Yes, you can do anything you set your mind to. I believe it, and you need to believe it also.
I read a small article in the March AARP bulletin and I'd like to quote it. Great story.
Author, Author
Jim Henry conquered illiteracy in his mid-90s. Now he's the author of a book at 98. "Never, never give up on anything even if what you're doing feels impossible," says Henry, a retired lobsterman in Mystic, Conn. His self-published In a Fisherman's Language recounts his life through 29 stories. The first two printings sold out, but his website, fishermanslanguage.com, is accepting orders for a third printing. (author unknown)
Isn't that just the best thing you've read lately? I know sometimes I get discouraged, thinking that I started too late in life to get published. Sometimes I spend my time envying other big name authors like James Patterson, Nora Roberts, Karen Robards, and RaeAnn Thayne. Sometimes I feel that I just don't have the time, the energy, etc, to succeed. But then I see something like the above article, and I kick myself back into my computer chair and start working again, because I can succeed. So can you.
Now, I didn't say it was easy. Hey, is anything ever easy? Not usually. Every dream takes some work to achieve. Every goal requires stamina, stick-to-it desire, and work to accomplish. Tell yourself you can do it -- and do it. Take baby steps and soon they'll turn into giant leaps.
One of my favorite says is:
If it is to be, it's up to me.
I love that saying because it is so true. Every time I think I can't, I read that and remember, I can if I want to and if I'm willing to do what it takes.
I retired after over 30 years. All those years I dreamed of writing and seeing one of my stories in print. I joined Romance Writers of America. I signed up for a few classes, and I started writing. I attended some writing conferences and listened to success stories. I fought envy and then remembered to tell my friends congratulatons. One day I decided to submit a story. A friend talked me into it late one night as we were working on a contest. I bit the bullet. Sent in the query letter. After some rewrites, edits, and lots of work, it got published. I jumped for joy, then sat back down and kept on writing. I feel I'm succeeding. So can you.
Remember:
If it is to be, it's up to me.
Repeat that over and over again. Post it next to your computer, your easy chair, wherever you spend time and need some encouragement. Then put a plan into action. Take the first step.
Good luck.
