1. Divine intervention- Whether it God or Buddha or Zeus, you need some divine
intervention in your life. You need something greater than you to thank for the
good and help with the bad. You can’t go through life thinking that you are above
all. Also, you need something to look forward to. We all know that someday we
will be six-feet under, but we need the hope that we will rise again. In short, there
needs to be a greater power in your life. I personally use prayers and trust in God
to get me through the day.

2. A Role model- A role model is just one step-down from divine intervention. A role-
model is someone you can compare your life to, and be able to tell if your life is
on track or not. For a role-model, you don’t have to want to be exactly like them
or even always like them, you just need someone who is going in the direction you
want to go. They can be a brother or sister, a distant cousin or even a character
from a book. What could be better than learning from a mistake that you don’t
even have to make. A role-model is really just a guide whom you let fall so you
can see where not to step. My role model happens to Sam, my older brother. I
don’t always like him and were not always that close but he is becoming who I
want to be and he has fallen so often that he has left every hole uncovered.

3. Read- Education is the key to success, and reading is the key to education. So, by the
transitive property, reading is the key to success. Reading expands your mind and
allows
you to see things from another point of view. The better read you are, the
better off you are. The best thing is, you don’t have to be a Rhodes scholar to be
able to
read, you learn in first grade. It’s that simple. I read all the time and as a
result I have found out that I know more words than my fellow classmates.
Although it can be somewhat bothersome to use what you think to be a common

word, such as apathetic, and then having to explain what it means to all your
friends. Happens a lot to me.

4. Fun- Find a way to entertain yourself. No matter if it’s playing sports or dungeons and
Dragons, find
what brings joy and then keep doing it. Your not living right if
your not having fun. Period. Life (in most cases) is a good length and you don’t
want to go through waking up knowing that the day is going to be a complete
drag. Find fun, and people that share your views on fun. I recommend at least an
hour a day of fun. Fun relieves stress and tension and I’m sure we could all use a
little less of those in our lives.

5. A Best-Friend- Boy or girl, brother or sister, you need to have someone you can
confide in. Someone
who knows that secrets don’t make friends, but rather keeps
them. Life isn’t going to be perfect and it’s nice to have a friend to talk to and
help you out. Find a person that will give you advice without making it the
worlds business, who understand your decisions without reprimanding you but
instead supporting you. A friend is someone who can help make right in the face
of wrong. I know that I could tell Brandon Roth anything in the world and I
would never hear another soul mutter my secrets.

6. Have goals- Notice plural, goals. How can you get a sense of achievement if you don’t
feel you accomplished anything? Have short term goals and long term. Set them
as high as you want and don’t mope if you fail. You need to have something to
strive for and to give life meaning. I got plenty of goals. If I fail one, I still got
ten more to accomplish and I don’t have time to be mournful about a little failure.
I learned it doesn’t hurt when you fall but rather when you lay there and get
trampled.