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Life ain’t all sunshine and rainbows

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The title of this post was from Rocky 6.  It’s one of my favorite scenes from the film.
Rocky is telling his son that life isn’t all sunshine and rainbows, sometimes crap
happens.  But, instead of blaming other people for the bad things in your life,
you just keep moving on and dealing with it yourself.  Because losers blame others
for their circumstances and he doesn’t want to believe his son is a loser.

Great scene – great message.  No blame – take responsibility for your life and
you’ll figure a way out of the crap.  Blame others and you’re doomed to have things
stay crappy because by blaming others you’re giving up control.  And, if you give up
control, you’ll wait for outside circumstances to change your life instead of vice-versa.
Like it will just get better when the economy turns around, or it’s those politicians
fault.  Or it’s the weather – who can concentrate when it’s so hot, or it’s, well, let’s face
it.  You can always blame someone or something when something doesn’t go your way.

But, think about this for a second.  If it was the economy, or those politicians, or the weather
then why doesn’t it affect everybody?  Why isn’t everyone in a bad way?  Because if those things
were really to blame, how could the economy pick which people were going to suffer?  So,then if
just a few or a lot of people are doing ok in this economy – then the economy isn’t to blame.

There are always going to be highs and lows to life, rainbows will follow storms, Winters will
melt into Spring.  It’s up to you to take responsibility for what is going on in your life that
you don’t like and do something about it.  Don’t blame and don’t throw a pity party.

Here’s something interesting.

Don’t wait for change – you have to be the change – and then everything changes.

That may not make sense until you do it.

So, the next time you want to blame some outside circumstance, stop, and think
of something, even a little thing that you could do to change how you respond to
that circumstance.

When you stop blaming it puts you in action. You start looking for solutions instead of sitting
on your butt pointing fingers.  And, as we know from school, something set in motion,
will keep on moving, then you build up momentum, and things really start happening.

One idea will lead to another.  Not all of them will work, but some will.

I’ll leave you with this thought.

Instead of blaming what was going on in Germany for her situation in her diary,

Anne Frank wrote “How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before
starting to improve the world.”  Wow.  Was she a victim or a heroine?  Hmmmmmm.

Go ahead. Try it.  And let me know how it works for you.

Day 2 of the lame name challenge

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HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

Now what?

Well, first, what does this challenge have to do with marketing and business.  My blog is also about business – (or at least it’s supposed to be – I’ve got to add more business/marketing posts).

Anyway, it has everything to do with it because if you own a business – you are the driving force behind it.  You create the vision for your business and if you’re thinking small – then your business will remain small.  And, if you work for someone else, well, you’re not going to stretch yourself to rise higher – if you’re playing small in the universe between your ears.

So. I hope that answers the question.

You CAN be, do or have anything you want for yourself AND your business when your thoughts are aligned with your vision and you take action towards your vision everyday.

Today being New Years Day – I thought it the perfect time to start practicing an attitude. An attitude of gratitude.

Take 15 minutes today and make a list of 20 things that you’re grateful for in your life right now. big or small – whatever you can come up with.  If you live in a house – there are hundreds of things to be grateful for with just that, such as hot and cold running water when you want it, a refrigerator with food in it, a warm, cozy bed – you get the idea.

The point is – if your present situation isn’t exactly as you would like it to be – it’s still important to feel good about what you have now.  Because if you don’t appreciate what you have now – why should you get anything else on top of that?

Would you keep giving an ungrateful child more and more gifts?

Until tomorrow…

the 30 day new thoughts-new you challenge

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Ok, not the coolest title for a challenge – in fact it’s pretty lame – but I don’t care. I can always change it – because it’s my challenge!!

The point is that 30 days from now – if you follow and play along – you may just change your destiny.

Why?

Because you’re tired of getting the same results you got from last year’s New Year resolution. In fact – did that resolution even make it past Valentines Day before you gave up on it?

Well – same for me. My book isn’t published. That was one of my 2009 goals.

So, I have drawn a line in the sand, burned my ships and made a decision.

2010 is the year it all changes.

Procrastination will give way to relentless energy, spinning my wheels – replaced with laser-focused action, lack of direction – that is so 2009 – 2010 will begin with a clear VISION.

Are you with me?

Do you want to create new habits that will help you achieve? Do you want to kick ok fear, doubt and worry in the ass and say – enough is enough you guys. And let FAITH in your vision replace those bad boys?

That’s what I’m doing. And, I’ll be posting action steps every day so you can play along. In fact, I’m even going to get brave enough to create some (GASP) videos of me. (one of the things I put off in 2009)

So, how do you change habits?

by replacing them with new ones.

But, you really do have to be really tired of your present reality.

If you are – then tonight and tomorrow – write out a clear vision of how you would like your life to be on december 31, 2010. What do you want to look like? Lose some weight, get more in shape? Who do you want to be with? What kind of house do you want to live in? Just be playful with this – what do you really want out of like and where do you want to be a year from now.

Be specific.

example: I’m sitting on my oh so comfortable chaise lounge on my lanai. It’s so quiet except for the sounds of the waves gently lapping at the shore. I sip my iced tea and look out at the horizon. My son is dangling his feet in the pool, as it’s a warm night for this time of year. Later, our friends will be arriving to celebrate New Years eve with us. I get up and walk into my office, gently running my hands over all the books on the shelves. I stop when I graze a copy of my book, take it off hte shelf and sit down to read a chapter. I’m so grateful to all those who shared their stories to make my book the success it’s been. An amazon best-seller – wow, I would never have thought that last year.

Ok, so you get the point.

So, get yours written with your goals for your new life and your dreams as well.

Have fun with it.

Happy New Year.

The Power of The Dream

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Thank you Celine Dion for inspiring me today. I share this song with you – listen carefully to the lyrics. Because
your dream is the most important thing you own – keep it alive at all costs. Do everything you can to make it come
true. Remember that everything that we have around us was once a dream, a thought. We all have one deep inside,
it’s just that we have to dig past the layers of fear and nonbelief that have stopped us. I hope this song inspires you
to go further than you have, to take just one more step every day towards living your dream. And, then to bask in the sweetness
of living it.

Will Smith’s Keys to Life

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Good morning world.  This morning I was inspired by Will Smith.  He shares his thoughts on how he has succeeded in life.

I’ll let you hear hit from him – straight up.  Remember what he says – don’t quit – when you feel like quitting, and learn from

others.  Enjoy.

Maybe = May be NEVER

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Maybe has kept me from blogging since April!!!

Sure, I thought about getting back to blogging – and then said maybe I’ll do it tomorrow, if I’m not too busy.

And so five months, FIVE months have gone by – without a blog post.  And, no, I was not ever too busy to take 10

minutes to post here.

So what happened?

I never made the decision to begin again – really blog consistently again.  Sure, I’d poked my head in, cleared

the cobwebs and made a post or two – but no consistency.

That darn maybe.

See, maybe really means – may be never.  I’ve learned and am constantly reminded in the power of making a

decision – not a maybe, not a someday, not an “I’ll try”.  A real honest-to-goodness decision from which there can only be

two outcomes – You achieve the thing you set out to do or you don’t.  Period.

So, from now on, there will be blogging from me.  Consistently.  No maybes.  That’s my decision.

There is amazing power in making a decision – it forces you to take action.  It spurs you on when you

think that you can’t continue.  It gives you a reason to keep on going.  Why?  Because you made a commitment

to yourself, and possibly to others to get ‘er done.

I made two decisions today.  Small ones, but decisions on actions that I could take and see through in 1 hour.

And, now,  I’ve achieved both of them.

This may be very simplistic, but it proves to myself that I can set a goal and see it through to completion –

something that on a bigger scale – when there is more involved I tend to fall off and not see tasks through to

completion.

So, by doing these two tasks – I’ve now reinforced the fact that I can finish something I begin.  And, this is extremely

important to me.

It’s now up to me to build on this.  To learn to keep going and finish what I begin.  Because unless I do that, I miss out

on the personal sense of satisfaction I get from getting a job done.  And I also know the more I see tasks through, the easier and

more natural it will get.

Not to mention I’ll get a whole lot more accomplished.

Maybe.  🙂

Another Susan Boyle fan

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It feels so good to blog again.  I’d taken a blogging hiatus and it felt like something was missing – and it was – blogging!  I’ baaack.

So, I’m on Twitter the other day and Susan Boyle’s name starts coming up, then it comes up again, and again and again.  I watch the video – along with millions of other people.  I could write about this experience, but Dr. Mani of India has done so – and very eloquently.  So, I am going to send you away to read his thought provoking post on both Susan Boyle and the @aplusk @cnn Twitter battle.  

Take it away – Dr. Mani (click on name for post)

Article Writing and Twitter

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I just broke my own record in getting a blog up and live on the web.  You can see it here.  I don’t say that to toot my own horn, although if I had a horn right now I would toot it.  But, I digress.

I created this blog for a challenge that was thrown down on Twitter this morning by Tweeple I follow.  And, it was a good reminder to me that sloppy success beats perfect anytime.  So, I quickly created the blog so that people who are involved in the article writing challenge can go somewhere on the web to see updates about it.  We’ll see updates on Twitter, but the blog will be a place where updates can be longer than 140 characters.

For those who want to take the challenge – it’s going to be a lot of fun.

The whole point is that whoever participates writes 100 articles in 100 days (or less:) and posts them on Ezine articles

Why?

Because 100 new articles submitted will drive more traffic to your website or affiliate product.  It gets you more credibility as an expert on the topic that you’re writing articles about.   You’ll want to make sure that you write quality articles with good content – nothing spammy loaded with keywords.  The possibilities of this challenge are so exciting.

Think of the new people that your information will be helping.  Think of the momentum you’ll create for yourself by writing 100 new articles.  Then you can repurpose those articles into podcasts or online video tips.  

This is going to be fun.  Follow the progress on the blog.

And on twitter by searching for #hahd.

Hotties and Not so Hotties

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down-and-up-arrows

When you want to attract abundance, prosperity and anything good into your life there are some things you should do – Hotties, and things that will keep what you want away – Not so Hotties. Read them all and then see where you are on the attraction scale.

Are you mostly in the Hotties or Notties?

1. Thinking that you’ll be successful when – you get that new job, you move to another state, when you take that next course, when you (fill in the blank) – Hottie or Not so Hottie thought? (Not so Hottie) Why?

Answer: Not so Hottie. At every rung in the ladder or step up the mountain you have to believe that success (i.e. – reaching the top/goal) is coming. You can’t pin your success on an outside circumstance that is dependent on others – getting a new job, moving, etc. Your success will be entirely created or not by your thoughts and actions.

2. Being envious of others who are more successful than you – Hottie or Not so Hottie?

Okay, I threw you a bone here. Obviously, thinking negative thoughts is in the Never Hottie category. Here’s how to turn it around. Tell yourself that you’re happy for their success and really feel it. Then tell yourself that yours is coming and you have to really believe it – even if you don’t feel it so much. Hey, if you were driving from NY to LA – 99% of the trip you can’t see LA, you’re far from LA – as far as you’re concerned LA might not even exist. Even when you’re just a few miles from LA you still can’t see it. But, common sense tells you that LA exists – so you keep driving and you get there.

3. Star Light Star Bright – First Star I see tonight – I wish I may, I wish I might – get the wish I wish tonight. (Wishing on a star – Hottie or Not so Hottie?)

Survey says – This one’s a tossup. Why? Because at least you’re clear on what you want. You’re wishing for a certain thing, something tangible. Desire is the first step to creation – so you’ve created the desire – That’s a hottie thoughtie.

Wishing it to come true on the other hand – not so much. You have to take action, inspired action toward your desire. And you will be surprised when people, opportunities show up that you couldn’t have planned for, but will help you get to your goal faster.

For the next 30 days – when those thoughts flood your head – ask yourself if they’re hotties or notties. And, then force yourself to go for more of the hotties.

Your Body – Your Self

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Your Body Your Guru

I am only recently becoming aware of the connection between my mind, body and spirit. Which is why I’m thrilled that Mary Kay Morgan, @theinnermarykay (on Twitter) will be joining me on my Blog Talk Radio show.

I know that my body holds part of the key to success – but don’t really know why. But, Mary Kay does and she’s going to be sharing that with us on Tuesday, March 3rd. As Mary Kay says, “we already hold all the answers. No one else can define the “how’s” for you, the “what’s” or the “when’s” either – only you have the right and perfect answer for you. Only you hold the truth for your life’s questions. I’m going to reveal how you can begin discovering your own answers to your own questions right now, so that you finally get to physically experience your heart’s desires instead of only dreaming about them!”

She continues:
Have you ever had an experience so profoundly painful, so dismantling of everything you have built your life on, so completely devastating that you had no choice but to surrender and start over from scratch?
Ask any successful person their story and it will likely include “the moment/event/person that changed their life” as its climax. It may be a divorce, a chance meeting, bankruptcy, addiction, death, a mystical experience or something that to others appears minor, but because the “event” occurred, the Light of Truth was able to penetrate and real learning could begin. (Occasionally you might find a successful person that chose to learn from the painful experiences of others – so that is possible, less common, but possible.) For me, it was a relationship that occurred after my divorce that broke me into a zillion little pieces and left me to put myself back together. Thank goodness I didn’t have the directions for the original model! All my same pieces were there, but I had to re-construct from a new set of plans, a new consciousness.

From that place of pain came the trust and inner wisdom that now guides Mary Kay. She’s going to teach us how to get grounded in our bodies, the basics of our energetic foundation and exercises and nutrition that we can do to maintain our great foundation.

If you struggle at all with weight, self-image or self-worth issues – then you’re not going to want to miss this call.

Go here now and bookmark the page here and put 1:00 EST Tuesday March 3rd on your calendar. But, if you can’t make it live – the replay will be waiting for you.