Discipline Your Mind For Success, Improve Your Focus

I was reading my usual blogs today and found a particularly interesting post by Steve Pavlina on his Personal Development Blog. I thought that you might like to head on over there if you aren't already following along. It is a huge post so take a little time and settle in for a good read and take some notes.

The whole post can be read at: Disciplining Your Mind to Become Better at Manifesting. Here are a couple of thoughts he touches on but he goes into great detail on the "How To's" in his original post.

"When our mind is cluttered and we attempt to introduce new intentions, it’s like throwing pebbles into a stormy sea. The ripples will still occur, but they’ll just be absorbed. The calmer we can make our background thoughts, the cleaner will be our intentions’ ripples, and the more readily they’ll manifest."

"How can you hold a thought of financial abundance without succumbing to worries about paying the bills? How can you focus on attracting a new relationship when you still harbor thoughts of being alone? How can you manifest health when you keep thinking about your ailments?" . . .

"I think a good solution to these problems is to build your mental discipline, your ability to stay focused on whatever it is you consciously decide to think about.

"We spend a lot of time thinking, but how much effort do we put into consciously managing our thoughts? How skilled are you at choosing your thoughts?"

"I’ve come up with a number of practices that have been very helpful in keeping my thoughts focused on what I want and away from what I don’t want . . . Read his entire posting

Don't Just Survive! Live With Passion!

Beyond Motivation - Passion
By Liz Cassidy

It seems that just as we shifted paradigms in the eighties, we worked synergistically in the nineties; now we are passionate in the naughties. Even my local petrol station has passion brochures at the pump! So what are we passionate for ………?

Last October I got some unasked for, but expert, advice from an extreme extrovert to “be more passionate”. After I had calmed down, I took a long hard look at what I was doing and seriously questioned my passion level. This was after all, expert advice.

My research took me through a motley assortment of superficial pop psychology and self help books, all with Passion in the title and each more inane than the last.

Finally I stumbled across a book by Sydney author Peter Wallman, The Wisdom of Passion. He appeared to get to the real core of what Passion is, and after meeting with him I was convinced that he had identified a simple but powerful process for identifying and capturing our core passions.

I loved the simplicity of the process and the clarity it brought to me and my business. Now I assist others to identify what it is that gets their juices flowing….

Along the way through research, self analysis and questioning of my clients and others who have Passion Mapped I have identified some keys to passion.

Passion is very personal and unique to the individual.

Most of our strongest passions are kept internalised and rarely expressed outwardly.

The most powerful passions are not material (or sport).

Connecting strongly with our passions creates a magnetic effect – We attract people and opportunities.

Eliciting deep passions requires skill, we have learned well from the school of hard knocks to keep this side of ourselves hidden.

When we express our passion, our voices change, our eyes sparkle, and our physical demeanor shifts.

Passion is contagious – be very careful.

Passion comes before motivation and way before action.

Passion makes a difference.

I share my story of being told to “be more passionate” with colleagues and clients and generally get snorts of bemusement. As an introvert, I am not given to bounding into a room, leaping in the air, giving great shouts, or jumping up and down on a sofa – Oprah’s or anyone else’s. So how do I express Passion? Tell me after you talk to me!!!

Passion is not something you have more (or less) of. Passion is inherent and intrinsic.

Last week I had the opportunity to coach 10 leaders and staff members of a niche organisation during three intense days. Each of these individuals has a determination and a spark in their eyes, a tone of voice and a body posture which unmistakably conveys the depth of their passion about the work they do.

Unsurprisingly, the organisations’ Director is passionately leading from the front - a true visionary leader. I felt honoured and very humbled to be coaching this particular team. Their common focus and harnessed energy, steered by their Director, is making a huge difference to their client base. Truly a high impact and passion based organisation.

One of our tasks as leaders is to uncover and unleash the hidden power of Passion in our employees, to harness and direct this passion towards a common shared goal. Just imagine, if you will, for a moment what your team could achieve this year if they were as passionately involved and focused as the organisation I mentioned earlier.

Kofi Annan said “To live is to choose. But to choose, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go, and why you want to get there….” In business our Mission and Values statements spell out who we are and what we stand for, Our Vision statement gives where we want to go, and our Strategy gives us the how. But the why is missing.

Passion is the why!!

Liz Cassidy, founder of Third Sigma International is an author, Speaker, Trainer and Executive Coach and is passionate about facilitating results in the businesses, professional and personal lives of her clients. For more information http://www.thirdsigma.com.au

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Liz_Cassidy

Is Life Just A Game?

It's Only a Game
By J Finnis

The World Cup sees teams from around the world meeting in friendly competition to try to lift soccer's biggest prize. It sees many more, billions in fact, of fans around the globe tuning in to cheer their favorite teams and players. But the World Cup is a microcosm of life and offers Spiritual as well as sporting lessons a plenty.

Win or Lose

Try to win, to the best of your ability. Give it everything you have. But, whatever the result, win or lose, pat yourself on the back for having performed to the best of your ability. At the end of the day the scores are wiped from the slate, but the experience gained in the process remains a part of you, the real you, forever.

Be a Player, not a Spectator

In the World Cup the fate of each nation's footballing pride rests in the hands of a mere 23 individuals. All the thousands that attend or the millions that tune in on TV are mere spectators. Similarly in life we can spectate, or we can play. But unlike the World Cup we can all be players - if we so choose.

Being a player means taking active control of our life path, moving from the passenger's to the driver's seat. Not simply going with what others say just for a quiet life, but positively seeking to pursue our own goals and ideals to the best of our ability.

Choosing to be a player may be much hard than standing on the sidelines watching the game progress. Inevitably we'll suffer a few knocks, and a few defeats. But ultimately, and this is what really counts, in terms of experience we will gain infinitely more.

Review and Reassessment

As games progress so coaches often have to tear up carefully prepared game plans in light of the unexpected. Instead new tactics must be created and implemented on the fly, perhaps as a change of formation, or a substitution or two.

Often the most successful teams are those that can best react to the unanticipated. In life too, we need both a game plan as well as the ability to react and adapt to ever-changing circumstances.

Significance and Perspective

For that brief period when a match is in progress it seems the most important thing in the world to players and fans alike. Emotions swing wildly from high to low with every touch of the ball. Then someone scores a goal. If it's your side - elation. If it's the other lot, your heart sinks.

So with the ups and downs of life. Every day has numerous little successes and frustrations. In the moment they feel hugely significant. But with the passing of time they drift ever further into the depths of the past.

So even do the big events - marriage, having a child, business success, moving house, losing a loved one... though the process takes longer.

At the final whistle it's joy for some, despair for others. For a little while. Then other matters move back into attention and we return to normality.

Life also has a final whistle. Rich man, poor man, beggar, king, all reach the final destination of physical death. And though the experience remains with that individuated soul, its accompanying emotions fade into insignificance and ultimately vanish.

In life, as in soccer, always give your best. But at the end of the day, remember, it's only a game.

Johnny Finnis is the editor of new age spirituality - exploring the idea that this life, this world, is not the totality of our existence. In fact, it might be just one small part of something much bigger, just one tiny step along an infinite journey...

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=J_Finnis

Carpe Diem, Seize The Day!

Seize the Day
By Vishii Rita Krocha

Life is short they say. Perhaps it is. But does it really matter when the ususal chores of the day becomes boring and monotonous? That everyday you wake up and feel...."It's just another day", same usual routine to follow, meet the same old people, eat, work, study or do homeworks. That only those few occasions greet your day with some vigour and liveliness. And the rest of the days in an entire 365 days of a year you feel you are just following some mundane timetable set to pass your time.

The ironic thing is despite the uncountable number of days that we live to see, we can never have enough of it and yet on the other hand we are too blind to see the beauty of each day that adorns us with a lot of moments to cherish.Why, everyday is different. And every bit of it special in it's own way. How come we overlook the uniqueness of each day.

Today we can make a difference. Even change the world if we want to, for it's not being in power that authorises you to do so but it's in contributing what we can to the world. It doesn't matter if you are rich or poor. No wealth in the world can ever buy peace for it. Nor happiness. But when we all do our part in our own little ways, we can certainly light it up. So why wait for tomorrow?

We tend to live with the regrets of the past and wish we hadn't done certain things or that we had done and said some things. There's a saying which goes " Today is the first day for the rest of your life". It's a line we can pretty much apply to our daily living. We can never change the past no matter how beautiful or ugly it had been. But we can definitely live better today.

We can take the good from the past and find ways to change the mistakes of the past. Most importantly live in the moment, for the year, time and day is new every minute. Sometimes it may feel like we are doing almost the same things everyday but we should never take them for granted nor forget that those could be moments we would one day look upon and cherish.

And even if we don't realise it, it's true those memories we hold on to are the ones spent in sheer happiness, those of good times.Captured moments in our minds never included what clothes or shoes we wore or what things we possessed.They never will matter many years from now. It's the 'feel good' factor that make moments memories enough to treasure.

For a change we could start a day feeling new. Call it an occassion and do the same things differently. Even admire the nature, smell flowers, look around you and breathe free, enjoying every minute of the day. Dwell in the present and live like there's going to be no tomorrow.

You could discover something new everyday. You could even feel happier. Who knows you may even begin to like the usual happenings. Why wait for occassions to celebrate? Everyday itself is a reason enough to be merry. Make those occassions extra special and celebrate each day for it's newness and uniqueness for you will never ever chance upon the same day again. It's too precious to just let it slip by.

Like you would on special occasions, wear your best look to greet each morning, a smile to reflect the beauty of your soul and that same special feeling you would have for those anticipated occassions. Sunshine or rain, savour it. Feel them. If it's breeze that blows hard or tender, feel it brushing against your skin.

There's a beautiful piece of writing I came across. It's something about being the star of your own movie. Our whole life is like a movie being played. It's even reviewed after it's done. And our daily living will rate the movie.

If we could live every day with enthusiasm, welcoming every dawn with anticipation and doing even the smallest chores of the day with delight, we would never find an opportunity to say that a certain period of our lives have been a waste, but rather look back and feel great about it. That not a single day went by without you being at your best and that you lived everyday to the full.

Seize the day, make the most of it and savour every second of it before it crosses you and you are too late to catch it.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Vishii_Rita_Krocha

Can We Strategically Find Purpose Or Just Stumble Upon It!

Six Steps for Pursuing Purpose
By Randy Siegel

Each of us has a special purpose or mission, and I have been in search of mine since I was a child. From childhood until my early twenties, I suspected my mission was to go into the ministry. When the other boys were playing cowboys and Indians, I was dressed in long robes building altars, and as a young adult I would lie on my bed for hours praying to God for a sign. One never came.

For most of us, purpose is not something that is revealed through a burning bush. Instead, we stumble onto our life’s purpose. An impulse may lead us to a new place, and that new place leads us towards another, until eventually we find a spot that feels right. This spot is our purpose, and it often turns out to be a place we never considered or envisioned.

There are hundreds of books available on how to “mine” mission, and they tout a wide variety of methods including journaling, art, and creative visualization. But in my experience, it’s hard to extract purpose. Sometimes it doesn’t pay to pursue purpose. It finds us – and only when we are ready.

I now believe purpose unfolds as we unfold and that purpose is intricately tied to living an authentic life, for only when we live authentically can/does purpose reveal itself.

There is no formula for discovering purpose that works for everyone, but these six steps helped me. Perhaps they will help you too.

One: Discover authenticity through self-discovery. I am still searching for authentic self; it’s a lifelong process. Still, at no time in my life have I felt closer to my authentic self than I am now. For example, I am just now beginning to distinguish my wants and needs from parental expectations.

Two: Live an authentic life. Never before has my life so clearly reflected my true Self. I am not as afraid to show people who I am, and I do fewer things to gain others’ approval and more things that bring me pleasure.

Three: Listen. The root of the word vocation is vox (Latin for voice). To find our true vocation, we have to listen to our inner voice. I pay attention to day and nighttime dreams, intuition, energy level, emotions, and my body.

Oprah once wrote in her magazine of the same name, “If you pay attention to these cues -- to the times you’ve felt most joyous, most fully engaged, most connected to yourself and others – you’ll always be guided to the next best place.”

Four: Act. Inventor, designer, and philosopher R. Buckminster Fuller is quoted in Lucia Capacchione’s book Visioning: Ten Steps to Designing the Life of Your Dreams, as saying, “What you actually do within twenty-four hours of having a creative idea will spell the difference between success and failure.”

To dream is not enough, we have to do something with the dream. For me, doing starts by putting the idea in writing. Every year, I write a business plan, and I revised it whenever I get a new idea. I add a new goal along with the action steps to implement it.

Five: Remain open. Not only do we have to do something with our dreams, we have to be open and not tied to a particular outcome. We have to surrender, and we have to trust. I have found that finding purpose is often a circuitous route; one path leads to another, and failures often lead to ultimate success.

Six: Be patient. Patience is not one of my virtues. I have to remember the story of Jake McCord, an outsider artist who lives in Thomson, Georgia. After finishing a painting, Jake places it in his front yard to “season.” When eager collectors try to buy one of these pieces from the yard, Jake says firmly, “It ain’t ready yet.” Jake knows not to rush it; when the time is right, it is right. The same is true for purpose; we have to be patient and remember, “It ain’t ready yet.”

Sometimes I feel I am living my mission, and at other times I feel I am not. Five years ago, I wrote a personal philosophy: “To know yourself is to know God, and to share yourself is to serve Him/Her.” Since then, I have strived to live my philosophy through writing, teaching, coaching, and speaking. Still, sometimes something seems to be missing, and I have to ask, “Am I fulfilling my mission right now or still waiting for the burning bush?”

I hope that in this moment I am fulfilling my mission to the best of my ability, and at the same time, I hope I am staying open to all the possibilities.

“The Career Engineer,” Randy Siegel, helps clients electrify their careers and transform their lives by becoming high voltage communicators™. Subscribe to "Stand in Your Power!" his eNewsletter at http://www.powerhousecommunications.com.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Randy_Siegel

It Is OK To Have Innovative Goals

Innovation Goals and Original Ideas
By Lance Winslow

Most people think that innovation is always free flowing and if you force the process you destroy creativity. In other words if you stress out over performance and deadlines you cannot remain creative. I completely disagree in that they also say that necessity is the Mother of Invention.

Few would disagree with that very profound statement which keeps getting repeated from politicians to academia; now there is something they can agree on? Now then consider a hardship, catastrophe or war. If you fail to innovate, overcome or adapt you could die; hence the other saying; Adapt or Die.

Indeed, now then consider in World War II, which was one of the fastest innovation periods of mankind’s 10,000 years of recorded history. Or think of the cold war as a motivator, with deadlines and sense of urgency to literally move mountains, did that slow innovation? No, we put a man on the Moon; yes a giant step for mankind no doubt.

Now then this brings me to my next point and that is it is okay to have innovative goals; in fact it works really well. I can prove it in that I have a personal goal of two-original thoughts each day. Generally I consider these to thoughts to most often be inventions or technology type things, but occasionally other things; social, political or even economic.

To have 2-original thoughts per day you cannot limit your topics or subject matter as you will run out of things to think of and thus not achieve the goal. I would recommend that everyone set innovation goals; start with one original idea per quarter or every 3-months at first.

That is what I had to do, then work up to it. Try it and tap into your own personal creative and innovative mind for original ideas. Consider all this in 2006.

"Lance Winslow" - Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; http://www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Lance_Winslow

How Do You Achieve Really "BIG" Goals?

The Big Shift

You've got big dreams. Ideas that are going to take your life in a complete one-eighty degree turn, right? Like creating better balance between work and home, creating more organization, or finding the perfect mate.

You're raring to go except for one thing - how to get started. Such a life altering goal is going to require some major serious action, right? Or will it? Somewhere along the line the mind seems to directly infer that big is to big, as small is to small and that is just erroneous when it comes to goals.

Take as an example the person who wants to de-clutter a home. A huge undertaking - yes. While going through the house and pitching everything that is not a dire necessity is an option, creating systems for various items/rooms/house occupants is a much smaller task which will yield far better long-term results. Why?

In the second scenario the goal, the action, and commitment to the goal were all involved, elements required to produce results. A monumental shift does not require a monumental action.

The Success Tool for the Big Shift

1.. Change your thoughts regarding your anticipated outcome. If you think that your project is too big for you to accomplish, it's going to be. If it does seem too monumental, simply break it down into two or more smaller tasks that can be managed more effectively. How you perceive it, so shall it be.

2.. Get clear about the action and your plan of attack. Ever have to prepare a meal at the last minute when you're not sure if you have all of the ingredients, the pots and pans are all dirty in the sink, and you have a deadline of less than thirty minutes? Well that's what a poorly planned goal plays out like.

Wouldn't a hastily prepared to-do list, a recipe card, or even a handy phone book with circled ads for good quick take-out make things much easier? Why spend the majority of your time running around willy nilly? You already possess the best planning tool around - your mind.

Use it to specifically determine what you want to accomplish and then plan it all out in detail. Determine which small quick approaches can be taken to get you started down the right path. The more details the better because it allows you to see the outcome. Forget seeing is believing! Seeing is ACHIEVING.

3.. Commit to it. Write it down and start living your life "as if". As if it's already come to be. Think about how much more confident and at ease you are when you have experience doing a task, job skill, or project.

Think of this as a dress rehearsal for your success. The better you know your lines (your actions), and your blocking (your plan of attack), the smoother the performance will be. You owe it to your audience (yourself) to be as prepared as possible-always.

A few small changes are often all that are required to yield huge returns. In cases where there are several steps, small changes are basically catalysts that create chain reactions that result in the monumental shift that you are looking for.

The Big Shift is just the way to ramp-up your successful approach to change, and actually make it so. It's so much more about starting from within with your thoughts, since thoughts are the preschool for actions. Just remember the big shift isn't all about big action - just some action.

Copyright Eva Gregory

Eva Gregory, master coach, speaker and author of The Feel Good Guide To Prosperity, http://www.feelgoodguide.com, has instructed thousands on the Laws of Attraction in person, on the radio and in dozens of teleconference training seminars and programs. She is the author of several books and e-books and has co-developed several telephone-based and internet-based training courses on the Laws of Attraction.

Her most popular program to date is her Leading Edge Living One Year Success Program). Eva is regularly featured on radio and in the media and is a recognized authority on the Laws of Attraction. To learn more about her products and services, visit Leading Edge Coaching.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Eva_Gregory

Are You Running In The Race Against The Clock?

This article reminds me of the fable when the hare runs the race against the turtle, and the turtle as slow as it moves, always wins the race.

The Road to Slowness
By Dawn Montefusco

“Slow is smooth…and smooth is fast.” ~ Jos Smith

“An unhurried sense of time is in itself a form of wealth.” ~ Bonnie Friedman.

I keep hearing more and more people (clients, friends, family) talk about how they feel that time is speeding up, as if time speeds. They talk about time like it has a personality and can be contacted.

“Uh, hello, Ms. Time?”

“Yes, darling?”

“ Could you slow down? I’ve got too much on my plate right now.”

“Oh honey, you humans are so easy to toy with.”

“Couldn’t you just slow it down for like, say, a month or so?”

“Hold on dear, my nails are wet and holding this phone is cumbersome. Maybe call back later.”

(click)

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, lack of time has become the new poverty.

I hate to be the voice of reality but time doesn’t speed (I’m sure some of you science-minded folks can argue that time does speed up in reference to the rotation of the earth or something relative to gravity, or quantum physics, or some other hoop-dee-do, and I’d love to hear it,) but as for what I see in human behavior, time doesn’t do anything but tick, and tock.

It’s us humans that have gotten preoccupied with speed and we jam-pack our days with work, more work, cleaning, planning, organizing, thinking, worrying, sleeping from exhaustion, trying to stay awake, trying to fall asleep, tossing and turning, thinking about relationships, visiting with family and friends.

Let’s not even try to squeeze in a healthy lifestyle, exercise, vacation time or fun. We’ve gotten so accustomed to doing TOO much that we now BLAME time!

No wonder the book, “In Praise of Slowness,” by Carl Honore is a best seller in several countries. Carl looks closely at the modern compulsion to hurry and chronicles a global trend toward putting on the brakes! Go Carl! He says:

“We all feel under pressure to do everything faster. But faster is not always better. When every moment becomes a race against the clock, when we forget how to slow down, there is a price to pay. Our diet, health and work, our relationships, communities and the environment, all suffer. But there is an alternative to living like a roadrunner. It’s called the Slow movement.

“The Slow movement is not about dropping out. It’s about living better by relearning the art of shifting gears. Taking breaks, taking time to plan or think through a decision or even just taking a nap can boost productivity and the bottom line. Shifting down a gear gets the creative juices flowing.

By rushing less, we can take more pleasure from food, sex, relationships, vacations, from anything. The trick is to find the right speed for each moment – to do some things quickly, others slowly and sometimes to do nothing at all. So forget doing everything faster. By unleashing our inner tortoise, we can do everything better.”

As a life coach I work a lot with time management, so here, with my own praise for slowing down, are a few tips to help you on your road to slowness:

* People feel hurried because they don’t finish one project before starting another. They then have several unfinished projects, which is energetically draining.

I recommend making a “Definite Yes” list of three things a week you want to accomplish. Do one at a time and don’t start number two until number one is complete. You will feel better about your days, more accomplished and time will not feel as confined.

With only three things on your list per week, you are bound to start feeling good about your accomplishments. (You can also have a "Definite Yes" list for a three month vision or a six month vision depending on your goals.)

* Write DOWN your schedule weekly! Having a visual picture of what you are trying to accomplish will allow you to see where your time goes. Analyze your time each week and keep improving on the schedule.

Use colorful markers to create a weekly plan that works. Make it look bright and playful, so that you associate your schedule with a fun attitude. Even though you may have a lot on your plate, a good attitude makes any day feel brighter!

* Remember YOU ALWAYS HAVE CHOICES! You may have tough choices, but they are your choices none the less. When we take responsibility for our lives we take our power back and learn to make slowing down a priority.

* Practice saying “no.” When you are saying “no” to one thing, you are saying “yes” to something else. What are you saying yes to every time you say no?

* Be selfish! Selfish is not a dirty word. A high quality life starts with a high quality you, and it takes courage and commitment to be able to take care of yourself. "No person is your friend who demands your silence, or denies your right to grow." ~ Alice Walker

* Take fifteen minutes a day to meditate in the morning and fifteen minutes at night. Our brains operate in beta waves most of the time. Beta waves are the common pattern of normal waking consciousness. When we don’t get proper sleep, or slow ourselves down, these beta waves can become higher-end beta waves that lead to uneasiness, distress and anxiety.

Extremes of these beta waves lead to the “fight or flight” response. So slowing down the mind is essential in staying healthy. Meditating even for 15 minutes twice a day allows our brains to rest. It helps our brainwaves balance out into alpha waves, and if we’re lucky we can get into theta waves (although this usually happens with longer meditations.) When the brain is balanced it functions better and we produce better work, have a clear idea of what possibilities are out there, and use our imaginations.

Think of it this way, it’s like having a room full of dust and all you keep doing is throw the dust around which makes it impossible to see anything. Once you allow the dust to settle and the air to clear, you can more effectively see which way to go and how to navigate.

* One thing I’ve noticed is that it takes practice to allow myself to feel good about going slow. I’m one fast paced mo-fo! I go fast fast fast and I tell myself I like it this way, but the truth is that I like having the time to go slow just as much as I like to speed up, so the real question I ask myself is when does going slow benefit me, and when does going fast benefit me?

I think they are both worthy of having a place in my life. Just by being more conscious about these things has made my health better, and my mind feel happier, so I recommend (at the very least) trying to put an awareness on your time, speed and energy and see what happens.

Okay, on your mark. Get set. Slow!

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Dawn_Montefusco

Self Help Blog A Good Read

I found this awesome blog some time ago and it just occured to me that I haven't passed it on to you. So, if you haven't already been following the blog at 'Self Help', go get your favorite beverage and prepare for a good read. There are a lot of great quality questions you can ask yourself and dig down deep for quality answers. Here's today's post on:

"Searching For Your Most Important Goals"

To help you come closer to defining your dreams, sit down and ask yourself these questions to help pinpoint which goal on that list is truly your prime ambition and dream:

If I reach this prime dream, my major goal, will I be both happy and healthy?

In my quest for this dream, will I still be able to have many friends and have good relationships with my family, friends, and coworkers?

How secure will reaching this dream make me?

Is this goal something I will love to pursue for a lifetime?

What obstacles do I need to overcome to make my dream a reality?

What can I work on now to enable me to fulfill these dreams? If I want to play first violin in a symphony orchestra, write novels, own my own business, become a physician, and so on, what are the first steps I must take?

Whom should I seek as a teacher or mentor to help me reach this dream?

What is the appropriate time-line for achieving this dream? (Or can I really set one?)

Do I have the talent, knowledge, and discipline necessary to reach this particular goal? If not, how do I get it?

Finding Your Life Purpose

Finding Out Your Life Purpose (By Jane Johnson)

What is a Life Purpose or Calling?

Life purpose is a calling, overall theme for our life or intent that transcends our daily activities. It is the quality we are here on earth to develop, the type of service we are here to render, the way we can enhance or improve some segment of the planet. It is much broader than one job or career; it pervades our entire life.

Marcia Bench states " People will tend to experience success and fulfilment in their life to the extent that they are clear about their life purpose". Are you clear? We will now examine some of the reasons to find your life purpose.

Benefits of Finding your Life Purpose

It will be compass to direct you in the right path. Life purpose allows you to decide which opportunities to take up and which to decline. Continued On The RGG Site

Small Changes Consistently

Kaizen For Self Improvement
By Steven Gillman

What does Kaizen, a Japanese method of production excellence and industrial efficiency have to do with self improvement? Can it be adapted to self-work? What is it, anyhow?

It began with the "continuous improvement" theories of efficiency expert W. Edwards Deming in the 30s and 40s. After the war the ideas were picked up by the Japanese and developed into "Kaizen," a method for creating quality products efficiently through many small and continuous changes. This is perfect for self-improvement, as Robert Maurer explains in his book "One Small Step Change Your Life:"

"Your brain is programmed to resist change, but by taking small steps, you effectively rewire your nervous system. Continued On RGG Site

Take Responsibility Now

Ever Wondered Why Everyone Else is Moving On, Except You?
By Jason Johns

“I attend courses, read books, listen to CD’s, yet I am still not living the life I want to and am unhappy with the life I have. How can I have the life I want to have?”

This is a surprisingly common dilemma. There are many people out there who could be called “Seminar Junkies”. They go from course to course, book to book, guru to guru desperately seeking answers, yet never finding them.

They watch the people around them have magical transformations in their lives, and feel frustrated and resentful that they are not getting the same results. These people typically continue to attend course after course until eventually they give up and live a life of quiet desperation.

Now, I’m going to share a huge secret with you, though you have to promise not to tell everyone else, because otherwise all these people who make their living from self help seminars and books will get very upset at me for sharing this secret.

The majority of people who attend self-help seminars, read the books, listen to the CD’s are all desperately looking for someone else to change their lives. They refuse to take responsibility for their lives and firmly believe that the only way they can change is if some guru waves their magic wand and blesses them. Then, and only then, will they have permission, and the ability, to change.

Here’s a newsflash. Continued On RGG Site

The Value Of Mentors

The Value of Mentors
By Brian Tracy

Benjamin Franklin once said, “There are two ways to acquire wisdom; you can either buy it or borrow it. By buying it, you pay full price in terms of time and cost to learn the lessons you need to learn. By borrowing it, you go to those men and women who have already paid the price to learn the lessons and get their wisdom from them.”

This is the essence of the mentor-protégé relationship. By going to people who are ahead of you in the personal or professional arena, and by opening yourself up to their input, advice and guidance, you can save yourself the many months (maybe even years) and the thousands of dollars it would cost to learn what you need to learn all by yourself.

Kop Kopmier, the famous success authority, said that one of the most important secrets of success is to learn proven success methods. He once told me that perhaps the fastest way to get ahead was to study the experts and to do what they do, rather than trying to learn it all yourself. In fact, he mentioned that no one lives long enough to learn everything they need to learn starting from scratch.

To be successful, we absolutely, positively have to find people who have already paid the price to learn the things that we need to learn to achieve our goals. Continued On The RGG Site

How To Stay Positive

How To Stay Positive In Spite of The Negativity Around You By Josh Hinds

I'm often asked how it is that I stay so positive. Now allow me to clear up some misconceptions you might have based on that last statement. I am not one of those folks that walk around with what is commonly referred to as a career politician's smile painted across my face.

Although I do believe whole-heartedly in the power that a simple smile can impart on another. No, you see, just like everyone else, no matter how over all a positive person I am, or attempt to view things I still have my down moments. I like to call it being human :-)

The very fact that we are just that, human, allows us all to have down times. The difference lies in how . . . Continued on RGG Site

Passion, Determination, Resilience, Confidence = Winner Mindset

The Definition of WIN!

When you look into the eyes of a winner, what do you see? Perhaps you notice a fire of passion, determination, resilience, and a sense of self confidence that screams, “I can do it! Nothing can stop me from winning!”

We’ve all seen winners in our personal and professional lives. They are the determined ones with a strong resolve and unwavering sense of purpose in everything they do. Always able to face challenge and adapt to change, they see adversity and defeat as minor and temporary setbacks, recovering with an even stronger, more steadfast desire to win.

They never wallow on the path of self pity and consistently manage to stay focused on their ultimate objective. Winners are leaders with a mission, and they epitomize success in everything they do.

As I've worked with winners in the military and in business, I've noted an important similarity: whether the winners realize it or not, their success comes from their innate ability to "Work It Now!"

That’s right! That is how winners define Win. They have a ‘work it now’ attitude about life, and approach every challenge with a resolute commitment to excellence. Winners undoubtedly recognize that it takes work to win, and they don’t put it off until tomorrow. They do what is necessary to win today!

The foundation of a winner’s state of mind is the realization that nothing in life worth fighting for comes easy. Sacrifice, effort, and sweat are synonymous with success.

If you look around your organization, see what the winners are doing, and observe how ‘easy’ they make it seem! It only appears easy because of all the time and energy they took developing their skills and sharpening the sword of success.

Winners are the ones who consistently:

1. Arrive early and stay late until the job gets done.

2. Volunteer for the tough projects when no-one else will.

3. Take pride in their work and enjoy the daily journey towards success.

4. Take advantage of training seminars, ask questions, and read books to expand their knowledge base and expertise.

The same holds true for the top salespersons that repeatedly practice their presentations, the best pro golfers who perfect their swing, and the experienced surgeons who study the latest surgical equipment, drugs, and procedures.

In addition, winners not only work hard in their personal development, but also on developing trusting and productive relationships with their co-workers, friends, and families. These relationships are based on a solid foundation of integrity and accountability.

They appreciate that to truly be successful you often need the assistance of those trusted and reliable partners in your life to accomplish your objectives.

Fighter pilots call these trusted and reliable partners wingmen, as they fly on each other’s wing in formation. Wingmen are used to back each other up, monitor safety, and successfully accomplish very dangerous and complicated missions.

The wingmen mentality of mutual support also applies to business and life, as we all need each other to help us overcome our daily challenges.

While winners may not necessarily possess the inherent ability to ‘do it all,’ their success often stems from the fact that they know who to go to for help in getting the job done. Moreover, they are easy to get along with and have an innate ability to connect with people. They possess what Daniel Goleman coined in the early 90’s - Emotional Intelligence.

As a former Air Force fighter pilot, my fellow wingmen and I lived by the credo – “The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in war!” In order to defeat the enemy and stay ahead of the threat, we needed to spend countless hours studying tactics, technology, and war fighting doctrine.

We trained together relentlessly in various environments in order to maximize our ability to survive in hazardous and volatile conditions. There was no room for error. If we failed, our lives and the lives of our wingmen were at stake.

Finally, we planned, briefed, and debriefed our missions as a unified, cohesive team, understanding that we could never fly a successful mission solo. We always had to fly with wingmen to achieve our objectives…and win!

In addition to a ‘work mindset,’ winners operate on a ‘now timeline.’ In essence, they never put off until tomorrow what should be done today! There is no room for procrastination in a winner’s daily regimen. Furthermore, they don’t make excuses.

In the stress and challenges of everyday life, it’s so easy to become overwhelmed by the countless responsibilities we face. Quite often, we become strangled by these pressures and challenges. Rather than take the necessary action to face them head on, we may find ourselves immobilized and fearful.

How ‘easy’ it is to give in to the pressure and wait until tomorrow to face today’s challenges! Unfortunately, many tomorrows pass us by and the issues never get resolved. We remain uninspired and stagnant, and fail to grow in our personal and professional lives.

Winners, on the other hand, take action now! They possess a ‘make it happen’ approach to life, and “sweat now” in order to prevent “bleeding tomorrow.” They tackle the toughest challenges first while maintaining their integrity, and while their sacrifice may, at times, be burdensome, their ultimate reward is personal growth and the inherent satisfaction of a job well done.

The path to victory doesn’t come easy. It is often strewn with defeat and frustration. Winning is a bi-product of relentless self discipline, consistent training, passionate leadership, and a positive attitude. This takes time, patience and perseverance to develop.

In life, you often have to stumble or take a step back in order to make a great leap forward. For hidden in every failure is a victory waiting to emerge.

Never give up in your quest to be the best. Work it Now…and WIN!

By Waldo Waldman

Waldo Waldman builds team unity within organizations as a high energy inspirational speaker and leadership consultant. A former combat-decorated fighter pilot with corporate sales experience, he brings an exciting and valuable message to companies by using fighter pilot strategies as building blocks for peak performance, teamwork, leadership, and trust.

His clients include New York Life, Honeywell, and Panasonic. To book Waldo for your next meeting or to register for his newsletter,” The Wingman," visit http://www.yourwingman.com or call him at 1-866-WALDO-16 (925-3616).

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Waldo_Waldman

Be Determined . . . Persist Until!

Being Determined - What Good Will That Do?
Kate Harper

‘Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing till it gets there.’ -- Josh Billings

On Sunday, June 19th 2005, I was fortunate enough to see hundreds of cyclists, young and less young, tackle the 13th Scottish Bikeathon in aid of Leukaemia Research. The course of 26 miles wound its way through the spectacular Highland countryside, with some breathtaking sights along the way, as well as some pretty steep hills. What impressed me was not so much the fit and athletic who completed the course in next to no time, but the others who didn’t usually attempt this kind of thing, but were absolutely determined to complete the 26 mile course.

One of those was a 7 year old girl, who along with her father, slogged along from 10.45 in the morning until 3.30 in the afternoon, with only a half hour break for lunch. She wasn’t the fastest, in fact I think she was the slowest, but she was not going to give up! That was determination! As she came to the finish there was the biggest, brightest smile I have seen in a long time. All that effort was definitely worth it and I know she’ll be doing it again next year. How do I know? She told me. You see, she is my daughter.

How can determination help to move you towards your goals? The goal here was the finish of a somewhat tough 26 mile course. It was in the same place as the starting point, so was a clear landmark in everyone’s minds. In this case, moving towards the goal was made simpler by the fact that everyone was riding bicycles! If you didn’t do something, like pedalling, you would go nowhere!

However, you had to be determined to reach that goal. There was ample opportunity to give up, as there were support vehicles ready to take the weary and exhausted back to the start, and no-one would have judged you for it. The last half was particularly challenging, as there were quite a few long steep hills to climb. Completing the 26 miles was no simple task.

Can being determined help you do what you’ve been putting off for a while? Yes, indeed! Why not follow the example of those fantastic cyclists and get on your bike! Or put on your training shoes, or walking boots. Or join a dance class! What have you been putting off? What is weighing heavy on your mind that needs a kick-start? Do you really take care of yourself? What can you add into your life that will make a difference to your health and wellbeing? Show some determination and do something!

Determine to do something for yourself. A wonderful day out in the fresh, clean air, doing something to raise money for charity in the company of like-minded people. I don’t know of anyone who participated in the Bikeathon who didn’t have a tremendous sense of satisfaction at completing the course. This was the ideal situation of doing something challenging for you while helping others. Why not see if something similar is taking place somewhere near you?

Determine to do something active every day. You don’t really get more active than this! 26 miles up and down hills. Pedalling hard and breathing with your full lung capacity. This is activity at its best! Activity of one form or another will not only give you a healthier body, but a healthier mind.

Be determined to do something because you want to, not because you have to. Everyone who was participating was there because they wanted to be. This is not an event that you have to do. There are many people who have never taken part, including myself, who are not judged by those who do. There is a party atmosphere, with some people putting on fancy dress, and the whole day is one of celebration. Celebrating life to help those who are struggling with a threat to theirs.

Determine to do something new every day. For many people taking part this was definitely a new experience. And for many of those, it is an experience they are determined to repeat next year!

Be determined to do something creative every week. Creativity manifests itself in many ways. Our imagination takes flight and we can see ourselves achieving all sorts of resourceful and inspirational things. Just cycling through the glorious Highland scenery is bound to have set someone’s creative juices flowing. I’m willing to bet on it! What a great feeling!

Make sure you are determined to do something for nothing. This one is a tough one. This event was not for nothing. It was to raise as much as possible for the charity Leukaemia Research. However, I don’t think there was one person taking part who did so for any recognition or glory. They took part for the challenge and the fun of it, and because they were determined to do it!

Isn’t it time you became determined?

Kate Harper is based in the beautiful Highlands of Scotland. Check out her website www.harpercoaching.com

She works with people who are fed up with moaning about their lives and have decided to do something about it. If that is you, please take a look at Kate's website. She is happy to work with people from any part of the world.

"The distance is nothing; it is only the first step that is difficult." Madame Marie du Deffand

Take your first step today and contact Kate.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com

Obstacles Are Opportunities

Every Obstacle Always Presents an Opportunity
By Garret Belisle

In ancient times, a King had a boulder placed on a roadway. Then he hid himself and watched to see if anyone would remove the huge rock. Some of the king's wealthiest merchants and courtiers came by and simply walked around it. Many loudly blamed the King for not keeping the roads clear, but none did anything about getting the stone out of the way. Then a peasant came along carrying a load of vegetables.

Upon approaching the boulder, the peasant laid down his burden and tried to move the stone to the side of the road. After much pushing and straining, he finally succeeded. After the peasant picked up his load of vegetables, he noticed a purse lying in the road where the boulder had been. The purse contained many gold coins and a note from the King indicating that the gold was for the person who removed the boulder from the roadway. The peasant learned what many of us never understand

Every obstacle presents an opportunity to improve our condition.

An inspirational story I thought, but what does this have to do with me? (you are probably asking yourself this question)

The answer : Everything!!!

Going on some new found venture in anything always has some form of obstacle or obstacles that go along with it, whether it is right in front of you or hidden somewhere, they are always there.

To get a bit off track allow me to share a story with you, many years ago when I was a younger man, I was in the military...I remember so many instances that looking back on were all obstacles. Some of course stood right out...while others were carefully hidden (much to the delight of the instructors) our platoon had started the "Battleschool" training with 42 men and by the end we graduated with 21. So in relation to the story aforementioned those of us who made it through were the "peasant" and those who did not were the "noblemen" etc. We did not give in to the obstacles or remove ourselves from the risks involved.

We failed, we failed, we failed...until...we succeeded.

With all things in life, there are obstacles and risks...but the rewards far outweigh the risks involved if you go into the situation with the following :

The right mindset.
The right trainers.
The right motivation.
The right education and know how.
The belief in yourself (is paramount)

When you follow successful people and do what they teach you and do it properly then the only outcome is a positive and successful outcome.

Failure is not an option, nor is it a thought.

I hope if nothing else you read this story and take something from it, and more importantly believe in yourself and you will succeed!

Garret

By the way I know this is "off the path" of the normal topic here but I really wanted to share this story with all of you.

Until next time

Garret

Garret Belisle is the co-author of http://www.firefoxmentor.com for the latest information on the firefox browser.

The Importance of Keeping A Journal

Small But Mighty!
By Adebola Oni

When most of us are asked the most important possession in our lives, we tend to look at the big stuffs we have acquired over the years. We easily point to our cars, mansions and even the money we have being able to amass in large quantity. To us, these are the things that make our lives go smoothly.

But if we ask a successful man what his prized possession is, we will all be amazed at his answer. His road to success was started by this little thing we all can easily overlook and he sees it as his daily companion. What is it? A journal! This is unbelievable but true.

The power of a journal should never be under estimated in our everyday living. If you study a successful person, you will notice they hardly go anywhere without this prized possession. This is because it is widely believed that the retentive power of the human brain is very low and one can catch an idea or inspiration anywhere. So if an idea comes to your mind and you don't have the means of capturing it, it is likely to be forgotten. It comes back to memory immediately you see someone carrying out the same idea.

The faintest ink is better than the sharpest brain and this cannot be disputed. Write something down and twenty years from now, you will still be refering to it but store it in your brain and you forget it in the next hour or two. Any idea may occur to you that you may not even be able to carry out immediately it struck your mind, but who told you you won't be able to implement it in years to come?

If your ideas are noted in a journal, a day will come that you will have the capability to implement it. This is one of the secrets of the highly successful. They keep writing down all the ideas that occur to them until the day they have the wherewithal to carry them out.

Do you really want to be successful? Then begin to copy the lifestyle of the successful. I know of someone who said he has written down so much ideas to the extent that for the next twenty year, he can never complain of not having anything to do. What if you are in this man's shoe, how will you feel?

If you are not used to this, please begin to practise this art and in no mean time, it will become a lifestyle. I learnt this some years back and it has helped me a lot. There are some ideas I generate that I couldn't carry out immediately. All I do is write them down and file them somewhere I can make reference to later. Any where I go, my companion is always my journal.

"Be prepared" is the Boys Scout motto and ideas may come at any time so you must always be ready to jot them down. You never can tell if it is any of them that will change your life. This is one secret that will help you a lot if only you can put it to practice. Learning without acting is like not learning at all.

You will make it.

Bola Oni
Bola Oni is a businessman, writer and an inspiration to many. You can visit his blog, http://successdigest.blogspot.com to receive daily inspiration. You can also send a blank email to sdupdate@freeautobot.com to be notified whenever something has been posted on his blog.

Associate With Those People Who Can Help You With Your Goals

7 Places to Find the People You Need
By Cari Vollmer

Where do you go to find the PEOPLE you need to make your dreams a reality? Read the 7 suggestions below to get started. You might find the people you need are closer than you think.

1. Form or participate in a success team.

This is my secret. For every major project I commit to I surround myself with other people with similar goals. For example: I wanted help keeping my business on track. I formed a group with three other business owners who had the same goal. We learn a ton from each other, share resources, provide feedback and offer unending encouragement. We've been together for over a year and they play a big role in my ability to consistently get things done and make things happen.

2. Get coached!

I may be biased, but before I was a coach I hired a coach. It gave me the shot in the arm I needed to launch my business. Coaching is amazing because you get to work one-on-one with someone totally dedicated to you and your