Tough Times. Tough People.

It was Joe Kennedy, the father of President John F. Kennedy, who first said, "When the times get tough the tough get going!" and he knew what he was talking about. In example after example, throughout history, over and over again, we see people rise to the occasion, doing extraordinary things in the face of extraordinary difficulties, with extraordinary results, finding extraordinary success. The financially difficult times we currently face are no different. Tough people will rise to the challenge and, finding the good among the troubles, they will succeed where other fail.

So what's the difference? What do these people have that you don't? Well, the simple answer is, really, nothing. For the most part you have access to the same information, the same tools, and the same Internet. In fact, as a member of the Online Selling Association you may even have an edge. The only possible difference is the decision to take action. That is the one thing that typically separates the successful, the winners, from those who "also ran".

Doing nothing is always easy, but the result is often hard. Doing something different, standing apart from the crowd, taking the less-trodden path, reaching for the un-reachable, grasping what others may not even see, is all about making a decision. That's all it takes, deciding to do that which others fail to do. It may seem hard at first but, in the end, you realize it was actually easy. You need to make the decision to move ahead in these difficult times, not waiting for anyone to do it for you, or relying on others to lead the way. Choosing to break a new trail, to be your own leader, to find your own success when prospects seem so bleak, will foster its own success.

Making that first step -- the decision itself -- and then following it with action will begin the process that will lead to your success, while others complain and fall to the wayside. Don't be afraid to act. Use the tools at your finger tips. Ask questions. Seek answers. Keep learning. Read something new every day. Put what you learn into action. Take small, but positive, steps each day that move your business relentlessly forward even a little bit at a time. Push back against those forces that would hold you back. When someone says it can't be done, know that it can. When someone says you can't do it, know with all your heart that it can. It's all positive. It's all good. It all leads toward your ultimate success.

It is in these most difficult times, when others feel overwhelmed by the negative, that a few rise up proving it can, after all, be done. And, afterward, so many ask, "how is it that they could when I couldn't?" You can be among the ones who did if you choose. All you need to do to get started is to make the decision that you want to do it. That's the simple difference that keeps the tough going whenever the going gets tough!