Tag Archive 'success'

Jun 24 2009

What Are You Saying to Yourself?

Published by under Creating Success

Have you ever listened to your self-talk – all the things you’re telling yourself all day?  I mean really listened. You might be surprised at what you’re saying to yourself. It’s like a conversation going on all the time.

Some are things you’ve been told over the years, many times as a child. A lot of times it can be negative – since those are the things we tend to remember people saying to us. So it’s easy to fall into negative self-talk. Things like – ‘you screwed up again’ or ‘you’ll never be able to do that’. Think about what would happen if your self-talk was positive. Do you think it could change your life? There is considerable evidence that it very much affects your life, both physically and mentally.

Your subconscious mind does not make distinctions between negative and positive thoughts. It treats them both in the same way. So saying “I don’t want to get sick” is the same as saying “I want to get sick” to your subconscious. The subconscious doesn’t hear the negative word. To re-frame your self-talk you would say to yourself “I want to be healthy” or something to that effect. The subconscious mind accepts and regards often-repeated thoughts, statements, or self-talk, as commands. So your subconscious then searchs for ways to make it come true. So your thoughts shape your life – either positively or negatively.

If your self-talk is negative, one of the ways to begin changing it is to write down a list of affirmations. It could be many different topics but it should cover your finances, relationships, spirituality, health  and community.

Now take that list and make some positive statements from it.

Here are some basic guidelines:

  1. Use only positive words to describe what you want.
  2. Be very specific. The clearer you are the easier it is to visualize when you repeat it.
  3. Phrase the affirmation in the present tense. By doing that you begin to see yourself as having already achieved the goal, not at some time in the future.
  4. Keep them short so they’re easy to remember.
  5. Put some emotion and feelings into them. Not just “I am my ideal weight” but rather “I am now my ideal weight and look drop-dead gorgeous in that red dress.” Which one brings up a more vivid mental pictures?
Repeat affirmations several times a day. Starting your day with your affirmations sets the tone for your day and helps you keep focused on those positive elements. When you end your day with your affirmations, the subconscious mind has all night to work on it while you sleep. Repeat affirmations aloud, silently, or by writing them down. The most effective is writing them down. Take just one and concentrate on that for 30 days. Write it on a card and slip it in your pocket. Whenever you reach into your pocket, you’re reminded of that affirmation. Bringing your positive thoughts into your mind on a continual basis will help your mind to search out those ways to bring that affirmation into reality.
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Jun 05 2009

7 Steps to Creating that Life You've Dreamed Of

Published by under Creating Success

Earl Nightingale believed that people with goals succeed in life and people without them fail.

There was a study on goal achievement done with people ages 23 to 72 from many different countries and a variety of professions. There were 5 groups. The first group thought about their goals, rated them according to importance and commitment. The second group wrote their goals down and did the same rating. The third group made action commitments in addition. The fourth group not only formulated action commitments but sent them to a friend. And the fifth group did all of the above and additionally did weekly progress reports with their friend.  The results were definitive. The fifth group did better than the fourth group which did better than the third group, etc.  The biggest percentage difference was between those who wrote down their goals and those who didn’t.

As a result of growing up poor, Napoleon Hill was driven to find out why some people are poor and others are not. He believed that we should live each day fully and to the best of our ability. He made his goal to find the secret of success and to become a writer. The result of these decisions was to write “Think and Grow Rich” -  which in a nutshell said ” we become what we think.” Obviously, the book has much more than that and it is a “must read” for anyone wanting to experience success in life.

So what do we  need to do to start down that path to success?

  1. Write out your goals making them measurable - Remember those  plans or goals you made at the beginning of the year? Time to dig them back out – what have you done that has moved you toward those goals?  There’s still time this year to realize those intentions if you’re willing to do what it takes.
  2. Make your action commitments and share them with a friend or mentor.
  3. Sometimes on the road to achieving our goals, we hit the old “I can’t do this wall”.  Everyone’s hit it at least once in their life – failure looms.  For the next 30 days every time a negative thought enters your mind say “switch” and change it to a positive thought.  The number of times you need to say “switch” will steadily decrease.
  4. Each day review your goals. If your goals are clear and true to who and what you are, you will be re-inspired. If not, adjust them and begin to take steps that will lead to their achievement. You don’t need to know how you’re going to get there, you just need to know where you’re going and be open to the possibilities that present themselves.
  5. Keep a log of what you did each day to move toward your goal and share this with your mentor/friend. As seen in the above study accountability will make a huge difference in your journey.
  6. Reward yourself for your achievements along the way.
  7. Read books by people like Earl Nightingale, Napoleon Hill, Brian Tracy, Bob Proctor, Mark Victor Hansen, James Allen or Jack Canfield to name a very few. They will re-inspire you.

We are 100% responsible for creating the life we want. We can just dream about it or we can take action.

Which will you do?

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May 16 2009

Has Your Hula Hoop Gone Kerplunk?

Published by under Creating Success

Remember the hula hoop? In order to succeed with the hula hoop, you had to keep moving. The minute you stopped, it fell to the ground. Kerplunk! The good news was that you could easily pick it up and start again.

Well the same is true with your life goals.

Of course, the first thing you need is to know what your goals are. One of the single biggest stumbling blocks to success, in any form, is having clearly defined goals. If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there? Start by making clearly defined, quantitative goals. If your goal is to succeed. What does success mean to you? It must be specific. Does it mean that you’ve got 1000 people in your organization or are making $1000 or $10,000/month or that you’ve lost 25 or 50 lbs or have written that book you’ve been thinking about? There are a million different definitions of success. You need to find out what yours is. 

So now you have your goals. You should have goals set in each area of your life –  spiritual, physical, family, community and finances. Remember to write them down daily which gives you an opportunity to visualize what it will feel and look like once you’ve attained a goal. Visualization is an important aspect of staying in focus. If you want to be a millionaire, for example, what does it feel like or look like to you. How will you walk or dress or talk? Start doing those things now (and that doesn’t mean going out and spending money you don’t have). Create the person you want to become. There is a saying – “fake it, till you make it.” 

You may not know how you’re going to achieve the goals and that’s OK as long as you know where you’re going and are open to the possibilities that present themselves. Just like the hula hoop achieving your goals takes action. If you’re not moving – kerplunk. That doesn’t mean you need to go full out 24/7. What it does mean is that you need to keep moving – moving toward your goals.

Just like when you played with the hula hoop and it fell to the ground, there will be times when you stop moving toward your goals. Kerplunk! And just like the hula hoop you have a choice to pick it up and start again. . . or walk away. Which will you do?

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May 03 2009

When you look at your life, what do you see?

Published by under Creating Success,Possibilities of Wealth

If you were to describe your life, would you say you’re lucky or fortunate; that you’ve had a great life or a happy life? Or do you see your life as a series of hardships, illnesses or misfortunes? Where is your focus?

There is a story about Karl Wallenda (The Great Wallenda). He entertained thousands of people with his feats of walking a tightrope across rivers, between buildings, etc. He often said that walking a tightrope was being alive. One day he told his wife that he was concerned about falling and he was very nervous later that day before a performance, checking and rechecking all of the ropes, etc. During that performance, which was not one of his more dangerous ones, he fell to his death. What happened? He lost his focus and began thinking about falling instead of about walking.

So do you see yourself walking or falling to your death (figuratively speaking)? When you think about your life, and the times you’ve experienced some crushing defeat – were you focused on the risk or on the goal you were working toward? Are your goals ones that you can be passionate about putting 100% of your energies toward? Are you confident in your ability to achieve the goals – can you picture what you will look like having achieved a goal? If one of your goals is to be a millionaire – what does a millionaire look like in your mind’s eye? How does a millionaire talk, walk or dress? When you begin to envision yourself as the person you want to become, you will be able to walk that tightrope and take the risks necessary to achieve that vision.

The movie, “The Secret” talked about the Law of Attraction and how you can attract success into your life. It was a great movie in that it addressed a problem that most of us have – self-sabotaging. We spend so much time thinking of all the negatives, we just keep attracting them into our lives.
Many people assumed from “The Secret” then, that all they had to do was think positively and great things would happen! WHOA! That’s a great dream but when you think of the successful people you know, are they the ones sitting around dreaming? I don’t think so. They’re the ones taking action on their dreams.

When you believe in your vision for yourself, you will begin to see opportunities that lead you closer to achieving it. But you must take action and create momentum to move toward your goals. As you create that momentum and you’re achieving some successes, it’s easy to think positive thoughts. So during those times, write down all the things you’re grateful for in your Gratitude Journal.  There will come a time when you stumble, when things look bleak and it’s hard (or impossible) to remember positive events. That’s when the Gratitude Journal becomes important. That’s when you need to remember those times when you experienced gratitude. Re-read all those entries and remember what it felt like to have experienced those achievements.

But, you say, I feel sorry for myself. Well that’s OK. (yes I said that). Set a timer for 10 minutes and have a huge “pity party”. Really let it all out. And when the timer goes off – guess what? The party’s over. Then go read your Gratitude Journal. Rewrite your goals and start seeing yourself achieving those dreams.

We all have ups and downs in our lives, but if you were to describe your life, what would you say? What are you focused on? Walking that tightrope to your dreams or falling….?

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Apr 22 2009

Creating the Life YOU Deserve Begins Today!

Published by under Creating Success

Do you believe you’re creating the life you deserve? Is your belief strong enough that you REALLY believe you not only deserve it but that it’s possible?

Most of us develop “limiting beliefs” as we grow up beginning at a very early age. Think how many times as a child or even as an adult, someone has told you “Oh, you can’t do that!” or “that’s a crazy idea. It will never work.” I know it’s something I’ve experienced over and over again.  Remember a week ago Susan Boyle got on stage to sing – the judges didn’t actually say anything but they certainly looked at her askance. It was easy to read their faces. But she had the belief in herself that said “I Believe In ME!”

Have you thought – when I just get the education or knowledge, I’ll be able to do it. So we spend our time learning or “getting ready”.  Obviously, knowledge is important but if it becomes a limiting belief, it will keep us from moving forward. Many times the best way to gain knowledge, is to begin working toward our goal at the same time we’re going through training in whatever form that takes.

Another “limiting belief” is that you’ve tried and tried and continue to fail.  History has legions of people who failed and quit. It also has legions of people who didn’t perceive those times as failures but rather learning experiences. Most of us have heard the stories about Thomas Edison and his 10,000 attempts to invent a light bulb or Colonel Sanders 1000 attempts to find someone who would believe in his chicken recipe or Steven Spielberg’s 20 years of looking for a way to produce “Shindler’s List”. These people stayed focused on their goals.

There is a great story about Roger Banister and John Landry. Everyone said that the human  body wasn’t capable of running the 4 minute mile – it just wasn’t physically possible. So on the day of the race between these 2 men, there was much anticipation. During most of the race Landry was well ahead of Banister. Going into the last turn, Landry looked back over his left shoulder and didn’t see Banister. In the meantime Banister was passing Landry on the right and handily won the race – in under 4 minutes.  Landry took his eye off his goal (the finish line) and that gave Banister the edge. Interestingly, they raced many times after that day and Landry won everytime. You must keep focused on your goal.

All of these people had enormous obstacles to overcome, probably the biggest being past negative experiences. But they took control of their life. When we have a goal that we truly believe in, we must take control of our emotions, our feelings, our actions and our limiting beliefs and create the life we deserve. 

Easy to say. Hard to do? Well, limiting beliefs manifest themselves in negative self-talk. There are many things we can do to change negative self-talk.  There has been much written about the power of positive thinking with thousands of examples of how people affected their life mentally and physically through changing their beliefs. While ridding yourself of some of your  limiting beliefs can take some time, the methods are fairly simple. For the next 21 days do some or all of the following:

  1. Start your day with a Power Shower –  while you’re showering review your schedule for the day and visualize how great a presentation you’ll do; how that potential client will become say yes; how you’ll win that contract; how you’ll impress your boss with your creative idea.  Shout it out – all your successes for the day.
  2. Read positive or motivation books – there’s thousands to choose from. Just open one up anywhere and read for 30 minutes every morning.
  3. Rewrite your goals daily.
  4. Put a motivational CD in your car so you’ll hear positive messages as you go through your day.
  5. Spend 5 minutes twice a day visualizing yourself achieving your goal – do one of these right before going to sleep and your subconscious will continue working on it while you sleep.

Remember that success is a journey – not a destination.  Continue to study while you’re working toward your goal, not instead of. If you’re stuck and can’t seem to get to where you want to be, stand on your head (figuratively) and look at the situation from a different angle but NEVER TAKE YOUR EYES OFF THE GOAL.

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Apr 16 2009

Do You Allow Yourself to Experience Success?

Published by under Creating Success

How many times have you said “I can’t do that. I don’t have enough money (or ability,etc.).” Well, if you’re like most people, including myself, you’ve done it many times. Before you gave yourself a chance to ‘get’, ‘be’ or ‘do’ whatever it was, you blocked the possibility.

So the question is, when are you going to REALLY make the decision to realize your dream? See, when you make that decision that you’re going to do, be or have something, then the opportunities and means begin to appear to help you on your way. You don’t have to know how you’re going to get there, you just need to know that you will achieve your desired goal and be open to the possibilities that present themselves.

If you can conceive of an idea or goal,  you can achieve it. The challenge often is keeping the negative thoughts at bay. When those snarly little thoughts raise their ugly head is just say “switch” out loud and visualize switching them off. Do it often enough and soon it becomes a habit.

It’s been said,  ”by the thoughts we think, we are the designers and creators of our life”. How true. We need to believe that our dreams are POSSIBLE. I leave you with this video by Les Brown who says it eloquently  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pwSMAd039rk

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