My mother called me yesterday: “Several people have been looking for your book at Wal-Mart and can’t find it? Why can’t they find it? Should I tell them to go to a bookstore? What bookstore could they find it at?”
Me: “Hold on, Mom. I don’t have a distributor yet; I’m still researching all of my options. They can go to my website or just buy it from me.”
Mom: “Oh, okay. Will it ever be at Wal-Mart?”
What a question, eh? And gee – what a goal that would be!
Today’s advice: Be careful if you write a book, people expect great (and common) things from you – fast!
Luckily, I don’t allow my mother’s (or others’) comments to get to me any more, but it did remind me of the days when a statement like that would have set me back on my heels a little. Anger and resentment would be followed by feelings of frustration and inadequacy.
Since I like to blog about lessons I’ve learned in life, I decided to make today’s post about how I learned to become almost impervious to the hurtful, although almost always innocent, comments of others. How have I grown to the place that remarks like the one above no longer send me spiraling into a self-pity party?
Well, first of all, I realize the comment comes from ignorance and not judgment. Neither my mother nor any of her friends or family members have ever written a book. Being very simply country people, I suppose they believe that you finish a book one day, and it’s in Wal-Mart (or the library) the next.
Second, I realize that the result of allowing a comment like that to bring me down would only be what I described above – a self-pity party. What good does that serve? None whatsoever.
Third, I quickly remind myself that I’m on my way – this is a journey – and most people don’t understand that. Others don’t know about my strategic plan. They don’t know all the research and hard work that goes into writing, publishing, distributing, and promoting a book. They don’t know how far I’ve come – they only choose to see how far I’ve yet to go, and that’s their problem. My problem, my only concern, is keeping myself motivated to continue on the path. How do I do that?
I rely on the magic of one. One thing, every day, that moves me closer to my ultimate goal. One item, small or large, marked completed on my task list. One step, large or small, finished in my strategic plan. One article written. One alliance made. One speech delivered. One idea implemented. One issue resolved. One feature added to my website. One detail accomplished. One event booked. One phenomenal day!
I share my life with a lot of people – I have a blog for crying out loud – and I give you the best of me three times a week. But no one, not one other living soul, knows my one. It’s between me and God and is the source of my strength and resolve, and ability to laugh at foolish comments about my success (or lack thereof.) I keep my one thing between me and God because, well, I enjoy experiencing the magic!
The magic is in the increased self-esteem, the feeling of control, and the power of knowing that universal forces are at work on my behalf when I just show up and do that one thing.
One woman can make a difference. What’s your magical one?
Until next time,
Live Joyfully!
You can subscribe to this blog here.
Sign up for Retreat Information
CREATE THE LIFE YOU WANT NOW When you’re ready to take control of your life, you’ll want to purchase my latest book to get started on the right path. You’ll learn my latest success tips and how I’ve applied 20 years of solid business principles and the Law of Attraction to acquiring the life of my dreams. Wake Up and Create the Life You Want: A Guide to Self-Empowerment is helping many others do exactly the same. You can read their stories here. If you choose the downloadable version, it comes with my free report on “The Science of Getting Rich.” Don’t miss out on this very special offer!
Technorati Tags: Motivational Speaker, Motivation, Organize, Success, Law of Attraction, Dental Practice Management, Coach, Consultant, Paperless Office, Motivational Book
Posted under Dental Practice Management, Motivation, Success
This post was written by Debra Moorhead, The Decision Diva on February 1, 2008

My magic of one is (not sure is the “one” you are trying to mention here):
One man with one intention can achieve anything in the universe.
I was really inspired by what Ghandi has achieved and what he did. At that time, no one think to free India. No one think that it’s possible. No one even think of it.
Ghandi is the one man who created that one intention. He started that conversation without any agreement from others. Slowly, he influence people around him who agree to what he say and form a huge force.
All it takes to free a huge country is just one intention from one man. That’s the power and greatness of human being.
I love that and practice that. I was 21 and love to write a book quite some time ago. No one think I was normal and it’s possible. But I say I’m going to do it and I wrote 3 books. I didn’t went well but I don’t care. I get that anything is possible by just one intention from one man.
The shopping complex near our house didn’t get built automatically. It was built by one thought from one person and he put it into action and plan.
This is not about kicking away teamwork. teamwork actually started from one person’s one intention and he form and gather a team.
Alex Liu
How To Become A Millionaire
http://secretsofunlimitedwealth.com
My “one” is my relationship with Christ. Life-changing!
Good reminder that great things are achieved with baby steps.
Thanks, Jason M. Blumer
I’ve been using http://www.lulu.com for my writing. Also http://www.booksbuildbidges.com helps you promote your book. Wake Up would sure look great sitting on a shelf at WalMart. Mom’s are always great PR!
Thanks, everyone. Great comments.