Home
>
Success
>
Choice: Privilege, Opportunity and Responsibility

Choice: Privilege, Opportunity and Responsibility

One of my absolute favorite quotes is from Dwight D. Eisenhower. If you have been a subscriber for long you may have heard me use it before. Eisenhower said that, "The history of free men is never written by chance, but by choice - their choice."

What a powerful truth. We can, and do, write our own history. That is, when our life is nearing the end, we can look back and see that the history we leave behind, the legacy that we leave for our children, is the accumulation of the choices we made all along the way.

As I think about this, I realize that some may view it from the back end and it may seem hopeless, but we can be proactive about it and decide now that we will begin to make choices that will bring us to our desired end.

Before I talk about privilege, opportunity, and responsibility, I want to make something perfectly clear, and it is something that you must embrace if you are going to see your life continually improve and change for the better. I believe that...

Anyone can have as much money as they choose to.

Anyone can weigh what they choose to.

Anyone can have the job they choose to have.

Anyone can have the level of peace that they choose to have.

Anyone can do anything they choose to do.

They ability for us humans to choose is incredible, but it also brings with it philosophical truths as well. Primarily the power to choose brings with it privilege, opportunity and responsibility. When we see how all three of these play out in our lives, and when we discipline ourselves to make the choices that will bring us to our desired outcome - watch out - because you will be UNLEASHED!

The Ability to choose is a Privilege. Dogs don't have it. Cows don't have it. Trees and flowers don't have it. The only living creatures that have the ability to choose are humans. All of the rest of living creatures live by instinct, or in the case of trees, flowers etc, they live wherever they are planted (I guess they must have to develop a great deal of contentment!).

Have you ever viewed your ability to choose as a privilege that you have been given? That is one of the more motivating factors in my life for being disciplined and making choices. Exercise your privilege today. Make choices today that will make you, your family and your community better off!

The Ability to choose is an Opportunity. Every one of us has the opportunity to improve ourselves. There are too many stories of people who have lost 200 pounds, left behind fortunes while only earning $20,000 a year and multitudes of other success stories for me to believe otherwise. In fact, I myself have seen it in my own life. What an opportunity! Yet many believe that it is impossible - that they don't even have the opportunity. Not true at all. Take advantage of the opportunity you have every single day of your life to change - because you can!! Make choices today that will make you, your family and your community better off!

The Ability to choose is a Responsibility. We do not live our lives in a vacuum. We live them in the context of our families, our communities, our businesses and the organizations we belong to. We have a responsibility to make right choices that will positively impact all of those around us! I have four children. The choices I make each day, maybe even every moment, will affect them for the rest of their lives. Do I have a responsibility to them? You bet! I want to discipline my life in such a way that they become all that they can be and that our family and eventually the families that they will start, will become great!

When I think of choices that changed history, I think of Rosa Parks who made a choice that would bring her into the forefront of America's news of the day and eventually the history books. One day, Parks, an African-American, decided that she would not give up her seat on the bus to a white person. She made a choice. It was undoubtedly one she had thought of for sometime. It was her privilege as a human to make this choice, regardless of what others thought and regardless of what the outcome would be. It was an opportunity to make a statement and to stand up for what was right. It was her responsibility to generations of minorities who would come after her to make this choice. She did, and America changed.

Like Rosa Parks, and countless others who daily make choices that produce change, it is those who will dare to dream of a better life, those who will risk failure, those who will make the right choices who will change themselves, their families, their businesses and organizations and yes, even their world! The ability to choose is an incredible privilege, an outstanding opportunity, and an awesome responsibility! Use it!

About The Author:

Chris Widener is a popular speaker and writer as well as the President of Made for Success, a company helping individuals and organizations turn their potential into performance, succeed in every area of their lives and achieve their dreams.

To see Chris "live" at the upcoming Jim Rohn Weekend Event as he speaks on the subject of Secrets of Influence go to http://chris-widener.inspiresyou.com/ or call 800-929-0434.

reliable home cleaners Park Ridge ...

In The News:

Ahold Delhaize's cybersecurity incident knocked online ordering and digital coupons offline at Stop & Shop, Food Lion, Hannaford and Giant Food stores.

The Fox News AI Newsletter covers the latest artificial intelligence technology advancements, including the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Amazon's About You feature includes personality details from your shopping history, and some shoppers are finding hilariously awkward results.

Identity theft recovery starts with securing bank accounts, freezing credit and enabling two-factor authentication within the first 24 hours.

Apple's $299 HomeView smart display uses facial recognition to personalize screens for up to six household members and show live security camera feeds.

Domonique DuBose spotted red flags when a man on Hinge with 85,000 followers and a blue checkmark claimed to be a San Francisco 49ers player.

Your phone's location data can expose visits to doctors, pharmacies and places of worship. The FTC took action against data brokers selling this data.

Hackers targeted Danfoss refrigerator controls across French supermarkets, forcing chains like Carrefour and Monoprix to discard massive food stocks.

iOS 27 finally lets iPhone Shared Albums store photos and videos at full resolution in iCloud, but new items count toward the owner's storage.

A fake Facebook Marketplace text scam uses your real name as the seller to trick you into replying, and Malwarebytes warns even one response helps.

The Pentagon data breach exposed 2.76 million Social Security numbers and military records, raising long-term identity theft concerns for veterans.

Kodiak AI plans to haul IKEA freight on Texas highways with no one in the cab, raising urgent cybersecurity and safety questions for drivers.

Apple Intelligence in iOS 27 adds Extend and Reframe tools to Photos, letting iPhones generate new background areas beyond your original borders.

Microsoft's X account was hijacked to promote a crypto pump-and-dump scheme, exposing its more than 13 million followers to a scam campaign.

Scammers can combine your name, phone number and address with data breach details to attempt SIM swaps, phishing and even identity theft schemes.

ChatGPT Work, Meta Muse and Gemini Spark can monitor flight prices, sort your email inbox and track important deadlines, but savvy users start small.

iPhone, Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel each hide a built-in tool that turns a video frame into a separate photo without any screenshot needed.

Operation KillSwitch dismantled KillSec's ransomware infrastructure, but investigators say a 16-year-old allegedly ran the entire cybercrime operation.

The Fox News Artificial Intelligence newsletter covers where voters will decide on AI data center ballot measures and Jeff Bezos' tech vision.

Apple's Impersonation Risk Detection in iOS 27 can flag suspicious activity inside apps, but the setting is off by default and must be enabled.

Federal Election Commission records can expose your name, address, employer and donation history once contributions exceed the $200 threshold.

Cybersecurity expert Morgan Wright says human skepticism remains the strongest defense against AI-driven phishing scams and voice cloning fraud schemes.

iPhone, Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy each handle security updates differently, and one screen saying "up to date" may not tell the whole story.

Deborah Del Mastro heard what sounded like her daughter's terrified voice on the phone, launching a five-hour virtual kidnapping scam ordeal.

Hotel TV privacy risks go beyond forgotten passwords when you sign into Netflix or other streaming apps on shared devices you don't control.