The tragedy for millions of people is that they never decide what they want from life and make plans for it. Life will provide whatever we demand. Most of us don't demand what we want but simply settle for what our job supplies. Too many jobs are dead-end with little room for advancement.

Many don't know what they want to do, so they drift through life with the hope that success will overtake them. Some still have no idea for their life's profession after they have graduated from college. Sometimes you try something and get lucky. Your talent and temperament fit the job and you do well. Countless others hate their job and never advance to a satisfying one.

Decide what you want from life and what it will take to get it. College can be used to explore areas you are interested in. Investigate the requirements of the position you want. Set short and long term goals to do what it takes to achieve it. Stick to your plans no matter what happens. Those that set goals and follow them usually succeed.

If you have no goals, you tend to drift through life being the victim of circumstances instead of controlling them. Not having a goal is like driving on the highway when you don't know where you are going. You had better find out. You might be going in the wrong direction. If you aim for nothing, you are sure to hit it.

Ten % of life is having things happen to you that you have no control over. Ninety % of life is how you react to the other ten %. You can't control the ten % but you can control the ninety %. You can't control what happens, but you can soften the blow of unfortunate times by saving money for emergencies.

Millions fall into the credit trap. Credit is a great thing when used wisely, but it will ruin your chances for a decent life if not controlled. Anyone familiar with simple arithmetic should know that you can't pay out more than you take in, yet most families are thousands of dollars in debt. Pay it off as soon as possible. If you pay the minium amount on a large debt it will take most of your life to pay it off, if you ever finish. You can't afford the extra interest.

Most of us have to buy homes and automobiles on credit. It is best to use as little for other things as possible. Leave your credit cards at home when you go shopping so that you will have to think about it for a while before using them.

Getting enough ahead to make some sound investments is a tremendous help. Compound interest adds up fast and having it work for instead of against you makes a big difference. After you have invested regularly for a few years, the interest you receive makes it unnecessary to live from paycheck to paycheck. You can subtract your IRA investment from your taxable income. You pay no tax on it until you take it out. Roth or other plans may work even better for you.

It is recommended that you save at least ten % of the money you make. Keep some in the bank and invest the rest. Set aside a certain amount to invest each month. If the market is up you will buy fewer shares. If it is down you can buy more.

If you have a knowledge of investments and are willing to keep up with how they are doing, you might do well deciding what to invest in yourself. If not, it would be wise to rely on a professional. Choose wisely because some brokers are more interested in their profit than yours, and will load you down with a lot of activity with the resulting commissions you will have to pay. Look for someone you can trust who has your best interest at heart.

If you don't have a plan for your life, you have no purpose. There is no sense of urgency and you are more inclined to splurge on pleasure and creature comforts. When you have a goal and a budget you already know what to spend your time and money on. You can be content in tough times because you know that you are doing the best you can with the present circumstances. You know that difficult times will only be temporary and that success is hidden behind the rough spots.

Having short time goals permits you to break down the task into bite size steps and are more likely to stick to your plans. If you just have a long time goal, you will be more easily discouraged because what you have to do seems out of reach.

It is important to know what you desire from life, so that you won't waste your time doing things that do not contribute to what you want to accomplish.

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Lynn Bradley is also the author of the paperback book, "Climbing the Heavenly Stairs." To read more about it click on the following link. http://www.thelynnbradleybook.com