The Doctor's Words Hung in the Air..."No Flying!"

By Steve Melton
Posted Monday, December 20, 2004

The Doctor's words hung in the air creating suddenly a turbulent shocking ride in my life.

Wow, those two little words may not sound devastating to you but to someone who earns their living flying airplanes, it's an awesome blow. Just imagine for a minute, your Doctor saying to you…

"Steve, you can no longer _____." Fill in the blank with your profession. If you are a Doctor, "Julie, you can no longer Doctor". "Josh, you can no longer practice law." "Jon, you can no longer teach."

Yes, those two words turned my shock and disbelief to fear. My life was suddenly without warning turned very upside down.

Yeah, I spent a few days and sleepless nights in denial and feeling sorry for myself and asking, "What do I do now?" Just as it was beginning to settle down within my industry, still reeling in the aftermath of 9/11…

Boom!

The hammer falls again. It doesn't matter how you lose your job or profession. The results can be devastating. An accident, the sudden onset of an illness or the company you have dedicated your life to goes bankrupt can produce an incredible amount of turmoil and stress in your life.

What do I do now? How do you provide for your family? How do we survive this?

The answer for me and perhaps for many of you is the Internet. The Internet has always been fascinating. Suddenly it was taking on a completely new life of its own. Like a Siren in the distant mist. It's sweet song calling me, luring me by name, seducing me into its clutches.

Have I made mistakes? You bet I have, tons of them. You name the program,
e-book or how to get rich scam. I fell victim to the fraud, wasting hundreds of dollars and an incredible amount of time in the process.

Let me tell you what is turning it all around for me.

You know, the most important thing in flying is to "always know where you are" and "know where it is you're going". The same applies to your online business. Do you have a flight plan? How are you going to get there? Do you know where it is you are going, a destination? (Read that as goals).

Where are you? Where are you going? That sounds simple enough.

Well, let me tell you it isn't. Our egos, pride or simply stubbornness, you name it.
It gets in the way - Stop that now, put it aside and listen to…

"This is the Captain speaking…"

Get a flight plan. Know where you are starting from and what your destination is. Get a "flight plan" and follow it religiously. Things will start to happen…

Slowly at first, then building momentum as we pick up speed. You will find yourself doing new and exciting things. The internet is an incredible journey. Will it be a smooth flight? No. We will encounter some turbulence along the way. So just fasten your seat belt, stay on course and you will arrive at your destination.

About the Author
Steve Melton is a Captain for a major US Airline. After graduating from West Texas State University he persued his first true love of flying in the US Navy.His commercial flying carreer began Februarry 1980. In February 2003 a medical diagnosis forced him from the cockpit and he has persued the internet with a passion. Watch for future articles by Steve in the very near future.