Think & Create

by Denis Waitley
(excerpted from The Psychology of Motivation)

I have a suitcase for you. In that suitcase there is $1 million in cash. The suitcase is sitting in a building that is about an hour’s drive from where you are now.

Here is the deal: All you have to do is get to this building in the next two hours. If you get there before the end of the two hours, I will hand you the suitcase, and you will be a million dollars richer.
There is one catch, however. If you are even one second late, our deal is off, and you will not get a dime. No exceptions! With that in mind, what time would you like to leave?

Most people would respond to that scenario by saying that they would leave right now. Wouldn’t you?

So off you go. You jump into your car and start driving for the building. You are excited and are already starting to plan how you are going to spend your million dollars. Then, suddenly, the traffic comes to a complete stop. You turn on the radio and find that there has been a series of freak accidents between you and the building and there is no way to get there!

Now what would you do? Would you give up and go back home? Or would you get out of your car and walk, run, hire a helicopter, or find some other way of getting to the building on time?

Now let’s suppose for a minute that you are driving to an appointment at your dentist’s office. The traffic again comes to a stop. Amazingly, there have been freak accidents between you and your dentist’s office. What would you do then? Probably give up, go home and reschedule!

What is the difference between these two situations? It all comes down to why. If the why is big enough; the how is usually not a problem. This compelling why is connected to your personal objectives, mission statement or magnificent obsessions. It is the basis of your motivational support beam. Truly motivated people are able to identify and tap into the power of a compelling why in everything they do.

kennethg self improvement, success reason for success, why

by Denis Waitley

One of the most desirable attitudes of a leader is an ability to view problems as opportunities and setbacks as temporary inconveniences. This positive attitude also welcomes change as friendly and is not upset by surprises, even negative ones. How we approach challenges and problems is a crucial aspect of our decision making process, whether in business or in our personal lives. In companies and environments in which criticism, pessimism, cynicism and motivation by fear prevail, an attitude develops that leads to avoiding failure at all costs. The trouble with failure avoidance is that it’s simultaneously avoidance of success, which depends on big risks.

Innovation and creativity are impossible when people are in fear of being penalized for failure.

Early experience often teaches that failure is to be avoided at all costs. This begins in childhood, when we encounter the first “No!!” It grows like a weed when we are criticized by our parents, other family members, our teachers and our peers. It leads to associating ourselves with our mistakes, and to a self-image of clumsiness and awkwardness. Not wanting to be criticized or rejected, many adults also seek security rather than risk looking foolish or appearing awkward. They quietly ride with the system, not rocking the boat.

All lasting success in life is laced with problems and misfortunes which require creativity and innovation. Winners turn stumbling blocks into steppingstones.

In the 1920s, when Ernest Hemingway was working hard to perfect his craft, he lost a suitcase containing all his manuscripts. The devastated Hemingway couldn’t conceive of redoing his work. He could think only of the months he’d devoted to his arduous writing—and for nothing, he was now convinced.

But when he lamented his loss to poet Ezra Pound, Pound called it a stroke of luck. Pound assured Hemingway that when he rewrote the stories, he would forget the weak parts and only the best material would reappear. Instead of framing the event in disappointment, Pound cast it in the light of opportunity. Hemingway did rewrite the stories, and the rest, as they say, is history.

This week, concentrate on framing your challenges as “opportunities to grow” rather than “disappointments and problems.”

kennethg success

by Brian Tracy

1. The Law of Control: You feel good about yourself to the degree at which you feel you are in control of your own life.

2. The Law of Responsibility: You are completely responsible for everything you are and for everything you become and achieve.

3. The Law of Direction: Successful people have a clear sense of purpose and direction in every area of their lives.

4. The Law of Compensation: You are always fully compensated for whatever you do, positive or negative.

5. The Law of Service: Your rewards in life will always be in direct proportion to the value of your service to others.

6. The Law of Applied Effort: All things are amenable to hard work.

7. The Law of Overcompensation: If you always do more than you are paid for, you will always be paid more than you are getting now.

8. The Law of Preparation: Effective performance is preceded by painstaking preparation.

9. The Law of Forced Efficiency: The more things you have to do in a limited period of time, the more you will be forced to work on your most important tasks.

10. The Law of Decision: Every great leap forward in life is preceded by a clear decision and a commitment to action.

11. The Law of Creativity: Every advance in human life begins with an idea in the mind of a single person.

12. The Law of Flexibility: Success is best achieved when you are clear about the goal but flexible about the process of getting there.

13. The Law of Persistence: Your ability to persist in the face of setbacks and disappointments is your measure of your belief in yourself and your ability to succeed.

kennethg Life, self improvement applied effort, brian tracy, compensation, control, preparation, responsibility, success

by Vic Johnson
(excerpted from Day by Day with James Allen)

“A Person is the causer (though nearly always unconsciously) of his circumstances, and that, whilst aiming at the good end, he is continually frustrating its accomplishment by encouraging thoughts and desires which cannot possibly harmonize with that end.”
—As a Man Thinketh

One of the examples James Allen uses to support this philosophy is a rich man who is the victim of a painful and persistent disease as the result of gluttony. He’s willing to give large sums of money to get rid of the disease and he fully expects that will be the cure. Unfortunately, he never addresses the gluttonous desire that is the cause of his condition. He can never achieve good health because his desires are not in harmony with the good health he seeks, regardless of the money he spends.

Wow, did I relate to the rich man. Not because of his money, but because of his attitude. There’s been so many times in my life that I said I wanted to get rid of negative circumstances, all the while I’m engaging in the actions (brought on by my thoughts) that could never possibly harmonize with the results I said I wanted.

Once I remember a big commitment and resolution on my part to spend more time with my family. I optimistically laid out a calendar of activities we would do together and got very excited about the “new me.” The way I had it figured, I’d probably be “father of the year.”

Well, I’m glad they didn’t publish the results of the “competition” that year, I’m sure I would have finished dead last. You see, despite my “aiming at the good end,” I hadn’t changed the thought patterns that had plagued me for years. Any type of crisis in my business was a justifiable reason for me to work late or to go in on the weekends. While my mouth said that my family was more important, my actions (and thoughts) said otherwise.

James Allen wants us to understand that we cannot change our circumstances without first changing our thoughts to harmonize with the circumstances we want. To think otherwise is just as foolish as the gluttonous rich man.

One of my great enlightenments came from Wayne Dyer’s You’ll See It When You Believe It. He wrote, “Work each day on your thoughts rather than concentrating on your behavior. It is your thinking that creates the feelings you have and ultimately your actions as well.”

And that’s worth thinking about.

kennethg Life

Torrential rainstorms were knocking down power lines all over town. That meant, as a customer service rep for the electric company, I was dispatching repairmen right and left. When one lineman called a customer to get her exact address, he was told, “I’m at Post Office Box 99.”

The weary lineman replied, “Ma’am, I’ll be coming to you in a truck, not an envelope.”

kennethg Humour

In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins: cash and experience. Take the experience first; the cash will come later.

Harold Geneen

kennethg Life experience, money, work

Have you ever thought about the power of incremental success? One of my favorite quotes is from Tony Robbins when he says that most people overestimate what they can do in a year but they underestimate what they can do in ten years. Very powerful if you think about it.

Most people quit because they expect to try something or begin something, and that it will happen for them right away. Not true, or at least rarely true. Take weight loss for example. You can’t lose 30 pounds in two weeks. But if you lose 1/4 pound a day, in 120 days you will have lost 30 pounds!

One time a prolific writer was asked how he writes so many books. His answer? “One page at a time.” Perfect!

What about you? Are you feeling a little blue because you aren’t getting where you want to be? Well, consider that it may take you more time than you thought. But if you will take it step by step—incrementally—then you will eventually get there. Just keep moving in the right direction and your perseverance will pay off!

kennethg success habits, incremental success, one day at a time, success, Weight Loss

We’re getting used to Web 2.0 these days. Look at the number of Web 2.0 sites that exists today – Facebook, Wikipedia, Digg, MySpace, Friendster and many more.

Web 2.0 relies on public participation. But what happens when people stop participating?

Did you know that Wikipedia lost 49,000 editors in the first quarter of this year alone. How will Wikipedia survive?

Did you also know that Digg is going down the drain?

Read this excellent article by Mike Elgan on Web 2.0.

kennethg Internet

by Jim Rohn

You may be wondering why I would call this article a Thankful Thanksgiving. Aren’t all Thanksgivings Thankful? Unfortunately, no. As a person who has experienced over 75 Thanksgivings, I recognize that being thankful is something that we have to work at, even on Thanksgiving.

If your home is like most, your Thanksgiving day will be very busy, with either traveling to where you want to go or preparing your home to have others over for the day. Either way, that can be very hectic and emotionally trying, which doesn’t lend itself to preparing your heart to be reflective and thankful. In fact, Thanksgiving weekend is the most traveled weekend in America. Airports are full, and not always providing much room for contemplation of your good fortune.

This means all the more that if we want to be the kind of people who are characterized by thankfulness, then we must make sure that we focus on it, and not just on Thanksgiving Day, but at all times during the year.

Here are a few key words as well as some thoughts that are simple and practical to apply; something you can use right away in your quest for becoming more thankful:

Time. Set aside time regularly to be quiet, to reflect. We live in the fastest paced time ever. From the moment we awake to the moment we collapse into bed, we have the opportunity to go at full speed and never slow down. If we schedule time every day in which we can be quiet and reflect, we will free our hearts and minds up from the tyranny of the urgent and rushed.

Thought. Give thought to the many blessings that you have. Living in a consumer culture, most of us are fully aware of what we do not have and how we absolutely must have “it”. But how often do we reflect upon that which we already have? Take some time each day and think of one or two things that you have that you may typically take for granted and then take a moment and give thanks for those. In fact, I make it a part of my reflection time to review a list of things that I’m thankful for.

Generosity. Be generous toward those with less and not envious of those with more. We tend to look at others who may be wealthier than ourselves and think, “I sure wish I had what he does.” That kind of thinking breeds envy and jealousy rather than contentment. What can we do to break that cycle? I would suggest being generous to those who are less fortunate than yourself. Go to work at a food bank. And not just during the holidays – everybody works there then – but on a regular basis during the year. That will remind you of how good you really have it.

Ask. Ask a friend what they are thankful for. The next time you are at lunch with a friend, ask them what they are most thankful for. You will be amazed at the answers you receive and you will create a meaningful bond with your friends as you focus on this powerful question.

Acknowledge. Lastly, tell those you love how thankful you are for having them in your life. So many times we neglect to take the time to craft the words to express to those closest to us what their presence in our lives means to us. Take the opportunity of Thanksgiving Day to write them a note or sometime during the day put your hand on their shoulder, look them in the eyes and tell them. Let them know what they mean to you, and in return you’ll begin to create the possibility of deeper, richer, more fulfilling relationships with those you love.

Of course we should do what we can to make the most of the day we call Thanksgiving, but wouldn’t it be a shame if the only time we reflected on our blessings was that one Thursday in November? And the answer is, of course! So let’s do our best to be aware of the many great gifts that we have each and every day of the year. As we do so we will see our hearts soar and our minds will experience more and more at peace as we regularly remember and remain aware of our good fortune.

Happy Thanksgiving!

kennethg Life Thanksgiving

by Jim Rohn
(Excerpted from The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle)

Failure is not a single, cataclysmic event. We do not fail overnight. Failure is the inevitable result of an accumulation of poor thinking and poor choices. To put it more simply, failure is nothing more than a few errors in judgment repeated every day.

Now why would someone make an error in judgment and then be so foolish as to repeat it every day? The answer is because he or she does not think that it matters.

On their own, our daily acts do not seem that important. A minor oversight, a poor decision, or a wasted hour generally doesn’t result in an instant and measurable impact. More often than not, we escape from any immediate consequences of our deeds.

If we have not bothered to read a single book in the past ninety days, this lack of discipline does not seem to have any immediate impact on our lives. And since nothing drastic happened to us after the first ninety days, we repeat this error in judgment for another ninety days, and on and on it goes. Why? Because it doesn’t seem to matter. And herein lies the great danger. Far worse than not reading the books is not even realizing that it matters!

Those who eat too many of the wrong foods are contributing to a future health problem, but the joy of the moment overshadows the consequence of the future. It does not seem to matter. Those who smoke too much or drink too much go on making these poor choices year after year after year… because it doesn’t seem to matter. But the pain and regret of these errors in judgment have only been delayed for a future time. Consequences are seldom instant; instead, they accumulate until the inevitable day of reckoning finally arrives and the price must be paid for our poor choices—choices that didn’t seem to matter.

Failure’s most dangerous attribute is its subtlety. In the short term those little errors don’t seem to make any difference. We do not seem to be failing. In fact, sometimes these accumulated errors in judgment occur throughout a period of great joy and prosperity in our lives. Since nothing terrible happens to us, since there are no instant consequences to capture our attention, we simply drift from one day to the next, repeating the errors, thinking the wrong thoughts, listening to the wrong voices and making the wrong choices. The sky did not fall in on us yesterday; therefore the act was probably harmless. Since it seemed to have no measurable consequence, it is probably safe to repeat.

But we must become better educated than that!

If at the end of the day when we made our first error in judgment the sky had fallen in on us, we undoubtedly would have taken immediate steps to ensure that the act would never be repeated. Like the child who places his hand on a hot burner despite his parents’ warnings, we would have had an instantaneous experience accompanying our error in judgment.

Unfortunately, failure does not shout out its warnings as our parents once did. This is why it is imperative to refine our philosophy in order to be able to make better choices. With a powerful, personal philosophy guiding our every step, we become more aware of our errors in judgment and more aware that each error really does matter.

Now here is the great news. Just like the formula for failure, the formula for success is easy to follow: It’s a few simple disciplines practiced every day.

Now here is an interesting question worth pondering: How can we change the errors in the formula for failure into the disciplines required in the formula for success? The answer is by making the future an important part of our current philosophy.

Both success and failure involve future consequences, namely the inevitable rewards or unavoidable regrets resulting from past activities. If this is true, why don’t more people take time to ponder the future? The answer is simple: They are so caught up in the current moment that it doesn’t seem to matter. The problems and the rewards of today are so absorbing to some human beings that they never pause long enough to think about tomorrow.

But what if we did develop a new discipline to take just a few minutes every day to look a little further down the road? We would then be able to foresee the impending consequences of our current conduct. Armed with that valuable information, we would be able to take the necessary action to change our errors into new success-oriented disciplines. In other words, by disciplining ourselves to see the future in advance, we would be able to change our thinking, amend our errors and develop new habits to replace the old.

One of the exciting things about the formula for success—a few simple disciplines practiced every day—is that the results are almost immediate. As we voluntarily change daily errors into daily disciplines, we experience positive results in a very short period of time. When we change our diet, our health improves noticeably in just a few weeks. When we start exercising, we feel a new vitality almost immediately. When we begin reading, we experience a growing awareness and a new level of self-confidence. Whatever new discipline we begin to practice daily will produce exciting results that will drive us to become even better at developing new disciplines.

The real magic of new disciplines is that they will cause us to amend our thinking. If we were to start today to read the books, keep a journal, attend the classes, listen more and observe more, then today would be the first day of a new life leading to a better future. If we were to start today to try harder, and in every way make a conscious and consistent effort to change subtle and deadly errors into constructive and rewarding disciplines, we would never again settle for a life of existence, once we had tasted the fruits of a life of substance!

kennethg self improvement, success failure, jim rohn, success