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Thursday, July I7 ,2008. Page 18Fod says you-can start

anytime by believing thatyou can bring your ownmagical ingredients to thesterw-'of=life-1o rreate andbake a wonderful newgecipe in your life. The des-tination is not necessarilvthe goal at all. Gettine thereis the adventure. Successthese days demands experi-ence, talent and authenticitv.You can get recognized forthe wealth of experienceand talent you bring to thetable in the area you chooseto focus.

'You don't wake up andsimply become the newyou," he said. 'You do vourdue diligence first - ihenfocus like a laser on whatyou really want - and thendo your damndest to make ithappen."

Here are Fogel's 10 stepsto a successful personalreinvention.. IIAVE PASSION. Whenentering a new field it allbegins with the burningdesire you have in yourheart that propels you for-ward to make a change.Here's an example: Let's sayyou want to reinvent vour-self into an Internet mar-keter and sell ant farms on-line. Problem is you don't.care about ant farms. You,rejust doing it for a fast buckbecause they're a hot itemnow.

There's a strong chanceyou will fail because youhave no emotional connec-

tion to ants and the joy(clears throat) they give topeople. As opposed to theant farmer who reallv feelsitStiS'lifi:'f work. (Suie, hemight have some "issues,'about bondinC with ants -but at least he will move thefarms quicker.)

KNOIVTIIYSELF'. Takea piece of paper and make alist of your strengths andyour weaknesses - then goto a close friend or co-work-er and request they be bru-tally honest and have themlist your strengths and especially your weaknesses.Compare notes. If the sameweaknesses come up onboth your lists thenguess what? You have somework to do on yourself.

IIAVE A MASTERPIllN. Unless your healthis at stake, don't just quityour job. Instead, if you,reserious about moving onto anew career - just like goingon a satari -you must havea map with directions (or agood guide) to get you toyour new destination. Doyour due diligence andinvestigate what this newcareer will give you.

Is this new career goingto give financial stabilitv? Isit a saturated market? Whatobstacles will I encounter? IfI am going to start my ownbusiness, what are thecosts? Important If you do

See STEPS, page 28

10 steps to successfulpersonal reinuention

SrscrAr To TnnNrws-Etcnrss

Peter Fogel, a MiamiFla.-based reinventionexpert and author of thebook "If Not Now. ThenWhen"? says that most mid-life crises he sees in theover 4Gish-plus crowd stemfrom fear. It's becomingeven more acute given thechill factor in today's economic climate., But more and more peo

ple are coming to the real-izafron that it simply doesn'thave to be thatway. You canreinvent your life and enjoynew heights of personal,professional and socialachievement if you justfocus on what you want andwhat you need to do.

'You can deff the mythsthat you hear about beingover the hill after 40, 50, 60,or whatever." Fogel says. "Itdoesn't matter if you areretiring, or simply havereached a plateau in yourjob, or want to branch outfrom your company and goprivate. Reinvention willserve you well. It's not hardand the benefits can be sig-nificant to you."

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Page 2It . Thursday, luly L7,2OOB . Appalachian News-Express

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STEPS(Contlnued From Page 18)

go cold turkey and quit yourpresent position remember:It's important you haveenough funds (around sixmonths of salary in thebank);

GET OUT OF YOURCOMFORT ZONE. A bodyin motion, stays in motion ...and a body at rest, well ... zzz.

You get the picture. Peopletend to be "happy" in theirmiserable zone and will doeverything they can to NOTto take action for fear of theunknown (or failure.)

To successfully reinventyourself, you have to shakeup your o'wn perception ofyour realitry and say to your-self, 'Whal; is the worse thatcan happe:n?" and still putyourself inL a stressful spot ifyou need to. Tom Hanks said

to one of the other charactersin the movie, 'A l,eague ofTheir Own," "It's baseball ...it's supposed to be hard .i ifit wasnrt then everyonewould be doing it."

CAST YOUR FEARSASIDE. There's no gettingaround it, as you get older,fear rears its ugly head whenyou want to make a drasticchange. When you'reyounger you can "go for it."When you get older,"Sometimes you want i1 deliv-ered." And that's when self-doubt seeps in like sv5uo^onpancakes.

But know your limitations:If you have arthritis perhapsbecoming a helicopter pilotin war torn Darfur is NOTyour best vocational move.You have permission to bescared ofthe unknown - butstill find the gumption tomove forward towards yourdream job/career. Becausethe only thing worse thanfear, is years later havingr'najor regrets.

FIND YOUR DEFIN.ING MOMENI. A definingmoment is that particulartime in your life that gives

. you a strong indication thatyou have to make a change inyour work and, or, in yourcareer. It can come frominternal or external forces.

This defining momentcould be'a sign" from above(i.e. see Moses and burningbush). Or perhaps serioushealth issues which leaveyou no choice and insist you

'make a change. Anotherdefining moment could be anunexpected opportunity thatcomes to you. You rise to theoccasion, grab the brass ring,and Voila! - you hit pay dirtand realize that THIS is thecareer direction you shouldbe heading into. Either way,you are taking action.

GE"T YOUR MMILYON BOARD. In the remakeof the movie. "The HeartBreak Kid" one of BenStiller's buddies says,"Happy Wife means aHappy Wife" Well, for a suc-cebsful reinvention

well.It's important that your

immediate dependents knowthere is going to be a sacri-fice as either mommy ordaddy ventures into unchart-ed territory with their newcareer. Patience and under-standing are what's neededduring this transition time. Ifthey don't "get your drearn,"then you could end up feel-ing like a salmon swimmingup stream.

BE REALISTIC. Don'tdismiss any "big idea"dreams vgu have aboutchanging careers. Do yourhomework and really investi-gate if this career, change isviable and can sustain a liveli-hood. HINT: If you are anentrepreneur and you wantto start a business, see ifother people are doing it andare successful at it.

But you always have to berealistic about chasing yourdream of reinvention: If youare a six-figure stockbrokerwho is burnt like toast fromchasing the almighty buckand your dream is to relocateto Belize, get a tan and tendbar at a tourist trap, don'tcomplain if your tips are notmaking your monthly nut.

GET A MASTERMINDGROUP. If you have yourheart set on being an entre-preneur then get yourselfinto a mastermind group.These are like.minded peo-ple who all want to help eachother. They are a supportgroup ivho work together asa "sounding board" for yourideas.

You don't want to be in agroup of people who are"wannabees." You want to bein a group of people who arealready successful and aredoing what YOU want to do.

Napoleon Hill from thebook. "Think and GrowRich," was a huge proponentof mastermind groups. TonyRobbins is in one. Yes, TonyRobbins. and his containsfolks that are wealthier thanhim. Remember: Surroundyourself with positive peoplewho are at the 'level YOUwant to reach. Don't sur-round yourself with people

only need a happyyou notspouse

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who have the "grab the lowhanging fr uif' mentality.

FIND YOURSEI-F AMENTOR. According to oneof my mentors it takes about1,000 hours to learrr a newskill and become proficient atit. It you can find yourseH amentor you can cut that timeto about 500 hours. A mentoris someone who has beenthere and done it. They are atexpert guru status, Theseare people who can guideyou in your quest - regard-less of your age - to helpyou achieve your goals.

low pages and Google in"Mentors in San Diego." Youhave to find these people -....cajole them ... praise thep... and then work out an.arrangement that servd$both of you

"If Not Now. Then When?"by Peter Fogel is availableonline and at bookstores,nationwide. Fogel is i rein",vention expert. For mor€.-information visit wwwrein-ventyourselfrro\ry.com. or cdlf ''561/245-5252. You can agk-Peter a question by sending'him an e-mail at reinvent-