Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of Financial Foreplay® and On The Shoulders of Giants

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of Financial Foreplay® and On The Shoulders of Giants

Life isn’t always easy – there can be no question about that. It’s unpredictable and it’s often hard to make sense of what happens. Some of the events in our journey end up being nothing more than minor irritants, while others are more like being hit by a Mack truck at 200 kph.

Regardless – we have to play the hand we are dealt.

Part of the process of coming to terms with whatever occurs in your life is to find a way to make sense of it. If science indicates that objective reality doesn’t actually exist, it is very much up to us to create a reality that helps us move on and find some meaning. As W Mitchell so accurately points out, ‘It’s not what happens to you, it’s what you do about it that matters’.

I like to think of it as choosing to ‘make chicken soup out of chicken shit’. And it is often in these times of desperation or perspiration that we accomplish our greatest achievements. We play the hand that we have been dealt and in so doing we stretch beyond the finite boundaries of probability and skill into the realm of possibility and inspiration.

For Christopher Reeve a random riding accident changed his life. Everything he was in terms of his career and how people perceived him vanished the instant he hit the ground. And yet he was able to muster his resources and master his own mind so as to find a reason to carry on. I’m sure becoming paralysed was not part of his life plan. I’m sure there must have been times that he was angry and bitter, but these feelings obviously didn’t consume him.

The simple truth is that Christopher Reeves found himself in a wheelchair at just 43 years old. Nothing could be done to change that. There was no way to wind back the clock and no way to repair the damage. His condition was permanent. But his state of mind and any negative emotions he felt were temporary and 100% within his control. He had two options: (1) let the event consume his life and extinguish his spirit or (2) accept his condition and make the best use of his time and influence to advance science in the hope that someday others with spinal cord injuries might walk again. In many ways, he became more of a superhero after his accident than he had previously been in his film roles because he created a vision and a purpose that was bigger than the event that changed his life.

He accepted the cards he was dealt in the game of life and he played with the courage, determination and strength of character of a superhero. Perhaps Christopher himself said it best, ‘I think a hero is an ordinary individual who finds the strength to persevere and endure in spite of overwhelming obstacles. They are the real heroes, and so are the families and friends who have stood by them.’

Perhaps today, January 5th, 2011…….yes TODAY – is the perfect time for us to all stand back and celebrate the superhero within ourselves and others. If we choose to play the hand we have been dealt to the best of our ability…I think we will all look back [someday] and agree that the “game” was worthwhile.

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

It has been over 50,000 since human beings lived in caves.  All those years ago, life was pretty much about survival – each morning our ancestors would emerge from their caves and scan the horizon for imminent danger.   Although things have changed a lot in our external environment in the last few thousand years, in many ways, the wiring in our brains has not.  In fact, 90% of what you and I do on a day to day basis is still based on that ancient wiring and survival mentality and it is precisely this legacy that needs to be re-directed to prevent self sabotage from holding you back, personally and professionally.

You see our brains are wired to spot and avoid danger.

Even though the danger may not be “life or death”, we see this dynamic play out in our work environments almost every day.  For every daring and outlandish new idea that is proposed by one hopeful soul, there will be a long list of sceptical colleagues who are willing to offer 20 reasons why the idea might fail or cause harm.

So, how does this play out exactly?

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Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Have you ever heard somebody say to another person “Don’t spill that coffee.” and seen that exact thing happen, that you know will happen…. which is that they do spill the coffee by accident!  

Right now you are laughing because it is funny.  It is funny because it happens all the time.  For some reason it seems the more you tell someone NOT to do something, the more likely it is that it WILL happen.  Why is that?  Sometimes we attribute it to simple disobedience – for example a child testing a parent, when the parent has said “don’t do that.”  

However, it is more than just a simple testing of the boundaries.  There is a biological, scientific reason for this and it has to do with the way that our brains are wired.

So why do we always seem to do the very thing that we are told not to do?

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Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Have you ever heard somebody say to another person “Don’t spill that coffee.” and seen that exact thing happen, that you know will happen…. which is that they do spill the coffee by accident!  

Right now you are laughing because it is funny.  It is funny because it happens all the time.  For some reason it seems the more you tell someone NOT to do something, the more likely it is that it WILL happen.  Why is that?  Sometimes we attribute it to simple disobedience – for example a child testing a parent, when the parent has said “don’t do that.”  

However, it is more than just a simple testing of the boundaries.  There is a biological, scientific reason for this and it has to do with the way that our brains are wired.

So why do we always seem to do the very thing that we are told not to do?

Read More

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

Rhondalynn Korolak, Author of "Financial Foreplay®" and "On The Shoulders of Giants

What if I told you that YOU are you’re own worst enemy?  Would you be offended or would you smile and agree, because you know it’s true.  It’s true for ALL of us.

You can tell a lot about a business person by the way they spend their time. We all spend our time in various ways. Many business owners and senior executives tell me that there is not enough time in the day to get everything done. Personally, I have a belief that there is always enough time in the day to do all of the things that are WORTH doing.   The key is to identify what is worth your while.

Sometimes activity can be a kind of anesthesia for the pain of not achieving the results you want and deserve. Action is always better than procrastination. However, more activity is not always better than less.

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