When we come across a story of personal transformation, it inspires us. It makes us believe that a similar potential for transformation exists within us. That, once we unleash that potential, we will live a higher life too. JK Rowling was poor and homeless when she began writing Harry Potter. Even when she wrote the book, she did not find many takers. Finally, when she found a publisher willing to publish her book, she got only a token advance. After the huge success of Harry Potter series, her net worth leaped close to a billion dollars.
Four Stories of Transformation
Albert Einstein was a slow child who started speaking late. He faced many rejections from universities when he sought a tenured position. Nobody thought his ideas were great or promising. In the end, Einstein’s research led to a Nobel prize in theoretical physics.
Charles Darwin gave up on a medical career and was all set for a mediocre life. At least his father and many others thought so. Later, he gave one of the most important theories to the world and explained how species evolve.
Abraham Lincoln seemed to have failed more times than most. He went to the war as a captain and returned as a private. He started many businesses but wasn’t able to make any one work. He tried for public office many times and failed. Today is he is considered as one of the best presidents that America had.
Colonel Sanders decided to start franchising his fried chicken concept at the age of 65. This happened after he received his first social security check. He built a fast food empire called Kentucky Fried Chicken in his 60s. Today, KFC is among the best fast food businesses in the world.
Why Transformation?
Such stories give us a glimpse of transformation possible within each one of us. These tales of struggle and eventual victory fill us with optimism. They show us why it is worth pursuing transformation.
Imagine that you bought a house and it has a gold mine under it. Since you are unaware of it, you spend your entire life as if you did not own that gold. How would consider this situation to be? What a waste of potential opportunities that would be. What would happen if you just became aware of that gold? By mining the gold, you can design a better life for yourself and make more impact on society with charity. What made the difference between an ordinary and an extraordinary life? Just the knowledge of the gold mine and efforts to mine it.
Stories of transformation point to the fact that we are all sitting on a personal gold mine. Whether you want to mine that gold or remain unaware of it is your choice.
Beyond Career Transformation
It is possible to go beyond career and transform any area of life. It is likely that you know someone who did this to their health or financials or relationships.
Ronald Reed was a gas station attendant in Vermont and lived a frugal life. Although his pay was little, he learned to pick stocks by reading newspapers. Upon his death, it was found that he had left $6 million to local library and hospital.
Jason Fieber from Dividend Mantra is another story of financial transformation. Jason found himself with a negative net worth a few years back. One day, he decided to turn his financial situation around. He learned the principles of prudent financial management through reading. Over the next few years, he saved and invested in a disciplined manner. He also shared his story and his strategies with the world through his blog. He not only built a strong passive income stream but also built a valuable website.
A National Transformation
The picture above this post is from Dubai Marina that I clicked recently. This is an apt picture for this post because Dubai is a success story of transformation. An entire city state was transformed from a desert land to a bustling metropolis. One man’s vision allowed him to relentlessly pursue this path of transformation.
The Key Takeaway
The pursuit of transformation is the path to mining that gold on which each one of us sits. It is a path to uncovering something great within you. This is what makes transformation a worthwhile goal. This is why transformation should be your number one goal.
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