Can't Dance?

From choreographer and modern dance pioneer Martha Graham:

"Nobody cares if you can't dance well. Just get up and dance.
Great dancers are not great because of their technique,
they are great because of their passion."

You Can't?

This is from Robert Kyosaki's book, Rich Dad, Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money--That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!

"Because I had two influential fathers, I learned from both of them. I had to think about each dad's advice, and in doing so, I gained valuable insight into the power and effect of one's thoughts on one's life. For example, one dad had a habit of saying, "I can't afford it." The other dad forbade those words to be used. He insisted I say, "How can I afford it?" One is a statement, and the other is a question. One lets you off the hook, and the other forces you to think. My soon-to-be-rich dad would explain that by automatically saying the words "I can't afford it," your brain stops working. By asking the question "How can I afford it?" your brain is put to work."

What other questions could you ask yourself?

I can't do this.....................How can I do this?

Are You Remarkable?

Why do people always seem to remember you? Why do your customers keep coming back? Are you Remarkable?

Some tips on being Remarkable from Seth Godin, the Marketing Guru of Remarkable.

How to be remarkable

From this week's Guardian:

1. Understand the urgency of the situation. Half-measures simply won't do. The only way to grow is to abandon your strategy of doing what you did yesterday, but better. Commit.

2. Remarkable doesn't mean remarkable to you. It means remarkable to me. Am I going to make a remark about it? If not, then you're average, and average is for losers.

3. Being noticed is not the same as being remarkable. Running down the street naked will get you noticed, but it won't accomplish much. It's easy to pull off a stunt, but not useful.

4. Extremism in the pursuit of remarkability is no sin. In fact, it's practically a requirement. People in first place, those considered the best in the world, these are the folks that get what they want. Rock stars have groupies because they're stars, not because they're good looking.

5. Remarkability lies in the edges. The biggest, fastest, slowest, richest, easiest, most difficult. It doesn't always matter which edge, more that you're at (or beyond) the edge.

6. Not everyone appreciates your efforts to be remarkable. In fact, most people don't. So what? Most people are ostriches, heads in the sand, unable to help you anyway. Your goal isn't to please everyone. Your goal is to please those that actually speak up, spread the word, buy new things or hire the talented.

7. If it's in a manual, if it's the accepted wisdom, if you can find it in a Dummies book, then guess what? It's boring, not remarkable. Part of what it takes to do something remarkable is to do something first and best. Roger Bannister was remarkable. The next guy, the guy who broke Bannister's record wasn't. He was just faster ... but it doesn't matter.

8. It's not really as frightening as it seems. They keep the masses in line by threatening them (us) with all manner of horrible outcomes if we dare to step out of line. But who loses their jobs at the mass layoffs? Who has trouble finding a new gig? Not the remarkable minority, that's for sure.

9. If you put it on a T-shirt, would people wear it? No use being remarkable at something that people don't care about. Not ALL people, mind you, just a few. A few people insanely focused on what you do is far far better than thousands of people who might be mildly interested, right?

10. What's fashionable soon becomes unfashionable. While you might be remarkable for a time, if you don't reinvest and reinvent, you won't be for long. Instead of resting on your laurels, you must commit to being remarkable again quite soon.

The Words You Use

One of the precepts in NLP (Neuro-Linguistic Programming) is that the words you use reflect your internal thought processes. There are certain words that I make a strong effort to eliminate in my speech (and thoughts).

Two of my target words are TRY and FAILURE.

TRY - "Do, or not do. There is no try." (Thanks, Yoda!) Try has an assumption of FAILURE.

FAILURE - There is no such thing as failure, only results. If you don't like the results you're getting, change your approach. (Thanks, Tony Robbins!)

Starbucker has a great post on this subject in his blog Ramblings from a Glass Half Full. Be sure to read all the comments at the bottom.

What are some of your favorite words to avoid?

Why I Don't Wear A Suit

I gave up suits (and ties) when I stopped doing business to business sales. Ever since I've been on a professional crusade, as a Hypnotherapist and HypnoCoach, to eliminate unnecessary stress from people's lives - and I do believe wearing a noose (tie) around your neck can be a major stressor.

Mark Cuban has a great blog entry about this today.

Effort-Free Action?

Joe Vitale says it very elegantly in his latest blog post..........

"One of the biggest points of argument when people talk about the law of attraction is the idea of action.

Many fans of the law of attraction think you don't take any action. You simply sit like a good magnet and wait for your vibes to slide the thing you want over to your chair.

I believe that you usually if not always have to take action of some sort, but that your action isn't effort if it comes from your heart.

That's the key difference.

People run marathons, lift weights, climb mountains, write books, travel on horseback, jump out of planes, make hundreds of sales calls a day, and much more.

It's all action.

But if they do it because they want to do it, because it bubbles out of their passion to do it, then it's not effort.

Again, the law of attraction doesn't mean you don't do anything; it means what you do is effort-free. "

*****It's all about inspired action.*****

Where's the Money Going to Come From?

Question: Where's the money going to come from?

Answer: From wherever it is right now.

Nice article on The Psychology of Money, Prosperity and Wealth. (thanks Jennifer)

Don't Worry, Be Happy

Vocabulary word for the day (Thanks, Madame Marie):

Ataraxia (Αταραξία) is a Greek term used by Pyrrho and Epicurus for freedom from worry or any other preoccupation, and for Epicurus was the first step to achieve Hêdonê, the pleasure.

For the Stoics, ataraxia was synonymous with the only true happiness possible for man. It signifies the detached and balanced state of mind that shows that man has transcended the material world and is now harvesting all the comforts of philosophy.

source: Wikipedia

Clear Intentions, Future Memories

Your brain does not know the difference between a real event and something that has been vividly imagined. This is why having a very clear vision of what you want, planting "future memories", has such power to change how you react and respond in your daily life.

To quote Neville Goddard, "Imagining Creates Reality"

Here is the research that shows it:

It's a Miracle!

Today's question:

If there was a miracle tonight, and when you woke up tomorrow, everything in your life was the way you wanted it to be, how would you know a miracle had occurred? What would you see, hear, fee and believe that would let you know it had happened?

Think about it...(hint) maybe even write down your answer.

How Good Are You?

Question of the day -

What are you like when you're at your best?

hm.............

Start the New Year Right

Joe Vitale says it all in this blog post. Take a moment to click through and read.

Thanks Joe.....

"I'm totally satisfied and I want more."

Rules to Live By

From Bob Parsons, CEO of GoDaddy.com

Bob Parsons' 16 Rules to Live By

1. Get and stay out of your comfort zone. I believe that not much happens of any significance when we're in our comfort zone. I hear people say, "But I'm concerned about security." My response to that is simple: "Security is for cadavers."
2. Never give up. Almost nothing works the first time it's attempted. Just because what you're doing does not seem to be working doesn't mean it won't work. It just means that it might not work the way you're doing it. If it was easy, everyone would be doing it, and you wouldn't have an opportunity.
3. When you're ready to quit, you're closer than you think. There's an old Chinese saying that I just love, and I believe it is so true. It goes like this: "The temptation to quit will be greatest just before you are about to succeed."
4. With regard to whatever worries you, not only accept the worst thing that could happen, but make it a point to quantify what the worst thing could be. Very seldom will the worst consequence be anywhere near as bad as a cloud of "undefined consequences." My father would tell me early on, when I was struggling and losing my shirt trying to get Parsons Technology going, "Well, Robert, if it doesn't work, they can't eat you."
5. Focus on what you want to have happen. Remember that old saying, "As you think, so shall you be."
6. Take things a day at a time. No matter how difficult your situation is, you can get through it if you don't look too far into the future and focus on the present moment. You can get through anything one day at a time.
7. Always be moving forward. Never stop investing. Never stop improving. Never stop doing something new. The moment you stop improving your organization, it starts to die. Make it your goal to be better each and every day, in some small way. Remember the Japanese concept of Kaizen. Small daily improvements eventually result in huge advantages.
8. Be quick to decide. Remember what General George S. Patton said: "A good plan violently executed today is far and away better than a perfect plan tomorrow."
9. Measure everything of significance. I swear this is true. Anything that is measured and watched improves.
10. Anything that is not managed will deteriorate. If you want to uncover problems you don't know about, take a few moments and look closely at the areas you haven't examined for a while. I guarantee you problems will be there.
11. Pay attention to your competitors, but pay more attention to what you're doing. When you look at your competitors, remember that everything looks perfect at a distance. Even the planet Earth, if you get far enough into space, looks like a peaceful place.
12. Never let anybody push you around. In our society, with our laws and even playing field, you have just as much right to what you're doing as anyone else, provided that what you're doing is legal.
13. Never expect life to be fair. Life isn't fair. You make your own breaks. You'll be doing good if the only meaning fair has to you is something that you pay when you get on a bus (i.e., fare).
14. Solve your own problems. You'll find that by coming up with your own solutions, you'll develop a competitive edge. Masura Ibuka, the cofounder of Sony, said it best: "You never succeed in technology, business, or anything by following the others." There's also an old Asian saying that I remind myself of frequently. It goes like this: "A wise man keeps his own counsel."
15. Don't take yourself too seriously. Lighten up. Often, at least half of what we accomplish is due to luck. None of us are in control as much as we like to think we are.
16. There's always a reason to smile. Find it. After all, you're really lucky just to be alive. Life is short. More and more, I agree with my little brother. He always reminds me: "We're not here for a long time; we're here for a good time."

The above rules are republished with the permission of Bob Parsons (www.BobParsons.com) and are copyright 2004-2007 by Bob Parsons. All rights reserved.