The phrase "it's never too late to make a change" can apply to many different things. But, in the case of change, it really means never too late. I find it amazing that so many people use that expression with reference to something as fundamental and essential to their growth and development as the concept of a personal life coach. Their words imply that someone, somewhere might be a good life coach; however, there seems to be a disconnect between what they actually believe and how they phrase things.
It's never been more clear that there is a disconnect between people's concepts of growth and development. The first part of the statement is easy enough to understand: It's only a matter of time. Once you find the right information, it really isn't a question of if - it's a question of when. When something becomes a habit or a learned behavior, it means that you've been doing it for quite a while. When we hear that someone is a good life coach, we often hear that they've been doing this for a long time.
Now, the second part of the statement is where the disconnect becomes evident. In the statement it is said that it's only a matter of time when the habits or learned behaviors become habitual or essential. So, what does that really mean? When we hear phrases like these we have to ask ourselves what they really mean because if these are true, then someone has been doing them for a long time. For instance, if we are hearing that someone is a great life coach, it would be reasonable to assume that they have been doing it for several years.
There is a difference in thinking whether or not something will become a habit and whether or not it will be necessary for you to do them in order to achieve your goals. If your thought process is one that goes "it'll eventually become a habit", you are thinking from the perspective of the goal-empire, not the coach's. The fact is, if you set yourself goals, no matter how small they may be, it will be necessary for you to take action on a daily basis and the kind of coaching you will receive will be entirely different than if you are thinking "it'll be a matter of time."
As coaches, it's important to think about our language. People often say that they are in a matter of time, but they really aren't there yet. Habits take time to develop and if you make it a habit to wait to achieve something, you will need to give it quite some time before you can claim that you have attained success. This will work out very nicely for you because in the meantime you won't have to go back to square one and spend all your time trying to get back to square one.
It would seem that everyone has a different answer to the question, will he/she be a person of influence? In truth, I think that most people could answer this question as "no", but only because their personalities may not lend themselves to being able to be a successful Influence. We can all learn to be effective Empowered Leaders, but if we don't take action on a regular basis we will never reach our goals. Taking the time to gain knowledge, absorb it and apply it makes perfect sense and will definitely help you become a person of influence.