Owning the Moment: Living a Life Free of Regret

At the time that I am writing this, I am coming off of an extraordinary month of momentum, big wins, major milestones, and manifestation in my life. It seems that my focus is sharper than ever, I have eliminated distractions and I am executing on my goals consistently. It is hard to believe that we are entering into May. The second quarter is almost over and it is my hope that you are on track with your goals and making progress in every area of your life. When I was thinking of what to write to you about this month, I started thinking about what it takes to continually make progress and manifest your goals. I hope these insights will empower you to seize moments, own your greatness and realize your greatest potential.

1. You need to be willing to take responsibility for your life. If you have followed my work over the years, then you have probably heard me say that if you do the same you will always get the same. On the other hand, if you do something different then you will produce different results in your life. What most people fail to realize is that you cannot reverse a cycle or embrace new realms of success in life without first being willing to take responsibility for your life. Honestly, you are where you are today because of decisions. While we cannot turn back the hands of time, you do have the power to honor the time that you have left. In order to honor the time that you have left, you have to take responsibility for the choices that you made and the cycles that they have created in your life. In this era of self-improvement and motivation, many people have bought into the lie that positive thinking is the cure for everything. Positive thinking is no magic cure for years of bad decisions and reckless living. If you want to change the route that your life is taking, then take charge of your life by taking responsibility for where you are. Only then can you be empowered to make progress and realize your greatest potential.
2. You must be willing to reprioritize your life. As someone that has had the pleasure of training and developing leaders around the world, one common theme I have noticed is that we have many people in positions of influence that have not first learned how to prioritize their own lives. It is very difficult to prioritize the objectives of organizations when you are struggling to manage your own life well. Reprioritizing your life is taking the time to assess your life and to make the necessary adjustments. Ultimately, reprioritizing your life is stripping your life of all the excess and strategically focusing on the essential. Most people are drowning in distractions. They have filled their calendars with meaningless activities and worthless pursuits that do not enrich their lives. Reprioritizing your life is getting clear about what you do not want so you can make room for what you truly want in your life. Do not allow your time to be capitalized by trivial things that do not expand your capacity for growth and greatness. Reprioritizing your life is letting go of everything that limits your growth, development, and mastery. When you reprioritize your life you reclaim your power.
3. You will never own a moment that you have not prepared for. After you have reprioritized your life, then you need to get prepared for your tomorrow that is not yet born to time. In other words, you need to get positioned for opportunities in your life. What I have discovered over the last three decades is that most people think that positioning themselves for opportunities is updating their resumes, going to more networking events, and becoming busier. However, positioning yourself for opportunities is about sharpening your skills, refining your gifts, building your personal brand, and becoming more valuable in the marketplace. Preparation is not so much about the development of the external. Preparation is more about the development of the internal. In other words, it is about mindset, marketability, and mastery. In life, you do not get the opportunities that you pray and hope for. No, you get the opportunities that you are willing to prepare for. You prepare by building your brand equity, increasing your capacity, and sharpening your edge. If success is when preparation and opportunity marry, then the investments you make today will determine the opportunities that you enjoy tomorrow. Preparation is the downpayment on all future possibilities and opportunities in your life.
4. You must have the ability to perceive moments of opportunity in your life. When I started Jamelle Sanders International more than a decade ago, I was excited and hopeful about the future. However, after I experienced setbacks, failures and the business almost collapsed I quickly learned that it was going to take more than hope and excitement to thrive in the business world. I often tell entrepreneurs hope is not a strategy and passion is not a tactic. When I was forced to make the decision of whether or not I would remain in business, I went into my toolkit and reminded myself of the principles that had produced success in my life before. Many people see me today and have no clue about my journey. They see me on television, in the pages of magazines, and see me recognized as a highly respected thought leader. I’ve had many people assume that my success was automatic. The only reason I am still standing all these years later is because I learned how to perceive the power of moments in my life. Every major shift in my life has come from my ability to perceive moments of opportunity. Perception is about more than looking. Perception is the ability to see a reality that is not yet born to time. Perception is the ability to be in the right place at the right time to take advantage of the right opportunities. Many people limit perception to vision. However, perception is really about discernment. Perception is an awareness that aligns you to access new seasons, new possibilities, and new opportunities in your life. This awareness is developed over time through trial and error. It is not something that you can really teach a person. It is a skill that is developed through knowing yourself and knowing what opportunities best align with your values and principles. As long as you lack perception, you will always be looking for something outside of yourself to guide you to what is possible for your life. On the other hand, when you have perception you will know how to go within and be guided to possibilities and opportunities for your life. What you cannot perceive you will never possess. Perception gives you the insights to properly interpret moments and seize those moments in your life.