How many times did you lose just because you didn’t show up? That’s right – too many!
We usually think of an opportunity as an appropriate situation that would allow us to attain something we would like to grab hold of or possess. So, in a sense, there are a couple factors that need to be in play at the same time in regard to opportunities.
We need to figure out what it is that we really want, and secondly, we need to be aware of the set of circumstances that could make possible the attainment. If you are asleep at the wheel, regarding either one of these factors, you are probably unfulfilled and frustrated in your life.
Success usually takes place where preparation and the appropriate potential situations intersect. That is why I have stated in several of my books, that “Transformation takes place at the intersection of Culture and Economics. Economics has everything to do with choices and values. But if we are so unaware of reality, as to miss those potential situations that make themselves available to us in our culture, then we will, no doubt, also mess up on making the timely choices.
That doesn’t necessarily have to be the case!
The one Siamese twin, called “Opportunity” is miraculously joined at the hip to the other twin, called “Change”. It seems like everyone is uncomfortable with change, but as you have probably already discovered, it is the only thing that allows for the phenomenon of “Better Off”. New worlds spring into existence and wild and crazy things become reality when old patterns are challenged and change begins to take place. When that happens – get ready – opportunities will be prolific for the grabbing.
I fondly remember, during the mid-1960s and 1970s when the three Jackson brothers were heavily involved in the unprecedented fortuity of the changes in Colorado’s outdoor recreation and ski industry. Some people didn’t like the changes. But to those who perceived the prospects and embraced the radical changes of the future, were given untold opportunities and reward.
Some people refer to those occasions as “the moment” or the “break” or “good fortune” or the “whack at the gold ring”. I’m not saying that things will always get better when there is change, but I am saying that there must be change if things are to get better!
Take the Coronavirus situation in which we find ourselves today. Six months ago, we were told that we were basking in the sunlight of the strongest economy in history. That was then . . . and this is Now! Who can believe the change?
But I find myself now, occasionally grinning on the inside. Because of this unprecedented change we are experiencing, things will not be the same again in our future as they were five years ago. Change always requires awareness and acceptance.
Things had to change if they were going to get better. Watch out – because here comes the other twin called “Opportunity”. Are you sleeping at the wheel, or are you preparing yourself to lay hold of the circumstances that make the attainment possible? Remember, that if you only do the things you’ve always done, you’re only “gonna” have what you’ve always had!
Let’s play the game of “Imagine”:
Earlier, we stated that: “Success usually takes place where preparation and the appropriate potential situations intersect.” What if we began our preparation by imagining some of the opportunities that will be presenting themselves to us in the future because of the changes we are now experiencing. Things are going to be different. Here is a starting list for us to consider. What opportunities can you imagine, where you could be involved in dynamic and revolutionary changes in these areas of the culture?
Primary Education National Defense
Secondary Education Farming
Higher Education National and International Borders
Health Habits Biological Warfare
Marketing School Bus Systems
Transportation Health Industry:
Food Industry & Supply chains Telemedicine -- Procedures
Cruise Ships Hospital & Clinic Management
Airlines International Surgeries by Telemed.
Jails Medicine discoveries & Supply chains
I am dead serious about encouraging all of us to become aware of the historic opportunities that are being disclosed and made available right now, due to the unprecedented changes we are experiencing. I want to help you, my friends, to become engaged. This will benefit you and our whole culture.
Here’s what I am willing to do. Let’s hold a contest. I am inviting responses from you. I want all of us to start thinking about possibilities. I want you to share your ideas of possible opportunities based on situations of recent changes in our world. You can start with the generalized list above – or make up your own. Example: What opportunities do you see for the future in the area of Primary or Secondary Education, etc.? What are the changes that will hopefully be made in the future of Telemedicine, etc.?
Here’s an example of what I am personally thinking about: I can hardly wait for the time when Project C.U.R.E. can have cohorts of volunteer doctors and nurses in Denver, Phoenix, Nashville, Houston, Philly, and Chicago – directly “on line” via satellites with doctors and nurses in hospitals in Hyderabad, India, Kathmandu, Nepal, Goiania, Brazil, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and Kampala, Uganda, -- all at the same time – assisting in strategic procedures in operating rooms and even clinics, giving needed direction and expertise to their medical counterparts. The possibilities of international telemedical ventures are mind blowing, and just around the corner. We need to pursue these opportunities in addition to our regular traveling medical teams and other efforts.
Likewise, there have been some great stories recently in the news regarding people who are now building very successful grocery-delivery businesses. Yes, there are going to be huge changes and opportunities based on our new marketing and shopping habits.
Farmers, who are keeping their eyes focused on the rapidly changing agriculture industry, are finding wonderful opportunities in revamping and restyling their operations.
Here’s the idea of the contest: You submit your insights and ideas of possible opportunities that are becoming available, based on the dramatic changes we have been experiencing lately.
Direct them to press@winstoncrown.com.
We will gather them and share them on this blog over the next weeks. We will appoint a panel of judges who will choose 5 entries they deem the best. Those 5 winners will receive a personally signed copy of my recent book: Better Off: How America Got Wealthy & You Can Too! (This is the book that received the 1st place gold award, in the category of “Literary Non Fiction”.)
I hope this little exercise encourages all of us to get our eyes on the exciting possibilities of the future. Here is a quote I often hear our Project C.U.R.E. President, Dr. Douglas Jackson, share:
Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens
Can change the world. Indeed, It is the only thing that ever has.
Margret Mead