THE ROADBLOCKS AND DETOURS ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESS

2012-02-04T11:43:00.001-08:00

In a previous article I talked about the map to success and prosperity. In this article I want to deal with roadblocks and detours on the road to success and prosperity. Anyone who has taken a trip in the last few years has encountered both of these delays on the highways. It seems like they are working on the roads everywhere you go. And even though they do their best to direct you back to the main highway once you have be detoured, sometimes the signs aren’t very clear and you get lost. I use this analogy because it is so closely related to life. When it comes to the road to success and prosperity many get lost and never find their way back. So I’d like to point out some roadblocks and detours in hopes that you can avoid both and reach your destiny. Let’s take a look at the map.
M-motivation A-attitude P-persistence
Now I want to deal with each one of these ingredients in the recipe for success and prosperity.
Motivation
The longer it takes to reach your destination the more difficult it is to remain motivated. The word motivation means to keep moving. As with any journey, delays have a negative effect on you. It’s easy to lose focus. You must safeguard against these roadblocks and detours on the road to success and prosperity. Remember delays don’t mean defeat. There’s a reason they have cheerleaders at every sporting event. The cheerleaders help keep the team motivated and headed in the right direction. Everybody needs someone that will encourage them during difficult times. Do you have a cheerleader? If not, then become one. Motivate yourself by speaking positive things regarding your future. It’s ok to stop at a rest area, just don’t camp there. It doesn’t take long to smell the roses.
Over the years I watched people come to Nashville with the dream of becoming a songwriter or an artist. They assumed because of their talent that it would be easy. One by one they became disappointed, discouraged, and even depressed. They gave up and went back home to work at a dead end job. I came to Nashville 31 years ago. It took seven years for me to have my first song recorded. But the good news is, it went to number four and has continued to open doors for me until this day. I had several good friends in the music business that kept me motivated. I must confess there were many times I wanted to give up. Today I’m so glad I didn’t. That was several hundred songs ago. My music continues to receive airplay and chart even after all these years.
As I look at the list of artist that have recorded my songs I stand in awe. Last week I had five different artist record songs that I have written. When people ask me what is the hardest song I’ve ever had to get recorded, I tell them the next one. As long as I live on this earth I want to continue to be significant and productive. I have ten years goals that I have set to keep me motivated. With that in mind let me talk a little bit about setting goals.
GOALS ARE NOT GOALS UNTIL THEY ARE WRITTEN DOWN!
I read years ago that only 3% of people on earth have written goals. I have people ask me why it’s important to write their goals down. The answer to that question is simple. Nothing has life until it is written. The word of God existed in the mind of God, but it became the living word when it was written down. I have a file that I have kept for over 30 years. It is filled with 10 years goals, 5 year goals, 1 year goals, and one month goals. Have I always met every goal? No, but I have exceeded some of those goals. The important thing is because I wrote those goals down it allowed me to stay on track and remain motivated. If you do not have written goals I would challenge you now to get you a notebook and begin to write down your goals in the six major areas of your life. Those areas are:
1.SPIRITUAL GOALS-These have to do with your spiritual development. Example, read the bible through in one year. Pray 30 minutes per day. Visit the Holy Land.
2.PHYSICAL GOALS-These goals help you to stay on track with weight and exercise. Work out three days per week. Lose 20lbs. Change hairstyle etc.
3.MENTAL GOALS-Things like learn a new language. Take a cooking class. Read one book per month. Learn five new words per week.
4.FAMILY GOALS-Go on a great vacation. Send spouse a gift each month. Attend a seminar on family values. Leave love notes for spouse. Spend quality time with your children.
5.FINANCIAL GOALS-Pay off credit card debt. Start a business. Control Spending in a responsible manner. Plan for retirement.
6.SOCIAL GOALS-Develop good relationships. Network with business associates. Get to know the people you at your church. Repair damaged relationships.
If you will set these goals and be faithful to them they will help you continue to stay motivated in life. I know when you talk about these things people think it’s a lot of work. And you know it is. It takes little or no effort to fail. In order to succeed you will need to work hard. THE ONLY PLACE SUCCESS COMES BEFORE WORK IS IN THE DICTIONARY.
Ok that brings us to the second principle:
Attitude
In every airplane there is an instrument called the Attitude Indicator. From what little I know about flying, I understand this instrument depicts the nose position of the plane as it’s climbing to it’s cruising altitude. A pilot told me that if the attitude of the plane was not correct it would stall and could crash. When I heard this I thought the same thing is true in life. If you attitude is not correct then you will stall and crash.
Anyone who has ever raised teenagers has a PHD in attitude. I remember when my sons reached those teenage years when their body began to change. You didn’t know from one day to the next if you would be dealing with Dr. Jeckl or Mr. Hyde. Nothing was ever good enough. Things didn’t happen fast enough. Everything was too difficult. And on and on the march to adult goes. The real tragedy is when people take this bad attitude into adult life. It results in broken marriages, criminal actions, and eventually destruction.
Did you ever feel like giving someone an Attitude Adjustment? smile! I think we all have at some point in life. The unfortunate truth is, no one can change another person’s attitude. That is something the individual must do for themselves. I recall some years ago when I developed a bad attitude about the call of God that was on my life. I was miserable to be around. Everything out of my mouth was negative. I would say God doesn’t care about me. He blesses everyone else and I can’t figure out why He doesn’t bless me. After all I deserved it just as much as anyone else. At that time I was traveling with my wife and son. One day they sat me down and they said if you don’t change your attitude we are going home and you will have to travel by yourself. It made me very angry. This has been over 20 years ago. After I got over my anger I asked them to forgive me and to help me change my attitude. They did and our ministry began to turn around and begin to be successful. I believe YOUR ATTITUDE ALWAYS DETERMINES YOUR ALTITUDE. In other words you will never rise above your attitude. ATTITUDE ALSO DETERMINES YOUR OUTLOOK. If you have a positive outlook then you will see success. If you have a negative outlook you will see only failure. ULTIMATELY OUTLOOK DETERMINES OUTCOME. Outlook predicts the decisions you will make when it comes to success or failure. YOUR ATTITUDE IS ONE THING YOU CAN CHANGE.
Years ago I read a humorous story about a man who was on his way home and he turned down the wrong road and got lost. It was a dark, deserted, dirt road out in the country. It was late at night and he got mad. After he got mad he developed a bad attitude. He begins to scream, I’ll never find my way back to the main road. About this time he had a flat tire. This made him even madder. He got out of the car opened the truck and found out he didn’t have a jack. About a mile down the road he saw a house with the lights on. So he began to walk toward the house. As he was walking he said they probably are not even home. Then he said, if they are home I bet they don’t have a jack. Finally, he said if they are home, and they have a jack, I bet they won’t loan it to me. The more he walked the more negative he became. He walked up to the door of the country house , knocked on the door, and when the man answered, he didn’t ask the man anything, he just shouted keep your jack and walked off the porch. This story defines a lot of people who have encountered problems on the road to success and prosperity. They give up simply because they allowed themselves to entertain a bad attitude.
Do you need an attitude adjustment? If so let me make some suggestions that might help you. Ask the people who love you what you need to change concerning your attitude. What they say to you may be painful, but it will be productive if you take their advice. Only people who love you unconditionally will tell you the truth. Then do a self inventory. Ask yourself why you get so angry and negative when certain things happen. Many times it’s about things that don’t really matter anyway. One thing I’ve discovered over the years that has helped me deal with explosive situations is to take a legal pad and write out all negative feelings. Then when I finish I rip the pages out and throw them in the trash. This is my way of cleansing my attitude without lashing out. When find yourself displaying a bad attitude, pause and tell yourself out loud, like you would your children, NOW STOP IT! RIGHT NOW!

Persistence
I read about a man who lived up in the mountains in a cabin. He was a great Christian man and he wanted to please God with his life. One day as he was praying he said God what can I do to please you? The Lord spoke to him to go out in the back of his cabin to this huge rock and push against it with all his strength, so he did. He did that ever morning, all day long for 20 years. At the end of the twenty years he became frustrated. He said God, did I hear you correctly? I’ve been pushing against this rock day in and day out for 20 years and it hasn’t moved an inch. The Lord said but look how strong and determined you have become. Look at the nice tan you have from standing in the sunlight. And then the Lord said, I didn’t tell you to move the rock I just told you to push against. I knew if you listened and obeyed it would make you strong. In today’s society there is a certain chart that man has developed to define success. It is always by great accomplishments. God defines success differently. To God you are successful when you listen, and obey. When you persistently pursue God’s will for your life. To many, the man with the mega church of thousands is considered more successful than the man who pastors 50 people for several years. In God’s eyes it is the one who is faithful to the call that is the successful man. My pastor has been at the same church faithfully serving God for 54 years. He has about 50 people. He is 77 years old. He has a strong family, the respect of his community, and people whose lives were changed because of his persistence. Me being one of the many.
How do you keep going when you feel like giving up? I think everyone reaches that place at some point in their life. You have to know that God called you and has a plan to bring you into your destiny. You have to also understand God sees farther down the road than you do. He knows where you will end up, if you continue to follow Him. There’s a scripture in Gal. 6:9 that says, “Be not weary in well doing, for you shall reap if you do not quit. If you don’t quit you can’t lose and if you don’t continue you can’t win. I live by this principle, “I will continue until tomorrow”. If you make that commitment every day you will be surprised at how things can turn around in a 24 hour period.
In order to reach your place of success and prosperity. You will have to avoid these road blocks and detours...THE LACK OF MOTIVATION….THE FAILURE TO SET GOALS….A BAD ATTITUDE….GIVING UP OR GIVING IN TO PROBLEMS.I expect to see you at the FINISH LINE.

James Payne

THE ROADBLOCKS AND DETOURS ON THE ROAD TO SUCCESS