Do you know who controls your life?
A man sooner or later discovers that he is the master-gardener of his soul, the director of his life.
– James Allen
Who is James Allen?
James Allen was a British writer and a pioneer of the self-help movement. His most famous book, As a Man Thinketh, was published in 1903.
Who Controls Your Life?
We’re programmed to believe that we have no control over our lives at all.
You’re path is set for life:
- To go school
- To go college
- Get a job
- Retire when you’re 65
- Continue working because you can’t afford not to
- Eventually die
At work you have a boss to tell you what to do. Someone else tells you what to do at home. The IRS tells you have to have to pay taxes. Your county and stay make you pay property taxes.
You get more programming from the TV. They designed the news to keep you in fear of your environment and the rest of the world.
How many times when you watch TV do you hear someone speak a line something like, “I have no choice!”
It call all make you feel pretty darn powerless.
The truth is that most of this doesn’t really exist.
You Are the True Power in Your Life
Except for the IRS, none of the authorities I listed above are real. Actually, you could choose not to pay your taxes too. I don’t recommend it though. They will probably track you down eventually.
You choose to listen to the people who tell you that you need to have a job and build a career. The crazy thing is, when you get a job you work for someone who decided not to get a job and start their own business instead. Back at the very beginning of every company is a person who chose to be self-employed and do their own thing.
I chose to do my own thing too. No alarm clocks, no boss, I work my own schedule. You couldn’t pay me enough to go back to a “real job.”
You Get to Choose
The point is that you get to choose. Every day you make the choice to do whatever you do that day. Recognize that fact and take back that power. You can still choose to go to work, just recognize the fact that you do have the choice. That is where your power is.
That is what James Allen is talking about when he says that eventually everyone realizes they are the master-gardener and director of their life.
Now that you know who controls your life, check out the previous quote of the day about how to live longer.
