Keeping the Faith

We all have to learn to deal with setbacks. They are part of the process of achieving success. Without setbacks and failures you never really grow and to be truly successful we must constantly grow and expand.

So how do you handle the times when it seems like nothing is working right and you get the feeling you are heading down the wrong path. The best way to handle these times is to go back and review the work you did in the beginning.

Look back at your values, goals and mission. Remember why you want the successes that you want. Renew the spirit within you to go after the success you want. We all have an inner genius that is waiting to shine, just let it lose.

Take some time and review your plans and write down some new reasons why. It can be just re-wording the why you already have. This exercise will help you reinforce the reasons in your mind and renew your energy. The struggles you are facing are just there to make you stronger and better prepared for your success.

The best wines are produced from distressed grapes. Wine producers have learned over the years that they can produce the best wines from grapes that have been stressed and taken almost to the point of wilting on the vines. They regulate the water supply to their grapes to cause the grapes to endure the stress of the dry climate and force them undergo enormous amounts of stress on the vine so they can produce their best wines.

We are just like the grapes and the universe is applying the stress to us so we can produce a better product. We must undergo these challenges so we can reinforce what it is we want and why. So keep your chin up and keep working on the constant improvement that make us all successful.

Cheers to Success!
Tony Booth

Understanding Your Values

As we have discussed several times, values are the underlying foundation on which we build. Our values control our minds which in turn controls everything else. In order to be successful, at least successful as we define it, you must clearly understand you core values and keep your wants and desires aligned with them.

So, today we are going to discuss just how you can understand that core values that make you tick. Today we are going to take some time and work through the following exercise to develop your core values.

We want to look at our values for each fundemental area of our lives. You will want to start with a clean sheet of paper or new page in your journal. At the top of the page write down the first area as listed below. Then under that heading, start writing all the things in that area that you value. Keep it to one or two word entries. Keep writing them down for five minutes for each heading. After you finish one area, writ ehte next heading and repeat the process.

Headings:

• Wealth
• Health
• Mind
• Relationships
• Spirituality

Once you have completed writing all your values for each heading it's time to start prioritizing them. To do that, take some time to review each entry under a heading and circle the three most important ones. Then prioritize each one by writing a 1,2, or 3 next to them. Complete this step for each area. Now, turn to a fresh page and write the number one. Under this heading write down each of the number one values from each of the five areas. Now take the next 20 minutes to review the five number one values and prioritize them. Re-write these values in order. These are your key values.

Now that you have your core values, start working on the remaining values. Write out all the number two values and prioritize them then repeat with number three. List these out in order. These are your secondary values.

Now you have taken the first step in understanding and realizing your values. I recommend writing or typing these out neatly so that you can keep them handy to review on a regular basis. I have mine written on the second page of my journal so that I can reveiw them weekly.

If you need some help with this exercise, there is a great template at www.morningcoach.com. Get some help if you need adn while you are there check out some of the other great things they have to offer.

Cheers to Success!

Tony Booth

Remember Why

To really benefit from the Focusing on Success program you need to remember the why. In my previous post I talked about targets/goals and reviewing them daily. This is the first step in remembering why you are taking the actions you are taking.

To start with you need to make the Why as big as you can dream. If you set your intentions and understand why you want to accomplish them it will help you along the way in completing your tasks. I find it works best when I develop my ling term vision and that becomes the 20,000 foot why. As I set out each day and list my critical tasks, they are all associated with my vision. By making all my tasks directly relevant to my vision I am constantly reminded of why I am doing each task. When you understand why you need to do something it is much easy to do it.

The best way to develop your Why is to start with a long term vision of what it is you want to accomplish. After visualizing your dream, think about why you want that particular dream; what will you get out of it; how will it make you feel; what will be your enjoyment? Brainstorm on the reasons why and write down 3 or more along side the vision. This will reinforce your commitment to that particular goal. Now that you have you long term vision, start writing down what you need to accomplish along the way to achieving the goal. Next to each step write down the why this step is important and what it means to the overall goal. If you find that a step doesn't have a why then remove that step. Only focus on tasks that have a why and provide positive movement towards your goal. Now that you have you overall goal and the steps to getting there along with the Whys you are ready to work on your critical tasks. As you are preparing your daily critical tasks you can refer to you steps and goals and the whys of each. This builds a sense of purpose into the task and taht sense of prupose is what drives you to complete the task.

Let's look at the following example:
First start with you goal, write it out then below the goal write the reaasons why.
Long Term Goal: Intergrate the new software program system at work in 3 months
Why;

• I will feel a sense of accomplishment for completing the project 1 month early
• My team will be freed up to start on the database upgrades
• The new software will make everyones work easier
• My team will receive a hefty bonus

Now, break the overall goal into the steps that will be needed to acheive the goal, then add the why.

1. Get software from vendor by Friday - This will allow us to start installation on Saturday
2. Migrate servers over next 30 days - This will allow new system to be ready 6 weeks early
3. Schedule overtime for testing - This will cut the tesing time by 2 weeks allowing us to finish 4 weeks early

Now that you have your steps written out and you know why they are important your individual tasks will have more relevancy. So on day 1 when your first critical task is to verify the delivery date of the software you will completely understand why this is so important.

This is a simplified example, but I hope you can see the difference that understanding the Why can make in your completion of tasks. And let's face, if you are going to be successful at anything at all you have to take action. So the more you understand why you are taking an action the more you will be willing to do it. For the most part, we all know what it is we need to do, it's just actually doing it that presents a problem. Remember, the big shot is just a little shot that kept shooting and if you know why, you will keep shooting.

Cheers to Success,

Tony Booth

Develop the Why

Have you ever wondered why your dreams always seem to be out of reach and no matter how hard you work you never seem to reach them? The problem could be the “Why”. A common mistake made by many hard working people is setting goals and visualizing their successes without ever setting the “Why”.

For instance, you might set a goal to earn $200,000 per year. You can set your goals up with the proper action steps and follow all the best practices but you goal will always be out of reach without a “why”. You need to set the reason why you want to earn $200,000 per year. What will that income provide you, what will you do with the money, why should the universe provide you with that income?

By defining the “why” we want to obtain certain goals we give the goals real meaning. This is what changes dreams into goals. Any goal set without a why remains a dream, a target that you really will not reach for. When you know the reasons for obtaining a goal you will be committed to seeing that through and taking the necessary steps to make it a reality.

So as you review what it is you want to accomplish be sure to incorporate the reasons why you want to accomplish it. Take some time to determine why you want to achieve the things you want to achieve. Take time now to go back to the targets that you set and develop the “WHY”.

Cheers to Success!
Tony