There are times when doing your best just isn't good enough. There are also times when doing the minimum pays off. There are times when you try too hard and it makes it worse, and there are times when you don't try very hard at all, but it makes the situation better.

If you look too hard or think too hard about something, the answer doesn't come, but if you forget about it for a while, the answer comes easily and in an instant. When you have a mental block and try furiously to unblock it or conjure up some creativity, nothing happens, but once you do something else or think about something else, the answer was there all along. The subconscious mind works in mysterious ways.

How does one become successful if they do not have an inheritance or a mentor or a significant amount of money to start a business, create an idea or invent something?

Sheer drive and determination.............................

How does one acquire such drive and determination? First you must find out what it is you really want to do, create, invent or start. Then you must tailor your business plan to meet those goals. Then make sure your goals are realistic. Finally, do not stop until you have done what you have set out to do. That means if you want to invent a better mousetrap, make sure that no matter how many times you don't get it right, eventually you must know that you will get it right. It means that if you are trying to realize a vision, you do everything *in your power *to make it happen. There are things in this world you cannot control no matter how hard you try or how much you push. That is a part of life. Life would not be as sweet without these tests, trials and tribulations.

The difference between winners and losers is that winners may not believe they are going to fail, but if they do fail, they know they must make up for the loss and try again. The difference between failure and success is the amount of failures you are willing to put up with. If you try something once and fail, but then decide to quit, it is not your failure that made you fail in your endeavor, it is your lack of will to try again until you succeeded.

I want you to think about some of the great people in the world who wrote themselves into the history books by their drive and determination. Let's take Babe Ruth for example. The people saw a legend and a hero. Those who knew him personally saw a man of excess and arrogance, yet they couldn't help but admire him. Did you know that even though Babe Ruth hit the most home runs ever (in his time), he struck out more times than he had any hits at all! You see, his failures far exceeded his success, but because he set out to do something no one else had ever done and because he succeeded in doing just that, there is not one person among us who would look at Babe Ruth as a failure.

Here is the key to his success: He did not strike out twenty times and then say to himself, "I had better try something else because I'm no good at this baseball thing." He kept doing what he loved to do until it ultimately paid off for him. Of course, he knew that he had some talent hitting the ball, but the focus of each at bat was to put the ball in the stands and he truly believed he could do it every time. If it didn't happen this time, he still believed it would happen the next time.

Believe in yourself........................................

So in light of this information, do you want to know what the key to success is? It is doing something you really enjoy doing. It is not a job, it is a challenge, it is fun, and it is what you do because you like to do it! It is knowing that if you are doing something else, you can't wait to get back to work because that feeling of accomplishment drives you, consumes you, taunts you, teases you, makes you want it more, makes you laugh, makes you furious, disappoints you, lifts you up and ultimately makes you happy.

A lot of people in this world are at a job they hate. It is not a career at all because they can't wait until the day is over so they can leave. They don't want to get up in the morning and do that which they hate day after day. How successful can you be if you are doing something you do not enjoy?

You want to know how to be successful? Do not think about how much money you will make if you do this or if you do that. You must do, I repeat, you must do that which you enjoy doing. If you completely and thoroughly enjoy your work, then it is not a job and it is not a career. It is your life. It is something you can do that will make people believe you are one of the best in the world. It is your creation, your place in history.

You know you are doing what you love when you no longer look forward to the end, but when you can't wait to begin again.

All of this may sound good to you, but it's still not that simple. You will be tested. Your patience will be tried. You will have to overcome nearly impossible obstacles to succeed. The good thing is that you will be glad to face these challenges and obstacles head on because you know that you can't get what you want without going through this process. You will not give up! It is something you work towards. It is something you live for. How can you possibly leave this train if you don't want to? You are a silver bullet with a purpose and you have the momentum to take you there.

You may think that if you can't see the end, how can you go the extra mile or get that extra burst of energy to make it to the end. It is not the end that matters. It is on the way to the end that counts. Only the results along the way matter. We cannot see our future. We do not know what is going to happen to us or what we will become, but we can make the best of where we are and what we are doing. You cannot see the end of your life or anything past this second, but if you enjoy what you are doing, it will not matter when the end will come. In fact, you will not want it to end.

Just remember that the road to success is full of surprises and that is what makes it so great! So do not think about the money and do not think about just getting by or trying to do a good job in spite of the fact that you do not like what you do. You must enjoy what you do in order to be great at it. You must love it. You must embrace it. You must become it. Only then will it transcend you into a different league than everyone else. Only then can you be truly happy with what you have accomplished. Only then will you be successful. So do what you truly enjoy and never give up, ever! You will never forgive yourself if you have failed several times, but stopped short one day from your success. Do not let this happen to you. Take control of your life. Make a mark on the world. Be somebody that people admire. Make your life worth something by giving back to the world! If you don't get up right now and take control of your life, you are not worthy of reading this. This letter is for people who want to do something about their situation. They want to make a positive difference. They want to be the best person they can possibly be.

We are an amalgamation of our surroundings, our environment, our upbringing, our peers, our colleagues and our family. If you grew up in a poor or rough neighborhood, you are probably wondering how someone from these surroundings can succeed at the same task as someone who grew up in a well to do neighborhood. There are too many variables in comparing the two. There is a disadvantage for the person in the poor neighborhood as far as their peer success, their environment and their surroundings. They may not want to be successful because nobody else in their neighborhood is successful, but on the other hand, they may try even harder to succeed because of their surroundings.

However, maybe we are addressing the wrong issue. What constitutes success? Is it money? No. Many people may think so, but money is a by-product of success. When someone is successful at something they do, others appreciate them more and in return may feel that their success is worth a lot of money. I want you to realize that being successful is defined in many ways. One way is that you make a lot of money; therefore you must be successful at what you do. In other words, because you are a success at what you do, people respond to you in a positive way and you receive more money because of it.

There are still those people who do not make a lot of money, but are successful nonetheless. Most of the people who are religious figures do not place monetary value on their success. Although most of the people like Mother Theresa, Gandhi and the Pope could have made a significant amount of money if they wanted to, that was not their purpose in life. For most of us, success is rewarded with money. It is often considered the driving force of our worth. I do not believe that when you choose what you are going to do in life, that your decision should be predicated on the amount of money you are going to make. I believe that you should first decide what it is that makes you happy and how you can be the best at it. The money will follow. If you choose to do something that will never make a lot of money, then you need to decide if your success will be for the good of other people. You need to decide if helping other people is how you measure success. If such is the case, then do not concern yourself with money. You may end up with the monetary success you chose not to receive, but received anyway because of the kind of person you are and the kind of work you have done.

My objective in writing this letter is to remind you that we all have a purpose and it is your responsibility and your duty to fulfill that purpose.

It is an honor and a privilege to know all of you and I wish all of you the best of luck in your endeavors and in life!

If you enjoyed reading this letter, please pass it on to someone you care about. If you do not wish to send it to anyone, then I hope it has at least enriched your life in some way.

Best wishes,

John A. Taxiarchos