I listened back then to tapes and these days to MP3s of people with non-religious positive messages. It is from these that I stay positive and do the right things. I think we generally find that when we get on a right path, there is usually somebody influencing us. So I can take credit for taking action, but not for the ideas themselves. An idea isn't worth anything unless it results in taking action. In my case, Brian Tracy, Jim Rohn, Earl Nightingale, and more recently, Shad Helmstetter, are among these.
There are folks who feel these ideas are not worth the effort or that these people don't have anything to offer. I have found that coming from a severely dysfunctional family, such speakers really help to overcome the training I got while growing up. Rather than blaming my parents, I realize that they must have been brought up this way and are just doing what they know. They were good parents in that they raised a family of 10 kids and we never went without food or a home. It was the psychological aspect that was really problematic. There are many households with similar situations, so it is not at all uncommon and I doubt I had it worse than others. What I did do was look for a solution to get my life going, and I did. Not everyone among my siblings did that, but those who did, have fared very well.
Tony
