Bruno’s philosophy
My top three beliefs
The following three points will help you become positive and successful. In fact, I am convinced that together they are the make-or-break factor between success and failure in business and private life.
1. Welcoming criticism
The ability to accept criticism is the most important factor in becoming successful. Why? Because accepting criticism forces us to be flexible. It helps us to correct our mistakes – often before we make them. And the honesty it engenders helps us see our true potential.
If we close our minds to criticism, we may save ourselves some hurt feelings, but all we’re really doing is hurting ourselves by limiting ourselves. If we discourage others from evaluating our decisions, we will pay a high price: a clouded judgment, a string of bad decisions, and lots and lots of stress that could have easily been avoided.
We should therefore not only accept criticism but welcome it and even and ask for it. If we are closed to being criticized, our friends and acquaintances won’t dare tell us what they think. That’s bad news for us, because we are the ones who will pay.
Though this is not my main point here, it’s worth mentioning that there is a negative side to the coin of welcoming criticism: being too dependent on other people’s opinions and forever asking others what we should do.
2. Learning to LET GO
Perhaps your health is faltering, a friend has betrayed you, an investment has gone bad, or a neighbor is driving you crazy. Perhaps your family is not giving you the support you think you deserve, or your children are not turning out as you had planned.
“Poor me,” you sigh, and soon your disappointment and frustration boil over into anger. Deep down, you know you can’t change what has happened, yet you hold on to these experiences for dear life, allowing them to color your every waking and sleeping moment.
The angrier you become, however, the more urgent it is for you to let go. Letting go of our bad experiences, our anger, our frustration, our lust for revenge is nothing other than an act of self-protection. If we can’t let go, we will hurt ourselves.
Letting go should not be confused, however, with passively forgetting and ignoring reality. It is actually a very active process. It means investing time and energy into separating the personal issues from the factual ones. Only then are we protected from our usual reaction: blaming others or ourselves. Only then can we grow and accept the lessons that our experiences are teaching us. And only then we can move on to a new task, a new experience, and a new, positive way of doing things.
3. Passing it on – sharing
Those who know me know that I like to assist others in achieving their personal and professional goals. I have a very good reason for doing this, one that has become my personal motto: If you have received, you must pass it on. And conversely, you can only receive again if you have passed it on.
What do I mean by passing it on? Lending a hand to others not only financially but also by listening to them, helping them work out their problems, acting as a role model, and supporting them in their dreams, their efforts, and their problems.
Many of us think we are self-made. “I Did It My Way” is the theme song of our lives. But it just isn’t true. None of us can succeed without the graciousness of our parents or friends, the lessons of history, the traditions of our field of enterprise, and the experiences of others: our families, teachers, bosses, and co-workers.
Passing on our own experience and success is the only way to keep the system of giving and receiving in balance. It’s also the only way we can achieve balance in our own lives.
So there it is. Succeeding in life is a process of letting go and sharing. I hope this has been of help to you. If so, pass it on!
Let me add one more thought. Meditation can be of great help to you in growing and achieving your goals. I invite you to learn more about it. I have written a short tutorial on the subject that thousands of people have read, and I would be very pleased if you would read it, too. You can find it here.
