How to Be Successful! by Tyler Perry

This is a message by Tyler Perry! I thought this was awesome!  What stood out to me is the part about "seeds" and water one at a time!! If you can't watch the video, you can read his message below:

There’s only one answer for that and I say this all the time in the press but people cut it out of articles or they don’t want to print it or they don’t want to say it. The truth be told, it was nothing but the grace of God. Nothing But The Grace of God.

You can plant seeds all day long; you can go around giving your business cards to people. You can go around knocking on doors and auditioning; you can do all of that every day of your life and for most people nothing happens. When a seed is planted in the ground all you can do it water it. You can not control the sunshine. You can not control the weather and you can not control what the locus will come and try to destroy. All you can do is plant your seed in the ground, water it and believe. That is what allowed me to be in this position right now.

I would not stop believing. I planted my seed; I worked really hard. I had one idea and that was to do a play and all that other stuff came. My only focus was to do one play and I knew if I could get that to work, everything else would come to pass. There are so many people who go into so many directions. This week they’re doing this and next week they’re doing that. Then the next week they’re they’re going to be in Real-Estate and the next week they’re going to open a salon. Those kinds of people are all over the place and I usually try to get them to focus. Focus on one thing –one area. Put all of your energy into watering one area. If you spread the water across many, many seeds you don’t have as much water for one seed. So focus on one thing, make it your priority and stick with it no matter what.

No matter how many people told me no. No matter how many people lied to me. No matter how many times I put the show up and nobody came. I remember when I tried my very first show, I worked my butt off and saved $12,000 tax returns through H & R Block money. I worked hard and saved it myself. I rented 14^th Street Play House; put that show up and thought that 1200 people would come over that weekend and 30 showed up and I knew everyone of them. But I didn’t stop; that didn’t deter me. That was in 1992. In 93’ the same thing happened -94’, 95’, 96’, 97’ up until 1998 the same devastation of nobody showing up in the audience. It was still one show a year working with promoters trying to get the show up and nobody showed up but I didn’t stop.

What I say to you now, looking at me here, I am a human being; there is no difference between my humanist and your humanist. The only thing is if you’re trying to get there you can not stop believing in any way. No matter what anybody says, no matter what anybody tells you, you have to know it beyond knowing it. When something is for you, there is a feeling that is deep down inside of you that will not allow you to let it go. It will keep you going when you can’t keep even keep yourself going. That’s why the mantra here at Tyler Perry Studios is a place where even dreams believe because there comes a time in your life where you’ve worked and you’ve stressed and you tried to get there and you couldn’t on your own but you have a dream and that dream has to take on the belief for you because you can’t do it by yourself. So what I would tell you is this, don’t stop; narrow your focus to one idea –[only] one and make it work. That will give birth to all the others. All you can do is plant the seed and water it. God himself has to give the increase. Only God can make the sunshine. Only God can make it rain but if you planted the seed then you’ve done your part.

I wish you so much success in 2012. Anything you want is possible. God knows I’m a living witness. Please feel me. Please hear this from my heart. Anything you want is possible. If I didn’t believe it I wouldn’t take the time to send this message to you. Take care of yourself.

So, what you think? Do you think this is great information or just devine favor on Tyler's behalf? 

CHANGES

Changes

This is the time of the year that some of us decide to make major changes in our lives.  But, do we really like change?  Although, we want it, do we actually like it?  We make goals to lose weight, stop drinking, find a better job, and the list goes on.  In reality, do we truly want the lifestyle transformation?  We all know that it is very expensive to change our eating habits to something healthier.  In the beginning of each year our church goes on a Daniel fast and I recall saying to Carl, “I never knew fruit and vegetables could be so expensive.”  You see I was ignorant to the reality of the full alteration that needed to be made.  The reality was that I had decided to start eating vegetables and fruit 3 times a day and bags of fruit were vanishing like clock work in our household.  It got very expensive. 

I also want to shed light on gym memberships that cost up to $60.00 per month?  Only to go for 2 months and they continue to withdraw the monies from your bank account for another year.  Fitness facilities do automatic withdrawal for that sole purpose of collecting extra money from folks who have gotten lazy or discouraged.  There is nothing wrong with wanting a change in your lifestyle or to lose weight.  My advice is to sit down and write out how these changes will affect your life.  This may help you put things in proper prospective, such as time, cost and how it will assist you in the future.  Who doesn’t want better health, fitness, and eating habits? 

As a wife, I realize my husband’s goals and resolutions affect me and visa versa.  So, if you want to set a goal for yourself or your spouse take into consideration how this modification is going to affect you both before making it.  A lot of times there is sacrifice involved on both sides.  If I want to lose weight, that means better eating habits for me and my family.  Everybody is going to be eating vegetables.  I’m not sure how my son, Zion will feel about that considering he doesn’t like veggies.  This means I would need to come up with ideas and plans to include him as well.

If you desire a change for your spouse, you have to be willing to take part in that sacrifice.  Meaning if you want your husband to stop drinking, you have to stop drinking.  You may have to put down that one glass of wine that you occasionally want.  A lot of times you have to change the people you hang with.  I know you may not be the one with the issue, but the issue and the transformation still affect you.  We have to be there to encourage and motivate.   If you desire your husband to lose weight, stop fixing unhealthy food, make better selections at the grocery store and fix something healthier! It requires change in the atmosphere, meaning lifestyle change for the whole family.  However, these things can be turned into fun, such as learning new recipes and cooking them together.  You can also go for walks, which can eventually turn into races, at least for our family it does. 

My advice is to start small and write everything out.  Make simple changes and then make bigger changes.  For instance instead of the gym membership and losing money, try taking family walks.  This saves money and allows for family time.  Instead of abruptly changing eating habits, work them in.  Start with fruit for breakfast and baking more foods.  Then, each month progress and eventually you may have a gym membership.   Change usually last longer when it is done gradually and consistently.  Try not to be hard on yourself, because everyone changes, nobody stays the same.  But, hopefully the “Change is For the Good!”