LIVE LIFE UP HIGH

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Killing Success.

If you want to know how to kill success I have a great way. It is called “excusitis”, which is a failure disease. It affects most average people and people who don’t realize their dreams.  Excusitis, if left untreated, will seep into every area of your life and cause you to feel worthless and depressed. It causes you to act as a victim instead of a victor in life.

What is excusitis?

It is the disease that constantly finds reasons for why you are not realizing your potential. You can detect excusitis in yourself and in others by listening closely to the words you and others use. A person who suffers from excusitis has many excuses for why they are not more successful. Every excuse they produce has to do with something they don’t have or a disadvantage they have that keeps them back. For example, you may hear things like I would be successful if I weren’t so old or so young or if I had more money or if I had a better upbringing or if I had a better education or if my spouse supported me or if the economy weren’t so bad… You get the idea.  Excusitis can take many forms and is only limited to the creativity of the person suffering from the disease.

This is Contagious.

Be careful and be aware. Excusitus is that it is highly contagious. Even if you don’t suffer from the disease now, if you are around people that are constantly making excuses for there lack of success you are at risk of contracting this disease. My advice is to stop spending time with such people if you really desire to be successful.

The Cure.

The great thing about this disease is that it has a known cure. This cure is effective and can inoculate you from any future infections from this disease. The cure is a three-step approach that works every time. Let’s quickly discuss the steps.

Peak performance begins with your taking complete responsibility for your life and everything that happens to you. – Brian Tracy

1. Take responsibility for any failures or lack of fully realizing your goals. Don’t blame anyone else or any characteristic you are missing or a characteristic that you have. If you haven’t succeeded it is because you have not decided to succeed. I know this is tough talk but it is true.  You are exactly where you have decided to be in life. If you are not realizing success it is because at some level you have decided not to be successful. Once you realize this truth, it will become apparent to you that if you have the power to decide not to succeed, you also have the power to decide to succeed. I can say this with unreserved confidence because I know that inside of you there is unlimited potential to succeed put there by our Creator. You were born to succeed.

Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail. — Charles F. Kettering

2. Believe you will succeed with or without “disadvantages”. I don’t want you to just believe that you can succeed. I want you to believe that you will succeed. If I dare, I would like you to take it further and believe that you are succeeding right now. See yourself being the success you already are.

No action, no change. Limited action, limited change. Lots of action – Change occurs.  - Catherine Pulsifer

3. Take Action. Set your goals, make your plans and then take definite action towards your goals. Be persistent and consistent. If you miss the mark see it as only a setback. Take responsibility (notice I didn’t say take the blame), review the situation to see what you can learn from the setback, and then take new action based on what you learned from the setback.

Excusitis is a very deadly disease, determine today to rid yourself of this disease and move forward to become the successful person I know you already are.

As always, I welcome your comments.

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How are you living?

Many entrepreneurs are living their personal and professional lives in a cloudy haze. They don’t have clear written goals and plans to achieve them.  They really don’t know where they want to end up in life so they live their lives without a clear strategic plan, a winning personal culture and definite concrete actions to take them to this destiny.

You are destined for something great.

Some entrepreneurs are even waiting for their destiny to smack them in the face. They don’t know that they must discover the destiny that is already in them. There is a saying I heard recently,  ”destiny is not a matter of chance it is a choice”. This is very true. You have the right to choose your best personal and professional life. You have the right to move towards a destiny and to live a great life. Obviously there are some things you must do to reach this destiny but you can reach it.  

Let’s begin moving towards our destiny.

My fellow entrepreneurs, over the next few posts let’s take the time to explore some of the best information on effective goal setting, effective planning and goal achievement.  I will pull from some of the best thinkers and writers on the subject and synthesize this information for you in a way that you can take action on it right away. Step by step we will move towards your best life.

The power of choice.

If you want this life your first step is to make a choice. Decide today to be the best you can be and to live the best life you can live. Decide today to do whatever it takes to be your best, give your best, and have the best business and professional life you can have. Choose to have a great destiny and to leave a great legacy. I challenge you to choose greatness today.

Please join me over the next few posts as we move closer to our destiny and live our best lives.

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In this final post discussing Dr. Caroline Leaf’s book, Who Switched off My Brain?: Controlling Toxic Thoughts and Emotions, we will briefly describe the last three detox steps outlined in the book.

Detox Step 11 – Diet – Dr. Leaf suggests that you should never eat when you are angry or facing any other unpleasant emotions. Eating during those times can make your food toxic to you. Your toxic thoughts will interfere with the proper working of your digestive system. 

Another important point is that when you eat well you will properly feed your brain. Dr. Leaf explains that a major source of food for the brain is glucose. Of course, you need to eat this in the proper quantities.

Finally, it is important to think about what you eat. In the book Dr. Leaf mentions a few of the types of foods that help us think well and feel good.

Detox Step 12: The Spiritual aspect – In this section Dr. Leaf talks about the power of spiritual truth to deal with toxic emotions. The Christian faith is the guiding belief of her life and mine. I encourage you to live in your spiritual truth.

Detox Step 13: Relax – The “acceleration syndrome” is the cause of many mental, physical and emotional health problems. The key point here is to learn to spend your time wisely. You must focus on what is good for you and you must take time to relax.

We have reached the end of the steps to detox your thinking.  These last 3 detox steps are obvious and we hear them all the time, but sometimes as entrepreneurs we don’t do them. Make a decision today to begin using all the steps to detox your thinking and improve your life. 

As always I appreciate your comments.

Please click the image below to obtain this resource.

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In this post we continue our discussion of Dr. Caroline Leaf’s book Who Switched off My Brain?: Controlling Toxic Thoughts and Emotions. We are specifically looking at the steps she recommends for detoxing your brain. In the previous post we discussed the first five detox steps. In this post we continue by briefly discussing steps 6-9.

Detox Step 6 – Think Forgiveness – Much has been written about the importance of forgiving yourself and others in order to acheive success. Dr. Leaf  joins these writers in expressing the power of forgiveness on your mind and body.  She says forgiveness is like taking an “emotional shower”. Forgiveness allows you to let go of toxic emotions and memories and build new and better memories. Make a decision to forgive and release those who have done you wrong in business and in life. This will add years to your life and life to your business.

Detox Step 7 – Love – Tune Into Your Heart -  Did you know that your heart considers and “thinks” about the information the brain sends to it. According to Dr. Leaf, the heart has a “mini-brain” that functions like a conscience.  She suggests that when you practice love and appreciation many of your internal systems are positively affected and help you live longer and healthier. The key thought here is to tune into your heart and practice love, kindness, gratitude and appreciation. These emotions help eliminate toxic thoughts. These emotions also help you to get more business and serve more customers.

Detox Step 8 – Monkey Hug- Therapy – Touch has long been touted as having a powerful affect on human beings (and others). Dr Leaf relates an interesting story in the book about a study conducted with baby monkeys. This study clearly shows the power of touch. It is a must read.  Caroline also mentions various studies that show that touch releases powerful chemicals from the brain that breaks negative feedback loops. The message: take time to hug and be hugged.

Detox Step 9- Play and Laugh – This one is self-explanatory. An interesting point here is that laughter releases feel-good chemicals that boost the immune system and does other great things in the body. To be a successful, well-rounded entrepreneur you must take time to play and laugh. Entrepreneurs by nature are driven to succeed. We must be reminded to take time and enjoy ourselves. Our lives depend on it. Consider this your reminder.

Check our Dr. Leaf’s book and as always I look forward to your comments.

Recommended Resource

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In my last post we discussed Dr. Caroline Leaf’s book, Who Switched off My Brain?: Controlling Toxic Thoughts and Emotions . In that post we discussed some of the dangers of toxic thinking. In the next three posts we will briefly discuss the 13 steps that Dr. Leaf suggests for detoxing your thought life. If you follow these steps, you will definitely think better, feel better and perform better. Ultimately, you will dramatically increase your level of success and the success of those around you.

Detox Step 1 – Consciously Control Your Thoughts – The key idea here is to pay attention to what you are thinking. Are you putting unrealistic expectations on yourself and others? Are you thinking fearfully? Do you have specific positive written goals that you are focusing on or are you just drifting through your day. Dr. Leaf suggests that you engage and analyze thoughts that enter your mind and make a conscious decision as to whether you want to accept or reject this thought.  Step 1 is an important step with several important sub-steps that you will want to read in the book.

Detox Step 2 – Frame Your World With Your Words – Most of us have heard that words have power. This is shockingly very true. As, Dr. Leaf explains, 

The words you speak feed back into the magic trees of the mind, reinforcing the memory they came from. When you make negative statements, you release negative chemicals. These lead to negative memories that grow stronger and become negative strongholds that control your attitude and life.

An important point here is that it is not just positive talking that is important, it is positive talk that is congruent to your positive thoughts that is important.

Detox Step 3 – Express those Emotions – The key here is not to deny what you feel. You need to express your emotions at an appropriate time, in an appropriate environment, in an appropriate way. When you repress your emotions you make yourself sick. Eventually these emotions will manifest themselves anyway and usually not in at an appropriate time or way.

Detox Step 4 – Take Responsibility and Take Control – In this step Dr. Leaf discusses the importance of being aware of what’s in your mind in terms of past experiences and conditioning. What are your memories and emotions? Once you are aware of these thought patterns you can begin to deal with bad memories by growing good ones. Also, be responsible enough to seek extra help (prayer, meditation and counseling) if you have long standing emotional strongholds.

Detox Step 5 – Dream On! – According to Dr. Leaf when you dream, important psychological and physiological processes happen in the body-mind connection. Because dreams give you clues as to what is happening in your thought life she suggests that you make a conscious effort to remember and record your dreams. Some experts believe that when you dream, the body can discuss its condition with your mind. The key is to decide to remember the dream.

I know many of my readers may be wondering what all of this has to do with entrepreneurship. I understand the hesitation but please remember proper thinking helps you to excel and take advantage of opportunities. Without proper thinking you will probably never fully realize your entrepreneurial potential.

As always I welcome your comments.

Recommended Resource

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I recently read a very interesting book on toxic thinking and its affect on all aspects of our lives. I found the book so interesting and so relevant for the serious entrepreneur that I decided to share it with you today. 

Did you know that the average person has over 30,000 thoughts a day? Further, did you know that an uncontrolled thought life can create the conditions for illness in your body? Toxic thinking can actually make you sick and if you are sick you can’t properly achieve your entrepreneurial goals.

In her book, “Who Switched Off My Brain?”, Dr. Caroline Leaf  helps you understand the anatomy of a thought, how a thought grows, what happens when thoughts go toxic and how to detox your thinking. It was really amazing to me to see how many systems of the body are affected by a thought. It has made me more determined to manage my thought life and to make sure I keep it positive.

In her book Dr. Leaf gives an example of three negative and incorrect beliefs that lead to toxic thoughts and emotions:

1. I must do well.
2. You must treat me well.
3. The world must be easy.

It would seem that these are harmless thoughts but the truth is they create unrealistic expectations and when they are not met they put your mind and body in stress mode and cause all types of health and performance problems.

Please check out the book and let me know what you think. As always I look for your comments.

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In part one of this post we discussed the fact that many entrepreneurs allow their past failures to hold them back. We discussed 3 bite-sized nuggets that entrepreneurs should consider to help them move past these failures on to success. 
In this post, we will introduce and discuss the four remaining nuggets.

Seek the advice of others who have gone before you – This is probably a step that many entrepreneurs skip. I think for many of us it is a pride thing.  However, it is imperative that we take this step my entrepreneurial friend. Seeking competent advice is very wise. You should seek advice on three levels:

1.Seek advice about whether you have properly defined the failure . Knowing how to properly describe and define the failure is key in determining the causes. It is also a key factor in ensuring you don’t have a repeat performance.

2. Seek advice about whether you have correctly identified the 1 or 2 key factors that led to the failure. It may be hard to be objective about what caused the failure. Discussing your list of possible key factors with a competent advisor can help you clearly identify the key contributing factors.

3. Seek advice about possible approaches to circumvent the failure in the future. This is very important if it turns out that your failure was due to an error in judgement. We all have blindspots in our lives that others see clearly. By seeking advice about solutions you will multiply the odds of succeeding this time around.

Create an action plan – After you have sought competent advice and combined it with the information you gleaned from your own analysis, it is time to create a plan for moving forward. Take your time and consider all the steps you need to take to move forward. A great action plan should include steps to take, deadlines for completion of each step, resources needed to complete each step, possible obstacles to completion and steps to circumvent any known obstacles.

Implement the action plan – There is no need to create an action plan if you are not going to put it into action. At this point, you need to commit to the action plan and get started. After each step, review your plan and see if you need to make any adjustments. Remember things change and we need to be flexible.

Review - After you have accomplished your goal it is important to review. You want to see what went right and what you can improve. The key is to understand the process so you can improve it and repeat it. 

When you face failure this way you will no longer fear it. You will eat failure for lunch. As always, I look forward to your comments.

photo credit: hans.gerwitz

Too many entrepreneurs allow their past failures to keep them from moving forward and pursuing new opportunities.  They tend to magnify these failures and allow these failures to hold them hostage. Don’t let this be you. In this post I give you 3 of the 7 bite sized nuggets to consider about your past failures and show you how to use these as stepping-stones to new opportunities.

Forgive yourself – It is amazing how hard we entrepreneurs can be on ourselves. When we make mistakes we often blame ourselves and then condemn ourselves to the entrepreneurial dungeon. To be truly successful as an entrepreneur you need to take responsibility for the mistake but don’t dwell on it and condemn yourself. You also shouldn’t blame others either. Even if they were a part of the reason you made the mistake, forgive them. Lack of forgiveness is a negative drain on your present and it sabotages your future.

Don’t allow fear to hold you hostage – Sometimes we are able to forgive ourselves but we are afraid to try again. We allow the fear of failing again to hold us back. It is imperative that we get past this stage. The key is to properly define failure. As entrepreneurs we must realize that to fail at something is just an event not a state of being. We are not failures because we have failed attempts. As a matter of fact, most successful entrepreneurs have had many failed attempts. They usually have many more failed attempts than the average entrepreneur. In order to move forward we must resolve to make another attempt using the information we gained from this event. 

Glean lessons from the failed attempt – As an entrepreneur it is important to measure and analyze. Think of yourself as a scientist when it comes to attempts. Look at the failed attempt objectively and determine what went wrong. Identify all of the contributing factors that went into this being a failed attempt and then prioritize the factors. You will probably find that one or two factors contributed to the failure considerably more than any other factor. Isolate these factors and do an analysis to see what you can do to make changes in this area.

In Part 2 of this series I will share with you 4 other nuggets. As always I look forward to your comments.

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For as a man thinketh in is heart so is he. Proverbs 23:7

We know who you are.
Do you know how?

By how you constantly think. It shows.

Constantly think you will fail, you will…
Constantly think you will succeed, you will…

Dwell on the negative, it’ll show in your walk, talk, and actions…
Focus on the positive, it’ll show in your walk, talk and actions…

Think on problems all the time, you will attract more…
Meditate on solutions and opportunities, you’ll be awash with them…

Eventually you become what you think about all the time.
I will show.
This is a timeless truth.
Why not use this truth to your advantage.
Meditate on things that move you towards success and life.

Here is some “food for thought”.

How can I get this business started?
How can I add more value to my customers?
How can I help my employees grow?
How can I innovate my business model?
How can I grow as a leader?
How can I grow my business?

Constantly think about how you can make everything around you better.
You will be glad you did.

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Gratitude is a powerful tool for attracting great things into your life and your business. When you practice being grateful your life and your business improves.

Gratitude is defined as ” the state of being grateful; thankfulness”. Let’s dig a little deeper. To be grateful is to be “warmly or deeply appreciative of the kindness or benefits received”. So we can define gratitude as the state of being warmly and deeply appreciative of the kindness or benefits received. This may sound hokey but it is true, when you live a life of deep appreciation everything in your life improved.  Here are 3 great quotes about gratitude:

To speak gratitude is courteous and pleasant, to enact gratitude is generous and noble, but to live gratitude is to touch Heaven.

Johannes A. Gaertner

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.

John F. Kennedy

Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos into order, confusion into clarity…. It turns problems into gifts, failures into success, the unexpected into perfect timing, and mistakes into important events. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.

Melodie Beattie

So how can we practice gratitude as entrepreneurs. Of course, there are a lot of ways to do this but below are three ideas that you can implement right away. Try these and let me know what you think.

• Express gratitude to your clients. Send out a letter or an email to all you clients letting them know how grateful you are for their business. You can take it a step further by offering them a free gift.
• Keep a gratitude journal. At the end of each day write at least 10 things for which you are grateful. Do this every day for the next 30 days and see what a difference it makes in both your business life and personal life.
• Send handwritten notes. When an employee or a business associate goes out of their way to help you or a customer write them a special note expressing your appreciation.

If an employee or business associate does anything for you send them a handwritten thank you note and express your gratefulness.

Begin practicing gratefulness until it becomes a way of life. You will be amazed at how your whole life improves.