The-Slight-Edge

The 7 Slight Edge Principles 89
is far easier than the true price of neglect. But there is a price that
you’re going to have to pay.
I’d like to introduce you to Pablo Felix, who I think is one of the best examples
I can find of someone who was willing to pay the price for what he wanted. Pablo
had one slight disadvantage. He has been deaf since birth. Slight Edge principles
have been instrumental in both his business and personal life. Here is his story:
Unfortunately, my parents did not realize that I was deaf until the
age of 6, when I started preschool. I began learning American Sign Language
upon entering school and spent many years trying to overcome my language delay.
Because my family never learned sign language in order to communicate,
I was always left out of family decisions. When a serious family situation came
up, I was never even told what had happened. Time and time again I was
given little or no information necessary to make sense of the world because it
took too long or was too difficult to attempt communication.
As a result of being left out of so many experiences, I developed a sense
of not belonging even to my own family. Like most people my age, after
college I got married and started a family of my own. I dreamed of getting
a good job and climbing the corporate ladder. I quickly found that corporate
America held no place for a deaf person. I was regularly passed over for
promotions and treated like a second-class citizen. I was denied access to the
very information needed to be an effective manager.
For many years, I carried lingering resentments from the past. Even
though my wife and children could hear, I found it difficult to overcome the
disconnect I felt with mainstream society.
I decided to start my own business in order to control my future. I decided
I needed to learn from other successful people so I interacted with people who
could hear, more than ever before in my life.
After being told that reading was a critical aspect of my new endeavor,
I began my journey of personal development. I realized that my life was not
on the path necessary for success. I was on a downward slope along the path
of blame, until I discovered the Slight Edge. I was able to change the negative
compounded effects of years of unhappiness to a life of responsibility. My life
became full of hope, excitement and joy.
I was able to finally release my resentments; I began setting goals
for both my personal and professional life. I was able to attain many of
professional goals and even outperform many of the people in my field. I now
have had the pleasure of helping many more deaf people reach success.