(George Curry Media) – As a young college football star and Olympic weightlifting champion, Jim Stovall was focused on athletics and not his education. But all of that changed after a routine medical examination revealed that Stovall was losing his sight and would be blind in a short time. He had no marketable skills and was flat broke.
The shock of this forced Stovall to change his mindset. He began to search out coaches and mentors who could direct him toward his goal of becoming wealthy.
He sought out people who helped him work on his mindset. And he took courses and studied material that helped him grow himself. This is how Stovall began his personal journey of self-development and growth that would lead him to become a multi-millionaire businessman.
Stovall is now the founder and president of the Emmy award-winning Narrative Television Network that caters to blind viewers. He was selected as the International Humanitarian of the Year, joining former President Jimmy Carter and Mother Teresa.
He’s the recipient of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce National Blue Chip Enterprise Award, a world-renowned speaker and the author of the best-selling book, The Ultimate Gift, now a 20th Century Fox major motion picture.
In the book, Forbes Great Success Stories: Twelve Tales of Victory Wrested from Defeat by Alan Farnham, Steve Forbes Jr., the president and CEO of Forbes magazine said, “Jim Stovall is one of the most extraordinary men of our era.”
His accomplishments are remarkable, in and of themselves, yet he found time to go back to college. He is a graduate of Oral Roberts University. On May 3, 2008, he received an honorary doctorate from ORU for his work with the disabled.
During my SuriusXM interview, Stovall shared these powerful principles:
• Life is really not about what happens to you, but what you do about it.
• Money must be seen as a tool to allow you to do what you love to do. Money magnifies everything. “If you love doing good, then money allows you to do more good. But if you love doing stupid stuff, it will allow you to do more of that as well.”
• Money gives you options and allows you to live on your own terms.
• Never buy a map from someone who has never been where you want to go. Be willing to ask for help from those who have been where you want to go.
• The quickest way to get to wealthy is to make up your mind to do whatever it takes (that is moral and legal) to achieve it. Then go to work on that goal.
• Starting is half the battle of success. And a good plan poorly executed is better than a perfect plan that is never executed.
• Change your mind and you can change your life. You have the right to choose your path. You are one quality decision away from anything you want.
• Don’t let small challenges become big obstacles. To have no sight is not a big deal, but to have no vision is tragic. Sight is to only see where you are; but vision is to see where you want to go and what you want to be.
• Make the decision to invest in yourself by reading great books. Poor people have big televisions and small libraries. Millionaires have big televisions as well, but bigger libraries.
• You cannot expand your bank account until you expand your mind.
Willie Jolley is a motivational speaker, author, the host of the a motivational show on Sirius XM Satellite Radio and the opening speaker on the national Get Motivated Business Seminar Tour. He can be reached through http://www.williejolley.com.