Getting better and better

Just been reading a great book for the second or third time.

This is an excellent book that was written early last century. Yet the concepts have timeless principles  that echo through for us today.
I heard of someone today who recently got a finance loan and they thought that they were onto a winner as they now had extra cash to spend. 
They are in fact just spiraling into a trap.  
If you want to be better off that where you are right now, then take the ideas from this book.

Seven Cures for a Lean Purse

1. Start thy purse to fattening 2. Control thy expenditure 3. Make thy gold multiply 4. Guard thy treasures from loss 5. Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment 6. Insure a future income 7. Increase thy ability to earn

The Seven Ways of Filling Your Bag

1. Start filling your bag From every 10 coins you earn, spend only nine of them. You will see how your bag starts filling quickly. You will see that you can arreange anyway with this income and you will be earning money quickly.

2. Control your expenses What we call obligatory expenses grow in proportion of our income, if we don´t do something to avoid this. Don´t confuse your desire with your needs.

3. Make your gold fructify Make your gold work for you, then its sons and the sons of this sons. Investing your gold: Loans, oportunities. Gold multiplies fast.

4. Protect your gold from any lost If you have got gold, you will be tempted to invest in any atracctive proyect. Asure your capital. Its not true romantics make a fast fortune. Ask the wise people about what they know.

5. Make your property a rental investment If you can eat grapes from your vineyard and have a nice house its inspires you to finish your duties.

6. Asure future incomes Foresee some incomes for your old age and your family. For this porpuse you can buy lands and houses.

7. Increase your hability to adquire goods More knowledge we have, more money we earn.

The Five Laws of Gold

1.Gold comes easy and in greater cuantites to the man who safes the tenth part of his income for his future and family.

2.Gold works with speed and diligence for the wise owner that finds for it a productive use.

3.Gold mantains itself under the protection of prudent persons who invests with the counsils of wise people.

4.Gold scapes from people who invest without a pourpose in places that are not familiar.

5.Gold runs away from people who force gold to imposible profits and follows the seductive counsils of impostors.

It is alot better to take one step towards what you want each day.

www.fraserstirling.co.nz

Igniting lives on fire

KEEP GOING

OVER RECENT DAYS I HAVE STRUGGLED TO KEEP GOING...


But thankfully I read, and something I read reminded me of:
The going is always hard on the road to greatness. If success were easy, everyone would achieve it. 


NFL All-Pro lineman Brian Holloway recalled that when he was playing for the New England Patriots and the Los Angeles Raiders, there wasn’t a single day when he didn’t feel like giving up because the road was too tough and the sacrifices were too great. 


He didn’t quit, of course; he was willing to pay the price because he was determined to succeed. True thoroughbreds never quit. Competition only spurs them, and obstacles merely reinforce their determination to succeed. If you have not yet achieved greatness in your life, it is because you have been willing to settle for less. You may not cross the finish line first every time you try, but if you stay in the race, you will eventually prevail. 
At the moment I am reminding myself of the importance of keeping the momentum going.


Anyone can quit when the going is hard, but a thoroughbred never quits until he wins.


www.fraserstirling.co.nz

HOW TO MAKE IT COUNT!!

It is amazing how many times I have experienced success...only because I kept on going. Most failures could have been converted into successes if someone had held on another minute or made more effort. When you have the potential for success within you, adversity and temporary defeat only help you prepare to reach great heights of success. Without adversity, you would never develop the qualities of reliability, loyalty, humility, and perseverance that are so essential to enduring success. Many people have escaped the jaws of defeat and achieved great victories because they would not allow themselves to fail. When your escape routes are all closed, you will be surprised how quickly you will find the path to success.  Keep going. Igniting lives on Fire www.fraserstirling.co.nz

WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I MUCK UP?

The other day I spoke about making mistakes. While making a mistake isn't bad, repeating the same one over and over is. We must learn from the things we do. Your failure may prove to be an asset, provided you know why you failed. There are a few occasions during our brief time on earth when most of us experience great flashes of insight, great moments of truth that forever change the course of our lives. Most of those experiences result from spectacular failures, not from outstanding successes. It is from the failures that so tested and dismayed us that we learn the most lasting lessons. When you are the unwilling recipient of a great moment of truth, extract the useful lessons and then put the entire episode behind you. Learn from your failures, forget about them, and move on to better things. Take time today to think over what you have done throughout he day. SAsk yourself what worked and what could I have done better. Igniting the fire within. www.fraserstirling.co.nz

Develop A Prosperity Consciousness!!!

For a long long time I have heard people comment about how they are stuck in a rut and ask me why they are in the place they are now. If they were to take note of the words they were using they would have answered their own concerns. They were creating their own state of feeling stuck and or feeling of helplessness due to the things they were thinking and or saying. The starting point of all riches is the development of a prosperity consciousness. You must become a financial success in your thinking long before you achieve it in your reality. Both poverty and riches are the result of a state of mind, and the most important single step you ever take on the road to wealth and financial independence is the decision to change your thinking, to impress into your mind an unshakable belief that you can and will achieve your financial goals. This must happen before anything else happens. When I was growing up, I was fascinated by stories of successful men and women and how they made and lost their fortunes, and then made them over again. I read about the importance of a prosperity consciousness in the book, Think And Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill, several times. But I never fully understood what it meant until a few years ago. Then it hit me and I've never been quite the same since. Every aspect of my life has improved dramatically, especially in the area of accumulating my desires, since I finally understood what is meant by a prosperity consciousness. Remember the first step is to identify your own passion and make progress towards what is important to you. Ignite the fire within. www.fraserstirling.co.nz

FINDING YOUR PASSION

In my time studying leadership and evaluating effective leaders, I have stumbled across a leadership shortcoming that amazes me. Leaders will manage a team, work with the same individuals every day, yet hardly know anything about their people! These leaders have never prioritized acquainting themselves with the dreams, thoughts, hopes, opinions, and values of those they lead. How powerful it is to know what makes our fellow workers tick. The best leaders are readers of people. They have the intuitive ability to understand others by discerning how they feel and recognizing what they sense. I have found that leaders overestimate the amount of time and effort needed to get to know someone. In fact, in only one hour with you in private conversation, I could, probably by asking three questions, find the passion of your life: What do you dream about? A person’s dreams are powerful revealers of passion. When a person starts to talk about their dreams, it’s as if something bubbles up from within. Their eyes brighten, their face glows, and you can feel the excitement in their words. What do you cry about? Passion can be uncovered by peering into the hurts deep inside a human soul. The experience of pain or loss can be a formidably motivating force. When listening to a story of grief, you hear a voice thick with emotion, you see watery eyes flooded with feeling, and in that moment you glimpse the intense connections between a person’s deepest pain and their greatest passion. What makes you happy? I have fun hearing what makes people tick and seeing the smile that comes when they talk about where they find joy. Enjoyment is an incredible energizer to the human spirit. When a person operates in an area of pleasure, they are apt to be brimming with life and exuding passion. If you can uncover a person’s dreams, hurts, and joys, you’ve discovered the central dimensions of their life. Igniting the fire within www.fraserstirling.co.nz

The Key to Long-Term Success

I was at a children's sporting tournament today and as I was watching people strive to win their games I got thinking.  I was wondering what the children, parents, teachers and coaches thought success was.  If I were to ask them individually, I may have ended up with 100+ different answers. This got me thinking about what do successful people do?  This is the best place to start.  No matter what we want, if we copy people who have achieved what we want, then we are more than likely going to experience similar success. 
Successful people have been studied in depth for more than 100 years. They have been interviewed extensively to determine what it is they do and how they think that enables them to accomplish so much more than the average person.  So today I am sharing some ideas about what some research showed as key aspects to being successful.  

The Harvard Discovery on SuccessIn 1970, sociologist Dr. Edward Banfield of Harvard University wrote a book entitled The Unheavenly City. He described one of the most profound studies on success and priority setting ever conducted. Banfield's goal was to find out how and why some people became financially independent during the course of their working lifetimes. He started off convinced that the answer to this question would be found in factors such as family background, education, intelligence, influential contacts, or some other concrete factor. What he finally discovered was that the major reason for success in life was a particular attitude of mind.


Develop Long Time PerspectiveBanfield called this attitude "long time perspective." He said that men and women who were the most successful in life and the most likely to move up economically were those who took the future into consideration with every decision they made in the present. He found that the longer the period of time a person took into consideration while planning and acting, the more likely it was that he would achieve greatly during his career. For example, one of the reasons your family doctor is among the most respected people in America is because he or she has invested many years of hard work and study to finally earn the right to practice medicine. After university courses, internship, residency and practical training, a doctor may be more than 30 years old before he or she is capable of earning a good living. But from that point onward, these men and women are some of the most respected and most successful professional people in any society. They had long time perspectives.
Measure the Potential Future ImpactThe key to success in setting priorities is having a long time perspective. You can tell how important something is today by measuring its potential future impact on your life. For example, if you come home from work at night and choose to play with your children or spend time with your spouse, rather than watch TV or read the paper, you have a long time perspective. You know that investing time in the health and happiness of your children and your spouse is a very valuable, high-priority use of time. The potential future impact of quality time with your family is very high. If you take additional courses in the evening to upgrade your skills and make yourself more valuable to your employer, you're acting with a long time perspective. Learning something practical and useful can have a long-term effect on your career.
Practice Delayed GratificationEconomists say that the inability to delay gratification-that is, the natural tendency of individuals to spend everything they earn plus a little bit more, and the mind-set of doing what is fun, easy and enjoyable-is the primary cause of economic and personal failure in life. On the other hand, disciplining yourself to do what you know is right and important, although difficult, is the highroad to pride, self-esteem and personal satisfaction.
The long term comes soon enough, and every sacrifice that you make today will be rewarded with compound interest in the great future that lies ahead for you.



Would these things have been answered by the children playing today?  I doubt it.  However the core principles could be used by these children to become better at the sports they played today.


For me, I define success as making progress towards a worthy ideal. 


Take steps towards your ideal life today.


www.fraserstirling.co.nz 

CREATE WHAT YOU SEE IN YOUR MIND.

The more clients I see the more I see that humans are very predictable. The same as in the classroom where i have worked as a teacher for a number of years.   

Have you ever wondered how children can sit through replays of their favorite Lion King or Little Mermaid video? It amazes me that they’ll watch the same show every day without a single complaint or request for something new.

What’s more amazing, though, is that adults do the very same thing with their days. The majority of men and women play “movies” in their heads, day after day, relentlessly focusing on past events, most of which are unpleasant and disturbing experiences. If they’re actually able to stop their contemplation of past events, then they allow impressions of their current surroundings and recent results to govern their thoughts.

If they contemplate the future it is usually by worrying about it, or wishing that something better might come along. Then they wonder why bad things keep happening to them, or why they never rise above the issues and obstacles in their lives.

While it is true that people are free to think anything they please, as long as they remain set in their ways, there is very little that can be done to change the unpleasant experiences that keep cropping up in their lives.

Recently, the study of the mind, and its veritable unearthly power, is at last taking its proper place in modern civilization. Proper use of the mind and its various faculties will give you anything you choose – but the emphasis here is on the word “proper.” To move in this direction requires study and focused, consistent effort with a good measure of creativity stirred in.

Just as the oak tree develops from the gene that lies within the acorn and a bird develops from the gene that lies asleep in the egg, so too will your achievements grow from the organized plans that first begin with your imagination. An image in your mind is the first stage of the creative process in life. From your imagination your visions and plans arise.

In his best selling book, Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill wrote, “You will never have a definite purpose in life; you will never have self confidence; you will never have initiative and leadership unless you first create these qualities in your imagination and see yourself in possession of them.” He went on to say, “… imagination is the most marvelous, miraculous, inconceivably powerful force the world has ever known.”

There is a concept called “Fantasy – Theory – Fact.” The premise underlying this concept is that everything has its origination in the form of Fantasy, which some adventurous souls dare turn into a theory and then boldly turn into fact. Give this serious thought for a moment. The idea of moon landings, communicating by email, traveling on jets, cellular phones or wearing synthetic garments was, a very short time ago, sheer fantasy. Today, they are considered commonplace.

Your marvelous mind has factors that you can, with little effort, develop to use to improve the quality of life, not just for yourself, but for human kind. Imagination is one of those creative faculties. The individuals who were responsible for the conception and creation of the email, cell phones and any of the thousands of modern conveniences we enjoy today had a highly developed imagination.

Furthermore, they were not easily influenced by the opinions of the masses, the naysayers who historically have criticized and ridiculed anything they do not understand. These pioneers used their mental faculties to fantasize, to build wild and wonderful pictures in their mind. Then, holding their thought with their will, they watched their fantasy unfold into a theory and then into fact. They seemed to have an innate awareness that if they could visualize it, they could do it.

Use this power to let your mind play. Fantasize a much better life than you presently enjoy. Draft your future with imagination, ponder and calculate with intelligence and awareness, then knit it with care. Next, devise paths and find tools to help get you there.

Commit to reach new goals. The only barrier separating you from your goal is ignorance – ignorance of how simple, and simply powerful, your mind really is.

Choose something and make steps toward it.

Igniting the fire within. 

www.fraserstirling.co.nz

Tips that keep you one step ahead of procrastination.

Someone asked me today, how do I keep focused on one thing at a time.  As I thought about this, I was reminded of the procrastination.
It takes deliberate strategies to avoid becoming our own worst enemy by procrastinating on our intended actions. Here are some tips, that will keep you one step ahead of procrastination. 

1) Time travel: How to counteract the irrationality of human nature.

We discount future rewards as less important than a task at hand, particularly if it's a more pleasant activity, and we really aren't very good at predicting how we'll feel in the future.

"Time travel" can help here. That is, we need to use concrete mental images of the future more often and more accurately, to represent the future as though it were happening in the present. For example, a person who is procrastinating on saving for retirement might imagine as vividly as possible living on his or her potential retirement savings. To make a future image like this more concrete and accurate, it may be important to set out some numbers for a budget and take into account the reality of the need for and increasing expense of health care in old age. Planning shouldn't be an abstract notion of "doing it tomorrow." Think about the task in the real context of the day, and think carefully about how these tasks make you feel. This strategy will help you prepare for tip #2. If you are unsure, then imaging what the finished product will be like.  What emotions will you be feeling?  


2) Don't give in to feeling good: Short-term gain v long-term pain. When self-regulation fails, it's often because short-term emotional repair takes precedence over our long-term goals. For example, a task at hand makes us feel anxious or overwhelmed, so we "give in to feel good," seeking immediate emotional relief, and we walk away, leaving the task for tomorrow. Here's where emotional intelligence is so important to procrastinating less. Learn to recognize that we can have negative emotions without acting on them. Stay put for a minute—don't walk away. Don't give in to "I'll feel more like it tomorrow." Acknowledge the negative emotions, but get started anyway. Progress on a goal provides the motivation for another step forward. Just get started; the negative emotions will pass. 


3) Reduce uncertainty and distractions. Planning is one thing; action is another. In fact, what can make a task aversive to us when we're simply making an intention or planning is how meaningful a goal is. The less meaningful the goal, the less likely we'll want to do the task. However, when it's time to act, aversive tasks—those we're most likely to procrastinate on—are those for which we're uncertain how to proceed. We're most likely to procrastinate on tasks that lack structure. This means that in addition to making your task concrete (see tip #1), it's important to reduce the uncertainty about how to proceed—and, when it's time to act, to reduce available distractions as well. Shut off your e-mail, isolate yourself as much as you can, and make sure the environment around you is working to strengthen your willpower and focus, not to undermine your efforts. Speaking of willpower… 


4) Willpower: How to make the most of the willpower muscle. A great deal of recent research clearly indicates that willpower is like a muscle. You can exhaust it more quickly than you might imagine and, when you do, you lose your ability to self-regulate your behavior. One immediate method to strengthen your resolve in order to keep you on task is to remind yourself of your values. This process of self-affirmation bolsters our flagging reserves of willpower. Another self-regulatory boost can come from mindfulness meditation. Attention is the first step in self-regulation, so learning to keep focused attention will help you procrastinate less by strengthening self-regulation.


Take action today.


Igniting Lives on Fire


www.fraserstirling.co.nz 

WHERE TO FIND OPPORTUNITIES.

The dictionary says that opportunity is a “fit or convenient time; a time favorable for the purpose; suitable time combined with other favorable circumstances.” 

For generations, success gurus have been saying that opportunity lies in the person and not in the job.  That’s validated by the fact that legal immigrants, regardless of where they come from, are four times as likely to become millionaires as are those people who are born in America, despite the fact that they frequently start with minimum-wage jobs, sub-standard housing and often do not speak English.  One of the major reasons for the immigrants’ success, generally speaking, is that they regard America as the land of opportunity, so they arrive with great expectations and immediately go to work to make the American Dream a reality.  Its just like people move away from a location expecting their problems will be left behind, only to find they have followed them.  

Lord Stanley said that “opportunity, sooner or later, comes to all who work and wish.”  I would add the word “expect” to the end of Stanley’s statement.  That means that we keep our eyes open and our minds working to take advantage of those opportunities which come our way.  One interesting observation is that opportunity frequently comes dressed in work clothes and there are far too many people who turn it down because of the costume it wears. I like a definition of the word success that I came across a while ago.  Someone defined it as opportunity.  The ability to not only notice but act on the things around them.  

John B. Gough said, “If you want to succeed in the world, you must make your own opportunities as you go.  The man who waits for some seventh wave to toss him on dry land will find that the seventh wave is a long time arriving.  You can commit no greater mistake than to sit by the roadside until someone comes along and invites you to ride with him to wealth or influence.”  How true it is!  Think about it – take advantage of the countless opportunities which surround each of us, and ignite the fire within.

www.fraserstirling.co.nz 

HELP I AM GETTING SNOWED UNDER

A common issue with my clients is how busy they are and they feel snowed under.  However a few simple tips can help keep order and help us keep organised. 

Do you ever feel defeated before you even get started? Do you have a million reasons (read: excuses!) why you can't get organized? Believe me, we have all been where you are. We've all used the same excuses to avoid getting things organized. For every excuse we can find to use, there is a solution.

So, if you are motivated to get organized, join along with us as we resolve our excuses and get organised.

1. There's just too much stuff!

Get rid of the stuff! I know we sound like a broken record when we say this, but it just illustrates the need to reduce the 'stuff'. If there is just too much stuff, it's time to remove some, whether you donate it, hold a garage sale, advertise on Trade Me or Craigslist, SELLA or just trash it-- bottom line, get rid of the stuff! Don't wait for a better day. Make the space today. 

2. I don't know where to start.

No matter what, you have to just pick a place and start. It isn't going to get any better until you do. It helps to know what needs to be done. To accomplish this, you need to make a master list. It isn't a hard thing to do, it's just a list of every single thing you want to do in your home, including decorating, remodeling and so forth. You can do a whole house Master List, or you can do a room by room Master List. Once you have completed your initial list, move one or two items from it to your daily or weekly to-do list. Don't try to do more than one or two items weekly, it will get too overwhelming.  This is a key to ensure you stay focused. 

3. I just don't have time.

No one has every single second of every single day scheduled. No matter how busy we are, we all can find five, ten or even fifteen minutes in which we can get things done. It doesn't sound like much time, but you will be amazed at how much you can get accomplished in just a few minutes a day.  Try planning your day ahead of time.  The week you can plan on a Sunday night and then each day look ahead and plan the day before it happens. 

4. I want to get it all done now.

In all likelihood, your home did not get in this condition over night. No matter what, you aren't going to be able to change things overnight, or in one marathon session. It is highly likely you would only get discouraged and give up. So, schedule time into your day, just as you would any other important appointment, to work for that amount of time, whatever your task may be. Slowly, little by little, you will see changes.  Darren Hardy comments that he spends 90 minute sections of time on key aspects. I find this tip very useful.  Think of the classroom day.  How long is a session in the classroom? 

5. I don't know how to go about getting organised.

You may like to book a time with me to help you de clutter or otherwise visit sites like http://www.getorganizednow.com/

6. My spouse won't toss anything.

So, don't worry about your spouse's belongings. You can't expect to jump in cold and change your spouse's ways.

If you are unable to convince your spouse to donate or sell his/her things, then just work on your things. Then negotiate with your spouse to declutter family things, or jointly owned things. Otherwise, just focus on decluttering and organizing your own items. Eventually your spouse may be inspired to join you in decluttering and organizing. Once your spouse sees how nice things look, and how easy they are to find, he/she will be more likely to team up in your quest to declutter and organize.

7. I get it organized, but it doesn't stay that way.

And it won't...unless you put routines in place to help you maintain it. Just like your home doesn't stay clean once you clean it (wouldn't we all love that!), you need routine upkeep to keep things organized. A) Start cleaning up after you do anything. If you make a sandwich, clean up so that after you eat your sandwich, no one knows you've made one. B) Pick it up and put it away. If you see something out of place, pick it up and put it away. Just practicing these two routines each day will go a long way towards keeping things cleaned up and organised.

8. My children undo, whatever I do.

No matter what age your children are, they can and should have responsibilities around the home. Hold a family meeting and discuss all of the things that need to be done to keep your home running smoothly. Let your children choose which age-appropriate chores to do. If they choose them, they are more likely to complete them. Let them know too that they can re-negotiate which chores they'd prefer at the next meeting.

Hold regular family meetings, twice a month or even once a month. Every family member needs to be a cooperating family member. Remember, you are the parent, you are in charge. Be their parent, not their friend. Teach them what they need to know to be a functioning, responsible adult.

9. But, I might need it someday.

Every one of us has felt that way. The reality is that almost everything you do toss won't be missed at all. In all likelihood, you won't even remember what you've tossed. When a friend's grandfather died and things had to be cleaned out, it was amazing to see all the stuff he hung onto, just because he might need it someday. The list was very long and included things like bent, rusty nails, because someone might need them! If you do need it someday, in all likelihood, you can purchase it at a rummage sale, rent it or borrow it.

10. I don't know what I should get rid of.

There is an easy way to know what should stay and what should go. When trying to decide if an item should stay or go, ask yourself two questions. 1. Do I love it? 2. Do I use it? If the answer to both of these questions isn't yes -- donate, sell, recycle or trash it. If you don't love it and use it, it shouldn't be taking up space in your home. And that includes gifts that you're keeping out of guilt. If it's something you are keeping for sentimental reasons that you just can't bear to part with, box it up and put the current date on the box, nothing more.


Make the step to becoming what you want and how you want it. 
Make a commitment to getting rid of something that is hindering you today....


www.fraserstirling.co.nz

How do I get out of this mess?

Have you been feeling like you are stuck in a rut and have been looking at reasons why you are where you are?
Don’t ask your employer why you are not promoted. Ask the person who really knows best — yourself
There is only one person who is in charge of your career progression, and that person is you.
Lee Iacocca is said to have written his entire career plan on the back of a business card. On it were the promotions he expected to earn and the dates he expected to receive them -- until he was named CEO of the company. Successful people know that they must create their own opportunities and be ready for them when they arrive.
Some organizations have clearly defined career paths while others are more informal in their approach, but if you study the senior people in the company, you can quickly identify the kind of education and experience you need to advance. If you are with the right company, one that excites and enthuses you, identify the career moves you’d like to make and get to work making yourself qualified for the job you want.
Take stock of where you are now and identify what the next step for you this week will be. The boss isn't going to give you a pay increase if you haven't become more valuable to him. What will you do today, this week that will move you one step closer?

Igniting lives on Fire

www.fraserstirling.co.nz

Do I have to???

I wish personal growth would just happen! I wish I would just get better and money would fall out of the sky. I wish my waist would get smaller even as I sit on the couch in front of a warm fire eating Breyer’s Vanilla Bean ice cream. Oh, how I wish it was easy!

Okay, enough whining, enough dreaming, enough lack of reality. I have it out of my system! The reality is that it is work to grow personally. The sooner we realize that, even lovingly embrace that, the sooner we jump on the highway of success! The fact is that we “have to” do some things!

In order to attain your goals and desires you have to...

You have to know what it is that you want.
Wanting personal growth isn’t enough. Do you want more money? How much? Do you want to lose weight? How much? Do you want a spouse? Who? Do you want to travel? Where? Do you want more freedom in your professional life? What would that look like? Clearly define in your mind what it is that you want! Once you do…

You have to decide that you really want it.
Do you really want it? That is the place to start, really, because I have realized working with people that many of them really don’t want what they think they want once I talk them through all of the issues. Is this what you really want or is it a dream you have to escape something else? For example, do you really want to quit your job and start your own company? Do you want the risk to reputation? The risk of capital loss? Do you want to work from six in the morning until nine at night, seven days a week for the next two to three years? Do you really want it? Yes? Proceed…

You have to be willing to sacrifice to get it.
What will you give up to get personal growth? I know what I have to give up to be able to fit into size 32 pants—mud pie! Now, you may not think that is so bad, but you don’t know how bad I love mud pie! I know that it is a sacrifice for me to get to the gym every day of the week (okay, I usually take two Sunday afternoon’s a month off). I know how much I write the check out for each month to belong to the gym—it would feed a small army. This is sacrifice, all of it. What are you willing to sacrifice to get personal growth in your life? Are you willing? Then proceed…

You have to be willing to be criticized.
Surprisingly, the average person doesn’t like the average achiever. Why? Because they make the average person feel, well, average. They resent that the achiever makes choices they don’t make, even though they could too. And they secretly resent that the achiever benefits from rewards that they don’t. It seems odd, but working with thousands of people over the years I have seen enough jealousy and envy to fill every seat in the Rose Bowl. Can you handle that to various degrees? Then see number five…

You have to decide you want it more than other pleasures.
What is more pleasurable: ice cream every night or a proper weight? What is more pleasurable: sitting on the couch or pounding away on a treadmill? What is more pleasurable: spending your money on the things you want right now or saving for later? What is more pleasurable: getting off at five every night or working endlessly on the weekends? What is more pleasurable: reading a favorite novel or a technical book? What is more pleasurable: four weeks of vacation or one? You get the point. In order to grow personally or professionally, there will have to be a desire to work hard in spite of the pleasures that call your name. And if you work it right, in the end there will be plenty of time to reward yourself with the pleasures of accomplishment. Do you want it more than other pleasures? Really? Then let’s move on…

You have to take a long-term approach.
Why do most people fail to accomplish their personal growth goals? Because they take a short-term approach. They know what to do. They do it for a week or a month, then they quit. Every January the gym gets so busy. Then February rolls around and I have no problem getting on the machines! In order to accomplish your personal growth goals, you absolutely, positively, must view it as a long-term goal. For example, when most people want to lose weight, what do they do? They change their diet until they lose it. Then what? They change it back and gain the weight back. Instead, they ought to say, I am changing the way I eat for the rest of my life and slowly but surely my weight will take care of itself. And it does! Are you capable of seeing your personal goals in the long term? Well then you are ready for number seven…

You have to diligently, methodically and relentlessly work at it.
Every day, every week, every year. The more you put into it, the more you get out of it. For 25 years Zig Ziglar has read for three hours a day! No wonder he oozes information! That is diligence. That is methodical. That is relentless! Can you do the same for yourself in the area you want to grow in? Certainly! But will you? That is the question. If you do, you will achieve any dream you set forth for yourself!
You can achieve personal growth! It is entirely possible for you to live your dreams! Put the above to work and you will see them unfold before your very eyes! Just remember, it won’t just happen to you, you “have-to” do some things!

Doing the Have Tos helps ignite the fire within.

What do you believe?

I give myself the green light to move forward, and joyously embrace the new! - Louise L. Hay

The quote by Louise reminds me of our beliefs. We live up to the thoughts which we continually hold. Our beliefs need to change before we are able to move froward. Old beliefs must be replaced before we can make headway. This is what the above quote is referring to. We have to give ourselves permission to move on. It's not enough to know what we think or believe, we need to change the though process.

For us to move on we need to address the beliefs that brought us to where we are. They can simply be beliefs that we learn from others, parents, teachers and or our social group. They hold us where we are.

What are some beliefs?

I don't have time.

No one likes me.

No one has done it before.

Food makes me fat.

When we can identify where we are (beliefs) it is important to identify where we want to be so that this gives us freedom (permission) to form new ideas. Beliefs aren't bad, we simply need to acknowledge that they hold us where we are at this moment in time.

Remember that to move on into new things/ areas we first must accept that our beliefs brought us here. In order to move you we must change the beliefs we hold.

What thoughts are you holding? Did you need to do some rewriting of your thoughts?

Remember to ignite the fire within.

Fraser

Are you feeling stuck?

Have you been feeling stuck?  Is it like you are hitting a brick wall?  Here are some ideas on how to get moving again....

1) Challenge your Self-limitations : 

The biggest culprit in destroying Dreams is our own self-sabotaging thoughts.   We need to work on these before even considering further  progress. There are a lot of ways to do this including by working on what I call your 'Golum' thoughts and creating empowering Beliefs.   Golum is the personification of the protective thoughts  that run in our heads at times and which limit our life  by putting excessive fear in risking and in trying out  new things.   Our Golum might tell us things like: 'You've failed before, what's to stop you from failing  again' or 'Don't go out of your comfort zone or you will get pain'.  Challenging these thoughts and creating new empowering  beliefs is a crucial step to trigger off your journey  towards life success.

2) Charge your Body and Language: The way we move our  body and the language we use have a powerful effect on  our feelings and emotions.   Working on particular body movements and specific words we use can create a shift in our emotional status and  motivational levels. By energizing our body movements  and using transformational words we can shift our  mental states to more empowering ones.  Action is key!!Anthony Robbins talks about the hour of power.

 3) Clarify your Principles and Values: We all need a  compass to direct our journey.   We also need to be aware of who we really are - what  innate qualities dwell within us that are just waiting to be tapped and celebrated. Clarifying your Core Values  through specific Values clarification exercises is a  vital step towards empowering you to take clear decisions without too much hesitation.   Clarifying your Values will help you to identify your  personal gifts and what direction you will choose to honor in your life.  I have several tools to help you identify your key passions if you are unsure?

 4) Connect to your Dream and Life Purpose: Clear Values  will help you to delve deeper and identify your Life  Purpose. Through exercises such as the Universal Life Secrets program you can discover the True Mission and meaning of your life as well as tap the BIG Dream you want to achieve.  Until we have a reason to live, we are merely filling a void. Start living now. What gets you up in the morning?

5) Create it in your Mind: Once you discover your Dream and Life Purpose you need to start working on Manifesting it.   The first creation is in the mind. By believing in  your Dream and doing specific visualization exercises  you will pave the way for success.You have to first see it in the mind.  I have several tools and tips to help if you need and or would like... 

6) Commit Yourself Completely: Commitment is a crucial  factor in ensuring success. You can't look over your  shoulder once you have a passionate Dream to follow.  There's no turning back when you have inspired yourself  to achieve higher standards and identified what you will no longer accept in your life. There comes a time when you will need to 'burn the bridges' and march forward with a clear sense of commitment.  No more excuses.  Make a choice.

7) Convert your passion into Action: There is no such  thing as effortless success. Don't believe anyone who  tells you that you can just sit back and attract good  luck and abundance simply by thinking yourself into it.   In order to succeed you must take massive action - right away after you take the decision to live your Dream.  If it is to be then it is up to me. Chase your dreams.

8) Continue persisting with consistency: Persistence  and perseverance is what finally births success.   It is the sheer will to continue on your chosen path,  the focus of consistently hanging on to your Dream,  watching the signs that Providence provides and immediately acting on them. 

9) Consolidate and Expand: Once your Dream starts  manifesting it's important to continue raising your  standards, expanding your boundaries and taking time  to recreate yourself. Consistently doing things that  raise your standards will ensure that you develop yourself to your peak performance.  Am I better today than I was yesterday.  This can be small gains..walk to the lamppost and back. $1 in the bank....build it bit by bit. 

10) Contribute to a Higher Cause: Achieving self mastery will prompt you to look beyond your self-fulfillment.   Your new confidence and success will attract others to  you and you will find yourself able to lead and  communicate a shared Dream. Your ability  to create a Legacy that will outlive you will be  the apex of True Life Success.  Looking back over the years I just marvel at the  amazing changes that these 10 Vital Keys have brought  into my life. 

I am also marveled each time I experience  the powerful and life changing effects that occur in  the people I coach when they start applying these keys in their life.

I love coaching people to ignite the fire within themseleves. When we stop hiding behind our excuses we then are free to light the fire for the things we want, rather than doing what others want us to say and or do.

Make the choice and ignite the fire within today.  Be so on fire for your passions that people cant stand the heat you radiate.