by Jeb Blount

(Listen to this article free on iTunes)

Tonight as we watched fireworks celebrating Independence Day here in the United States I was overwhelmed with pride for my country. I felt so blessed to have been born in a country where anything is possible and anyone, no matter the economic background, culture, race, or religion, has the opportunity to succeed.

Is it a perfect place? Of course not. We are a country wedded in paradox. Though each person has equal opportunity to succeed, we don’t all start at the same place with the same resources. Though we celebrate those who pull themselves up by their own bootstraps we willingly provide hand outs to others who claim that they are victims of the system. And even though we proclaim a level playing field of one man one vote, we allow special interests on all sides to dilute the power of those votes. There is racism, prejudice, poverty, and exclusion.  In other words, even in America where opportunity abounds – life is not fair.

In fact, life is not fair anywhere in the world. Bad things happen to good people. Bad people sometimes win. There is defeat, failure, and roadblocks. There are poor people and rich people. Some people have to work harder than others to get ahead. Governments love to tax or as some folks say, penalize the success of those who have worked hard to make something of their lives. Some people give, some people take. And while some accept and make the best of where they are in life others become victims and wait for someone or something to come to their rescue.

There are myriad external forces that you cannot control. There will always be someone or something standing in your way. There will always be something to complain about. And there will always be a reason on hold your hand out and wait for someone or something to save you. When we allow these external forces to control our actions and thoughts we become slaves – slaves to the government, slaves to the company, slaves to the boss, slaves to our heritage, and slaves to the whims and opinions of others.

But what if you said “Starting today I will not depend on, wait on, or hope for luck, the lottery, the boss, fate, or the government to help me change my life?  I will take responsibility for my own life. I will set my own course. I will make my own success. I will take action. I will persist. I will find lessons in setbacks. I will look forward not backward. I will turn my haters into motivators. I will be empowered by my circumstances not impeded by them. I can achieve whatever I want and nothing can hold me back. This is my Independence Day!”

True freedom is accepting and believing that you and you alone must be responsible for your life. That is how you break the bonds of slavery. That is how you attain success. And that is real independence.

Jeb Blount is the founder and CEO of SalesGravy.com, the most visited sales website in the world (source: quantcast.com, compete.com, alexa.com). He is the author of the best selling book PowerPrinciples available in harcover and audio.

Follow Jeb on Twitter: http://twitter.com/salesgravy

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