Do you believe you can change the world?

I was reading an article recently where the writer believed that each and every one of us can change the world with one act at a time. So the writer asked the readers of the magazine to show and share some random acts of kindness. Thousands of readers took the challenge up and shared their experiences. Whilst there were many emotionally overwhelming stories, these two were my favorites.

‘There is so much litter around, it’s really quite appalling. Once a month, my family and I go for a walk around the neighborhood with rubber gloves and garbage bags to pick up any trash we see. Since we started, a lot of others in the neighborhood have been joining in. It keeps the area so much cleaner and then it is nicer to live in.

‘My daughter loves maths and is very good at it. She decided to tutor school kids who were having trouble with it. I suggested she charge a small fee per hour, but she didn’t want to do that. She insisted that she should do it for free because mathematics is something that everyone can use in their daily life and should be able to pass, so she wants to help them achieve that and hopefully learn to love it. I am so proud of her.

Each of us can read the above article and infer different messages, and we, all, are right. The strongest message I got is the ‘power of beliefs’. The writer of the article strongly believed in changing the world with small acts of kindness and it set some amazing actions in motion. So, I wondered about the power of beliefs which led me to some real-life examples such as those below

Richard Branson lost millions of dollars in Virgin credit cards or Virgin cola, however, he always believed in himself and continued to expand and invest in businesses. He is now a billionaire Mogul of Virgin Group, which comprises more than 400 companies.  
Steven Spielberg applied and was denied two times to the University of Southern California film school and so he went to Cal State University in Long Beach. But he always believed in his abilities and hence persevered. Now, he is a billionaire and received an honorary degree, in 1994, from the same film school that rejected him twice.  

There are many many more such stories where an individual believed in his or her capability or believed in some cause beyond themselves, and persevered and succeeded despite others’ criticism. However, the common theme in all the examples I came across was that life, at times, throws unimaginable challenges but it is in these times that our self-beliefs are genuinely tested. Those who persevered ended up with the results they sought.

It does make sense that if we believe we can change the world then we can, if we believe we are destined for an amazing life then we are, and if we believe we are destined for a mundane life then we are. Our beliefs decide our results. I choose to maintain empowering beliefs and understand that what we believe, about ourselves and the world, can make or break us.  

Your beliefs decide where you end up in life