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Comfort Zone

Comfort certainly has its advantages – our comfy chair in the living room, a comfortable routine at work, a comfortable relationship. With all the advantages of comfort, here are some things you should know about the comfort zone.

The comfort zone is where most of life is played. It is certainly where most of sports is played. Consider a football field: 90 percent of the game is played between the 20-yard lines. That’s why they call anything outside that area the “red zone” – it’s where the difference in the game is made.

It’s pretty safe in the comfort zone. We know the boundaries, the landscape, and the other comfortable players. There is little or no risk; a misstep here or there is not very costly. But like the football team that’s trapped between the 20-yard lines, we cannot win in the comfort zone.

If we make our comfort zone as big as our life, we not only lose our edge, we can even lose sight of the edge. We must ignite our own sense of adventure to explore the edge and see what the world has to offer us ... and what we have to offer the world.

Learning and growth occur when we are uncomfortable. Think of the defining moments of learning and growth in your life. Were you hanging out in your comfort zone? No, you were hanging out near the edge.

It takes more energy to resist change than it does to embrace it. So just jump in!

Borrowed from:

Lee J. Colan / The L Group, Inc. / www.theLgroup.com / 972-250-9989

#comfort #comfort zone #moving on

A powerful message from President Ronald Reagan

#Ronald Reagan #Inspiration

IF YOU CHANGE YOURSELF, YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR LIFE

Life is about constant, predictable patterns of change, and the only constant factor will be our feelings and attitudes toward life. We as human beings have the power of attitude and that attitude determines choice, and choice determines results. All that we are and all that we can become has indeed been left to us to decide and interpret through our attitude and choices.

Life is like the changing seasons—you cannot change the seasons, but you can change yourself. So the first major lesson in life to learn is how to handle the winters. They come regularly, right after autumn. Some are long, some are short, some are difficult, some are easy, but they always come right after autumn. That is never going to change.

There are all kinds of winters: the “winter” when you can’t figure it out, the “winter” when everything seems to go awry. There are economic winters, social winters and personal winters.

Wintertime can bring disappointment, and disappointment is common to all of us. So you must learn how to handle the winters. You must learn how to handle difficulty; it always comes after opportunity. That is never going to change.

The big question is what to do about winters. You can’t get rid of January simply by tearing it off the calendar. But here is what you can do: You can get stronger; you can get wiser; you can get better. Remember that trio of words: stronger, wiser, better. The winters won’t change, but you can.

Before I understood this, I used to wish for summer when it was winter. When things were difficult, I wished they were easy. I didn’t know any better. Then my mentor Earl Shoaff gave me the answer from a part of his unique philosophy when he said, “Don’t wish it were easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for fewer problems, wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenge, wish for more wisdom.”

borrowed from Jim Rohn | Mar 19, 2018 |

#change #feelings #life

‘What You Think, You Become’

Why a growth mindset matters

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve,” Napoleon Hill once said. “The mind is everything. What you think, you become,” Buddha taught. You’ve heard high-minded quotes like these all your life. Now science has caught up. We can finally quantify and track how beliefs can shape outcomes.

Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck found that some people have a “fixed mindset” and believe that they cannot change their capabilities. Other people have a “growth mindset.” The growers believe they can work toward improving themselves. Dweck and her colleagues studied 373 students and tracked their academic performance from the beginning of seventh grade through the end of the eighth. They found that those with a growth mindset “I-think-I-can” had a rise in grade point average, while those with a fixed mindset remained the same.

It’s also been shown that if, before taking an IQ test, people read an article saying that IQ is changeable instead of fixed based on genes, their IQ scores improve.

This is one of the biggest tenets of my book The Happiness Advantage: Simply believing change is possible makes change possible.

What areas of your life do you need to move from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset?

Shawn Achor / July 2, 2015

Teammates in Leadership

“Fundamental values are not chosen from thin air based on the desires of executives, they are discovered within what already exists in an organization.”- Jim Collins, Built to Last

An old Cherokee told his grandson, “My son there is a battle between two wolves inside us all.

One is Evil. It is anger, jealousy, greed, resentment, inferiority, lies and ego.

The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, humility, kindness, empathy, and truth.”

The boy thought about it, and asked, “Grandfather, which wolf wins?”

The old man quietly replied, “The one you feed.”

So what do the quote and the story have to do with each other?

Both cut to the core of what we are all about.

This time of year brings about a few things :

Impatience

Anxiety

Reflection

It is due to many factors that these become a more apparent part of us during a high stress time of year. But the antidote to it all is choosing on which wolf you will feed. You see, the negative one is contagious and slips into our lives, words , and actions quite sly-like and unfortunately breeds nothing that is sustaining within us.

Choosing joy, hope, empathy and the such is just that a constant choice each day. Even when it is most difficult.

That’s what great leadership does, it chooses a path that less travelled and unexpected from the norm. When all the world around would accept a slashing remark or a slamming response, a constructive building response throws people off and 9 times out of 10 has a much more sustainable reaction from those whom we lead.

So today’s charge is simple.

Which wolf have you been feeding?

Have you been grinding up things like resentment and tiredness and making mincemeat to serve ?

Have you taken things like your encouraging words and patience and created a sweet savory meal ?

The question you choose to answer is the core of what we do every day !

Thank-you, Dr. Michael Goddard, Grapeland ISD for this inspirational message.

#leadership #life choices

Income in the Top 1%, 5%, 10%

By Rebecca Lake | September 15, 2016

Incomes have been making news this week. But when you read all those stories about the 5% or the storied 1% – or even the top 10% – how much money do you need to pull in to be in one of those groups? Here's the answer.

The discussion started when the U.S. Census Bureau released data which showed that median household incomes increased 5.2% between 2014 and 2015. The announcement made headlines because it was the first significant jump in earnings reported since the 2007 pre-Recession era (see Incomes Jump, Says Census. Who's Doing Best?) .

According to the Bureau’s 2015 Income, Poverty and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States report, incomes grew across the board in 2015. Those at the lower end of the income scale saw their pay increases, as did those pulling in six-figure paydays.

Among the top 5% of earners, median household incomes climbed by 0.9%. While that boost seems small compared to the 1.9% increase reported among the bottom fifth of all earners, it means that it takes an even bigger paycheck to make it into the relatively small club of Americans who draw the largest salaries.

How Much Do You Need?

The top 5% of households earn an annual income of $214,462 or higher, according to the Census Bureau. That’s nearly four times the 2015 nationwide median household income of $56,516. The average income among those in the top 5% climbed to $350,870. Overall, this group lays claim to a 22.1% share of total household income in the U.S. Source:

To be certified as a one-percenter, you’ll need to bring in even more income each year. According to statistical data from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the top 1% had an adjusted gross income of $465,626 or higher for the 2014 tax year. The Washington Center for Equitable Growth put the average household income for this group at $1,260,508 for 2014.

If you want to cross the top 10% mark, you’ll still need a six-figure income but the numbers aren’t quite as high. The IRS sets the adjusted gross income cutoff required to be in the 10% group at $133,445, based on 2014 tax data. Once again, the average household income for the top 10% of earners is higher, at $295,845.

Net Worth Grows, Too

Rising median income is paralleled by an increase in household net worth. Between 2014 and 2015, household net worth rose by 3.6%, according to the Federal Reserve. Collectively, Americans controlled $88.1 trillion in assets through the first quarter of 2016. The gains in income and in net worth can be viewed as evidence of how the economy is continuing its steady recovery nearly a decade after the financial crisis began in December 2007.

How Much Income Puts You in the Top 1%, 5%, 10%? | Investopedia

https://www.investopedia.com/news/how-much-income-puts-you-top-1-5-10/#ixzz53YhfWotL

#1%ers #5%#10%

The Story of the Butterfly

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly.

One day a small opening appeared.

He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours

as it struggled to squeeze its body through the tiny hole.

Then it stopped, as if it couldn’t go further.

So the man decided to help the butterfly.

He took a pair of scissors and

snipped off the remaining bits of cocoon.

The butterfly emerged easily but

it had a swollen body and shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch it,

expecting that any minute the wings would enlarge

and expand enough to support the body,

Neither happened!

In fact the butterfly spent the rest of its life

crawling around.

It was never able to fly.

What the man in his kindness

and haste did not understand:

The restricting cocoon and the struggle

required by the butterfly to get through the opening

was a way of forcing the fluid from the body

into the wings so that it would be ready

for flight once that was achieved.

Sometimes struggles are exactly

what we need in our lives.

Going through life with no obstacles would cripple us.

We will not be as strong as we could have been

and we would never fly.

Avoid all struggles and soar higher in life with this.

Regards,

John T.

#spread your wings #struggle #you're destined to fly

How to Create Positive Affirmations that Work

Some people say that affirmations don’t work, but the truth is, they just don’t know how to use them correctly.

Every thought you think and every word you speak is an affirmation. You’re using affirmations in every moment—whether you know it or not. Unfortunately, much of what you are affirming is negative… and that doesn’t create good experiences for you.

But you can create positive affirmations and use them to either help eliminate something from your life or help create something new in your life.

But how do you do that? How do you come up with affirmations that allow you to consciously create your life in a way that supports and pleases you?

Very carefully.

You see, words have a very strong effect on the subconscious mind, so you must choose them wisely, and make the statement relatively short and simple. Because, although the subconscious mind is extremely powerful, it perceives things in a very straightforward way.

Also, read your affirmation with as much belief and emotion as you can. Emotion is extremely powerful because it raises your vibrational state and makes the attraction process much faster and more efficient. And, of course, you should repeat it often to prime your mind for maximum success.

Now, to help you create powerful affirmations that can put you on a totally new path in life, let’s take a close look at one of Bob’s affirmations that has proven to be VERY effective:

“I am so happy and grateful now that money is coming to me in increasing amounts, through multiple sources, on a continuous basis.”

Let’s break down each part of the affirmation to see why it works so well:

First, “I am so happy and grateful now that…”

This phrase is a powerful introduction to any good affirmation or goal because it immediately puts you into the positive vibration that is necessary to attract the good that you want to show up in your life. A happy and grateful mind amplifies your ability to manifest your desires. As you read the affirmation, feel happy NOW that you are already in possession of your desire.

Second, “Money comes to me…”

This is your request or the demand you are placing on the universe. Notice that it is a very clear command that eliminates confusion in the subconscious mind. When you make your request, don’t worry about how it’s going to come to you. Just accept and expect that the money is coming to you in some way, shape or form. Let the universe handle the details.

Next, “In increasing quantities, through multiple sources…”

These words blow away any limits you may have consciously or unconsciously put on the amount of money coming to you. They give your mind permission to dream really big, thereby allowing your manifestation to materialize in the fullest. You do not have to set a specific target amount of money. The important thing is to feel joyful feelings after you say or think the words. Remember, you don’t need to know how the money will come, only that it will.

And finally, “On a continuous basis.”

This ending phrase impresses into the subconscious mind that you want this to be a permanent condition—that you want and deserve an abundant life where you always have plenty of money.

Go over this process a few times until you really understand the principles. Then start to create positive affirmations that work wonders in your life.

To more and better,

Sandy Gallagher

Proctor Gallagher Institute

#affirmations happiness success

Heaping Spoonful of Gratitude

I was feeling a little out of balance.

You know that feeling? The one where when someone asks you how it’s going you have to physically restrain yourself from releasing a deluge of information including but not limited to the health of your children, the location of your spouse, and your crazy busy (yes, one word) schedule in the days to come and those just passed.

I hate that. For several weeks I just couldn’t shake that unbalanced feeling.

So, one morning while the kids were eating breakfast and Michael was messing around with the hole in our screen door that was letting entire colonies of mosquitoes into our home, I decided to attack that feeling head on. I snuck into the other room and onto the Internet searching for solutions to “feeling out of balance.” Google had several suggestions:

Yoga. But I’ve never been very flexible.

Meditation. But I’ve never been very good at sitting still.

Tightrope walking. But I’m not crazy.

I was just about to give up – my family was getting suspicious of my 3-minute absence – when something caught my eye. It was a headline that said something to the effect of “Gratitude, Nature’s Cure All.” Apparently, a heaping spoonful of gratitude is all an unbalanced soul needs.

Though I could hear the noise level in the kitchen rising, I anxiously kept searching. I wanted gratitude strategies. Something I could implement in just a few seconds at the beginning or end of each crazy busy day.

I scrolled swiftly and found a link claiming Oprah attributed her massive success to a gratitude journal. Jackpot! Just then I heard the unmistakable sound of a cup of milk crashing to the floor and the cry of a toddler and I knew I had just seconds to spare.

‘For 16 years, every night before bed Oprah writes down five things she is grateful for that day,” the article said. Practical and quick, I thought, totally doable. I’m feeling better already.

“Kindra,” my husband appeared in the doorway having given up on the mosquito war. “What are you doing?”

“I’m trying to be more grateful!” I exclaimed frantically. Michael merely raised an eyebrow. Off to a great start, I thought.

However, I spent the rest of the day on a gratitude roll, making mental notes of things to record. That night I ceremoniously pulled an untouched journal from a stack of journals I have collected, and numbered five lines.

I am grateful for:

My adoring husband.

My precious son.

My feisty daughter.

My work.

My friends.

56 seconds later, I closed the journal. Done! And while I didn’t necessarily sense an increase in balance, as I lay my head on the pillow, I started planning my very own “Favorite Things” episode.

For three whole days I lived an efficiently gratuitous life; spending 56 effortless seconds before bed jotting down my five items. Then came the fourth day…

The fourth day was a crazy busy imbalanced blur. I’ll restrain from sharing the details.

I crawled into bed that fourth night crabby and exhausted. Just before I passed out thought to myself, “Oh shoot. I forgot to be grateful.” I sat back up, hastily pulled my journal off my nightstand and numbered the lines.

I am grateful for…

Spanx.

Iced coffee.

Nutella.

I stopped at three. I didn’t have time for this. It was dumb.

I immediately abandoned my gratitude strategy – it just wasn’t working. And I was pretty sure if I sat down with Oprah and asked for the truth about her gratitude journal she would lean forward and in a throaty whisper say, “Oh honey, I only made it three days… ain’t nobody got time for that.”

These thoughts and others raced through my mind that Thursday morning while I drove my three year old to preschool. Per the usual, he talked the whole way – the only person on the planet who can outtalk me. On that particular Thursday, the one-way conversation centered entirely on the color turquoise.

“Oh! Look Mama! I just saw a turquoise car! Did you see that turquoise car? Mama! Did you see that sign, that sign was turquoise. Oh! Mama! Look at the sky, the sky is kind of turquoise. The ocean is turquoise too. Oh! Mama! Look at that gate! It’s… it’s… TURQUOISE!

“Mama!” he crescendoed from the confines of his car seat. “Mama! There is just so much turquoise in the WORLD!”

He paused. Then slowly, quietly, thoughtfully said…

“This is my world. My beautiful, turquoise world.”

There was breathless wonder in his voice. He was completely overwhelmed…

With gratitude.

I pulled into the parking lot and sat for a moment.

I was doing gratitude all wrong. I was trying to manufacture it, or simply retrace or recall it – but that’s not how gratitude works. Gratitude takes us by surprise. It overwhelms us and fills us with wonder. In it’s truest form gratitude can’t be captured on a list or strategically felt it in less than a minute. If I wanted to shake my imbalanced life, tallying good things at the end of an otherwise disconnected day wasn’t going to straighten me out. I had to engage in my own turquoise world and from the confines of my crazy busy days, be aware of its beauty.

That night I pulled my mostly untouched journal from the nightstand and instead of writing five things, I wrote about the one time I drove my son and all his gratitude to school. It took me 30 minutes. And for the first time in a long time, I felt my balance return.

In this month, when we take time to be with the ones we love and give thanks…

In this month where things start to get crazy busy and completely off kilter…

It is my hope, for you and me that our tables are filled with laughter, food and heaping spoonfuls of real, overwhelming gratitude.

Kindra Hall Kindra Hall is an author, speaker, and storyteller with over 20 years of experience. She works with organizations and individuals to help them discover, craft, and deliver their personal stories in order to increase reach and revenue. Find out more about Kindra at http://go.proctorgallagher.com/e/45802/2017-11-17/434q7v/1313549623

#Greatful #Thankful #the little things

Choose Being Kind Over Being Right

You are given many opportunities to choose between being kind and being right. You have chances to point out to someone their mistakes, things they could or should have done differently, ways they can improve. You have chances to “correct” people, privately as well as in front of others. What all these opportunities amount to are chances to make someone else feel bad, and yourself feel bad in the process.

Without getting too psychoanalytical about it, the reason we are tempted to put others down, correct them, or show them how we’re right and they’re wrong is that our ego mistakenly believes that if we point out how someone else is wrong, we must be right, and therefore we will feel better.

In actuality, however, if you pay attention to the way you feel after you put someone down, you’ll notice that you feel worse than before the put-down. Your heart, the compassionate part of you, knows that it’s impossible to feel better at the expense of someone else.

Luckily, the opposite is true – when your goal is to build people up, to make them feel better, to share in their joy, you to reap the rewards of their positive feelings. The next time you have the chance to correct someone, even if their facts are a little off, resist the temptation. Instead, ask yourself, “What do I really want out of this interaction?” Chances are, what you want is a peaceful interaction where all parties leave feeling good. Each time you resist “being right,” and instead choose kindness, you’ll notice a peaceful feeling within.

My wife and I were discussing a business idea that had turned out really well. I was talking about “my” idea, clearly taking credit for our success! Kris, in her usual loving manner, allowed me to have the glory. Later that day, I remembered that the idea was actually her idea, not mine. Whoops! When I called her to apologize, it was obvious to me that she cared more for my joy than she did her own need to take credit. She said that she enjoys seeing me happy and that it doesn’t matter whose idea it was. (Do you see why she’s so easy to love?)

Don’t confuse this strategy with being a wimp, or not standing up for what you believe in. I’m not suggesting that it’s not okay for you to be right – only that if you insist on being right, there is often a price to pay – your inner peace. In order to be a person filled with equanimity, you must choose kindness over being right, most of the time. The best place to start is with the next person you speak to.

Richard Carlson 1961-2006

Richard Carlson is the author of Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff. His wife Kristine has some great articles and content that you can get by going to: http://go.proctorgallagher.com/e/45802/2017-09-22/3vjf1l/1262887831

Common Denominator of Success

Why in the world, when success is available to everyone, do so few succeed? To the vast majority of managers, teachers and parents, this is one of the most perplexing questions with which they can be confronted.

Many will tell you it is a rhetorical question – there is no answer. However, that is just not so. There is an answer and I want to share it with you. Perhaps you have already heard the answer. It was delivered in a speech years ago in Philadelphia by Albert E. N. Gray. The speech was titled, The Common Denominator of Success.

Mr. Gray explained that success is something achieved by the minority of men and women, it is therefore unusual, and not to be achieved by following our usual likes and dislikes, nor by being guided by our natural preferences and prejudices. In other words, success cannot be achieved by doing what comes naturally. Gray said the common denominator of success is in forming the habit of doing things that failures don’t like to do. Let me repeat, successful people form the habit of doing things failures don’t like to do.

Mr. Gray was asked why the successful people like doing the things that make them successful. He replied that the beautiful truth is, successful people don’t like doing these things, which is precisely why they have formed the habit of doing them. A habit is something you do without any conscious thought given, you automatically do it.

Successful people are influenced by the desire for pleasing results. Failures are influenced by the desire for pleasing activities. They are inclined to be satisfied with such results as can be obtained by doing things they like to do. Make a list of six activities you know will give you the success you seek. Commit to do these things religiously for thirty days and they will become habitual.

Then, as William James put it, you will wake up one fine day to find you are one of the competent ones of your generation.

Bob Proctor

#success #common denominator #bob proctor

Believe in Your Ideas

Ideas and babies have a lot in common when they are newborn; they require a lot of nourishment to survive. A new idea, regardless of its size, may not be able to withstand a beating when you first give it birth.

The next time you set out to do something that is completely out of the norm and the idea driving you is new, there is an important rule which should be followed. Only share your idea with people who will encourage and support you.

Here is an added word of caution. Contrary to popular belief, the individual who will offer the most support is not necessarily a great achiever. It just needs to be someone that you know will give you the mental and emotional support needed.

History records that many of our greatest achievers were not always the strongest supporters of others. Individuals who claim that all things are possible … you can do anything … frequently sang a different tune when the idea was not one they had originated.

Here are a few examples:

In 1899 Charles H. Duell said, “Everything that can be invented has been invented.” Duell was the Director of the United States Patent office that year.

In 1927 Harry M. Warner of Warner Brothers Pictures said, “Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?”

In 1923 Robert Milliken suggested, “There is no likelihood man can ever tap the power of the atom.” We gave him the Nobel Prize for physics that year.

This is not an uncommon phenomenon. Think of how often one of your superiors shot your suggestions full of holes, only to find out later the same idea earned great profits for your company. If you believe in your own ideas, that is all that is required. You don’t need the approval of others.

The Wright Brothers were not swayed nor stopped by Lord Kelvin who was President of the Royal Society in 1895 when he said, “Heavier than air flying machines are impossible.”

And, Grover Cleveland would be banned on sight today by at least half of the population with the advice he gave in 1905, “Sensible and responsible women do not want to vote.”

Many of these people did great things but they were often wrong when it came to others’ abilities. Believe in yourself and your ideas and only share your ideas with those who will encourage and support you.

Bob Proctor

Borrowed from Bob Proctor

#ideas #believeinyourself

Stop Drinking Poison And Set Yourself Free

One word: Forgiveness

Have you ever heard the saying, “Hanging on to a hurt/grudge/resentment is like drinking poison and hoping the other person dies?”

I remember hearing my mentor Bob Proctor say that and thinking, WOW, that is so true! It was as if a light had been switched on. That statement caused me to take a long, hard look at what and who I needed to forgive, and let go (that, by the way included forgiving myself!). Sometimes those hurts can become very comfortable to hold on to. They make it easy for us to stay where we are and not move forward, to not trust again, to not live our life the way we are meant to live it.

Nearly everyone has been hurt by the actions or words of someone else. These hurts can leave you with lasting feelings of anger, bitterness or even vengeance.

But if you don’t practice forgiveness, you might be the one who is paying the highest price. By embracing forgiveness, you can also embrace peace, hope, gratitude, and joy. Forgiveness can lead you down the path of physical, emotional, and spiritual well-being.

Let’s be clear about one thing, forgiveness doesn’t mean that you deny the other person’s responsibility for hurting you, and it doesn’t minimize or justify the wrong. You can forgive the person without excusing the act. Forgiveness brings a kind of peace that helps you get on with your life.

When you choose to let go of resentment, it does not mean that what happened vanishes. But what does happen is it releases its hold on you. In other words, it frees you. It frees you to focus on the positive areas of your life.

Forgiveness is our ability to remove negative thoughts and neutralize them so our energy can be spent on doing what we came here to do. We cannot move forward in our future if past issues muddy our thinking. If we think of our life as a room, the more past issues or negative thoughts, the more stuff and clutter we have in there clogs up our thinking, thereby also clogging up our ability to manifest. When we forgive, it’s as if we took a broom, and swept away the old clutter that is blocking us from creating the life we really want.

Vast beauty and opportunity live beneath those old emotional scars. If we want to move beyond the scars and into a healing process, we must decide to let go of any anger, bitterness, blame, resentment, or hostility toward others or ourselves, and commit to freeing ourselves from the emotional and spiritual bondage that holding on to those old hurts creates. Bitterness and joy; or blame/resentment and love cannot co-exist.

The decision to be free to experience and enjoy love, joy, peace, or freedom demands a release of negative memories/emotions and their hold on you. You will remain stuck in the past and not be able to move forward as long as you stay stuck in that past experience.

To be able to live in the ‘now’ it’s important that you leave the past behind. To accomplish this is to make a decision to do so. You always have a choice in every moment.

Forgiveness is a commitment to a process of change. You can actively choose to forgive the person who’s offended you, when you’re ready – but don’t wait too long. Move away from your role as victim and release the control and power the offending person and situation have had in your life.

When it comes to forgiveness, I love Michael Bernard Beckwith’s quote:

“Accept what is, either you control the situation, or it controls you. Harvest the good. Forgive the rest.”

Put down that cup of poison, and replace it with a cup of tea.

Mary Pawlus

Get your free copy of Are You Destined For Success? Just click here.

Mary Pawlus has been studying personal development, and mind/body/spirit health for over 25 years. She has a passion for helping people live a healthy lifestyle by making better choices. Mary’s personal journey has led her to develop personal development techniques that anyone can easily incorporate immediately into their lives. She believes that simple steps can create big changes, and help you easily develop a more fulfilling and purposeful life.

#Blog of the day #forgiveness #poison

When the Going Gets Tough

When the Going Gets Tough… Even The Tough Need A Plan!

It’s 3:00 am…

…and Linda is sleeping peacefully. She doesn’t wake up in a cold sweat, wondering how in the world she can keep all the parts of her life and business in balance. At least … not anymore.

A born-n-bred farm girl from the prairies of Alberta, raised by hard-working parents who struggled to make ends meet, Linda McLean never had any of the “luxuries” she saw other children enjoying … like going on vacations or taking dance, skating, or piano lessons.

Deep down inside, she just KNEW she wanted something different in the future, and for her future family.

“When I galloped my horse across the fields, as a young girl,” Linda recalls, “I would dream of having a handsome husband and wonderful children, of living in a beautiful home, traveling the world, doing all the things I so desired. And more than anything, I wanted to follow in my oldest brother’s footsteps.”

Linda’s brother had his own successful business selling real estate, and doing major land and building development projects all across the continent. Linda loved that he always had very dedicated, loyal, and hard-working people in his business – and she wanted the same, some day.

Fast-forward to the year 2000: Linda was living in Toronto, and her childhood dreams were all coming true. She had her handsome hubby, two terrific daughters, and a flourishing consulting business of her own.

But this success was taking its toll. Linda had allowed herself to get “REALLY out of balance”, as she says. Then they moved all the way to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania … and that’s when things began to fall apart.

“I found myself in a new country, trying to get settled by getting our daughters into their activities – gymnastics, dance, and piano – finding a new church, and working absolutely crazy hours trying to keep my clients and family happy. I was juggling like mad.”

Her business started slowing down, the money began drying up, and holding both her business and her sanity together became more and more of a challenge. Still, she blindly believed things would somehow magically fix themselves.

Then on November 7th of 2000 Linda was diagnosed with breast cancer.

And that’s when it hit her:

“I wasn’t doing for myself and MY business what I was teaching others to do for THEIRS! Instead, I was trying to ‘do it all’ with no purpose, and no plan. I had lost sight of what success meant to me, and fallen into the common trap of working IN my business, more than ON it. And all that pressure, and all that overwhelm, had finally come to a head in the worst way.”

So she hired a business coach, and reconnected with one of her key mentors – Bob Proctor.

Working with that coach, Linda realized she needed to have a plan – a “wash-rinse-repeat” process she could apply to reaching ANY milestone in her business, and then immediately apply again to the next. A system that would work for achieving any goal, and be as reliable and repeatable as the seasons.

Now, here’s the thing:

She already had one! But it was a case of not seeing the forest for the trees.

“Working with my coach,” says Linda, “made me realize I already HAD the solution – it was right under my nose. I just hadn’t formalized it! I was already creating plans for my clients that served as roadmaps to operating and building THEIR businesses. The sort of plan that simply didn’t allow for distractions. Or, more to the point, continued rolling along in spite of them. It was time to cast that sucker in cement, and follow my own advice!”

“From that day forward, things began to change,” she says. “DRAMATICALLY!”

Once she “formalized” the Snapshot Business Planning system, Linda had a plan she could then customize for each client’s business – no need to start from scratch each time. This freed up time to either go more in-depth with any given client, or work with more people. It also relieved a LOT of stress in her life!

She was now able to focus better on work while at work … and on her family, her new home, and (most importantly) her health, when not working. And there is simply no way to quantify, or put a “value” on that.

For one thing, Linda has been cancer-free for the past 17 years! Here’s how she sums up her life, now:

“This morning – like every morning – when I awoke, I almost had to pinch myself to be sure I wasn’t still dreaming! I enjoy an amazing view overlooking the City of Reno. I have my boyfriend of 38 years (and husband of 33 years) beside me. Our daughters are kind, loving women who are very successful in their own areas of business. But what makes me most proud is their love of family and friends, and their kindness toward others. That is the real measure of success – for our whole family.

“We cherish our family time together – golfing, dining with friends, travelling the world, and all sorts of other fun things.

“I am SO incredibly grateful for this life I live – and love. And so much of it is the result of getting back to the basics, and ‘walking my talk’ – applying all those important steps I was already teaching my clients.”

Look, we all get off track, sooner or later. When it happens to you, take a step back. Make sure you’re still covering all the basics. And follow a plan – a proven plan.

Amy Stoehr Executive Coach, McLean International

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Linda McLean – #1 best-selling author, and advisor to entrepreneurs, executives, and business owners around the globe – has gathered all the most important elements of her proven system into her newest book Snapshot Business Planning: 12 Quick And Easy Steps To Take Your Business To The Next Level. Check it out here: http://bit.ly/SBPMcL

FRIENDS AND PARADIGMS

Proverbs 23:7 says “we are what we think about”. I have given much thought to that and recognized that we are significantly influenced by those we are around. Our friends influence us more than we might think.

I got an email from a friend of mine, who was a former client. It was about all the men who took boats to Houston to help in the search and rescue. There were hundreds, maybe thousands, of them. They could be called a “friend group” because they had a lot in common. Each was spending their own money and sacrificing to be there. They were reinforced by others of like mind and who wanted to be a “good Samaritan”.

Think about who you have been around in your life that influenced the way you think. It was first family, then grade school, then high school, then college or work. Maybe church or a professional group. Maybe business owners. Support groups. People who steal. Hobby related.

It is a natural tendency to gravitate to those you feel the most comfortable with. With each of these groups, you develop relationships that mold your life. So, it is actually a conscious choice.

My friend who sent me the email was first a trainer with a former client. He then set his sights on being a college professor and today has a Doctor’s degree and a position at a University. He has changed and developed different friend groups along the way. He is active in his church and is involved with his family.

So, I began to think about myself. The list is long of the groups I have interacted with. Initially it was family, then high school, then college, then church, then work, then business owners, then entrepreneurs, then hobby, then neighbors. Each of these groups, and I am sure I left some out, had a great influence on me.

My paradigm was continually changing. Our Sunday School Class, many years ago, began a Supper Club. Each month we would meet at a different member’s house and they would prepare supper for the group. There were about twenty people in the group from a wide variety of professions. Surveyors, doctors, lawyers, business owners, consultants, managers, etc. This group has been meeting for over thirty years. What has held them together? Friendship. A few have died and some moved away. New ones have been invited to replace them. Many go to different churches now, but still participate. Many have strong friendships with each other. But the thing that they all have in common is their spiritual area. These friendships have lasted for years.

I remember when I was first out of college and in Houston at my first job. My wife and I visited a church one Sunday morning. A couple approached us and invited us to church that night and to come to their house afterwards for snacks and a fellowship. We went and were immediately immersed in a new friendly group of like-minded people. Within a year, I was offered a job at a college in another town. We visited a church there and were immediately in another group with new people. The fellowship there was exciting and we learned to play 42 and other group games that were a part of that culture. Forty or more years later, we are in a different city, but we still maintain some of the friendships that were made there.

I also remember getting into Amway when we were younger. We met many new people in that group who encouraged personal growth. We drove to another town for weeks doing a study of “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill. That study alone was a huge influence and has been a major factor in my personal growth.

Now we have Facebook and social media. There are opportunities to make new friends, affiliate with other groups, and embrace new thinking. I stay away of those that would pull me into ways of thinking that are not compatible with my values. The language that is used, the music listened to, and numerous other factors determine if I want their influence or not. I realize that I need positive and forward-looking friends, not complainers and those spewing negative thoughts.

Think of your life and the people and groups you have affiliated yourself with. Are you trying to be in groups that encourage your personal and professional growth? Who you are around is who will mold your life. You have a choice and you can select the group you want to be with. It may require you to get out of your comfort zone and develop new paradigms, but it also might provide many opportunities.

Good luck on your friend journey.

Ken Bratz

#paradigms Houston friendship

QUIT LOOKING AT YOUR FEET

Pictured above is a log that you stand on one end and attempt to walk to the other end. The exercise is called the “swinging log”. There are “spotters” on each side of the person on the log to keep them from falling.

When a person gets on the log, they immediately look at their feet while trying to walk the log. They find that does not work. We tie a bandanna on the opposite end on the cable that holds up the log, about eye height. The person walking is then told to not take their eyes off of the bandana. Guess what? They can now do much better.

The bandana represents our goals. In our daily rush to accomplish, we get saturated with activity that represents looking at our feet. We find that another day has passed and we have not accomplished what we intended. Then years pass and then our life is done. We accomplish very little compared to what we could have. Our intentions are good, but our discipline and consistency are not.

Social Media and cellphones are two of the biggest time wasters that exist. Young people particularly cannot function without them. Everything becomes urgent, but in the long run, does not provide continuity for accomplishment.

Do a self-evaluation. Are your goals written and specific? Do you look at them often? Do you have affirmations and do you visualize what you want to achieve?

The clock continues to run. It gives each of us the same number of minutes. Are you using your time in a productive manner? If not, one day many years from now, you will want back some of that time that was squandered away. Learn to manage your time instead of letting it control you.

As Zig Zigler once said: Are you a wondering generality or a meaningful specific?

#zigzigler #distractions #MovingForward #success

8 LAWS OF LEADERSHIP

Take a look around. Business, education, politics. If there’s one thing we don’t have enough of, it’s good leaders —men and women who have the vision and the ability to change things for the better.

Former Air Force General William Cohen wrote a fine book called The Stuff of Heroes in which he identified eight laws of leadership.

Here are his rules:

1. Maintain absolute integrity.

2. Know your stuff.

3. Declare your expectations.

4. Show uncommon commitment.

5. Expect positive results.

6. Take care of your people.

7. Put duty before self.

8. Get out in front.

His laws embrace important competencies like knowledge, communication skills, commitment, optimism, caring, and a powerful sense of duty. But General Cohen also recognized that the foundation of a successful leader is character, including trustworthiness, honor, and courage.

The best leaders draw on these moral qualities to influence others through inspiration, persuasion, trust, and loyalty. They do the right thing despite the costs and risks and do it not because it will yield approval or advantage, but because it’s the right thing.

In these cynical times, it’s easy to think such leadership is unattainable; yet in every walk of life, there are hundreds of men and women —parents, teachers, coaches, civic activists — who fit this mold. What’s more important, every one of us could be among them.

Michael Josephson www.whatwillmatter.com

#leadership #leader

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