Who among us hasn’t envied people who seem to have opportunity drop into their laps on an almost daily basis while the rest of us labor mightily to create opportunities to no avail?
We wonder “Why not me? Why am I not so blessed?”
You’re not going to like this answer. You are so blessed…you’re just not paying attention. Ouch!
The differences that exist between these seemingly fortunate people and the vast majority of folks is twofold:
- They’re doing things to create opportunities.
- They’re paying attention when they arise.
Let’s explore both of these in more detail.
Doing
There is a small percentage of the population that has a sense of entitlement. Consequently, they’re not doing things to create opportunities for themselves.
I doubt that many, if any, of the readers of this blog fall into that category. Most readers of this blog are continuously striving to become more caring, sharing, confident people. The activities they employ to achieve these goals automatically puts them into the opportunity creation mode.
Paying attention
For the vast majority of us it isn’t a matter of not doing the right things to generate opportunity, it’s that we’re not paying attention when it arrives. Often that’s because we’re focused so narrowly on a given goal that we don’t see other opportunities. Here’s an example to illustrate this point.
My parents were avid card players. My brothers and I became so as well. One of my brothers and I were partnered against my parents in a game of Canasta. It was a close game and each team needed only one card to win. We kept drawing and drawing to no avail. I was focused on drawing a queen knowing that it would win the game for my brother and I. My focus was so intent on drawing a queen that when I drew a card that would have won the game for us I discarded it. My parents picked it up and won the game.
This illustrates what we do all too often. We get so focused on something we want that we fail to see the other opportunities that present themselves. People who train themselves out of this natural tendency do appear to be blessed with more opportunities than the rest of us, but the reality is that they’re availing themselves of these opportunities while the vast majority of us are missing or dismissing them.
For you
A simple way to overcome this natural tendency…to open your eyes to possibility…is to, at the beginning of each day, plant this question into your subconscious mind “What opportunities are going to surface today?”
Your subconscious mind will be looking for them while your conscious mind is focused on accomplishing other tasks. As your subconscious mind alerts you to opportunities available to you, evaluate each opportunity by asking yourself the following questions:
- What do I want from life…fame? fortune? a comfortable lifestyle and loving family?
- Will this opportunity help me achieve that life?
- How will availing myself of this opportunity impact my family?
- How many people can I serve with this opportunity? Our value is based upon the number of people we serve.
- Will this opportunity be available again in the future?
Your answers will help you make conscious decisions about which opportunities to purse and which to forgo. It’ll also make you aware of how many opportunities really do come your way. They are far more vast than you imagine.
For our kids
When you see the kids in your life expressing envy over someone else’s opportunities, use the tips above to help them see all the opportunities that have come their way. Then teach them to do this on their own by teaching them to tap into their subconscious mind. Finally, print a copy of the five questions above so that they use them to make more conscious decisions about which opportunities to pursue and which to forgo.
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