THE ROAD AHEAD: WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?

When you think about what you really want to do and accomplish, how do you feel? Does it excite you, scare you, or a little of both? When I think about what it is that I want to achieve I get both excited and butterflies at the same time. These little thoughts start to go through my head" yes, you can do it", "but what if I can't"? and back and forth they go.

Success can be scary as different thoughts and scenarios enter our mind.  How will this person react to it? How will I react to it? What if my friends don't like my new success? and so it goes on. But you know what? I truly believe that we were not put on this earth to just live small. When we accomplish things there is a ripple effect that benefits others,often in ways that we could never have imagined.

Here is an exercise that I did recently and I invite you to do the same. Ask yourself this question.

What do I want? What do I really really want, and how do I go about getting it? Then sit quietly with your pen and paper and work it out. You deserve to live the life that you want.

This poem by Marianne Williamson says it all perfectly. I hope it inspires you.

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.

Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure.

It is not our darkness, but our light that frightens us.

We ask ourselves "Who am I to be so brilliant, gorgeous, talented and fabulous?

Actually, who are we not to be?

Your playing small doesn't serve the world.

There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

We are born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us;

It is in everyone!

And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we are liberated from our own fear our presence automatically liberates others!

THE POWER OF SELF DISCIPLINE

"We must all suffer from one of two pains, the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons". Jim Rohn

Set your goals high, then exceed them, and to do that we need discipline. Are you a disciplined person?  Discipline is a big one for me and I need to consciously work on it every day. My mother on the other hand has it in droves and I can only look on at her with envy and wonder why a little bit of it was not sprinkled onto me.

There are numerous factors that contribute to success, but discipline can be considered a cornerstone to it. It is behind virtually everything we do and accomplish, and at the same time, lack of discipline is often behind what has not been accomplished. As Jim Rohn put it, "It is the bridge between our goals and success".  It is doing what needs to be done whether we feel like it or not. I know that I for one have paid a heavy price at times for my lack of it, so I work at it constantly. I know, it is key.

Think about it, what do we need to do to make a dream or goal a reality? (see related post here).

We need action, we need consistency, we need persistence and more, but behind almost all of it lies discipline. Action takes discipline, consistency requires discipline. It is our ability to do what needs to be done whether we feel like it or not. We want to travel the world? We  need a plan, a budget, a timeline, and then the discipline and determination  to make it happen. The two D's

How can we become more disciplined.

• Know what you want and why it is important to you.
• Be aware of the rewards your discipline will bring.
• Be aware of the price you will pay if you are not disciplined.
• Understand that change takes time.
•  Make small changes at first to avoid being overwhelmed.
• If you fall short, be kind to yourself and start again

What area of your life would you like to be more disciplined in. How will being better disciplined serve you?

TAKE OWNERSHIP OF YOUR CHOICES

Have you ever looked at your business or life and thought to yourself, how on earth did it ever get to this? Why do I keep going from one crisis to the next? I know I have, on countless occasions. I have had to learn some very harsh and painful lessons along life's way and I dare say there will be more to come. It is not easy admitting to yourself that you are where you are because of the bad choices that you have made along the way. Granted, there are times when life deals us cruel, cruel blows, but I have learnt that whatever the circumstances may be it is how we choose to respond to these setbacks that will be critical to the outcome.

However bleak things look now, take heart. All is not lost. If we have the courage to take responsibility for our bad choices our lives can change. If we don't and insist on blaming everything and everybody but ourselves, nothing changes. It stays the same or it gets worse.

So, we have done the right thing and taken ownership. Now comes a whole set of  new challenges. We need to exit our comfort zone and do what is necessary to make the changes that will take us from where we are to where we want to be. This is not going to be easy, but your future self will thank you for this.

There are numerous practices that one can take to bring about the necessary changes. These are the ones that I found good for myself.

1:   Take a long hard look at what you did to get you here in the first place

2:   Why did you act as you did

3:   Know what has to change

4:   Make the necessary changes, however difficult.

5:   Don't make the easy, fun choices. Make the right choices. However difficult.

Know that  both now and in the future every choice you make will have a consequence. Be it good or bad. Our lives will always be a reflection of the total number of choices we have made. Let  your choices be good and may you live an extraordinary life.

DREAM BIG START SMALL

Sometimes it is necessary to dream big but start small. We have all heard successful people say Dream big. Take massive action. Bad advice? No, it's great advice. But are you are in the right mental state to take massive action to turn your dream into reality? The problem is, most of us are not. I know, because I have been there and so have many of the people I know. It is this part of the equation that stops most people in their tracks, resulting unfortunately, in many dreams dying a premature death.

So, what do we do when we have a big dream, but are not yet mentally ready, to take massive action to turn those dreams into reality? How do we stop our dream from dying? We go to work on ourselves and we Dream big but start small. 

What do I mean by this?

You take that first small step, that will move you closer to your dream becoming a reality. However nervous you feel, you can and must take that first important step. You can do that. Nothing builds confidence more that a combination of action and success. So yes, if you need to start small, take that first small step.

One small productive step at a time, done with consistency, will take you a lot further than no step at all. It will keep your dream alive. As the results start to show and this will happen quicker that you may think, when you are being consistent and productive with the right actions, your confidence in yourself and your ability will grow and you will begin to see and believe what is possible. We all know what that will result in? Yes, large, confident steps to fulfilling your dream.

 So, go on, go ahead. Take that first small step. It can take you to success and allow you to Live An Extraordinary Life. The life of your dreams.

Photo courtesy of Ashley Hall at Pearl Wanderings

GRATITUDE

I love life. I love life with a passion. It excites me. I am so grateful each day that I wake up to this wonderful gift of life and all that it has to offer. Each new day offers us all a chance to start again. To make ourselves available to the many opportunities and possibilities that present themselves to us daily, if we will take the time to recognise them.

Granted, life is not always easy. Far from it. I will be the first to admit that. There have been many times that I have had the wind knocked out of my sails or a kick in the gut so hard that I could hardly breathe. But you know what? thats life, Life happens to us all. When I look back now, and this  is not to sound cheesy, each experience has taught me something valuable. Although I could not see it at the time each experience has helped contribute to who I am today.

What excites you in life? What excites you so much, that just thinking about it makes you scream with excitement?  Is it travel, adventure, sport, or business. Whatever it is go out and make it happen. Life is an adventure. Life is short. Live it well.

Photo courtesy of Ashley Hall at Pearl Wanderings

A GOOD READ

  I love to read. I am an avid reader and I read constantly. I believe every home should have a good selection of books. Not just for decoration but to read. My bookshelves are full of different topics that interest me, history, photography, self-development, and biographies which are my favourite. Yes, I put my hands up, there is also a fair collection of novels too.


I would like to share with you three books that are among my favourite with regard to business, leadership and life.

THE MOST VALUABLE LESSONS I HAVE LEARNT WHILE BUILDING A BUSINESS

The lessons that I share in this post are what I found to be the  most valuable lessons for me as I build my business. However, I strongly believe that these same lessons will serve us well in any new venture that we undertake, whatever it may be. I use these same principles in different areas of my life and they work every time. Building your own business can be an extraordinary opportunity that can allow you to live an extraordinary life. As a person who thrives on new challenges and adventures, and loves to set her own agenda, starting and developing my business has been, and still is, a great source of joy and achievement for me. One thing I know for sure is that building your own business will be one of the biggest self development journeys that you will ever undertake.

Who you are at the start of this journey and who you become along the way will be two very different people. Why? Because starting and building your business will always bring challenges, obstacles and barriers that you need to overcome. You are going to do things that are completely new to you, that you have never done before, taking you far out of your comfort zone. But if you persist and succeed then building your own business, or business's, can be one of the most rewarding and extraordinary experiences that you have.

For me, building my business, like my life, is a journey of constant and never ending learning. Here, I share with you the most valuable lessons that I have learnt as I build my business. I hope that you find them useful


#1   Know Your Why

Know why you're are doing what you are doing. A strong why is what will keep you going when the journey gets difficult and you feel like quitting. There will be many challenges and obstacles along the way, but if our why is strong enough we will keep going. A strong why is what will get us out of bed early, excited in the morning, and keep us up later at night. So now we know our why, we need to set ....