http://www.stevenroddy.com/blog
Steven Roddy describes how he has persevered past his failures, and how you can focus on where you are going to not what you are going through.
Calvin Coolidge said this, Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan "press on" has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.
I can remember as clear as day, when my mind was first sparked with the belief that I could become a person of influence by making a difference in the lives of people. I can point out the place, tell you the time and explain my excitement. Moreover, I felt like this was a desire that God had placed in my heart. And of course like all good things that we feel like He wants to give us we readily jump on board without realizing what we are signing up for. Since that day, my life has experienced extreme ups and downs. Yet, for the purpose of time I am only going to focus on the most recent. Unless, you want to hear about my birth? Didnt think so.
When I was 23 I left Ohio, the place of my birth, to pursue my dream in Atlanta, GA. I got a job as a server and put everything that I owned into my 1st apartment. My possessions included: an ironing board, silverware and dishes, lots of books and a borrowed air mattress. (The life of luxury right?)
However, life progressed quickly. Within 1 year I had purchased my first home, purchased an arena football team with a business partner, and on my 24th birthday held my first press conference as the youngest owner of a professional football team. Yet, life digressed just as quickly. Within 1 year of owning that team, our secretary stole $10,000, we lost $30,000 on an entertainment investment, the arena had cancelled our lease, the media, quoted city officials and local businesses on top news stories, and on the fronts of the newspaper declaring me a failure, I was forced to file bankruptcy due to pending lawsuits, I got kicked out of my very nice industrial loft apartment, and everyone, save a few, who knew me suddenly didnt. The next thing I knew I was sleeping on the floor of a new acquaintance, unemployed, no savings, a destroyed reputation, a severely bruised self-esteem and one gnawing question, How can I achieve my dream after all of this?
For about a year I struggled with this query, with no answer. Every I tried to get back on my feet; the rug was pulled out from under me. Things like, my car broke down so I had no transportation for 3 months, and when I finally got my car back a tree fell on it the next day, then I got that fixed only to have it break down on me again a couple of weeks later in a mall parking lot where it stayed for 7 months until being towed away. No lie. But, in the mist of everything that was happening I had to force myself to focus my thinking on where I was going to, not what I was going through. You are not defined by your situation though people will judge you based on it. My passion, helping individuals like you to discover their purpose and to assist them in creating a business around it, was birthed in me due to my realization that I failed because I was outside of my purpose. I knew my purpose prior to purchasing the team but that path was unclear. So I settled for what I could see instead of exploring my passion. The resultdisaster. There is safety inside of your purpose.
I realize that you are going through your own set of circumstances right now and that your life may not have turned out as you have had planned however, you will pull through, you will survive, and you will eventually be given a stage where you can declare to those who are suffering Theodore Roosevelts sage advice, "It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."
I wish you great success in the accomplishment of your purpose. And until next time I am Steven Roddy, and this is why I do Monday Money Live, and together we are moving forward
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