ComputerHunter.org

 

Are You The Driver Or The Passenger?


In your journey through life are you the "driver" or the "passenger"?

Let me be perfectly clear what I mean about this statement. In other words, do you take charge of your own life? Do you make the judgment and set the goals for what you want your life to be like? - Or - Do you let others influence you and follow in their footsteps?

This is a very important question you should be answering. After all it is "your life" you should be the one designing it and being happy with it. So many people seem to think they should feel guilty if they aren't always following someone else's plan. Does it really make sense to please others yet not please yourself? I sure don't think so. Now I do agree you may want to compensate to some degree to please others but not to the degree of being miserable about the kind of life you lead.

It took me a few years to finally come to that conclusion when I was in my early forties. You see my Dad was the owner of a very successful family florist business. He wanted to eventually pass it on to me. In my earlier years that was an exciting thought but as I grew older I began to have my doubts.

I started working part time in the business at a very early age. That was usually during major holidays and some special functions. When I went to high school I was on the regular payroll and working as much as thirty hours a week. After two years of college I was drafted into the U.S.Army so I was out of the picture for two years. I spent a lot of time thinking during that time what I would do when I finally returned home.

On returning home, married and having a child on the way I had reservations whether I wanted to continue my career in the business. I recalled some of those times when we worked sixty hour six day weeks with no vacation time. I wasn't sure if I was ready to commit myself to that kind of schedule anymore. Besides that I had a family now that was going to be affected too.

Well the climax came one day a few weeks after I returned home from the service. I confronted my dad about the whole issue. He wasn't exactly pleased that I was demanding at least a half-day off a week and a two-week vacation every year. Eventually he relented and later I was even able to take a whole day off plus get a few other privileges too. I spent about another twenty years on this schedule but many times thinking, "do I really want to do this anymore?"

I finally reached this decision when I was forty-two years of age. I decided his business was no longer for me. My dad never really understood why I wanted to give it up even though I tried to explain why. I wasn't happy about the hours, the compensation, the stress and a host of other things usually demanded of a retail business.

The dream I had for becoming a commissioned sales representative kept popping up in my head over the years. I finally decided I was going to be the "driver" and no longer a "passenger" on my road through life. So it wasn't long before I got my first job as a sales rep. However it only lasted about eighteen months. I became dissatisfied with not only the company but the sales manager as well. I had already lined up a position with another company so I wasn't without a job for very long. I spent the next twenty years with them until my retirement.

During those years in sales I was the happiest I had ever been in my life. I earned more income during that time and was able to provide more things for my family too. Even though I traveled out of town every other week for about six years as a sales supervisor my wife was satisfied with that arrangement and so was I.

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what age you are make sure that you always decide what kind of life is right for you. In the last six years my wife and I have spent half the year in Florida and the other half in our primary home in Indiana. It was a big decision. During those times we are away from our children and grandchildren but we made that choice because we were tired of the winters in Indiana.

Once again we became the "driver" instead of the "passenger" and made a choice of the type of life we wanted to lead. Only you should decide which kind of journey you will be taking through life and how you will arrive there. Take charge. Remember it's "Your Life." Enjoy it to the fullest.

Copyright © 2004 All Rights Reserved AbsolutelySenior.com

Sonny Julius is a 74 year old retired sales supervisor. Prior to his sales career he spent 30 years in the family florist business. Becoming dissatisfied with that business he decided it was time to leave it and pursue a sales career. His interest in the internet eventually led him to write an ebook geared to senior citizens. The ebook is a guide for living the senior lifestyle.

In addition he offers a Free 20-minute no obligation phone coaching session to anyone interested in enhancing his or her present lifestyle. Email for more information: mailto:sonnyj@absolutelysenior.com

Sonny Julius, President of S A & Associates, is devoted to teaching senior citizens "How To Have The Time Of Their Life For The Rest Of Their Life" For more information go to: http://www.thesunnysenior.com







Google News - Top Stories

Boston Globe

• Europe Unified On Proposal to Protect Banks
Washington Post - 2 hours ago
Earlier versions of this article, including in the print edition of The Washington Post, carried the wrong dateline. The article was written Oct. 12.
Treasury will buy stock in banks; Asia, Europe bounce back The Miami Herald
US moves to get rescue plan started; stocks rise The Associated Press
CNN - Bloomberg - San Francisco Chronicle - ABS CBN News
all 664 news articles


The Southern Ledger

Winds whip up wildfire north of Los Angeles
The Associated Press - 28 minutes ago
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Intense Santa Ana winds swept into Southern California Monday morning and whipped up a 3000-acre wildfire, forcing the closure of a major freeway during rush hour and burning mobile homes and industrial buildings.
Video: Fire Burns 500 Acres Northeast of Los Angeles AssociatedPress
Winds whip up wildfire north of Los Angeles San Francisco Chronicle
San Diego Union Tribune - WLOS - WRVA - United Press International
all 1,857 news articles


Voice of America

SCENARIOS: How candidates are faring in key states
Reuters - 28 minutes ago
(Reuters) - The US presidential election on November 4 hinges on a handful of battleground states where opinion polls show Democrat Barack Obama making significant gains against his Republican rival, US Sen. John McCain of Arizona.
5 questions to ask before voting MSNBC
History Suggests McCain Faces an Uphill Battle New York Times
KVBC - The Flint Journal - MLive.com - The Daily Voice - StarNewsOnline.com
all 702 news articles


BBC News

EU slams Mugabe, threatens new sanctions against Zimbabwe
AFP - 39 minutes ago
LUXEMBOURG (AFP) - The EU on Monday condemned Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe's "unilateral decision" to form a new government and threatened fresh sanctions unless he respects a power-sharing deal.
Zimbabwe Opposition Leader Threatens to Quit Power-Share Deal Voice of America
Thabo Mbeki to Mediate in Deadlocked Zimbabwe Talks (Update1) Bloomberg
AllAfrica.com - United Press International - International Herald Tribune - The Associated Press
all 2,595 news articles


Calgary Herald

NK 'lets monitors into Yongbyon'
BBC News - 1 hour ago
North Korea has restored United Nations monitors' access to the Yongbyon nuclear site, including the plutonium reprocessing plant, diplomats say.
US Move on N. Korea Assailed in Japan Washington Post
Critics of US-North Korea Nuclear Deal Say US Concedes Too Much Voice of America
guardian.co.uk - Reuters - RedOrbit - Wall Street Journal
all 3,369 news articles

Google
 

Copyright © 2006 Computer Hunter - A Division of Arthur´s Job Base