Archive for December, 2011
We Are Trying To
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
How many times have you heard this in your life? Perhaps you have said it yourself. We are trying to accomplish something here. We are trying to complete this programme. We are trying to change the attitudes of our employees. We are trying to finish so we can go on holiday. We are trying to get fit. We are trying to diet. We are trying to give up smoking/drinking/eating donuts or whatever.
These are all statements you hear and no doubt have said a thousand times. But in them is the seed of failure. In saying these few words you are destined not to succeed. The seed to failure is in the word ‘trying’.
Just stop a moment and look at your life. Ask yourself the question. What does trying really mean?
Does it mean:
I am making effort to succeed.
I am having a go but I don’t think I will succeed
I don’t want to do this but if I look as though I am it will keep everyone happy.
I must look as though I am making effort here.
It won’t really work but if that’s what they want I will go along with it.
I cannot see us completing this in a month of Sundays but at least it looks as though we have given it a go.
I hate the idea of jogging or the gym but to keep her/him happy I will have a go.
Deep down I like the way I am and the food I eat but it keeps people off my back.
I actually like smoking. It helps with the stress but after all the publicity I think I ought to give it up.
If trying means any of the above are you surprised you fail?
Have a go at this exercise.
Try not to think of a giraffe?
Did you succeed. I bet you can’t get the photo of a giraffe out of your mind.
Try to make a cup of coffee.You can’t can you. You either make a cup of coffee or you don’t.
I know they are silly examples but they make the point. When it comes to tasks you either do them or you don’t. So using the word ‘trying’ is just a way of preparing yourself when you haven’t
set the goals and objectives of what it is you want to achieve. If you really decide what it is you want to achieve then you will find the correct tools the right frame of mind to go out and do it. When you fail to set the goals and objectives or you are not really committed to succeeding for whatever reason then you save yourself with the word, ‘trying’.
Trying really means a state between no I don’t want to do it and full commitment. You and I both know that if you fully commit to something then 99 times out of 100 you succeed. The time you don’t succeed is when you don’t want to. But rather than face the aggravation from others you say I’ll try. Which basically means; I will not give it my all. I will do what I think is necessary in order for others to think that I have given it a good shot. I will try.
Do you remember when you were child and your grandmother said you were very trying. In other words you were a pain in the butt. You were a nuisance.
Well it’s the same. When you decide that you will try to do something you are really a nuisance to yourself and others because the chance of success is negligible. You, at best, are going to waste a great deal of time and energy doing something you don’t really believe in and is destined for failure. Or, possibly marginal success.
Whenever you enter a new challenge with the thought of trying in your mind you are really doing yourself no favours. You are really showing the world that you are a non achiever.
If deep down, in those hidden dreams you carry, you want to be an achiever then do whatever is necessary in order to succeed. When you carry out a task say to yourself, “No one can do this without me”, and we promise you will succeed.
It’s not a case of we are trying to achieve something here but We are achieving our goals here.
Good Luck
Graham and Julie
To improve your intuition, initiative and energy levels. Please go to:http://www.desktop-meditation.com It’s free.
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How to Stay Motivated – Part 1
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
As a “Motivation Trainer” for over 20 years, I have researched the subject of “Motivation.” It is talked about a lot, but not very much is taught or written about it. It seems to be a word that eludes us. I often here people say: “Can you motivate me?” or “I need motivating.” or “I’ve lost my motivation.”
Part of the challenge in understanding the concept of “Motivation” is to understand what it means. We seem to have a distorted definition of what it is. Since we know that words have positive or negative energy connected to them, it is important that we know what words we are saying and what those words mean.
Let’s start our journey into understanding “Motivation” with a workable definition.
Motivation is:
- Making a Choice
- To Take Action
- For a Result
- Whether You Feel Like It or Not.
“Motivation” is about what you choose, not how you feel. The first myth about “Motivation” is that it somehow has something to do with how you feel. So if you feel like exercising, you are motivated, and if you don’t feel like exercising, you aren’t. If you feel like working your network marketing business, then you are motivated; if not, you just aren’t motivated. If you feel, like going to church, you are motivated; if you don’t feel like it…. And as you can imagine, there are hundreds of scenarios that we could mention.
Once we accept a “new definition” of “Motivation,” we can move forward to using it as a tool in our lives to help us achieve results.
Starting with 1. Making a Choice.
Everything is a choice. Choice equals results. Good choices = Good results. Bad choices = Bad results. From the time you are born, until the time you die, you will literally make hundreds and hundreds of choices. Every choice has a result. The caveat is that you may make a choice today, but not get the result today. Results are still coming even if delayed. To stay motivated, we start with what choices will we make for specific results in our lives in every area: Physical, mental, spiritual, social, financial, family.
2. To Take Action
Once we make a choice for a result, the mind automatically goes into the mode of: “What action do I need to make in order to achieve the result?” This is how we develop our action plan for choosing and accomplishing results in our lives. If you don’t know what action to take to achieve your result, you mind will go into the mode: “Where do I go to learn what to do to accomplish this result?”
Your mind is a powerful friend or foe. With all the many years of studying the mind, we still know so little about it. It
was created to help you. Unfortunately with some of our old negative programming, often our mind does not help us. It is so important that we are continually alert to negative programming that is keeping us from fulfilling more of our potential.
The reason we take action is for the result.
3. For a Result
What results are you choosing for your life today? The results you have in your life today are from the choices you have made in your yesterday. The results you will have today and in the future will be from the choices you make. Understand, you cannot make the right choices if you have not clearly defined the result.
What results do you choose for your health, you body, your eating habits, etc?
What results do you choose for your thinking, your attitude, your words that you speak, etc?
What results do you choose for your spiritual life? I did not say “religion”; I said for your “spiritual” life?
What results do you choose for being involved with your community, your friends, etc?
What results do you choose for you business, your profession, you finances, etc?
What results do you chose for your family, for your relationships, etc.?
It is important that you develop a “result-driven” mindset.
4. Whether You Feel Like It or Not.
When you make a choice to take action for a results, then how you feel does not enter into the equation. How many times do you do what you do, when you do not feel like it? If you have children, how many times do you get up in the middle of the night to take care of your child when you did not feel like it? Have you ever gone to a business training seminar, but you didn’t feel like it? Have you ever persevered in the midst of feeling bad, to do a business presentation or make extra calls?
In all of these situations, “Motivation” was in operation. You were “Motivated.”
We are “Motivated” when we make a choice to take action for a result whether we feel like it or not. Motivation is not about “feeling,” it is simply about “choosing.” We can have a Motivated day every day we choose to. Should we chose to have a “laid-back” day, that is great…that is a choice too.
We begin the journey of staying motivated when we first know what “Motivation” is.
About The Author
Dr. Zonnya is a “Motivation Trainer” who has been honored by U.S. Senate. She speaks to Fortune 500 companies, corporations, network marketing companies, etc. She also offers personal coaching and mentoring. The dominant result of Dr. Zonnya is to “touch lives with inspiration, information, encouragement and motivation.” Learn more or contact Dr. Zonnya at her web site http://www.drzonnya.org.
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Self-care Isnt Being Selfish
Tuesday, December 20th, 2011
When was the last time you truly relaxed? Do you often find that another exhausting week ends and you glance at a book you bought six months ago and realise you simply haven’t had the time to read it? If this sounds horribly familiar then it’s likely that you are prioritising the demands in your business life and ultimately your personal life is missing out.
Self-care is a basic foundation for personal success planning. It is an idea that a lot of people, especially home based business owners struggle with, as it means putting yourself, rather than your clients, first. Very rarely do we prioritise our own fitness, nutrition and well being. If you look after yourself, everyone around you will benefit. Ultimately you will have more energy and focus for your own “big picture”, be that your business or personal life or both.
When you choose to change your priorities, your clients may take time to adjust to your new approach. But explain what you are doing – tell than you will actually be providing a better service for them.
Don’t understimate the power or rest and relaxation. It’s often the first thing to be dropped off our “to do ” list when the going gets tough. Ask yourself, week to week, how do you relax and unwind, both physically and mentally?
Find a few moments to think about what you are doing right now to take care of yourself. Suprisingly few of us are as kind to ourselves as we’d like
to be. We’re all caught up in the do-it-now trap, juggling life, errands, fitness, families and business. Start with the basic checklist. Are you getting enough sleep? Are you eating a balanced, healthy diet? Are you exercising regularly? Are you having fun? Are you taking time to rest and relax? Dont stop at just asking yourself these questions, put a plan in place today to make changes. For example, list the specific changes you are willing to make to improve your nutrition or fitness.
When planning your self-care, consider your body clock and natural rhythms. You probably already know if you are a night owl or an early bird – but do you take time out of you business schedule to keep your rhythms or are you scheduling these rhythms to suit other people? Think about when you like to exercise or when you get an energy dip that leaves you craving a nap.
Self-care is about taking the time to look after yourself in the longer term. This may mean a complete lifestyle change or it may mean improving on some of your regular habits. If you want to transform your life, you need to place yourself as top priority. No matter how busy your life is
Jo Walker is a successful Virtual Service Provider. Her business, thehomeoffice (http://www.thehomeoffice.net), creates Efficient, Effective, Online Solutions for SOHO businesses.She is also the Editor for The Virtual Summit, a montly newsletter produced for The Virtual Business Group (http://www.virtualbizgroup.com)
KY Fitness Tips – diet plan, exercises, weight loss and gain muscles latest information.
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Nobodys Perfect
Monday, December 19th, 2011
Being human is being fallible. Evolution determines that we all are naturally different. The one constant in our lives and nature is that things will change. A feature or solution that seemed perfect a moment ago isn’t now – because everything is constantly changing to solve current problems. Perfection cannot be achieved because of change.
This doesn’t mean we can’t accomplish things, all we need to do is what’s good enough, accept that things can never be perfect and then move on.
The aim to be perfect stops people finishing undertakings, and also prevents them even starting. Their endeavor to do something perfectly necessities repetitive attention and tweaking. Their impossible standards mean that they need to spend forever to finish something. The fear of not
being able to complete something perfectly prevents them starting.
The thing to remember is that no one is perfect. You don’t need to be a perfect skier to enjoy and start skiing. Everyone starts somewhere. Place one foot in front of the other and complete one step at a time.
However minor your achievements, your brain and nervous system will remember the steps you have taken and will act to improve future steps.
You can feel proud that you did something rather than nothing and have dared to live.
About The Author
Dave has a degree and has studied the sciences behind self improvement for many years. He has a passion for making the tools for self improvement widely available and operates the website: www.wingsofdestiny.com
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Universal Alignment
Sunday, December 18th, 2011
When the Universe is aligned, all things are possible.Kismet, Karma, Synchronicity and Serendipity work together in unison to provide for us when we sometimes least expect it. Often it is there, but we are too blind to see. Blinded by stress, our jobs, our finances or our illnesses, we often miss what is right there in front of us.
If you are searching for something, wishing or dreaming for a certain reality, the Universe will open to you―if you are open to it. Patience and faith are an integral part to getting where you want to be. You may believe it is the right time, right place, but the Universe knows best.
There once was a young girl who dreamed to be a published writer. Every day she wrote, every week she sent out query letters and samples of her work, only to be rejected repeatedly. Eventually she gave up on her dream…her faith had died and her patience had dwindled into nothingness.Many years later, she realized that she was still a writer―nothing more, nothing less. Every job she had acquired had developed her writing abilities and skills. And her soul yearned once more to be what she most desired―a published author. This time, she sent out inquiries, investigated the field using skills she had learned in the last twenty years. She utilized the Internet and researched the markets, publishing companies and numerous sites.
Then she began to write the novel that had been ‘haunting’ her for two years. Within six weeks, she had a publisher, and within just over three months, her novel was complete. It was published shortly afterward. Success!
Some people have asked her: “Why now? Why were you published now?”
When I was younger, the Universe knew that I had talent but that it needed to be developed by experience. Reading my past works, I agree with the Universe.
How could I
write about death when I had not experienced death? How could I write about loss when I had never lost anyone dear to me? How could I write about love when I had only experienced teenage infatuation, not the kind of love that would make you sacrifice everything―even your life?
The Universe knew the exact moment that I was meant to return to my passion of writing. The plan was there all along―I just simply couldn’t see it. But I was led to a friend who did see it, who encouraged me and inspired me to write a story that needed to be told. It would not have been the same story if told years ago before I was ready, and before the Universe was ready for me.
Now I am ready! My time has come!
The Universe aligns itself in such a way that impossible is made possible. Just as a baker requires proper ingredients, carefully measured, and the correct temperature, we must sometimes wait for everything to be ‘measured and correct’ before we see the ultimate plan. Patience and faith! If we have both, great things can be achieved. The alignment of the Universe may take months…or years. But guard yourself against allowing the opportunity to slip through your fingers. Keep yourself focussed, be persistent and above all, have faith.When the Universe is aligned for you, you do not want to miss it.
When there is Universal alignment, ANYTHING is possible!
Cheryl Kaye Tardif is the author of two novels — Divine Intervention and Whale Song. She has also written many articles, poems and plays. Her work has appeared in newspapers, and she has appeared on TV and radio. She was also a motivational speaker for an respected international company.
Cheryl Kaye Tardif ~ Author
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Finding Direction: Finding Passion Series – 2 of 3
Sunday, December 18th, 2011
In order to find the right direction for ourselves, we have to do some soul searching. What is it I want to accomplish? Why? What kind of person do I want to become? Is it so weird to be in our thirties or forties and ask ourselves, “So, what do I want to be when I grow up?” What would make us jump out of bed excited and motivated to get the day started? Before getting into these big questions, we need to find out the roots behind our decisions. What motivates us to choose what we choose?
If you could create anything you wanted without regards to money, time, or education… what would you do? What would you create if you could wave a magic wand and it would appear? What would you have? Think on that for awhile… anything at all…. Would you create vacations and the ability to travel all over the world? Would you create an education fund for your children? Would you create your dream home? Would you create a worry free retirement? Would you create a new wardrobe? Would you create music, books, movies, art, medicine? Write down a list of things. Don’t worry about how far fetched they might sound. Just make a list of all the things you’d do and create if you had unlimited means to do so.
Why would you create those things? Of all the things you would magically create, why would you want to create them? What’s the root cause for you to want to create the list of things you’d create? What do you gain by creating those things? Do you want to create those things in order to be free? Secure? Independent? Understood? An entrepreneur? Loved? Creative? An entertainer? An adventurer? What is it you get to become by creating the things on your list? What kind of person would you be if you were the kind of person living out that list and creating those things?
Moving further back into the roots of what you are or wish to become, if you could be anything, what would you want to be? Don’t choose job descriptions, choose traits, aspects. What are you now? That’s right, “what” would you want to be, not “who” would you want to be. If you died tomorrow, what would people say about you? Were you a healer? Brave? Organized? A great parent? An intellectual? A musician? An artist? Thoughtful? Kind? A supporter of dreams? What would you want them to say about you? How would you like to be seen? Sit with these thoughts for a bit and then write down a list for yourself starting with “I want to be…”
As an example, my list narrowed down to this:
I want to be….
Loved
A healer
An entertainer
Secure
An adventurer
A goddess
Independent
An explorer
An original
Free
A supporter of dream
An inspiration
Upon reflection, I can honestly say that every goal I’ve ever felt passionate about rooted from this list. Without realizing it, I had made most of my life choices from this list.
By identifying your true motivations and desires, it becomes easier to find direction in life. Now we know where your goals come from. What’s the
root beneath your dreams? There is no right or wrong answers, just ideas at the core of you. We could probably analyze what in your past makes you want to become the things you put on your list. We could analyze how close you are to being all of the things you’ve listed. It’s not important. What matters is that now you know what it is you’re aspiring to become.
Now it may seem to you that most of the things you had originally dreamed of creating were gifts you would share with others. You were going to put the kids through school. You were going to go on more vacations with your spouse. You were going to share your music with the world. You didn’t think you were being selfish. And you’re right. You were not being selfish. It’s just that everything we do serves us in some way. Every gift we give is every bit a gift to ourselves also. You give the gift of a college education to your children and you give yourself the gift of being a good parent in your own eyes, or the gift of being a supporter of others in your own eyes. You get the gift of seeing yourself as a good person. Give the gift of music to the world and you get to see yourself as a musician. You get to be what it is that you want to be.
By acknowledging to yourself how you want to be seen and what you want to be remembered for, you get in touch with your true purpose and what it is that drives you. Don’t beat yourself up if you find that you want to be something that might sound stuck up or egotistical. It’s okay to want to be liked, admired, respected. It’s not like your root motivation is to be envied, or to be superior to everyone else. It’s okay to want to be attractive, intelligent, prosperous. We’ve convinced ourselves somewhere along the way that it’s somehow wrong or evil to want to be wonderful or to be successful. The truth is, most of us would give back in appreciation for our successes. Most of us would spend more time with our loved ones. Most of us would give to charity. Most of us would do more volunteer work if we really had the time and the means. Nobody ever writes down “I want to be… greedy, selfish, and spoiled.” We want to be positive wonderful things so that we can share our positive wonderful gifts with each other. Give yourself permission to become whatever it is on your list that really resonates within your heart.
Copyright 2003, Skye Thomas, Tomorrow’s Edge
About The Author
Skye Thomas began writing books and articles with an everyday practical approach to life in 1999 after twenty years of studying spirituality, metaphysics, astrology, personal growth, motivation, and parenting. After years of high heels and business clothes, she is currently enjoying working from home in her pajamas. Go to www.TomorrowsEdge.net to read more of her articles and to get a free preview of one of her books.
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Two Months, Two Actions: First Steps to Success
Friday, December 16th, 2011
Susan stood on the scale the other day. She had gained two pounds.
Fred muttered to himself, “damn smokes cost a ton and are killing me”, as he passed another five dollar bill across the counter.
Mark promised his wife that this would be the year that they took a vacation, the same promise that he’s made every year since they were married.
Do any of these scenarios sound familiar? Go to a mirror and take a good look at yourself. What you have done differently in these last two months? The New Year began, January and February are history, and what is different in your life? Did you follow through on any of your resolutions? Did you even bother to make any?
I hear people consistently talk about the things they want to accomplish in their lives. We all want to lose weight, get in shape, make and save more money, get ahead, quit smoking and more….or do we?
Here is the dirty little secret about these broken promises: we don’t really want to keep them. The real reason we don’t accomplish our goals is because we don’t do the work. We want things to simply “happen” for us. Except that life doesn’t work that way. There are no magic solutions.
However, I have great news for you. If you decide to make positive changes in your life, you can! There are two things you need to do, two actions you must take, and you can accomplish anything!
The first is this: make a resolution to put the effort in
to getting what you want. New Years’ is not the only time you can make a resolution. Resolving to make a change is something you can do at any moment, so long as it is done with real intention and determination.
The next action is to learn and use a success system. Instead of concentrating on your goals, concentrate on a system that will lead you to that goal. Do you know what separates the successful and the unsuccessful? All successful people learn and follow a system. Once you do, you can repeat it and target every area of your life.
There are a great many systems that work, the important thing is to get started! To help you get going without delay, download your free copy of the “Resolution Success System” at ToolsToLife.com.
If you take these two actions, putting in the effort and learning a success system, you can accomplish anything. Do not let another two months slip by! Two actions and two months from now you will be on your way to a new place in life.
About The Author
Devlyn Steele (“America’s Leading Life-Coach”) has been a public consultant and a private counselor for over 15 years. A Cognitive Therapist, Radio host and Columnist, Devlyn maintains a thriving practice in Hollywood, where he counsels famous actors, musicians and captains of industry. His new book, Relationship Tools, will be available soon. You can hear Coach Steele live every Tuesday on LoveBeat Radio 1310 KXAM.com 7-9 PM. Arizona Time. Visit his website at http://www.toolstolife.com/.
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Ten Major Causes of Failure
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
-Lack of a specific purpose in life. You can not hope to succeed in any field of your life if you don’t have a central purpose. If you don’t have a definite goal in your life then you will jump from one activity to another with no success. Almost 97% of people think and act this way. That’s why successful people, who have a clear goal in their life, are very few.
-Lack of education. Most of the successful people are “self educated” or “self made” as individuals. You can have five college degrees but if you don’t apply this knowledge it’s a waste. What counts is the applied knowledge with a plan of action and not just knowledge.
-Lack of self discipline. Discipline means self-control. You must control yourself and decrease your negative habits and qualities. If you don’t conquer yourself, it will conquer you.
-Procrastination. It is one of the major causes of failure. These kind of people are waiting for opportunities come to them instead of seeking for the opportunities. They think that some day the time will be right to act. That “right” time never comes.
-Lack of persistence. Most people are good starters but they stop in the run when the first obstacles come. Obstacles are a chance to become better. They are ways to use your mind and improve your self. Quitters can not hope to success of any
kind.
-Being negative. If you are negative then your whole world is negative. Your subconscious mind tells you that you can’t do it. Your subconscious mind commands your conscious self that you “really” can’t do it.
-No risk at all. If you are extremely careful and take no risks then you can’t expect to make the difference .There are many opportunities out there for you to grab. Being over cautious limits you to mediocrity and leads you to failure.
-Wrong selection of associates. This is very critical. We can not do everything ourselves. The colleagues we work with are a capital for our business. Successful and intelligent partners are one of the keys for our own success.
- Divide you actions. This is a typical mistake. Spreading your energy and efforts on multiple causes and not concentrating on one cause. Sooner or later you will realize that you will not succeed to any of them.
- Lack of honesty. This is the master key of success. Without honesty your credibility will vanish in no time and you can not hope to expand and of course retain your business. People are not as stupid as you think. They can understand the fake, maybe not immediately but in the long turn run they will go away and spread around the world negative messages about you.
Christos Varsamis is an internet marketing consultant,creator and publisher of the http://www.settinglifegoals.com
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Creativity Management – Productivity As A Job
Wednesday, December 14th, 2011
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation whilst innovation can be defined as idea selection, development and commercialisation.
There are other useful definitions in this field, for example, creativity can be defined as consisting of a number of ideas, a number of diverse ideas and a number of novel ideas.
There are distinct processes that enhance problem identification and idea generation and, similarly, distinct processes that enhance idea selection, development and commercialisation. Whilst there is no sure fire route to commercial success, these processes improve the probability that good ideas will be generated and selected and that investment in developing and commercialising those ideas will not be wasted.
Productivity as a job
It is often the case that individuals “wait for inspiration” before they embark on their creative and innovative endeavours. However, this misses the mark for a number of reasons:
a) Engagement in the task gets the mind working on the task at various cognitive levels – problems are identified and subconsciously the mind searches for solutions. When ideas then arrive, they are labelled as insight or inspiration. Insight or inspiration is increased in frequency and duration when the creator or innovator dives into the task.
b) The key to quality is prolific output. By treating the endeavour as a job, small goals and incremental deadlines increase output to a far greater degree than a “do your best” approach or a “I’ll do
it when I’m ready” approach.
c) There are a significant number of blocks working on the mind at any one time. Together this is called “resistance.” Unless a conscious and sustained effort is made to counter them, they remain obstacles.
d) Climbing the experience curve requires energy expenditure. By treating the endeavour as a job, the experience curve is attacked and overcome much more rapidly.
e) All of the above do not detract from the requirement of motivation, which includes aspects such as: joy for the endeavour, competency expansion, feasibility, self-determination etc.
These and other topics are covered in depth in the MBA dissertation on Managing Creativity & Innovation, which can be purchased (along with a Creativity and Innovation DIY Audit, Good Idea Generator Software and Power Point Presentation) from http://www.managing-creativity.com/
You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.
Kal Bishop, MBA
**********************************
You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author’s name and site URL are retained.
Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached on http://www.managing-creativity.com/
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Are Your Dreams A Day Late And A Dollar Short?
Tuesday, December 13th, 2011
One of the greatest challenges facing our ever intensive quest for the impossible dream is to make it across the finish line even if it’s only by the skin of our teeth. Many outstanding accomplishments have been started just to see our vision die one foot short of the goal line. Sound familiar? Don’t get your knickers in a twist; here’s an idea.
Cry Me A River!
Have you ever experienced this? Maybe a dream or desire that you have had your heart set on suddenly drops square in the lap of some bozo that couldn’t fight his way out of a wet paper bag. Suddenly, your dream is now the property of someone else and all the nice things you used to think about that person now just took a hike.
Did you know one of the best tests of our character is when we face the fiery furnace of failure? Especially when that furnace burns up our dream just inches before we take it to the bank.
Many pursuits, that we chase, seem to stop dead in their tracks almost at the very beginning. That’s probably a blessing in disguise. If every thing we pursued, or most every thing, all came unraveled at the very end, we probably would go nuts.
Just getting that close to the prize creates such anticipation, that if almost all of them flopped, we would probably stop trying just to avoid the emotional trauma. But, life is kind to us to prevent us from putting forth that much effort, consistently, and then see our dream land in the lap of someone else.
Don’t Look A Gift Horse In The Mouth!
Now, you see, you thought life was mean to you. But, the other way of looking at it is; it spared us from getting to the one foot line and then blowing up in our face.
I am not a huge baseball fan but I heard the story of Babe Ruth and the great success he had in his career. It was a super accomplishment to have hit over seven hundred home runs in his life in the major leagues. But, he also struck out over fourteen hundred times.
There was a particular game that Babe struck out every time he got up to the plate, except the last time. And, in this game every time he got up he swung at the ball so hard that he fell in the dirt. A newspaper reporter told Babe he should not swing so hard. Babe said, “Ah, don’t pity me, pity those poor pitchers”.
Some Good News And, Some Bad News!
As I thought about my life in business I think that’s about the ratio that holds true; Two failures for every success. Some successes were gigantic, some were mediocre, and some were heart breaking. Of course the heart breaking ones are the big failures.
Some failures are labeled failures too quickly. Many times I have seen something wonderful happen long after I had destined some dream to the garbage dump. Then something happened that resurrected that puppy and seemed to breathe life back into it.
At that moment a breath of life and enthusiasm seemed to overtake me and, I found myself buzzing around like a swarm of hornets to put that dream back in the winners circle.
Dead As A Dodo!
I know this has happened to many people. But, why? Here is my personal observation. Many times we get so caught up in a situation we no longer can see the situation. Then something happens and the dream meets the deadline of death.
At that point we lick our wounds for awhile and go on to the next dream.
Well, now we are out of the situation, we are not even thinking about that dream anymore. We are completely divorced from the dream and have no feelings about it one way or the other mentally or emotionally.
Maybe there is some wisdom here we need to get a hold of. Anything in this world we put more of our body mind soul and spirit into, than where they should be, stands the “chance” of being ripped out of our hands. And, when the ripping is over we realize we were only a day late and a dollar short.
A Word To The Wise!
That’s when we get into this syndrome; If only, If only, If only; the stage of regrets. Well, what’s the answer? It can be very difficult to walk a very fine line of between adequate commitment and self-serving irresponsibility. And, sometimes we have crossed that line long before we realize it.
Then the only way we find out where we are is when the dream is losing that “look of success”. If a dream is in danger of slipping away from you, the first thing I would do is an honest assessment of my commitment to it. Contrary to popular opinion, you can destroy your own dreams by setting them up as idols in your life.
I know I’ve done it. No one is slick enough to always know when they have crossed the line between adequate commitment and self-serving irresponsibility, so don’t expect to. But, look at your behavior and most of the time you can tell. I warn you; it’s very difficult to ease off if you think you have crossed the line, because of your existing momentum
Pain In The Neck!
Most of the time, the dream itself will have to back you off by showing you the signs of hopelessness; not a very empowering feeling. You will see small personality changes such as: over aggressiveness, temper outbursts, no time for anyone else, everyone else is wrong, and constantly thinking about money or the lack of it.
If any of these personality traits seem to be exhibiting themselves in you, I would bet a dollar to a doughnut you have an idol in your life. There is something that you have given your body mind and soul to and it’s turning around to bite you.
Remember earlier in this article when we talked about the person who ended up with the dream you wanted and seemly didn’t even have to lift a finger to get it? It just dropped in their lap. Do you see now what might have happened? It was one of those paradoxes of life that makes about as much sense as a screen door on a submarine…
Lighter Than Air!
It was not an idol to them. They were not possessed to the point of selling out every thing else in life that has meaning. So, the dream just flowed naturally and easily in their direction. Will it always happen this way? Don’t you wish?
But, I can leave you with this final thought. Any dream that you are pursuing right now that seems to possess your soul, turn down the fiery furnace of desire. And, even if you don’t achieve it, you won’t risk turning your personality into a Frankenstein. And, who knows, it just might drop in your lap.
Richard Vegas ©
About The Author
Richard Vegas is a popular recording artist and internet marketing professional. He invites you to subscribe to his FREE weekly ezine “Wing-Tips” Teaching The Success System That Never Fails, at: http://www.1-work-at-home-based-business-opportunities.com. You may also hear some of Richard’s free music at: http://www.richardvegas.com
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