Perhaps you have ever heard the saying: Change is the only constant. Everyone, without doubt, goes through changes in their life, whether it is a physical state of aging or a mental state of emotional maturity. However, some are afraid to make the conscious decision to move or they think it’s too late to have a fresh start.

I have a friend named Jack. At the age of 37, he is a Senior Manager at one of the Big Four. He has a great salary, owns his own apartment and enjoys the fine things in life, but not without the heavy burdens that his job brings. On the surface, it looks like he has got life figured out. Yet when I once asked if he was happy with his work, he answered that he sometimes wished to quit his job to do something less stressful. But he’d become accustomed to this lifestyle and felt that it would be too late to give it up to achieve a new ambition.

For him, the risks are too high, so whether he can’t abide his present job or not, he has to choose to suck it up. You might have come to a similar situation as Jack’s or you might be a Jack. You’re now facing a wall. No matter what it is-the stress of your job or the terrible feeling, it’s time that you had to decide whether you’ll tear down that wall or continue to let it enclose you. I suggest pushing back the boundaries and breaking the fixed patterns. Why do you feel it’s too late to start over?That is simply because you’re comparing yourself with others-younger or more successful individuals. In fact, you should compare yourself with the older version of you.

Don’t become that person who lets life pass by only to regret it when you are making your way into old age. Don’t let your life plateau (停滞不前) and waste away in the daily chores. Don’t give up the potential you still have hidden and be locked away by your current state. Now, you’d better bravely start going after the things you want to do, without abandoning your dreams, ambitions and responsibilities.

Three simple keys to success

Being successful means different things to different people.【小题1】 My point is, the specifics involved in finding success can vary greatly, depending on your goal.

There are three basic components necessary for finding success, regardless of the specifics of your pursuit. And, since the desire for ownership is the driving force behind acquisition, I’ll use the word OWN as my simple three-item method for success:

1.O-Opportunity: One of the most important components in finding success is being able to identify opportunity. It is to success what wind is to sailing. 【小题2】 Identifying opportunity is the first step: awareness sets your sails for success while your motivation provides the wind.

2.W-Wisdom: By definition, wisdom is the accurate application of knowledge. 【小题3】 It requires clear understanding, great insight (洞察力) and good judgment. Once opportunity is identified, you must use all your inner resources to seize it and make the most of it. 【小题4】Finding success when opportunity presents itself often means reaching out for help in areas where you have weakness or lack of knowledge.

3. N-Never give up: This might possibly be the most important for success. The key is to first break your goal down into workable parts so you don’t feel pressured, and then to work each part at ease with both enthusiasm and purpose. 【小题5】 Having this attitude keeps you moving in the face of trouble and becomes the driving force behind most success stories.

My only child Sam was just 9 when my editor called to offer a popular column spot in our local daily newspaper. “Write about things that typical suburban families can relate to,” said the editor, who couldn’t see me doing the happy dance in my kitchen while we finalized the details over the phone.

At the time, blogging was just a pipe dream. I’d already published articles and personal essays in several national magazines — but my byline (署名) was hardly a household name. A weekly column would change that, at least locally. Before long, I had established a faithful Sunday readership, including a group of admiring fans who would stop to chat at the post office or the supermarket.

“If you’re going to write about me, you had better get it right or don’t publish it,” My son, in grade school at the time, exploded after I wrote about the time I discovered a soda pop can under his bed. The column, which had unkindly trashed the housekeeping habits of little boys, described how I felt when I discovered that one of the pop cans hosted a colony of honeybees. For entertainment value, I’d stretched the facts a bit, implying that my son was keeping the bees as pets.

“I wish you’d quit writing about me,” he shouted, fighting tears as he ran upstairs. “I don’t want to ruin your job, but that’s just how I feel!” He knew he had posed a serious dilemma. The faithful readership had made it clear that the “kid columns” were my best stuff, and they wanted more.

From the start, I avoided hot-button topics (热点话题) in favor of tender family life. I published what most journalists would consider safe or soft material, knowing full well that my son had to face the challenge at school while I hid behind a desk at home.

And so, after our tearful talk, I agreed to a temporary ban on the kid columns. After years of teaching my son the importance of respecting boundaries, I’d finally learned to respect his.