I’m writing this less than an hour after England won against Slovenia in the 2010 Soccer World Cup.

So, how did England do?

The short answer is: it doesn’t matter, because they won.

Now, I know all you footie fans out there who are serious about the game (I admit, I’m not particularly), will have something to say with what I’ve just written.

After all, it’s how you show up in the game that counts too. I watched England play on a big screen (3 big screen as it happens!) in a Bristol church. The atmosphere was pretty electric.

England played a great game. They were professional, competitive, seized opportunities whenever and wherever they could, and weren’t phazed by Slovenia’s offensive rushes. (OK, if you’re a *real* football fan, I know you might disagree, but that’s OK )

In essense, they didn’t just play a good game, they played to win.

Winning the game is what it’s all about for them.

And we all shook the roof of the church building good and proper when they scored.

We didn’t need to for their sakes; the England team were too far way.

But we cheered because we became part of the winning side.

FOr the England side, winning isn’t about scoring goals, it’s so much about playing your game in a peak state, so that the magic happens.

And we all cheered because that’s what we want for our lives.

But I bet there were some people in that building who have let go of that dream of the magic happening for them.

I bet some people were cheering vicariously.

So you and I have a choice. We can live just to cheer on the winning team. Or we can become winners.

All the players have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of this game. It’s not just something they do anymore. It’s who they are. Playing the game to win has become part of them, inseparably.

But the twist in the tail is that it’s just a game.

So, is life the same?

In a real sense it is.

We are born. We dream of accomplishing something of significance for our lives. Some of us fulfill that dream. We realise our desire.

What about you – how do you play this game of life? What does it mean to you? Are you playing to win? Add your comment below.

Playing The Game to Win is a post from: Dez Futak's Internet Marketing 101 Blog.

If you want to learn how to use the internet to automate your online marketing, consider joining Dez Futak’s Internet Marketing 101 course – it’s FREE & could save you thousands of dollars (and gain some dollars too!!)

Let me take you back a bit, to when I was about 7 years old.

My parents lived in a pretty village (that goes back to Roman times, so I’m told), which had all sorts of fun things for kids to explore: woodland, streams to fish for minnows, and most importantly a huge green open space where we could go bike riding.

Now I remember when I first tried mastering the bike riding bit: I was somewhere between 6 and 7 years of age, and I was falling off the bike quite a lot.

You can see where I’m going here, I hope.

Every day when I arrived back home during that summer, it was with a fresh graze on one knee or the other…the scabs never had time to heal up: I’d just keep getting new cuts every day from falling off.

But my mum never complained. She never said "well, I think you should just give up…you’re just not meant to ride a bike".

Nope. All she did was dab my cuts with TCP (I can still remember the stinging even now!).

Now, for some reason, it seems as if something weird often happens in school:

when we don’t get it first or second time around, the teachers give up on us.

Don’t get me wrong: I’m not blaming teachers here (I have come from that profession myself, and I’m not into shooting myself in the foot – it’s just far too painful).

All I’m saying is that there something seems to go wrong with the learning system, to the extent that some kids end up hating school because it keeps telling them they are failures.

Does that ring a bell with you?

So, what if this, or something similar from other important people in your life, happened to you?

How are you going to shake off some of the incorrect thoughts you have rattling around your head about who you are, and what you can and can’t achieve in life?

I’m not going to claim that a single blog post alone is going to make that massive shift for you.

But if you are struggling with your past, I do want you to re-consider my bike story for a moment.

What if you could decide, today, that the next time you fall off your ‘bike’ – whatever that now is, in your adult life – instead of criticising yourself for failing, you just dust the grit out of your knees, get back on, and get on with learning to balance effectively, so you can cycle better?

To increase the chance that you might think in this manner, remember the following: your past actions do not have to determine your future ones.

The past is the past. It has gone. The past does not determine your future.

As human beings, I believe that we often confuse the past with the future. By using the trends of the past, in our minds, we then say to ourselves: “Ah! This is what happened before, when I tried this, so I should expect the same outcome again the next time I try…..”

It’s a reasonable assumption. BUT – it’s also a limiting belief.

The future does not have to look like the past.

When I learned to cycle, all I did was keep failing my way to success.

And in many, many cases, it’s possible to change the way you think about yourself, resulting in the possibility of a very different outcome in the future.

The reason for me banging on about this so much in this article is because I see so many people stuck when they don’t have to be.

Leave the past in the past, and don’t let what has happened before determine the way things can be from now on.

Please do add your comments and thoughts below!

No-one Ever Told Me I Should Give Up (Simply Because I Fell Off). is a post from: Dez Futak's Internet Marketing 101 Blog.

If you want to learn how to use the internet to automate your online marketing, consider joining Dez Futak’s Internet Marketing 101 course – it’s FREE & could save you thousands of dollars (and gain some dollars too!!)

As you might know by now, I’m part of a community of online marketers who are committed to mastering the changes necessary to become successful in business.

I was recently listening to a call from one of the top marketers in this community, and she made the following statement during the call:

"Write down the top 20 qualities of the type of person you want to work with".

So, here it is. As you read down this list, if you’re saying "yes" to these, then click on my picture at the end of this post, fill in your name, email address & phone number, and I’ll give you a call.

20 Qualities of People Who I Want to Work With

1. Self-motivated
2. Committed to self-mastery and personal development
3. Primary focus is on making a difference in the world, rather than being motivated by a large bank balance
4. Hungry for change
5. Not afraid of failing forward
6. Understands that success is a process
7. Plays a bigger game than just self-interest
8. Is other-centered more than self-centered
9. Places a high value on other people
10. Is willing to forgive even when it hurts
11. Understands the importance of masterminding with others
12. Seeks out to learn new skills
13. Is committed to leadership through serving and by example
14. Wants the best outcome in any situation, even when it’s a challenge
15. Understands the great value of human relationships
16. Is courageous, and is able to face into the wind of challenges and ride with the wind of success
17. Invests time in people
18. Understands that money is just a vehicle to bring change, and not an end in itself
19. Loves working with others, but is committed to accountability to self
20. Always begins with the end in mind.

Click here to add your 20!

Aim for at least 5 if you’re busy

20 Qualities of People Who I Want to Work With is a post from: Dez Futak's Internet Marketing 101 Blog.

If you want to learn how to use the internet to automate your online marketing, consider joining Dez Futak’s Internet Marketing 101 course – it’s FREE & could save you thousands of dollars (and gain some dollars too!!)