There are lots of things in life we can’t choose. We don’t get to choose our parents or our siblings.  We don’t get to choose what schools we go to or where we grow up.  We can’t choose our height or our hair color.  But outside of that, we have a lot of choices in life.  We can choose how hard we work each day.  We can choose how we treat others.  We can choose how we spend our free time.  There are so many choices that we make each day.  And each of us is exactly where we are today because of those choices.

School is a great example. In one classroom, every kid will receive the same books and have the same teacher.  But some kids in the class will work their tails off and get As or Bs, while others will decide not to try and get Cs.  You’ll see the same situation in the workplace.  Two people will have the same position.  One person will work hard, have a good attitude and be promoted.  The other will come to work late, will inform people what is and isn’t in their job description, and will stagnate in the same position or get fired.  Both individuals have the same opportunities but achieve different results.

It is important to take ownership of where you are in your life. It is valuable to take a long hard look at the choices you’ve made, and see how those choices have brought you to where you are today.  Admittedly this is not a comfortable exercise.  For example, in my life, I’ve made the choice to put motherhood and marriage ahead of my career.  As a result, my career has suffered.  I don’t know if that has been a good choice or a bad one.  However, I do know that my choice has brought me to where I am professionally.

When you understand that you’ve created your life as it is today, it is a revelation. It is then that you see how much power you have in each day.  You learn that what you do today truly affects your tomorrow.  And those things that you do on a daily basis profoundly affect your future.

So if you work hard today, that will result in opportunities in the future. And if you spend your time surfing the Internet and give your job a half-hearted effort, you simply won’t get ahead.  Similarly, if today you are patient and kind toward your family members and friends, you will lay the foundation for positive relationships in the future.  However, if you are snotty and impatient with others, you will reap the consequences in your relationships down the road.

The key is to take each day as a gift from God and use it to lay the foundation for the life you wish to have. This doesn’t have to be a complicated endeavor.  Quite honestly, you would be amazed at where you would be in a year from now if you consistently did two things: work hard and be kind.  Believe it or not, that is a tried and true recipe for creating an amazing life.

This week take some time to take stock of where you are in life. Figure out how you got here.  And then make a commitment to use each day to do those things that will propel you toward the future of your dreams.