[MUSIC] Welcome to the closing week in your capstone project. I hope that feeling of jumping for joy has found a regular place in your emotional repertoire. After the eight weeks of this capstone and the four courses of this specialization, you are to be congratulated on following through to the end. That speaks highly of your commitment and perseverance. Those qualities will be of great value in the 21st century. Of course, this is not the end of your journey. I hope now you can see your journey as stretching on over your career. Continue to chronicle your accomplishments. Whether you've landed a great job or are still looking, don't stop documenting your accomplishments. I'd recommend you take an hour or so once a month and write up your accomplishments for that month. Include volunteer work, community work, regular work, everything. Keep your inventory current. You can use the index card system you learned about in this capstone, or any system that works for you. And as you learned in course one, it's a great strategy to brief your supervisor with those accomplishments. When your annual review comes around, be proactive, make sure your accomplishments and value takes center stage. Keep your marketing plan current as well. Continue to keep a target list of companies you're interested in. Aim high. Your target list should include a minimum of 20 companies with five or more in your top tier. Don't settle. If you're not happy where you are, keep your mind open to the many opportunities that life affords you. Preparation, research, practice. These are the advantages you have in reaching for your idea work. A dedication to continual improvement. The strength of will to put down the video game, turn off Netflix, turn away from all the excuses, and put in the effort to pursue the life you want to live. That resolve will separate you from all those who lack the courage to claim the powers of mind that make for world class performers. Here are two books that I recommend you read. They collect together the results of several decades of research into the science of excellent performance. Colvin's title says it best. What distinguishes world class performers is not talent, it's the way they think and the practices that grow out of that way of thinking. You can find this principle at work in any world class performer. Study how they brought their visions into life and you will find inspiration for your own journey. Here for example is the actor Will Smith's take on talent and skill. Too many people look at world class performance as a measure of talent, whereas it's really a measure of skill, of competency. And that is not inborn. That comes from practice and resolve. So maybe that dream job, that ideal work that you've envisioned seems far off. Maybe you just need to pay the bills right now. That’s okay. That’s a step on your journey. But if that ideal vision genuinely excites you, you’ve got to cherish it, protect it. That means protect your mind. Be attentive to the thoughts you create, they make the difference in your life. Our eyes need light to see, our minds need ideas to conceive. To return to our friend Napoleon Hill, reflect on this thought, definiteness of purpose. Many people wander through life. If you want to have the life you envisioned at the start of this specialization, at the start of this capstone, wandering won't get you there. You'll get there by following a deep purpose that you set for yourself. By living from your why. I invite you to stretch your imagination. Think broadly, think globally. There are hundreds of thousands of opportunities in this world, millions. And your ability to decide among them is probably the most important skill you can develop. Don't fall into the beggar mentality. Don't let scarcity thinking gnaw away at your dreams. Train yourself to recognize the abundance in the world. Whatever you might think about the availability of work in this world, and I can make a pretty sure guess that you've been conditioned to think about competition and limited opportunities, and how hard it is to find a job. I promise you one thing, and I say this not as a starry eyed idealist but from decades of real world experience. If there is one lesson you take out of this specialization let it be this. There are many, many, many more jobs in this world than there are skilled people to fill them. There will never be a shortage of work. Never. The world's needs are simply too great. But there will always be a shortage of skilled talent. Simply because so many people never developed their skills. So many people sadly squandered their talents. So many people are not willing to go find the work. As Einstein observed, everyone is a genius, but if you ask a fish to climb trees it will grow up thinking it's stupid. And sadly, there are too many fish in the world that have been asked to climb trees. So don't let yourself be one of those. If you're a fish, find your sea. If you're a tree climber, find your forest. Use your mind constructively, creatively, actively. It's the greatest resource you have. If you think strategically, if you're putting the effort in the workshop of your mind, if you take deliberate action, focused, aware, mindful, deliberate action, you will see positive results. Whatever anyone tells you, your life is not determined by your circumstances. It's about what you bring to the game. It truly is up to you. You are creating your future. Keep focused on your vision, keep focused on your goals, and work with life as it works with you. Practice being grateful for everything that life has blessed you with. And never forget that failure cannot cope with persistence. I wish you success in your journey. Personal success, however you understand it. May you find the work that lets you wake up every morning inspired to take it on. [MUSIC]