THE ROAD TO SUCCESS
and a strong work ethic lead to success
education How
Sir John Swan is an entrepreneur and the former Premier of Bermuda. He explains the secrets of his success.
I
was born with impaired vision and subsequently discovered that I was dyslexic. As a young person, I gave very little thought to this challenge although, throughout my childhood, my parents were very positive about my development and insisted that
I carry out the chores they gave me in a responsible, disciplined and timely manner. From my early childhood, my parents were committed to preparing me for life. Their commitment to my education and determination to ensure that I developed the ability to think independently encouraged me to complete, compete and excel academically.
Through education, I learned to think, not to follow aimlessly. I combined my learning with action. My unavoidable impediment impelled me to work even harder and to seek greater knowledge. I was determined that my learning disability would not be an excuse for me not to succeed. Patience, politeness, diligence, enterprise and curiosity made up my overall attitude that contributed to my success. These were the major characteristics I embraced throughout my life and they became a central part of my academic, business and political careers.
I was able to complete my formal education, enter into business and be successful by setting very clear goals and carefully monitoring my achievements. It was also important to avoid letting other people’s ideas, ideals or utterances interfere with my interaction with people, the community or my objectives. I learned to be a tolerant listener but became intolerant if I allowed myself to be distracted from the goals I had set. This ultimately led me into politics and those same principles were instrumental in my rapid rise to the Premiership, during which I prepared Bermuda for the 21st century, both structurally and intellectually.
There can be no doubt that as I reflect over the years, if you are positive, tolerant and disciplined, people know exactly where you stand and are prepared to give you extraordinary help to achieve your goals. I say to any young person that there is no limit to what you can achieve, if you endeavour very early in life to understand your God-given gifts and make the most of them in a very defined and disciplined manner. Therein lie the fundamental principles of how my education and strong work ethic led to my business and political success. Young people have to develop their own set of principles that they can effectively live by and apply in almost any endeavour. These established principles, together with education and a strong work ethic, will lay the foundation for future success.
16 FAST TRACK / Careers module / 2010-2011 WWW.FASTTRACKBERMUDA.COM
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