photo credit: alexdecarvalho

Since this post is so popular I decided to repost it. Please let me know what you think.

So, you have decided to go into business for yourself.   I applaud you. This is big! As an 18  year veteran, let me say that being an entrepreneur is both exhilarating and exhausting.  You love it and you hate it.  It can cause the best of times and the worst of times. Ok, maybe I am being overly dramatic, but you are in for a heck of a ride! (Ok ,I am going to cool it with the exclamation points.)

Before you get started, please allow me to share 7 deadly mistakes that many newbies make and show you how you can avoid them. There are more than 7  mistakes,  however, these can be particularly lethal. Why?  Because their effects can go undetected while they silently and slowly kill your business. 

Deadly Mistake 1. -  Not Defining a Clear Mission

Many new entrepreneurs, excited that they have a new business idea, want to run out and start taking on new customers. Stop. Don’t make that mistake. First, take the time to define a clear mission. This mission should take you beyond just making money.  Here are 3 good questions to get you started:

• How is my business going to be uplifting to my customers?
• What need is it going to fulfill for my customer?
• Why is fulfilling this need so important to my customer?

 In his book Rich Dad’s Guide to Investing , Robert Kiyosaki explains that his Rich Dad said: “If a mission is clear and strong, the business will weather the trials every business goes through during its first ten years. When a business gets big and it forgets its mission, or the mission it was created for is not longer needed,  the business begins to die”.  (Richard actually describes some fundamental keys to forming a winning business, I would suggest reading this section his book (chapters 31-36)).

The mission is what raises your business above the mundane. It breathes life into your enterprise. Don’t underestimate it.

Need help? There are lots of resources you can find doing an Internet search. One such resource is  http://www.missionstatements.com .

 Deadly Mistake 2: Working in the Business but not Working on the Business

This is a classic mistake. I have been guilty of this one myself. This can be especially deadly if you are flying solo. Fred had this problem.

Fred is a computer-networking expert. A friend encouraged him to start a computer networking business to serve small businesses in his town. Fred wholeheartedly opened this business. Fred had a special touch with his clients and he did fine the first year.  He was a technical genius and his clients loved his work. Things were good.

Then it happened…Fred started getting threatening calls from bill collectors,  his accounts receivables were increasing, customer complaints were increasing and he hadn’t acquired a new customer in months. What was happening?

Fred was so busy working in his business that he neglected to work on his business. He was doing all the technical things that a network specialist should do. Indeed, this is what he enjoyed and where he invested all of his time (working in the business).  The problem was that important activities that would allow him to stay in business were cast aside (working on the business). Activities like creating and executing a marketing plan, paying your vendors on time, managing your accounts receivable were simply not done in a systematic way.

How do you solve this problem? A good place to start is as follows:

•  Write out and separate “in the business” and “on the business” activities into 2 categories; 
•  Set aside specific blocks of time to work on the business and only on the business. 

Want to learn more? A classic book that addresses this very subject is  The E-myth Revisited, by Michael Gerber .  It graphically lays out the problem and then provides workable solutions. It is a must read for new and seasoned business owners alike. Also, check out this post Organizing for Growth from his blog .

In my next post I will address a few more of the deadly mistakes.  Please keep an eye out for it.

photo credit: waffler

Is anyone else tired of hearing about how bad the economy is faring? I mean I know we as a country are having serious problems economically. I get it. The news media has made it abundantly clear that things are going really badly. I personally think the amount of negative rhetoric is helping to perpetuate this situation. It is like someone being sick and a crowd of people gathering around that person reminding him or her how sick they are and how bad they look. The crowd constantly reminds the person that no one knows whether they can ever recover from this sickness. It is no wonder that the economy is getting worse. It is almost as if the news media is deriving a morbid sense of pleasure from reporting this bad news.
Anyway, I believe that while the economy may be bad, you don’t have to do bad financially with it. Below are 3 things you can do to help you thrive in these economic bad times.

1. Look for opportunities within problems

“Too many people are thinking of security instead of opportunity. They seem more afraid of life than death.” – James Francis Byrnes

Instead of being problem-focused be opportunity focused.  There are opportunities to prosper all around you.  Many times these opportunities are found in the problems others are having. There are answers that you have that no one else has.  Solve a problem and you will increase your value. Get in the opportunity mindset. Look for opportunities that only present themselves in a weak economy. Believe me, the opportunities are there if you look for them. Once you find the opportunity, go for it. Don’t let fear or doubt stop you. You can do it.

2. Get rid of unnecessary things in your life.

A lot of times people look at the negative side of what they feel they can’t do. I always look on the positive side of what I can do.
Chuck Norris

When times are tough it can be a great time to get rid of excess baggage. It is a great time to change. Here are some things you can do:

Review your mental attitude.

Get rid of attitudes and modes of thought that are negative and wasteful. This is also a time to get rid of your negative beliefs about yourself and your potential for success. You are successful. It is in you now.  Have confidence in yourself and your abilities. You were designed to be great.

Review the people with whom you associate

Separate yourself from negative people. Get rid of people that suck energy out of you. These people are more expensive than you know. Let them go and get stronger. Stop hanging around the nay Sayers. Hang around people that believe they can succeed even in this economy.

Review your budget

 Are there things that you no longer need that you are paying for? Get rid of these things. Go line by line and eliminate wasteful spending in your budget.

Refuse to participate in the recession.

When life gives you lemons, you make lemonade. I have several stands around here.
James Brady

This has to do with attitude. We know the facts and the numbers about the economy. Let’s decide that our right attitude, faith, skills, ingenuity, determination and the great people around us will not only cause us to survive but to thrive in these times.  Let’s refuse to focus on all the negative things going on. We are aware of them but we know we have what it takes to make it. Don’t spend a lot of time talking about how bad things are. Expect to prosper.

Please share other things that we can do to thrive in this economy. I want to hear your thoughts.

photo credit: **** j a z z z i ***

I was laying in bed the other day thinking about things I had achieved in last year and those things I had not yet achieved. What happened to those goals that I said I wanted but had not yet achieved them? I started doing some soul-searching…Why hadn’t I achieved these goals yet? After thinking about this for a while I asked myself three important questions. I would like to share these three questions with you. Go through the process of answering these questions and you will move closer to the fulfillment of your goals.

 

Question 1: Do you really want to achieve this goal?

Is this your goal? Are you sure? I mean, does this goal come from inside your heart or is it something someone told you that you should do? Many times we are pursuing a goal that is not ours. It is not in line with who we are and who we were created to be. If you birthed this goal from your heart, you are more likely to achieve it. If you deeply desire it you are more likely to manifest it. As a first step, I would encourage you review your major life goals and determine the origin and authenticity of each goal. Is this really my goal? If it is not truly your goal, you may want to get rid of it so you can focus on the goals that are truly your goals.

Question 2: Why do you want to achieve this goal?

Once you determine that a goal is truly your goal then next question is answer is why. Why do you want to achieve this goal? What is your motivation?  This is important because when you reach a point of homeostasis, knowing the main reasons why you want this goal will help you keep going (I actually recently read a great blog post on The Positivity Blog that describes homeostasis.). I would suggest that you write down 2 or 3 key reasons why you want to achieve each goal. Determine the benefit of this goal to you and others.

Question 3: Are you willing to do whatever it takes to achieve this goal?

This is an important question. Many times we don’t achieve our goals because we are not willing to commit to doing whatever it takes to achieve our goal. Now I want you to understand that being willing to do whatever it takes doesn’t necessarily mean that you will have to do whatever it takes. Most times just being willing to do whatever it takes knocks down barriers.

Further, the one thing that you are not willing to do to meet your goal will probably be the thing that comes up to test your commitment. Once you make up in your mind that you are willing to do whatever it takes it won’t matter if that thing comes up or not. You have already conquered it.

Please keep in mind that being willing to do whatever it takes doesn’t mean you should be willing to do immoral things or things that hurt others. Remember you goals should be uplifting to you and to others.

Put your goals through the test

I encourage you to put your goals through the test.  Sit down for 30 minutes with a pen and paper (or your computer) and write your answers to the three questions listed above. These answers will give you greater clarity and you will begin achieving more of your goals.

If you want to know more about setting and achieving your goals, a great book that I recommend is The Power of Focus: What the Worlds Greatest Achievers Know about The Secret of Financial Freedom and Success . This book will take the serious goal-setter through a process that will help you move forward to achieve your most important goals.

 

photo credit: laurenatclemson

Have you ever thought of starting an online business?  With the economy being the way it is, now is a great time to add another source of income to your household. Here are 10 simple tips to get you moving in the right direction.

Tip 1: Find at least 3 topics or items that you are passionate about and write them down.

I suggest doing this because this gives you a good reference point. You may change you mind later or modify your ideas but you need a starting point. Write these ideas down now.

Tip 2: Buy at least one book on online business marketing.

When I was starting out I purchased, Online Marketing Success Stories: Insider Secrets, from the Experts Who Are Making Millions on the Internet Today . I recommend this book because it gives you a good overview of the many ways of setting up an online business and it shows you some of the major players. Knowing the legitimate major players will help you weed out the frauds and the scams. This is extremely important in the online world because there are a lot of scammers out there.

Tip 3: Find a guru who is doing business online who communicates in a way that makes sense to you.

Be cautious with this because as I mentioned above, there are a lot of frauds and schemes out there. What I suggest is to find someone that is mentioned in one or two of the books you have picked up.  Also, look for written money back guarantees and low entry costs. Please do not spend a lot of money at this stage.  Buy only one of your guru’s products if they offer more than one. You want to see if this product makes sense before you spend a lot of money purchasing all of their wares.

Since I was interested in affiliate marketing I chose Roslind Garner’s ebook on Super Affiliates Click Here!. I found this to be an invaluable resource and guide to getting my online business set-up. It is over 200 pages and it walks you step by step through the process of setting up an online affiliate business on the cheap. I highly recommend it for those interested in the affiliate marketing online business model.

Another service I like is Ken Evoy’s Site Build it because it walks you through the whole process of setting up an ebusiness and gives you all of the tools to do it for one price. For someone who is new to online business, this is an excellent solution because they hold your hand through the process. I bought this
package and was very impressed with the help I received and the enthusiastic and helpful community that surrounds it. You owe it to yourself to check it out and make your own decision http://proof.sitesell.com/Success20091.html .

Tip 4: Don’t try to do this all in one day or even one week.

Take time to learn what you need to do and how to be successful. This is a business. If you are new to online marketing and new to entrepreneurship then there will be a learning curve. Be patient. Learn what it takes to be successful for the long term. This is not about getting quick money; it is about building another long-term revenue stream.

Tip 5: Using the information you have gathered write down your goals and your plans to move forward. 

Yes, I suggest that you develop some goals and write them down. You should have enough information from you chosen guru to put together some goals and plans for moving forward as well. One suggestion I would make here is to carefully consider costs.  It is very easy to spend a lot of money for tools that are supposed to help you build revenue. Instead, look for free resources. I suggest starting small so you can learn and then ramping up as you gain more knowledge and experience.

Tip 6: Get going.

Don’t procrastinate. Move forward. You can do it!

Tip 7: Apply the 80/20 rule to everything you are doing.

In other words, look for the key drivers. The 80/20 rule says that 20% of your efforts will give you 80% of your results.  You need to find the 20% and spend most of your time working on these priorities.

Tip 8: Be persistent but be realistic and flexible.

You will need to give this some time to work but it may mean you need to change certain things. Be open to change. Join online communities and see what others are saying and see where the online world is heading. Also, purchase other books about your chosen area of specialization. Life rewards life-long learners.

 Tip 9: Do not get involved with too many gurus.

One or two should be enough.  There are many formulas to be successful online. If you subscribe to the views of too many gurus you will end up confused and frustrated as you try different strategies. Pick a reputable guru whose strategy makes sense to you and stick with them until you really understand what you are doing.

Also, here is a very important point. Read the fine print on all the programs that you sign-up for. Just because your guru is reputable doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t check everything out. Read those terms and conditions statements. Know what you are getting into.

Tip 10: Share your knowledge.

Make sure you help someone else build his or her business in some way. When you help others you ultimately end up helping yourself as well.

Go ahead my friend. Get started today. Believe in yourself. You can do it!

photo credit: bethography – melting mama

THIS DAY SUCKS

Have you ever had a day when things just didn’t go the way you planned them? Have you ever had a week like that? If you have been on this earth for any length of time I know you know what I’m talking about. What do you do when you have a day that is seemingly going down the toilet? I mean you had great plans for the day then something happened that just threw you off of your game. It may have been a small thing or a big thing. Whatever it was, it “messed up” your day.

WOE IS ME

What do you do when you are having such a day, week or month where it seems like things are just not working the way you planned? Do you get frustrated and let the rest of the day, week or month tank? Do you give up and begin to feel weak, worthless and woeful? Or do you start lashing out and blaming others for making your day go south? Or maybe, you don’t blame others but you just put yourself in a bad mood and make others around you feel bad too? None of these responses are particularly helpful. Let me suggest a more enlightened approach that I have found helps me to turn a bad day, week or month around.

S.A.V.E. The DAY

I know, another acronym. Please indulge me. It may seem silly but it is effective for most situations (please realize however, that for major tragedies this may not apply).

S is for Stop

When you have a day that has been thrown off track by some mishap the first thing you want to do is Stop. As soon as you can, stop everything. Many times continued activity will keep you going down a path that is not helpful. Just stop for a moment so you can collect yourself. Don’t worry; you probably won’t have to stop for long. Most times 10 to 15 minutes is all you need. Why are you stopping? I’m glad you asked. That leads us to our next step.

A is for Assess

Now that you have taken a moment to stop it is time to Assess.  You will be Assessing 3 important aspects, your attitude, the situation, your priorities and options.

• Assess Your Attitude

You may not realize it, but your attitude about a situation can determine its outcome. If you are negative, your negative attitude can make a bad situation worse. Also, if your attitude is that of a victim you can empower the problem or mishap and weaken your ability to turn things around. This is why it is important at this point to evaluate your attitude to make sure you are not contributing to the situation.

• Assess the Situation

This is where you ask yourself some important questions about what has happened or is happening to throw your day off. Here are 7 good questions to ask and answer for yourself:

Is this situation really as bad as it seems or is it just my reaction to it that is bad? What is the real damage?

Is there an opportunity here (read my post on 4 ways to Miss Great Opportunities)?

Why did this situation come up? What is the cause and is it a recurring situation?

Is there something I can change to keep this from happening again?

Is this situation signaling a change in my environment that may be prompting me to change how I do things?

Is this something I can delegate to someone else or is it something I can just ignore altogether?

Is this something I should address quickly and move on or does this require an extended period of time to work out?

What are my options to salvage my day, week or month? Which leads us to our next point…

• Assess your priorities and options

Now that you have checked your attitude and assessed the situation it is time to assess your priorities and your options. What goals have you set for this period of time? Given this new situation, are your priorities still the same or do you need to rearrange your priorities? What are your options here? Maybe this is something you can work around.  After reviewing your goals and options it is time to move to the next step.

V is for Vanquish

This step may sound strange but it is an important step. Once you have decided your priorities for the day, week or month you need to evict all the other stuff from your mind. The key to turning this period around is to focus on your priorities. If this situation has indeed changed your priorities then you need to vanquish thoughts of what might have been and focus on the new reality. Also, vanquish that negative thoughts and emotions that could hold you back. . Vanquish all feelings of remorse, guilt, doubt, worry, etc. The key here is to focus on moving towards the priorities you have chosen.

E is for Execute

After you have gone through the other steps now and only now is it time to Execute. Now you will be able Execute with focus and purpose. This is an important because as you get your priorities done, you will begin to feel a sense of accomplishment and will have saved your day.

 

photo credit: Kenny Miller

 Are you in a rut, a funk? Are you in a bad way financially, spiritually, mentally or emotionally? Are your relationships unhappy, unfulfilling and fraught with discontentment and disharmony? If so, you are reading the right article. I want to introduce you to a process so powerful it can revolutionize your life and pull you out of any rut. It is simple yet it is packed with potential. It is the power of thoughtful giving and receiving.

I’m sure you have heard this before but it bears repeating and emphasizing. It is also imperative to learn how to work on both the giving and receiving sides of life. Let’s discuss this further…

What is a rut?

What exactly is a rut anyway?  According to Webster’s dictionary a rut is ” a settled and monotonous routine that is hard to escape”. Let’s face it, we have all fallen into monotonous routines at one time or another in our lives.  We have been trapped in job ruts, relationship ruts, career ruts, business ruts and many of the other kinds of ruts.  And ruts usually travel in groups; so one rut usually multiplies to become many ruts.  Moreover, may times these ruts cause us to fall into depression, disillusionment, or discouragement.  I want t0 suggest to you that one powerful way to break loose from the hold of any rut is to intentionally employ the law of thoughtful giving and receiving into your life. Activating this law will blast you out of any rut and its accompanying emotions.

What do I need to know?

Giving and receiving are both parts of the same law. They are like to sides of a coin. One does not exist without the other. The problem is many people don’t know how to use both sides of the coin on purpose. Some people are consummate givers but have no idea how to graciously receive. Others are great at receiving but never really want to start the process by giving unselfishly. You need to be able to operate on both parts of this law to destroy a rut and live life at a higher level.

Let the Giving Begin…and Continue

To activate this law start giving on purpose.  Make a decision to give to those around you. Be thoughtful in your giving. Focus on the person or people to whom you are giving and think about what you can give that will help them. What do you have that they need?  Everybody has something to give. If you can give anonymously, do that.  There are many, many things you can give.  Here are just a few examples: Give a smile, give time to someone who is lonely, give compassion to someone who is hurting, give a listening ear to someone who is hurting, give food to someone who is hungry, give money to someone who is poor, give an opportunity to someone who needs it, give someone another chance, give forgiveness to someone who has hurt you…and so on.

An important point to make here is that if you want to get out of a rut, don’t just give one time. Be consistent in your giving. It doesn’t have to be to the same person…In fact, it is great to spread the love. The key is to continue giving until it becomes a wonderful habit. Make it a part of who you are. You are a thoughtful giver. Why not commit yourself today to 21 days of thoughtful giving? According to experts, it takes 21 days to establish any habit in your life. Start today.

Get ready to receive…

The other side of this law is the receiving side. Now, receiving can be tricky. The reason is because when you give, you should expect to receive but the key is not to expect it from the person to whom you are giving. Many of us were taught that in order to give unselfishly you have to give without expecting to receive at all. I believe this is incorrect. I believe you should expect to receive and you should be open to it. Receiving is what encourages you to give again. It is like being replenished. It is natural result of giving. If you are not open to receive, you basically shut down the process.  You are blocking the process and the essence of law of giving and receiving is not released.

If you will be open to receiving from others as freely as you have given, you will be pleasantly surprised at the power and exhilaration this will bring to your life. You will be part of a process that will begin lifting your life out of a rut into a higher level. Don’t expect to receive from the person to whom you have given, but do expect to receive. It will come to you from many ways. Be open to receive and receive often.

A final note

Please give this process time to work. Don’t just give once and sit around expecting to receive. The return may come right away but many times there will be a period of waiting. I suggest you wait actively. Continue giving. Give over and over again. If you do this, you will be surprised when the waves of good start coming your way. They will just keep coming. These powerful waves will lift you out of your ruts into to new level of living.

 

Great opportunities are abundant and surround us everyday.  Opportunities in all areas of our lives. Opportunities to draw closer to the ones we love, opportunites to help more people, opportunities to start a great business, oppotunities to start a new career. Opportunities, Opportunities, Opportunities…

These opportunites come near us but we miss them all the time.  There are many ways to miss great oppotunities but I believe there are four major ways that stand out from the rest. If we change our behaviour in reference to these ways, we will be able to seize more oppotunities and we will be on our way to living higher and more fulfilling lives.

1. Not being on the look out for opportunities

One sure way to miss opportunity is not to look for it. An opportunity can be right in front of you but you can miss it if you are not looking for opportunities.  Let me share a great example with you.

Let’s say you are in a bustling warm weather city with lots of traffic. Let’s further say you spend an hour a day eating lunch outside where you can see the cars traveling on the street. After lunch, if I were to ask you how many red cars passed by, you probably couldn’t tell me. If, however, I asked you on the next day to count the number of red cars that pass by during your lunch break,  I suspect you would get that done quick easily. As a matter of fact, you would probably see more red cars than you have ever seen. You would see red cars because you made the decision to look for them.

It is similar with opportunities. In order to see them you have to make a decision to look for them. 

2. Not knowing exactly what to look for

Another way we miss opportunities is not knowing what they look like. Unlike red cars, opportunities are not always so obvious. In fact, opportunities are usually disguised in a way we wouldn’t expect.  This is a reason that even when people are earnestly looking for opportunities, sometimes they don’t see them. Here are two diguises opportunities don:

Problems are opportunities waiting to be harvested

Many times the greatest opportunities are found in problems around us. Things we face everyday.  No matter the size of the problem, in its solution is a potential opportunity. Every successful invention has been the result of  solving a problem. In fact, you were created to be a solution to a problem (We can discuss this further in another article).  Think about problems you face all the time. Things that may frustrate you in your work, in your relationships and the mechnical, technical, economic and political systems around you. Even the way things are done. You may be the person who has the idea to solve the problem, provide the missing link, or devise a better way of doing something. If you want to miss great opportunities then simply complain about the problems you face. If you want to identify great opporutnities then look at problems as a source of opportunity and start thinking of solutions. Who knows, you may suprise yourself.

Conversations contain opportunities not yet realized

Although it may not seem like it at times, all the problems in the world are not finding their way directly to you. Other people are experiencing problems all the time. Sometimes the problems they are experiencing are quite different from the problems you are facing. Indeed, the problems that they are facing may not even seem like problems to you. You know the solution or you have an inkling how to figure out the solution.

Oftentimes, we miss these opportunities because we don’t really listen to people. I am very guilty of this myself. We need to practice active listening.  Listen on purpose and talk less.  You will be surprised at what you learn and how many opportunities you will hear. If you want to miss an opportunity, just keep talking and half-listening to those around you. If you want to discover great opportunities, listen, really listen to those with whom you converse.

3. Reacting in fear

This is a big one and a common one. A lot of times we see the opportunites and we know they are opportunities, but we fail to act on them because of fear.  We may fear we are not smart enough, fast enough or worthy enough to seize this opportunity. Or we may think that we may fall flat on our faces. Or we may be afraid of success. How will this opportunity change us? There are so many variations on this theme of fear. The best advice I have heard to defeat this type of fear is to prepare the best you can and then act anyway, despite the fear.  You may feel fearful but go forward anyway.  Also, if possible, start small and build on your successes. Don’t let fear stop you from seizing great opportunities.

4. Dismissing opportunities

Finally, a common way we miss opportunities by simply dismissing them. We decide, for whatever reason, that this is not something we can do. It is too big for us , too complicated for us or too small for us. It may be because of fear or because we are just overwhelmed with other things. Whatever the reason, deep down, we believe that we can’t get the opportunity done. We talk ourselves out of pursuing it. Let me suggest that if you have an opportunity don’t just dismiss it, even if you can’t do it by yourself, consider teaming up with someone to do  something with it. Even if it doesn’t go anywhere it doesn’t mean it was a waste of time. If nothing else, you have learned something valuable that can help you seize the next opportunity. If an opportunity comes your way and you recognize it, it is important for you to do something with it. I would go as far as saying it is your duty act on it in some way.  It presented itself to you for a reason. This may be the opportunity that changes your life and the lives of many others for good.

Opportunities are all around us, they are very valuable and help us live better more fulfilling lives. Let’s make up our minds to seize more of the opportunities around us starting today.

photo credit: Britt Selvitelle

Given the current economic situation that is occupying in the world today, you may be thinking that you will never succeed. You may even believe that you have to be subject to the whims of the economic, political and social machines that run various countries. You may think you are a failure or you are doomed to fail given the current state of affairs around you. I would like to suggest to you that your life doesn’t have to be unstable or in recession just because our economic and political systems are in a state of turmoil.  As a matter of truth, you have an opportunity to be even more successful today than you did in a vibrant economy. I say this because when times get difficult many people run and hide. That leaves more opportunities for those of us that know that we are already successful.

Are you wondering how I can unequivocally and unapologetically make these assertions? I base my assertions on several profound yet simple truths that I will share with you in this article. If you are convinced of these truths and if you take decisive action, your success will be evident to you and to others around you. Let me forewarn you that if you are not ready to change your perceptive, this article may be of no use to you at this time. I suggest that you read this article with an open mind and heart and spend a little time thinking about what I am sharing here. Please do not be so quick to dismiss what these thoughts as impossible or implausible. If you don’t understand what I am giving right away, please spend at least a week thinking deeply about the information contained here and then reread the article and see if you have a different perspective. I believe after some considerable thought you would agree with at least some of the points shared here.

The four foundational truths on which I base my assumptions are as follows:

 

You were born a successful genius although it may have been taught out of you.

·        Success still exists in you and desires to be harnessed and exposed

·        You are unique and have a unique set of skills and attributes that are needed now.

·        No one can stop you from being successful, but you.

 

You were born successful

 

I have heard people say that “people were born to be successful”, but I believe that this is just the tip of the iceberg. I believe you were born successful. We can look at this from several points of view. Let’s start from a spiritual point of view. My view is that a Creator, who created everything to be successful, designed you. If there is an all-powerful, all-knowing and intelligent being who created everything (click here to read my personal beliefs about this Being), then it would make sense for Him to create everything to be successful. If He is all-powerful and all knowing and intelligent it would not be possible for Him to make a mistake and stupid for him not to make everything successful. He would think and plan for every being He created to be successful.

Let’s take this a step further and look at nature. In nature, the seed of every plant already has all the success in it to grow into the plant that it is supposed to become. It is indeed already full of success and is just waiting to be planted in soil for it to grow into its success. Indeed, you were a seed full of success and were planted in your birth mother’s womb. Everything about you existed in this seed. All the success you would ever need was in you at conception. You were designed and created full of success and it is up to you to realize that success.

Success may have been taught out of you

 

Look at a normal 2-year-old child. She believes she can do anything and asks a lot of questions as to why things are they way they are. Her imagination is almost limitless and she believes she is great and can accomplish anything. Ask her what she wants to become and she has a lot of answers and believes she can do all of them. She innately believes she is successful. What happens to this child? Well, if she has great parents she will be encouraged and nurtured to pursue her greatest gift first. She will be taught principals of success and she will be taught how to use what is good in the educational system and to discard that which teaches her to conform to the “norm” instead of exploring her on uniqueness.

If the parents are not great then she may be discouraged and taught to conform and to doubt herself. She may be taught to compare herself with others and not to discover her own strengths and weaknesses.

You may even have been complicit in this process. In an effort to fit in you may have “dumbed down” your unique skills and attributes.  You didn’t want to be the odd ball so you neglected your true self to fit in and please others.

When I say success is taught out of you, I don’t really mean that you lose it, you are just taught not to believe it or not to trust, nurture and grow it.

 

Success is still in you

 The gem of hope in all of this is that success still exists in you. It is part of who you are so it can’t be taught out of you. As I mentioned in the last section, you may have been taught or subtle convinced that you were not supposed to be successful but it is still there. It is waiting to be harnessed. It is tied to your unique potential, skills and traits. Have you every heard of the eagle that was convinced that he was a chicken. The eagle was raised with chickens and although he had in him the success of an eagle it was not harnessed. Why, because he had been taught and raised as a chicken. As long as the eagle stayed among the chickens it was convinced and thus believed it was a chicken so it pecked and walked like a chicken. It took a naturalist, who knew the true nature of the eagle to take the eagle to a mountain, pronounce to the eagle that he was an eagle and told it to fly. At this command the eagle did what come quick natural to it. It flew and screeched with the mighty screech of an eagle. (Read the whole story)

It is no different for you. You are successful; you simply must believe it and then take the necessary steps to move into your success.

 

You are unique

 

As I mentioned in a previous section, you are unique. There has never existed anyone like you before nor will there be anyone like you in the future. Your combination of skills, history, attributes, interests and style are needed by a group of people who will find it valuable. This is not subject to the economy or the political system. You are valuable to some group of people somewhere. The key is to find out what is unique about you and who would find your uniqueness so valuable to pay for it. It is not really that hard if you dig deep enough into yourself and ask those around you who love you.

 

Important Key

 

One key is to find out what annoys you. What do you keep saying someone should do something about? That someone is probably you. What are you passionate about? Dig deep and you will find that you have the unique set of skills and the temperament to solve it.  Where do you see a hole in things? What do you think is missing in the world? What do you believe can be done better? Check inside yourself, you may be the person who needs to fill this need.  I encourage you to find your uniqueness. If you are a person of faith in God, I would suggest you pray about it. Who better to ask about your uniqueness than the One who created you? 

 

No One Can Stop You From Being Successful, But You

 

There is a remarkable thing about human beings. In them is a spirit that can soar to great heights no matter what the difficulties. And if you are linked up to your God then there is no outside force that can stop you.  However, there is an inside force that can stop you. It is the force of fear and self-doubt. I know because I suffered from this for many years.  Even today, I am constantly battling these elements.  Fear, as many have said, is False Evidence Appearing Real. Fear’s job is to convince you that it is more real than your success. The truth is your success is what is real and more potent than fear.

 

Overcome Fear

 

There are many ways to overcome fear but the best one that I have found is to do what fear says you can’t do. If you fail, be committed to doing it until you succeed and then fear has not grip on you.  You may feel afraid but fear will not stop you. Make a decision to believe in yourself and in your own right to the success that is in you and is indeed you.

 

I challenge you today to believe in yourself and your in-born success. Start setting goals and plans to move into the success that is you.

 

 
photo credit: eschipul