Choose To Be Happy, Today!

"If we allow our emotions to be tied to the events in our lives, we have given the power of our happiness to the changing tides of circumstance."~Allen Cohen

Do you allow your emotions to be tied to the events in your life? I think we all do to some extent, but Cohen is saying that we are giving away our power and the power of our happiness if we do. Think about that. When we simply react, we are giving away our power.

Here's the thing. Happiness is a choice. It's not tied to anything. You can choose to be happy or you can choose to be sad. Too often we tell ourselves that when this happens, then I will be happy. Sure, we're happy for a few minutes, but then the happiness fades and we need to look for the next thing to make us happy.

Too many people are waiting for someone or something to make them happy. Why? When we do that it doesn't work and we've given away our power. Happiness is YOUR CHOICE!!! Don't give it away. Choose to be happy, today! You can do it! Choose to be happy today!!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"If we allow our emotions to be tied to the events in our lives, we have given the power of our happiness to the changing tides of circumstance."

Don't Stay Stuck There

"Mr.Meant-To has a friend, his name is Didn't-Do. Have you met them? They live together in a house called Never-Win. And I am told that it is haunted by the Ghost of Might-Have-Been." ~Marva Collins

Now, I'm sure that you don't fall into one of these descriptions, right? Oh really??? Hmmm. How many times do we tell people that we "meant to" do something, but didn't? How many times have we just "didn't do?"

To me, they should live in the house of "Never Will" instead of "never win" although they won't win at anything either.

Here's our challenge...when we start using excuses and reasons why we didn't do something, we are not holding ourselves accountable, to ourselves, never mind the person who we told we would do it.

"You have reasons or results." That's it. Results or reasons, and reasons don't count. Am I saying that your results will always be what you want? No way, but you will have a result and you can change the result by doing it over better. You can't change a reason and make it better...

Oh, "what might have been." Don't stay stuck there. "It's never too late to be who you were meant to be." So start today, leave the reasons behind and become who you were meant to be. The world is waiting for you!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Mr.Meant-To has a friend, his name is Didn't-Do. Have you met them? They live together in a house called Never-Win. And I am told that it is haunted by the Ghost of Might-Have-Been." 

Succeeding At Being Human

"To dream anything that you want to dream, that is the beauty of the human mind. To do anything that you want to do, that is the strength of the human will. To trust yourself, to test your limits, that is the courage to succeed."~Bernard Edmonds

What are your DREAMS? Are you following after them or are you stuck? Most people have great dreams...but aren't doing anything to get them other than wish for them. Why? What story are you telling yourself that is keeping you from making it happen?

How strong is your WILL? Can you do ANYTHING you want to? Really? Why not? What is the story that you are telling yourself as to why you can't? The strength of your will will determine whether or not you achieve your dreams.

Do you TRUST yourself? Test your limits? The fear isn't that we are inadequate, the fear is that we are powerful beyond measure and will not know how to deal with it. Most people have just enough trust in themselves that they know that they aren't where they ought to be, but not enough TRUST to step out of where they are and become who they were meant to be.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"To dream anything that you want to dream, that is the beauty of the human mind. To do anything that you want to do, that is the strength of the human will. To trust yourself, to test your limits, that is the courage to succeed."

Are You Planting Seeds Today?

"Do not measure success by today's harvest. Measure success by the seeds you plant today." ~Robert Louis Stevenson

Are you measuring your success by today's harvest? Why? Is it that need for instant gratification? What is driving that measurement of today? Stevenson says to measure your success by the seeds that you plant today. There used to be something called delayed gratification...and it was even better than instant gratification.

Are you planting seeds for tomorrow, or are you only concerned with today? That's another challenge for our microwave society. We don't even want to think long-term, only how can I get it now??

It's been said that we can learn from watching nature. Well, in nature, there is always a gestation period, for plants, trees, animals and even humans. Live in the present but Stop living for the right now. Start planning for the future. "I am planning for the future," you say. Really, I ask? Really??

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Do not measure success by today's harvest. Measure success by the seeds you plant today."

Play Big!

"When you know that everything matters, that every move counts as much as any other, you will begin to live a life of permanent purpose.”~Jones

Do you realize that EVERYTHING you do matters? Do you really understand that? Most people go through life with the attitude that what they do has no bearing on anyone else...but they are wrong.

When you realize and think about everything you do, then you are living a life of permanent purpose. What is your purpose? Do you know?

Mother Teresa said "We have not come into the world to be numbered; we have been created for a purpose, for great things." So I ask you again, what is your purpose? Are you doing great things or are you playing at 50%. Why? Play full out. Play BIG! Don't leave anything in the tank!

If you are not living your purpose, then the world is denied what you were to bring the world. If you don't do your purpose, no one else will. So, find your purpose and then Live Your Purpose!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"When you know that everything matters, that every move counts as much as any other, you will begin to live a life of permanent purpose.”

Always Seek Knowledge

“Whatever we learn has a purpose and whatever we do affects everything and everyone else, if even in the tiniest way. Why, when a housefly flaps his wings, a breeze goes round the world; And it's much the same thing with knowledge, for whenever you learn something new, the whole world becomes that much richer.” ~ Norton Juster

What are you learning? Do you realize how what you learn affects other people? Even in the tiniest way? Everything we do makes a difference, some for good and some for not so good.

The Butterfly Effect used to be a urban legend, until the scientific community came to the conclusion that it was authentic, accurate and viable. In fact, it has been accorded the status of "law" and is known as "The Law of Sensitive Dependence Upon Initial Conditions."

When you learn something new, the whole world becomes richer. But what are you learning? Most people are "too busy" to spend any time learning anything. Do you know that if you worked ON your business 30 minutes a day, after a year, you will DOUBLE your business? Stop working IN your business and spend some time ON it.  If you don't know where to start, email me or call me.  A.S.K.  Always Seek Knowledge!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“Whatever we learn has a purpose and whatever we do affects everything and everyone else, if even in the tiniest way. Why, when a housefly flaps his wings, a breeze goes round the world; And it's much the same thing with knowledge, for whenever you learn something new, the whole world becomes that much richer.”

What Are Your Wildest Expectations?

"Nobody succeeds beyond his or her wildest expectations unless he or she begins with some wild expectations." ~ Ralph Charell

Are your goals beyond your wildest expectations? Why not? Really, why not? Most people make their goals something that they think they can achieve, not something that would be beyond their wildest dreams. See, we have been taught that we shouldn't have wild dreams because we will be disappointed when we don't reach them...What a crock!

It all does come back to your expectations. Are your expectations really big or are they just big enough to make you work a little harder to get, but not your wildest dreams??? Start trying to reach beyond what you think you can do...You'll be amazed as you start doing some great things.

St. Francis of Assisi said it this way "Start by doing what is necessary, then do what is possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible." Here's a real easy way to do the impossible. Go out and do it.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Nobody succeeds beyond his or her wildest expectations unless he or she begins with some wild expectations."

Life Is A Matter Of Expectation

"The world is full of abundance and opportunity, but far too many people come to the fountain of life with a sieve instead of a tank car... a teaspoon instead of a steam shovel. They expect little and as a result they get little."~ Ben Sweetland

Do you realize that the world is full of abundance and opportunity? It is. Stop living in your victimhood and see your abundance and opportunity. Sure, you say, I see my abundance. The challenge is that you don't see all the abundance that's there for you, you only see a small portion that you feel comfortable with, not total abundance. You are coming with a teaspoon vs. a steam shovel. There is total abundance available for you, but you have to claim it. What is stopping you from claiming it?

It gets back to your expectations. YOUR expectations. If you expect little, you get little. If you expect abundance, you get abundance. So, what are you expecting? I sure hope it's a BIG expectation.

Horace said "Life is largely a matter of expectation." What is your expectation? I sure hope its as big as you can make it. Don't play small anymore.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"The world is full of abundance and opportunity, but far too many people come to the fountain of life with a sieve instead of a tank car... a teaspoon instead of a steam shovel. They expect little and as a result they get little."

Expect Grand Things

"Your expectations, opens or closes the doors of your supply. If you expect grand things, and work honestly for them, they will come to you. Your supply will correspond with your expectation." ~ Orison Swett Marden

How often do you think about your expectations? Too much, not enough, just right? Where do those expectations come from? Past history, other people, you mind? How do you know the expectation you hold is the right one?

According to Marden, your expectations hold the key to your success or failure. Do you believe that? Why or why not? I know that when I'm in a sales situation, that if I don't expect to make the sale, I never do. Wayne Gretzky said "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take." I like to equate that to expectations. You miss 100% of the expectations that you don't have for yourself.

Winners expect to win. Losers hope to win. There's a huge difference in those two words, expect and hope. Are you hoping to be successful or are you expecting to be successful? As always, the choice is yours and yours alone. Nobody can make it for you.

Start your day off with great expectations and watch them come true. Great expectations will equal great results.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Your expectations, opens or closes the doors of your supply. If you expect grand things, and work honestly for them, they will come to you. Your supply will correspond with your expectation."

The Future: What Are You Prepared To See?

“The future has many names: For the weak, it means the unattainable. For the fearful, it means the unknown. For the courageous, it means opportunity.” ~Victor Hugo

How do you see the future? What name do you give it? Unattainable, Unknown or Opportunity? Now that you've thought about it, why do you name it what you did? What was the deciding factor in how you see your future?

Most people see the future as Unattainable or Unknown because they have yet to decide what they really want out of life. Oh sure, they think they know what they want, but they really only have wishes and don't really know what they want. They are not clear on what they really want. That is why the universe doesn't give them what they want...because they can't decide what they want. Decide NOW. Be crystal-clear and it will start to appear!

The courageous see the future as an Opportunity. And while their goals may be unattainable now, or their path is unknown, they refuse to be kept back by those thoughts and choose to see only Opportunity!

Ralph Waldo Emerson said "People only see what they are prepared to see." What are you prepared to see? The Unattainable, the Unknown or the Opportunity? If it's not the Opportunity, maybe we need to talk...

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“The future has many names: For the weak, it means the unattainable. For the fearful, it means the unknown. For the courageous, it means opportunity.”

Feeling Sorry For Yourself...A Waste of Time

"Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition, is not only a waste of energy but the worst habit you could possibly have." ~ Dale Carnegie

Wow, leave it to Carnegie to call people out of their victimhood!!! He would be considered un PC because he doesn't "care" enough for people going through problems. But really, look at the quote again...what does feeling sorry for yourself accomplish? It might make you feel better, but other than that brief feeling, it accomplishes nothing!

Feeling sorry for your "present condition." Think back a year. What conditions were you dealing with that you thought you would never be able to deal with or get over. The key is that all of our issues are "present" but are subject to change. Know that it will change...usually for the better.

"The chains of habit are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken."~Samuel Johnson Don't get into the habit of feeling sorry for yourself, because as Johnson says..."they are too weak to be felt until they are too strong to be broken." Think of the habits that you have developed, both good and bad. Now, start thinking how you can get rid of the bad ones and only do the good ones.

We fall into habits like that all the time. The key is to realize it and break them while they are still weak and not wait to break them when they have become too strong.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Feeling sorry for yourself, and your present condition, is not only a waste of energy but the worst habit you could possibly have."

Prepare...

"Prepare yourself for something wonderful to happen; when you do, it probably will."

Are you prepared for something wonderful to happen to you? No? Why? Are you beat down by life and circumstances? Have you lost hope for things to get better for you?

There’s a lot to be said about self-fulfilling prophecy. Do you remember making that call to the client who you just knew wasn’t going to buy? And did they? I doubt it. But what about that call when you knew that they were going to buy? I bet they did! Whenever you start thinking that good things are going to happen to you, they usually do and by the same token, when you start going down that negative/victim/whoa is me route, what do you get? That’s right, more of the same. The universe responds to the vibrations of energy we send out...and if those vibrations are negative, we get more negativity from the universe, but if those vibrations are positive, we get more positivity from the universe! You have already done it before. Just realize that this time, you are doing it because of an intention.

Gary Zukov said "Every intention sets energy into motion. Whether you are conscious of it or not." Do you realize that you are setting energy in motion? Are you conscious of whether it is positive energy or negative energy. You can set negative energy in motion just as easy as setting positive energy in motion. But it is up to you. You decide which energy you are going to set in motion.

Make it positive energy and those around you will thank you for it!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Prepare yourself for something wonderful to happen; when you do, it probably will."

A Busy Life?

"Beware the barrenness of a busy life." ~Socrates

Wow...beware the barrenness of a busy life! Take a look at your life. Is it barren? Are you always busy? Are you running from meeting to meeting, driving like a banchee to get to where you need to be next...without any consideration of others? What's that getting you? How's that working?

Socrates, 2500 years ago saw the barrenness. Do you? REALLY?? Our society has programmed us to WANT MORE, NEED MORE, HAVE MORE...But is that all there is? More?

More recently, Mahatma Gandhi said "There is more to life than increasing its speed." Yet, that is all we seem able to do. Knowledge is doubling every 6 months...Computers that you bought 6 months ago now could almost be obsolete. There's so much new information coming at us, we can't keep up (and that's tough for us recovering perfectionists...lol)  In fact, according to Google, there is more information posted online every 48 hours than was known from the beginning of time to 2004!

It has been said that "The time to relax is when you don't have time for it." Take a few moments today, stop your hectic schedule, put away theIPad,  I-Phone and RELAX!!!!! Go ahead, do it. Turn technology off fo 5-10 minutes.  You can do it.  OK, you say that you need permission...I GIVE YOU PERMISSION...to relax for 5-10 minutes today. That's all, 5-10 minutes. It will change your day, your week, your month...maybe even your life!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Beware the barrenness of a busy life."

Captain of My Soul

"William Henley said, 'I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.' Once you believe this (I mean, really believe it,) nothing will hold you back. Something unexplainable happens when we accept complete responsibility for our behavior and our results. But it's not an easy thing to do."~Mac Anderson

Are you the master of your fate? Or are you just letting life happen to you?? Do you believe that you make the choices of the things that happen to you or that you have no choices? Why?

Get out of your victimhood and allowing circumstances to rule your thinking.  You need to start thinking differently, start acting differently, live in gratitude and become a person of increase. Accept responsibility NOW!

Something unexplainable happens when we accept complete responsibility for our behavior and our results. Have you accepted complete responsibility for your behavior and your results? Not an easy thing to do...especially when our society almost demands that we blame something or someone.

Break away from that crap. Take responsibility for your choices and actions. Know that you always have a choice and that YOU get to make that choice, no one else can make it for you.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"William Henley said, 'I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.' Once you believe this (I mean, really believe it,) nothing will hold you back. Something unexplainable happens when we accept complete responsibility for our behavior and our results. But it's not an easy thing to do."

Be Nobody But Yourself

"To be nobody-but-yourself - in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you somebody else - means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." ~ e. e. cummings

Are you nobody but yourself? Really? Think about it, are you yourself? Well, "Of course" you say, but look deeper. Is that really you saying that or is your parents, your teachers, your buddies? The world is trying to make everybody the same. Even the government is trying to make sure that everybody has equal results, rather than equal opportunity. Don't be someone else! Be You!

Be Yourself! Why? Cause everybody else is taken!!! Dr. Seuss said "Why fit in when you were born to stand out?"

You have a unique gift to give to the world. If you don't give your gift to the world, the world will never get that gift, because only you can give it to the world. Don't deprive the world and your circle of influence the gift you have to give.

This is the biggest fight that you will ever have and it will be against the world and yourself. The key is to never stop fighting the battle to be you. You will want to sometimes just give up, but that is when you are almost there. Never stop fighting the battle to be you. Don't let the world win.

"To be nobody-but-yourself - in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you somebody else - means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting." 

Listen to Your Inner Voice

“Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, "This is the real me," and when you have found that attitude, follow it.” ~William James

What is that mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive? Have you ever thought of that before? Probably not, because we are not taught to do a lot of self-examination...and when we do, it's because of something we've screwed up! But I ask the question again, What is that mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive?

James says that when you find what that is, you need to follow it because that is "the real you." Do you know who the "real you" is? Sad to say, most people don't have a clue. They are what other people say they are. There are who other people want them to be. They have taken Shakespeare literally when he said "All the worlds a stage," and they are just playing parts, just acting, but not being real, not being who they really were meant to be.

If you are not deeply and vitally alive, then you are not being who you were meant to be, you are playing small and the world does not benefit from you playing small. The world does not benefit from you keeping your talent hidden from view. We need more people who are ALIVE!!! Most people just survive from day to day, hardly anybody really lives anymore...

Be the real you...because everybody else is taken. Play Big. Play to Win!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“Seek out that particular mental attribute which makes you feel most deeply and vitally alive, along with which comes the inner voice which says, "This is the real me," and when you have found that attitude, follow it.”

Questions Are The Answer

"In order to be more effective with others -- the most important thing we can do is make sure we're in the right frame of mind to begin with. To that end, the questions we ask OURSELVES make all the difference in the world." ~David Levin

Are you in the right frame of mind when you are dealing with people? Do you even think about it or do you just go and do it? Your attitude tells people far more than you words, so it might be something to start thinking about. What frame of mind do you want to have? Helpful? Inquisitive? Confrontational? Educational? There are many more, but have you thought about it? Sometimes the best thing to do is reschedule a meeting, especially if you aren't in the right frame of mind.

Here's something to consider as well...what frame of mind is the person you are meeting with in? Can you tell? It's a talent that most people haven't developed yet. If they are in a frame of mind that is anything but receptive or open, it might be best to ask them to reschedule.

What are the questions you are asking yourself? Are you asking yourself any questions at all? Some people might but most people just go through the day without ever asking themselves the questions that will help them get to where they want to go. It is all about the questions that we ask ourselves.  As Tony Robbins said "Questions are the answer."

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"In order to be more effective with others -- the most important thing we can do is make sure we're in the right frame of mind to begin with. To that end, the questions we ask OURSELVES make all the difference in the world."

Focus On What You Have Left

"Always look at what you have left. Never look at what you have lost." ~Robert H. Schuller

We all go through change. Sometimes the problem is that when we do, we keep our focus on what we lost, rather than what we still have or what can now come to us from the change. Have you done that? I'm sure that we all have. The trick is to look at what we have left.

One of my favorite quotes is "The place for what you want is currently occupied by what you have settled for." When you lose something, know that it will be replaced by something even better. But what have you settled for? Why?

If you want new things to come into your life, you need to get rid of the things that you settled for. Open up that space and it will be filled. That's just the way it works. The other thing to keep in mind is that whatever happens in your life, to be grateful about it and you will get more things to be grateful for!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"Always look at what you have left. Never look at what you have lost."

Nothing But The First Step to Something Better

What is defeat? Nothing but education; nothing but the first step to something better."~Wendell Phillips

Is that the way your view Defeat or Failure? It's not that way for most people. I had a chance to experience this first hand...as someone objected to my posts and reported me to Facebook. Interesting...it has required me to re-write this post and make it even better!

Defeat is nothing more than an education. It is nothing more than a learning experience. Do you see that when things don't go your way? Do you see that when you experience the thing that we call failure? I hope so. Henry Ford said that "Failure is only the opportunity to begin again more intelligently." Now that's the way to look at defeat/failure. Don Shula said, "Failure is never final." What a great way to look at things.

Defeat is nothing more than the first step to something better. Wow, what a great way to look at things. I'm sure that is the way that Edison looked at his invention of the light bulb. He focused on what it would do for the world and not that it took him so many times to figure it out.

How do you look at defeat or failure? If you are having trouble overcoming a past defeat, realize that something better awaits you...only if you are looking for it. We get what we are expecting and what we look for. If you get bad stuff and it keeps happening, STOP looking for and expecting it. Change your focus!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

What is defeat? Nothing but education; nothing but the first step to something better."

Do What Makes YOU Come Alive!

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”~Harold Whitman

What makes you come alive? Your work? Only if you are a part of the 22% that like/love what they do...as 78% of Americans hate their job. Wow, what a depressing statistic. 78% of people hate their jobs!!! My question to those of you that do...WHY? Why are you still doing what you hate to do? To pay the bills? To keep up with the neighbors? To get that next toy? Is it really worth it???

Do what makes you come alive!!! The world needs more people who have come alive and are willing to share it with the world. I talk with people all the time who say they can't do what they want to do because of this reason or that reason. The main reason is fear (thought they won't say that) and it's holding them back and keeping them stuck where they are. So sad.

If you are doing what you love, congratulations. Are you remarkable doing it? I hope so, because the world needs remarkable people and each of you are unique and if you don't bring that uniqueness to the world, the world will never see it...because only you have it to bring to the world!

If you are not remarkable, then maybe we should talk. Remember, being remarkable doesn't mean being remarkable to you...it means being remarkable to others. Are you remarkable to others??

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go and do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.”

Winning or Losing is a Byproduct

"How you run the race-your planning, preparation, practice, and performance-counts for everything. Winning or losing is a byproduct, and aftereffect of that effort." ~John Wooden

How are you running the race? How is your planning, practice and performance? Do you plan daily, weekly, monthly, yearly or do you just do what you've always done and get by doing that? Are you practicing your performance? Really? When was the last time you practiced your sales presentation? When?

See, winning takes place in the preparation, not in the presentation. All those years that Wooden coached UCLA, he never spoke about winning and losing, only about maximizing his players abilities. His success proves that the winning is in the preparation.

Winning or losing is a byproduct, and aftereffect of that effort. Do you realize that? Most people don't see it that way. It's your preparation that allows you to win or causes you to lose.

So I will ask again, how is your preparation? Stop worrying about making the sale and prepare like a champion for the presentation and you will win as often as Wooden did.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"How you run the race-your planning, preparation, practice, and performance-counts for everything. Winning or losing is a byproduct, and aftereffect of that effort."