Global Issues
The problem is not in becoming rich, the problem is holding to it.
Let me share a story with you today. Mike Tyson, former world heavyweight boxing champion was broke and filed for bankruptcy in 2003. This was in spite of the fact that he became a world champion at the age of 20 and earned a whopping $470 million! Why should he be broke after earning such an amount of money?
In our part of the world, we would attribute it to the diabolical work of witches and wizards. However, a close look will reveal that Tyson’s undoing was his mind-set. Psychologists call it cognitive restructuring.
Tyson grew up in the slums of Brooklyn, New York. The slum has its own culture (prevailing way of thinking). Unfortunately, when he began to earn millions of dollars, his old way of thinking remained with him. He did not invest in stocks or in real estate. He did not know how to start and run businesses. His mind, instead of being an asset, became a liability.
Tyson’s story holds a big lesson for you and I. We cannot rise beyond the level of our thoughts. Given the fact that poverty and wrong thinking have become part of our culture, we must find a way to escape this mental trap.
The value you place on yourself will affect your behaviour; it will affect your confession and how you treat yourself.
One major problem I see often is that most people do not believe that they deserve to live a better life. For me, it is not a question of maybe or maybe not. Everyone deserves a better quality of life. It is when you get to the point where you believe that you deserve something better that something in you rejects your current circumstances and you begin to make conscious effort to move up to your desired level. This is when you come to the realization that something is yours by right.
Remember, favourable changes begin with a change of mind.