I’ve Taken Chances

I’m sure there have been a lot of opportunities I’ve missed, but not because I didn’t want to gamble on them if there was even a decent chance to be successful. I was more than willing  to take that chance. I got burned on a lot of my decisions but I did well on the others. Not one time have I ever said “If I’d only.”  I’ve taken chances. I’ve been delighted by the ones that are successful and I have no regrets on the ones that were not successful. 

October 23, 2013

Any time an opportunity came up, even if it even smelled close to being good, I took a very close look and if it had merit I did it. I’m 75 years old. When I look back, there’s nothing I didn’t do that I wished I had done.  I remember as a kid, and I must’ve heard the story 20 times, people saying, “When Coca-Cola started, my father had the opportunity to buy into the company for nearly nothing.” When a salesman came through town selling Coca Cola stock all of my friends didn’t want to take a chance and buy. They later joined in unison to say “If I’d only bought $20 worth of the stock I’d be a millionaire.” I don’t want to hear those words and I don’t like the stories. I don’t like them because they only show that the person telling them was short of confidence and character.

If I’d Only

The worst words in the English language: If I’d only. I get so tired of hearing people say, “If I’d only bought that stock,” or “If I’d only gone to school,” or “If I’d only taken that job” and so on. All my life, I made a conscious effort never to put myself into a position where I would later say “If I’d only.”