Change...

This week has been "interesting" - especially with my clients - seems everyone has a new goal in mind... This can be a very good and productive thing but sometimes we need to gain insite and motivation from those who walked before us.

"You can't change your life or your business this year with the same mindset, habits and ideas that you had last year. " Stop doing what took you to the level you're at, and start doing the things that will take you to the next level"--James Malinchak

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”--Maria Robinson

The same thinking that has led you to where you are is not going to lead you to where you want to go"--Albert Einstein"

Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek".--Barack Obama

Just a few thoughts, til next time....

Amgen Tour Of California-stage 4 Snow Footage

People ask me what it is like to work the aTOC - figured I'd give you a different view - it snowed the day before the stage was too start - they actually had staff on the hill the night before plowing some parts of the road - by the time the athletes got their it was in th 50's speeds down the mountains topped out at 58 mph!

Is it time to value growth???

Here's a hypothetical for you...

What would happen if we realize and understood that in order to be happy, we made a conscious decision to value growth?

It would require us to change our mindset and see life as a giant experiment in learning, and no matter what befalls us, we would have to ask ourselves what kind of growth is being called for.

It seems to me that if we were to value emotional and spiritual growth, life's ups and downs have would have more meaning; instead of bemoaning our fate, we could use every opportunity to become more of who we were meant to be.

For you, that might mean becoming more assertive; for me, trusting more. But for both of us, whatever hardship we're facing can become an occasion for growth.

Can you look at your life and see if you are being called on to stretch beyond your current limits? And more importantly can you see the challenge as a chance for growth?

Til next time....

Jeeze... It's been a great day here in the Midwest, at last look the red line in my thermometer was just under 60 degrees. Not bad for a February in Chicago - plus there is a southwestern warm(ish)breeze. The thirty plus days of snow cover is almost a slushy grey memory and the lines to my neighborhood car wash is over a block long....life IS good.

But alas I made an error and turned on one of the cable network newscasts.. argh.... If you listen to the talking heads on the flat screen, one might be tempted to just hide under the covers and not venture out until mid summer. There is no question that things are uncertain about today's economy, but so much of it is out of our control and I see so many people walking around scared and not smiling instead of taking a deep breath and enjoying the day.

I heard a phrase the other day "living in the lake of lack" It was in reference to folks who are so afraid of what might be that they stop living... they start hording - they hoard their time, their money even their thoughts just in case.....

Now I'm not going to sit here and suggest that you should be foolish with your time, energy, ideas and or money, but to live like the other shoe is about to drop squarely on your head doesn't seem to be that wise choice either.

So I am going to tempt fate - I am going to change my mindset - as a matter a fact I've been implementing the principles I've out lined below for the last year or so - and sure enough it seems to work. It's changed how I look at life - So, if you are feeling the pressures of the day I suggest you try one, two, all or any combination of these and see if your life goes in the direction you want it to go. I know it these principles seem to work for me...maybe it will help you too.

Are you short on time?

If that’s the case, give away some of your time. Take time to give to others. You don’t have to dedicate 90% of your day to serving others - that’s not what I’m saying. Just find that balance between giving and receiving. Find an organization or a person that you really love and volunteer some of your time. Give your time away.

Don’t feel loved?

You’ve got to give some before you get some. Give away some hugs. Go out right now and give 5 people you know a big hug. I guarantee right after you do this, you’ll feel great. You’ll feel like a million bucks! Why? Because you feel loved. And you can only feel loved when you give that love to others. Go out right now and hug 5 people! Besides, people will think you are crazy and sometimes that IS fun!

Short on Cash?

Give some away. Yes, you heard me right. I’m not saying you should sell the farm, far from it. But you may consider giving money to a charity, giving money to a friend who needs it, or even giving money to a panhandler in the street. Givers gain.

Are you stuck?

Do you want to get unstuck? Help others first. Think of someone you know that is having a similar problem. And think of a way that you could help them based on what you know. Write down what you plan to do to help this person and then go out and do it. I’m telling you this works! When you help others wholeheartedly, help will always come back to you.

Lacking self-belief?

Yup, you know it. You’ve got to give it away! If you lack self-belief, then give away that belief to others. What do I mean? Find someone you know who is lacking in self-confidence or in self-belief and give them a boost. Spend some time with this person and feed their mind. Tell them how much you believe in them. Tell them how successful you see them becoming; how you always knew they could make it. Tell them how proud you are of them. Fill their mind with positive ideas. Instill belief in others and belief will come flowing abundantly to you.

Short on ideas?

This happens all the time at work and maybe why this just might be my favorite - well other than hugs of course! If you’re short on creative ideas, give them away! Give others creative ways to increase business, find a new stimulating career or improve their health. Give ideas away and ideas will flood right back to you.

With all of these tips, you have to start with where you are. You can’t give what you don’t have. But be willing to give what you got from where you are and I promise you - abundance will flow into your life and all of the sudden the world doesn't seem like such a scary place.

Til next time.... Now, I've got to go dust off my grill and stink up the neighborhood with the smell of BBQ!

Breaking Unhealthy Habits

At this time of year, people tend to be losing track of their New Years resolutions. The reason is most likely due to a person’s everyday habits. Some work well, like making sure you brush your teeth when you get up and before you go to bed. Others are not so good, like missing a meal and then binge eating later in the day.

No matter what your bad habits are, the only way to achieve true success is to make sure you break those habits permanently.

Here are some of the most common bad habits I see my clients making on a daily basis, just to name a few:
Can’t stay away from fast food
Can’t stay away from alcohol
Watch too much TV
Spend too much time on the web
Most people don’t realize the true damage they inflict upon themselves. A research study from the University of Alberta shows that while people know about the obvious bad habits, such as smoking, they don’t truly understand the problems associated with binge eating, for example.

Unfortunately, there is virtually no information being publicly announced regarding the true detriments of something like overeating. Sure cigarettes have warnings and we see commercials everyday that stress the downfall of not kicking the habit, but think about it.

Many smokers smoke because they are truly stressed out from being workaholics. In America this is considered to be an honorable trait. AND many people smoke because they think it will keep their weight in check. So they rationalize by claiming that by doing so they are adding at least a little benefit to their lifestyle.

Let’s take another thing we all know to be true but completely ignore. How many times have you heard, “I am just getting a base tan so I don’t get a sunburn.” Like we all don’t know that ANY long term exposure to the sun is bad. SO we make it sound good by saying we are preventing the ultimate poor choice of getting sunburned?!

The bottom line is that many times the rationale is socially acceptable. But that still doesn’t make it right.

So, WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO?

Many times adding a positive change will truly take care of ridding yourself from the negative. For example, if you cut down on TV… you probably will cut down on snacking. If you start a running program, then if you smoke, you will probably quit or at least cut down. They simply go hand in hand, right?

The bottom line is that you need to recognize what the bad habit is that is causing you to not succeed. Now pick something that will replace the bad habit or at least make the bad habit more
challenging to be appeased.

Then and only then can you eliminate the things that sabotage you. When that happens… the skies the limit!

Til next time....