As I was sitting in a coffee shop last week, I had a conversation with a man who went to Berkeley to pursue a music career aspiring to eventually play piano for an orchestra. After 10 years being out of school, he still has over $100,000 dollars of debt, and barely getting by working 50 hours per week teaching and playing as many local performances as he can. With bills to be paid and having two children much of his life is on hold.

He was expressing to me how much time, effort, and money he has been putting into his career only to leave home at 7:00AM and return home at 9:00PM. His work schedule makes spending quality time with his family difficult. His career goal was to play in a major metropolitan orchestra and be able to earn six figures doing it, but at this point he is almost at his breaking point and ready to throw in the towel.

The sad thing is to see someone like this who has poured thousands of hours and/or dollars into their career to almost regret the career they choose, and the life that they are currently living. The good news is that it will just take one successful audition with one “yes” from an orchestra for his whole life to change. I encouraged him to not give up, and to keep striving for that breakout moment for himself and his family.

Having this conversation made me think about my own personal journey, and the times I didn’t see the fruit from the effort I was putting in and how they eventually paid off. The hard working individual, in many cases, can feel under-accomplished compared to the effort that they have put into their pursuits. It’s common for all of us to evaluate our situations and think our careers should be further down the line than they are, or that things don’t always line up the way they should.

When I look at the challenges that I have in front of me today, I have to remind myself of what it was like to get to where I am, and that it’s going to take the same perseverance to take new steps in my life.

Maybe you’re in that situation presently where you feel like you’re not where you should be based on all the hard work and effort you poured into your pursuits. Sometimes the dividends in life that you are receiving just doesn’t seem to equate to all of the hard work that it took for you to even get where you are today. I would just encourage you to not give up, and to know that things can change for the better very quickly in the fortunate chain of events.

Success in the making can be a rough journey, and sometimes might seem impossible. Becoming successful isn’t as glamorized as sales tactics and get rich quick schemes want people to believe. It takes years of hard work and perseverance. The key is to never give up, and continually reach for something greater.

The truth is sometimes what you might consider a failure, someone else sees as a success. It’s because you know the amount of effort you have poured into your situation, and you have higher expectations for your results. Sometimes, we all need a reminder that success in the making can be a rough road, and it takes a commitment to the goal to eventually have that breakthrough moment.

Here is to you and your successful future … I believe in you!

Prosperous Regards,
Kenneth Ameduri
Chief Editor at CrushTheStreet.com