Turning Points for LIFE

I flipped a coin. Seriously. My father and I were trying to decide which division of General Motors should be my "sponsor" during my co-op work experience while attending GMI Engineering & Management Institute (Kettering University today).  The choice was between Buick and AC, and AC won the flip.  Weeks later, at a new student orientation at AC's headquarters in Flint, Michigan I met Orrin Woodward, a man who was later to become my business partner (of 17 years and running) and co-author of several best sellers. That was turning point number one.

Once ensconced at GMI I was terrified. I wasn't that in love with math and science and was truly outgunned by the smart people around me. I thought Mechanical Engineering had more to do with machinery and motion than math, but the professors seemed to think differently. So, out of fear more than anything else, I worked really hard and it paid off. One thing led to another and I realized I could probably shoot for a scholarship to grad school. So for at least four years (GMI was a 5 year program) I planned on winning a scholarship to Stanford.  My plan worked and I won the scholarship. I also got accepted to Stanford. But I ended up attending Carnegie Mellon University instead. The reason for this sudden shift is too much for this article, but when I arrived at Carnegie Mellon I found Terri Estes waiting there. Soon she would change her name to Terri Brady. This was turning point number two.

There are others in my life, but I am sure you get the point. What may seem like little decisions at the time can have massive and lasting impact on the course of our lives. We change direction and go down a road from which we can never return.

The interesting thing about major turning points in our lives is that they are not always obvious. Let's face it, we make thousands of decisions a year. Some that seem major sometimes don't turn out to be. Some that seems minor can sometimes change the course of our lives forever. It is sometimes impossible to tell if the next decision will be a big one, leading to a turning point, or just another miniscule moment that will soon be lost under the dust of time and faded memories.

The lesson? Choose well at each decision. Never underestimate the potential of tiny things having big ramifications.

The lesson within the lesson? There really aren't that many major turning points in life. If you don't believe me, map out your own life by moving backwards through your circumstances. How did you end up living where you're living, working where you're working, married to whom you're married, etc.? If you trace it back, you'll likely find somewhere between 3 and 10 major turning points in your life, many of which you couldn't have seen coming.

An observation on these lessons: The most successful people (such as my buddy Tim Marks) seem to make decisions the quickest and with the least amount of angst, but then stick to those decisions with more tenacity than others. To me this is a strange paradox, but I've seen it demonstrated so many times I believe it to be the rule.

Conclusion: Turning points are rare but significant in your life. Choose wisely from the myriad of choices proffered to you each day, as any one of them could have unforseen and lasting implications. However, it is not necessary to become parlyzed or burdened by the decisions you'll face. Perhaps the worst thing to do is overanalyze. Go with your gut, pray for guidance, and stick to the directions you choose.

 

Comments

[Cathy -- Team Rascals]

Chris,

Thanks for the great (as usual) post! I have been reviewing a few of my major turning points lately, and I have discovered exactly what you pointed out to be true for me, too.

I remember something a mentor said to me when I was young, "The process of making decisions are like throwing a rock into a pond. The rock makes a splash, and then ripples. Many people are paralyzed about whether to even throw the rock, and then only look at the splash. Wise people look ahead to the ripples to decide, then just throw the rock and commit to what they have done."

In my decisions, I have always tried to remember this. I try to decide and look toward the ripples of implications the decision will have on my life and the lives of others, and then live peacefully with the consequences of what I have decided.

[Shandi]

Great thoughts. Turning points. It was certainly a life-changing moment when I met Angie Ballah, but that was a decision of hers to randomly visit a different Starbucks that day, not mine. Is that still a turning point as meant here?

[Jason Vozzella]

Great Post Chris! I follow many people and read many blogs....this is certainly one of the best! Thanks for all you do for everyone who is striving to do more! Best of wishes to you and yours my man!

[kirk birtles]

Chris Brady... thank you once again for the insight and wisdom! I feel as though we are all headed for a major turning point in LIFE! As Oliver Demille says, we are headed for a FREEDOM shift or a force shift. It is up to us to be gurus, statesman, and entrepreneurs to ensure that it is a FREEDOM shift. I am very excited to be locking arms with a TEAM of people with the common purpose of ensuring FREEDOM for the next generations! As for me and my family, we choose to fight anyone who is trying to SCAM us out of our FFRREEEEDDOOMM!

[Brad Gale]

Chris,

thanks for the insightful and well written post.

[Holly]

Chris,

Thanks for your thoughts on turning points. As always, we should choose well. I look back at how we were approached only one time in our 15 years of marriage. It was my one and only university professor for my one and only masters class I took.

When she showed me the ESBI Quadrant, I knew right then, I was on the wrong track with going on to get my masters. Did I have any idea that now, many years later, we would be set up with LIFE, and you & Terri and Orrin and Lauri Woodward would be leading the charge for Freedom in our country?! NO way.

But God is in control, and He will reward the diligent and the perseverant.

We had a packed house tonite for the Launch of LIFE. We appreciate you and your dedication to bring this altogether. May we never grow weary in well doing, for in due season, we shall reap if we faint not!

Holly, Team VIP