success Archives - Page 12 of 14

3 Distractions You Can Avoid To Gain An Edge On Life

Building yourself in a world full of distractions is difficult. Knowing how to gain an edge on life can be a great benefit to you.

What do you do in order to get ahead? Do you possess the traits of a person worthy of success? Are you willing to put forth the effort to separate yourself from those who are average?

3 Distractions You Can Stop Today

Stop gossiping. Why are you talking about someone else? It has nothing to do with you. In fact, discussing other people’s personal business is one of the biggest distractions. Never mind what they’re doing and how they’re doing it – if it has nothing to do with you, it shouldn’t be up for discussion. Talk about how you’re going to make yourself better and more productive.
Don’t be jealous. I understand that it’s hard to not pay attention to how well things are going for others, but being jealous doesn’t help. Again, if it has nothing to do with you, don’t give it your energy. We all have a unique journey and some people reach their goals faster than others. Also, you don’t know the backstory of how they got there. Take your focus back and use it to follow your own path.
Never hold a grudge. Let it go. You’re only hurting yourself when you hold a grudge against someone. Every single time you think about it, you’re taking away precious time from your life. It gives you unnecessary anxiety and stress. Whatever happened, forgive them for your sake and move on.

1 Thing You Can Start Today

If you can discipline yourself to stop doing those three things, you’ll notice a shift in your personal productivity.

There’s one thing you can do to help you gain that edge – do more. No matter what it is, do more. Even if you do just one more, that’s more than what the average person will do.

Over time, doing more will give you an advantage. When you read one more page, do one more rep, or make one more call, you’re preparing yourself to win. Doing one more will give you the advantage, but you won’t know until you practice it.

Give Yourself A Chance

No one is going to do it for you. It’s not just going to happen. If you stop gossiping, being jealous and holding grudges, you’re way ahead of those who enhance those habits by scrolling through social media and watch reality TV.

Give yourself a chance to build your life into who you want to be. You have a choice to be distracted or to be focused. Concentrate on yourself and mind your own business. Whatever it is, do more than needed and you’ll gain an edge on life.

#BeGoalden

3 Things That Stop You Before You Get Started

What’s stopping you from becoming the magnificent person you want to be? There are 3 things that stop you before you get started and today, you’ll get past those challenges to get on the right track!

When you look in the mirror, there’s no one else there but you. You are responsible for your life and what you tolerate. Own your life – the good things, the bad things, the mistakes – take control of it all.

What’s Stopping You?

Other people. This is the most common culprit. We allow other people’s thoughts and opinions to direct our lives. If we do something that someone doesn’t like, we let it affect us. If someone else is having a bad day, we let it bleed over into our lives. Learn to separate your life from someone else’s. Your life is your own – don’t be so quick to hand it over to someone else. Have sympathy for others, but live your own life.
Excuses. Stop giving yourself an out. Giving yourself an excuse to feel better gets you no where. The entire point is to improve yourself and to become great. You deny every chance of your growth when you give excuses. Life may happen, but there’s still an opportunity to work around it. You can still choose to wake up earlier or stay up later – eat clean or eat junk food – save a few dollars or spend all you have. It all comes down to choosing an excuse or choosing that extra push.
Your inner voice. It’s not too late. You’re not too old. Just because it didn’t happen when you were 12, doesn’t mean it can’t happen when you’re 52. Don’t kill your own dreams. Anything can happen at any time. The negative chatter in your mind was put there by someone else, but you have to let it go. It only holds you back from your limitless potential. Every time you hear that negative inner voice, chase it with a positive answer.

Let’s Get It Started

Commit to yourself and your future. No one can stop you unless you allow them to stop you. Get out of your own way and make progress.

Anything can happen, but you must decide to start and take action, one step at a time. Don’t get used to turning down what you really want to do, just to satisfy someone else.

Distractions will pull your attention away from you plan. Do what it takes in order for you to be productive and move forward. Your focus will ultimately drive you towards your desired goal, so concentrate on what’s important and do your best to get it done.

The Final Outcome

Own your life without feeling guilty. It’s okay to say ‘no’ to others, so you can get started working on yourself. In the end, you are the only one accountable for your results – it’s in your hands.

Give yourself permission to start. Stop thinking that other people are right when it comes to your goals. Protect your mindset and step into your confidence. Success is earned by those who have the courage to start and focus on their plan.

#BeGoalden

How To Get Past Your Fear Of Success

Do you sabotage your own success? When something makes you uncomfortable, do you ignore it? When someone asks you to do something different, does it make you cringe? You may have a fear of success and not even know it.

Actually, it’s the change that you really fear. It’s a safe, cozy and familiar environment where you are, but that won’t help your personal growth. The unknown can be scary, but living with the regret of not taking a chance, is even scarier.

It’s nothing to be ashamed of – many people have a fear of success, whether they know it or not. You could be holding yourself back from blossoming into your own life.

What Are The Symptoms?

If you have any of the following symptoms, you could have a fear of success:

You don’t take calculated risks
You make excuses when you fail
You reject promotions
Your life has been the same for years
You don’t attempt to improve your life
You do the same thing, day in and day out
You turn down new experiences
You always brush off suggestions
You aren’t open to change
You talk negatively about other successful people

Moving Past Your Fear Of Success

This may be difficult, but it’s not impossible. You will need to expand your mind and be open to doing something different.

Be okay with changing your mind. It happens everyday – people change their mind about things. Nothing is written in stone. Sometimes, we forget that we have the power of making a simple choice. When you change your mind, it means you’re thinking. You are considering the possibilities and outcomes of certain situations. Doing the same thing everyday makes you a robot – you’re just going through the motions. It all starts with trusting yourself enough to change your mind.
Get out of your comfort zone. We all have a comfort zone, where we like to stay because it doesn’t change and we know what to expect. If you want something different, you must do something different. It can be as simple as taking another route to work or doing something different with your hair. When you do something out of the ordinary, things begin to happen. Opportunities may come or you may discover something new that you like. Being comfortable may provide a form of stability, but deciding to do something different will give you ‘new life.’
Say ‘yes’ to new opportunities. Normally, you shut down when something new comes into your life. Let’s change that – whatever it may be, just say ‘yes’ and see where it takes you! It may be uncomfortable at first, but stick with it and know that you can do it. If it’s not for you, at least you know and you can say that you attempted to do it. If it is something that allows you to grow on another level of your life, you win! Don’t be afraid to do something that you don’t normally do – that’s how you grow.

Success Favors The Bold

You won’t be able to achieve anything if you don’t take a chance. If it won’t kill you, find your courage and give it a chance.

Do the opposite of what you would normally think. Being a robot will lead to an unexciting and dull existence. Life is meant to be lived to the fullest, with people who bring out the best in you!

The fear of success is real. If you have it, be confident and make it better. Yes, you will fail (learn) along the way, but it happens to all of us. On the other side of fear is success and it is very well within your reach.

#BeGoalden

Focus On The Process, Not The Result

When we set our goals, our mind automatically starts to focus on the end result, but the biggest part is figuring out how to hit the target and win.

Twenty years ago, it was a challenge to find an abundance of successful people. They were there, but our access was limited to television, radio and the newspaper.

Today, we can see success everywhere, at anytime. The internet has opened up many avenues for more people to achieve their dreams. Even people who aren’t successful can pretend like they are on social media.

Instant Gratification

This leads to ‘short-cut’ thinking. We’re so flooded with images of people who’ve reached their goals (or at least they look like they did), we begin to think that it’s an easy process.

Although it looks like it, the path to your goal isn’t easy and that’s not to discourage you. Anything worth doing will take hard work and consistency, but you must concentrate on the process.

Does anybody remember when Beyonce started out with Girls Tyme? No, we only recognized her when she came on the scene with Destiny’s Child. Prior to that, she was practicing and working her little heart out to be who she is today.

Technology has made everything so easy, we expect the goal to happen without going through the process. Fast food, texting, all kinds of apps – it’s designed to make life more convenient, but there’s one thing that won’t give you that instant gratification.

Why Is This Taking So Long?

When you have a goal to reach, it will take months or even years before you will see the end result.

Envisioning the end result is good to do. It gives you something to see in your mind as you work on your plan.

The trick is, you must focus on the plan, not the result. You can focus on the result all day long, but nothing will happen. You must focus on the plan that will get you there.

The plan is what needs to be figured out and adjusted on a regular basis. Things change and you have to be flexible enough to create solutions to those challenges.

No One Path Is Alike

There are no two paths alike, that will achieve the same goal. There may be an overall map that will carry you in the right direction, but as far as an exact path that we all can take and experience the same success, that simply doesn’t exist.

Everyone has to figure it out for themselves. This is why you focus on the path, because is will change. Life happens and you may have to rearrange what you are doing to accommodate your circumstances.

It’s important to stay open-minded because you never know who will be able to assist you. Do different things and take risks and see where it leads.

Envision your result, but focus on the process.

Hoping that you will succeed won’t work. Wishing someone will let you tag along won’t work. Those are distractions and the best way to avoid them is to buckle down and focus on your process.

While your goal won’t change, the path to get there will change many times. It will take mental and physical energy to take on this effort and to do your best. You must be ready and willing on all fronts to encounter your journey.

Don’t let time become a factor. Time is always there, it just depends on how you plan to use it to your advantage. As they say, it takes years to become an overnight success.

Be flexible, make adjustments and be persistent. Know that it will take time, discipline and consistency. People won’t see how hard you are working now, but they will definitely realize, once you’ve reached your goal and become successful.

#BeGoalden

How To Activate Your Future In 4 Easy Steps

How do you begin to build your future? You know what your goal is, but how do you make it, so it comes to life?

Goals are a great way to start your life’s plan. Your future is what you make it. The key thing is to be clear on exactly what you want.

Do you want to be a doctor or do you want to be the top doctor in the southeast? Do you want to be a ballerina or do you want to be the best ballerina, with the most appearances in ballerina history?

It may seem silly at first, but this is how you create your future. It won’t just happen on it’s own – you must be specific and deliberate with your thoughts.

Activate Your Future, Now!

Have a goal. The very first thing you need is a goal that you would like to accomplish. There are many people who haven’t even thought about what they want to do with their life – they’re just going with the flow, hoping for a piece of someone else’s success. This is the starting point. What would you like to do in the future that would give you satisfaction everyday?
Get specific. It’s not enough to want to be successful or to make a lot of money. Think of what you would like to do and how well you want to do it. If you want to be a doctor, what kind of doctor? Where would you like to work? Would you like to volunteer in that field? Don’t be afraid to fill in the details.
Take responsibility for your goal. You’ve figured out what you want to do and all of the details. Now, the responsibility is yours. Do the research and create a plan that will get you where you need to be. Whether it gets hard or it falls apart, be responsible and take care of it. Consider what needs to be done and move on it.
Do the work. The most important step is to do the work. Don’t let anybody’s judgment or any type of procrastination get in your way. After you plan your work, you must work your plan. Make the decision to do what needs to be done and don’t stop until you meet your end result.

Win The Battle, Win The War

Know that there will be obstacles and challenges throughout your journey. This is to be expected, but you must work through them. Take it step by step and focus on what’s in front of you. It’s all a part of the process.

Do the things that will push you towards starting. Be definite, intentional and take action. Commit to your daily growth. Everyday, tell yourself that you will be the best foot doctor in the southeast region of the country and don’t stop until you are!

Decide what you want to be and go out and create it – your future is yours to shape. Believe in yourself and trust the process. Nothing can stop you from achieving the life of your dreams.

#BeGoalden

Success Is Not A Destination

When people say they want to reach success, it sounds like a goal that would take a lifetime. Whatever it is that you want to do, once you’ve done it successfully, there’s this idea that it’s over and you can relax.

If you look at successful people, they are successful because they keep coming up with new ways to add to their success. Just like learning, it never ends.

Most lottery winners lose their money in a short period of time, because they think it will last forever. They don’t do anything to grow what they’ve won – they just continue to spend. The money doesn’t just magically reappear in the bank account – you have to do something with it to enhance it’s growth.

Success is the same way. After you’ve accomplished opening your business, it’s not over. Now, you have to work even harder to keep the business open and ‘alive’.

This could mean having sales around certain holidays or collaborating with other businesses. There are things that need to happen continuously in the background in order for the success to keep thriving.

What does success entail?

Have you ever won a championship game? All of the hard work that it takes to get there goes unseen, but the success occurs when you win. After you win, what happens? Do you wait until next season before you start to practice again, or do you begin to practice during the off season?

If you want to be successful, you have to practice during the off season. It doesn’t happen if you practice when everyone else practices in the beginning of the preseason. You have to take extraordinary measures to ensure that you’ll continue to be successful and outwork the competitor.

Success is not a ‘one and done’ event. When you reach your goal, you want to keep setting your standards higher, so that you can achieve more. If you stop, success goes out the window and you’re back in Average City. You’ll be one of those people always reliving your glory days, saying how you used to be the champ.

How to keep up with your life’s success.

It’s not hard to become successful, it just takes foundational habits (like discipline, focus, consistency, etc.) and time. When you get in the pattern of doing these habits daily, it contributes greatly to your success.

Meet everyday with a strong mindset for growth. When things don’t grow, they usually end up being complacent or they die. Don’t be afraid to do something that challenges you everyday. To be successful means to steadily grow. If you aren’t growing, you’re complacent or dying.

Do things that are out of your reach. You can’t always be comfortable – success means being uncomfortable. That’s where the growth happens. Even if it leads you in the wrong direction, you can always turn around and figure out a new way to complete your goal.

As you can see, success is a journey, not a destination.

As long as you do something constructive towards your future, you will always be successful. Learning, growth and success go hand in hand and they are never ending.

Think forward and be sure that you’re doing something daily that strengthens your end result. Commit to daily progress, even after the success has come. It’s your responsibility to persevere to your highest potential.

“Success is never owned, it’s rented…and the rent is due everyday.” Anonymous

#BeGoalden

4 Tips From A Computer About Work Ethic

We’ve been on this earth longer than computers. As a matter of fact, we created them. When they came on the scene, computers were the best thing to happen in the workplace. Not only did it make everything more efficient, it also relieved some of the workload from us humans.

Today, computers are everywhere. Some of them have even replaced jobs that used to gainfully employ us. What can a computer do, that humans can’t do? Can we learn from them?

We can learn anything from just about anywhere, but here are some tips on what computers can teach us humans, about work ethic:

Perform regular updates. Computers are never finished. Every now and then, they refresh themselves with an update. They are constantly improving. Some of us stopped learning once we left school. Learning never stops – update yourself by reading and taking time to consume helpful information. Give yourself an upgrade and become a better version of yourself.
Shutdown and restart on a regular basis. Computers need to shutdown and restart themselves, to ensure high performance. You’ll know when to do this when the computer begins to run slow, starts to hiccup while in use or possibly crash. We tend to run ourselves into the ground, also. Take some time and reset yourself. Wearing yourself thin only allows for mishaps to occur. Shutdown, start over and you’ll perform better.
Give results, not excuses. When you type a phrase or question into Google, it doesn’t respond with, “I’m tired – maybe tomorrow – I’m busy right now.” A computer gives you results and nothing else. Even if it gives you the wrong result, it’s better than making an excuse. Let’s stop making excuses for the things we know we should do. When you respond with results instead of excuses, you increase your chances of success.
Virus protection. Most computers come with it now, but remaining healthy is a must. Computers are unable to operate properly when they have a virus. Everything shuts down and a lot of times, it just dies. Like a computer, going without maintaining your health can lead to tragic results. Keep up with your health, so you can continue to function at a high level.

These are everyday suggestions we can take from a computer. They may be machines, but they operate effectively, achieve their tasks in a timely manner and overcome the challenges that are given to them.

It’s not impossible to outwork a computer (anything is possible), but their work ethic is to be praised. They may not be human, but their discipline and output is like no other.

Today, I challenge you to apply these tips to your own life. Start the pattern towards becoming your best self!

#BeGoalden

Increase Your Action To Destroy Your Fear

Fear keeps us in procrastination mode. We only procrastinate, not because we don’t feel like doing something, but because our fear is keeping us from taking action.

Fear has a way of making us feel comfortable. If we attempt something new, there’s a chance it won’t work and we don’t like that feeling. Therefore, we avoid moving forward, so we won’t have to feel that embarrassment or negative judgment.

How do we overcome fear? Why does it have such a hold on us? Is there a way we can destroy the thought?

How does fear work?

As far as achieving your goals is concerned, fear is not real. Fear is something that you’ve created in your head, so you won’t have to go through the hard work and dedication that it takes to reach a goal.

Think about people who go after what they want. It seems that they have not an ounce of fear in them. They have laser-like focus and nothing stops them. Even if they fail, they automatically turn around and change course, but they continue towards the same goal.

Somewhere down the line, we’ve been brainwashed to avoid pain by being fearful. Therefore, we ignore the failing path to our results, because we don’t want to get hurt by failure.

Failure is nothing more than learning.

When you fail, you know what NOT to do. Now, you can proceed with the knowledge that the first way won’t work. Since you’ve failed at it, you know how to proceed more wisely.

By increasing your action, you destroy your fear. When you fail at something, take another action until you get through it. Don’t waste time by being hurt and giving in to doubtful feelings. You discovered a solution that didn’t work, now you can move forward with finding one that does.

You are your own biggest enemy. If you remove those limiting thoughts and beliefs from your mind, you can accomplish anything. After you have a small win from overcoming that obstacle, you’ll gain confidence and confidence will drive out the fear, more and more.

Your mind will want to give up. It will begin to create excuses. Excuses are another form of procrastination, which is another form of fear. If you take a deep breath and just do it, you’ll see that it’s not as hard as you think it is. If it won’t kill you, do it!

People will also put fear in you through insults and by giving you examples of who tried, but didn’t make it. Know this: that is their insecurity. They will put their fears on you. Don’t listen to them. Instead, give them a little inspiration and show them how it’s done.

It’s not a good idea to tell negative people your goals, because they will only say things to bring you down. Share your ideas with people who can help or who are supportive. Or, you could just keep it to yourself and let your actions speak on your behalf.

Overcoming Fear

The key is to keep taking action. The more action you take, the more your fear will disappear. Don’t hold yourself back by avoiding obstacles. That resistance is the path that will take you to your end result – that’s the path that will carry you to success.

Keep taking action. If you come across a challenge and you don’t know what to do, ask someone who might know or Google it. You are more than capable of figuring out other possibilities to accomplish your goal. Whatever you do, don’t allow fear to drive your dreams away. Instead, drive your fears away by taking continuous action.

#BeGoalden

4 Tips On How To Take Constructive Criticism

It’s not something everyone enjoys. Constructive criticism is meant to help us become better, but sometimes, we don’t know how to put our feelings aside and effectively listen.

Constructive criticism is when some tells you how you can do something better or more accurate. It’s not meant to hurt your feelings or insult you, but that’s how we take it.

Most people mean well when they tell us how we can improve, but it’s difficult to accept when they actually talk about it. If someone is willing to help by making valuable suggestions, if would serve you well to listen and give it a shot.

Constructive criticism is not meant for you to feel bad. It’s constructive, meaning, it’s meant to be helpful. No one is making fun of you. Listen with the intent to enhance your skills and learn something new.
Put your ego aside. Your ego will get in the way of your success if you don’t have it under control. Everyone is not after you in the wrong way. Break down your wall and genuinely observe what is being said. Be interested in how you can become more effective and productive with your work.
Stop being defensive. Don’t let your emotions get the best of you. Our first reaction is to get angry, because it’s embarrassing to listen to someone tell you about yourself. If it’s someone you know who means well, be open. Receive it without becoming emotional and defensive.
Realize that it’s to help you. If it’s valuable, take it. If not, you don’t have to do it. Constructive criticism is for your consideration. It’s to be useful and promote progress. If you decide to try it, it could be to your benefit. If it doesn’t, you won’t have to do it again.

If you’re the one giving constructive criticism, know that it’s hard for the other person to acknowledge. There’s a way to break down what you’re saying in a positive light. Never speak with a condescending tone – let them know you’re on their side and want to see them do well.

Giving or receiving, constructive criticism is a hard thing to do. It’s normal for people to feel like they’re already doing things correctly, so it can be hard to take. Just know that everyone is not out to be negative or make you look bad. If you’re in the right environment, people will want to help you be the best that you can be. Graciously accept it and use it to your advantage.

#BeGoalden

Change The Path, Not The Goal

We all want to get there in as little time and pain, as possible. No matter what it is, our logic tells us to take the path of least resistance.

If you haven’t noticed, that path leads no where. It takes you directly to the place where you don’t want to be or back to square one – with the other average people.

The entire point is to get to your goal. You start and you hit an obstacle. That’s what happens. You figure it out (hooray!) and then you continue. Something happens that sets you back two steps. You deal with it.

Your belief in reaching your goal is strong, but a few months in, your faith begins to get a little shaky. “There has to be a better way,” you think.

Doing your best, you come up with a plan and switch your game up. That seems to help! Once again, you’re making progress. You can see the top of the mountain and you’re getting closer and closer.

After turning down dinner with friends, working through the weekends and remaining disciplined and focused, you finally reach your goal!

Congratulations! This is what it takes. Too many of us want the quick and easy way to the end. We want to see it before we even start to move towards it, just to be sure it’ll get us to where we want to be. The only way is to start and feel your way until you get there.

Everyone wants to see the path before they take it.
The Goalden Lady

We can plan that path, but understand that it will not always lead to the desired destination. It’s up to us to not quit – go back to the drawing board and create a new path.

Change the path, not the goal.

Let’s take football, for example. The object of the game is to get to your side of the field, with the football and score a touchdown. Every play that your team makes is important. Sometimes, your team will fumble the football and set you back 20 yards.

Then, you use another plan to throw the ball down the field. It could get intercepted or your team mate could catch it and run as far as they can, without getting tackled.

Or, you could pass the football to the running back for them to run as far as they can, while avoiding getting tackled by the other team.

Your team never stops, even if the ball is turned over to the opposing team – they keep trying with a different plan, to score a touchdown.

Even if the odds are against you to make a touchdown, you can still make an attempt to kick a field goal to get some points (which is still progress).

Both teams change their plans many times to reach their goal, but they never stop. When someone gets hurt, the game may stop for a while, but it continues. The goal still has to be accomplished.

This is how it is with your goals. Have a mindset that never quits. People will ‘tackle’ you and try to push you out of bounds (or away from your goal). Like the relentless football player, you must keep moving down the field until you score a touchdown. There’s no other way.

It’s time to play ‘football’ with your life. Never stop reaching for success. The clock hasn’t run out. Until then, you can keep changing and adjusting your plan an infinite number of times.

Change your path and adjust as often as you need to, but remember to keep the goal in front of you, at all times.

#BeGoalden