Most people are aware of the famous words; "A Journey of 1000 miles begins with 1 step." Just like your life if fact, each step or stage of life can be measured in small - not large - increments. Yet with the lack of focus and attention, the chance can be missed to put enough thorough thought, preparation or sufficient action into specific stages of your life.
Life can be sometimes like a log floating on a river, left alone you can be assured the log will float down the river until it reaches the ocean. But it may get lost along the way, stuck in rocks, or beached on the side of the river bank, even left high and dry in some tributary pool; or even battered to a pulp in rapids or high waterfall. Yet if the log is guided down the river, carefully, thoughtfully, attentively, it will arrive at the ocean faster and in much better shape. Likewise, by carefully thinking through the best course to take for each stage of your life you can ensure that you can reach your desired objective or destination quicker, achieving more thoroughly that you have desired.

It is invariably the result of the choice that you make throughout life that comes to determine your destiny, as well as the what and the who you are, the what and the who you become or are becoming. The choices are always yours alone to make, it is solely up to you, in the final analysis, it is you alone who can make the final decision. Of course you came blame others or circumstances, but in the final analysis, if you are truthful with yourself, then you alone are the architect of your destiny. You always can choose not to listen to others, not to proceed as they recommend or tell you to, while there may be consequences you can always have the opportunity to choose to do as you please.

There are many paths you can follow in life, the path that leads you to greatness, to mediocracy or a too simple life, or even insignificance. How you choose to live is up to you, these choices can be purposeful decisions or the result of you leaving everything up to fate.
By far the better course is to be proactive in your life, taking an interest in every detail by micro-managing those things that will determine your future, how your life will turn out. Which roads you choose to travel is your choice alone, you can also choose not to decide - leaving things to the whims of fate; the decisions and outcomes are all up to what you decide. Your progression through life can be a joy or burden, it all depends upon the choices that you make and the paths you decide to take.

It is in the confines of your own mind that your present and future is formed. The choices are yours alone, each action has a consequence and in turn each consequence a subsequent action. Rather than making rash decisions or taking swift action, it is invariably wise to consider all, or at least two alternatives before proceeding, Also, in complex situations it is better to infinitely evaluate all alternatives within each potential choice. Don't be bound by others time schedules, because in retrospect you will find these are elastic and pliable.
Beyond your wildest dreams lies the door to your potential reality. Create your ultimate reality with a strength of focus and desire, that through your imagination your expectations can be manifested in reality.

It is not possible to change what has already occurred, therefore it is not wise to dwell on the things of the past unless you do so in order to gain more value and knowledge from what happened, or to use the analysis of the experience in the future in some way. Each small action changes the world in some seen or unseen way, everything you do has an impact irrespective of whether this is evident or not.
From the small seed a tree is born and in the same way, each action propagates others that combined to become your life, to become your reality. These actions mold your being and you are gradually evolving changing minutely sometimes unnoticeable, but as time passed you become different from what you have been in the past. It is these changes that will govern who you are, who you become, therefore take great care with everything you do, as it will impact you immensely over the long run.