: Overcoming Self-Defeating Behavior." In this book, Mark talks about conquering those traits which prevent us from growing and living more rewarding lives. We must learn to make a decision and move forward. We are not going to always make the right decision but we will never move forward and cannot expect different outcomes if we don't shake things up once in awhile.