JACK WAS VERY successful. 
He started his career as a teacher, but over time he worked hard and became a bestselling author, living in a gorgeous estate, with appearances on TV and a multimillion dollar income. He was doing great, to say the least.
A few years later, however, he found himself in the midst of a tough divorce and on the brink of an ugly legal battle. Jack felt betrayed and fell into a depression. The stakes were high, both emotional and financial.
A few weeks into his funk, it hit Jack. This was exactly what he had written in his books to help people, and how to recover from feeling this way.
So he got one of his own book’s CD out and listened to himself talk about how to turn life back around. Then he got to work. He sorted out his divorce and finances. He went on to write another book, The Success Principles. His book became yet another bestseller, helping thousands of people turn their life around.
Jack in this story is Jack Canfield, author of the famous Chicken Soup for the Soul series. He’s also a columnist and speaker, speaking to Fortune 500 companies and movie stars, and runs workshops on how to live a more successful life.
But this story is not just about Jack’s success.
It’s about how even the very successful can lose their way, and need to remind themselves of what’s important to them, their vision and what they need to do (even those whose career is encouraging and empowering others).
Jack is not the only one. It’s the same principle behind writing down your goals and reading them every morning to set your intention for the day. Or meditating to center yourself. Studies show this significantly increases chances of achieving goals and turning dreams into reality.
In the midst of life’s distractions, such reminders are necessary. They bring back focus on what truly matters, and serve as a guide when making decisions, or if you feel lost or stuck.
While it would be great to hear, understand and retain something in one fell swoop, our monkey brain begs to differ. It can take weeks, months, or even years of hearing, seeing and doing on a regular basis before it clicks, sinks in deep enough to stay and have meaning, before you finally “get it”.
This is why habits take time.
This is why many overnight successes were really ten years in the making.
And why it takes more than just one book, one class, one decision, one workout, getting up one more time after you fall.
George Sheehan wrote: Success means having the courage, the determination and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.
Your definition of success may be different. And quite possibly, it will keep changing.
But whatever it may be, be sure to remember it.
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