How do you define a life-threatening situation? Is it when someone pulls a knife on you? Or when someone has taken your future away by taking your savings? Most people consider a life threatening situation one where you’re facing immediate death. What about when you don’t have the financial resources to take care of your family? Isn’t that life threatening? Have you ever wondered how you would be respond if you were put in a life threatening situation, financially? I find it fascinating that people are so willing to roll over and let someone take everything they have worked a lifetime to build. I’ve been in several situations where people have threatened me and my family’s welfare and I didn’t react all that calmly. I took matters into my own hands and took care of business. I still have the scars.

Maybe it was that I spent a lot of my life around military people and the fact that many of my friends and family have served in the military. Watching close friends die for a greater cause has given me the courage to stand up to bullies, no matter who they are. I think we are all facing a challenge that requires a higher level of courage than we may have developed or shown before. Courage is the foundation of character and character is the secret to your lifetime success.

Currently, it’s not popular to listen to the other side. It takes a unique individual to be able to listen to both sides of a discussion and then decide where they stand on the issue. People seem to think standing in the middle and criticizing everyone is a strong stand. Sitting on the fence is not taking a stand. It reminds me of the quote, “If you stand for nothing, you’ll fall for anything.” Always being in the middle lacks the courage of your beliefs.

If I hear one more person tell me how to run the country when they’ve never stepped forward to lead anything, I think I will explode. Your right to complain comes from you own ability to step up to the situation. Not every person can be President, but each of us has to take responsibility for our own actions. Leadership begins at many levels, with the PTA, a local business organization. What have you stepped forward to lead?

You aren’t going to change other people but you can change you. Now who are you? Do you constantly complain about everything but do nothing? Take time today to bring yourself up to speed on the big issues for your family and then make decisions to work to make things happen. I think you will sleep better knowing you’ve done what you can, not what you can’t. Let others complain, but not you because you have chosen to be involved your future. So who are and what do you stand for?