Millions of Americans today are laid off, losing their homes and losing hope, and Douglas Wallace knows just how that feels.
Wallace grew up poor in the hills of Tennessee, as did his father and his father before him.
He slept with his family in one bed and ate what could be shot in the woods.
He was frozen in the grip of what he has begun calling “generational poverty,” as a launching pad to discuss the hopelessness that characterizes the culture of the poverty-stricken family in America.
Today, Wallace is wealthy, having broken the cycle of poverty in his family.
He became educated and successful, and sold his law firm a few years ago, retiring to San Diego, California.
He chronicled his journey in his autobiography,
Everything Will be All Right.
What helped him emerge from the cycle was his ability to transcend the hopelessness and listen to the voice in his head that kept telling him that everything would be all right.
In order to foster that voice in others who may be struggling, Wallace offers the following tips:
Maintain a positive attitude at all times.
Don't allow others to have power over your dreams and aspirations.
Make things right when you commit a wrong.
Seek out good role models and then listen, observe and copy.
Get rid of the chip on your shoulder. It's not all about you.
Avoid the undisciplined pursuit of unrealistic goals. .
Don't grasp for success with a quick, big solution.
Never give up, even when the going gets tough.
Always work hard, very hard, in everything that you do.
Disassociate with people who hold you back.
Follow through with commitments.
Dream big.
