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If we want to fill our heads with the doom and gloom society seems to thrive on, all we need to do is turn on the local news at night. To make that quantum leap toward personal happiness and success in life, sometimes we just need to do what so many people seem to be talking about lately: 'clean house' and take personal inventory of the people we associate with most.

One of my favorite quotes of all time is, 'Avoid the ugly people.' Mind you, when I say ugly, it has nothing to do with physical appearance. The comment illustrates that to best achieve our goals and wants in life, we should surround ourselves with other like-minded people to support us on our journey. In other words, we need to clean house of our own 'ugly people' who, for some strange reason, we feel the need to hold onto.

Maybe you'll relate to a personal example from my own life. On the surface, Mark (not his real name) was a pretty nice guy. I thought of him as my personal anchor, someone who kept me grounded and helped me stay on focus and direction. But every time I'd venture out into something new, Mark would put his 'ugly' hat on. Rather than becoming a voice of reason or attempting to illuminate both sides of a given situation, he'd only tell me about the horrors of such an idea and how crazy it was for me to even think that way. He made it clear that without him, I'd float off into despair. (I mean, could you imagine me, of all people, wanting to write a book, start my own company, or dive into the volatile and unstable real estate market?)

Sounds funny now, huh? The moral of this story is that I allowed Mark to set my limitations. I forgot that people only have as much power over us as we give them.

In retrospect, Mark was correct: He was my anchor after all, because I allowed him to hold me back from sailing toward prosperity earlier in my life when I first wanted to take that leap. Until I grew strong enough to cut the tie and move forward on my own, I allowed myself to be restrained by his idea of what success should be.

Bottom line, I rolled up my sleeves and set myself free . . . anchors away!

Remember, only you know what you're capable of, so if you're going to choose to live up to someone's expectations, shouldn't they be your own?

With that said, here's my challenge. Take a moment to reflect on any 'ugly' people who may be taking up space in your head (rent free), and gently let them go. You deserve better. In fact, you deserve the best. Never, ever let another person hold you back from your dreams.

Now, don't do what I say, do what I did. Roll up your sleeves and set yourself free as well.

Anchors away!

Best wishes always, and whatever you do,

Keep smiling!

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