SPIRITUAL PROSPERITY

Some people don't really know what it is they want. Many define what they want by stating what they don't want. The result, they get exactly what they don't want. Why because instead of focusing on what they do want they are focused on what they don't want. I recently discovered this while having a disciplinary discussion with our eleven year old daughter. The discussion was about her behavior and why it is wrong. What's funny about this is we had this exact same discussion less than sixty days prior.

During this discussion I realized that my daughter did not think she was doing anything wrong, she believed she was acting according to what was acceptable for an eleven year old. I had to think about this for a bit because she did not understand that it is not ok to misbehave. I got the idea to use an example and ask her what she thought about it.

I said, "A person robs a bank, is caught and goes to jail. As soon as that person gets out they rob another bank is caught and goes to jail again. Gets out robs yet another bank and goes to jail. What do you think about this?" "There's a problem," was her answer. Then I said to her, "You are the person robbing the bank". The look on her face was utter devastation. I then explained to her that when she misbehaves it's like the person robbing the bank. The robber did not want to go to jail but that is what he/she got, exactly what they didn't want. That's what you get every time you misbehave; you get everything that you don't want. The logic was inescapable.

If you focus on the things you don't want, you are going to get what you focus on. Now that might seem like it's backwards but in reality that is exactly what many people do and they don't understand why they continually get the results they get. Your mind attracts to you that which is the center of your focus. If your focus is on what you don't want you will get that which you focus on. While the above example is a bit extreme the point is you attract to you what you think about. My daughter said she was always thinking about not getting into trouble, what did she get?

It is extremely important to be specific about what you want as well. It is not enough to say you want more money; you must be specific about the amount of more money you want. If you make $40,000 a year, your subconscious mind thinks that $40,001 is more money which it is and therefore you have reached your goal. Your efforts to get more fail because you're now thinking I don't want $40,001 I want more. If you want to lose weight, loosing 1 pound to your subconscious mind is achieving your goal, you lost weight.

Now you might be thinking "I want to make more money and in the back of your mind more money means $50,000 a year, but all you say is more money. See the difference? You must be specific and say next year I want to make $50,000 or I want to lose 20 pounds in three months. You must know exactly what it is you want or you will fail to get it.

How to make your dreams a reality.

You must know exactly what it is you want.
You must know every detail, how having what you want will make you feel. What having what you want will do for you, give you more status, more prestige, raise your standard of living. You must know every detail or you will stumble along the way and feel like a failure.

You must have a time frame in mind.
You need to set a date by which you expect to have gained the object of your focus. If you desire to fit those designer jeans by springtime and you need to lose 15 pounds, set a date by which you expect to have lost the weight. Then using a series of smaller goals, affirm to lose 1 to 2 pounds pre week by mapping out a diet to cut out 500 calories a day.

Your desire must be measurable.
First start out with the end result clearly in mind. You should start out with a series of smaller obtainable goals. Success with these smaller goals fuels your confidence towards achieving a larger goal. Then have something to gage your success by. Starting with the end result, work backwards in detail until you get to the starting point where you will set out to achieve you goal. This gives you the exact steps you need to take to achieve your goal. Each step should lead you closer to obtaining your desired result. This becomes your ruler, check to see if you are on course.

Always write out your goals.
Writing your goals out is another way to check if you have strayed from the course. It gives you something to follow. Write your goals out and read them daily. We have billions of thoughts per day and a goal is just another thought. Writing it down helps to keep that thought in mind instead of it being replaced by one of the other billions of thoughts. It also helps with your commitment to your goal. Seeing it daily reaffirms it in your mind.

Get a success partner.
One way to insure success with obtaining any goal is to have a partner. Someone who will encourage you and help you stay on course. It's important to have someone who will stand by you and not someone who will try to discourage you. Champions Evolution is a coaching service that helps people set goals and achieve them. They deal with confidence and self-esteem issues and they show you how to believe you can have what you want.

Evaluate your progress.
Are you making headway? If not, why not? Adjust your plan to meet your long-term goal. Are you meeting your weekly or monthly weight loss goals? If not, determine what might be the problem. Add another half hour of walking each week or cut out second helpings.

Challenge yourself through adversity.
That means work hard, push yourself and feel a little discomfort if it means helping you reach your goals. Understand and acknowledge that change is not easy. If it were, you would have already achieved your goal. We tend to revert to previous behaviors when change gets difficult. Now is the time to develop new life behaviors.

You have a choice in what you get or don't get. You choose to have success or you choose to have failure. There is nothing in between the two except you. What you choose to think about will be what you get. Focus on failure and no amount of effort will bring you the success you desire. The thing to do is focus your mind on success.

Although IQ tests measure a certain aspect of intelligence potential, there isn’t complete agreement that what is being measured is actually intelligence.

Standard intelligence tests focus a lot on exploring and measuring linguistic/logical/mathematical ability.  But is that really the same quality as intelligence?  Or is intelligence something broader than that?

We have all met people who have a lot of “book smarts” but seem to have no “life smarts.”  Should we really be saying that they are intelligent?  Some people who did poorly in school often turn out to be very successful in later life.  Why do our current IQ tests seem unable to predict or explain these outcomes?

A person may have failed dismally in school, and yet turn out to be a genius in marketing.  Is this person stupid, or brilliant?  If a man is a great scientist, but can’t ever pick a suitable mate, is he really very smart?

Was Picasso inept because he wasn’t also a brilliant mathematician?  Was Einstein inadequate because he wasn’t also a great artist?

Which of these two men had more intelligence?  Is there more than one kind of intelligence?  How should we define intelligence?  Can we really measure it?  What is intelligence, really?

Several experts in the field of intelligence have proposed that we need to broaden our understanding of what intelligence really is, and the role it plays in successful living.

Psychologist Howard Gardner of Harvard University has suggested that we should consider a wide range of talents and abilities as valid forms of intelligence.

In his intriguing book, “Frames of Mind: Theories of Multiple Intelligences”,  Gardner has proposed the existence of at least seven types of intelligence: verbal-linguistic, logical-mathematical, visual-spatial, musical, bodily-kinesthetic, social-interpersonal and intra-personal.

Another psychologist, Robert Sternberg, has suggested we consider three distinct forms of intelligence.  One type is the ability to think logically and rationally, doing well in an academic type of environment.

A second kind of intelligence identified by Sternberg is the ability to come up with creative solutions to real life situations.  And the third type, according to Sternberg, is the ability to psychologically understand people and interact effectively with them.

A very different perspective on the IQ issue is presented by Daniel Goleman in his best-selling book, “Emotional Intelligence”.   Goleman offers an explanation for why a high IQ does not always lead to success in career or in life.

He says that EQ, or emotional intelligence, has been an overlooked factor that is an extremely important ingredient for success in life.  An ability to get along with others, to be optimistic, to be determined, are among the many factors that contribute to success, perhaps even more than intellectual ability.

Are you starting to realize that intelligence is not just a question of one test score number that forever limits your possibilities?  If we define intelligence primarily as an aptitude for mathematical and linguistic/logical thinking, we may be missing other forms of intelligence that are also important.

If you happen to know your own IQ score, don’t think of it as something that limits or defines your potential.  If your IQ is in the average range it does not in any way mean you are limited to a life of average success and average accomplishment.  If your IQ is in the above average range, it does not guarantee you a life of ease.  You can’t use either a high IQ score or a low one as an excuse not to try very hard.

Your IQ score is only a number.  It does not define you.  It does not really limit you.  It’s just a starting point.  Remember that many other qualities you already possess or can develop are also important for success in life.

Get ready for a golden idea that will accelerate your personal success beyond your imagination.

Are you like most of people who may sit with themselves and define their strengths and weaknesses?

And after that you start developing a plan to improve your weaknesses to become a better person.

And while applying your plan, you face a lot of difficulties and you might surrender with the excuse that it is a habit that can't be changed.

If you are like those people, then accept my apology: you are limiting your chances of success and putting yourself in a great struggle.

By following that method you are wasting time and effort and you are far beyond the fast track to ultimate personal success.

Now forget about that method and let me give you the golden idea to accelerate your personal success:

"Focus 80% of your time and energy building and improving your strengths and focus the remaining 20% on improving you weaknesses".

Don't say it is strange because your strengths will become weaknesses if you left them without continuous improvement.

Your strength will decrease fast while your weakness may improve slowly and you will end up being a "middle" person with no unique talent or value.

To be a person of value you have to focus on your uniqueness and special talent. Develop it, improve it, and the most important thing is: use it, use it and use it.

Forget about your weaknesses; no body is perfect. And focus on your strengths. Focus on the unique value you have more than anyone else.

If you do that you will accelerate your personal success and become a person of great value.

Build on your talents and strengths and don't give much attention to your weaknesses. No body is perfect.

Again, here is the golden idea for accelerating personal success:

"Focus 80% of your time and energy building and improving your strengths and focus the remaining 20% on improving you weaknesses".

My friend, you can make a difference.

I believe in you.

No matter how one looks at it, success and respect come in the form of other people, perhaps even complete strangers. Rare is it in today's world that success will happen in total isolation. No surprise that some of the most successful and respected individuals know a thing or two about how to deal with others. The ability to communicate and influence others' way of thinking, and to actually transform their opinions, is an invaluable life skill.

The obstacle of attaining this life skill is one that everyone faces. Anger, selfishness, and pride all work against our better judgment. The idea is to become proactive, to work toward a resolution rather than toward your own base desires; which will come under fire the more it conflicts with other desires; and so on, until it comes full circle. Disagreements add more fuel to the fire, until neither party is able to influence the other. To be proactive means to step back from the situation, and to examine it from a different angle. Chances are you want your way simply because, well, it's your way. Consider the fact that the other person thinks the same. So be proactive and negotiate yourself out of a one-way street that'll lead to zero resolutions; because while you may get the other person to agree, have you really influenced their opinion?

Look at it this way: "right" is "wrong."

How can that be? The way to peoples' hearts, the way to influence their opinions, is not to impose your will onto theirs'. They first need to see the light before they alter their mode of thought. Approach your opinion as though it were a scientific method, without the pride of being right. It is that very possessive nature that creates disapproval in people. And unless you're in a scientific or highly technical environment, approach the discussion as if it had multiple resolutions. Step outside of yourself and join the team.

The idea is to influence others, rather than simply imposing your will. Become impersonal if you have to; all the better to swim through a sea of ideas and opinions, without the risk of being offended. Assess the problem, and not who said it. A proactive person is more concerned with a resolution than with retribution. The point remains to be said that other variables are at stake, and that "your" viewpoint is not the only path. This does not mean that you cannot disagree. Disagreements are inevitable; but there is a sharp contrast between a personal disagreement and a holistic disagreement. Chances are that a holistic disagreement is a lot more convincing, and more respectable, than a personal one. Because when holistic matters become too personally charged, it becomes detached from a holistic resolution.

The ability to communicate with others is not as vague as it sounds. The abilities to influence and to disagree are the two principle components of a born leader. Because being "right" is only as good as getting the person to agree.

It is well documented that many people fail to achieve their goals in life due to the phenomenon known as "fear of failure" but are you aware that a major factor that is often overlooked, is a state known as "fear of success"?

Fear of failure will lead many people into inertia - the inability to make decision or take action in case they receive rejection or negative outcomes. This mental state is fairky easy to identify and there are many tools in the personal development industry to help combat this plague and reprogram the mind for success. However, the fear of success is much more subtle, harder to spot and also harder to eradicate.

Perhaps you have this tendency in your life. Here are some indications of a fear of success mentality.

Studying and trying to implement self-improvement techniques and/or personal development tools but your life does not improve or may even get worse.

You settle for less than you feel you deserve or are capable of achieving.

You start new projects full of enthusiasm and optimism but wane in your efforts or stop short before you have completed them.

You expect things to go wrong no matter how well the situation appears to be at the moment.

Can you identify your own patterns in the any of the above statements?

The fear of success can also make you behave in ways that hold you back. Look at the list below. These are ethe symptoms of the fear of success.

Procrastination - putting off what needs to be done or not doing what you know will bring you closer to your desired result. Everyone suffers from this inner 'demon' at some point in their lives (although some of us suffer from it more than others!).

Procrastination is a 'success killer'! How can ou expect to reach your destinationm if you do not take steps towards it? Strive to do little things each day that will bring you small steps closer to your goal. This is why having a personal development plan is an essential ingredient in the fight against procrastination. Take action! Any action! Refine your steps as you go along but do not sit and do nothing. Taking action is one of the key aspects in personal development.

Can't see the forest for the trees! - this is almost the opposite of procrastination but has the same effect on your personal development. The aforementioned saying is well known but have you ever given it real consideration?

Don't get caught up in your plan believing that it is more important than the materialised goal! For many years I got caught in this trap. I started to think and act as though my plan was more important than my end result and thus missed many opportunities to alter my path and reach my goals more quickly! Let go of your ego and allow the Universe to show you a quicker route to your goal. Remain flexible.

Thinking that the time is not right - have you ever waited until the timing was perfect before starting a venture? Have you ever waited until you had more information on a better plan?

Again ACTION is the key to the door to success. Taking small steps forward are better than taking none or waiting to see if your foot is landing on the right spot! Even if your actions take you away from your goal you have at least gained insight and knowledge about what does not work!

Being a perfectionist - this is similar to the point above and has the same effect, namely, that you never really move forward. No matter how good a job is when its finished it can always be improved! I have heard many great musicians tell how they hate listening to their own songs because they can find a million things that need improved. Yet, we still enjoy them. I think a classic example of this is "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Paul Simon. This song is hauntingly beautiful yet Mr. Simon does not think its good enough!

Seeing only problems - how do you use your focus? Do you constantly see only and alll the problems involved? If you are this way inclined it is pointless trying to change overnight! However, you can use this mindset to your advantage while you strive in your personal development to acquire an opportunistic frame of mind instead.

"How can you use seeing only problems to my advantage?" you say. "Easily", is my reply! Look at the problems and prepare a plan to deal with them. Everytime you overcome one congratulate yourself. Use them as a gauge for your achievements. If you keep seeing more problems remind yourself of how well you dealt with the others. Look at how far you have come! If you see a problem ask yourself, "how best can I overcome this challenge?" or "how quickly can I rectify this situation?". The quality of your questions are important as I have outlined in a previous article. Use the problems as fact finders. Is there a real problem now? If so then deal with it. Is it a potential problem? If so then create a contingency plan in case it does occur but don't get caught up in it just be prepared.

Enjoy the journey, follow the above guidelines and you will achieve success. Eventually your fear of success will dissipate and you will have moved a long way forward in your personal development.

What do I mean by Activating Your Personal Success?

As I’ve outlined in my book Awaken the Genius each one of us possesses inherent skills, abilities and resources. Skills are obvious these are things that you do better than everyone else around you, or at least as well. Abilities could be physical or mental in nature. Some people have the ability to do math, others have the ability to do art, as examples. Resources are our inner ability to handle and manage situations. A resource would be the skill to be patient when outside influences seem to be slow or difficult. Another resource might be the ability to transform anger into flexibility.

With hypnosis you learn how to cultivate these inner resources that are at the core of who and what you are. At Positive Changes we believe that you are far greater than you have been lead to believe. Far more capable that you have yet allowed yourself to become.

You have started a journey into the world of self-mastery. That journey is to develop who and what you are at the greatest possible level. I believe we all have a internal blueprint. A blueprint that was there when you were born. This blueprint represents your true potential.

How was your success blueprint developed? Psychologists have determined that only 15% of your knowledge is in technical training and the balance of 85% is represented in the personal qualities such as:

• How a person sets goals
• How a person uses their memory and recall
• How creativity is used in a persons life
• If a person responds calmly to situations
• How enthusiastic a person is about their own personal life or the lives of others
• If you are diplomatic under stress or not
• How relaxed you are when you are put to the test of stress or anger or any other negative emotion
• If you have personal confidence or not
• How decisive are you, are you able to make decisions
• How aggressive are you, when you see something you want do you go after it
• How do you get along with others
• Do you procrastinate or do you take action.

All of these are learned through life itself. They are not learned through books or through classroom experiences. So, it is time you cultivated these inner skills. This inner knowledge will help you to Master Your Mind and therefore Master Your Life.

When picking out whatever it is you want to accomplish there is a few things you need to consider. Is the result totally up to you? If it is dependent upon you winning the lottery or some external force outside of your control then I am going to suggest you pick something else. It is best to use your mind to accomplish things you have control over. I can’t teach you to turn water into wine or to walk across water. What we are talking about is Mind Mastery, the mastery of your mind in your own personal life.

So, think of this goal you have in your mind. Hopefully, you have thought of something you want to accomplish. Imagine all of the unseen forces of your mind going to work for you helping you to accomplish that goal. With hypnosis you don’t have to worry about all of the details of how and why and what you are going to need to accomplish this goal. The key here is to think of the “End Result”, keep it focused in your mind.

"It's what you learn when you think you know everything that counts the most in life."
Basketball Coach John Wooden

What's the "secret" behind successful business owners? It's simple - they have a coach. We all have blind spots, particularly when it comes to our business. Have you noticed how easy it is to give advice, but when it comes to your life you can't see the whole picture? Emotions can get in the way of making clear decisions.

Who do you turn to when you need answers?

Do you operate your business from the highest level of thinking and action?
Do you feel you are doing all you can, and yet, it just isn't enough?
The old model of learning from your mistakes is not effective. It's too expensive and time consuming. A single mistake can ruin you in today's fast paced business environment. A coach is an inexpensive insurance policy. Coaching is a profession that has synthesized the best from psychology, business, communication, mentoring, consulting, sports, philosophy, spirituality, sports and finance. A coach challenges you, and provides the tools, structure and support you need. A coach draws the answers out of you and bridges the gap between where you are and where you want to go.

Why do entrepreneurs turn to coaches?

To get an objective viewpoint from someone who has no hidden agenda.
To have consistent structure, support and accountability.
To maximize and leverage every action, investment and opportunity in your life, while minimizing your effort and risks.
When a business owner hires a coach it demonstrates strength and a willingness to take responsibility to grow themselves and their business. Just talking about your thoughts, emotions, and ideas can generate solutions. Many business owners who continually churn their businesses in their mind, drain themselves of the very energy required to run their business with clarity. Bouncing your concerns and ideas with a coach who sees things outside the box that you operate from, can provide obvious solutions.

What is a coach?

Coaching is a profession that has synthesized the best from psychology, business, communication, mentoring, consulting, sports, philosophy, spirituality, sports and finance. A coach challenges you, and provides the tools, structure and support you need. A coach draws the answers out of you and bridges the gap between where you are and where you want to go. A coach is like having a personal trainer for your life and business.

The Seven Secrets To Effortless Success!

1. Identity Your Recipe For Success.

What's the real difference between success and failure? Some people may argue that it's having a great attitude, money, luck or perseverance. The real difference is only one thing - It's the ability to be consistent. You can have a great attitude or perseverance, but if you only have it one or two days a week your life will look like a roller coaster. True success is something you create consistently. What's your recipe for success? Identify the specifics of your successful days: What are you thinking? How do you walk? How are you breathing? What kind of people are around you? Are you taking care of your body? Did you work out today? What types of food are you putting into your body to fuel you? All of these components begin the process of
identifying your special recipe for success. Once you have identified it, duplicate it consistently to maintain an upward movement of quantifiable results.

2. Eliminate The Hassles Of Life.

Suffering is optional! Stop suffering, tolerating and hoping. There's a huge addiction in our culture among entrepreneurs that's rarely recognized. It's the addiction to adrenaline. Adrenaline is a source of energy. It's not the healthiest source of energy, and yet people will do anything to get it. Adrenaline is a habit that creates an unhealthy lifestyle. Here are some symptoms of adrenaline:

Rushing around and juggling as many projects as possible all at once.
Speeding in your car.
Always looking at the clock.
Filing up your gas tank on empty.
Coffee
Sugar
Messy desk with piles everywhere.
Never saying "no" to projects.
Over promising your results.
Adrenaline addiction runs rampant among entrepreneurs because the common belief holds that adrenaline equals success. Gordon Bahary, president of Electric Kingdom Records used to run his life on adrenaline. "I used to create situations that developed adrenaline. I would drink coffee, eat sugar, get hyped, angry and excited more than was necessary. I planned my execution of tasks in an erratic fashion just to get the adrenaline rush. I was dependent upon something external pushing me and used adrenaline to get through my day. Now I'm clear about my real talents and draw genuine energy from within. I have time to stop and think and gained a love for my discipline of not running on adrenaline."

The paradox of attraction is - if you want to achieve more, do less. It's called irresistible attraction. By eliminating adrenaline you naturally attract success, reduce stress, integrate all aspects of your life, simplify, and reorient around what makes you the happiest. What good is increased productivity and profitability if you're not happy?

3. Get Your Needs Met And Communicate More Effectively.

It's important to be clear about what you need and to communicate it elegantly. Needs are not optional. It's what you don't know about you that really runs you. Unmet needs can run your life, until you identify them and take complete responsibility for fulfilling them in healthy ways. Have the language you need to handle confrontations. When people avoid confrontations their lives get messy. When you have the skills to communicate effectively, you have quality relationships and restore your integrity. Learn how to come across better, listen, influence, coach, motivate, inspire and support others.

4. Create Reserves.

Business owners tend to run their business on the edge. They get so caught up with their ideas that they invest everything into their ventures and want to make it happen all now! Business owners tend to exhaust their reserves quicker and faster than any other group of people, because they are creative and come up with so many ideas that require attention. The solution is to create reserves in every area. You want to have more than enough so that you are always operating from reserves. When you operate on close to empty you react to every situation in life. With reserves you respond to life. When you respond you're always at choice.

How do you build reserves? Begin by creating new standards of doubling everything, i.e time, money, opportunities, clients, friends, energy, etc. Fill your gas tank when it's on half a tank instead of waiting until it's on empty. Buy two boxes of fax paper versus one. Hold money in separate reserve accounts for new projects. Say "no" more. Stop over promising and begin to under promise. Operating with reserves make you more attractive. People will gravitate to you and seek you out to do business. With reserves comes fewer errors, space to create the future, time to do complete work and the ability to maintain integrity.

5. Work "On" Your Business Instead Of "In" It.

Insightful business owner's are wise not to work "IN" their business, but know that real money and success come from working "ON" their business. When you work "IN" your business you think like an employee, do tasks that you can do that others should be doing, and work really hard. When you work "ON" your business, you orchestrate the work of others, you step back daily to get a helicopter view of where you're heading and plan your business for long term growth.

It's very easy for new business owners to get engrossed and consumed with their business. While it's important to understand how to run and operate your business it is equally important to stop and set up structures and systems so that anyone can do the job the same way. You're probably worth more than your making. Why charge what you think you are worth. Charge what others are charging. What other products and services can you market to your existing client's? Stop chasing, selling and promoting your business and begin to effortlessly attract . The key here is to have an extremely profitable business. Question all your expenses. Leverage your ability to improve the financial bottom line, make money, add more value to your customers, and increase productivity. The key is to have money instead of money having you. Remember the mission and forget the commission.

6. Get Rid Of All The Stuff In The Way

Eliminate the distractions of problems, incompletions and tolerations and increase productivity. Everything you tolerate claims a piece of your creative and physical energy. Tolerations drain you of the resources required for a successful business. " Getting rid of my tolerations was the most freeing thing I've ever done. I never realized how much energy was being drained from tolerations. Everyday I walked in and got annoyed at my messy desk. Now my desk is organized, I have more energy to use on more important things, like growing my business." Says Mike Schneider, president of Ki Sales.

What are incompletes and tolerations? The piles you have in your office, projects you plan to start, unfilled tax receipts or forms, unread magazines, legal matters, the dent on your car, conversations you need to have, etc. Set up a plan to resolve tolerations and structure a way to eliminate them permanently. How? Identify and eliminate the cause of your tolerations, so they don't come up again. "I constantly look for ways to make my life easier. When issues comes up I don't just look to resolve them, I look for solutions so the problems never resurface." Says Pete Fioretti, president of Mountain Funding.

7. Discover Your Strengths and Orient Your Business Around Them.

What are your strengths? Unfortunately we learn as children to get good at the things we are not good at. For instance, if you had a natural talent in art and failed in math, your parents would hire you a math tutor instead of an art teacher to embellish your innate strengths. When you spend your life trying to get good at things that don't come naturally to you, mediocrity is at best what you can expect. The secret key to effortless success is to identify your strengths and talents and do only those things.

Jan Guarino, president of Guarino Graphics was struggling with her growing business. She spent her time wearing every hat in her company. By the end of the month profits were not growing. She finally stopped doing what she didn't enjoy. She delegated the administration, and took control of graphic design and sales, and her company profits more than doubled.

If you are not certain what your gifts are, it may be difficult to discover it yourself. How do you discover your strengths? Ask five people that know you well what they believe your gifts are. In that dialogue with them you'll discover it.

Are You A Coaching Candidate?
1. Do you spend your day putting out fires?
2. Do you have any concerns about your business running at maximum profitability?
3. Do you run your business on the edge?
4. Do the same problems continually resurface?
5. Do you have difficulty finding someone you trust who can give you an objective viewpoint and bounce ideas off of?
6. Is your business running you ?
7. Do you find that you are unable to make the most of all the opportunities in your life?
8. Do you experience roller coaster highs and lows in your business?
9. Do you have a lone ranger lifestyle?
10. Do you allow your goals and purpose to get sidetracked?
11. Do you lack having a clear, measurable action plan to fulfill your goals?
12. Do you lack structure?
13. Do you lack inner fulfillment?
14. Do you spend most of your day working "in" your business instead of "on" it?
15. Are you a workaholic?
16. Are you experiencing a lack of balance in your life and business?
17. Are you committed to growing yourself and your company?
18. Are you coachable? (Are you willing to hear and act on another's person's viewpoint?)
19. Do you lack a clear financial plan for your future?
20. Are you willing to be truthful and restore your integrity?

* If you answered yes to more than three of these questions you can benefit from a coach.

We all wish to be successful and yet somehow we seem to be missing the target. In this article we will show you how to become more successful in all your endeavors.

Success often eludes many people. Like the inevitable pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, people set their hearts on following their dreams only to wake up disappointed.

Disappointment can be crushing to people. They sit and wonder what on earth they did wrong. They may have a strong belief in that pot of gold, but a dream alone cannot make your visions a reality.

You may have read a myriad of books and followed all the rules and imagined yourself as the successful person that you want to be. Your vision may be crystal clear and that is a good thing.  The Bible says, “Without a vision the people perish”.  The problem remains that envisioning yourself as successful is not enough.

What are your dreams?
What are you hopes for the future?
Have you ever written them down?

If you could be anything that you wanted to be and go where you wanted to go, who would you be? What would you be like? Where would you be living?

I want you to take a few moments now and write down the answer to these questions. Be as specific as you can so you can visualize these things as being true today.  Crystallize these ideals in your mind.

Don’t cheat here, this is an important exercise, now go and write the answers down on a piece of paper, or better still in a book. You can call this your Dream Book to Success.

Now ask yourself this question: What do I need to do in order to live the life I dream of?

What do I need to do to make my dreams a reality?

The first step is to make sure you do not put off the vision too far in the distance. Don’t live on tomorrow’s sunshine. At the same time, don’t expect to have a change overnight.  There is no magic pill that is going to bring about your dream. There is no easy road that will bring you to the Emerald City.

Someone once said “the road to success is filled with hard knocks” and this is reality.

You CAN achieve your dreams only if you systematically prepare yourself to receive them.  You also must believe that you CAN receive them.

Henry Ford said, “If you think you can you can, and if you think you can’t, you can’t”

If you believe that you CAN achieve your dreams then it’s time for you to start planning on how you are going to make your dreams of success come true. Don’t let fear sabotage your thinking.  If you have faith, you can move mountains!  Sometimes though a mountain must be moved a piece at a time.

This takes planning.  No amount of wishful thinking will get you what you want.  Your vision may be crystal clear but with out a plan it’s just a dream.  You need to plan your life in order to get the results you wish for.

You need to set goals for yourself. I know, you hate the thought of setting goals, but unless you put it down in writing and give it a date, it won’t happen. I can guarantee it.

Do you see yourself as slim and sitting on a beach somewhere?  Well if you need to lose weight, dreaming isn’t going to make it happen.  You must write down your goal for losing weight.

In order for my dream to come true I must lose __________ pounds.  This is a good start. Now visualize yourself standing in front of a mirror weighing your perfect weight.  Doesn’t that feel good?

This is your target, your dream, your vision.  Now ask yourself, in order to reach that goal, what steps do I need to take today.  Is it reasonable to say to yourself that you could lose 10 pounds a month?  Too much?  How about 4 pounds a month?  Can you make a decision to yourself to lose 1 pound a week.  In a year that would be 52 pounds!  If you lost 2 pounds a week that would be 104 pounds! See how much you can do by breaking your goals down to bite size pieces. Your mountain can literally be moved piece by piece, or pound by pound in this example.  Voila ! Success!

There is nothing mystical in making your dreams a success. In every situation you can do it piece by piece until your mountain is moved and you achieve Success.

"Motivation will almost always beat mere talent."
~ Norman Augustine

I truly believe Augustine's words are true and if you look at history you know it is true. There are many people in the world with amazing talents who realize only a small percentage of their potential. We all know people who live this truth.


We also know those epic stories, those modern-day legends surrounding the early failures of such supremely successful folks as Michael Jordan and Bill Gates.  We can look a bit further back in time to Albert Einstein or even further back to Abraham Lincoln. What made each of these people so successful? Motivation.

We know this in our gut, but what can we do about it? How can we motivate ourselves? One of the most difficult aspects of achieving success is staying motivated over the long haul.

Motivation is not an accident or something that someone else can give you -- you are the only one with the power to motivate you. Motivation cannot be an external force, it must come from within as the natural product of your desire to achieve something and your belief that you are capable to succeed at your goal.

Positive pleasure-oriented goals are much more powerful motivators than negative fear-based ones. Although each is successful separately, the right combination of both is the most powerful motivational force known to humankind.

Here are some tips and methods for motivating yourself:

~ Use a past defeat as a motivator. Remind yourself you have nowhere to go except up as you have already been at the bottom.

~ Give yourself the power of responsibility. Remind yourself the only thing stopping you is yourself.

~ Make a list of your achievements toward your long-term goal and remind yourself that intentions don't count, only action's.

~ Do it today. Remind yourself of someone you know who died suddenly and the fact that there is no guarantee that tomorrow will come.

~ Let success motivate you. Find a picture of what epitomizes success to you and then pull it out when you are in need of motivation.

Reflect and experiment until you find the right combination of motivators for your personality and your personal goals. I'll leave you with this final motivating quote:

"What drives me? The thing that drives me most is the desire to find my limits--and extend them." ~ Richard Marcinko

Now go push your own limits and succeed!

When you realize that you really want to have an impact in this world, to make a difference, remember that it is in each moment that you are alive and in the present. When you are too busy worrying about what you don't have, what you have to do, where you've been, and what you don't have, you're not in the present; you're consumed by the past you can't change and the future that has yet to happen. There is no impact in either place.

The impact is here and now. Stop, check in, and connect in relationship with those around you. Be present, make the impact with those you see in your life today. Your future will unfold more powerfully and profoundly than you could ever imagine when you focus on the right things; relationships, people, love and community.

Being present will engage you in ways that will offer you greater insights into who you are; what others see in you; what gets you excited; and where you are going with your life. Giving time to others in the moment will enrich your experience of living as the energy of two create new possibilities. It's never about what you get; it's always about what you give! With greater awareness, that can only come through the being present, you will experience better decision-making and a much more profoundly lived life.

Gratitude or appreciation of what we already have is necessary to attract things we want. Every day when you wake up try to be thankful. Think about the good things in your live you should be thankful for. Appreciate your job (even if you don’t like it).

Feel gratitude for a place to live. If you have some food, some friends or anything else you can find to appreciate, appreciate it. A lot of people don’t have enough even basic things like food, water and their own place to live. It’s natural that you want more, that you want to improve your standard of life, but first you need to feel gratitude for what you already have.

If you start your day with feelings of gratitude you will feel good and you can keep that feeling all day.

But you should also write down something like this: “I am so happy and grateful that…” and then write what you would like to have. For example: “I am very happy and grateful that I make $1 million per year; that I have wonderful and loving wife…etc.” Use the present tense, visualize the things you want, be grateful for them, and think about them as already yours. When you achieve them, you can add new things to your list. When you write about money, start first with amount you believe is possible and then increase the amount when you got the amount you’d written down. Be specific.

When you start doing as described above, at first you might feel strange that you are using present tense for the things you want to have in the future, but it’s important to train your mind and force your mind to think about them in present tense. After some time of playing such “mental ping pong” your mind will obey and will help you to achieve the things you want.