The Patterns of Success

Author Michael Jeffreys personally interviewed 15 top motivational gurus for his  book.  After talking to gurus from Brian Tracy to Dr. Wayne Dyer, he found a pattern. There were 8 Secrets to Success they all agreed upon.  These secrets are still good now as they were then. Here are the patterns of success:

Take 100% Responsibility for Your Life – In a society where people blame everything from their parents to the government for failure, those who don’t buy into this mentality or turn to the “victim” thinking...succeed.

To blame something or somebody outside yourself is saying they have control of your life and not you. Someone else’s opinion of you doesn’t have to become your reality.

Live Your Life On Purpose -  What separates motivational thinkers from the unsuccessful?...They believe they’re doing what they were put here to do. 

The difference between this and just living, is that the latter is just getting through the week with the least problems.  But when you live your life on purpose, your main concern is doing the job right.  For the entrepreneur this means finding a cause you believe in and building your business around it.

Be Willing to Pay the Price - Be willing to pay the price for your dreams.  

Wanting a big house, a luxury car, and a million dollars in the bank is all very nice, and everyone wants these things – but are you willing to pay the price to get them?  This is one of the major differences between the successful and unsuccessful.

Stay Focused – Every day we’re bombarded with hundreds of tasks, phone calls, messages, and everyone competing for our time.  

Focusing requires giving up something in the present because you are investing your time in something that will pay off big-time down the road.  Jack Canfield and Mark Hanson were turned by 30 publishers when they submitted the first “Chicken Soup for the Soul” book.  

Instead of giving up, they stayed focused on their goal and did four or five interviews per day for radio, TV, and newspapers, for five days a week for a whole year.  Eventually, a small publisher decided to take a chance, and of course now it’s a best-seller that spawned an entire series that have sold more than 10 million copies.

Become An Expert in Your Field - One clear pattern all successful people have in common is how seriously they take their profession.  

They strive to be the best at what they do, and do almost anything to improve. 

If someone followed you around all day with a video camera at your business, would it be a tape you’d be proud of or embarrassed about?  Make the decision today to work at being the best in your field.  

How? By finding out what the “best” in your field are doing, and do what they do.

Write Out a Plan for Achieving Your Goals -  Write out an action plan/map for how you’re going to achieve your goals.  

Trying to reach your goals without a plan is like trying to drive from Los Angeles to Chicago without a map.  A goal that isn’t written down is merely a wish or fantasy.

Never Give Up -  Never, never, never give up. When you’re fully committed to achieving your goal, giving up is not an option. 

You must be willing do whatever it takes to make it happen.  The power of perseverance is an awesome force.   

Never give up!...Keep on going like the Eveready battery bunny, and pretty soon you’re there.

Don’t Delay -  Nobody knows how much time they have left to accomplish their dreams, and we must remember that we don’t have forever. 

The clock is ticking, and sooner or later your number comes up and you’re gone.  Successful achievers know this too, but they don’t view it as a “negative”. 

Achievers use it to “spur them on”.  They go after what they want as energetically and as passionately as possible, for as long as they have.

I was asked “what do I need to do to succeed?” The answer is simple...Take Action!

Change your Mindset and Change your Results,

Richard

Create Your Own Path

FREE eBook with Quotes to Inspire you Take Action! Get this book and find the quote that falls in line with your goal. Write it down with 3 actions you can take to get this goal done. Focus and Action is the key.
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Change Your Mindset and Change Your Results.
Richard
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I Will Be Speaking At TEDx Birmingham, AL June 23rd.

Just got back from our 1st rehearsal for the upcoming June 23rd TEDx event. It is going to be AWESOME.  I will be speaking on the need to change from an "Elderly Culture to an Elder Culture."

The event starts at 6PM and there are only 40 tickets left! If you want to be there get your tickets today. Hope to see you there.Here is the link http://www.tedxbirmingham.org/#!tedxbirminghamsalon/c1knp
Rich

Why You Need a Success Mindset

I bet you have heard the phrase: "success is a state of mind."  Let’s take a few minutes to explore what this means and why this is important to you. For example...Have you ever wondered how two people can attempt the same objective in the same way and only one of them succeeds?  Is it luck?... Timing? or is it a person's mindset that determines whether they fail or succeed.

What is a mindset, anyway?  

Typically a mindset refers to your state of mind day to day. It's what you think about, focus on, and expect from your daily experiences.  Think negatively, expect the worst, feel pessimistic about your options and that's exactly what you'll seem to draw into your life.  Likewise, think positively, expect the best and focus on a successful outcome and you get it most of the time.

Makes sense, right?  But how exactly does this work?  Why is a success mindset so important?  There are many reasons but here are three big ones:

1)  A success mindset increases your confidence and self-belief.

A lack of belief in yourself usually comes along with a sense of powerlessness which is the exact opposite of a success mindset.  If you “Lack confidence” it means you see no point in trying to be successful because it won't happen anyway.  It is a limiting self belief and this type of mindset is a recipe for failure in anything that you do.

Having a true success mindset, on the other hand, means you believe in yourself and your capabilities.  You believe you can succeed at nearly anything you try, and you're willing to give it your best shot.  Even better, the more you do try, the more confidence and self-belief you build - until you're virtually unstoppable! 

2)  A success mindset strengthens your determination.

Without a success mindset, one failure is enough to convince you that pursuing your goals is a waste of time. Determination don't exist in your world.  If you don't become a huge success the first time you try, you quickly tell yourself that it simply wasn't meant to be.  This is not how life works. Unfortunately, few things worth having are obtained so easily!

A success mindset, however, strengthens your awareness that a failure is not the end of the story - it's just one more way that didn't work out the way you planned.  In fact, a true success mindset makes it obvious that the only true failure occurs when you stop trying.

3)  A success mindset encourages actions.

Have you ever found yourself going in circles because you didn't know the best way to approach a specific goal?  Perhaps you had an idea of the best course of action but you felt intimidated by some of the action steps required.  As a result, you may have kept sabotaging your efforts as you searched in vain for an easier or less frightening way to your goal.

When you have a true success mindset, you'll always know the most effective action steps that will lead directly to your goal.  As already discussed, you'll also have the inner confidence and determination to pursue them - which is a sure recipe for...you guessed it; success!

If I had to sum up how to develop a success mindset, I'd say this:  

- Go for your dreams.

- Think positively.

- Believe in yourself.

- Believe you can do better.

- Learn, grow and develop yourself.

- Be willing to take chances.

- Give it your all.

- Expect the best in every situation.

- Be willing to fail.

- When you fall down, get back up and try again.

The biggest one is…Take Action.

Change your Mindset and Change your Results.

Keep doing that and you can't help but become successful, from the inside out.

Richard

20 Steps To Get The Life You Want

I often get asked...How Do I Find Balance In My Business and Personal Life? I tell them a life that has meaning and is fulfilling can happen for you. What does it take? It takes time, self-knowledge, a plan and some hard work.

Here is the good news! The work will not be as difficult as you think. Why.... Because when you are doing what makes you happy... you feel this is what you were meant to do.

To get you started below is twenty-steps to help you to build your plan. These are the steps that will set you on your path to a life you want.

Taking the time to do this will help you reach the life you want a lot quicker than just allowing life to take you where it will.

Take a deep breath and get started.

Step 1: Find the purpose for your life.

Step 2: Develop a daily spiritual practice.

Step 3: Determine what is most important to you.

Step 4: Align your new goals around what is most important.

Step 5: Have a healthy perspective of yourself.

Step 6: Replace old beliefs that are no longer useful to you.

Step 7: Create new possibilities for your life.

Step 8: Figure out who you want to be when you grow up.

Step 9: Practice living the life you want now.

Step 10: Figure out what you are passionate about.

Step 11: Align your abilities and your interests.

Step 12: What would a perfect work day be for you?

Step 13: Write your autobiography five years from today.

Step 14: Downscale your lifestyle now to create the opportunities that you seek.

Step 15: Strengthen your relationships and support systems.

Step 16: Grow strong emotionally

Step 17: Give yourself permission to follow your heart.

Step 18: Laugh a lot and enjoy the ride

Step 19: Live with integrity as a path towards an authentic life.

Step 20: Eat well, exercise and get plenty of sleep.

O.K. I know this is a big list. Here is what you can do to take action. Circle the top 3 that call to you. Now focus only on one of the three. Next write down the answers to these question for the one step you circled.

If you were doing this...(insert the step you circled)

• What would be different?
• Who would be there with you?
• Where would you be?
• What would you be doing?

Next, write down 3 tasks that you can do today to get what you wrote down accomplished.

Once you accomplished these tasks write down three more until you are living your dream.

Here is the bottom line...you have a choice...to take action or not to take action...both are decisions but one of them has a better payoff. Which do you choose?

When You Change Your Mindset...You Change Your Results,

Rich

Use Your Mind to Increase Business Success

If your business isn't as successful as you want, the question is...what's holding you back? 

You might say it's because:

I need more capital

I need *great* employees

I don’t have time

I don’t have ... whatever...

But this is not what causes your lack of business success. These maybe reasons or even excuses - these are all part of a bigger problem ... your thoughts.

A Buddhist proverb states, "Thoughts are things. As you think, so you become." 

In other words, if you're thinking, 

"I wish I had sales like him," then...you have put yourself in the state of mind of wishing - not having. 

If you say, "I'm trying to increase sales," then...you have put yourself in the state of mind of trying - not doing. 

If you say, "I increase my sales 10% every month," then...you have put yourself in the state of mind of doing and having!

Do you see the difference? Trying and wishing are tasks that never get completed because your focus is not on achievement. It's on "trying" to achieve. When you use "I increase..."  this is in the “now” tense and has action. It's doing and having.

Changing your thought patterns must be repetitive to be effective. You just can't change your mind once and expect permanent results. Here is what you can do to make “changes” that will last.

Napoleon Hill discovered a common pattern among the most successful people. To be a success at anything in this world, you need...desire, belief and action. 

If you lack the desire or the belief...no worries. Napoleon Hill discovered these attributes can be learned through what he called “Auto Suggestion” this became what we call today “Affirmations.”

Affirmations are very effective and you must be careful which words you choose. These words are literally giving yourself new thoughts to run your life. 

Affirmations need to be written as a positive, present-tense, action-oriented statement. For example, if you're writing for self-confidence, you might state: "I take action everyday.  Napoleon Hill suggests you read your affirmations aloud once in the morning and once at night until you feel, believe and live your affirmations. The down side is most people get bored and quit before they experience any real results. 

Here is a way to make affirmations work for you. In fact,...Affirmations will not work without ACTION. This is the second half and most people miss it. When you write down your affirmation also write the action you will take.

Success is the way you think about things and the words you choose. Dr. Wayne Dyer says, "When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change." This means you have to alter your perceptions, thoughts and words. If done correctly, the results will be business success. 

Change your Mindset and Change your Result,

Rich

Strategies that Help Improve your Professional and Personal Life

Setting up strategies to improve your professional and personal life is only one step to achieve your goals. You have to create plans, goals and take the steps to follow through. Once you have your details gathered, you can start to set up strategies. 

How to plan long-term strategies: 

Strategies are approaches we take to reach our plans. Our line of attack determines what comes of these plans and goals. When you create long-term goals, you have to provide descriptions, which leads up to using strategies to achieve. 

You also have to state what goals you intend to achieve when you create your plans and set the strategies to achieve them. Keep in mind that goals are changes you are willing to make to accomplish something. 

The goals should be translated so that it develops into a real action. When you take action, you are working toward the next step to recall your measurements, values, and the difference between each. This helps you to stay in accord with your goals and plans. 

Sometimes you have to work backwards to accomplish your goals. Sometimes you have to step back to view your goals, making sure that your strategies are working in accord with your actions. 

When you see that your actions are not working, this is when you want to step back and say, I need to make changes. You will change your strategies to work in harmony with your goals. 

You should already have your plans written down on paper. If you haven’t started now is the time to write your plans. 

Once you have your plans down you can boost your energies so that you have the willingness to act out on your plans. If your plan is lacking in some areas, do not worry. Take it one step at a time and act on the plans you have written down. You can add to your plans later. 

How to start planning: 

If you haven’t started the process of planning, speak to yourself. Just start talking about what you want to accomplish in your life. Once you begin, speaking you will develop new ideas, which you can write down on paper. 

During your self-talk arrangement, be sure to take notes. Remembering specific details is a way to recall what you want to do. Some of us fail to take notes, which information drifts away. Instead write your plans down on paper. 

How to write long-term goals: 

You want to write you long-term goals focusing on your short-term goals first. Your short-term goals should work in harmony with your long-term goals. You can write a daily schedule that builds up to our plans and goals. For instances, this week on Monday through Sunday I intend to do: Write down each day what you intend to accomplish on your calendar or schedule. 

In your plan or calendar note the things, you intend to make essential first. 

Then work toward taking down your tasks. For instance, on Tuesday start working through the large jobs first and break down to the simple tasks as you move along. On the third day, write yourself an intention declaration. Use 3x5 note cards to tell you what you intend to do. Once you finish, your duties offer yourself a reward each time you accomplish your intentions. The other gift is you begin to see the stack of cards move from the plan side to the done stack.

Next tell your friends and family what you intend to do for your future. Ask your friends and family if they can give you a hand from time to time when they see you failing. Tell your friends and family to offer you a pat on the back, or some reward for each time you accomplish your plans and goals. 

Take action and start your planning your success!

Be the Difference,

Rich