Forget past mistakes. Forget failures. Forget everything except what you are going to do now and do it. - William Durant, founder of General Motors

There was a period of about 5 years where it seemed like nothing I tried worked the way I wanted it to.

Nothing was working in business. Nothing working in my education. Relationships went bad.

I would look at those "failures" and assume that anything coming to me in the future in these areas wouldn't work.

I sabotaged my future success by focusing on the things that went wrong in the past.

As my pastor, Rev. Kenneth Phelps, said in a recent sermon, "You have to create a new story for yourself."

It's true that whatever you focus on expands and grows larger in your life. The events of the past can, if you let them, become a huge 10 ton weight on the back of your neck. So here are my tips for helping you release your past negatives and create a positive future.

The past is not a physical place. You can't buy a plane ticket and travel there. You can only get there in your mind.

Negative thoughts are similar to bad habits. You can only get rid of them by replacing them with something positive.

Don't sit at home on your couch or at work at your desk and think about all the bad stuff from your past. That will only drain your energy, lower your self-esteem, and kill your purpose.

Get moving! Get assertive in creating the life you want! Who wants to see you dragging around the office or your house wearing a robe in a funk?

Is that what you want? I may not know you personally, but I know that you want to feel CONFIDENT! I know that you want PEACE. I know that you want GREATNESS!

You have to allow all that you want to come into your life. You have to unblock it's flow into your life.

I believe that an ungrateful heart is what kept my in a slump. Complaining about my situation and feeling sorry for myself.

So what did I do differently? I started being grateful for where I was that day. I began to thank God for the good in my life. I was thankful for the strength I had been given to pursue my passions.

You can do the same. I BELIEVE IN YOU!

To your future,

Derek Felton
http://www.derekfelton.com/blog