In life, as we go about our daily tasks it is so easy to lose sight of a very fundamental important fact: you are your most important resource. Your ideas, skills, qualities, and characteristics...the essence of you... are what will propel you towards success, or hinder your progress if you allow it to. Which will become your reality?

Do you remember making a "Pluses versus Minuses"/Good Versus Bad "T"? Well, it's time to dig out the pen and paper, or fire up the computer. Your "T" will have one side marked advantages and the other marked disadvantages. Your advantages column will contain all of the "assets" that you bring to the table. The disadvantages column will contain all of the "liabilities". Please remember to be realistic, thorough, and above all else...honest. While it may be eye-opening, and perhaps even a little unflattering to see "you" listed on a legal pad or on a computer screen, this may be just the catalyst needed to implement change. The adjustments necessary to shorten your liabilities column and lengthen your assets tally.

The purpose of the "T" exercise is to use this as a tool to help you move towards success at a more rapid rate. So as you develop your columns, always keep the goal in the back of your mind. It is often easy to mistake qualities as assets in all areas of life that may be disadvantageous to your overall quest for success. For example, Gerald is a well educated man in his mid-thirties. He has always taken pride in the fact that he made his own way in life. He got himself into college on an almost full scholarship, paid his way by working two jobs while in school, and has even managed to pay back the bulk of his student loans. He did this all without asking anyone for any assistance.

Is this an asset or a liability? We are taught that being self-sufficient is an admirable trait, but in his quest for success and prosperity, Gerald's trait could be a serious liability. In The One Minute Millionaire Robert G. Allen, and Mark Victor Hansen stress team building as an essential element for becoming an Enlightened Millionaire. Gerald's reluctance to seek the help of other could be extremely detrimental to his success, since we know that we cannot be all things, solve all things, or foresee all things. The way to increase the probability of success is my combining the assets of everyone on a team.

Gerald's is just one instance of a characteristic that is strong in one area. That could have a different set of repercussions when applied to a different scenario. So when you are sitting down to make your "T", hold the intention for yourself that the list you generate will be for the sole purpose of success and prosperity. As The One Minute Millionaire points out, "you are your wealth." Without the creativity behind the thought that sparks the idea, nothing would come to fruition. The creativity begins with Y-O-U. It's time to uncover, explore, and celebrate the assets that are the essence of you and give credit where credit is due.