It IS Your Fault! Decide to Become Someone

"We become what we make our minds to become. It is nobody's fault that the great majority of the people never make up their minds to become anything at all."~William James

Have you made up your mind about what you want to become? What, you haven't yet? What's stopping you? What's holding you back? Why haven't you? You can become whatever you decide you want to become. At any time and any age!

I disagree with James as far as fault of the great majority of people, because now, with everything that we have available to us to learn, to grow and to think, it IS the fault of those who never make up their minds to become something. It is their responsibility to become what they want to become. It is not the responsibility of others to tell us what we should become or do. Too many people would just rather blame someone than take responsibility for their own life...and that's too bad.

Step out of your playing small ideas and thoughts and create the life that you truly want. Decide today to become who you want to become. Don't wait another minute...Do it NOW! What are you waiting for?

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"We become what we make our minds to become. It is nobody's fault that the great majority of the people never make up their minds to become anything at all."

Your Personal Philosophy?

“Your personal philosophy is the greatest determining factor in how your life works out. Don't borrow someone else's plan. Develop your own philosophy and it will lead you to unique places.” ~Jim Rohn

Do you have a "Personal Philosophy" or Mission Statement for your life? Why not? According to Rohn, your personal philosophy is the determining factor in how your life turns out. Might make sense to have one...don't you think?? Do you think it might help you top have one? I do.

Make it YOUR Personal Philosophy. Don't let it be your parents, boss, teacher or who ever might want you to share or take theirs. This is YOUR Personal Philosophy and will take you to places that you have never been or even imagined.

Yesterday we spoke about how Beliefs + Behaviors = Results. These all flow from your Personal Philosophy. Your Personal Philosophy needs to be in alignment with your Beliefs and Values.

Take some time right now to create your Personal Philosophy. Well, what are you waiting for??

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“Your personal philosophy is the greatest determining factor in how your life works out. Don't borrow someone else's plan. Develop your own philosophy and it will lead you to unique places.”

"Our beliefs strongly influence our behavior. They motivate us and shape what we do. Beliefs are our guiding principles, and come from many sources - upbringing, imitation of others, conclusions as a result of past traumas and repetitive experiences." ~Peter Shepherd

What are your beliefs? Really, what are your beliefs? When was the last time that you sat down and thought about them? Have you ever questioned your beliefs? What happened? Was your belief confirmed or was it proved to be false?

Beliefs influence Behavior and Behavior influences Results. How are your beliefs stopping you from getting what you want? Ya, I know, I can hear your mind saying your beliefs are helping you get what you want, right...?? Well if that was the case, you would already have what you wanted, wouldn't you. Time to examine those beliefs again!

Beliefs come from many sources, some good, some not so good. Are you letting a belief that is no longer applicable to you keep you from getting what you want? If so, it's time to re-examine that belief and make sure that it's working FOR you rather than AGAINST you.

So, what are your beliefs? And are they serving you?

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!


"Our beliefs strongly influence our behavior. They motivate us and shape what we do. Beliefs are our guiding principles, and come from many sources - upbringing, imitation of others, conclusions as a result of past traumas and repetitive experiences."

Fear of Failure, A Powerful Obstacle to Growth

“We pay a heavy price for our fear of failure. It is a powerful obstacle to growth. It assures the progressive narrowing of the personality and prevents exploration and experimentation. There is no learning without some difficulty and fumbling.” ~John Gardner

What is the price that YOU have paid for fear of failure? (Now, before you say there's no failure, I agree, but too many people still believe in the word)  We all have paid something for that and we either learned from it or we have let it keep us from doing what we really wanted to do. Have you remained stuck because of fear? How is it holding you back? What is it keeping you from doing today?  Why?

This fear assures the progressive narrowing of your personality and prevents exploration and experimentation. Is your personality narrowing? Think about that...how has your personality grown or narrowed lately? This fear also prevents exploration and experimentation. When was the last time that you went exploring? When was the last time that you experimented with your life? Never? Once, when you were a kid? Or regularly?

There is no learning without some difficulty and fumbling. Somehow, we in America have been sold a bill of goods that life should be easy and without difficulty. Are you really believing that? If you are planning on learning, plan on difficulty. That's life, get used to it. Quit whining and complaining that something isn't fair and get out there and make things happen. Learn something. Teach something. Create something.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“We pay a heavy price for our fear of failure. It is a powerful obstacle to growth. It assures the progressive narrowing of the personality and prevents exploration and experimentation. There is no learning without some difficulty and fumbling.”

Forgotten Past Equals Brightest Future

“The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.”

Have you let go of the past failures and heartaches or are you still carrying them with you? Your brightest future will not come to you until you let them go. Let them go now, today, why wait another day?

As we are getting to the end of the first month of the "year of change," are you still holding on to those past failures?

Here's the thing. You have learned from those failures and heartaches. Take the lessons and leave the rest. Leave the pain. Leave the blaming. Leave everything but the lesson you learned.

The reason that you haven't let them go yet is that you are getting some benefit out of holding on to them. Is it sympathy? Does the wallowing in your past make you feel better? What benefit are you getting out of it?  You need to realize that greater benefits are waiting for you the minute you leave those failures and heartaches behind.

Do you believe in a brighter future or are you stuck in blah land? There is a brighter future for all of us, we only have to embrace it and leave those failures and heartaches behind. NOW.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“The brightest future will always be based on a forgotten past; you can't go forward in life until you let go of your past failures and heartaches.”

Be Willing to Risk Failure

“One of the reasons mature people stop learning is that they become less and less willing to risk failure.”~ John W. Gardner

Are you less and less willing to risk failure? Are you trying to hold on to what you have, hoping that will be enough? Have you stopped learning? 3 questions to think about today...

Have you stopped learning? Most people will say, "No, I'm a life-long learner," but are you really? Are you learning new things or just things that you know already? Think about that. I know someone who is learning to write with her opposite (left) hand, after many years of writing with her right. Now that is learning something new!!

Are you trying to hold on to what you have, hoping it will be enough? Many clients I work with are trying to hold on to the clients that they have when, if they were to let them go, they would be able to reach and take on bigger and better clients. And the tighter you try to hold something, the more it slips out of your grasp, doesn't it? Are you trying to hard to hold on?

Are you less and less willing to risk failure? When you are less willing to risk failure, your world starts getting smaller and smaller. The real world doesn't benefit in you playing small, but in you playing as big as you can! The more that you are willing to let go, the more that you allow to come into your life, but if you aren't willing to risk failure, then you are just planning on failure, without really knowing that's what you are doing.

Keep learning and be willing to risk failure...AS MUCH AS YOU CAN!!!

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

“One of the reasons mature people stop learning is that they become less and less willing to risk failure.”

Plan, Prepare and Expect to Win!

"You were born to win, but to be a winner you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win." ~Zig Ziglar

YOU WERE BORN TO WIN!!! Do you realize that? Really? Most people just accept what they get without any thought of winning, just happy to be alive...Oh, they wish that they would win and sometimes they even win...but they don't have a winner's mindset. See, there are 3 things that you have to do to create a winner's mindset. 1. Plan 2. Prepare 3. Expect.

Sometimes we plan but most of the time we don't plan, or plan to win, because it takes some work to plan. It's said that "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail." Cute wording but oh so true!! Yet there we are, just going about our day without planning, and reacting to everything that comes our way. Make a plan. Plan your work and then work your plan.

Be Prepared. The Boy Scout motto that we learned as kids...but do we continue it in our daily work? No, for the most part, we just kind of wing it, don't we. What is it that you are preparing for? Anything? Your next appointment? A new sales call? NO, after a few times, we think that we can just do it without preparation. Preparation creates confidence...and confidence is what makes good things happen for you.

Expectations. I train business and sales people and always, without a doubt, when I ask them if they expected to make the sale, they reply no. Why is that? They have never been taught that expectations create your reality. In fact, when they don't make the sale, the first thing they say is "I knew it." Talk about a self-fulfilling prophecy!!! They knew they couldn't make the sale, but didn't think that they could make the sale...How screwed up is that?

There are 3 things that you have to create the mindset do to win.
1. Plan 2. Prepare 3. Expect.

Know. Be Known. Make A Difference!

"You were born to win, but to be a winner you must plan to win, prepare to win, and expect to win."