Fact is, I think the positive thinking gurus are messing with your brain.

At a minimum, they are only giving you part of the picture.

And why not? You want to think positive thoughts, surround yourself with visions of life with millions of dollars, and "Poof" have it magically appear! Of course you want to imagine your success, sit back, and watch the universe provide. Who wouldn't?

Do nothing and get rich. Dream and become a millionaire. Sign me up!

Fairy tales have always been popular reading. But modern fairy tales gloss over the bad stuff. Read the originals, and find out the true story. "The Little Mermaid" did not marry her prince. She died and became sea foam.

Reality check, people!

Positive thinking theories sell books, and book sales line the pockets of the self-help gurus with lots of green. But positive mental attitude alone does not work for most of us.

You all know some guy or gal who seems to magically create something out of nothing. Everything goes right for him or her, and it's all because of positive mental attitude, right?

Wrong! Things work for that person, because they have always worked for that person. They were the first ones picked for dodge ball in elementary school. They were the captains of the football teams in high school, and class valedictorian at graduation. Over the years, they have developed the resources and contacts to make things happen more quickly than the rest of us.

With that kind of success, why wouldn't the rest be easy? These golden boys and girls attract wealth the way they attracted dates in high school. And now they are telling you it all happened because of The Secret?

What about the rest of us? The ones who were too small to be picked for the team, too geeky to get a date, or too shy to be class officer? Think and Grow Rich? I think not.

I call for a new motto! Do and Grow Rich!

Success comes from downright stubborn headed toughness and refusal to give up. You create wealth and success one small step at a time. You make mistakes, and learn. You find new ways to make mistakes. Eventually, you get it right.

I don't envy the golden boys and girls of this world. At some point all of us face failure. I have never met a successful entrepreneur who did not have to go through hell at some point on his or her road to success.

And guess what? I learned how to pick myself up and start over when I was eight. I discovered very early that my success was dependent on one thing and one thing alone.

Me.

If I want wealth and the life of a millionaire it will not be handed to me on a silver platter. I must do more than think happy thoughts and draw pictures of my dream house.

Most of us are pessimists. We always think about all the things that can possibly go wrong. We consider worst case scenario, and prepare for it. We are the Boy Scouts who live by the motto "Be Prepared".

And this is a good thing. I don't want to live my life wearing rose colored glasses. I want to be the one that is there with the first aid kit for the inevitable scrapes, and the raincoat in the car for the unexpected shower.

I want to always have a Plan B. Even a Plan C, D or E, if necessary.

You see, true wealth does not come from thoughts alone. If you want to be a millionaire, you have to DO SOMETHING!

Want some truly inspirational reading? Try Peter B. Kyne's The Go-Getter. This small story of persistence and downright dogged determination gets me every time. I can relate to William Peck's motto "It shall be done."

Face it. There isn't time to waste "getting your mind right". The best way to succeed is to get out there and get it done. Start with little things...one phone call you've been putting off, or even a repair project you've been avoiding. DO when you don't feel like it, because you need to, and "feeling like it" has nothing to do with it. In the beginning it will take conscious thought, but doing will become a habit. Pretty soon, you'll be one of those people who get things done.

Guess what? People who DO make things happen. And people who DO attract more people who DO, who also make things happen. I am always amazed by the old saying "Busy people get things done." It defies logic, but if you want something done, find a busy person to take care of it. Better yet, become that busy person, and get it done yourself!

Of course, you can't keep doing the same things if they don't work. Insanity is doing the same things over and over and expecting different results. But don't just sit around and whine that things won't work for you until you really do something long enough to find out if you need to find a different path.

This is not like getting lost in the wilderness. You cannot just hug a tree and wait until someone finds you. You need to find your own path, and more likely than not, your friends and loved ones will be like brambles on that path trying to hold you back. After all, who will they be able to whine to about how much their life sucks if you make yours better?

Dreaming about your success does not make it happen. The true secret is that you alone are responsible for your success, or your failure. You choose to do, or not.

My mentor is a short green fellow. He just shakes his head and ignores whining and self-pity. He understands that the universe has power for great good and great evil. He teaches his pupils about choice, free will, and focus. He takes whiny, sniveling children, and makes them into men who DO. Belief alone does not make things happen-belief through action is the key to great success.

As all young Jedi do, I live my life by words of the great Yoda.

"There is no such thing as Try. Do or Do Not."

What about you?