Quote for the Week

"Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph; a beginning, a struggle and a victory." - Ghandi

3 Steps to Success Roadblock Removal

Be honest with yourself now. You have goals you want to achieve. Goals for your business or career and goals for your personal relationships and family. Ideally you have these written down and are specific as possible. (The more specific you are the more focused you can be and the more attainable they will be) . Regardless if they are written down or not, if you are like most people (I would say 95% or more) you just are not making the headway you want. You are not moving fast enough (if at all) towards achieving these goals.

Why? Roadblocks. Whether you realize it or not you are putting up roadblocks to your own success. That is the bad news. The good news is that you can tear down your roadblocks in three steps and get yourself moving again down the road to true success.

1. Identify the issues. You need to be honest and identify what is stopping you from moving forward. Is it a lack of skills, is it a lack of commitment/follow-thru, or is it fear.

2. Take ownership and stop making excuses. This is the hardest one for most people. When you take complete ownership of an issue you have no one else to blame. This puts it all on your shoulders which can be very uncomfortable. But until you finally take the ownership you will continue to make excuses and put the blame everywhere except where it belongs - and that would be with you. These are your goals after all. If you own the goals, then you have the responsibility to make them happen - which leads us to roadblock removal step three.

3. Focus on solutions. Once you accept the weight of responsibility you can begin to focus your thoughts and your energy on finding solutions. If your lack of success is due to a lack of skills - then get the skills. Find a way to get the training/education you need. Practice these skills until you become proficient in their use. Admitting to yourself that the problem is a lack of commitment/follow-thru is a huge first step in tearing this barrier down. A lack of commitment may be telling you that what you think is a goal is not really that important after all. Or maybe the goal needs fine tuning and a sharper focus. You can battle a lack of follow-thru by breaking the goal down into smaller and smaller pieces. The sense of victory you will get as you accomplish each of these smaller goals will help you gain momentum towards your ultimate larger goals. And if your roadblock is fear based you have to acknowledge that fact and not be embarrassed about it (fear impacts every one). If the fear is truly paralyzing you may need to talk to a professional in order to find a way harness the fear instead of letting it be in control.

You are an amazing person. There is nothing you can not accomplish if you put your mind to it. Yes, there may be work involved but that does not bother you. You already know that with hard work comes sweet rewards. Thomas Edison said "If we did all the things we are really capable of doing, we would literally astound ourselves". Don't you dare settle for less than you are capable of. You have so much to give to the world and to those you love. Identify your roadblocks to success, take ownership, and rip each and every one down.


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What is your greater purpose

Successful people know and understand what their greater purpose is. Having this knowledge helps keep them fully engaged in whatever endeavor they are involved in.

Depending upon the research study, as much as 65% of employees across the country are disengaged in their jobs and actively looking elsewhere. What a shame. Just think about how much stronger we would be as a nation if we could cut that number down to even just 40% disengaged. The lost potential from such a high number is impossible to calculate but my point in this blog is to talk about you and your purpose.

You see, it does not matter what line of work you are engaged in; there is a greater purpose than you likely realize. For example – have you seen the Pizza Hut commercials that have various employees talking about their greater purpose? They make statements such as “This is not just a pizza, this is a team celebration”, or “This is not a pizza, this is mom’s night off”. The point they are making is that the pizza is not just dough and toppings, but that it actually an important part of the customer’s life (at least for that moment in time).

You need to look at your job and your life the same way. You need to realize and keep in mind that your actions impact a wide variety of people. I work in the pet industry. I tell our people on a regular basis that we are in the “love business”. People do not need to have pets – they want to have pets. Pet owners (pet lovers actually) have strong emotional bonds with their pets. Our business is to both help enhance these relationships and encourage new ones. Sure, we sell pets and supplies – but in reality we serve a much greater purpose.

Your job and your life is the same. If you are one disengaged and unhappy you need to sit back and reflect on just what is your greater purpose. This greater purpose may not be immediately apparent to you, but if you stand back and really think this idea through you will uncover it. And when you do, I can promise you that you’ll find your life (work AND home) will become much more positive. Understanding and remembering the greater purpose will help push you through the sometimes monotonous everyday tasks that we all face.

Never underestimate the impact you have on the world all around you. Not only the people that you have direct contact with, but on all the people who your contacts interact with. Think of it as the ripples caused from throwing a small pebble into a pond. The ripples keep expanding outward from the point of impact. You my friend are that point.

Quote for the Week

"Success seems to be connected with action. Successful people keep moving. They make mistakes, but they don’t quit." - Conrad Hilton

The Complete Success Alphabet

Learning the alphabet was the key to reading, writing and communicating. Numbers and basic mathematical equations were the key to algebra, geometry and more. Basic laws of matter, energy and motion were the foundation to physics. Your Personal and Professional Development (PPD©) is no different. Learning your Success ABC’s will provide a strong base on which to build a lifetime of success upon.

The following list summarizes the Success ABC’s. Follow links individually to learn about a particular concept or start at “A” and follow the links from page to page. Commit these to memory. Practice them regularly. By building a strong foundation you’ll find your journey towards true success easier and more life more fulfilling.

A is for Attitude.
B is for Bounce-Back.
C is for Confidence
D is for Define
E is for Endurance
F is for Family/Friends
G is for Gratitude
H is for Healthy
I is for Initiative
J is for Journal
K is for Knowledge
L is for Library
M is for Mentor
N is for Network
O is for Optimistic
P is for Planning
Q is for Quit
R is for Responsive
S is for Sacrifice
T is for Team
U is for Undeterred
V is for Values
W is for Work-Ethic
X is for Xtra
Y is for You
Z is for Zest

Quote for the Week

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out" - Robert Collier

Finding Success by Changing Lanes

Here something I am sure you have experienced many times. You are driving down a multi-lane highway and the person behind you is driving almost in your trunk. You are already doing the speed limit or even an extra 10 miles an hour but this car is smack dab in the center of your rear view mirror. The lanes around you are open, the car behind could easily shift lanes but does not. He/she even flips their headlights on and off to let you know they are there. When you do move over (I'll confess - sometimes it takes me a while to move over when someone is clearly being a jerk) the car simply speeds up and does the same thing to the next driver on the road.

It seems so odd that the driver would not simply change lanes him/herself and fly on down the road to his/her destination. But they never do. They repeat the same actions over and over, day after day, week after week, month after month, etc, etc.

Sort of what some people do in life. They run up against and obstacle somewhere in their life (home, career, financial, etc) and they just try to push right over it. They push and push and push and get no where. Why continue to push against a wall when you can find a way to go around? Step back, cool down, and look at the situation as objectively as possible. Ask yourself what alternatives can you try. There are always alternatives, there are always options.

Do not let yourself get so frustrated that you lose your peripheral vision. When you focus too narrowly you miss a whole range of possibilities. Life is full of endless alternatives. If what you are doing is not getting the results you are looking for it is time to vary your course. Don't be the tailgating driver, always pushing to get ahead but never seeing the easier route.

Slow it down a little, relax a little and look at all of your options. I'll bet a dollar to a donut there is an easier way. You are just too focused on the one lane you are in to even see the other wide-open lanes available to you.

Quote for the Week

"Success is not so much what we have, as it is what we are" - Jim Rohn

Success Lessons from a Glass Studio

Professional success comes from not only living your passion but from working with a team that shares the same passion. This simple truth revealed itself again during a recent trip to San Antonio and a visit to a local glass artisan (see www.garciaartglass.com). My wife and I spent several hours watching a team of five artisans - from Master thru assistant - produce a number of beautiful pieces.


Besides the final glass works, I was also watching the beautiful and almost choreographed movements of the artisans. They were all fully in tune with the molten glass and with each other. The work shifted from furnace to several work stations over and over again as each piece was being born. Each member of the team knew their role and moved effortlessly around one another in what was actually a surprisingly small space. Sometimes it was a word, a tap on the arm, or a simple head nod but each gesture, each movement communicated to the others what was happening and who and what were moving where. There was not only mastery of the glass but we were watching mastery of the entire process as well.

Make no mistake- this mastery is a product of passion. Finding your passion and then having the discipline and drive to go after it is what brings people to life. It is what will bring you to life. Pursuing a professional that is part of who you are, that actually pumps through your body, produces the most success. Success not only in the workplace but throughout your life as well. How could it not effect your entire life. You are living and working with the "true" you. When you are true to yourself you become a force and a light that everyone around you can see. How did these five artisans find themselves - they saw the light that each other possessed and were drawn together to become even better as a group than individuals. I am sure they go home at the end of a day fulfilled, energized and happy to be alive. Who could ask for anything more.

Quote for the week

"Success is a state of mind. If you want success, start thinking of yourself as a success." - Dr. Joyce Brothers

Change is your Responsibilty

The recent U.S. recession was years in the making. Likewise, the life you are experiencing today is the result of the choices that you have been making for years. If you are not where you want to be stop casting blame, take responsibility for your life and make some new choices and changes.

Here are some suggested changes for each of the five main life success elements:

Head: Get the knowledge, get the training, develop the skills. I have heard it said that the skills you have today will not be the skills you need just 18 months from now. Technology is moving forward at a faster and faster rate. To be successful in the future you have to keep yourself current.

Heart: Turn off the TV and re-connect with your loved ones. How about setting up a weekly "date night" with your spouse or taking an evening walk together to talk and share your feelings, hopes, frustrations and desires for your future together.

Health: There are thousands of books on the subjects of exercise and diet. Trouble is reading a book doesn't get you back in shape. Stop procrastinating and get started. The sooner you start the more energy you will have and the more years you will be adding to your life. There are just too many things to learn, explore and discover in the world to let poor health slow you down.

Wealth: If you are not building your wealth you need to make serious changes today. STOP living on credit (in fact get rid of all but one emergency card). Start living on cash- you'll find that you really start paying attention to what you are spending your money on. Stop trying to live up with the neighbors - you never know if you will just be following them right into bankruptcy.

World: Give something back. You'll feel better and you'll be helping someone else. It can be as easy as mowing an elderly neighbor's lawn, helping a friend build a shed, or volunteering with a local organization. You don't have to discover the cure for AIDS or Cancer - you just need to give some time or money to help some one or some organization.

The only one who can change your life is you. But the resulting benefits spread out all around you. Your family, your neighborhood, your workplace and your community. The more you push yourself along the path of personal and professional development the more enriched your life will become.