First, go out and get a mentor. Somebody that is successful. Dont do it for money... If you want money, give up now.

Then, you have to realize some people have a silver spoon upbringing, some people came from sh it, but no matter what, all first generation entrepreneurs get the job done. Dont complain, dont give up, just turn the corner and go with the next opportunity.

Watch "Men Who Built America" painfully slow movie but it is worth every minute for the commentary by the entrepreneurs. Every single one treated failure as a learning opportunity NOT as a failure, but, a reason to make a change. Thats it... its simple.

Points:
-Success doesnt come easy, If you make $75K+ you are in the top 10% if you are at $100K you are in the top 2%.
-Stop watching the NEWS, it gives you excuses to quit.
-Put together a list of all the opportunities you can think of that will make money. Goals!
-Wake up a 6AM end work like hell till 10PM everyday. Make sure everyone that knows you thinks you are the hardest working S.O.B. around.
-Realize that TV makes it look easy.
-Take risks
-Watch war movies. Once you embrace the respect, sheer will and fortitude of soldiers who sit in a foxhole in a foreign land you might realize what you have isnt so bad.

Here are two motivational videos, I watch them at least twice a week:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pBLV6...Mrq1eA&index=4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LccxeBMLibY



Go kick azz.

i want to thank you guys

Some of the comments on here totally nailed it. 4bus and Keith Atlanta are obvious examples, and I'd bet they are both successful guys - by their own measure of success - because they've obviously learnt the life lessons based on their comments here.

This is why OSO is my favorite forum. So many of you here due to the cost of owning these toys had to learn these lessons in order to afford our hobby. Its the only internet forum I've been on where I could imagine so many of you being close friends even though I don't know any of you.

Go get after it johnnyboatman. Swing for the fence.

this really is a great forum, here you ask for help, boat related or otherwise, and you get real honest answers. I have had it pretty good for the most part, but I did lose everything in 2005 and had to declare bankruptcy, I thought my life was over, but I managed to suffer through it, friends and my girlfriend (now wife) helped me along, and now with a lot of hard work, I am doing better than i was before, even though I have to work harder for it. In the middle of it I couldn't see the light at the end of the tunnel, but i am glad I pressed on and got back on track.

I used to see all these wealthy people and it seems like they are swimming in money and don't work all that hard. I am a contractor and have been fortunate to have a lot of clients, many of them very successful. They all have nearly the same story, started their own company, on purpose or sometimes just fell into it, and proceeded to work hard, and with time and hard work, sometimes lucky timing, earned quite a lot of money as the business grew. Some of them sold what they built for large sums and others are still doing it. When I spend time with these people, they are on the phone often, making deals and running things at all hours of the day. The consistent thing I notice is that they all work hard and don't take no for an answer.

Well put . . . very well put. I sometimes feel like a fly on a screen door. You can have all the heart and well placed effort in the world but try as you will you wont get through that screen. So you have to persevere, be smart enough and try another way or if your lucky someone comes along and opens a door to let you through. Keep moving though there is always some one out there to spray ya with a can of Raid if your not careful.

Been fight'n the good fight my whole life and while i am far from
wealthy i am very much happy with my paths. It may sound cliche but enjoy every inch, every minute of the journey.

Stick with it johnny. 2 traits most of us have are confidence and resiliency. My guess is a lot of alphas on here. We all fall on hard times. Some harder than others.

What makes a man isn't the problems that arise in life but the way he handles them.

I went through a full reboot about 5 yrs ago. Doin ok now.

Maybe get out of Oklahoma. Come on down to southwest florida. You saw Jay's pic right?

Hang in there buddy!

Always remember- "If we all threw our problems in a pile and saw everyone else's, we'd grab our problems back"

I just had my 34th birthday and in my short life I've had enough tragedy to last 2 lifetimes. Lost my wife and high school sweetheart at age 29, at 31 lost our home to a fire and just this past year had my new home flooded by Isaac. Just remember its how we pick ourselves back up and keep going that makes us who we are.

Just into the new year and by the end this will be my favorite post.

I go through some down times where I question everything and can get depressed. I think we all do , some more than others. I have to remind myself that I am successful and know I have a great network of friends. My problems pale in comparison to the majority and I have to remember how fortunate I really am. Pick myself up and be the best person I can be every day.

Most self made (not the silver spoon folks) people that I know had failed even several times before figuring it out. They had the tenacity to stay in the fight. If you want to read up on a very real life story of somebody on OSO, check out Gino's story. It has been posted on OSO before. He had every reason to give up on multiple occasions over the years. My son has a picture of Ginos boat on the wall in his college bedroom to look at when he thinks he is having a tough time.