One of my favorite trainers is Les Brown. I first heard Les as a speaker at a national convention for a company I represented. It was a decade ago and it seems I've grabbed some pearl from his materials every year since then. This article is no different. We hear all kinds of lectures on people. There are the "Colors". Are you a Red or Blue? Are you a Yellow or Green? What about that personality type letters A & B?

This article by Les breaks it down to the simple. I like simple. It's a great place to start from and then branch out into the others from there. If you are reading this I am willing to wager that you are in either the first or third group Les mentions. If you are in the second, I hope you find something that motivates you to change directions. If you are in the first perhaps it will help you recognize the folks you know in the third group, the wayward winners, and give you ideas that will help you help them to grow into your level, And if you are like so many who are in the third then pay close attention. As Les says below, you are not lost souls but people who jut need a little tweaking and coaching and nudging back on course. That's not a bad place to be at all. In fact, I believe it to be the largest segment of the population. Lets see what Les has to say...

Three Kinds of People ?

I believe there are three kinds of people. There are winners, who know what they want and understand their potential and the possibilities. They take life on. Next are losers, who don't have a clue as to who they are. They allow circumstances to shape their lives and their self-image.

I believe there is a third group as well. This consists of potential winners whose lives are just slightly out of alignment. I call them wayward winners. It may be that they just need to learn how to be real winners. Perhaps they've hit a bump or two that has knocked them off course and they are temporarily befuddled. A failed relationship, a lost job, financial problems, unformed goals, a lack of parental support, illness, many things can send us off course temporarily.

Wayward winners are not lost souls; they just need some tweaking and coaching and nudging to get them back on course. A map might be nice. Many of these wayward winners are easily identifiable because they are always searching.

Right now, there are many wayward winners out there braving rain, sleet and snow because they too still believe that they have untapped talents. They attend motivational seminars and listen to inspirational tapes and they plunge onward, believing that sooner or later they will find their way again. Other wayward winners have temporarily given up. They are damaged and disoriented, their confidence badly eroded. They tend to drift through life numbly. The friends and relatives and loved ones of wayward winners see that they are out of sync and wonder why they can't be satisfied, why they don't settle down. They wonder how people who have such obvious abilities and great potential can be so disoriented and unsure.

It is difficult for others to understand the rawness of a broken heart or the aching emptiness of an unguided spirit. You and I know. We have been there. Wayward winners know that there are possibilities out there, but too often they feel locked out from them. Some are afraid to risk any more because of what they have risked and lost already.

I know now that as difficult as it may be for you wayward winners to do, it is necessary to continue to test yourselves. Even though you have been hurt before, it is the only way to grow. We all have the capacity to change, to lead meaningful and productive lives by awakening our consciousness.

You know there are going to be tough times as you go about changing your life, so brace yourself and you will be able to handle them. When you get into your seat on an airplane, what is the first thing they tell you to do? Fasten your seat belt. Brace yourself for the turbulence.

When you decide to move your life to the next level of accomplishment, you must fasten your mental and spiritual seat belts because it is going to be a while before you reach that comfortable level again. You will reach it, but you must endure the turbulence of change in order to grow.

Try this technique to help you through the difficult times of change and growth. Find four reasons why you cannot succumb to your fears and your troubles. Find those deep sources of motivation that can lift you out of the turbulence and above the clouds. You must change your life because, for example:

You have not yet tapped the talents given you.

You want to leave something more for your children.

You want to live life rather than letting life live you.

You want to do what makes you happy.

It is in these rocky early moments of bringing change to your life that you discover who you are. In the prosperous times, you build what is in your pocket. In the tough times, you strengthen what is in your heart. And that is when you gain insight into yourself, insight that leads to self-mastery and an expansion of your consciousness as a life force in both your personal and professional lives.

About the Author:
Les Brown is a highly acclaimed and dynamic public speaker who conducts personal and professional seminars for leading corporate and business clients and public audiences around the world. A consummate speech coach, he conducts seminars and workshops on mastering the art of public speaking for corporate executives, political leaders, celebrities, and a wide variety of people across the country. He is well known to television audiences through his PBS specials, and was the host of the nationally syndicated Les Brown Show. To learn more, visit http://www.lesbrown.com

Thanks for reading.

P.S.
After I posted this on my blogstream page this morning I got a bulletin from a MySpace friend who would coincidentally be blogging similar thoughts. I had a chance to read it in its entirety and it is fantastic and applicable to business, life, love or religion. Any and All. It is a must read. Visit  Tom Sims blog entitled The Towel Step