Lessons From Great Lives…The Blog

It’s Easter and that is a very special day for the Christian world. Easter is a day where many attend church and think upon the Savior of the world. Families gather and reminisce of memories while breaking bread and having a large hearty meal. We all know we will eat too much… but somehow we always do it anyway.

When I traveled a few years ago to Jerusalem at the urging of some good friends, we took a 10 day tour of the Holy Land.The trip concluded with a visit to the tomb, it was no doubt a sacred experience.Only being there can do the explanation justice. It was one trip I candidly did not want to take, not because of the visit but because I dislike long distance air travel. It is one trip I now believe all should take if given the opportunity.

Easter is also a time to think of the seasons. (If you want a good refresher read Ecclesiastes 3.) This section of scripture is one of my favorites and one of my early mentors Jim Rohn speaks frequently about this famous sacred writing as well.
Now that it is spring, how about springing forward on your journey to being your best? One of the great paradoxes of life is that; so many people want more out of life, yet so few are willing to pay the price to get there.
May I offer a few suggestions to adding some K.A.S.H to your bank account this spring.

K= Knowledge. Get in the habit of reading! Lessons From Great Lives teaches that many of the greats were in fact, well read and made reading a part of their daily food for nourishment.Leaders are readers and readers are leaders.

A= Attitude.  Great lives are usually associated with great attitudes. Ask yourself how, or who can you be more positive with. Really strive to live a life of hope and optimism vs. an attitude of fear and negativity.

S= Skills. In your selected profession are there skills that you can work on to be more effective in all areas?  My business of Network marketing is really centered around people.
When I was younger I learned the 7 Habits of Highly effective people. I didn’t just buy the book or tapes… I really learned them. Can you name all 7 of them right now without referencing the book? If not, Why not? Your career should be that important.

H=Habits. Some make reference to the period of time it takes to create a new habit, about 20-30 days. I believe that when you get to the point where your new good habits are a part of you, you will transform! When you miss them it will be like missing a meal and you won’t be very happy about it. Develop the habits of self-improvement and you will be on your way to adding more KASH to your bank account.

I thought it would be appropriate to look at how the efforts of self help can be a worthy endeavor.
We have been taught that thoughts are things, and what you think about you bring about. It is true , so with permission from the following individual to post this reply I share with you.It happens to be a new friend I met as a result of the 5 lessons institute, where New York times bestselling author asked me to participate as the network marketing expert. so enjoy and share.You may even know someone that should join the service and gain valuable financial advice.
5lessonsinstitute.com

Subject: Thank you for lesson #4

“Building Character Counts

Today we are talking about one of my personal favorites, which
has the ability to color every experience you have in your life
toward having success - building character.

Having a substantial moral character means that you have
desirable qualities that withstand hardship and struggle. ”

Dan, I signed up for your e-course once I got home from Mega Book.  I have enjoyed reading the timeliness of each message, have ordered your book and am excited to read it once it comes in.
But lesson 4 struck a heart string within me and I couldn’t let the day pass without sending you my appreciation.  After an exhausting 2 weeks on the road, blessing lives and serving on Richard’s book tour and Mark’s Mega, I was a bit worn out.  Then I get home and was hit with several urgent and difficult situations.  I admit, I lost my cool momentarily and had a bit of a melt down. Let’s be honest, I’m a read head so it was a full blown melt down, as we rarely do anything 1/2 way.
I’m creating a new life for my family since my husband was disabled through strokes nearly 2 years ago.  Some days it is easy to forget how blessed we are and that we’re living in a miracle.  Some days it doesn’t feel like a miracle.  But your lesson 4 reminded me that even on the most difficult days in trying to rebuild our lives, my character is intact.  The rest will work itself out.
Even in the extreme difficulty, I am greatly blessed with friends and mentors and a family that loves and supports me.  I am truly living in a miracle and just needed that reminder from you.  Yes, it’s an auto message, sent out to everyone who signs up, I know the mechanics of the message, but the message of the message was not lost in the mechanics.  It was the very message I needed to hear on a day when things were rather sticky.
It was a pleasure to meet you at Mega. I look forward to working together through the 5 Lessons.  If I can ever be of service to you, please let me know.
Debbi

Several years ago I was introduced to a book By Wally Wattles
called Financial success it is a wonderful book that impressed me.
My favorite chapter is on gratitude, It is a chapter that may be
worth remembering.
This past weekend I was with Andy Andrews the wonderful author of
The Travelers Gift (recommended reading)
I was reading his blog and I thought this was about as appropriate
as anything I have ever seen.
What are you grateful for? Perhaps this will put it in perspective
for all of us.

Wally Wattles makes the point in Financial success ( some know
this book as THE SCIENCE OF GETTING RICH)
In order for us to move beyond where we current;y are we must be
grateful for where we currently are.

Food for thought. let me add I am grateful to you and your
friendship and comments.

For most who have read LESSONS FROM GREAT LIVES , you already know one of their secrets, they were generally very good writers and readers. see below a picture of many of my own journals , a collection of some my thoughts I had the good fortune to travel and be with Jim Rohn from 1987 through 1991 lets remember the past year through our journals and see if the ideas can catapult us to a Fabulous 2009.

Here’s a little from Jim Rohn on keeping a journal the past 40+ years:*

“Be a collector of good ideas, but don’t trust your memory. The best collecting place for all of the ideas and information that comes your way is your journal.”

“The reason why I spend so much money for my journals is to press me to find something valuable to put in them.”

“There are three things to leave behind: your photographs, your library and your personal journals. These things are certainly going to be more valuable to future generations than your furniture!”

“Don’t use your mind for a filing cabinet. Use your mind to work out problems and find answers; file away good ideas in your journal.”

If you are like me you have days where you woke up and wondered how you
arrived at this place in your life?  Where did the time go?  How is it that
things have turned as they have?

Think back with me for a moment, way back.  Back when someone asked you
your age and you proudly announced you were 5 and ¼ or you were 7 and ½.
Our milestones were in days and weeks.  We crossed off the days to
Christmas like each day was a year.  We couldn’t wait to reach double
digits, become a teenager, drive a car, graduate from high school, and move
to ‘real” life!

Ah, real life!  Freedom!  No more school, no more chores, no one telling us
to make our bed, eat our vegetables, do our homework, turn off the
television, go to bed, or telling us what to do.

Ah, real life!  How real it becomes, real work, real bills, and real taxes.
But we are free to choose.

Freedom to choose!  At this point in our lives, we are a reflection of the
choices we have made.  Where we end up will be a reflection of the choices
that we make.  The greatest of all human freedoms is the freedom to choose.
Where ever we are at, what ever we might be doing, we are free to choose.
Every choice has a consequence or potential outcome but we are free to
choose.

Our goal must be to choose well!  William James, the American philosopher
wrote, “The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.”

As our world becomes more complex with the speed of information every
increasing and our connectivity to the world becoming more pronounced with
growing capability of wireless tools and technology, James century old
statement is a statement about choosing well and it is even more profound
today.

What we choose to focus on, what we choose to pay attention to, what we
choose to take action on will determine the quality of our life, our
relationships and our contributions.  An end-game that will certainly
reflect what we choose to overlook.  And what we choose to overlook is
growing more difficult every day because we are wired to our world.  A
world that has instant access to us and we have instant access to the
world.  A connectivity that makes everything look and feel important and
urgent.

Access and availability that is changing the essence of work!  You see the
essence of work has changed.  Why?  The speed of information has
accelerated and presence of competitive threat has exploded.  We have seen
organizations with clear chains of command and organizational hierarchy to
support the identification and delivery of clearly identified tasks and
objectives morph and shift to virtual organizations of high-performance
work teams operating in a constant state of corporate unrest and turmoil
driven by speed.

With an increasing focus on results we have lost sight of the need for
process and execution in achieving them.  We place incredible value on
action.  We applaud and celebrate being available 24/7.  The person who is
available and accessible is viewed as efficient.  Clicking off e-mails and
responding to voice-mails is impressive to say the least.  The thrill of
crossing off every item on our to-do list feels like work, looks like work
but is it work?

Our “to-do” list becomes a drug.  No matter how many items are on the list,
the daily goal is to cross them all off.  Each item on the list may have
varying degrees of importance or impact yet our goal is to get them all
done.  Nike built an entire marketing campaign around this theme of “Just
Do It”.  As we try to go faster and increase our efficiency we adopt
“multi-tasking” as a core strategy.  We think computers can do it and so
can I.

Interesting enough computers do not multi-task.  A computer lines up all of
the work as a series of tasks and completes them one at a time.  The
difference is that a computer can operate at lightning speed which makes it
appear that it is processing work simultaneously.  We are trying to do it
all and doing none of it very well.  Why can’t we multi-task effectively;
because our ability to maximize results comes with focus because that is
how the brain works.  We shouldn’t have to tell people do not send text
messages and drive at the same time.  We should have to tell people not to
read e-mails while they are engaged in a conversation.  We should not have
to tell people to put their blackberry down during dinner.

Enhancing and improving our quality of life and work begins with choosing
well.  If being wise is identifying what to overlook our choices have to
begin with knowing what is most important.  What are the most important
roles in your life?  What are the values and principles upon which my
decisions are going to stand?  What dreams and goals will contribute to my
most important roles?  And if you are a leader, coach, or parent help your
team with these important choices.

Where have we been?  Water under the bridge!  What has past is done.  Where
we end up will reflect our choices.  Choose well!  Overlook what does not
contribute to your most important roles.  Overlook what does not contribute
to your highest goals.  Let every decision reflect your high values and
principles.

Then what?  Ask yourself consistently, is what I am doing right now
contributing to my highest goals and supporting my most important roles.
This is the art of being wise in real life!  We all have the freedom to
choose.

Make it a great day,

Jim

Emotions of Execution?

1.  Choose well!
2.  Believe you can do it!
3.  Let nothing rob you of your passion!
4.  Embrace discipline!

These notes are written to share encouragement and support towards pursuing
personal and professional excellence.  Please feel free to share these
emails with your friends and family.

Copyright: James D. Akers

I was reading on Stephen Covey’s website a few days ago and I came across the following article that made me reflect on my book and what I have learned from one of my heroes Mahatma Gandhi. I hope that you will enjoy this as much as I did.

Q: Who is one of your personal heroes?

A: Mahatma Gandhi. Let me read you his personal mission statement:

 “Let the first act of every morning be to make the following resolve for the day:
* I shall not fear anyone on Earth.
* I shall fear only God.
* I shall not bear ill will toward anyone.
* I shall not submit to injustice from anyone.
* I shall conquer untruth by truth. And in resisting untruth, I shall put up with all suffering.”
- Mahatma Gandhi

I listened to Gandhi’s grandson talk about his life. Her name was Arun Gandhi and this is some of what she said. “Ironically, if it hadn’t been for racism and prejudice, we may not have had a Gandhi. See, it was the challenge, the public need for the public victory that developed the private victory. He may have been just another successful lawyer who had made a lot of money. But, because of prejudice in South Africa, he was subjected to humiliation within a week of his arrival. He was thrown off a train because of the color of his skin. And it humiliated him so much that he sat on the platform of the station all night, wondering what he could do to gain justice. His first response was one of anger.
He was so angry that he wanted eye for eye justice. He wanted to respond violently to the people that humiliated him. But he stopped himself, and said ‘that’s not right.’ It was not going to bring him justice. It might make him feel good for the moment, but it wasn’t going to get him any justice.
From that point onward, he developed the philosophy of non-violence and practiced it in his life, as well as in his search for justice in South Africa. He ended up staying in that country for 22 years. And then he went and led the movement of India. And that movement ended up with an independent country, something that no one would have ever envisioned.”
And just think on this, he held no formal authority. No position. Most people think that leadership is a position. It isn’t. Leadership is influence. The key to influence is what we’re talking about. You can have influence without position. So don’t be so dependent upon position or formal authority, but use your moral authority, what you know is right. Gandhi changed over three hundred million people using this. Today there are one billion people in India.
I love going to India. It’s a tremendous place. And he achieved many significant goals, but he didn’t achieve all of his goals. But eventually, it became an independent country with its own constitution and they could deal with their own problems, instead of having some steward oversee what they were doing and making judgments and setting up rules and regulations.
He’s one of my favorite heroes.
But you know what he did? He learned synergy within himself. He learned to create a third alternative: non-violent action. He was not going to run away, and he wasn’t going to fight. That’s what animals do. They fight and they flight. That’s what people often do, they fight or they flight, they run away. He worked it within himself until he won the private victory and learned the philosophy of his life. Non-violent action; a third alternative.”

Finally here, 2008 will eventually end just as quickly as it began.
New Year’s, always bringing optimism in abundance to the hearts of so
many, can spark us to set out to lose weight, get fit, better our
career, quit smoking or any number of other resolutions which, when
followed to fruition, will lead to a better life.

Starting up a new year setting goals and writing them down has always
been a characteristic of the most energetic entrepreneurs. A popular
story is told of Harvard’s Class of 1979 where researchers surveyed
the students and found 84 percent of the class did not set goals, 13
percent set goals without writing them down, and three percent both
set goals and wrote them down. The story goes that the 13 percent who
set goals without writing them down earned double the income of the 84
percent who had no goals, and that the three percent who both set and
wrote down goals earned 10 times more than the other
97 percent.

The moral of the story: write down goals! It seems obvious that if we
believe making progress is easier when it can be timed, checked, and
measured, then we should also believe in writing down our goals. And
yet, so many people don’t set aside the five minutes it would take to
sit down and write their goals!

In 1992, when I attended my first Anthony Robbins seminar, I initially
heard of that study of Harvard students. Mr. Robbins spoke about it
with such confidence and conviction that hearing it further validated
my belief that I needed to do a better job of visiting and revisiting
my written goals. Fifteen years later, I cannot begin to tell you how
much tremendous inspiration and resolve towards accomplishing my goals
I have obtained by seeing them in picture form and in writing. When I
turn to my journal and look at my goals over the years I find so many
of them I have accomplished; so many of my high-achieving friends
would testify of having the same experience!

So as we turn the page on 2007 and open the calendar to 2008, let us
all take some quality time to ponder and contemplate what we want to
accomplish in 2008. After writing down our goals and ambitions, let’s
then get after it with both a burning desire and a timetable on when
we want to achieve those things. That way, our focus will remain
steadfast and resolute on the actions and processes we must undertake
each and every day to get us closer to our desired result, our
all-important end-game, even our goals.

Another 10 days or so and we can all rest easy as we walk to the mail box. The wheelbarrow of magazines catalogs ,specials and promotional sales materials for Christmas gifts (or Holiday shopping to be politically correct) is enormous as we all know and nearing the seasonal conclusion. I can’t believe the amount of stuff we get, just junk pilling up day after day.The crafting of the story , packaging of the magazine and the remarkable boom the mailman must feel, let alone the weight the trash man must feel after we discard all the waste.
However I learned a lesson years ago that has added to my own net worth, it is the lesson of which the wealthiest and most successful marketers know and do constantly.
It Is the lesson of the art of promotion.The most successful companies are always in our face, day after day, month after month and year after year, when it comes to T.V. its beer ads, or if you watch Golf its dare I say it Erectile dysfunction ads ( I cant believe I typed those words) thank goodness for tivo, Victoria’s Secret is here daily so it appears. ( I think I learned more from the Movie the secret)
Donald Trump would be at the top of the self promotional list,and my observations lead me to conclude that most entrepreneurial and effective and rich business people know this cold! The game of PROMOTION!!!
If you want to reach the pinnacle of success in your business you must promote! Believe in what your selling and keep doing it day after day and get in to the rhythm and the cycle of promotion that is constant and never ending.New cycles are always starting, We are just about to start a new cycle of promotion…it’s nearing the New year can you guess? Of course its weight loss. The ads and gimmicks will come out of the closet and Billions of dollars will flow into the cycle and it will repeat next year. You must get your message in front of your prospects.That will never change, why? Because human nature never changes.
The 3rd Saturday of each month I rally my team on a conference call and we always discuss and teach the actual principles and mechanics behind this.
Usually we have hundreds of people anxious to know how they can learn the secrets to success , learning the art of promotion should be at the top of the list.
It is always worth the time to review what is in your promotional tool box as we get set to launch in to the greatest year of your life in the “art of promotion”

“I felt as though I was walking with destiny . . .”

In May 10th, 1940, Winston Churchill, then age sixty-six, became Prime Minister of England. This was the time when the powerful German air force was making round-the-clock trips across the English Channel dumping planeload after planeload of bombs on England. No one knew whether the British would be able to hold out for another week or a month.

England had already been badly mauled by the conquering Germans. What General Weygand had called the “Battle of France” was over. The Continental countries had already fallen into German hands. Everyone knew the survival of Christian civilization depended upon the outcome of the furious Battle of Britain…

When the opportunity came with all of its mortal danger, Churchill was able to express the nation’s will to resist as no one else could. Even before that critical day of May 10th, everyone knew that there had to be some new blood in the government if the world was to be saved at all. They had to have someone who would stand up for the right instead of following the weak course of trying to appease criminals and making unsatisfactory deals with evil.

Winston Churchill was that man…

To him was given the job of nearly single handedly winning the war. How would you feel about such an assignment if it were placed upon your shoulders?

It might be inspiring to know how Winston Churchill felt…

Excerpted from Lessons From Great Lives by Dan McCormick & Sterling W. Sill…get the rest of Winston Churchill’s story at www.LessonsFromGreatLives.com

“No good idea was ever allowed to get away.”

Few things could be more fascinating than to study the life of a great thinker. Van Wyck Brooks wrote an interesting study of the gifted American essayist and poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson that he titled, A Biography of an Inner Life. Mr. Brooks studied Emerson from every point of view possible. He examined his philosophy, his methods of communication, his problems, and his successes. With interesting clarity, he was able to look inside Emerson’s mind where the real reasons for
both success and failure are always found.

The biography gives a series of “portraits” of Emerson’s thinking, his spirit, his ttitudes, his motivations, and his nobility. The more we find out about greatness, the more we understand that it comes in response to some deliberate effort. The more we study other people, the more we discover that their problems often have a family resemblance to our own.

Excerpted from “Lessons From Great Lives” by Dan McCormick & Sterling W. Sill