Think and Grow Rich, In The Meantime, and All The Joy You Can Stand are all books that will have a permanent space on my bookshelf. These books all delivered words of wisdom that changed my outlook on different areas of my life.

However, in 2008 I read a book that impacted my life in a way that no other book has.

This book not only changed my life, but also changed my core thinking and I owe much of my current success to the principles within the pages of the book that provided many a aha moment!

We all go through periods of immense growth and for me 2008 was a year where by society’s standards I was either going to sink or swim.

Sinking was never an option for me.

I was embarking on a new career as an author and CEO, while simultaneously saying goodbye unexpectedly to one corporate gig and hello to another that offered uncertainty.

While I have always considered myself to be a positive person, there were definite challenges that tested my strengths and my weaknesses. There were situations that required me to take stock of my inner circle, my own day to day thinking, and redefine career goals that I thought had already been determined. Basically it was a situation where I had to refocus. Realign. Reassess. I needed to decide who and what was important to me and initially some of these decisions were difficult to make.

There were several roadblocks that popped up along the way. There were days where I would take two steps forward and then something or someone would cause me to have to take one step back. At times, I felt that life itself had a personal vendetta against me. And when I think back on those times, I’m amazed that I didn’t crack under pressure. I now realize I didn’t crack for three reasons: (1) I always knew deep down that if I remained positive, things would eventually work out, (2)  I had a wonderful support system in my family, and (3) I was introduced to a wonderful resource, a book entitled Secrets of Success.

It’s amazing how you receive WHAT you need WHEN you need it.

Secrets of Success reiterated what I already understood about positive thinking but taught it to me in a way that created a seismic shift in my thinking.

Sure I knew that thoughts (whether positive or negative) creates reality because I had been taught this by my mom, Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, and every other positive thinking book I’ve consumed in my life. But Secrets of Success expounded on the ability to flip the energy of your life by shifting your consciousness on all levels, both in feeling and in thought.

And in fully understanding this, every time a new obstacle occurred, I faced it head on with the knowledge that it was MY reaction that would determine the outcome.

Was I still discouraged at times? Abso-freakin-lutely. I’m human! Did I want to go screaming down the street like “Why me Lord?” Yep. lol. But at the end of the day, there was a bigger lesson to be learned. Maybe one of patience, maybe one of understanding, maybe one of faith…

It seemed almost every day, something unexpected happened that could have spiraled me into a negative “woe is me” mood. But instead of losing it, I faced the challenge with a renewed spirit and the thought “and this too shall pass.”

Eventually…things worked themselves out because it wasn’t the situation, but my thinking about the situation, that ultimately determined the outcome.

Things I can control, I do. Things out of my control, and this too shall pass.

As I reflect back on my life, I’m grateful for all of the obstacles I had to face in 2008, because it proved to make me a  much stronger person in the end. Personally, I feel that those obstacles were a part of my blueprint. It let me know that no matter how “right” we do things, things can still go “wrong.”

I now know that things going “wrong” is not always a negative, but sometimes it’s just the catalyst for change.

Stay inspired!

And this too shall pass…

When you reflect on your life, were there any pivotal moments that changed your life? Or was there a person who impacted your life? Please share in the comment section below.