A Teen Shows Us How to Change Our Future

All too many times we wonder what we’re really capable of. What could you do to change your circumstances? What’s realistic? What are the boundaries (mostly set by yourself) you live within in terms of creating some sort of change in your life? And how can thoughts like these potentially “impact your future?”

Here’s a rather extreme example, a couple of tips, and a simple process to consider that might answer some of these questions.

Gifted, or Focused?

There’s a young gal in Florida that seriously put many of those opening questions behind her. Her name is Grace Bush, a sixteen-year-old that’s completed her Bachelors degree in Criminal Justice before she graduated high school, not to mention she finished the degree in three years instead of four.

A few questions immediately came up for me. Where does one find this type of self-motivation? While most kids are spending close to 20 minutes of each hour on social media sites, texting, and tweeting, this young woman all but secures a bright future for herself. What elements are in play here? What stops so many of us from attaining that type of focused mindset that Grace obviously owned?

The Main Culprit

You guessed it! Distraction is the key element here, without a doubt. It seems almost impossible to beat. This would be a first step for anyone to consider to start changing the course of their life, but it’s a tough one. There’s a billon-dollar industry out there dedicated to grabbing your attention.

Reprioritizing your time is not only a challenge, but a necessity as well. Why? Time is your most precious commodity. If you can’t grasp that concept, it’s going to be a serious uphill battle. If you simply keep your focus on where your time is being spent, and learn to prioritize, you’re there! You don’t need a ten-step plan or a two-hundred page book to figure this out. There’s no secret here. Just make it a priority to prioritize.

Obviously, Grace had a handle on this. But I feel it’s noteworthy to mention that she stated she still had plenty of time for her friends and socializing. Maybe Grace’s “gift” was understanding all of this at around 13 years old.

The Unrealized Culprit

This is something Miss Bush had a total lock on in terms of her success. It’s called your inner circle.

It can consist of friends, family, and colleagues. It’s that contingency that makes up the small sect of individuals that you see and interact with on a regular basis. These are the people you’ll most likely share your deepest concerns with – your hopes, and your plans. Logic would most certainly dictate that the emotional, psychological, and economic status of these chosen few will have everything to do with their reaction. This absolutely influences their feedback when you’ve come to them with a proposed agenda of how you’re planning to move forward.

Miss Bush certainly had her “inner circle” behind her. Her parents helped her with home schooling and support, and her brothers and sisters (8 to be exact) were also obviously behind her, as well as her friends. Grace made an effort to find support.

The greater point here is many times our inner circle will not meet these needs. Family and friends might want to support you, but the structure of their own lives may unknowingly cause them to pass on serious doubt to your ambitions. It’s a very common scenario.

If you’re experiencing this (which many do), look to expand your inner-circle with like minded individuals, or those that might have already attained some level of success with where you would like to be. Having those that are behind you in spirit as well as those who are actually in a position to help your cause simply generates a greater range of possibilities for a successful outcome.

The Ultimate Scapegoat, and a Solution

“I just don’t have the knowledge or smarts (much less the money to address that) to create seriously meaningful change in my life.”

This easily falls under the “who am I to aspire to rise above my cohorts and friends, thinking I can be better than anyone else.” How arrogant of me!

There are many names for that kind of thinking. Limiting beliefs, unreflective thinking, activated ignorance, The Jonah Complex, and the list goes on. They are all based on your inability to properly reason through your challenges with any type of expertise.

Here’s an exercise to get you moving in the direction of gaining expertise, a slick and very reachable “educational” tool to help you to meet those challenges head on and create the motivation and change you’re looking for in your life’s work.

The 10:12 System

First, make a decision on the top area or subject you’re looking to eventually excel in, that aspect of a job or career you’ve always desired, but have yet to take action on. This could be anything from a hidden passion to a simple next step in your job evolution.

Secondly, do some serious research, talk to a few people already successful in this domain, and then make a list of the 12 most prominent and recommended books available in that area.

Now, here is a seriously reachable plan with extraordinary benefits.

Make (and hold) a commitment to read just 10 pages a day, 5 days a week – weekends off!Read time in the course of a 16 hour waking day – next to nothing.

Be sure to always highlight specific passages as you read – a very important part of this process. Obviously, the passages you highlight are either important points or thoughts that seriously spoke to you personally on some level after reading them.

With most books coming in at around 200 pages (many with less pages and a few with more – it will average out), you’ll easily finish your highlighted bookin a month. Commit to repeating this process for 12 months – one 70^th to 80^th of your time here on the planet.

SERIOUSLY THINK ABOUT THIS!!

A) For little to no time in your day, at the end of the year you will have taken in the intellectual rewards of 12 books in you’re newly desired area of expertise. (In certain schools out there, you’re bordering on doing the work necessary for an Associates degree) We’re talking just minutes a day here.

B) Your knowledge base in this new area will be dramatically enhanced, taking you in one year’s time (or less) from knowing little to nothing to encroaching upon expert status if you’ve done (and absorbed) the homework. This is one of the ways to open the door to a job or career that you’ve only dreamt of.

C) All of this can be accomplished while still keeping all of your present obligations in tact!

D) The cost – one book per month, and many books can be found used on Amazon for next to nothing. A financial walk in the park!

I’m a serious advocator for always trying to see the greater picture. Without question, we live in a quick-fix environment. But “quick-fix” and “meaningful life-work change” rarely share the same page. This system (among many others I’ve created) is a viable alternative for anyone looking to take the challenge of what I would consider to be a highly reachable goal that over a short period of time (and just minutes a day) could produce extraordinary results in your life.