Tag: goals

WHAT YOU LOOK LIKE

With New Year’s resolutions starting to fall off, this post comes at just the right time. No matter how lofty our goals, we will not look like anything like them if our habits and effort do not match them. Think of the person who has the goal of getting in shape every New Year. If they do not match that with consistent effort and hard work, they will pretty much look the same as last year. If your goal is to be in a better place financially, but you have a habit of buying every new phone as soon as it hits the market, you will look more like the person chasing instant gratification than someone concerned about their fiscal well-being.

That is why in my upcoming fourth book we focus on setting up rituals to form a daily structure. This will go a lot further to success than even setting goals. I recommend you do both, but setting up a daily habit you engage in will be key. Even starting with something small will gain you momentum. Once it becomes a mindless part of your daily routine, you will be well on your way to success. At first, understand new habits will be difficult. The brain does not like to change its way of operating. Stick with it as Earl Nightingale used to say. Once your mind adapts to this new habit, you will be on your way to success.

There are ways to help put this on autopilot. Let us say your goal is to start the day with a better attitude and outlook. Placing inspirational quotes on the bathroom mirror, or empowering affirmations to repeat to yourself, would be a good idea. I have a daily inspirational calendar by my coffee maker. I love starting the day with both. It takes me a while to remember to read each page. Especially at 4am when I wake up. Once in the habit though, it is something I now look forward to! How about you? Can you think of some simple habit you can do daily to gain momentum and set yourself up for success?

HOW TO GET ANYTHING YOU WANT!

The title of this sounds a bit too grand to be true. I thought so at first as well. The plan to achieve anything you want was brought to us courtesy of Earl Nightingale. One of my favorite authors and speakers. Earl was actually a lot more than that and I encourage you to explore his many works. He developed a plan that required no more than 5 hours a week, none on weekends, and can give us anything we want in a surprisingly short amount of time.

Here is the method, short and sweet. Wake up one hour earlier every morning. Yes, I know this sounds difficult. I wake up everyday at 4am, so I can understand. When I tell you what you can accomplish with this idea, you will soon see it is worth it. Make yourself a nice cup of coffee or tea. Whatever you prefer. Sit down with a pad of paper and a pen. Yes, we are going old-fashioned here. There is a reason that makes it more powerful. Write your single goal on the top of the piece of paper. Now, begin to list as many ideas as you can for reaching that goal as your sip your brew. Do not judge them and understand most of your ideas will not be very good. Write them down anyway. All you need is one good idea to succeed. Shoot for 20 ideas a day. Working 5 days a week, this will give you 100 ideas a week. Can you see how the law of averages is with you?

Another benefit of doing this is the fact that it imbeds your goal into your mind, but conscious and subconscious mind. Your mind will be working on it as you go throughout your day. The wonderful idea you are looking for may not come to you in that hour you are working, but may pop into your head on the drive to work, or while waiting in line at the grocery store. By writing with pen on paper, we create a greater mind/body connection. This will help drive our goal into our mind even more.

Bonus idea!!!! While doing this to accomplish goals certainly makes sense, there are other applications that will transform your life just as powerfully. Can you imagine waking up and trying to come up with 20 ways to add love and connection to your relationship? How about ways to show yourself some self-care and inner peace? How about leave a great legacy for those behind you? Imagine trying to come up with 100 ideas a week on any of these subjects? How would that change your life?

MANY LITTLE THINGS LEAD TO SUCCESS

What is on your screensaver? The answer could hold a greater key to your success than you realize. Are you chasing a worthy ideal or goal? If you are a reader of this website, the answer in probably ‘yes’. If you are not right now, you will be soon. In fact, most of the world will be setting new goals and lofty aspirations in another month or so. Most of them will fail within a few weeks. Why do most New Year’s resolutions fall flat? We all begin with the best of intentions. Why is it so hard to keep that momentum going?

The most important aspect is to have a strong enough ‘why’. If the goal is really not that important to you, the chances of you succeeding are next to nothing. Use the carrot and the stick. Both what you will gain by achieving the goal, and what you will lose, or miss out on by not achieving the goal. This is very important and will have the greatest impact on whether or not you will succeed. How come even goals we really want we give up on? Is there a solution that will allow us to build that momentum and provide a subtle nudge to remind us of the direction we wish to be going? The answer is yes and it can be fun and easier than you think.

 

Whatever your goal is, it may not take the outrageous amount of willpower you think it will to stay on track. There are some simple steps you can take to have your momentum continue almost automatically. Many of these may not seem to impressive by themselves, but together will make sure your goal, and the why for it, stay front and center in your mind.

I began by asking what was on your screensaver for a reason. Think of your main goal for the coming year, or even month. Now think of how many times you look at your phone. What if your screensaver could be a source of motivation for accomplishing the goal you are pursuing. It could be a picture of you at the weight you are striving to get down to. Never been that weight? Perhaps a picture of someone who transformed their body? Maybe a workout quote that will keep you fired up?

Let us say working out is not your goal. Your goal might be to live a more positive and fulfilling life. A daily inspirational goal could help you achieve that. What about the artwork on the walls of your home? It is a nice picture of the family? That is good, but it should be balanced with some art that motivates you. In addition, you could add a daily inspirational calendar. That way every day you will have a reminder, and an assist, in your quest for happiness and fulfillment. How about a quote that speaks to you hung on the bathroom mirror or coffee maker? Set an alarm on your phone to remind you to stick to your goal of meditating. Add enough of these ‘little’ things and motivation and reminders will be around every corner. That will help you stick to your goal when the going gets tough.

What are some other little things you can think of to help remind you of, and motivate you to stick to your goals? What are some of your favorites? Feel free to let us know in the comments below.

BE UNSTOPPABLE THIS MONDAY!

Do not let the fact that it is Monday stop, or even intimate you. Discover what is holding you back from reaching your goals. Make that your enemy. Remember to focus on what you can control. Placing the blame on outside people and circumstances only puts you under their control and makes you weak.

The truth is most of the time it is not a lack of resources that stop you, but a lack of resourcefulness. Use those people and circumstances for motivation, not for excuses. Do not let them stop you. Find what you can do inside of you to improve your situation and move closer to your goals. You’ve got this!

THE PAIN CAN BE A BLESSING

The last couple of posts we have been discussing being the light in the darkness and appreciating the present with love and gratitude. One of the challenges of this is when we are focused on our own self-improvement, it can come with a lot of growing pains. What we must do is realize that these growing pains are a blessing. Remember we cannot have growing pains without…well…growth!

Think of when you are working your hardest to overcome a negative habit. It can be so deflating at times. You promise yourself, and maybe even those closest to you, that you are going to the gym regularly. Before you know it, a week has passed and you find yourself “too busy” to focus on your health. Maybe it is your diet that you are working on fixing. As you are enjoying your second free doughnut in the breakroom, you are so upset with yourself. You could even mutter, “It is no use. I will never be able to beat these cravings.”

What many of us fail to realize is that these moments of disappointment in ourselves are signs that we are getting better. The fact that our perceived ‘failures’ are making us doubt ourselves, are signs that our goal has become more important to us. Celebrate the fact that you are feeling more pain at straying from your goal. Then, go on to use that disappointment in yourself as fuel to better your life. Next time you say no to the doughnuts in the breakroom, or go to the gym when you say you are going to, celebrate yourself. acknowledge that you have taken a step towards becoming a better you. Next time you drop the ball and disappoint yourself, remember the fact that you are experiencing growing pains is a blessing. You are growing and it is not always easy, but you are taking a step in the right direction.

BUT WAIT! THERE’S MORE!

We talk a lot on this site about working hard and putting in the effort. Making sure that we keep our goal clearly in mind and always in front of us. That really is part of the secret to an amazing life. I say ‘part’ because achieving goals and improving ourself is merely one side of the coin.

If we accomplished all we set out to do and reached the end of our life drained, lonely and unhappy we could not consider that a successful life. In order to be truly successful, we must also be fulfilled. We must balance enjoying life with conquering life. Find ways to enjoy the process as well as taking clearly defined breaks from the process.

In addition to all of the effort we put forth make sure we practice self-care and be present for all of the special moments we share with those we love.

THE PATH TO PROGRESS

It is Friday and the last thing most of us want to hear about is any type of work to be done. That is understandable. In this quote, however, lies the key to any kind of progress we wish to make. Many of us seek the mystical path. We are looking for the latest life hacks. We read all of the metaphysical books and do all of the meditations. There is nothing wrong with any of that. I do many of those things myself.

Here is the truth about how to make progress in any endeavor. I warn you, it is not sexy or exciting. There are no complicated formulas to master or spells to cast. You do not have to wonder in the woods naked during a full moon. Consequently, you will not have to apply anti-itch medicine to your body the day after the full moon, but I digress. The secret is that progress comes from daily, consistent action. Common sense huh? It may be, yet how many of us search for a fad diet instead of eating healthy daily or taking daily physical exercise?

Before I lose you all together with the diet and exercise thing, let me assure you that it is ok to look for shortcuts or life hacks. Here is the caveat to that. Look for those shortcuts while you are putting in the daily effort. You may be shocked to find the level of improvement that can be mastered by daily action. Most people underestimate the change they can achieve by doing this. We are not talking about spending the entire day in the gym every day. We are not talking about living on brown rice and chicken breast. What we are saying is that you put in some effort, daily, towards your goal. Take this blog for example. Some days I write several posts. Like I am doing today. Some days I just share ones that I have written the day before. Some are devoted to marketing this site to new people and markets. There is daily effort towards putting out the best product. What goals are you working on that could be moved along with daily effort? Are you putting it in?

WHAT STANDS BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR GOALS 💪

Have you ever thought about what stands between you and your goals? When I ask people this question at seminars, a lot of different answers come up. Money, time, network are just a few. What many people either fail to realize, or fail to admit, is that it is not lack of resources that is stopping them. It is lack of resourcefulness.

If we were to look back at the evolution of even the largest companies, we would no doubt see humble beginnings. They worked with what they had until they learned our acquired more. My own success has mirrored this path. Starting this blog came with a great deal of ignorance to begin with. I knew nothing of how the blog world worked. Today  we have been viewed in over 200 countries. Writing my first book? Same story. It seems with every book I publish, I learn something new.

How about you? Are your excuses standing between you and your goals? With a little more effort, could you overcome a seeming lack of resources? Denying this is only serving to hold you back.

DON’T FORGET YOUR DREAMS! 😳

Today is Saturday. Most of us are enjoying the start of the weekend. A few of us, like myself, are working. It is good to be a hard-working individual. It shows character and self-discipline. Both very good traits. What we must be careful with is to balance that with our true passions and ambitions. No matter what that job is, one day we will retire. What then? The average person lives less than 20 years after retirement. Men, it is even less for you. Why do we suppose that is? One of the main reasons is a lack of purpose. You do not want to give all of your passion and energy to a company that will replace you a day after you are gone. Think about your legacy, and what lights the inner fire inside you. That is what the world needs more of.

Forgetting your dreams to chase the dollar can have terrible side effects. Increased stress, reduced sense of purpose and fulfillment. How exciting can a life of ‘wake up, pay bills and die’ be? Not very exciting. I’ll cover more ways to go from striving to thriving in my upcoming fourth book. Until then, I want to remind all of us to continue to make our dreams a priority. Even those of us who are finished with the work-a-day world can put our dreams on the back burner. We spend our time with busy work and running errands for others. Perhaps so used to putting our own desires last, that doing anything less has us feeling guilty.

Even someone like myself who works about 60 hours a week, still makes time to pursue their passions. In fact, the words you are reading now include that. The means are not just to justify an end, but to invest in my dream. Pursuing dreams helps us feel alive. It puts light behind our eyes and a spring in our step. How can you invest in your dreams today? Through time? Financial investment? Maybe it is just dusting them off and bringing them back to life. Do not let your salary kill your dreams!

WE GOT THIS! 💪

On behalf of all of us here at Secret2anamazinglife.com, Welcome to 2025! We have a lot to look forward to this coming year. Are we looking at facing some challenges? We sure are, but we are going to do them together. You reading this blog are part of a supportive community that are all striving to improve themselves, their lives and the world around them. You are not alone on your journey. We also have many milestones we are looking at reaching here at this site. We are less than 100 days away from reaching our goal of 1000 straight days of content. We will be close to 3000 total posts on this site. My fourth book will be released, hopefully by the end of July.

I want to hear what you are looking forward to this coming year? What goals are you chasing in 2025? More importantly, how can being a part of the Secret2anamazinglife community help you in reaching those goals? If the last few years have taught us anything, it is that we go a lot further together than we can alone. In the coming year, I look forward to interacting with more of you here on this site as well as hopefully meeting more of you in person. When it comes to 2025, we got this!