You might think I’m throwing a wrench into the works but if you’re someone who’s serious about your goals and increasing your productivity, while actually freeing up more of your time, you may want to consider reading this article: http://ow.ly/2vlpt
You know that moment between action and failure? That space where you can actually hear the seconds tick by? Where in that moment you could probably see a hummingbird flapping its wings in slow motion? That’s the realm where HESITATION thrives.
It’s in that moment where your next decision can mean dream reaching success or dream crushing despair.
The key here is to illuminate any hesitation or doubt instantly. The best way to accomplish this is with the 3 second rule; by that you must act immediately on any goal, task, or objective you set for yourself.
- If you have an important call to make, make it right now
- If there is a project you are dreading, do it immediately
- If you find yourself creating excuses and putting other non-priority tasks first (like straightening your desk), then you must push it aside and put your IMPORTANT project before all else
- When fear arises, do it anyway
Hesitation can trick you. It can make you doubt yourself and your abilities. Hesitation can start you on the journey of comparing yourself to others. Hesitation can bring out your worst fears.
But remember this, non-action gets you nowhere. It never has and never will. The difference between people who are incredibly successful and people who continue to struggle is that successful people don’t hesitate when they have fear, they are willing to make lots of mistakes, (and here is the big difference) – they continue to push forward when others have given up long ago.
The next thing you MUST do is to become someone who is PERSISTENT. You need to write down and create a game plan of every step and action you need to take to reach your goal. This will help you to squash any thoughts of hesitation. Having a game plan is crucial to your success.
In no time you will be a driven, goal reaching machine.
Hesitation is a conversation in your mind between your good self – who wants you to be the KING of the world, and your bad self – who wants you to stay at home with him and watch Oprah all day and eat Cheetos.
Next time you begin to hear that conversation, jump up and go after your dream with everything you’ve got. You’ll surprise yourself by how quickly you master success and make hesitation something that died along with the dinosaur.
Want to know the difference between succes and failure? it’s PERSISTENCE. The most successful people know that along with a burning desire to create their dream, they need to take continuous action. By closing their mind to any negative, discouraging, influences, suggestions, or even their own inner-dialogue, they can create a direct path to their GOAL.
Taking action every day even when your mind tells you to give up. Pushing forward when it’s most challenging. Acting now and not hesitating or waiting for the “perfect” moment.
The key to persistence is knowing that the Finish Line is just around the corner.
Successful people aren’t successful because they’re lucky. They are ONLY successful because when everyone else gives up they keep going. There’s no other magic than that simple fact.
Thomas Edison was said to have failed 10,000 times yet he became one of the greatest inventors of our time.
PERSISTENCE is the best step to one’s economic freedom, one’s independence, and it can lead to power, fame, and a goal reaching outcome every time.
SUCCESS TIP: If you want to see fast results in your life and career, you need to become a master as asking for what you want.
Top successful people aren’t afraid to ask. They know that this is a vital step in successful forward movement.
How come you can ask a store if it’s still open, “Are you still open?” but you have trouble asking for something you need; “Would it be possible to get a testimonial from you for my book?”
What is the worst that can happen?
We become afraid because if someone says “no,” it reflects on our esteem.
But how would your selfesteem feel if you got a yes?
You’d probably feel AWESOME!
Learn to ASK. The key is in doing it in a geniune way, with good spirit, intention, and sincerity. No one likes a pushy person, but everyone respects someone who goes after what they want!
You’ll never know until you ASK. If it’s a “No” it was already a “no” by not asking.
Want to maximize your PRODUCTIVITY and increase your output by 1,000%?
Get those AMAZING important projects out of your head today and get them onto paper.
I don’t mean writing them onto your PC, Macbook or tablet, and I also don’t mean putting them on your cell phone.
I’m talking about putting them on PAPER!
Take a small legal pad or something you can easily carry with you and write it down.
When you have something with you that you look at on a regular basis, and not just when you turn it on or open up a file, you keep it in the forefront of your mind and your conscience.
You are more likely to successfully handle it FASTER, and BETTER than you would if you kept in on your computer or cellphone.
Also, keeping it locked in your head along with a multitude of other things, picking up the dry cleaning, feeding the kids, returning calls,… It loses it’s importance and never gets the attention it deserves.
I was having lunch with a friend of mine today. It seems our lunches and get-togethers happen less frequently because his day job keeps him busier every day. As he acquires new and better skills more tasks seems to be handed to him and more of his day is consumed staying above the learning curve and handling the bigger work load. Has this happened to you?
The thing is, that while he loves the company he works for, respects and admires his boss, and enjoys the people he’s worked with for these many years, he also has another passion, his music.
Unlike some people who have music as their hobby, a way to unwind, or a fun talent to have when getting together with friends (but it doesn’t go much beyond that), my friend has a real gift for his music. In fact, he is so good he could be a music star today.
And he knows this. In fact, when he thinks about it and he sees how many days, weeks, and months fly by because he is so consumed with work that he has to put this aside, he actually feels a loss.
Now I do understand there are people who have had to put their passion for their craft aside to provide for family and to be able to survive in the real world. That’s not what we’re talking about here.
What I mean is that there is a real chance for him to have his music and performance AS his career. And he knows it too.
In fact, (this is his phrase), he feels sometimes like he is “betraying” himself, the longer he goes without truly pursuing his dream.
Part of the problem is that he can’t seem to figure out how to do the one while using the other to still survive. But the other is swallowing up ALL his time and energy, and even though he really likes the work he does and he knows that he is a valuable asset to the company, he also knows he should be spending much more time on his music than he currently does.
So, we talked about why this is happening and how to make a difference and out him on the right track again.
The first part of the equation of why his dream is getting lost is that except for the occasional talk with me, he doesn’t really share with others about this passion. It gets pushed way down on the importance ladder. So the first decision we came up with is to start building a bigger group than just myself where he could check in with people about this particular dream (goal) and let them know what he’s up to on sa regular basis and get their feedback and input.
The second thing that holds him back from pursuing this with passion and drive is that he needs to build a “team” so he isn’t pursuing this all on his own. So how does one build a team when they don’t have money, time, or resources to do this? Glad you asked.
What he needs to do is to figure out what exactly he needs to make his music and performance a reality. Obviously top on the list is to start performing out at venues and get the bugs worked out in his music and performance. While he is at these venues he could have a friend come along and start gathering names and email addresses to build a following.
Next, he needs to make a decision to get some tracks recorded, nothing big or fancy but something he could start passing around and sending out. And he needs to start inviting professionals who are in the industry to come and see him perform.
How does he do all of this and get other people to help him do it, successfully? He has to ask.
Asking others is the one most important thing people miss every time when going after their dreams.
Most people going after their dream, vision, or goal by themself fail to do this one important thing; ask others for their help.
This can come in the form of advice, opinion, asking if someone knows how to put a web site together. How to create an email campaign. Does anyone know someone in the music industry who could come, listen and give feedback? Get someone’s opinion about the best venues to perform in. Where to go for an inexpensive recording of his music. And much more.
My entire successful, thriving business was built on asking. Asking opinions, asking advice, asking information by others who are more seasoned than myself, getting their input on how they did it. Asking what the best steps are? Asking how long it takes to be successful? Asking where do I find my audience? Asking how do I best service them? Etc.
This simple yet POWERFUL little step is missed by more people going after their dreams than any other step they take. I often find the people I meet who are going after their dreams are smart, driven, creative, and motivated, yet they don’t take this one little action because they feel no one will help them.
I personally love when people ask my advice or opinion. It makes me feel like I’m a part of their quest and their dream. And I get so invested because they put importance on asking my opinion that I want to do everything to see them REACH their goals.
So the next time you want to take on a BIG dream (and you should dream big) and you feel clueless where to begin or how to reach it, start a mantra of asking. As long as you are genuine, sincere, not selfish and don’t put others down, people will always want to assist you in making your dreams come true.
We happen to live in a quick fix society and today people spend a great deal of time, energy, and money looking for the “magic pill” that will make them a winner. Lotteries. Being discovered as the next great actor. Winning an amazing trip on a game show… So how come that never happens to me, you might ask?
Well, the truth of the matter is that it only happens to a very small percentage of people. So, don’t fret, you weren’t born under an unlucky star.
So what exactly is the trick to becoming successful? You might be surprised to learn that to be successful you have to learn to fail. And fail well. Now, what the heck do I mean by that?
As you’ve probably heard before, people like Donald Trump, T Boon Pickens, Tony Robbins, all had success, then lost it, then gained their success again.
It makes sense that you will want to read a book, listen to a CD or take a course in the hopes to find the answer you’ve been missing that will finally put you on the top where you deserve to be. The key is to listen to the right answer, not to the “magic pill” answer. And typically, every book audio or course will offer that answer on some level.
So what is the “magic pill”? It’s so simple that you may not like the answer. The key that makes successful people successful is based on four simple steps:
- They have a passion or desire towards reaching their goal – they can’t see anything but the outcome of having achieved it (or, they are in so much pain about their current situation that they want to change it for the better).
- They make a clear decision to go after their goal.
- They take action towards their goal every day.
- When they hit a roadblock (and it looks like failure) they readjust their methods and keep moving forward.
How can the answer be that simple? It is because it works every time. It’s the amount of effort and energy you put into it that makes the difference. There is no quick fix but there is a fast fix for success. And it’s momentum. When you start any task or objective your continued efforts are going to create massive momentum.
And when winners fail then don’t quit. Here’s a new way to look at it: when you misdial a phone number you don’t give up after the first try. Why? Because it’s not that risky and you know eventually you’ll get it right. So you keep trying.
Yet with bigger goals when it starts to look ad we give up, right? Wrong! Successful people don’t give up. They find new ways to go after what they want. Most people who don’t succeed often give up not realizing just how close to the finish line they really are.
Here are some tools to get you there even faster:
- Build a group of people who you can check in with to gage your progress – Let them know what you’re up to and get their feedback, suggestions, and support. This helps you hear yourself say your intentions out loud and often gives you increased clarity.
- Support them in their efforts – This helps you strengthen your own esteem while benefiting others in their goals. You begin to become someone who acts from strength and drive.
- Stretch yourself – Take new risks to broaden yourself. By putting new challenges in your life every day you become someone who is no longer afraid and up for any challenge. Your risk taking will actually become more fun.
- Contribute – Giving back to the world makes you feel like a powerful contribution and lets others know that you are someone to take notice of. Your spirit and generosity in your efforts will help to strengthen and empower others to follow your lead!
- Find a mentor – Seeking someone who has accomplished goals similar to your own is the surest way to get some great insights to your true path and direction, making it easier for your to reach your goal. The secret is to ask. Let others know your intentions towards your goal and you’re likely to be introduced to someone who’s mentoring can encourage and benefit you.
The simple difference in successful people is that they involve and include others in their dream. Going after anything alone can make you lose passion, focus, and drive. Think of it this way, painting a new home or room by yourself is just no fun. Having a pizza party and inviting your friends to help you paint makes the task fly by and you’ll be building that success muscle in no time.
If you are a writer and you write one page a day, in 30 days you’ll have 30 pages. Duh! Yes, I’m being obvious, but there’s a point. Taking this very same logic to get even faster results, if you write 2 pages a day you’ll have doubled your output.
To look at this in a different way, if you want to maximize your results could you give 100% for just a day? Of course you could. But it might be hard for someone to keep up that pace every single day. But would you be happy if you could increase your results to 100% a month? Again, of course you would. So let’s talk about how simple it is to get there.
If a month is 30 days, and you just increase your production output by 3-4% every day, at the end of 30 days you would have increased your results 100% in a month and also achieved your results faster than ever before.
By simply making a promise to yourself to increase your efforts and energy by just a few (manageable) percent every day, you will get the results you want faster than you have in the past. A side bonus effect is that you will also build up your momentum, drive and desire.
Look at it this way: a runner typically does not beat his opponent in hour or even minutes. Sometimes not even in seconds. A footrace is often won in milliseconds. Said differently, the difference between a gold medal winner and a silver medal winner is fractionally small.
Think about that. Just a little more effort and output on your part could dramatically result in bigger and faster results. So the next time you set a goal for yourself, plan on adding just a little more effort to your routine every day and you will notice that you’re getting to the finish line ahead of the pack.
The best answer is found in sports; Just do it. Stick with me here. We all get those times in our lives when it seems like no matter what we do there’s always more that comes our way to handle. It’s in those time that you need to start to think like an athlete. Your typical superstar athlete doesn’t just show up and win. He prepares. Both mentally as well as physically. The runner will put his running clothes, shoes and socks out the night before and consciously prep before running. The basketball player will go through his motions in his head; shots, passes, defense, offensive moves, before he plays a game. He will also take hundreds of practice shots. However, to him they’re not practice. The racecar driver will do hours upon hours of laps in his head before he hits the track to practice. So what does any of this have to do with overcoming procrastination?
Preparing mentally and planning your task before execution can help you eliminate your procrastination tendencies. Mapping out and planning what you intend to do before executing it will actually make you more likely to do the task. And do it well. It’s the same results whether the task is as small as taking out the “dreaded” garbage, or planning a presentation at work the next day.
Visualize all the actions needed to perform the task. Again, if it’s taking out the garbage, how many cans are there? Will you have to make more than one trip? Will you have to replace bags? Do you have replacement bags? Are the trashcans close by or all the way down the driveway? This may seem silly, but thinking about all of these things not only makes the task go quicker, when you pre-think all these details out in advance, you actually commit your mind to do it, and because you’ve prepared, the task is less daunting.
The same goes for a presentation at work. Where will you enter from when you come into the room? What will the lighting be like? How many people will be attending? Are you facing the exit are will your back be to the door? (this prepares you for surprise last-minute guest arrivals). Will you have a slide or Power Point presentation and are all the pieces in place? Do you have a back up copy of your presentation? Are there enough handouts for extra attendees?
Like the super athlete, the more you can visualize what will actually be taking place, before it takes place, the better prepared you will be and the greater your performance will become. You will actually look forward to it because you have planned for the execution rather than sweating about the outcome.
The best way to deal with and eliminate procrastination is through good preparation. The word “prepare” is in there for a reason. In the 16th Century, the word today was written as two separate words; to-day. To make everything have greater excellence and impact, the athlete thinks “pro” (forward), “day” (this or this day). Change the word procrastinate to pro-day and you will see a difference in your attitude, execution, and completion.
You want to succeed. You need to succeed. You’re extremely capable of success. Yet there’s someone up inside your head, right now, who’s holding you back and needs to be kicked to the curb. He or she has been living with you a while now and even though you both know and like each other, unfortunately, that voice won’t let you succeed. It’s not that the voice doesn’t like you. He or she actually wants you to be happy – on his or her terms. The voice probably even loves you.
But what the voice doesn’t love is change. To the voice, change means coming out of your comfortable place and putting effort into reaching your goals. And the voice does NOT want that, because it interferes too much with relaxing, going out for coffee, talking on the phone with friends, or watching the season finale of True Blood one more time.
But the voice loves you. He or she’s just not used to change and doesn’t like it one bit. So, you can’t simply have a talk. You have to kick the voice to the curb. I know it’s brutal to do this to someone who’s been with you for so long, but ask yourself if you’re happy with where you are now, and if you can you see yourself in that same place in ten years. Because those years will go by faster than you can imagine.
Can you retrain the voice? No. We’ve all seen the guy in the coffee shop who is friendly and funny to everyone he encounters, everyone loves him, yet he always gets the orders wrong, he constantly shows up late, and he just doesn’t seem to care much. But he has a good heart. We’ve all met or know someone just like that. Do you think he should continue to work there? Ah, you say, as long as he’s not hurting anyone. So how’s that project, goal, objective, or dream coming along? Handling it tomorrow? One more time watching Dexter before you get to it? I’m sorry, who’s speaking? You? The voice? Hmmm…
Change is tough. Change is sometimes brutal. And so is feeling bad five years down the road because you didn’t do anything with that goal or great idea. In my opinion it’s even worse than that.
Was there ever a time in your life when you didn’t want to do something or go somewhere and you ended up doing it and having a great time? In fact, it’s probably one of your better memories. Somehow, you got yourself off the couch, ran a comb through your hair, got out of your pajamas (complete with feet), and went out and actually had a great time.
Now, remember when you had that mess or that pile of bills you were just dreading to tackle, and it took every excuse in the book to pass up having to deal with it. You may have even had to take an extension on paying your taxes on time. But when you finally did handle that mess, those bills, that dreaded oil change, you thought, hey, this wasn’t so bad after all. And then you asked yourself, what’s next?
If you can get this voice out of your head, out of your house, and out of your life, and then just take two (very small) actions towards whatever your goal is or whatever’s been looming over you for a while now, I can tell you that the results you’ll see in yourself will be pretty eye-opening.
The voice won’t mind.