III. Knowing what you want

With a greater knowledge of self, coupled with the power of conscious choice based upon reason and truth, and an understanding of the importance and power of accepting personal responsibility you are now prepared to take the next step. This is the phase of conscious direction. This phase is guided by your innermost desires and wants from life. At this stage, you will discover what you really want from life or who you want to be in that life. Your desires, needs, and wants will guide your choices from here on end. So, the first and essential question you must ask before beginning this part of the process is: What do you want?
Most people are asked this in youth with questions such as what you want to be when you grow up, and who do you want to be when you grow up and we answer these questions with the quintessential children’s answers like “I want to be a fireman, or a policeman”. I think as we all get older we forget this enthusiastic zeal felt during youth at the possibility of becoming someone, or something that is part of the greater scheme of life unknown to us at youth.
With age comes the impact of reality that collides against the aspirations and dreams of our youth. It sometimes damages these dreams and allows for a silent acceptance of fate against the weight of our hearts desire. So, the young and jubilant child that wants the best of the world slowly resigns him, or her-self to becoming another cog in the wheel of the machine that governs our lives and existence. We forget what we want in life in exchange for a means of sustenance that merely helps us get by.
This is the greatest mistake you could make in life. You must never forget what you want in life, nor must you accept your current circumstances as set in stone. You can become more and obtain more in life. Life is the equivalent of abundance. Look at nature who gives so freely and abundantly of her-self. We, as organic and conscious manifestations of nature, bear within us this ability to create, to do so in abundance, and receive like kind in return. Knowing what you want in life is the first step in instituting this power to create. Knowing what you want will define the choices you make, and the choices you make will define what you create.
The pilot flies the plane; the Captain steers the ship; the executive closes the deal; and the athlete wins the race. These are examples of those who knew what they wanted and became it. They knew what they wanted to be and made the choices necessary to achieve it. It is time to ask yourself the question you may not have asked your-self since childhood. What do you want to be? Who do you want to be? Where do you want to be? Who are you? How can you get there? What do you need to do to prepare? These questions and many more are essential to this part of the process. If you have never given thought to any of this, or have not done so in a while, then now is the time to do so.
If possible, take a moment to do so right now. This moment and every moment from here on end depend completely upon this. Your future depends on this. Remember, your future is the direct result of the sum of choices made from here on end. As such those choices, should, and must be geared toward helping to bring about that specific desired end. It’s like playing chess, but in real life. In the game of chess, you must think of every step you make and do so at least three steps ahead of your opponent to ensure that your desire (to capture the king) is fulfilled. Your opponent in this game is life itself. You must think of all your moves at least three to five steps in advance to ensure each step moves you further without suffering setbacks. The king in this game is your goal.
You know where you are at. You know how you got there. Now you must take the time to figure out where you want to go from here. Have a clear vision. Imagine it first. Using your imagination is an integral part of the process. How can you ever picture yourself doing or being something when you have never pictured your-self doing or being it? Ideas are the bedrock of planning and organizing your life. All ideas first develop in your imagination. Imagination is the key in helping envision the process with the desired end. You can see and experience everything you want before it all occurs.
Without a clear vision and certainty of what you want in life, you will be like a leaf in the wind on a late and windy fall day. You will be blown to wherever the wind takes you. You will be a pawn to nature. Subject to her every whim. This is not what you want. You want complete control over your life. Now mind you it is impossible to control every aspect of your life as it is intertwined with the lives of billions of other people who have their own interest in mind, and who will use you to further those interests. However, you do want the most control over your-self and your circumstances. Having control gives you great power over the will of others seeking to advance their interest and gives you the strength necessary to withstand external forces that will use you. Knowing what you want is akin to being behind the rudder steering your-self down the path you want to go.
Thus, you will naturally develop more power over manifesting the exact circumstances you want to experience in your life. This eliminates chance, luck, and fate from your life. Thus, replacing them with deliberate intent based upon conscious awareness of the specific end based upon current desires. Fortune favors the bold, and opportunity opens its doors for those who knock knowing what they want and aren’t afraid to go get it. Be the one who knocks on the door of opportunity, breaking it down if necessary to pave the way to your success. Take the steps necessary to achieve your goals. Know what you want and go get it. Start now. It all starts with the thought of what you want, envisioning your-self doing it, and going out there and making it happen. Choose your success. You and only you alone are responsible for making it happen.