11) Cave

'It’s the time, young man. You can go and find your own path. I tell you what. You are not the first one who did it. But, not all of the people, who have passed this forest, become successful afterward. There is a long way to go. But be confidence and believe in yourself,’ said the owl. 'Thank you. I’ll do my best. I'll not disappointed you, and of course, not to ME as well,’ said Stephen Hope. He stood up confidently and followed the path, which had been opened for him.

Stephen kept walking and walking, he just couldn’t wait to see the chief in ‘Wonderland’. However, he couldn’t notice that a storm was coming. The sky was soon covered by dark, lightening and thundering. It suddenly rained cats and dogs. Stephen was all wet and ran and tried to look for a place where he could stay until the storm passed away. Luckily, there was a cave nearby. He ran inside, took off his clothes and tried to dry up his clothes. The cave was very dark and silent. It gave some uncomfortable feelings to Stephen. He sat there and waited almost for a half day. He looked back inside the cave and realized that the cave was so deep that it seemed there was no ending. He took out his lighter and clicked… What he saw really surprised him. He saw a stair, going down deep inside the cave. Since it was still raining heavily outside, Stephen decided to put on his dried clothes and started his adventure…

10) When ‘Should’ becomes ‘Must’, Success won’t be far behind.

'Once you’ve set your goal, you are one step forward to success. However, it is not enough. You need to do better than that. A desire to success won’t give you enough power to overcome obstacles later in your life. Many people, like you, come here to look for Wonderland, but they give up in the middle of the journey. They know that they ‘should’ go ahead, but they refuse to show their commitment for success. They can’t get out of their comfort zone, and go back where they used to. The same situation applies to people, who set goals for themselves at the beginning of the year, but fail at last. Do you know why? It is because THEY DON'T TAKE THEIR GOALS SERIOUSLY. Think for one moment. How many times do you promise yourself to do something, but, turns out unfinished? That’s why if you really want to be successful, your goals or dreams must be AN ABSOLUTE MUST. IF YOU WANT SOMETHING BADLY ENOUGH, YOU WILL THEN FIND A WAY TO GET IT. You need to have confidence during your journey. If you want to do it, you have to really want it and BELIEVE IN IT. You have to make it happen. You can’t sit back and hope that someone is going to help you along. When ‘Should’ becomes ‘Must’, your dream (Success) won’t be far behind, young man’

Stephen hadn’t thought about going back to become a farmer, instead, he now seemed to understand something. He promised himself, ‘I must be a successful investor, in both stock and property market, and I will do everything to achieve what I want!’ He wrote down these words and stuck it to his heart. All of sudden, the whole forest shook and trees moved apart...

9) You've just written Your Story.

Once Stephen woke up, he found himself sitting under the tree. 'What was that voice?' He said. 'Perhaps it comes from this magical forest. All right, now I need to drop down everything I heard and remembered. I have to start creating my own dream.' Stephen then quickly took out his pen and paper and wrote down everything he wanted to be. 'When I was a child, my parents always told me that it was important to learn how to be a farmer. Most of people in our town work in farm. Managing a farm in our town is always regards as an essential skill. Being a farmer is considered as a SAFE AND SECURE job. However, it is a job I never get motivated to do. Although my education level isn’t too high, I like reading in leisure time. I love reading financial and economic books. I go to library every week and borrow books, which are related to these topics. Sometimes, I think of being a successful investor in a big city, working in the stock or property market. However, people in our town think that it is too risky to go out to do something that they’ve never known before. I was influenced by them and started working in my uncle’s farm for past 15 years. Perhaps it is the time to change my thought. By writing down my plans, goals and ideas , it MAKES THEM MORE REAL for me as well.' As he was writing, he heard a familiar voice.

'If being a successful investor is your goal, then write it down. TRY TO VISUALISE what would you like to be as an investor. You must FIRST CREATE A PICTURE OF HOW YOU WANT YOUR LIFE AND YOUR FINANCIAL FUTURE TO BE LIKE BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY TURN IT INTO REALITY. It is an important step to success.' said the owl. In fact, it had already stood on that big tree for a long time when Stephen planned his first 'journey' for his life.

8) You gotta have a Dream

The voice continued, ‘Young man, try to write down everything you want in five year time. It can be anything that you can dream of. If you are thinking of becoming rich, you can write down: a big house, a healthy bank account, exotic vacations, expensive clothing and jewelry, so on. If your ambition and joy come from helping others, you may write down, a doctor saving lives in hospital, a manager teaching his employee selling techniques, so on. Try to list as much detail as possible. BE SPECIFIC.'

'If you still find it difficult, try to imagine: IF YOU WERE 100% CERTAIN THAT YOU WOULDN'T FAIL AND YOU HAD THE ABILITY TO GET THERE, what would you really want to be? There is no limitation when you do the listing. Once you have done that, you have already SET A GOAL FOR YOURSELF. You are better than those who purse goals that are set or influenced by someone else, in their whole life. IF YOU WANT TO WRITE YOUR OWN STORY, YOU GOTTA HAVE A DREAM, A BIG DREAM…’ It was still mid-night. Everywhere in the forest seemed silence, except that voice. The forest provided a place for Stephen to rest. It was also where Stephen found himself starting dreaming. Dreaming something he hadn't thought before.

7) Success starts here: Listen to Yourself.

Stephen was refreshed by that conversation. ‘Yes, it is the question I’ve never asked myself – What do I really want out of my life? I’d always love success, like most people do. But, I’ve NEVER THOUGHT ABOUT MY OWN PATH AND HOW TO GET WHAT I WANT. Instead, I am always looking for tips (fast tracks) to success, which don't help much. I’ve been lost in my life for so many years. Just like my situation here, everywhere surrounding me is full of darkness and confusion. I have no direction at all. So, I need to find out my OWN ANSWER soon.’ At the same time, when Stephen tried to figure out what he really wanted to do, he felt asleep under the big tree. It’s been a very long journey for the young man.

‘MOST PEOPLE NEVER LEARN HOW TO DEVELOP A PLAN OF ACTION FOR THEIR LIVES. As a result, most people spend years in occupations or professions that they chose at someone else’s suggestion, or because it was easy or available, or perhaps because they had ‘nothing else to do'. These people don’t know what they really want. But, they always complain because they are not getting the result they want. It is ridiculous. If you really don’t know exactly what you want, TRY TO FIGURE IT OUT, WHAT IS THE CLOSEST AND GO FROM THERE. Your life will only work when you take full responsibility for your choice. Success will come when you listen closely to yourself…’ A voice came from nowhere, but that was exactly what Stephen heard in his dream…