Totally Fulfilled
don’t make a change, one thing is for sure: your life will remain exactly as it is today. In the small town I grew up in, a lot of people worked at IBM. Years back they had a big layoff. I remember customers at the local deli were very nervous, wondering if they were next. It was a great lesson for me at a young age. I heard the same phrases almost everyone uses: “How could they do this to me? What am I going to do now? The management stinks! This is unfair!” Yet, I remember one IBM employee asking another if he was nervous about losing his job and the second guy said, “You know, I needed the change. Working at IBM taught me a great deal, they are a great company, and I was treated well, but I have always wanted to have my own consulting business, and this may be the kick I needed to start it. What I’ve learned at IBM makes me feel confi- dent that I can succeed. So instead of sitting around waiting to get laid off, I’m going to resign and start my new venture.” He was the only one I saw who had a different way of thinking and embraced change. He had a different walk, a differ- ent smile, and a different level of confidence. He was facing the same impending change issue as everyone else, yet he chose to give it a different meaning. He took action first, remaining in control rather than the opposite. I don’t know if he succeeded, but I know he looked at the change as a positive thing and was ready to embrace his future even though he was not totally sure what it was. He looked towards a better future and did not harp on the loss. I wanted to model my own outlook on his. Core Attribute #10 Totally Fulfilled people actively take control of their lives and the changes that are a natural part of living. They don’t simply passively respond to change.
In life, there are two types of people: thermostats and ther- mometers. Thermometer people go up and down, up and down,
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