1. The Key to Making Life Unique and Worthwhile by Jim Rohn

Now the key to make life really unique and worthwhile is to share. Sharing has a certain unique magic of its own. Here's what I learned in sharing ideas.

If you share an idea with ten different people, they get to hear it once, and you get to hear it ten times. So here's part of self-interest for yourself, getting you even better prepared for the future. Share ideas. Share with your family, share with the people around you, share with other employees, share with your colleagues.

Because by sharing, two things happen. Here's what we call it. I don't know how to explain it, but I do know it happens. And I don't know all about how it happens or why it happens, it just happens.

When one person shares with another, two things happen. The audience could be transformed, and so could the speaker. If you share with someone else, they could be transformed. You may have dropped in at the right time. This may be their moment. They've got three numbers dialed into the lock already, and if you say it well and say it right you'll be the fourth number that they can dial into the lock of their personal experience and the door will come open and there's opportunity they never saw before. The person who hears could be transformed.

But here's what else is exciting. The person who speaks could be transformed. Guess what we're all looking for…transformation for our new life. The new life tomorrow, the new life this month, the new life next year, the new life this year.

The caterpillar one day says, "I think I was made for more than this crawling on the ground." So the caterpillar climbs the tree, attaches himself to a leaf and spins the cocoon. Who knows what disciplined effort it takes to spin a cocoon. But something inside the caterpillar says, "I was designed for something more than being just a caterpillar."

And then when the cocoon is ready and it opens up, out comes a butterfly that flies away, maybe singing, "I believe I can fly! I believe I can touch the sky! I used to be a caterpillar on the ground, now I fly."

I'm asking you to go through such a metamorphosis. I'm asking you often to go through a period where you say, "New skills, new things are waiting for me," and part of this will come if you'll translate for other people what you feel in your heart and in your soul. As awkward as your language might be at first, don't hesitate to do it.

Here's what sharing does…makes room for more. Key question, if this glass is full of water can it hold any more? If the glass is full of water, can it hold any more? And the answer is yes, yes, if you pour some out. So jot that down. If you want more, you've got to pour out what you've got, then you have the opportunity to receive more.

Now, unlike the glass that remains the same size when you pour some out; not so in consciousness human beings. Your capacity will increase the more you share. You'll get bigger and bigger and bigger.

Now why the self-interest wish to be bigger? Here´s why… to hold more of the next experience. Some people can't hold much happiness because they're too small, their thinking is too small, their activity is too small, they're too small in their ability to share, they're just too small. Can't hold much, they're too small.

But the bigger you get, the more you will receive. When happiness is poured out, you'll get more. When joy is poured out on the nation, you'll get more. When bounty is poured out from the economy, you will get more, if you share what you've got and become bigger and bigger and bigger.

Now some people are not only small, they have their glass turned upside down. Hard to get anything in. But here's what you've done in coming here this weekend. You've come with an open mind, an open consciousness, ready to receive, and I promise you we´re going to pour everything we possibly can into every ounce of time we've got here to make it beneficial for you, give you not just your money's worth but your time's worth.

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

Week's Jumpstart

More Conscious Control of Our Habits and Lifestyles Leads to a Rich, Balanced Life by Dr. Denis Waitley

To live a rich, balanced life we need to be more in conscious control of our habits and lifestyles. Actualized individuals have a regular exercise routine. They pay attention to nutrition, with lean source protein and fiber-based carbohydrates as their basic food choices. They relax through musical, cultural, artistic, and family activities. They get sufficient sleep and rest to meet the next day renewed and invigorated.

In addition to blocking periods of time for recreation and vacations, they also schedule large, uninterrupted periods of work on their most important projects. Contrary to popular notions, most books, works of art, invention, and musical compositions are created during uninterrupted time frames, not by a few lines, strokes, or notes every so often. Every book or audio program I have written has been done with the discipline of twelve to fifteen hours per day during a specific block of time.

True enough, I may have sacrificed a ski trip or an escape vacation once or twice. But by trying to focus on prime projects in prime time, the opportunity costs have been outweighed by the return on invested resources. With your material, time and energy resources allocated well, you should be able to use your innovative powers to focus on goal achievement. Effective priority management creates freedom. Freedom provides opportunity to make decisions. We make our decisions and our decisions, over time, make us.

So this week, concentrate on making the decisions that make your goals!
-- Denis Waitley

2. The Champion Within Article

Procrastination Doesn't Make Perfect by Denis Waitley

Perfectionists are often great procrastinators. Having stalled until the last minutes, they tear into a project with dust flying and complaints about insufficient time. Perfectionist-procrastinators are masters of the excuse that short notice kept them from doing the quality job they could have done.

But that's hardly the only variety of procrastination – which is one of my own favorite hiding places when I try to blame external conditions instead of myself for some difficulty. Mine comes with a gnawing feeling of being fatigued, always behind. I try to tell myself that I'm taking it easy and gathering my energies for a big new push, but procrastination differs markedly from genuine relaxation – which is truly needed. And it saves me no time or energy. On the contrary, it drains both, leaving me with self-doubt on top of self-delusion.

We're all very busy. Every day we seem to have a giant to-do list of people to see, projects to complete, e-mails to read, e-mails to write. We have calls to answer and calls to make, then more calls to people with whom we keep playing voice-mail tag.

Henri Nouwen's classic book Making All Things New likens our lives to "overstuffed suitcases that are bursting at the seams."

Feeling there is forever far too much to do, we say we're really under the gun this week. But working hard or even heroically to solve a problem is little to our credit if we created the problem in the first place. When most people refer to themselves as being under the gun, they want to believe, or do believe, that the pressures and problems are not of their own making. In most cases, however, the gun appeared after failure to attend to business in good time. Instead of being proactive early, they procrastinated until the due date became a crisis deadline.

By the Inch Life's a Cinch, by the Yard it's Hard

One of the best escapes from the prison of procrastination is to take even the smallest steps toward your goals. People usually procrastinate because of fear and lack of self-confidence and, ironically, become even more afraid when under the gun. There are many ways to experiment and test new ground without risking the whole ball game on one play.

Experience has shown that when people go after one big goal at once, they invariably fail. If you had to swallow a twelve-ounce steak all at once, you'd choke. You have to cut the steak into small pieces, eating one bite at a time. So it is with prioritizing. Proactive goal achievement means taking every project and cutting it up into bite-sized pieces. Each small task or requirement on the way to the ultimate goal becomes a mini-goal in itself. Using this method, the goal becomes manageable. When mini-mistakes are made, they are easy to correct. And with the achievement of each mini-goal, you receive reinforcement and motivation in the form of positive feedback. As basic as this sounds, much frustration and failure is caused when people try to "bite off more than they can chew" by taking on assignments with limited resources and impossible timeline expectations.

Two major fears that sire procrastination are fear of the unknown and fear of rejection or looking foolish. A third fear – of success – is often overlooked. Many people, even many executives, fear success because it carries added responsibility that can seem too heavy to bear, such as setting an example of excellence that calls for additional effort and willingness to take risks. Success, without adequate self-esteem or the belief that it is deserved, also can create feelings of guilt and the result is only temporary or fleeting high achievement. Playing it safe can seem more tempting than a need to step forward with determination to do it now and do it right.

Moving from Procrastination to Proactivation:

Here are some ideas to help make you a victor over change rather than a victim of change:

1. Set your wake-up time a half hour earlier tomorrow and keep the clock at that setting. Use the extra time to think about the best way to spend your day.

2. Memorize and repeat this motto: "Action TNT: Today, not Tomorrow." Handle each piece of incoming mail only once. Answer your e-mail either early in the morning or after working hours. Block out specific times to initiate phone calls, personally take incoming calls, and to meet people in person.

3. When people tell you their problems, give solution-oriented feedback. Rather than taking on the problem as your own assignment, first, ask what's the next step they plan to take, or what they would like to see happen.

4. Finish what you start. Concentrate all your energy and intensity without distraction on successfully completing your current major project.

5. Be constructively helpful instead of unhelpfully critical. Single out someone or something to praise instead of participating in group griping, grudge collecting or pity parties.

6. Limit your television viewing or Internet surfing to mostly educational or otherwise enlightening programs. Watch no more than one hour of television per day or night, unless there is a special program you have been anticipating. The Internet has also become a great procrastinator's hideout for tension-relieving instead of goal-achieving activities.

7. Make a list of five necessary but unpleasant projects you've been putting off, with a completion date for each project. Immediate action on unpleasant projects reduces stress and tension. It is very difficult to be active and depressed at the same time.

8. Seek out and converse with a successful role model and mentor. Learning from others' successes and setbacks will inevitably improve production of any kind. Truly listen; really find out how your role models do it right.

9. Understand that fear, as an acronym, is False Evidence Appearing Real, and that luck could mean Laboring Under Correct Knowledge. The more information you have on any subject – especially case histories – the less likely you'll be to put off your decisions.

10. Accept problems as inevitable offshoots of change and progress. With the ever more rapid pace of change in society and business, you'll be overwhelmed unless you view change as normal and learn to look for its positive aspects – such as new opportunities and improvements – rather than bemoan the negative.

There is actually no such thing as a "future" decision; there are only present decisions that will affect the future. Procrastinators wait for just the right moment to decide.

If you wait for the prefect moment, you become a security-seeker who is running in place, unwittingly digging yourself deeper into your rut. If you wait for every objection to be overcome, you'll attempt nothing. Get out of your comfort zone and go from procrastinating to proactivating. Make your personal motto: "Stop stewing and start doing!"

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article

Keeping Your Attitude Up When Circumstances Are Down by Chris Widener

"Instead of spending your time thinking about how bad things are, think about how good they will be!"

Everyone knows that a positive attitude is key to the successful life. But what happens when things go wrong? What happens when circumstances deal us a blow? We have a tendency to let our attitudes take the dive along with our state of affairs. Life deals us setbacks, both minor and major, on a regular basis, but if we are going to be successful, we need to know how to deal with them and keep our attitudes intact! We need practical tools to help us understand how we can go about keeping our attitude up, when the circumstances are down. Here are some thoughts to help us do so:

Take some time-out. I'm sure you are aware of what happens. You are going about your day and everything seems to be going well, when out of nowhere disaster strikes. All of your best-laid plans begin to tumble. Sometimes circumstances surprise us and we react. Unfortunately, this often compounds the problem because by reacting we tend to operate out of our weaknesses instead of our strengths. We make decisions that are not well thought out. We function with a bad attitude that says, "I can't believe this is happening!"

The next time circumstances turn against you, take some time to just step back from the problem and think. This will enable you to deal with the issue at hand rationally, instead of emotionally. It will allow you to put your state of mind back into its proper place. It gives you the opportunity to choose your attitude as you face the circumstances at hand. Remember that we don't have to do something right now. Go grab a cup of coffee and relax little bit. By doing this you function with you being in control and not the circumstances.

Keep your eye on the goal. A second step in keeping our attitude in the proper place is to make sure we keep the important things important. One of the biggest problems with trouble is that it gets your focus off of where it should be. When I experience difficult circumstances and people ask me how it is going, I tell them, "I am just keeping my eye on the goal." It has always been fascinating to me that when racecar drivers get into trouble, they keep their eyes straight ahead and do not move them away. There is just too much chance of wrecking that way. Instead, their eyes are on the goal, and this keeps them out of trouble. If you find yourself getting down about circumstances, sit down and write out what the goal is. Give some thought to how you can achieve that goal or others you may have.

A man was asked how he was doing and he responded, "Pretty well, under the circumstances." The other man asked, "What are you doing under the circumstances?" Good question. We shouldn't be under the circumstances we should be focused on the goal and moving forward.

Focus on solutions, not problems. The squeaky wheel gets the oil, the old saying goes. Negative circumstances don't sit idly by. They scream for our attention. When we face difficult circumstances, we tend to dwell on them. We talk about them, fret about them, and give them way too much attention. Instead of talking about problems, talk about solutions. Instead of spending your time thinking about how bad things are, think about how good they will be! Don't have family or staff meetings about the problems and how big they are. Have meetings on the solutions and how you will implement them. Don't let yourself or other team members complain. Encourage them to solve, with an emphasis on the positive results that will come from doing so. Then take some time to put these solutions down on paper, so you can monitor your progress.

Get some positive input. The mind tends to build on itself, so when we begin to go in one direction, i.e. worry, it can be a slippery slope. One thing we must do is get our thoughts back on track with positive ideas. When circumstances have got you against the emotional wall, get with a good friend who can encourage you. Listen to a CD by Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar or another motivational speaker. Pick up a good book and give it a read. Whatever external influence you can get to put your attitude back on the positive side of the tracks - do it! It must be one of our first goals to start plugging good things into our minds to fuel our attitudes.

Tell yourself the good. One of the greatest internal powers we have is the power to control our thoughts. Spend time dwelling on the good things about your life or job instead of the problems. Think about positive things, things you enjoy and give you a sense of happiness and peace. There is an old childhood song that says, "Count your blessings, name them one by one." That is great advice! Let your positive attitude develop from within as well as from without. This makes all the difference!

Remember that circumstances are not forever. Sometimes it seems like we are going to be up to our eyeballs in the situation forever, when in reality, this too shall pass. There will be a time in the future when circumstances will change and you will be on the mountain instead of the valley. This will give you a sense of hope as you live and work that will change your attitude, make you feel better and put you on the fast track for growth!

Some questions as we close:

        Q. Do you have a habit of reflection before responding?
        Q. Do you have a habit of keeping your eye on the goal?
        Q. Do you focus on solutions or problems?
        Q. Do you give yourself positive outside influence?
        Q. Do you have a habit of telling yourself the good?
        Q. Do you remind yourself that nothing is forever?

Chris Widener

2. Made for Success Quote and Commentary

Learning from Einstein's Creativity by Ron White

One of the most famous quotes of Einstein is when he said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge." Einstein was putting value on creativity here. His theories and ideas were all about creativity. When he made a working box car for his son out of shoe string and some boxes, that was creativity. When he was down and out and needed money and posted an ad for tutoring lessons; that was creativity in making money.

Since Einstein accomplished some of the greatest thoughts of our time, an argument could be made that he was one of the most creative people of all time. You can know more about your product than anyone and have more degrees than anyone you know, but if you don't have a little bit of creativity to take advantage of what you do have, then it is useless.

Credentials and knowledge will do you little good if you lack the creativity to take advantage of them. Einstein once said, "The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources." I think he was being a little humble and a lot humorous here, but he was once again acknowledging the importance of being creative!

So you may ask yourself, "What is creativity?"

That is an excellent question -- let's go straight to the source to answer it. Einstein said, "CREATIVITY is seeing what others see and THINKING what no one else has thought."

Robert Kennedy said the same thing this way, "I look at things that are and I ask why? I look at things that never were and ask why not?" Robert Kennedy was talking about creativity, just as Einstein was.

So how do you do it? How do you model the creativity of Albert Einstein?

First of all, we need to address the idea of the limiting belief that you are not creative.

There is a prevailing belief that creativity is an inborn trait - you are either creative or you're not. Well, while creativity is an inborn trait, we are all born with a creative brain (your right cerebral hemisphere) and have many creative skills. Children are naturally curious and eager to explore the world around them and spend hours playing with toys, making up imaginary friends and pretend games. But as we get older, we begin to lose some of our natural creativity as we learn and use more left-brain thinking skills in school and at work. Research shows that our propensity to generate original ideas reduces from 90% at age 5, to 20% at age 7 and even further to 2% as adults! However, unless you have suffered brain damage in your right hemisphere or had it surgically removed, you still have a creative brain; so you are still creative. It's just that maybe you don't use your creativity skills as much as you used to.

Now for the good news! You can reawaken your creative brainpower.

What would Einstein tell you in regards to increasing your creativity? Well, we don't have to guess on that one, because he did tell us. He said, "The important thing is to not stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existing."

Develop the curiosity of a child. Leonardo Da Vinci, who is said to be one of the greatest geniuses of all time, also had this creativity. I don't think that it is a coincidence that Leonardo and Einstein were both extremely creative and that so many years after their deaths we are still talking about them.

Let me give you a few of Da Vinci credentials:

500 years ago he:

- drew blue prints for the worlds first helicopter
- drew blueprints for a submarine
- built an extendable ladder that is still being used by fire departments today
- built the world's first hydraulic jack
- built a rotating stage
- and 500 years ago he build a water powered alarm clock!

Those are some pretty amazing credentials if you ask me.

Curiosity might have "killed the cat" but it can help you think like a genius. Leonardo Da Vinci had a book of questions. In this journal of sorts he would write down questions as fast as they would pop into his head. He would write down questions such as:

why do birds fly?

why do they slow down as they land?

what do their feathers do?

The interesting thing is that he didn't worry about the answers. He simply wrote down the questions because he knew something about the power of the human mind. He knew the subconscious mind was powerful and if he wrote down the questions his subconscious mind would continue to work on the answers.

Creativity is defined by Webster as "creative ability or intellectual inventiveness." This is a skill that everyone has to some extent. There are ways to improve your ability to create and generate new ideas. Not everyone can be a great artist or a creative genius, but it makes sense to make the most of the potential we are given.

Brainstorming is an extremely good way at practicing creativity. A brainstorm can work with an individual or a group. This technique requires the generation of as many ideas as quickly as possible to solve a problem.

It does not matter how outlandish an idea might be, all ideas are written down. The ideas need to be written down, and a time limit should be imposed for accepting ideas. If this is a group brainstorm, an individual should be appointed as recorder to write down the ideas. If this is an individual project, the person should write as the thoughts come. Remember the less judgment of ideas the greater the number of ideas generated. Although many of the ideas may be unreasonable and ineffective, they may lead you to the idea that will really work. It is helpful to set a goal for the number of ideas you wish to generate. This will give you something to work toward, and may unleash the perfect solution.

Journal your thoughts for future use. This includes writing down dreams, insights, experiences, quotes, problems with friends, and any other information that is pertinent to you. This should have some kind of organization so you can look back on it periodically. You may find the answer to a problem in last month's dream, so remember to review these personal logs frequently. This system will compliment the complex subconscious mind, and allow you to retrieve from this boundless resource.

Allow your ideas to develop and follow through on them. It is said that a good idea is worth fifty cents, and the plan to implement that plan is worth millions of dollars. It has been said another way as well: Anyone who has ever taken a shower has had an idea. It is the man who gets out of the shower, dries off and does something about it that changes the world.

As you learn about creativity and the techniques that work best for you, a whole new world will open up to you. Creativity can be helpful in problem solving, dealing with people, and creating success in all areas of your life. Take the time to tap into your greatest power, the power of the imagination and increase your creativity in all areas of life.

Sometimes when we face a problem we struggle with our thoughts so much, our energy is spent. The stress that comes with this kind of problem solving also affects how we think. If the anxiety level becomes too high, parts of the brain will shut down and it is impossible to generate the ideas needed to deal with the problem. When faced with too much stress the mind goes into the "fight or flight" mode. This allows the mind to deal with only two alternatives, fighting the opponent or fleeing the danger.

You can avoid these mind numbing emotions by altering your environment. When you feel yourself getting stressed out or you begin losing your focus, walk away from everything for a change of scenery. Allow yourself to focus on another task. Some people, golf, juggle, or exercise to get away from their mind blocks. When you return to this important task, you will have shifted from your stressed out mind set to a new relaxed and ready to conquer attitude.

Blaise Pascal said, "Almost all of the problems of mankind arise from the inability to be alone with oneself in a room for any period of time."

Getting away from the problem allows your subconscious mind to problem solve, while your conscious mind is occupied with other things. Sometimes you will find the solution to your problem in your sleep. This is when the subconscious mind is most active. Basically, all your experiences and learnings are stored in this part of the brain. This is where your creativity gets turbo-powered. If you can tap into this force you will have creative powers beyond your wildest expectations.

Another good way to help your creativity is to read. That is right, read.
You see when you read your subconscious mind is automatically creating pictures whether you like it or not. So develop a passion for reading and watch your creativity increase. Both Einstein and Da Vinci were avid readers. Model this behavior and watch your creativity increase.

Einstein said that he would simply imagine it so and then go about to prove it. In other words the creative process occurred before the experiments.

Ron White

This article was excerpted from Ron White's How to Develop the Mind of Einstein. For more information about Ron's special offer on

How to Inspire Others to Peak Performance by Nido Qubein

It's probably true that most people who work with us will never care as deeply as we do about building our business and serving our clients. If they did, they'd probably be working for themselves.

Yet there's a great deal we can do to raise the level of their commitment and inspire them to peak performance. The operative word in the preceding sentence is inspire. You can demand that people who work for you be punctual, or that they perform at a certain level of output, or even that they do things reasonably well. Yet real commitment can only be inspired. And, inspiring people is what great leaders like John F. Kennedy and Lee Iaccoca did best.

How do great leaders such as these inspire others to commit themselves to their goals? It's not just that they have charismatic personalities, or that they give a lot of high-powered motivational talks. What they do is communicate their vision so forcefully that other people adopt it as their own vision.

For example, in the early sixties, President Kennedy set his sights on putting a man on the moon, and told the American people "We can do it!" He said it with such conviction that masses of people believed it, and committed themselves to making it happen. And, sure enough, in less than a decade, the first human being had walked on the moon.

Lee Iaccoca stepped into the ailing Chrysler Corporation and said "We're going to turn this company around!" With clear goals, a solid plan of action, and a strong conviction, he was able to inspire enough commitment from the U.S. Congress that he secured the largest loan ever made to a private company. Then he inspired enough commitment in thousands of Chrysler workers to enable the company to pay back the loan ahead of schedule.

That's the formula for any leader to inspire commitment -- clear goals, a solid plan of action, and a strong conviction. If you can communicate that to the people who work with you, you will have the kind of loyalty that makes them go the second mile. And the third and fourth miles if that´s what it takes to get the job done.

Of course, it takes more than inspiration to run a successful sales function. The people who work with you have to consistently perform at very high levels. And, to get that kind of performance, you have to gain their trust. They have to believe that you will always be fair in your dealings with them, and that you are concerned about their best interests.

One of the most helpful insights I ever learned about leading others is that people do things for their reasons, not for your reasons or for mine. So the goals, the plan of action, and the strong conviction have to be communicated in a way that directly answers the question: "What´s in it for me?"

When people honestly believe they will benefit directly from their efforts, and that the more they give the more they will benefit, they will perform at peak levels. So it's crucial that you show people how they will grow as they work individually and together to make the company grow, and then back up all your promises with solid actions.

People don't back good causes. They respond to clear opportunities for personal and professional growth. If I may paraphrase the Hallmark slogan, when people care enough, they'll give their very best!

But how can you move past the empty rhetoric and translate your vision into concrete actions your people can identify with and get excited about? Let me suggest ten proven techniques for building a solid team:

(1) Tie compensation, in every conceivable way, to the income people create. Profit sharing is one way you can do it, but that tends to reward everybody equally, regardless of how much effort they put into making the company profitable. A better way is to structure all or a part of everyone's pay, from the janitor to the president, around a mutually beneficial incentive plan. That way, the better job they do, the more money they'll make.

(2) Give constant public recognition for outstanding performance. The fact is that we all like to look good in the presence of our peers. So, if you can document that someone has done a job very well, give him or her a public pat on the back. If it's really good, throw in a tangible benefit. It will make everybody feel like giving more of themselves to the team effort.

(3) Constantly ask for input and ideas. People are usually much more enthusiastic about supporting decisions and plans they help to make. So it helps a great deal to get ideas and input from any staff person whose job will be affected by any upcoming decision. When your staff members quit talking about the company, and start talking about our company, you know you've got a team.

(4) Promote people on the basis of abilities, not just because they've performed well or have been around a long time. Make sure that anyone you promote has the skills and knowledge they need to do well in the new position.

(5) Assume that everyone needs to be trained for every new assignment. If you're lucky, you'll have one or two people who can plow into almost anything and do well at it. But most people need initial and on-going training.

(6) Constantly play the role of coach and mentor. Encourage people to keep growing and taking on new challenges. Guide their growth in ways that benefit your organization. Deal with mistakes and problems quickly, tactfully and forthrightly.

(7) Practice good human relations. Make people feel valued and important by treating them with dignity and respect.

(8) Provide plenty of opportunities for people to grow, both personally and professionally.

(9) Keep your personnel policies simple, clear and fair -- then firmly enforce them. It doesn't help to have policies that no one understands, and it's even worse to let people constantly get away with violating them.

(10) Weed out the prima donnas and poor performers before they spoil the whole team.
        
It takes a lot of patience and effort to build a solid team of people who will share and help you fulfill your vision, but the results will be well worth all you put into it.

1. The 10 Commandments of Selling by Ron White

'Oh...I am not selling!'

That was the reply I received from a speaker when she was diving into her sales pitch in her talk. Moments prior I had blurted out, 'There you go! Awesome!' Everyone in the room laughed because they knew I am known for my ability to sell from the platform and I was overcome with pride when I saw her delivering an effective close. As a matter of fact, I was so overwhelmed with pride I audibly congratulated her in a room full of people in the middle of her close.

Yet, her reply disappointed me and most likely the audience. It disappointed me because she is one of the many who view selling as a second class occupation and didn't want to admit that selling is what she was doing. It disappointed the audience I am sure – because it was a lie. She was closing!

At this same event, I had been asked to speak on selling and I developed The Ten Commandments of Selling for this talk. The first and foremost commandment is – Sell with Pride and Enthusiasm!

The Ten Commandments of Selling are as follows:

1. Sell With Pride and Enthusiasm – It will be obvious if you embrace and enjoy selling. If you do, your sales will sky rocket. Yet, if you view selling as a second class profession, do not be surprised when your checks reflect that you are the employ of a second class profession. However, that is your decision.

2. Show Them How To Purchase – As a speaker, I will hold up an enrollment form in front of the group and walk them through the enrollment process. Whether you are selling toasters or seminar tickets. You must get to a point where you walk them through the purchasing process and explicitly show the prospect where to sign and take the next step.

3. Display your product with care – Hold your product as if you are holding a new born baby. If selling a home, open the door with care and if you see dust on the counter wipe it off gently as if to say, 'This home is valuable and I want to take care of it even though it isn't mine.' I will peel the shrink wrap off the CD album as I am talking to the group and hold it to my chest. If I don't value the product in front of the group – What are the odds they will value it enough to invest in it?

4. Don't close…assume. – The assumptive close is perhaps the most powerful closing technique because you are implying that your product is so good no one could pass it up. If you must seek permission to be comfortable yourself with the assumptive close, say something like, 'Why don't your give it a try?' or 'Just sign right here and we will get you going.' I prefer the latter because it is more assumptive, however both work.

5. Sellin' ain't telling! The salesperson who is a master closer will be so because they have mastered the art of asking questions. Have a piece of paper handy and ask questions of your prospect. Make sure the questions are intelligent, cause them to visualize themselves owning the product and promote a positive response or emotion. If your questions do all of these things you will be leaps and bounds ahead of the sales person who attempts to beat their prospect into submission by peppering him with facts. Make sure that the prospect is intelligently engaged in the sales process and your closing ration will sky rocket!

6. Tell a story if possible about your product of someone who used it and had tremendous. Make sure the story is one hundred percent true and a testimonial letter from a satisfied customer would even be better.

7. Realize buying is an emotional decision. You will need to supply your prospect with logical reasons to purchase, so when they leave they do not have buyers remorse. With that said, the actual purchasing process is an emotional one. Words that inspire emotion are ones that have the prospect seeing themselves utilizing the product and enjoying it. You might say, 'Imagine the peace of mind that you are going to have when you have this insurance policy.' 'Can you see yourself driving this car around town waving to your friends?' 'Think about the confidence that you are going to have after you learn the skills in this book!' All of these statements are ones that require the prospect to visualize themselves in the future benefiting and enjoying the product. This will stimulate their emotions and dramatically you improve your chances of closing the sale. It is important to understand that you are not manipulating when you do this. Instead, if your product is good you are enabling them to see how good it is and how good it will make them feel. If they purchase and your product does indeed do this, you have not manipulated you have inspired happiness in their life. That is worthwhile.

8. NEVER wing it. There is no glory in winging it. I know some salesmen who believe that if they can walk into a sales presentation and wing it, it proves that they are great sales professionals. No it doesn't. It proves that they failed to do their research and are ineffective time managers. The glory is not in winging it. The glory is in understanding the sales process and nailing it every time to catapult your success and bank account.

9. Give them an incentive to act now with a Godfather offer. Raise your hand right now if you are a procrastinator? If your hand isn't up right now, I am guessing it is because you are going to raise it later – right? When your prospect walks away from you – the odds of you closing the sale have just dramatically decreased. If you have done your research and homework then you have prepared an offer that they can not afford to walk away from. While your profit margin may be lower per unit, you will without a doubt sell more units and the final profit should be your focus. Give them a reason to act today or they likely never will.

10. Ask for referrals. After you have closed the sale, this person is your best source of new business. If you have sold them professionally and provided them with a great deal –simply say, 'You have made a great decision. You are going to love this product. Do you know anyone who might benefit from it as well?' At this point give them ideas – Do you know anyone who is a realtor? Insurance agent? Has kids? Owns a home? Is a sales manager? Ask questions that inspire the kind of answers that you want. You have to plant the ideas in their head.

My field of speaking is filled with men and women who view it as below their dignity to sell. They feel the role of a speaker to be a professor and to sink to the level of salesman is a second class position. Perhaps the reason I wholeheartedly disagree with this is that I don't believe there is such thing as a second class position. I believe The Queen of England is of no higher class of a person than my father who is a police officer or my mother who cleaned houses for a living for most of her adult life. I fail to see one human with a brain, spinal cord and heart of higher class than someone with the same equipment. Sales is not a second class profession. There is no such thing. So sell with pride and enthusiasm!

Ron White

Charting Your Course to Success Article

Ignite Your Life! by Chris Widener

Where have you come from this past year? What have you accomplished? Don't like the answers? Wish you had better ones, more fulfilling ones? You can - just one year from now!

You have within yourself the power to decide that when someone asks you just one year from now, "What did you accomplish in the last year?" you will respond, "Let me tell you - I was on fire!"

You aren't getting any younger, and neither am I. If nothing changes, next year you will be one year older and still stuck in the rut wondering when you will achieve your dreams. But you can change!

Here are some thoughts to apply so that you can take control of your world and ignite your life!

Decide what you want this year. What is it - exactly? You will never pursue it, nor get it, if you do not know what "it" is. Crystallize it in your mind. See it. Know it.

Put some sort of physical reminder where you will see it every day. Maybe you want to lose weight. Put a picture of someone who looks the way you want to, or perhaps a picture of yourself from when you weighed what you want to weigh again. This will keep it in your mind each and every day.

Increase your positive self-talk. Stop telling yourself negative things, and I include thoughts, not just verbal talk. Instead, start telling yourself positive things. "But Chris, those thoughts just run around in my head. I don't put them there!" Well, catch them. Take them captive and throw them out! When you catch yourself thinking negative thoughts, stop and ask yourself what the exact opposite would be. Then begin to think it. Let the positive thought expand and take over the terrain of your mind the same way the negative thought would have before you ran it out of town!

Act. Yes, act. I don't mean join a theater group. I mean, get some action going in your life. Want to get out of debt? Ask the boss for 5 hours of overtime a week. Over a year that would be 250 hours (I give you two weeks for vacation. Aren't I nice?). If you normally make $15 an hour, you will make $30 (or something like that - go with me here). $30 multiplied by 250 is $7500. Your action will move you toward your goal. Worrying about money won't. If you want to lose weight, go to the gym on a set schedule. Whatever you do - act! Just make the action something that will propel you toward your goal.

If you do the above - if you decide what you want, put a physical reminder of it where you will see it, increase your positive self-talk and take actions that will propel you toward your goals, you will ignite your life! And next year when someone asks how you have been your eyes will light up and you will boldly say, "Man, I have been on fire! Let me tell you all about it..."

Chris Widener

2. Made for Success Quote and Commentary

"When you come to a fork in the road, take it." -- Yogi Berra

Chris' Commentary:
Decisions. Tough things aren't they? Many people end up not making decisions at all because of the fear that they will make a mistake. The fact is though, that even the bad decisions are rarely fatal. Most of the time they are simply short setbacks that, given the proper attitude, are actually learning experiences. A friend of mine who was the VP of Marketing for his company once made a business decision that was so bad it ended up later being listed in a book on the worst business decisions of all time (the funny part of the story is that his future son-in-law, having not actually read the book to realize his future father-in-law was in the book, gave it to my friend for Christmas one year - but I digress). What happened to my friend? Well, the countless other decisions he made over the years turned out to be pretty good, and now he is the President of that company, with well over 10 billion dollars a year in sales. The point? You have to make decisions. Some will be bad, most will be good, but you can't just sit and stare at the fork in the road!

Action Point: Got a decision you have been putting off? Make it today. If it is good, you will be glad you did. If it is bad, you will learn from it and have more time to correct it than if you put it off any longer.

3. The Last Word...

I recently saw a report on what people are afraid of in life. Obviously dying was near the top of the list. That is understandable. Truth be told, I'm not in a hurry to take that trip myself, but I know it is coming.

Want to know what I am even more afraid of then dying?

Here it is:

Not Really Living.

I am more afraid of not really living than I am of dying. So of course, knowing me that made me wonder why that is? And I think it's for a couple of reasons:

One, there is nothing you can do about the fact that you are going to die someday. It is something we all have to accept.

Two, there is something you can do about how you live.

Jim Rohn, one of my mentors, says that everyone has to experience pain: Either the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The very last pain I want to experience in my life is the pain of regret. I don't want to get to the end of my life and say, "I wish I would have…"

No, I want to REALLY live. How do you do that? Here are a few thoughts on how to REALLY live:

1. Decide what you want to accomplish in life. Write down 100 things you want to do, places you want to visit, etc.

2. Get used to the idea of taking risks. Nobody really lives unless they take risks. Playing it safe will get you through life, but it won't let you really live.

3. Laugh. The people I know who are most successful in life are people who have a great sense of humor.

4. Do something crazy. Do something no one expects you to. Say something no one expects you to say. Leave people astonished sometimes.

5. Live with integrity. That will keep you from crashing and burning along the road. That's never fun.

6. Give more than you receive. Be a person that others see as a generous, "go-to" guy in time of need.

7. Take your vacation. Seems simple but too many people don't even take the vacation they have earned and deserve.

8. Dream BIG! Let others have the tiny dreams and limp through life. As the saying goes: Go BIG or go home!

C'mon my friends, lets you and I REALLY LIVE from here on out. Let's commit to making a big difference in the lives of those around us.

And in the end, even though you will have to check out eventually, you will look back on your life and say, "Boy, I really did this life right!"

Integrity: The Real Bottom Line by Dr. Denis Waitley

A simple motto hung on the living room wall of my grandparents' small frame house, where many seeds for my development were planted. My grandmother and grandfather didn't talk about the lines; they lived them.

Life is like a field of newly fallen snow;
where I choose to walk, every step will show.

They believed you were either honest or you weren't. There was nothing in between, no such thing as partial honesty. Integrity, a standard of personal morality and ethics, is not relative to the situation you happen to find yourself in and doesn't sell out to expediency. Its short supply is getting even shorter -- but without it, leadership is a facade.

Learning to see through exteriors is a critical development in the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Sadly, most people continue to be taken in by big talk and media popularity, flashy or bizarre looks, and expensive possessions. They move through most of their years convinced that the externals are what count, and are thus doomed to live shallow lives. Men and women who rely on their looks or status to feel good about themselves inevitably do everything they can to enhance the impression they make -- and do correspondingly little to develop their inner value and personal growth. The paradox is that the people who try hardest to impress are often the least impressive. Devotion to image is often for the money it can reap. Puffing to appear powerful is an attempt to hide insecurity. If only we could see many of our celebrities when their guard and pretenses were down!

The myth that all that counts is bottom-line success often leads to fleeting stardom and ultimate defeat. Ask a thousand has-beens. There are no degrees of integrity. Just as you're pregnant or you're not, you have it or you don't.

-- Denis Waitley

2. The Champion Within Article

A Compelling 'Why' by Denis Waitley (excerpted from The Psychology of Motivation)

I have a suitcase for you. In that suitcase there is $1 million in cash. The suitcase is sitting in a building that is about an hour's drive from where you are now.

Here is the deal: All you have to do is get to this building in the next two hours. If you get there before the end of the two hours, I will hand you the suitcase, and you will be a million dollars richer.

There is one catch, however. If you are even one second late, our deal is off, and you will not get a dime. No exceptions! With that in mind, what time would you like to leave?

Most people would respond to that scenario by saying that they would leave right now. Wouldn't you?

So off you go. You jump into your car and start driving for the building. You are excited and are already starting to plan how you are going to spend your million dollars. Then, suddenly, the traffic comes to a complete stop. You turn on the radio and find that there has been a series of freak accidents between you and the building and there is no way to get there!

Now what would you do? Would you give up and go back home? Or would you get out of your car and walk, run, hire a helicopter, or find some other way of getting to the building on time?

Now let's suppose for a minute that you are driving to an appointment at your dentist's office. The traffic again comes to a stop. Amazingly, there have been freak accidents between you and your dentist's office. What would you do then? Probably give up, go home, and reschedule!

What is the difference between these two situations? It all comes down to why. If the why is big enough; the how is usually not a problem. This compelling why is connected to your personal objectives, mission statement, or magnificent obsessions. It is the basis of your motivational support beam. Truly motivated people are able to identify and tap into the power of a compelling why in everything they do.

Denis Waitley

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No Problem is Bigger Than You Are!

What to do when you don't know what to do?

Sometimes living hurts, and when life confronts us with
problems with which we don't know what to do, it hurts even
more. We only improve by figuring things out.

That we feel bad in the midst of demanding conditions is
natural. There is nothing wrong, and there is no conspiracy
on the part of life, God, nature, or reality. Pain plays an
important role in life. It is life's way of getting our
attention.

Aside from getting us to attend to what is happening right
now, it goads us into making decisions that we would not
make were it not for the attention getting pain.

When we don't know what to do we strive to acquire the
knowledge that demands and enables us to change. Granted
that change may be more difficult for some than others, and
to those for which it is very difficult we often hear the
claim that "change is easier said than done". The fact, is
that everything is easier said than done!

Pain gets our attention and we say "ouch!" (where we may
cry, sulk, rant, rave, get angry and more). With it comes
the opportunity to experience the full range of emotions.

Interestingly enough everyone's emotional journey gets
resolved at their own rate. So have your emotions, name the
pain that comes from the problem, and move through it. With
ouch being said and emotions running their course, know that
continued moaning, groaning, crying and complaining doesn't
solve problems.

The pain of grief from loss of a loved one is probably the
one exception to the following comments. The pain that comes
from grief and loss is unique and deserves special
attention.

Other than grief, we must be discerning as to how we handle
challenges. First distinguish between a problem and an
inconvenience. Wake up, focus on real problems. Complaining
about inconveniences is a sign of immaturity. When it comes
to real problems, and we deal with them, we grow and move
on.

Not feeling like dealing with problems is no excuse from
dealing with them. Feelings can be misleading. Feelings,
however, never tell us what to do, only that something
requires our attention.

No one likes to feel uncomfortable, but is it ever the case
that we better ourselves when we're feeling comfortable? To
get with the program, sometimes we have to experience
discomfort! Feelings are nature's security alarm.

Pay attention and then sort out the facts. Ask, "What's the
case?" Next, consider the skills and techniques that must be
applied to handle this. If you have them, use them. If not,
acquire them If that won't do, get a professional to help.

Design a process for thinking things through. We are
frequently blinded by our beliefs, feelings and emotions.
You may want to solicit the perspective of a credible
observer. Ask questions and write out your answers. Get into
an environment of rich resources. Read books, listen to
tapes, take seminars, classes, get coaching, instruction or
therapy if needed. Get with people who think, feel and
believe "there's a better way, a solution!"

Look at what works and consider some new approaches. Take
the initiative, and know that... "If it is to be, it is up
to me"... is true. In some situations, some ask, "Why should
"I" go first.

Why should I be the one to change? You change because only
you can delve into the problems and challenges that life
places in your path. The control for you is in you and not
"out there" somewhere.

When and if you say you have a problem due to "them" you
have put the responsibility for resolution of the problem
and change in a place where you have very little if any
control. Others are on the hook for handling their own
challenges. You are responsible for your response to our
challenges.

Only by working with the gifts that resides in you, can you
improve, change and control you experience. Nothing changes
your experience until you change! You have resources, time
and ability and no problem is bigger than you are.

Finally, understand that isolation is your enemy. Get with
others, and be persistent at being about figuring things
out, and remember, when it comes to people, you will only be
as successful as those with whom you surround yourself. Get
with good people!

(c) Copyright JohnAlston.com
_____________
John Alston, CSP, CPAE is an internationally known
Performance Strategist whose programs have lifted the
spirits of millions of people worldwide. He works with
people who want to improve their lives, and with
organizations who encourage personal achievement and
character development. Visit him at http://www.JohnAlston.com

-----------------------
More Motivation...
-----------------------

Here's a positive affirmation you may wish to write down and
recite to yourself...

"When I am faced with life's challenges I dig deep and seek
out the resources that will help me to overcome the given
adversity.

I remind myself that with each challenge that I'm able to
overcome I am stretching myself to the point that what once
might have appeared to be insurmountable is no longer quite
the challenge I once believed it to be.

I see every challenge for what it is -- an opportunity to
grow and improve. The journey towards my definition of
success is paved through my taking daily action which moves
me closer to my desired destination."

1. Your Achievement Article

Your Thoughts Brought You Here by Vic Johnson (excerpted from Day by Day with James Allen)

"You are today where your thoughts have brought you; you will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you." - Above Life's Turmoil

This principle was not easy for me to accept and I fought it for a long time. As miserable as my life was at the time I learned this concept, I was certain that there was no way that it was due to the thoughts that I had held. There were too many other reasons why things had gone bad: my ex-spouse, the economy, a client who had wronged me, and on and on and on. Since I wasn't responsible for my "bad luck," then certainly my thoughts had nothing to do with it.

But I was wrong. Like the biblical Job who said, "the thing I feared most has come upon me," I, too, had thought myself to the situation I was in.

Dr. Walter Doyle Staples, writing in Think Like a Winner! says, "I credit one simple concept with getting me started on my journey into self-discovery. After a great deal of study and contemplation, I came to the conclusion that people have in their lives today exactly what they keep telling their mind they want."

Like Dr. Staples, it was a moment of great illumination for me! The logical side of me said, "if you and you alone can think yourself into such a mess, then surely you and you alone can think yourself out of it."

And that I did. It wasn't overnight and it wasn't easy, but it was a sure thing! And by accepting all of the responsibility for where I was, and all of the responsibility for where I was going, I experienced a tremendous joy and freedom. I knew in my knower that if I got myself into the predicament, I could get myself out.

Of course, I had some great inspiration along the way. And I will always remember Les Brown's three steps to take during "hard time:"

1. Have Faith (didn't Paul say, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for...")
2. Remind yourself: "No matter how hard it is or how hard it gets, I'm going to make it!"
3. Have patience and engage in consistent action.

And that's worth thinking about.

Your Achievement Article

Don't Send Your Ducks to Eagle School by Jim Rohn (Excerpted from Leading an Inspired Life)

The first rule of management is this: don't send your ducks to eagle school. Why? Because it won't work. Good people are found not changed. They can change themselves, but you can't change them. You want good people, you have to find them. If you want motivated people, you have to find them, not motivate them.

I picked up a magazine not long ago in New York that had a full-page ad in it for a hotel chain. The first line of the ad read, “We do not teach our people to be nice.’ Now that got my attention. The second line said, “We hire nice people.’ I thought, “what a cleaver shortcut!’

Motivation is a mystery. Why are some people motivated and some are not? Why does one salesperson see his first prospect at seven in the morning while the other sees his first prospect at eleven in the morning? Why would one start at seven and the other start at eleven? I don't know. Call it “mysteries of the mind.’

I give lectures to a thousand people at a time. One walks out and says, ‘I'm going to change my life.’ Another walks out with a yawn and says, “I've heard all this stuff before.’ Why is that?  

The wealthy man says to a thousand people, “I read this book, and it started me on the road to wealth.’ Guess how many of the thousand go out and get the book? Answer: very few. Isn't that incredible? Why wouldn't everyone go get the book? Mysteries of the mind...

To one person, you have to say, “You'd better slow down. You can't work that many hours, do that many things, go, go, go. You're going to have a heart attack and die.’ And to another person, you have to say, “When are you going to get off the couch?’ What is the difference? Why wouldn't everyone strive to be wealthy and happy?

Chalk it up to mysteries of the mind, and don't waste your time trying to turn ducks into eagles. Hire people who already have the motivation and drive to be eagles and then just let them soar.

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article

Ability, Motivation and Attitude by Chris Widener

"Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it." Lou Holtz

There are three primary aspects of your life that will determine whether or not you are successful in your endeavors. You will not be successful if you have only one or two. You must have all three working together. Consider them like the three legs of a "stool of success."

Ability – the level at which you are able to actually do things. Your skill level. If you have a high level of skill, that´s good. And the better you get, the better it will be for you. To the degree that you can perform your actions at higher and higher skill levels, the more and more success you will find in your chosen field.

Motivation – the level at which you are able to find "a reason to act." This is the internal drive that you find that enables you to exercise your abilities. To the degree that you can find a way, or ways, to keep yourself motivated, you will see yourself right in the thick of things, carrying out your actions to the best of your abilities and succeeding accordingly.

Attitude – this is the mental state that you have while carrying out your actions to the best of your ability. It is the way you view the world around you and choose to see it, either positively or negatively. To the degree that you can maintain a positive attitude about yourself, others, and the circumstances you find yourself in, you will see yourself achieving greater and greater things.

"But Chris, can't I get away with just two?"

No.

What if you have high skills and motivation but a rotten attitude? People will stay away and hinder your success. What if you have a good attitude and motivation but poor skills? People will like you, maybe even root for you, but go to someone else with the skills they need. What if you have great skills and attitude but no motivation? Well, you'll be sitting on the couch like a lazy slug while the go-getters are out there making your money and achieving your dreams!

No, it takes all three. So let's ask some questions:

Ability: How highly skilled are you? Is your skill level holding you back? How so? What could you achieve if you just took your skills to the next level beyond where they are right now? How would improving your skills improve the bottom line of your success?

Motivation: How motivated are you? Why do you answer that way? What would your spouse or close friends say? Would they say you are as motivated as you say you are? Why or why not? Why do you have the level of motivation that you have? What could you do to find a higher level of motivation? What would happen if you became super motivated for the next period of your life. What great things would happen?

Attitude: Do you have a good attitude or a poor one? How would you rate yourself? What about when things go wrong? Are you more of an optimist or a pessimist? What would happen if you took your attitude to the next level for the next 60 days? What if you just chose to have an incredible attitude? What would be the ramifications?

"The world cares very little about what a man or woman knows; it is what a man or woman is able to do that counts." Booker T. Washington

This is so true. People will judge you on what you accomplish, not what you know or what you talk about. In fact, if you know a lot or talk a lot but do not accomplish anything, people will wonder what happened. So the question is whether or not you will take the actions necessary to deliver on your potential. To do so, you will need to focus in on the three legs of the stool of success: Your ability, your motivation, and your attitude.

Take some time this week to give some serious thought to these three areas. Your success depends on it! And when you have done some reflection – put the conclusions you come to into action!

Chris Widen

1. Your Achievement Article

Keeping a Journal- One of the Three Treasure to Leave Behind (excerpts from "How to Keep a Journal" audio series by Jim Rohn)

If you're serious about becoming a wealthy, powerful, sophisticated, healthy, influential, cultured and unique individual, keep a journal. Don't trust your memory. When you listen to something valuable, write it down. When you come across something important, write it down.

I used to take notes on pieces of paper and torn-off corners and backs of old envelopes. I wrote ideas on restaurant placemats. On long sheets, narrow sheets and little sheets and pieces of paper thrown in a drawer. Then I found out that the best way to organize those ideas is to keep a journal. I've been keeping these journals since the age of twenty-five. The discipline makes up a valuable part of my learning, and the journals are a valuable part of my library.

I am a buyer of blank books. Kids find it interesting that I would buy a blank book. They say, "Twenty-six dollars for a blank book! Why would you pay that?" The reason I pay twenty-six dollars is to challenge myself to find something worth twenty-six dollars to put in there. All my journals are private, but if you ever got a hold of one of them, you wouldn't have to look very far to discover it is worth more than twenty-six dollars.

I must admit, if you got a glimpse of my journals, you'd have to say that I am a serious student. I'm not just committed to my craft; I'm committed to life, committed to learning new concepts and skills. I want to see what I can do with seed, soil, sunshine and rain to turn them into the building blocks of a productive life.

Keeping a journal is so important. I call it one of the three treasures to leave behind for the next generation.  In fact, future generations will find these three treasures far more valuable than your furniture.

The first treasure is your pictures. Take a lot of pictures. Don't be lazy in capturing the event. How long does it take to capture the event? A fraction of a second. How long does it take to miss the event? A fraction of a second. So don't miss the pictures. When you're gone, they'll keep the memories alive.

The second treasure is your library. This is the library that taught you, that instructed you, that helped you defend your ideals. It helped you develop a philosophy. It helped you become wealthy, powerful, healthy, sophisticated, and unique. It may have helped you conquer some disease. It may have helped you conquer poverty. It may have caused you to walk away from the ghetto. Your library -- the books that instructed you, fed your mind and fed your soul -- is one of the greatest gifts you can leave behind.

The third treasure is your journals: the ideas that you picked up, the information that you meticulously gathered. But of the three, journal writing is one of the greatest indications that you're a serious student. Taking pictures, that is pretty easy. Buying a book at a book store, that's pretty easy. It is a little more challenging to be a student of your own life, your own future, your own destiny. Take the time to keep notes and to keep a journal. You'll be so glad you did. What a treasure to leave behind when you go. What a treasure to enjoy today!

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

Successful Goal Setting Tips

Assure Victory with Simple and Short-Term Goals...

Always have some goals that are easy to reach. Simple goals
and short-term goals will motivate you as you achieve them
and keep you headed toward larger goals.

Make Yourself Stretch with Long-Term Goals...

Long-term goals are usually two years or longer. These goals
set the stage for your plan of success. They challenge you,
expand your growth and help to keep you focused.

Share Your Goals with Affirmations...

Speaking your goals out loud in the form of affirmations
will not only help to feed your own sub-conscious mind, it
will also allow others to support your efforts too.

You are more likely to achieve your goals if your friends,
business associates and family know about them. Only share
your goals with people who encourage your growth and success
and avoid negative forces.

It always amazes me how many goals I achieve by sharing them
with others. My friends, family, business associates and
even my audience attendees help me to stay on track and keep
me moving toward my goals with continuous positive
encouragement.

If you have a tendency to disappoint yourself before
disappointing others, you may not feel comfortable sharing
your goals. Yet, most people who don't share their goals
often don't really believe that they can accomplish them.

This negative self-doubt feeds your sub-conscious mind and
begins to sabotage your results. To avoid this, move away
from any negative self-talk and start sharing more often.

Prioritize, Yet Be Flexible...

It is best to decide which goals are most important for you
to achieve. Date your goals accordingly in the areas that
will reap you the largest return on your investment of time
and money. Ask yourself, is this task moving me toward my
goals faster or holding me back from reaching my peak
potential?

Be open and flexible to changes around you. Due to
unforeseen circumstances, you may need to adjust the due
date of your goal or reevaluate and cancel it altogether.

Often, the goals that receive the most attention are most
likely the goals that will change frequently too.

Understand Why You Want to Achieve Your Goal...

Why do you really want to achieve your long-term goal? What
will it do for you or how will it change your life?

Clarify the root of why you want to achieve your goals. Is
it to earn respect from others or to create a better
lifestyle for your family? Will your goal have a profound
impact on your life or others?

Don't let your ego get in the way of setting big goals.
Honest evaluation of why you want to achieve your goals will
bring valuable insight and newly discovered personal
development. The more you understand why you want something,
the more motivated you will be to keep working at
accomplishing your goals.

Don't Give Up...

You will get discouraged from time to time and may even
start to doubt yourself. That is just human nature. You will
also get busy, side-tracked, and may have a tendency to
procrastinate. But don't stop! Keep moving toward your goals
-- one step at a time.

The reason many people do not set goals is the fear of
failure. Yet the only true failure is to not attempt to try
new things and to set new goals. If you don't try, you'll
never reap the rewards. If you try and only partly succeed,
you still are a success, and you will have achieved more
than you've got right now.

Get to work on your goals! Once you accomplish them you will
discover more confidence and feel more empowered. That is
your special gift to yourself in the New Year.

(c) All Rights Reserved
____________
Debbie Allen is an international professional speaker who
has presented to thousands of people around the world. She
is a well-known self promotional marketing expert and author
of four books. Visit her at http://www.DebbieAllen.com

-----------------------
More Motivation...
-----------------------

Here's a positive affirmation you may wish to write down and
recite to yourself...

"I am worthy of the goals I have set. I have within me all
that is necessary to accomplish what I have set out to
achieve. What I lack, I have the ability to learn. Through
applying persistence and taking the daily actions necessary
I am moving confidently on the path which will allow me to
reach my own definition of success."


Cooperation

Most of us are looking for new ways to make a quantum leap
in our personal or professional lives. The road to the top
is rarely a gradual incline. Instead, it is a series of
stair steps that takes us from where we are to where we want
to be.

This is not to say that success doesn't require constant
effort, because it does. It is simply a matter of the fact
that some days progress is readily apparent, and other days
the progress is invisible.

You can plant an entire field with seeds. You can cultivate,
fertilize, and water your field for many days and nothing
may be apparent. Then, seemingly overnight, small, fragile
plants will begin to appear. They will continue to grow and
then, one day, you will be ready to harvest.

At the end of the harvesting process, with luck and hard
work, you will have a bountiful crop. That crop did not all
come during the day of the harvest. It is a progression from
the time you began to plan your planting until you go into
the field and collect your crops.

This ongoing process is, therefore, marked by a series of
apparent quantum leaps. One of the fastest ways to create
quantum leaps in your life and in your career is to get
influential people and organizations to cooperate or combine
their efforts with yours.

Others will join your cause more due to the depth of your
enthusiasm than the height of your concept. Remember, people
are investing their time, effort, energy, and resources in
you and your ability to perform.

The greatest idea of all time is worthless without someone
dedicating their very existence to making it happen. On the
other hand, billions of dollars are generated from
relatively average ideas brought to the marketplace by
people with dedication and enthusiasm.

Before you seek people to join your circle, consider the
following:

1. What are the talents you are looking for someone to bring
to the table?

2. What contacts and connections should they have?

3. Who would be on your dream team? Assume everything is
possible.

4. Do your homework and due diligence. When someone becomes
a member of your team, their background and history may be
connected with your project.

5. What can you do for them? Remember, if you create value
in the lives of others, your needs will be met.

As you go through your day today, look for ways to cooperate
and combine your efforts with others to create quantum
leaps. In this arena, one plus one can equal 100 or even
more.

Today's the day!
______________

1. John Wayne the Businessman by Ron White

There were few things that marked my boyhood as strongly as westerns. Every Sunday I arranged my afternoon around 'The Lone Ranger', 'The Rifle Man' and 'Bonanza'. Then, if I was lucky, I would catch a glimpse of what I considered to be the definition of the word 'man' – John Wayne – in a late night western.

My grandmother had a painting of him in her living room, and in my blue collar family he was a hero. Maybe it was because the characters he portrayed were the qualities that my family lived - blue collar, hard working and honest. I am proud to say that I have a doctorate in John Wayne.

In 1972, Wayne played a character in which he mentored young school boys on a cattle drive in the film 'Cowboys'. Because of his leadership and example these boys became men before the end of the cattle drive as they avenged 'The Duke's' death after he was gunned down in cold blood. This was my favorite John Wayne movie, perhaps, because I also was a young boy and I subconsciously knew that I was being mentored through a cathode ray tube by the rugged cowboy and today I am a better businessman because of it.

If 'The Duke' were a businessman this year, I assure you that he would:

First and foremost, be honest.
This cowboy would never lie to make a sale and neither should you. His resume wouldn't exaggerate and you could rely on his word.

Be a hard worker.
John Wayne would be the first cowboy on his horse preparing for the cattle drive and he would be the first in your office and spend his time working to the point of exhaustion.

Defend the weak.
Whether it was in 'Stagecoach', 'True Grit', 'Cowboys' or another film. Wayne never took advantage of the weak. Instead, he protected those who couldn't do it themselves. If he was in your office, when a salesperson or professional was struggling – there is no doubt in my mind that he would ride alongside them and offer assistance to make the team better.

Feo, Fuerte y Formal
These were the words John Wayne wanted on his tombstone. They translate to:' He was ugly, strong and had dignity.' He was a physically strong man at 6'4''. Yet, it was strength of character that was referred to here. In your business, you would be a magnificent success if others say you have strength of character. This means not giving in when things look bleak. 'The Duke' wouldn't.

Have dignity.
This again, comes from his self description. Dignity means relying on yourself for your success and abandoning the victim mentality. Wayne would not be a victim if he worked in your office. He would not blame his lack of success on the economy, co-workers or his boss. Instead, with dignity he would take his future into his own hands and rely on no one but himself for his success.

John Wayne was the definition of the word man and would be the definition of the word businessman if he worked in your office right now. Mr. Wayne, as a young boy, I watched you ride off into the sunset on June 11th, 1979. That boy, who was confident one day he would be a cowboy, ended up a businessman and today I am a better one because of your lessons.

Thanks for the life lessons on hard work, honest, dignity, strength and compassion. With a tip of my hat, I give you a hardy, 'Thanks partner...'

Ron White

1. This Week's Jumpstart

Be willing to say to yourself, "I'm on the right road. I'm doing OK. I'm succeeding." We too frequently become adept at pointing out our flaws and identifying failures. Become equally adept at citing your achievements. Identify things you are doing now that you weren´t doing one month ago... six months ago... a year ago. What habits have changed? Chart your progress.

Doing well once or twice is relatively easy. Continuously moving ahead is tough, in part, because we so easily revert to old habits and former lifestyles. Over the long run, you need to give yourself regular feedback to monitor your performance and reinforce yourself positively. Don't wait for an award ceremony, promotion, friend or mentor to show appreciation for your work. Take pride in your own efforts on a daily basis.

-- Denis Waitley

2. The Champion Within Article

Beware of the Grinch (an adaptation by Denis Waitley of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas)

Now's the time you should hear this! For very good reason!
Now, please don't ask why. It's not simply the season.
Sooner or later the Grinch will invite you
To give up your life's goal as something you can't do.

It could be his head isn't screwed on just right.
It could be, perhaps, that his pants are too tight.
But I think the most likely reason of all
Is that his heart is too cold and his vision too small.

The Grinch is a dream stealer of many disguises.
A friend or relation with depressing surprises.
Just when you feel that your business is booming
He fills you with thoughts that are glooming and dooming.
He whispers about the forthcoming disaster
And about the new plan where you'll get rich much faster

When you say you look forward to earning a million.
He'll scoff and retort: "Not one chance in a billion!"
With a stock market rising and confidence strong
You'd think he'd get real and start going along.
But he howls and he growls with his terrible frown
"Whatever goes up, has got to come down!"

Sometimes the Grinch is quick to appear.
Sometimes he shows up year after year.
But whatever your "Why" and no matter "Who"
The dream stealer, Grinch, will start hitting on You.
He's the fear deep inside that insists you can't sell.
He's the voice that says, "Stop! Things are going too well!"

He especially hates Christmas and the spirit of giving
For he selfishly thinks that by "getting" you're living.
He thinks passionate service is too big a "Why"
And that money's the only incentive to try.
But he's missing the point, and hasn't a clue
That every Who out in Who-ville has a Dream to come true.

Sooner or later all dream stealers find
That they're out in the cold and left far behind.
What they could have or might have or should have possessed
Has now passed them by and left them depressed.

As you sit by the fire and plan the new year
Surrounded by family and friends of good cheer.
Remember the Grinch, with his feet in the snow.’
Standing puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?"
"It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages, boxes or bags!"

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store."
"Maybe Christmas... Perhaps... means a little bit more!"
It's a spirit to treasure each day and each night
It's the reason the American dream is still burning bright
It's a mission of hope you can trust and believe
"The more that you give, the more you'll

Your Achievement Article

The Two Core Fears and the Fear of Success by Lisa Jimenez, M.Ed.

Fear of commitment, fear of responsibility, fear of loss, and fear of confrontation are all symptoms of the two core fears. All of these surface fears fall into two categories which are the core fears: Fear of Failure and Fear of Success.
 
If you experience fear of commitment, responsibility, growing up, or change, your core fear is the fear of success. If most of your anxiety comes from fear of rejection, confrontation, or not measuring up, your core fear is the fear of failure.
 
Let´s talk today about the fear of success. The fear of succeeding and then having to maintain that success can be daunting. The fear of success is the most powerful fear over most people because it relates directly to the three inborn fears we talked about the other day. Fear of falling, fear of loud noises, and fear of abandonment.
 
The fear of falling represents the belief that once you've achieved success; there's no place to go but down.
 
The fear of loud noises correlates to sudden change. Perhaps you've been working toward something for months, and then, overnight it seems, something comes through and suddenly you are successful.
 
The fear of abandonment is very real to a person on the journey of success. You might lose friends when you become successful. They might be jealous of your success, view you as arrogant, or feel that you just don't fit in to the "old group" anymore. We have sayings like, "It's lonely at the top," and your inborn fear of abandonment is challenged.
 
These three fears are inborn and naturally reoccur from time to time. You can counter them by replacing them with truth. Discover your truth about what success means to you and live your life based on these truths. Then you will silence these inborn fears and conquer the dream busters.
 
Face Your Fear of Success

Have a great day!
Lisa Jimenez M.Ed.

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article

Your Dream Can Be Your Future by Chris Widener

Here is a basic truth you must accept and believe if you are to achieve your dream...

Your dream can be a reality! That's right; your future can actually see you living your dream. It doesn't just have to be a big wish!

When we are young we are dreamers. Nothing seems too big for us to accomplish. Nothing seems too outrageous. The world is ours on a string as the old song goes. Until...

"Reality" hits. Reality is what others want to box you in with:
"You can't do that."
"Nobody has ever done that before."
"It will never work."
"You've gone off the deep end now!"

All dreamers (who eventually become accomplishers) have heard these things.

Yet they overcome them. They refuse to accept someone else's "reality" for their own life. They let the average people live their average lives, bound by fear, while they pursue their chosen future – their dream! So don't believe the people who tell you that you can't or won't. Believe your dream. Believe that it can be your future!

Once you have determined that you can actually live your dream, I want you to memorize this acronym. I've shared it before, but I found that it is tremendously helpful for reminding and motivating us toward our dreams.

D is for Dare (dare to dream while others don't)
R is for Relentless (relentlessly pursue your dream no matter what)
E is for Excellence (strive for excellence in all you do)
A is for Abandon (abandon any other alternative plans)
M is for Measure (constantly measure where you are in your dream journey)

Okay, that's great and motivating, but what about the practical stuff? Well, there is certainly practical stuff. No matter how lofty your dream, no matter how spectacular, you will live most of your life in the mundane. Richard Nixon said of the presidency that you "campaign with poetry, but govern with prose." The vision is beautiful, the actual is mundane (not bad but "everyday" so to speak).

If you are to achieve your dream, you need to plan and work and work and plan. Here are my thoughts on how to go about reaching your dream and securing it as your future: Decide that you will do it. This may seem elementary but many people never decide and commit fully to their dream. They simply keep "thinking" about it. Tell others that you are going to do it. This puts you on the record as to what you are dreaming about. It makes you accountable. It will help you do it if for no other reason than to avoid embarrassment!

Develop a step-by-step plan. This is absolutely essential. You must sit down and write out a few things:

1. A timeline. How long will it take to the end?

2. Action steps. Point-by-point, what you will do and when you will do them.

3. Resources you will need to draw from. What will it take? Who will need to be involved for help or advice?

4. An evaluation tool. You need to evaluate from time to time whether you are progressing or not.

5. A celebration. Yep, when you are done you should already have planned what you will do to celebrate. Make it big!

I have found that there is no better time than now to start making your dream a reality. So, set aside some time today to get started on your dream. Follow the action plan and set your sights for the top of the mountain! You will be glad you did!

-- Chris Widener
 

1. The Christmas Truce by Ron White

It was referred to as the war to end all wars. Yet, two decades after World War I the world found itself once again entrenched in a global battle. Why was the First World War referred to as the war to end all wars? It earned this name because it was believed that with all the modern weapons of war, no nation would dare attack another for the sure bloodshed that would follow. The destruction of the First World War was horrific with over 10 million giving their lives in the name of their country.

In the midst of this brutality, death and destruction one of the most peculiar sights in human history evolved on a Christmas night in 1914. It was a sight rarer than watching a Texas baseball team in the World Series. On this incredible night almost a century ago soldiers on the western front did the unthinkable. Only days and perhaps hours before these men had found themselves frozen to the bone in the cold rain and mud. The sound of mortars still rang in their ears. The sight of their brothers in arms falling to the ground from a volley of bullets was still fresh in their minds. Yet something remarkable was about to take place on this Christmas Eve.

It was a truce in the fighting initiated by the low ranking men selected to do the fighting and dying. By all accounts this Christmas truce was not started by the British. It was, in fact, a result of the actions of the Germans. Yes, the country that it had become easy to vilify during this time period because of their horrific leaders and government policies was in fact a nation of people with hearts like you and I. These German soldiers lobbed a chocolate cake into the trenches of the British. Imagine that; you are used to seeing grenades land in your trench and instead the enemy has lobbed a chocolate cake with a request for an hour truce. The truce was for a birthday party for their captain. The truce was granted.

As a soldier in this war, it was comforting to know that your enemy was in the same miserable conditions that you were--the cold, the mud and the stench of death. Remarkably, it was in these conditions that a truce was born and soon Christmas carols burst forth from the trenches of the Germans, once again, an olive branch. The British were at first reluctant and rightfully so, this was war and any trick is fair game in war. Although, it was recognized for what it was. Men with hearts, moms, dads, children, hobbies, girlfriends, wives and compassion overcome with that compassion on the anniversary of the greatest sacrifice in the history of mankind. It was Christmas and the anniversary of the birth of a man who laid down his life for others, and the Germans were overcome with this spirit.

That Christmas Eve soldiers who had been engaged in the war referred to as 'the war to end all wars' because of its brutality, tossed their weapons of destruction aside and embraced, sang Christmas songs and even wandered the battle field playing soccer with each other and sharing cigarettes. It has been said that hundreds and as many as thousands participated in this most magical holiday truce.

There is something about this time of year that you can't pinpoint. It is something that you can't put your finger on. It is a spirit that is in the air. It is a spirit that begs you to forget differences, embrace those you love and even those you don't. It challenges you to give until you can't give anymore. Sometimes the cloud of challenges in life can spur a person to brush aside the undeniable feelings that are in the air at Christmas time. Too often the pressures of life can convince you the spirit of joy and giving are gone and that what you are sensing is nothing more than a coincidence of the time of year. In 1914, a handful of low ranking German soldiers knew that what they felt in their hearts about Christmas was true.

These men did not brush aside the impromptu feelings of peace and love for their fellow man. Instead, they lobbed a chocolate cake and a note of truce. I encourage you to allow yourself to be overcome this Christmas with the same spirit that took these soldiers captive almost a century ago. You may feel you are entrenched in some kind of your own personal battle. If so, allow yourself to be overwhelmed with the spirit of giving and joy and toss a chocolate cake out there. You just might be surprised at the outcome…

Merry Christmas!
Ron White

With seven new DVD/CD programs on success related topics from Ron White, you can enjoy one a day for your entire week! To view specific topics covered in each title and to take advantage of this new release offer, go to http://rondvds.yoursuccessstore.com or call 877-929-0439.

2. Quotes of The Week

CHRISTMAS

"The true sprit of Christmas is love." -- Linda Willis

"It is Christmas every time you let God love others through you… yes, it is Christmas every time you smile at your brother and offer him your hand." -- Mother Teresa

"Remember, if Christ isn't found in your heart, you won't find it under the tree." -- Charlotte Carpenter

"Christmas is most truly Christmas when we celebrate it by giving the light of love to those who need it most." -- Ruth Carter

"Christmas gift suggestions:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect."
 -- Oren Arnold   

"It is Christmas in the heart that puts Christmas in the air." -- W. T. Ellis
 
"The only real blind person at Christmas-time is he who has not Christmas in his heart." -- Helen Keller
  
"Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful." -- Norman Vincent Peale
  
 "Christmas, my child, is love in action. Every time we love, every time we give, it's Christmas." -- Dale Evans Rogers
  
"I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all year." -- Charles Dickens

"Love came down at Christmas; love all lovely, love divine; love was born at Christmas, stars and angels gave the sign." -- Christina G. Rossetti

3. Beware of the Grinch (an adaptation by Denis Waitley of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas)

Now's the time you should hear this! For very good reason!
Now, please don't ask why. It's not simply the season.
Sooner or later the Grinch will invite you
To give up your life's goal as something you can't do.

It could be his head isn't screwed on just right.
It could be, perhaps, that his pants are too tight.
But I think the most likely reason of all
Is that his heart is too cold and his vision too small.

The Grinch is a dream stealer of many disguises.
A friend or relation with depressing surprises.
Just when you feel that your business is booming
He fills you with thoughts that are glooming and dooming.
He whispers about the forthcoming disaster
And about the new plan where you'll get rich much faster

When you say you look forward to earning a million.
He'll scoff and retort: "Not one chance in a billion!"
With a stock market rising and confidence strong
You'd think he'd get real and start going along.
But he howls and he growls with his terrible frown
"Whatever goes up, has got to come down!"

Sometimes the Grinch is quick to appear.
Sometimes he shows up year after year.
But whatever your "Why" and no matter "Who"
The dream stealer, Grinch, will start hitting on You.
He's the fear deep inside that insists you can't sell.
He's the voice that says, "Stop! Things are going too well!"

He especially hates Christmas and the spirit of giving
For he selfishly thinks that by "getting" you're living.
He thinks passionate service is too big a "Why"
And that money's the only incentive to try.
But he's missing the point, and hasn't a clue
That every Who out in Who-ville has a Dream to come true.

Sooner or later all dream stealers find
That they're out in the cold and left far behind.
What they could have or might have or should have possessed
Has now passed them by and left them depressed.

As you sit by the fire and plan the new year
Surrounded by family and friends of good cheer.
Remember the Grinch, with his feet in the snow.’
Standing puzzling and puzzling: "How could it be so?"
"It came without ribbons! It came without tags!
It came without packages, boxes or bags!"

"Maybe Christmas," he thought, "doesn't come from a store."
"Maybe Christmas... Perhaps... means a little bit more!"
It's a spirit to treasure each day and each night
It's the reason the American dream is still burning bright
It's a mission of hope you can trust and believe
"The more that you give, the more you'll receive!"

This week during the Holidays, look for ways to give more!
Denis Waitley

Welcome!

I just got back from a great trip to Europe! I saw the Coliseum in Rome, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the Sistine Chapel where Michelangelo painted his great work, stood 15 feet away from the incredible statue 'David', saw the Vatican, stayed in a 200 year old hotel in Venice (where the streets are only water), and visited the ruins of a 2000 year old city (Pompeii). As I marveled at these landmarks of history I remembered other landmarks I have seen, I remembered my trip last year to Paris where I stood in awe of the Mona Lisa, Eiffel Tower, Napoleon's tomb and then a 1700 year old church in Cologne Germany called 'The Dom' (You have got to see this one!)
 
The Coliseum is 2000 years old! One of my friends told me that when he saw it for the first time he got choked up - it is hard not to just marvel at an incredible building that I had seen so many times in books and movies. Then I got to thinking...this building has been here 2000 years and I saw a LOT of things on this trip that had been around 500 years, 1000 years, 1500 years and more! They were built to last and they have.
 
You have a choice in your business - you can build it to last for future generations to marvel at and the current to take notice of. Or you can go for the quick fix, the fast buck and on to the next. There is no doubt which one I recommend. A few tips to build a business that lasts:

*Tell the truth - it sounds simple and it is but not everyone does it

*Stay in contact with your customers either via email, phone call or card. The easiest person to make a sale to is someone who has purchased from you in the past

*WORK! It has been said that nothing does as much for a man's soul as a hard days work. Give it your all

*Insure that your product is top notch and listen to your customers for improvements

*Duplicate yourself - personally I have done this through CD albums and books. You can do it by training others to do what you do; regardless find a way to expand your reach

Two thousand years ago Rome was the center of the world and they left monuments to remind us of that today. They built their city to last...and it has. Build your company, life and business to last and leave a legacy. You will be glad you did and so will those yet to come.

Go for More this Week!
Ron White

PS - Today's issue is going out to more than 80,368 weekly subscribers. If you enjoy this week's edition and find it to be valuable, then if you would do me the favor of forwarding it to your friends, family and associates, it would be very much appreciated. If they would like to subscribe, have them send an email to: ronwhite@yoursuccessstore.com

In This Issue.....

1. The Butterfly Effect by Ron White
2. Quotes of the Week
3. Partnering For Profit by Brian Tracy
4. Special Wholesale Offer!
5. More Information

1. The Butterfly Effect by Ron White

It was 1960 and meteorologist Edward Lorenz was working in his lab. He was entering data into his computer in the hopes of modeling weather patterns when he stumbled upon a theory that is known as 'The Butterfly Effect'. He was entering wind speed, air pressure and temperature into three separate equations that were linked in a mathematical feedback loop. This equation allowed Lorenz to predict weather patterns.

One day Lorenz was in a bit of a hurry and opted to take a shortcut when entering the data. He rounded the numbers to the nearest one thousandth rather than to the nearest one millionth (for example, .407 instead of .407349). As a scientist, he knew this would change the result – however he expected only a minor change. Lorenz was astounded to discover that this tiny change made a profound impact on the final resulting weather pattern. This discovery led Lorenz to ponder: Does the flap of a butterfly's wing in Brazil cause a tornado in Texas?' – Thus you have 'The Butterfly Effect' theory.

This theory has been applied to all areas of science since Lorenz's 1960 experiment.

What does it mean for your life?

It means that every decision or action that you make - no matter how small – could potentially dramatically alter the course of your life. My life, as I am sure yours is, is a testimony to the butterfly effect. When I was 12 years old, I met a friend named Brian in P.E. class. Over two decades later, Brian is still my best friend. At the age of 12, Brian had a thirst for learning and studying (the other 12 year olds called him a nerd) and he was a fitness fanatic. He still has these qualities and because of our friendship they rubbed off on me. At the age of 18, I needed a job and he secured me a job where he worked as a telemarketer. My third day on the job, I made a telemarketing call to someone in the seminar business. He thought I was a good telemarketer and offered me a job over the phone.

Did you follow that?

You are receiving this email from me, reading my books, or hearing me speak because I was offered a job at the age of 18 from a seminar company. I would have never been offered that job – if Brian hadn't gotten me the telemarketing job and Brian would never have known me if we hadn't met at the age of 12 in P.E.! I have an insatiable desire for learning that began at age 12 and have developed into a fitness fanatic as well. Most of the major events in my life can be traced back to a conversation in a gym two decades ago – that is 'The Butterfly Effect'

ACTION POINTS
Realize that 'The Butterfly Effect' is very real and small decisions or actions can make a huge impact on your life

Take responsibility for your decisions, actions and friends – even the tiny decisions – realizing that they can dramatically alter the course of your life.

Understand the importance of attention to detail. Years before 1986, the smallest flaw was overlooked in a Space Shuttle O-Ring. That flaw led to a horrific 'Butterfly Effect' and the deaths of seven Astronauts years later in January 1986.

Do not allow 'The Butterfly Effect' to paralyze you from inaction. Instead, use it as the spark of motivation to fan the fire of action – realizing that you control your destiny even in the tiniest of ways.
 
Ron White
 

I'm really excited to be part of the Sales Success portion of these three packages, I mean getting to "rub shoulders" with the other "greats" included in these packages, what an opportunity! Please review and make sure to take advantage of this very special offer.

Three New Powerful Programs on Sales Success, Wealth & Investing and Small Business Success at a Special Wholesale Offer (includes Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar, Connie Podesta, Mark Sanborn, Denis Waitley, Sheila Murray Bethel, Chris Widener, Brian Tracy, Tom Hopkins, Bob Burg, Dianna Booher, Don Hutson, Patricia Fripp, Ron White, George Walther, Laura Stack and many more).

We're offering these three new releases at a very special introductory offer! Each contains at least 13 CDs plus a bonus CD-Rom or DVD, from the top speakers and trainers in the world - today for only $59 each or get the entire package of all three (41 CDs, 3 DVDs and a CD-ROM) for only $137.

We were offered only 100 sets from the manufacturer, so these will go fast. For complete details of each program and the individual topics and authors, go to http://www.yoursuccessstore.com/boxset or call 877-929-0439. Only 100 sets available!

2. Quotes of The Week

EXCELLENCE

"No one ever attains very eminent success by simply doing what is required of him; it is the amount and excellence of what is over and above the required that determines the greatness of ultimate distinction." -- Charles Kendall Adams

"Excellence is not a destination; it is a continuous journey that never ends." -- Brian Tracy

"The difference between failure and success is doing a thing nearly right and doing a thing exactly right." -- Edward Simmons

"The quality of a person´s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor." – Vincent T. Lombardi

"The only thing that separates any one of us from excellence is fear, and the opposite of fear is faith.  I am careful not to confuse excellence with perfection. Excellence I can reach for, perfection is God´s business." -- Michael J. Fox

"Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives." -- Willa A. Foster

"Happiness includes chiefly the idea of satisfaction after full honest effort. No one can possibly be satisfied and no one can be happy who feels that in some paramount affairs he failed to take up the challenge of life." -- Arnold Bennett

"Excellence can be attained if you...
* Care more than others think is wise.
* Risk more than others think is safe.
* Dream more than others think is practical.
* Expect more than others think is possible." -- Jim Gentil

"My parents ingrained in me early on that the perfect score is always something to strive for.  I want to win and I want to succeed no matter what." -- Andrea Jung

"It is incumbent upon us all to raise the bar, whether you are a multibillion-dollar international corporation or a mom-and-pop selling blackberry jam." -- Howard Schmidt

"Do what you love, love what you do, and deliver more than you promise." -- Harvey Mackay

"Don't get complacent. Push yourself out of your comfort zone and set higher standards of achievement for yourself. Once you've achieved a standard of excellence, never let it rest--push yourself even higher." -- Dave Anderson

"The secret to a great report card (getting all "W's") is being and doing WOW! because you want to -- because it´s fun. The absence of WOW! is also a report card." -- Jeffrey Gitomer

"The noblest search is the search for excellence." -- Lyndon B. Johnson  

"Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better." -- Pat Riley

"Excellence means when a man or a woman asks of himself more than others do." -- Ortega Y. Gasset

3. Partnering For Profit by Brian Tracy

The way you can stand out from your competitors is for you to position your self as a business partner, always looking for ways to improve your customer's business.

Help Your Customer's Business
When you deal with a business person, you can be sure of one thing: that person thinks about his business day and night. It is very close to him. It is dear to his heart. And if you come in and talk to him and ask him questions about his business, looking for ways to help him run his business better, the customer is going to warm up to you and want to be associated with you and your company.

Differentiate Yourself from Your Competitors
As a partner, you should always be looking to help your customer to cut costs and improve results in his or her area of responsibility. You should look for ways to help your customer in non-business areas as well. You should position your self as someone who cares more about the success of your customer than anything else, even more than you care about selling your product or service. This approach to partnering in profit with your customer is a key way to differentiate your self and to keep your customer for the indefinite future.

Practice the Reciprocity Principle
There is a principle of reciprocity in business that is very powerful. It is simply this: If you do something nice for someone else, they will feel obligated to do something nice for you. You should be looking for opportunities to go the extra mile, to do more than you are p aid for, to put in more than you take out. By extending your self, you improve your positioning in the customer's mind and increasingly differentiate your self and your company from your competitors who are after the same business. If you do this long enough and strong enough, you will eventually develop the partnership to the point where your competitors don't have a chance against you.

Action Exercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.
First, think about how you can help your customer's customer with your product or service. Take time to understand how your customer uses your product to do his business better.
Second, focus on increasing your customer's profits and financial results. Show your customer that doing business with you is both satisfying and profit able in the long run.
 
Brian Tracy

 http://www.jimrohn.com/

www.chriswidner.com

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