When Henley wrote, “I am the master of my fate, and I am the captain of my soul,” what he failed to mention was that it’s true because we have the power to control our own thoughts.

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Is this your last day on planet Earth? Probably not, hope not. And yet you never know.

There is no guarantee how long we get to go around this planet. But the reality is that we can make every day we live on this planet our masterpiece by creating opportunities and seeing possibilities and living vivaciously as if this could be our last day on planet Earth.

Yet many people plod along, they wake up in the morning, they make coffee, they drive to work, they punch in, they do their job, they punch out. They drive home, they watch television, they eat dinner, they go to sleep, they wake up, they make coffee, they drive to work, they punch in.

They’re not making their life a masterpiece.

We have one chance every single day to start from scratch, to create opportunities that could change our life forever.

Decide to make today your masterpiece.

The Games People Play

Whether it’s conscious or subconscious, many people play games in the workplace. When I say “play games,” that isn’t exactly a compliment. I’m not referring to workplaces that have bean bags and foosball tables.

For instance, if your supervisor asks you to get something done, and you pretend later not to know about the assignment, and at the time that it’s due, you start to ask questions? That’s not going to go so well.

When bank employees play games in the workplace, it isn’t a good thing because what they’re doing is basically pretending not to know. It’s also called passive-aggressive behavior. Pretending not to know you are engaging in passive-aggressive conversation and behavior is not attractive in adults.

Get Conditions of Satsifaction

Instead, whenever you are unclear about something, get your conditions of satisfaction that we discussed before. And if it looks like you might be missing a deadline, negotiate well in advance and let your boss know well in advance that…

1. there is an obstacle
2. what it is
3. what you’re doing to get around it
4. and what your new intended deadline would be.

Ask if that is acceptable, because sometimes just because you’ve negotiated for it doesn’t mean that it’s automatically going to be a “Yes” answer from your boss. Maybe you have to reprioritize something else to get it done.

That cleanliness in how you have that conversation makes a big difference in the relationship and the outcomes of your job. Be very thoughtful about keeping your conversations clean, make direct requests of people, fulfill on those, and if you blow it for whatever reason, just say these beautiful words, “I blew it.” It’s that simple.

Everybody knows that everybody makes mistakes. That part’s okay. Granted, that obviously can’t happen every day, all day long. But when you make a mistake, how you handle that mistake defines who you are to everyone around you. It is a sign of your character. So, next time you blow it simply say these 3 words, “I blew it.”

Here’s my massive corrective action plan:

Number one, make sure it never happens again.

And number two, make sure this gets corrected and caught up.