"If we all did all of the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astonish ourselves."~Thomas Edison
Are you living up to your full potential? Most of us are not. When was the last time you sat down and did a personal assessment? Why?
What is working well in your life? What is not quite right yet? Where do you let yourself down? Where do you fail to live up to your own dreams, goals and ambitions? We expect everybody else to live up to their potential, why shouldn't we?
Buried within our minds is the great unknown...That we are capable of things beyond our wildest dreams, if we only reach out and take a chance of making them happen! Do you realize that you can have everything you want, when you want it? It's a matter of choice, not chance.
"If we all did all of the things we are capable of doing, we would literally astonish ourselves."
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
Monday, September 14, 2009
Keeping Your Limitations
"When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them."~Peter McWilliams
Are you arguing for your limitations? Why? Is it safer than letting those limitations go and having new experiences? Is it because the pain caused by those limitations is familiar and easier to deal with than the unexperienced feelings that you will have when you let them go?
You don't serve the world playing small, being less than you should be. Abraham Maslow said that "If you deliberately plan on being less than you are capable of being, then I warn you that you'll be unhappy the rest of your life." Is that what you want your life to be? Unhappy? Less than you are capable of being? Not becoming all that you can be?
We all want to be more than we are right now. Some of us will do what it takes, go through the fear that is holding us back and be all that we were meant to be and some of us won't. Don't get caught wishing that you should have done something when you knew that you could.
Stop arguing for your limitations and cast them off you so that the real, authentic you can come out and serve the world! What are you waiting for? Do it NOW!
"When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them."
Are you arguing for your limitations? Why? Is it safer than letting those limitations go and having new experiences? Is it because the pain caused by those limitations is familiar and easier to deal with than the unexperienced feelings that you will have when you let them go?
You don't serve the world playing small, being less than you should be. Abraham Maslow said that "If you deliberately plan on being less than you are capable of being, then I warn you that you'll be unhappy the rest of your life." Is that what you want your life to be? Unhappy? Less than you are capable of being? Not becoming all that you can be?
We all want to be more than we are right now. Some of us will do what it takes, go through the fear that is holding us back and be all that we were meant to be and some of us won't. Don't get caught wishing that you should have done something when you knew that you could.
Stop arguing for your limitations and cast them off you so that the real, authentic you can come out and serve the world! What are you waiting for? Do it NOW!
"When we argue for our limitations, we get to keep them."
Sunday, September 13, 2009
Become a Beginner
"You can learn new things at any time in your life if you are willing to be a beginner."~Barbara Sher
Are you willing to be a beginner? Are you willing to submit yourself in order to learn something new? Most people will say, "sure, I can be a beginner" but when put to the test, revert back to their old "I already know that" routine.
Allow yourself the pleasure of not having to know it all and learn some new things!! Our current business society says that you should always know everything and never show weakness or lack of knowledge...How's that working for ya???
Do you know how freeing it is to say, "I don't know that, can you tell me more?" Do you know what it does for the person who you say it to? It's huge. A validation for them and an opportunity for you to let someone else teach you!
Most people won't allow that to happen, to let someone else know that they don't know something. Think about your favorite/hated politician. What would happen if they were being authentic and said that they didn't know something...instead of obfuscating, spinning, etc? Wouldn't you feel better that they at least had the guts to be truthful? In today's politics, the other side would crucify him for stupidity or something worse.
Don't be a politician. Be yourself, and if you don't know something, take the opportunity to be a beginner! Always be learning. You are never too old.
"You can learn new things at any time in your life if you are willing to be a beginner."
Are you willing to be a beginner? Are you willing to submit yourself in order to learn something new? Most people will say, "sure, I can be a beginner" but when put to the test, revert back to their old "I already know that" routine.
Allow yourself the pleasure of not having to know it all and learn some new things!! Our current business society says that you should always know everything and never show weakness or lack of knowledge...How's that working for ya???
Do you know how freeing it is to say, "I don't know that, can you tell me more?" Do you know what it does for the person who you say it to? It's huge. A validation for them and an opportunity for you to let someone else teach you!
Most people won't allow that to happen, to let someone else know that they don't know something. Think about your favorite/hated politician. What would happen if they were being authentic and said that they didn't know something...instead of obfuscating, spinning, etc? Wouldn't you feel better that they at least had the guts to be truthful? In today's politics, the other side would crucify him for stupidity or something worse.
Don't be a politician. Be yourself, and if you don't know something, take the opportunity to be a beginner! Always be learning. You are never too old.
"You can learn new things at any time in your life if you are willing to be a beginner."
Saturday, September 12, 2009
Be Irreplaceable!
"In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different."~Coco Chanel
Are you irreplaceable to your customers? Really? What is it that you give them that other people in your business can't give them? Think about that for a while...What do you provide that no one else can provide? Until you have figured that out, you will continue to be a commodity in everyone's eyes. Do you see the product that you sell as a commodity? That's too bad if you do...
You ask, 'How can I be irreplaceable?' Good question! Think about that for a while and I'm sure that you could come up with many ways that you could become irreplaceable. But start out with being authentic to who you are. Most people in business are "acting as business people," not being who they really are. Are you? Do you do things because that's what "business people" are supposed to do?
"When everyone thinks the same, no one is thinking." This applies to doing the same thing as well. Look at the car ads in the newspaper (for those of you younger readers, newspapers were sheet of paper printed on that would bring the news from yesterday to your house...)
You could just change the name of the dealership on the top of the ad and no one would know the difference! What a bunch of sheep! "When everybody thinks the same, no one is thinking."
Think about being irreplaceable. I guarantee you that if you think about being irreplaceable for one hour a day, for a week, you will develop so many good ideas at being irreplaceable that you could double your business in 6 months!
"In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different."
Are you irreplaceable to your customers? Really? What is it that you give them that other people in your business can't give them? Think about that for a while...What do you provide that no one else can provide? Until you have figured that out, you will continue to be a commodity in everyone's eyes. Do you see the product that you sell as a commodity? That's too bad if you do...
You ask, 'How can I be irreplaceable?' Good question! Think about that for a while and I'm sure that you could come up with many ways that you could become irreplaceable. But start out with being authentic to who you are. Most people in business are "acting as business people," not being who they really are. Are you? Do you do things because that's what "business people" are supposed to do?
"When everyone thinks the same, no one is thinking." This applies to doing the same thing as well. Look at the car ads in the newspaper (for those of you younger readers, newspapers were sheet of paper printed on that would bring the news from yesterday to your house...)
You could just change the name of the dealership on the top of the ad and no one would know the difference! What a bunch of sheep! "When everybody thinks the same, no one is thinking."
Think about being irreplaceable. I guarantee you that if you think about being irreplaceable for one hour a day, for a week, you will develop so many good ideas at being irreplaceable that you could double your business in 6 months!
"In order to be irreplaceable, one must always be different."
Friday, September 11, 2009
Define Your Own Goals
"Never fail to define your goal, or someone will do it for you."~Micheal Levine
Have you defined your goals or did someone else? Are You doing what you want to do? Really??
We can reach our goals but they need to be crystal clear. If you are unsure of anything, you will not reach them. Why is it that most people will spend more time planning out their vacation than they will spend planning out their life?
In fact, most people don't really know what they want out of life. When asked, they say, this or that, but no real idea of what they really want. Sometimes what they say they want is dictated to them by a parent, spouse or friend, but it is not really what they want, but someone told that they would be good at this or that.
Here's another thing, that someone you allow to define your goal really doesn't have your best interests at heart. They may say they do, but they don't. They don't because they don't really know what you think and what you believe.
Define you goals. Find your Why? Create your future.
"Never fail to define your goal, or someone will do it for you."
Have you defined your goals or did someone else? Are You doing what you want to do? Really??
We can reach our goals but they need to be crystal clear. If you are unsure of anything, you will not reach them. Why is it that most people will spend more time planning out their vacation than they will spend planning out their life?
In fact, most people don't really know what they want out of life. When asked, they say, this or that, but no real idea of what they really want. Sometimes what they say they want is dictated to them by a parent, spouse or friend, but it is not really what they want, but someone told that they would be good at this or that.
Here's another thing, that someone you allow to define your goal really doesn't have your best interests at heart. They may say they do, but they don't. They don't because they don't really know what you think and what you believe.
Define you goals. Find your Why? Create your future.
"Never fail to define your goal, or someone will do it for you."
Thursday, September 10, 2009
I Know That!
"You can never learn less, you can only learn more."~
R. Buckminster Fuller
Do you realize that you were created as a learning machine? That if you allow yourself, you could be constantly learning? What is something that is stopping you from learning?
It's those 3 most dreaded words in the English language..."I know that." Or, "I already know that."
Each time you use those words, you are cutting off learning. Even if you do already know that, let the experience continue, because there is always something that you may have not known about if you don't cut yourself off from learning. Always!
An old mentor of mine once told me that you could hear something 99 times, but on the 100th, as long as you were listening, it might make more sense to you, allow for deeper understanding, or just plain hit you right between the eyes with the truth that you thought you already knew!
How often do you say that, "I know that." Make it your goal to take those words, in that sequence, out of your vocabulary. It inhibits learning, stifles the mind and just makes you plain boring...
Always take the opportunity to learn more...because you can't learn less.
"You can never learn less, you can only learn more."
R. Buckminster Fuller
Do you realize that you were created as a learning machine? That if you allow yourself, you could be constantly learning? What is something that is stopping you from learning?
It's those 3 most dreaded words in the English language..."I know that." Or, "I already know that."
Each time you use those words, you are cutting off learning. Even if you do already know that, let the experience continue, because there is always something that you may have not known about if you don't cut yourself off from learning. Always!
An old mentor of mine once told me that you could hear something 99 times, but on the 100th, as long as you were listening, it might make more sense to you, allow for deeper understanding, or just plain hit you right between the eyes with the truth that you thought you already knew!
How often do you say that, "I know that." Make it your goal to take those words, in that sequence, out of your vocabulary. It inhibits learning, stifles the mind and just makes you plain boring...
Always take the opportunity to learn more...because you can't learn less.
"You can never learn less, you can only learn more."
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Are You Driving Your Business?
"If you aren't driving your business, you will be driven out of business."~BC Forbes
Are you driving your business or is it on cruise control or auto pilot? If so, is that good? Or are you headed somewhere you don't want to go?
You must keep a close eye on the road ahead and be ready for any sudden changes or turns. If you are on cruise control, you will miss opportunities and soon go off the road. Read that again, you will miss opportunities and go off the road.
Do you think that the banks and car companies that we had to bail out had their business of cruise control? Duh. They were "too big to fail" and were run that way, rather than being run like a company that could go bankrupt. Think about the Walkman. What a great invention...See any around anymore? Sony didn't drive the business and continue to create new products after that.
Do you think that a company like Apple is driven? I'd say yes. constantly striving for new and better versions of what they have already created as well as brand new products that exist only in the minds of their engineers!
Drive your business every day! Don't ever fall into the 'cruise control' trap. Continue to try to find new ways that you can deliver your products and services.
"If you aren't driving your business, you will be driven out of business."
Are you driving your business or is it on cruise control or auto pilot? If so, is that good? Or are you headed somewhere you don't want to go?
You must keep a close eye on the road ahead and be ready for any sudden changes or turns. If you are on cruise control, you will miss opportunities and soon go off the road. Read that again, you will miss opportunities and go off the road.
Do you think that the banks and car companies that we had to bail out had their business of cruise control? Duh. They were "too big to fail" and were run that way, rather than being run like a company that could go bankrupt. Think about the Walkman. What a great invention...See any around anymore? Sony didn't drive the business and continue to create new products after that.
Do you think that a company like Apple is driven? I'd say yes. constantly striving for new and better versions of what they have already created as well as brand new products that exist only in the minds of their engineers!
Drive your business every day! Don't ever fall into the 'cruise control' trap. Continue to try to find new ways that you can deliver your products and services.
"If you aren't driving your business, you will be driven out of business."
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