Jim Rohn’s

The Seasons of Life

Companion Text

A mastermind study guide.

 Personal Growth Series

“THE SEASONS OF LIFE”

Jim Rohn

Based on the 1981 Jim Rohn Productions Book

This publication is provided by The Compendium Group exclusively for its clients as
a companion text to the original publication and for use as a reference mastermind
study guide only. It is not to be resold, republished, or distributed outside of the
individual and personal use within The Compendium Group mastermind study.

2020 © Compendium Group LLC

 ABOUT

“THE SEASONS OF LIFE”

This book is intended for reading by all people, and for all reasons. It is a
philosophical glimpse into the common threads interwoven among the laws of nature
and man. It uniquely defined how both life and business are like the changing seasons.

“The Seasons of Life” could have been written by any of us, for it is the story
of all of us. It studies both triumph and tragedy… the effect both have on the
ultimate quality of our individual lives. The works written within these pages are basic
to the ideas and insights created by Jim Rohn, and are covered in his many seminars
across America and around the world.

The vehicle for producing and sharing his principles, Jim Rohn Productions,
has itself become one of the success stories brought about through implementing his
teachings. The company is committed to the exposure of worthy ideals wherever a
willing audience may be found.

“The Seasons of Life” will, at a future point in time, be looked upon as the
cornerstone of new thought… capable of transforming people and organizations,
from the valleys of mediocrity, to the peaks of achievement. It is the forerunner of
many creations to be produced and marketed by Jim Rohn Productions. Is abounds in
inspiration, capsulizes truth, and clearly identifies guidelines for those in search of the
better life.

For those seeking the discover of themselves, this book may well be the key
which will unlock the door to a whole new world of accomplishment and
contentment.
Contents

Foreword 5

1 The Cycles and Seasons of Life 6

2 The Effect of Environment on Circumstance 7

3 The Value of Attitudes 13

4 The Constant, Predictable Pattern of Change 16

5 The Spring 18

6 The Summer 24

7 The Fall 28

8 The Winter 31

9 Defeat – The Best Beginning 35

 5

FOREWORD

1 John Kennedy once remarked that Winston Churchill “mobilized the

2 English language and sent it into battle.” Past generations have heard the stirring
3 words of Cicero, Daniel Webster, Disraeli, Churchill and Kennedy. . . men
4 touched by their creator with the gift of changing the course of human history
5 and the quality of the individual life through their well-spoken words.

6 Jim Rohn, a man of our own generation, has been given such a gift. His
7 inspiring seminars and appearances before groups across America and around
8 the world have changed the lives of tens of thousands. He has the unique
9 capacity for finding the miraculous hidden among the common, and for
10 expressing it with word pictures that uniquely affect all who listen.

11 “The Seasons Of Life” is but a momentary glimpse at the depth of the

12 character of Jim Rohn. His ability for reawakening the sleeping spirit residing
13 within us all is most welcome in a time of change and challenge. While this book
14 is the first by Mr. Rohn, it surely will not be his last. My association with him in
15 preparing this book has made me aware that the world needs to know more of
16 this man. His ideas on goals, personal development, leadership skills, and the
17 value of effective communications are needed in all areas of education, of
18 government, and in business...and his contribution to improving the quality of
19 family life is immeasurable.

20 This book may well be destined to become a masterpiece in literary

21 creativity.

Ronald L. Reynolds

The Seasons of Life by Jim Rohn

 Chapter 1

THE CYCLES AND SEASONS OF LIFE

1 For six thousand years of recorded history, humans have entered this world,
2 received parental instruction, classroom instruction, and gathered the experience
3 of life; many have set for themselves ambitious goals, and dreamed lofty dreams,
4 but upon the day that they draw their last breath, have left little behind as
5 evidence of their existence other than a birth certificate, gravemarker, and one-
6 half million dollars in consumed goods and services between their humble
7 beginnings and uneventful end.

8 Books have been authored on the subject of human achievement, seminars are
9 conducted on how to find success, and those who have met with and embraced
10 success willingly share their ideas and insights with all those who will listen.

11 For some, worldly riches are gained at the price of lost friends and broken
12 families. For others, fortune remains forever elusive, while families remain
13 precariously intact. For most, we remain forever in one of two categories—either
14 poor, seeking to become wealthy or wealthy, seeking always to rediscover the
15 happiness we had while we were poor.

16 This book, a condensation of ideas and observations gained over a period of

17 four decades, will attempt to place life, its events, purpose, opportunities and
18 challenges into perspective. It is not intended to be an instructional treatise on
19 either how to achieve success or how to avoid failure. If life were to hold such
20 precise answers to age-old questions, surely their discovery would now be history
21 and each of us would now be living to enjoy our success. In truth, what is the
22 formula for success for one will lead to the self- destruction of another. As
23 certainly as our Creator made us individually unique, so did He also preserve for
24 each of us individually unique answers to the challenge of life.

25 It is the purpose of this book, therefore, to awaken within each of us the

26 storehouse of inspiration and answers that lie sleeping where they have been
27 since being placed there at birth—within the hearts and minds of each of us.
 7

28 Let us now seek to discover our own individual answers to our own individual
29 challenges by exploring the cycles and seasons of life.

Chapter 2

THE EFFECT OF ENVIRONMENT ON CIRCUMSTANCE

30 All of us, whether rich or poor, young or old, educated or not so educated, are
31 the sum total of all of those people and events that have touched us since first
32 entering this world. Every thought we’ve entertained has had its effect upon
33 what we now are. Every movie we’ve watched had its effect. Every book or
34 magazine we’ve read had its effect. Every TV show has had its effect. Every
35 disappointment, triumph, doubt, dream, and love for someone each had their
36 effect. What we are and what we have, we have slowly brought upon ourselves.
37 It is the human tendency to blame someone or something else for our lack of
38 progress—we blame government, competitors, managers, inflation, pay
39 schedules and even the traffic and weather for our circumstances.

40 Those people and events which have left their mark—whether favorable or
41 unfavorable—are now behind us. What happened even as recently as yesterday is
42 no longer of any consequence, unless we choose to allow it to be. What is of
43 great importance is who and what it is that leaves its mark today, and each day
44 thereafter. What we have been is an established and unchangeable fact. What we
45 can yet become is an unlimited, boundless opportunity. Therefore, do not allow
46 your awareness of past difficulty or failures to adversely affect your current and
47 future possibilities. The greatest value of the past is how wisely we invest it in the
48 future. Let the past be a servant for making the future both more enjoyable and
49 profitable.

50 For those who seriously accept that they deserve and will one day achieve
51 financial independence, let each break off the “rear- view mirror” of their lives
52 and concentrate upon what lies ahead. Let them begin their quest for
53 achievement by taking a close inventory of those people and circumstances

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54 which today touch their lives, for it is their effect which will determine what lies
55 ahead – what the size of the next crop will be come next fall. We sometimes can
56 accumulate a mixture of the people and environments of life, which, if not
57 altered in some way, will assure that our future, will be just about like our past.
58 Positive human progress has its price, for surely, each gain automatically
59 produces a loss or a sacrifice. Each of us is affected in a negative way by
60 something each day. One of the great challenges of life is to have both the
61 wisdom to recognize those sources of negativity, and the courage to cast them
62 aside, if necessary. None of us would voluntarily drink a glass of deadly poison if
63 we knew what it was, and yet each of us has friends, or relatives, or business
64 associates whose effect on us is just as deadly as the glass of poison. The
65 difference is that one form of poison kills instantly—once consumed, the body
66 recoils, weakens, and then all bodily functions cease. Other “poisons” kill hopes,
67 ambitions, enthusiasm, and the thirst for achievement. The methods are
68 different, but the ultimate result is the same. There is little difference between
69 one who has given up his life and one who has given up his hope.

70 There are those who will laugh at those who read useful books, and yet there is
71 little difference between those who cannot read and those who will not read—
72 the result of both is ignorance.

73 There are those who will discourage those in search of a better occupation, and
74 yet it is essential that each of us find what we were “meant to do” if true
75 happiness is to be found.

76 There are those who will frown upon those who set ambitious goals, and yet
77 without goals there can be no achievement, and without achievement life will be
78 as it has been.

79 There are those who will gossip about those who are doing well, and yet there
80 can be no cause for rejoicing among those who are doing poorly.

81 There are those who will cry to those who turn away in search of a better life,
82 and yet we must sometimes turn away from those whose effect limits us—in
83 spite of the tears. There are those who will hate those who achieve the improved
 9

84 life, and yet there can be little happiness in poverty, nor love among those who
85 must endure it.

86 One of the disappointments of life is that friends will abandon those who begin
87 to change their life for the better, and yet those who remain behind will say, “he
88 has forgotten us now that he lives well.” It is those who accept their mediocrity
89 who choose to “remain behind.” It is almost always those who have climbed
90 above the crowd who would wish to return to their earlier friends and embrace
91 them in friendship and love, knowing that they dare not, for jealousy among
92 those who remain behind will not allow it to be so.

93 It is often difficult to pause in the middle of life for the purpose of sifting out the
94 debris that we collect throughout our years. We tend to accumulate and cling to
95 ideas that limit our progress. We cherish friendships even though the friendships
96 impede our personal growth. We allow ourselves acquaintances, in spite of those
97 acquaintances whose conversation affects or destroys our attitude about life and
98 people. We maintain business associates, although those associates teach us
99 immoral, illegal, or unethical practices. We learn shortcuts for increasing profits
100 while decreasing quality. In countless ways, we wander through life allowing
101 people and their attitudes and ideas to mold our character—people whose
102 attitudes and ideas have brought themselves little in the way of progress,
103 productivity, or happiness.

104 Unpopular as it may seem, each of us accumulates people, customs, attitudes,

105 habits, opinions, and philosophies which we very simply cannot afford to keep—
106 if we seek honestly after an improved life. Friendships are indeed valuable, but so
107 is the human life and it is foolish to fall short of our potential because we feared
108 alienating a good friend.

109 The gathering of a few business friends for lunch is a common, everyday
110 occurrence. In one hour we can satisfy our hunger for food, gossip, ridicule, and
111 condemnation of those not present. We can repeat half-truths brought to us
112 through hearsay. We can complain about government, management, coworkers,
113 traffic, taxes, weather, and the “system”, while doing nothing to produce

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114 solutions. Even if the conversation does reveal solutions, we make no effort to
115 communicate them to those who can possibly implement them, accepting things
116 for the way they are.

117 If our attitudes, results, or happiness is to ever improve, we must exercise the
118 painful discipline required for “weeding-out” the garden of our life. Eating alone
119 is better than mingling with those whose conversation is negative. Canceling the
120 appointment is better than keeping the appointment with those whom will
121 simply waste our time. Changing the conversation is better than prolonging a
122 conversation designed to degrade someone. Telling the whole, painful truth is
123 better than a half-truth distorted to make ourselves look or sound good. Saying
124 “no” is better than saying “yes” to some- thing you don’t want to do, or to
125 someone you don’t want to be with. Being firm is better than being courteous to
126 those whose caustic personality does not justify courtesy. The improvement of
127 our personal circumstances means that we must learn to do what the failures are
128 simply not willing to do.

129 Better than many of the wrong friends are a few of the right friends. Better than
130 a few of the wrong friends are no friends at all!

131 Life is a delicate maneuver of selection, rejection, review and change. Each
132 person entering our world brings either a contribution or destruction. Trying to
133 be “always nice” is to invite certain disaster. Those with poisonous attitudes,
134 strange opinions, and caustic conversations love to look for someone nice who
135 will listen to them. They love to dump their verbal garbage into the mental
136 factory of anyone willing to listen. A major challenge in life is for each person to
137 learn the art of standing guard at the doorway of their mind. Carefully examine
138 the credentials and authority of those seeking to enter within that place where
139 your attitudes are formed.

140 The words, opinions, and comments of others are constantly taking their toll on
141 each of us. Subtly, the conversations of gloom, despair, complaining,
142 condemning, and criticizing are forming our temporary moods and our
 11

143 permanent personality and character. As a wise man once said, “A sour face does
144 not come as an accident. It is the result of sour thoughts.”

145 Children are often told by well-intentioned but misguided parents that they are
146 bad, naughty, selfish, or shy. Teachers by their actions or their expressions
147 sometimes report to the parents that their child is slow, or uncooperative, or a
148 poor student. Throughout our early years, each of us was subjected to impulsive
149 remarks of those who were unaware that it was those very words that were
150 forming our character. As we become adults, we then seem to tend to choose to
151 associate with those most like us. The weak attract the weak; the poor are most
152 comfortable with the poor; the successful are drawn toward those who are
153 successful; those of optimistic views and attitudes select those of their own kind.
154 What we have become largely determines the kind of people, events, books, and
155 lifestyle that we select.

156 If humans are ever going to change their personal and financial circumstances
157 from one level up to another, we must accept the fact that such progress must
158 consist of “doing” as well as “un-doing.” Many of the events and people who
159 currently influence us must be sacrificed. Those sources of doubt, worry,
160 negativity, greed, and selfishness must be cut free, for as long as that influence
161 remains, change will not likely occur. Those who attempt to change themselves
162 or their circumstances without severing the “mental anchors” which they’ve
163 attached to themselves are going to make their task nearly impossible.
164 “Undoing” the past is difficult enough by itself even without those who, by their
165 conversation, remarks, or attitudes keep pulling us back toward that which we’re
166 trying to leave behind.

167 Imagine a man or woman who has been constantly trying to “make ends
168 meet”— paying only a portion of their debts, buying the bargain-priced clothes,
169 shopping to save a few pennies on a can of beans, and the countless other things
170 which people must do when unable to earn “enough money.” Finally, the day
171 comes when the person combines the right mixture of anger, frustration,
172 humiliation, confidence, determination, and courage to say — “Never again!”
173 Their resolve to change themselves and their situation is unshakeable, and they

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174 thrust themselves into reading the right books, dressing the right way, thinking
175 the right thoughts, and going to the right places. Their lives are committed
176 toward the changing of “things” for the better.

177 In spite of this new excitement, determination, and effort, imagine the chances
178 for success when the man or woman must return at the end of the day to those
179 whose voices ring with discouragement, ridicule, and exaggerated doubt. It seems
180 as though there will always be the negative brother-in-law who is there to say —
181 “For someone who’s always been broke, you’re sure putting on quite a show.
182 Good luck!”

183 Being subjected to both our “new determination to succeed” as well as to those
184 close to us whose words remind us of an unproductive past, is like being on a
185 mental elevator ride; we move ourselves upward with our thoughts and actions,
186 but some thoughtless person keeps pushing the “down button,” bringing us back
187 to where we mentally began. Our new confidence quickly gives way to old doubt;
188 our new actions are overcome by old fears; and finally, we may return once more
189 to that kind of thinking which puts people on their mental and financial knees.
190 Having brought us back from our world of dreams, ambition, and
191 accomplishments with their well-meant but destructive opinions, our friends
192 celebrate by inviting us to their Friday night party where once again we will
193 become active participants in the jokes, sarcasm, and gossip of those content
194 with their own mediocrity. Having exchanged our dreams of a new life for the
195 acceptance of old things, we make the quiet transition to never again try, plan,
196 dream, explore, or achieve.

197 The value of surrounding yourself with the right friends is immeasurably
198 awesome. The danger of surrounding yourself with the wrong friends can be
199 devastating. Perhaps a good theme might be— “Friendship in proportion to the
200 right personal growth from that friendship.”

201 And finally, be aware that the “right” friends should not be equated to those with
202 the “most” money. It is the attitudes, awareness, and other positive human
203 virtues of the friends we select that are of importance. Not all poor people make
 13

204 poor friends, nor do all rich friends have an enriching effect on our lives.
205 Carefully examine the “friends” you have...not their assets or accomplishments.
206 By examining our friends from both ends of the financial spectrum, we may
207 discover several of the rich as well as poor “friends” with whom we can no
208 longer afford to associate.

Chapter 3

THE VALUE OF ATTITUDES

209 Regardless of one’s religious or intellectual inclinations, it is difficult to disbelieve

210 that humans somehow fit into a grand scheme governed over by a power which
211 few if any of us understand. I am personally convinced that man came from
212 someplace... that his intelligence existed elsewhere before coming to this earth. I
213 believe that his individual intelligence, his very existence, dwelt elsewhere,
214 growing, learning, trying, failing, and succeeding – but always growing. Our three
215 score and ten on this earthly sphere is but a mere stepping stone in some
216 methodical plan of eternal progression, whereupon we shall somehow advance
217 ourselves in a life to follow, or recede, and watch those we love – who advanced,
218 rather than receded – move past us toward a new awareness and a deeper
219 understanding of things. Perhaps this is what “hell” and “damnation” might be.
220 Imagine the personal agony upon discovering that we were actually being
221 “tested,” as it were, without our being aware of it, and in exchange for lasting
222 personal growth, a deeper awareness, a new understanding, we instead elected to
223 choose promiscuity, idleness, fault-finding, and hangovers. And for those we
224 most dearly loved on this earth who elected the more lasting benefits from this
225 “earthly proving ground,” their advancement occurs before our very eyes and we
226 are left behind, helpless to do anything now to keep pace. Our eternal damnation
227 is the awareness of the value of love, and honesty, and those other positive
228 human virtues, and that our loved ones who possess them must now be always
229 one step ahead in their eternal progress. Yet we can no longer speak, touch, kiss,

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230 express emotion... but must always be aware of their existence, although they are
231 not aware of ours.

232 As I read and ponder and speculate upon people, their deeds and their destiny, I
233 become more deeply convinced that it is our natural destiny to grow, to succeed,
234 to prosper, and to find happiness while we’re here. In a nation where
235 opportunity abounds, it is within the reach of any human to find within his own
236 life a personal realization of the very best of all that exists, including personal
237 wealth. Contrary to the teaching of some religions, wealth is not evil— poverty is
238 evil. For poverty (except in extreme exceptions) represses individuals, or groups
239 of individuals who elected not to use their individual talents. They chose, rather,
240 to allow those who have discovered and used their talents, to take care of them.

241 I am aware that it is said of those with divine authority that “the meek shall
242 inherit the earth,” but where does it also say that in order to be “meek” you must
243 also be poor. That is total folly... that is a gross form of rationalization used by
244 the lazy and bastardly to justify their voluntary lack of human progress. And by
245 lazy and bastardly I clearly include those who give up in the face of difficulty—
246 even severe difficulty; those who make less than a total commitment to any
247 cause, calling, or occupation— and I most definitely include those who never
248 even try to advance their situation in life through effort. Imagine Washington
249 deciding not to try because it looked bad across the Delaware. Imagine Lincoln
250 giving up because he was embarrassed as a soldier, failed as a businessman, or
251 was soundly defeated at the polls by his peers. Imagine John Kennedy deciding
252 not to go to the moon—to make America first, both in our own eyes as well as
253 in the eyes of the rest of the world. And imagine, if you will, a world without the
254 contributions of these, and other great men who overcame adversity with talent,
255 desire, and total determination to leave behind a world slightly better than they
256 found it.

257 In the event that I have failed to make my point, let it be known here and now
258 that God, or whatever power is behind our existence, did not intend for us to
259 fail, or wallow in poverty, self-pity, self-martyrdom, or mediocrity in any form.
260 Such is not the grand design for man. He is blessed with all those raw materials
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261 necessary for progress, such as imagination, ideas, inspiration, and undeveloped
262 intellectual capacity... and that capacity is totally without limitation. The only
263 limitation placed on our abilities is our inability to easily recognize our unlimited
264 nature. It takes effort to become aware of our staggering and limitless abilities. It
265 takes effort to become enthusiastic over a cause, or an occupation. It takes effort
266 to continue when our results—as well as our friends—tell us to give up trying. It
267 takes effort to feel right about everything that happens— the joy as well as the
268 sorrows of life. And it also takes effort to learn to love ourselves above all
269 others, especially when we are so consciously aware of our failures, doubts and
270 tragedies. It does not, however, take effort to fail. It requires little else than a
271 slowly deteriorating attitude about our present, our future, and about ourselves.
272 It is ironic that one of the few things in this life over which we have total control
273 is our own attitudes, and yet most of us live our entire life behaving as though we
274 had no control whatsoever. By our attitude, we decide to read, or not to read. By
275 our attitude, we decide to try or give up. By our attitude, we blame ourselves for
276 our failure, or we foolishly blame others. Our attitude determines whether we
277 love or hate, tell the truth or lie, act or procrastinate, advance or recede, and by
278 our own attitude we and we alone actually decide whether to succeed or fail.

279 How incredibly unique that a God who would create the complex and immense
280 universe would create the human race and give to those humans the free choice
281 that would permit them to select their own achievement or their own
282 destruction.

283 This strange but all-knowing God gave to us a delicately balanced sphere called
284 earth, and on it, he placed the intelligent human who would either develop it or
285 destroy it. How terribly fascinating that God would leave both projects—earth as
286 well as humans—unfinished! Across the rivers and streams he built no bridges;
287 he left the pictures unpainted, the songs unsung, the books unwritten, and space
288 unexplored. For the accomplishment of those things, God created the unfinished
289 human who, within his heart and mind, had the capacity to do all these things
290 and more, depending upon his own choice. Attitude determines choice, and

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291 choice determines results. All that we are, and all that we can become, has indeed
292 been left unto us.

293 At this very moment in time, as you read these words, your attitude has
294 determined what you are. Your enthusiasms, intensity, faith in yourself, patience
295 with yourself and others, and childish excitement about your boundless future is
296 a result of that single word—attitude. The work of God is finished, but the work
297 of creating your better future has just begun. For as long as you continue to draw
298 breath, you have the chance to finish that work, and in so doing, complete the
299 work in and for the earth and for yourself that God has left undone. In the cycles
300 and seasons of life, attitude is everything!

Chapter 4

THE CONSTANT, PREDICTABLE PATTERN OF CHANGE

301 The tide comes in and then recedes; the sun rises, giving light, and then sets,
302 bringing darkness. Drought plagues the farm fields of the world, followed by rain
303 in abundance. On this day, we swelter under the intense heat of the August sun,
304 and soon we clothe ourselves against the penetrating cold of the mid-winter
305 storm. Prosperity brings her abundant opportunity and rewards, but will
306 withdraw at a future time when confronted by a receding business climate. The
307 smile gives way to the tear, as does the joy to the sorrow and the jubilation to the
308 tragedy. Close friends become hated enemies. The guns and bloodshed of war
309 are followed by the stillness of a temporary peace.

310 For each of us existing on this spinning blue-white sphere called earth,
311 confidence is replaced, with the passage of time, by doubt; patience is replaced
312 by stress; expectancy by boredom; and achievement by disillusionment.

313 As the wheel of life continues its constant turn, all human emotions appear,
314 disappear, and appear once again. We sit in amazement in the role of spectators,
315 as a generation living in morality becomes an immoral generation, giving us cause
 17

316 to predict the end of the world, as did our forefathers when confronted by the
317 same dilemma generations before.

318 The confrontations, disappointments, and challenges of life are treated by each
319 generation as though they are the first to experience such events, when in fact,
320 the pre-Christian years saw the same occurrences both appear and dissolve.

321 For all of us, the only constant factor in life is our feelings and attitudes toward
322 life. A major challenge faced by us all is that we learn to experience the changing
323 of life’s cycles without being changed by them. To make a constant and
324 conscious effort to improve ourselves in face of changing circumstance is to
325 assure a tolerance for the winters of life’s events, and to permit ourselves the full
326 enjoyment of the blessings of life’s harvest come the autumn.

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Chapter 5

THE SPRING

1 Following the turbulence of winter comes the season of activity and opportunity
2 called springtime. It is the season for entering the fertile fields of life with seed,
3 knowledge, commitment, and a determined effort. It is not a time to linger, nor
4 to ponder the possibility of failure. Foolish is the one who would allow
5 springtime to pass while dwelling upon the memory of the successful crop of last
6 fall, or the failure to reap last fall in spite of the massive efforts of last spring.

7 It is a natural characteristic of springtime to present itself ever so briefly, or to

8 lull us into inactivity with its bounteous beauty. Do not pause too long to soak in
9 the aroma of the blossoming flowers, lest you awaken to find springtime gone
10 with your seed still in your sack. Spring does not care if you sow or sleep, nor
11 does it care if you plant abundantly or meagerly. It does not care if you plant the
12 fertile kernel of wheat or useless weed-seeds. Neither spring, the soil, sun, nor
13 other elements, care if you plant at all. It will merely present itself as the time to
14 take advantage. Springtime will not admonish you to plant, nor will it warn of the
15 consequences of not planting. For the tiller of the soil, springtime is without
16 emotion. It was God who gave you the wisdom to rise from your comfortable
17 chair and enter the fields at the right season.

18 For the husband, father, wife, mother, or businessperson, springtime comes in

19 the form of opportunity to enroll in a class, or to have a conversation with
20 someone at the proper moment, to have the courage to change either occupation
21 or residence— or perhaps even to change your mind about something or
22 someone. The springtime of life manifests itself infrequently. Do not allow
23 springtime to pass while you sit idly, contemplating the severity of the past
24 winter of life.

25 With the intelligence, wisdom, and freedom of choice given to us as humans,

26 exercise the discipline to plant in spite of the rocks, weeds, or other obstacles
 19

27 before us. The rocks, weeds, and thorns of the world cannot destroy all your
28 seeds if you plant massively enough and intelligently enough.

29 To take full advantage of the spring, rid your soil of the weeds and rocks
30 disguised as the opinions of those around you in the form of worry, doubt, or
31 pessimism. It is the fertilizer of faith and enthusiasm that will overcome the
32 worst forms of bugs and weeds. Listen not to the bearers of discouraging
33 words—those who would have you rest with them during the work season of
34 spring. They will find themselves starving come the fall and winter, or begging
35 from those who recognize spring as a brief opportunity to work, and to leave
36 play for another season.

37 The essence of springtime is faith woven among the threads of massive human
38 effort. Springtime is the fresh air of new opportunity, amid the dissipating clouds
39 of winter. Spring is the time for entering the bleak, empty fields given to us as a
40 new chance. When we enter those fields, we see in the adjoining fields the
41 blossoming of nature’s flowers—the daisies, and other miracles of nature, which
42 God planted, reminding us now that nature fulfills its promises. Already, the
43 miracle of the seasons shows itself, for the same snows that gave us cause to
44 huddle for warmth during the winter also covered nature’s crops, which exist
45 now before our eyes. Expend your effort now, without complaint, without
46 doubt, without pessimism, and without self-pity over the severity of your winter
47 of circumstance. Did the daisies complain because of the same cold and the same
48 winds? No, they did not, yet they exist as either a reminder, or a threat, or a
49 promise. Do the lilies hide beneath the cover of earth, fearing an unexpected
50 return of winter, or do they restrain themselves for fear of the coming bugs and
51 weeds of summer? Do the daisies or the lilies of the field of nature make excuses,
52 or lie, or linger? They are there because they endured circumstance, and pushed
53 aside the seasonal obstacles of rocks and hard-packed soil, and so must you if
54 your life is to blossom. The same God who gave life and meaning and
55 opportunity to the crops of nature now gives to you the same blessings. Are you
56 to say that you are less than a lily, or a daisy? Do they have a brain or vision or
57 choice? Do they converse one with another for the sharing of ideas? Springtime

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58 merely says—“Here I am!” Springtime sends its life, and its warmth. It sends us
59 constant messages of its arrival—the robin, the squirrels, the return of the
60 swallows, and the berries of the field for those whose own storehouses are
61 empty. Springtime gives a smile to those who respond to its arrival and a tear for
62 those who sit, or who make only half an effort. Some will work only a little—
63 enough to give to themselves excuses for the meager results come the fall. Some
64 will fish, or play, or sleep, or lie among the wildflowers. Some will plant foolishly,
65 or quickly, not taking the time to perform to the level of their capability or
66 intelligence. Some will trust only in the God who brought forth the wildflowers,
67 forgetting the admonition that “faith without works is dead.” The warmth, the
68 sun, and the fertile fields of the spring are but part of the formula for
69 achievement; the catalyst that produces the final result is intense, honest, and
70 consistent human effort, and therein lies the problem. As humans, we are given
71 free agency—the right to choose; the right to use discipline, or not use it; the
72 choice to act with courage, or huddle in fear; the choice to think, or respond out
73 of habit. When we are given free choice, more often than not, we choose rest, or
74 we choose half an effort, or we choose a convenient excuse. Sometimes we
75 choose to remain indoors because of its comfort, or by a brook rather than in
76 the field, knowing that the intelligence that lets us perform well will also let us lie
77 well, or excuse ourselves well, or blame circumstances well. Above all, the gift of
78 human intelligence and the freedom of choice that accompanies it is not a
79 blessing but a curse, for it allows us to even fool and lie to ourselves, which is the
80 height of ignorance.

81 Choose action, not rest. Choose truth, not fantasy. Choose a smile, not a frown.
82 Choose love, not animosity. Choose the good in life in all things, and choose the
83 opportunity as well as the chance to work when springtime smiles on your life.

84 Much of the effort and opportunity of springtime rests in the depth and degree
85 of our faith. Life provides no assurances that the planting of seeds will provide
86 the reaping of crops. We have only the demonstrated experiences of others to
87 draw upon. The storms of life could cancel our efforts expended in the fields of
 21

88 opportunity. But to expend no effort during the spring will assure no results
89 during the fall.

90 Faith further provides to us an irrevocable law decreed in heaven which assures

91 that for every disciplined human effort we will receive a multiple reward... for
92 each cup planted, a bushel reaped...for every good idea given to another, many
93 shall be given to us in return...for every demonstrated act of faith, a multiplicity
94 of the rewards...for every act of love given, a life of love in return...for each seed
95 of encouragement given to another, a gathering of the honest effort expended
96 during the spring, an hour of honest rest in the fall... for each act of patience and
97 understanding rendered to another, a return of patience from another when our
98 own acts give cause for disappointment.

99 It is the promise of spring that as we sow, so shall we also reap. Sow lies, reap
100 lies; sow greed, reap poverty; sow inactivity, reap an empty storehouse; choose to
101 procrastinate, and surely an infant giant will grow to become a monster rendering
102 your future action ineffective.

103 The act of planting during the warm breezes of spring requires that we exert the
104 pain of human discipline, and being unwilling to do so assures that in the coming
105 fall, we shall surely experience the greater pain of regret—the difference is that
106 the pain of discipline weighs ounces, and the pain of regret weighs tons. We
107 must either plant during the springtime of life, or beg from others during the fall.

108 A kernel of corn produces its own kind. A seed of doubt, or fear, or distrust
109 placed in the mind also produces after its own kind. As certainly as the soil gives
110 back like unto that which we place into it, so also does the mind of man give
111 back in human circumstance that which we place into it by our choice of human
112 thought. The price or effort of thinking thoughts of love, prosperity, or self-
113 confidence is no greater than the price given to thoughts of hate, poverty, or self-
114 doubt. Only the rewards are different. Each day is given to us as a new season of
115 spring. The thoughts, deeds, dreams, and efforts of today will provide
116 tomorrow’s harvest. To neglect the opportunity given to us this day is to delay
117 our better future. Do not use today to mentally re-live yesterday or to await the

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118 arrival of tomorrow, for tomorrow— when it arrives—will be called today.

119 There will be no better day, no better opportunity, no better springtime, no
120 better time to begin than the current moment. Seize the moments as you find
121 them and mold them into your own better future. Today’s procrastination will
122 surely be tomorrow’s regret.

123 For some, the emergence of springtime is a time of great difficulty. Perhaps
124 because of our own neglect or inactivity of past seasons, we find our storehouse
125 and our stomachs empty. Our need for food or monies is not in the coming fall...
126 but now. The voices of those we love echo their needs brought about by our lack
127 of effort or results, and their eyes look away from us, lest we detect the shame
128 and disappointment shown in them.

129 Under circumstances such as these we are often given to forget that the seasons
130 will neither speed up nor slow down because of our needs. The springtime will
131 only appear, but it will not wait, nor will it transform seed into harvest. As
132 always, the seed as well as our needs must await the changing seasons. We cannot
133 ask nature for an advance. Talent, need, desire, and prayer are meaningless to
134 those suffering the painful consequences of earlier neglect—and with empty
135 stomachs, barren storehouse, and great regret we must enter the fields during
136 this spring, for to neglect once again because of our demeaning circumstances is
137 to assure a continuance of the current conditions.

138 Finally, become wise enough to recognize the faint glimmerings of the
139 springtimes of life which manifest themselves each day: the opportunity to listen
140 to the words of those wiser than ourselves; the opportunity to lift a child upon
141 your knee; the opportunity to walk a beach with someone you love; the
142 opportunity to absorb the value of a good book; the opportunity to speak good
143 things of someone, when habit prompts you to find fault; the opportunity to
144 watch the hummingbirds, or the flowers, or a butterfly perform its strange
145 miracle. Seize the infrequent opportunity to do nothing for a change, or
146 something for a change; force yourself to turn off the television, and embrace the
147 opportunity for having family conversation—or even silence. Opportunity
148 surrounds us all, appearing and disappearing just as fast, leaving behind fond
 23

149 memories to those who responded to its appearance, or regret to those who were
150 then too busy to bother.

151 Life is truly a constant beginning, a constant opportunity, and a constant

152 springtime. We need only to learn to look once again at life as we did as children,
153 letting fascination and curiosity give us welcome cause for taking a second look,
154 rather than taking for granted. Fortune, happiness, and peace of mind await
155 those who learn to look for the miraculous hidden among the common. The
156 unique blending of sun, soil, and seed at the springtime of seasons will provide
157 predictable and miraculous results for those who will learn to take full and
158 complete advantage of the spring.

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Chapter 6

THE SUMMER

1 Success in life is not an easy matter, nor is it an easy matter for the seed to push
2 away the soil in its quest to find the light and the airborne chemicals that give it
3 health. Progress in any form and happiness or success in any form requires
4 constant effort, for obstacles exist that might discourage the weak and the
5 undeserving. Overcome one obstacle in life, and another appears to fill the void.
6 Life is designed to be a story of achievement in spite of adversity, not in the
7 absence of adversity, for without adversity achievement could not exist. Do not
8 blame the problems and challenges of life for your humbling circumstances.
9 Does the seed complain because of the rocks it must grow over, under, around,
10 or through? Would any worthy life exist on earth if all life were to surrender
11 when first confronted by difficulty? The constant, unrelenting pull of life is
12 downward—giving cause for disappointment, despair, and discouragement.
13 There shall always be cause to give up; there shall always be cause for complaint,
14 but engage in complaining and you add to the downward pull of life. The only
15 automatic thing in life is weeds and bugs. They need not be planted, nor cared
16 for. Their existence is assumed in that they feed and survive on the good efforts
17 of the industrious.

18 The summer of life is a time to protect; it is a time for constant daily effort to
19 guard against the busy bugs and the noxious weeds. The spring is a time for the
20 creation of things of value, and those things require the season of summer for
21 growing and gaining strength that they might yield their result in the coming fall.
22 The end of spring cannot bring an end of human effort—one effort ends and
23 another remains yet to begin. When effort ceases, when neglect makes its
24 haunting appearance, growth gives way to stagnation and decay. The bugs and
25 weeds of life exist to test the human will to succeed, and the human worthiness
26 for life’s rich rewards.

27 Develop an understanding and awareness of the fact that all good will be
28 attacked. It is nature’s way of qualifying those who are worthy and those who are
 25

29 not. The weeds of life are designed to turn confidence into doubt, trust into
30 suspicion, patience into impatience, and effort into procrastination, worry, and
31 eventual defeat. Do not spend valuable time arguing with nature. The weeds,
32 bugs, rocks, and storms of life will all laugh at those who take time to viciously
33 accuse them of being unfair. Unfair, yes, but often to those who seek something
34 for nothing, or who seek the rewards of life without paying the price of waging
35 war against obstacles by increased activity and determination. Spend no time
36 chasing the birds who seek to peck at your seeds, or the bugs who seek to
37 devour your coming harvest. For those who make diligent efforts to plant,
38 protect, and preserve, there are not enough birds, bugs, or other obstacles to
39 destroy all the efforts of last spring.

40 Learn to accept the perpetual existence of negativity, and learn also that
41 negativity always yields to constant human effort coupled with the constantly
42 growing human faith and attitude. It is written that as you sow, so also shall you
43 reap, but only when you combine the efforts of sowing with the mental effort of
44 believing, and the physical effort of constant attention to those things of value.
45 Smile at adversity, and act quickly to eliminate it. Expect adversity, for it shall
46 surely appear. Be grateful for adversity, for it forces the human spirit to grow—
47 for surely, the human character is formed not in the absence of difficulty but in
48 our response to difficulty.

49 All things, even adversity, have their worthy purpose.

50 Both of us—I, the writer of this book, and you, the reader of this book—live in
51 a world of causes and consequences. The harvest, which is our life as we now
52 live it, is the result of seeds planted at an earlier time. Some of the “seeds” we
53 planted ourselves, through unbreakable habits. Others were planted for us by
54 parents, teachers, and other well-meaning, but often misguided people whose
55 own poor thinking habits were passed on to us. In either case, our current
56 attitude, finances, environment, lifestyle, and our view of our own future
57 possibilities are called circumstances—and to change circumstances, we must
58 change the cause of those circumstances, which is ourselves. We must change
59 our habits, our attitudes, our opinions, and often our occupation, residence, and

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60 even friends, if circumstances are ever to change. A man visits the shop of a
61 gardener and, without thinking or even inquiring, selects what appears to be an
62 attractive plant which he purchases, takes home and plants in the ground in his
63 yard. Months later he discovers that the plant has grown, matured and now
64 blossoms into a healthy bougainvillea, to which he is allergic. To wish now that
65 the plant were a rose, or a tulip, would be foolish. The circumstances will not
66 change because he dislikes the result... he alone is the cause of his watery eyes
67 and running nose. And so it is with the person who lives amid mediocrity—
68 whether the seeds which brought about that condition were placed into the soil
69 of life by him or by someone else is unimportant. To accuse others, to feel sorry
70 for ourselves, or to continue rationalizing or making excuses is foolish. Only a
71 massive, voluntary, and effective assault on changing causes is important. Direct
72 your thought, conversation, and full attention to that if you wish to change
73 circumstances; concentrate a good share of your idle hours upon self-
74 development by planning more, reading more, and investing more. Invest your
75 time in worthy projects; invest your thoughts toward a worthy purpose; invest
76 your talents toward a worthy occupation; invest your affection toward a worthy
77 recipient; and finally, reserve your greatest respect for yourself, for it is that
78 image... what you perceive yourself to be... that determines the quality of life.

79 Let’s face it... people and events are going to continue to both hurt and
80 disappoint you. Among the people will be those you most love, as well as those
81 you least know. Seldom is it their intent to purposely hurt you, but rather, a
82 variety of situations mostly beyond your control will cause them to act, speak, or
83 think in ways which can have an adverse effect upon you, your present feelings
84 and emotions, and the way your life unfolds. It has been this way through six
85 thousand years of recorded history, and your hurt or grief is not the first time a
86 human has been deeply hurt by the inappropriate actions of another. The only
87 way to avoid being touched by life—the good as well as the bad—is to withdraw
88 from society, and even then you will disappoint yourself, and your imaginings
89 about what is going on out there will haunt you and hurt you. Knowing this,
90 there is but one solution that will support you when people and events hurt
91 you—and that is to learn to work harder on your own personal growth than
 27

92 anything else. Since you cannot control the weather, or the traffic, or the one you
93 love, or your neighbors, or your boss, then you must learn to control you... the
94 one whose response to the difficulties of life really counts.

95 Do not doubt yourself, for where doubt resides, confidence cannot. Do not
96 neglect yourself, for with neglect comes loss. Do not imagine yourself to be less
97 than you are, nor more than you are, but seek always to become all of which you
98 are capable. Do not allow yourself to become arrogant or discourteous, for both
99 are characteristics adopted by those who seek to cover their weaknesses. Do not
100 spend time regretting the past, but invest that time wisely by preparing a better
101 future. You are a fertile seed of the creator of all things, destined not to lie
102 dormant, but to spring forth from the soil called life, and grow upward toward
103 the unlimited horizons— overcoming all obstacles in the process. It is your
104 destiny to tap your talents and to achieve all that of which you believe yourself to
105 be worthy... to love more, anticipate more, overcome more, plan more, attract
106 more, and to enjoy more than you ever dreamed possible. Such is the standard of
107 life awaiting your mental decision and outstretched hand. You are deserving—
108 you are becoming—and you shall succeed.

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Chapter 7

THE FALL

1 I like spring, but it is too young. I like summer, but it is too proud. So I like best of all
2 autumn, because its leaves are a little

3 yellow, its tone mellower, its colors richer, and it is tinged a little with sorrow... Its golden riches
4 speak not of the innocence of spring, nor of the power of summer, but of the mellowness and
5 kingly wisdom of approaching age. It knows the limitations of life and is content.

6 — Lin Yutang

7 Fall is a time for exultation as well as a time for a searching of the conscience.
8 For those who planted abundantly in the spring, and who fought against the
9 bugs, weeds, and weather of summer, fall can bring rewards, which give cause for
10 rejoicing. For those who watched both the arrival and departure of spring, and
11 who made little effort to take advantage of its almost momentary tenure, fall can
12 be a time of turmoil, a time of anxiety, and a time of great regret.

13 It is in the fall when we discover how long or short the winter will be. The fall
14 tells us if we have really done that which is required, or if we have fooled
15 ourselves through the temporary anesthetic of conversation and pretense... of
16 telling ourselves we’ve worked when we haven’t.

17 The soil, and the arrival of fall, together occupy the seat of judgment which
18 presents the final truth of human effort. There can be no disputing its final
19 verdict, for the evidence of toil, care, and patience are indisputable... either the
20 crops are bounteous or they are not, and if not, we need look no further than to
21 the hands of those who were charged with responsibility last spring. The excuses
22 of poor soil, poor seed, or bad weather are better left unsaid, for the sower
23 selected the soil; the sower selected the seed; the sower alone is held accountable
24 for his crops—not circumstance.

25 Nothing is more exciting than a bounteous crop, and nothing more dreadful than
26 a barren field in the fall. So it is with those given the responsibility for planting
 29

27 the crops of the field, and so it is also to those who are given the responsibilities
28 of life and success in the world of business and labor. An unproductive and
29 meager result in the season reserved for harvesting makes confession of our own
30 past failures both difficult and necessary.

31 An empty bank account is a sign of an ineffective past effort. It is a sign of a

32 missed opportunity. It is a sign of too much procrastination, or laziness. The law
33 of the universe is faultless. It applies equally well to the farmer as to the business
34 person. The law is equally applied to all things and all people. The law has
35 endured since the creation of the world, and for that long, men have sought to
36 circumvent it, or argue with it, and even to ignore it. In the end, our results
37 demonstrate if we have obeyed its orders, or disobeyed. The law is simple, and
38 known to all. The law is

39 “As you sow, so shall you reap.”

40 In all areas of the human existence, be aware that what we put into this world,
41 we get back from it. It is nature’s way of “evening the score.” Both thoughts and
42 actions determine the result, the lifestyle, and the human attitude. Lies, sooner or
43 later, attract lies in return. Finding an easier way at the expense of quality will
44 take its inevitable toll in decreased profits and sleepless nights. All effort, be it
45 service, marketing, recruiting, or products must bring good to all those who are
46 involved or the effort will not withstand the final test of time.

47 Corn planted in the spring will produce corn in the fall, as will wheat, barley, or
48 melons produce after their own kind. You cannot plant one crop and expect to
49 reap another just because you change your mind during mid-summer.

50 It is a tendency of humans to look at those who enjoy success as having been, at

51 some earlier time, either lucky or dishonest. Surely, the man driving the luxury
52 car toward his expensive home on the hill could not deserve it through hard
53 work and sacrifice. Such is the language of the poor. For the fortunate man with
54 the car and the house on the hill, these are crops given to him in his fall of the
55 business season— as just rewards for efforts expended during an earlier
56 springtime of his life... a springtime during which those who now condemn the

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57 man possibly sat back and laughed, or fished, or told stories. This is the folly of
58 man. Those who do not possess will always scorn the possessor.

59 Those who condemn the successful man or woman for their apparent good
60 fortune or dishonesty are unaware of the price often paid for success. They
61 cannot see the massive disappointments, the shattered hopes, or the broken
62 dreams. They do not understand the risks incurred in both raising and investing
63 capital for an idea yet unproven. They do not see the legal involvements, the tax
64 burdens, the challenges of labor, or the restraining governmental regulations, nor
65 do they appreciate the family dissent that seems to automatically accompany the
66 pursuit of success. Those who condemn see and scorn the result, being unaware
67 of the cost as well as cause that produced the success. For so long as the selfish
68 of the world scorn the successful... that long will they continue to live as they
69 live.

70 In the fall, we either enjoy, or we excuse. For those who failed to take full
71 advantage of the spring, who failed to guard their crops carefully throughout the
72 heat of summer, there can be no legitimate reasons... only excuses, and excuses
73 are merely apologetic attempts to place blame on circumstances rather than on
74 ourselves.

75 The difference between an inadequate apartment and a mansion on the hill is the
76 same as the difference between average effort in the spring and massive effort in
77 the spring. Nature always promises that a cup produces a bushel... that we will
78 receive more than we plant. Knowing this, as all of us do, we forget that to reap
79 many bushels, which is the measure of success, we still must plant many cups.
80 Massive action in the spring of life still is the requirement for massive success in
81 the fall. Forty hours a week spent in the fields of opportunity may not be
82 enough, especially if it is spent in the wrong field. Sometimes, to improve our
83 results we must make the painful admission that our present field is too rocky, or
84 thorny, or that the fertile soil is too shallow. And while there is great difficulty
85 involved in changing one field for another more fertile field, that difficulty is
86 insignificant compared to the ultimate difficulty that comes from not changing.
 31

Chapter 8

THE WINTER

1 Winter, like spring, is a season which can make its brief appearance during any
2 season, as a brief reminder of its ultimate power. In mid-summer while we
3 consciously tend our carefully planted crops, winter can momentarily descend
4 upon us as if threatening to take away the fruits of our efforts. Winter can make
5 its threatening appearance during the season of opportunity—the spring—and if
6 we do not quickly respond to cancel its potentially devastating effect, the season
7 of opportunity will be taken from us by one of the storms of life, leaving us with
8 yet another full year of waiting. Winter can prematurely appear during the season
9 of harvest—the fall—just as we are about to reap the rewards of expended
10 human effort, and leave us with crops—or results—which are of little value.

11 The first great lesson of life to learn is that winter will always come; not only in
12 the winter of cold, and wind, and ice, and snow, but the human winters of
13 despair and loneliness, or disappointment, or tragedy. It is winter when prayers
14 go unanswered, or when the acts of our children leave us shaken and stunned. It
15 is winter when the economy turns against us, or when creditors come after us. It
16 is winter when competition threatens, or when a friend takes advantage. Winter
17 comes in many forms, and at any time, both to the planter of crops as well as to
18 the person in business, or even to our personal lives.

19 The arrival of winter finds us in one of two categories: Either we are prepared or
20 we are unprepared.

21 To those who are prepared, who have planted abundantly in the spring, guarded
22 their crops carefully during the summer, and harvested massively during the fall,
23 winter can be yet another season of opportunity. It can be a time for reading, a
24 time for planning, a time for gathering our strength for the coming spring, and a
25 time for taking comfortable shelter. It can be a time of great enjoyment, a time to
26 be shared with those we love, and with those with whom we have labored. It is a
27 time of thanksgiving, and a time for the sharing of life’s bounteous gifts. Winter

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28 is a time for being grateful, both for what we have, as well as for what we can yet
29 achieve. Winter is a time for rest, but not excessive rest. It is a time to enjoy the
30 fruits of our labors, but not a time for gluttony. It is a time for warm
31 conversations, but not a time for gossip. It is a time of gratitude, but not a time
32 for complacency. It is a time to be proud, but not a time to be egotistical.

33 What we do with our time, with ourselves, with our friends, and with our
34 attitudes during the season of winter determines what we will do with the
35 coming spring. We are meant to constantly improve our conditions, our results,
36 and ourselves. We either improve, or we regress, for never do we remain the
37 same. If we do not improve, it is because we do not use our intelligence, our
38 reasoning, and our full potential—and finally, what we do not use, we lose.
39 Through lack of use we may lose our intelligence, reasoning, potential, and
40 strength. And when lack of use, or misuse, costs us these worthy human
41 attributes, we predictably regress.

42 Again, it is a basic law of life that demands either human progression or human
43 regression.

44 To those who are prepared for winter’s arrival, let them use winter as they would
45 use spring... to take advantage.

46 To those who are unprepared, the arrival of winter is a time for regret and a time
47 for sorrow. Having lacked the willingness to pay the pain of earlier discipline, we
48 now pay the heavier pain of regret. The burdens and chains of discipline would
49 seem insignificant when compared to the massive weights and cumbersome
50 restraints of regret. Regret is an empty storehouse and an empty kitchen when
51 the coming fall is yet a full year away. Even with the arrival of spring, our efforts
52 will be expended with an empty stomach and an empty purse. To the prepared,
53 winter is springtime in yet another form, but to those who are ill prepared;
54 winter’s arrival is full of horror and uncertainty. Love and harmony give way to
55 accusations and anger. The time to experience the horror of a winter for which
56 we are unprepared is in the springtime, and in our mind. Let the imagination
57 paint for us the chilling winds, snow-blown fields, and ice covered trees; let us
 33

58 experience in our mind’s eye the wailing of a hungry child, and the
59 disappointment showing in the eyes of the one we love; let us emotionally
60 experience the fumbling for excuses, and apologies for our past mistakes, and the
61 fear that comes with a knock on the door, or the delivery of the mail.
62 Anticipating these scenes in advance can provide the shock that moves us into
63 massive effort in the spring, that those efforts might prevent our horrified
64 imaginings from becoming reality.

65 Throughout all the seasons of the year, winter can touch our lives in many small
66 ways... testing us, and providing us with subtle reminders of the plight of those
67 whose lives are surrounded by winter. Winter can be a lost opportunity, or the
68 loss of love. A winter is when a trusted friend gives you cause for
69 disappointment, or when expected business goes to a competitor. A frigid blast
70 from the cold, harsh words of someone you love is winter, and so is the
71 pessimism or cynicism from someone whose advice and counsel you seek.

72 The major challenge confronting those surrounded by winter is to not let it affect
73 the arrival of spring, and our ability to recognize that arrival. Much of life is in
74 learning to always remain part of the solution rather than allowing ourselves to
75 become part of the problem.

76 If you are without love, money, or employment, it is a winter, and its very
77 appearance is because you’ve missed a springtime somewhere. Neglect is always
78 costly, and winter is merely a circumstance—an effect brought on by some
79 earlier cause. Dwelling upon the severity of your personal winter merely makes
80 the winter more difficult to endure. Search the inner confines of your mind and
81 your soul for the purpose of discovering the real cause within you. Adversity is
82 seldom attributable to some one, or some thing outside of ourselves. To blame
83 outside influences for the circumstance of winter is a convenient excuse for
84 misplacing responsibility. It is the normal human tendency to place blame for a
85 winter of life on someone else, which is why most humans reap the result of
86 mediocrity that accompanies such behavior.

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87 For things or circumstances to change, human attitudes, opinions, and habits

88 must change. Conversation on how things ought to be... on why things aren’t
89 fair... is just that — conversation! Unproductive conversation is what the lazy
90 and unambitious engage in during the winters of life, for there is a certain
91 euphoria that such empty conversation produces which dulls the senses from the
92 harsh reality of how “things” really are. The same euphoria is found in television
93 and those who use it as an escape from their own empty life. It is found in
94 alcohol and other drugs used by those seeking solutions in external means. It is
95 found through idle gossip, which allows those who engage in it to overlook their
96 own weaknesses by attacking the weaknesses of others.

97 Let winter find you planning for the arrival of spring, not contemplating the
98 errors of commission and omission of last year. Let winter find you with a joyful
99 countenance and a happy heart... with a good word for all those around you; with
100 confidence in the future, not apprehension; with appreciation of the past, not
101 regret; and finally, with gratitude for your achievements, adversities, and
102 uncertainties of life, for each is a form of blessing which removes all limitations
103 from the future possibilities of life.

104 Winter is a time for examining, pondering, and introspection. It is a time for re-
105 evaluating both purpose and procedure—for rediscovering an often misplaced
106 sense of purpose. It is a time for finding new ways for solving old dilemmas, and
107 for devising unique plans for contributing to others, less fortunate than
108 ourselves. It is a time for understanding and controlling anger, that frequent
109 human emotion which causes us to pass judgment without fair deliberation. It is
110 a time to analyze our fairness and to overcome our tendency to hastily spew
111 forth condemnation without full investigation, for such is the height of
112 ignorance. Winter is a time for being sincere with ourselves, about ourselves,
113 when the tendency is to fool ourselves. It is a time for developing the skills that
114 allow us to get along with imperfect people, for even a fool can get along with
115 perfect people. It is also a time for becoming wise enough to know what to
116 say—as well as to know what to overlook and what not to say. The wisdom that
117 comes with the careful use of winter teaches us also that evolution is merely
 35

118 revolution at a slower pace, and that constant gradual change is the order of the
119 universe. Only those worthy human attributes of honesty, loyalty, love, and trust
120 in God and in our fellow man are meant to remain constant. Winter is a time for
121 being grateful for our achievements, or for having endured our lack of
122 achievement.

123 The physically inactive season of winter is a time for adding to our storehouse of
124 knowledge through continued education, which in truth does not mean learning
125 things that we do not know, but in learning to behave as we do not now behave.
126 The facts and things of life are automatically learned by each of us when we
127 become inspired with the excitement of high expectation and belief in our own
128 abilities.

129 With winter comes the opportunity to catch up on unkept promises, and on
130 unanswered letters. It is a time also for encouraging the young, who with their
131 inexperience are insecure... and for encouraging the old, whom because of their
132 experience, are apprehensive of the future. Let not a winter go by without
133 investing much of your time in assuring, teaching and encouraging others. For in
134 so doing, your reward will be an uplifted confidence in yourself; the teacher is
135 always the greatest recipient of the lessons he seeks to teach to others. Let winter
136 find you thinking first of someone else, and appreciating, and being kind, and
137 being gentle... and by all means, let winter find you laughing more, even though
138 the winds blow cold, and the snows cover the soil which will soon bring new life.

Chapter 9

DEFEAT – THE BEST BEGINNING

139 Someone once said — “Don’t pray for things to be easier, rather, pray for more
140 obstacles and more challenges, for it is out of these that man’s character and will
141 to succeed are formed.” Nearly every success story that I am aware of began
142 when the person first lay flat on his mental and financial back. In this condition,
143 people usually become sufficiently disgusted to reach deep down inside and pull

The Seasons of Life by Jim Rohn

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144 out talents, abilities, desire, and determination—the basic essentials required of
145 anyone wishing for things to get better. It is in the face of adversity that things
146 begin to change, and the “things” always change as a result of the personal
147 change that takes place. I have discovered that “things” never change by
148 themselves. It’s when a human, with sufficient disgust, desire, and determination
149 to change his life finally steps up to the bar of human justice and shouts for all
150 the world to hear—“I have had it with defeat and humiliation, and I will tolerate
151 it no longer.” That is when time, fate and circumstances call a hasty conference,
152 and all three wearily agree— “We had best step aside, because we are powerless
153 to stop that kind of resolve.” But the masses of people unfortunately don’t
154 change—they wait for circumstances to change—blaming others, or blaming
155 situations for their meager progress. They accept defeat as though it was nature’s
156 design for humanity to wallow in pools of defeat and self-pity.

157 But... life is going to continue... even though you may now be defeated. The
158 world will wake up tomorrow just as it did today, and events will continue to
159 unfold with repeated regularity. Your role of present failure, or success, is a
160 temporary condition. You will rebound from failure as surely as you gravitated
161 into failure. The condition of any person who feels defeated and ashamed is
162 being repeated by thousands of humans somewhere in this country at this same
163 moment in time. Someone once suggested to me that I should say to myself,
164 “This too shall pass” each time I was tempted to think I had accepted all the
165 negativity and failure that my life could tolerate. Of all those who at this moment
166 are mentally, spiritually, and financially exhausted, a few will grasp for a new
167 beginning and, on finding it, will pull themselves to their feet and move back into
168 the world to not only do well, but leave their mark indelibly impressed upon the
169 business, political, or social world. They will be written about, talked about, and
170 examined by their peers in numerous ways. The world will then pass judgment
171 upon them as being “lucky” in some way, and will be unaware of the agony and
172 loneliness that each one experienced before they began their march upward
173 toward accomplishment. So, foolish as it may sound, thank God for your present
174 limitations or failure, if that should be the case, for you now occupy a status
175 from which nearly all success stories originate. You can go where you want to go,
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176 do what you want to do, and become what you want to become ... right from
177 where you are. Longfellow began there—so did Michaelangelo and Lincoln. Rod
178 Sterling wrote 40 stories before one was accepted. Disney was dismissed by a
179 newspaper that felt he had no talent. Richard Byrd crashed his plane the first two
180 times he soloed and went on to become one of the world’s great explorers. So be
181 grateful for your adversity. But for your own better future, may it work for you,
182 not against you. The world will willingly stand by and let you feel sorry for
183 yourself—until you finally die broke and alone—if that’s what you want. It will
184 also stand aside for you once you firmly decide that your present situation is only
185 temporary, and that you will get back up and go on to make your mark. The
186 world doesn’t really have time to care which choice you make, so for yourself at
187 least, give a run at adventure, with your eyes firmly set on achievement, not
188 merely existence and self-pity.

189 From this moment on, and for what remains of the balance of your life, make
190 your commitment to excellence, remembering that it is your challenge to
191 succeed. After all, you only have one life! Let’s do something remarkable!

THE END

The Seasons of Life by Jim Rohn