Saying Goodbye to 2016

Saying Goodbye to 2016

Well this is it... The final day of 2016.  A look back and a look forward for success.

Sitting here writing this causes me to reflect on the past year but also look towards the new one.  I believe we shouldn't dwell on the past but learn from it.  At times I find myself falling back into the same old habits that drug me down into financial despair.  This is why continually reading books relating to personal finances is so important.  Even if you only take 5 minutes a day to read a couple of pages.  You'll find yourself advancing towards your ultimate goals.  Remember that when you reach a goal, reward yourself and set a new goal.  We can only move forward if we always have a goal in front of us.  This takes time, patience and practice but is very achievable.

The past couple weeks I have been home with my family to celebrate the holidays.  Come Tuesday, January 3rd, I'll be off and running again.  Although I still work to make ends meet, I have set new goals to replace the old and am on a direct path to reach them.  This brings me to one of my greatest downfalls, procrastination.  Procrastination has plagued me my whole life.  I will sit there thinking of all the things that need to be done and put it off until the last minute.  Sometimes I perform better when pressured into doing something, having no choice but to tackle it.  Other times I need to self-motivate.  I'm sure many of you have the same problem as I do.  We look for the easiest path and when we can't find one we step aside and hope for the best.  I know it can be hard at times to find motivation.  Believe me, I know how hard it can be but people who "Just Focus and Do It" achieve so much more.  Now for my disclaimer... "Just Focus and Do It" is derived from my training at Rapport Leadership International.  If you ever get invited, and you can only attend if invited, do not hesitate to go.  I had sent my oldest child and intend on sending my other two as time allows.  It is a very mind opening experience that gets you to dig deep into yourself and find the leader qualities we all have.  What you take away from it is up to you.  Some have gone and really find nothing.  They are happy with how they live and the situations they are in.  Others have revelations of great proportions that forever change their lives such as I did.  When things get tough, I look back on what that has taught me as well as the books I've read.  Much like this blog, I had put it off for so long.  I have come to realize that this is truly a great way for me to journal my progress and help others discover their own "Success from within".

As far as today goes, we finish some holiday cookies, cheese balls and Chex Mix.  I'll make some bacon wrapped smokies later.  I'll cut up some summer sausage, cheese and veggies.  It'll only be my wife and myself but we will toast in the New Year as we do every year.  Since moving to the Mid-West, I don't watch to ball come down but I'll still toast to everyones health and good fortune for the coming year.  I've already prepared for tomorrows dinner from Honeybaked Ham.  We'll be having Prime Rib as our first family meal of the New Year.  A prosperous year helped make that a reality.  I've prepared for my trip to Kansas on the 3rd so I don't have to worry about that.  Very little left to do except so sprucing up around the house.

What does 2017 have in store for me.  Well in the next couple weeks I'll see an addition to the family.  Our first grandson will be brought into this world.  My oldest daughter will be coming back to Iowa for that event.  With all the traveling I do, I was able to book her first class on Delta for the week visit.  This too is a result of a prosperous 2016.  I do wish she would listen to us and move back here but she is old enough to make her own decisions and mistakes.  I will no undoubtedly be traveling when the baby arrives but I know he'll be surrounded by family and loved ones to welcome him into the world.  New goals for the year is to really make progress on the house and a new savings goal.  It is tough at times to say no to buying something when the money is there but really has another purpose.  I also have been looking at new ways of relaxing.  Ways to let me unwind with the week after week travels I've run into the last couple years.  The money is good but it shouldn't come at a cost of personal health.  With that I've been working on getting the funds together to follow some passions of mine.

Allowing yourself to pursue your passion can be a great personal healer.  Finding a way to monetize your passion also opens up a whole new world of opportunities.  It creates extra income or even a fall back if you lose your position in economic unrest.  Allows you to be creative in your own way.  Brings happiness and self piece because you are doing something you enjoy.  Personal satisfaction since you may even be sharing it with others who enjoy the same thing.

Well I'm going to get back to getting rid of some more office clutter, so I can start the New Year with a fresh outlook and a cleaner working environment...

Wishing everyone safe travels and Happy Holidays!!!

2 Days left until the New Year...

Only 2 days left of 2016!!!

Are you ready for it?  In eager anticipation, waiting for a fresh new start.  Hoping that this coming year will be better than the last or at least not worse.  Let us delve into what 2016 has done for me...

2016 has proved to be a much better year from those past.  I have saved more than I ever imagined.  Gave more than I ever did before.  Earned more than I ever have in my entire life.  I have been able to get things for my family that I probably would never have if I didn't follow some tried and true financial steps.  All in books I continue to read.  I have a lot of time to do this on my numerous flights through the year.  It still might not have been the perfect year but it leads me to believe that I am better prepared than ever before for any financial challenges that might occur.

In December of 2015 my wife had weight loss surgery. Even the whole year of preparation for this was life changing for the family.  Our eating habits have changed and the foods we get have improved.  Ingredient checking is a must, even more so than in the past. Part of the process is that my wife needs to exercise everyday.  Having a back issue can cause this to be problematic.  Way back in 2009 we bought a pool, against my better judgment, and have been paying for it since.  This is one of the last loans I need to clear before being pretty much free other than our mortgage which has tax saving qualities.  To help with her exercising, at least in the summer months, I decided I'd open it.  It had not been used in two years and now needed a liner.  In the past this would have been a problem financially but I was able to afford it because I had spent the last few years taking steps to insure funds for unexpected projects.  I will elaborate further at a later time on how you can accomplish this as well.  The problem that confronted me next was how to empty the now very pungent and stagnant water that was still in the pool.  This had to be done in order to remove the old liner and install the new one.  More funding was needed to obtain a gas powered trash pump that could siphon out the bad water.  This investment proved to be worth while since I used it again at the end of the season to bring the level down to close the pool for the winter.  Another project that cost a bit of cash was the new garage door.  Our old door was built by a company that was no longer in business and from the 1950's.  I had to special order the door since only a commercial size door would fit.  Some time was involved in assembling the door and my son helped a bit.  Our schedules didn't match very well but in the end a new door was in place.  I once again attempted to install my new set of windows that I had boarded up but found I needed some more materials to rebuild the frame.  Our 2005 Yukon XL had seen better days so I started looking for a 3/4 Ton from 1999 to replace it.  I was able to get a great deal on a low mileage '99 GMC Suburban in CA.  I flew out, spent the night in a Double Tree near the airport.  Used Uber for the first time and paid cash for the truck.  I then proceeded on the 24 hour drive home.  This may sound crazy but I was able to see parts of the country I never would have if I didn't.  Needless to say, if I hadn't followed some of the learned strategies that my books had offered, the opportunity would have been missed.

2016 also allowed me to help my son get another car and I lent the 2005 Yukon XL to them until he can get his truck fixed.  None of this would have been possible a few years ago.  I continue to watch what I spend and caution the wife on items she's looking at but we have been freer to buy things unobtainable in the past.

So let's recap on how you too can achieve this kind of success...

1. Pay Yourself First...  You've earned it, worked for it and deserve it!!!
2. Give... Of yourself either time or money to help others, it will come back to you ten fold.
3. Have a goal...  Where do you see yourself in the next 5 yrs, 10 yrs?  Write it down!!! No goal is too big... New house, car, career... Only you can decide this.
4. Find your passion... What are you passionate about and how can it help you succeed?
5. Focus on your goal(s)... How can you achieve it?  Is what you are doing now going to help you get there?
6. Reward yourself... When you reach a goal, you need to give yourself something back.  Our minds work better when we know that there will be some reward to the hard work we've done.
7. Stop worrying and start living...  What's the worst that can happen?  What will the result be if it does?  We sometimes think and then worry about the worst but 9 out of 10 this never comes to pass.  So why worry about it?  Except the worst and breath easier when it doesn't.
8. Make even the little things in life count...  When you wake up, take a deep breath and thank God or the Universe for another day.
9. Change the "I'll try" attitude to a "I Will" attitude...  If you continually tell yourself "I'll try", nothing will be accomplished.  There is no such thing as try.  Your mind works with "I will" and having a strong "Will do" attitude brings in many positive things into your life.
10. Reduce the clutter... I'll admit I'm a bit of a hoarder and need to channel my focus at times.  So I've created a journal to keep thoughts in.  In the process of doing this I have found a system that seems to work very well.  It's called the Bullet Journal and is very effective at organizing your life.

I could probably go on with many other things to help you get closer to your inner success but these are some things that helped me over the past few years.

Tomorrow we will say goodbye to 2016 so be safe and Happy Holidays...

Inspiration

Inspiration

"When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all your thoughts break their bonds. Your mind transcends limitations, your consciousness expands in every direction, and you find yourself in a new, great and wonderful world. Dormant forces, faculties and talents become alive, and you discover yourself to be a greater person by far than you ever dreamed yourself to be. "

—Patanjali, (c. first to third century B.C.)

As you can see I have been focusing on how the mind can be used to get what we want - Success.  We need constant stimulation, motivation, inspiration, encouragement and a sense of well being to move forward.  I'd like to share another quote from an email I received.

 

Enlightenment Is About Being Available

By Jafree Ozwald

The most exquisite and enlightening experience of your life instantly shows up when you are fully open, receptive and available to the Universe. By being completely open, receptive and available to whatever the divine existence is offering you in this moment, the greatest experience of life simply pours in. Every deeply loving, successful, and magically divine experience will throw itself at your feet when you are open, available and receptive. This moment contains the magical state of enlightenment, and you can discover it spontaneously when you give up searching "out there" for the happiness, fulfillment or the "answers", and start trusting your ability to receive the grace that is inherently yours to be experienced.

Imagine you are like a wildflower, who is always opening and receptive to the warm gentle light from the Sun. The soft delicate flower petals must then also be open to experiencing the harsher elements, such as the wind, rain, fertilizer and competitive weeds for a growing life to persist. When you live your life like this wildflower, you root yourself deep into fertile soil and welcome whatever enlightening or not so enlightening experiences life brings you. You know that all the soft and hard elements you attract are necessary for your soul's highest evolution, and thus allow for each experience to enter you fully. As a result, a great strength and beauty is developed, and only is seen when you are consistently open and receptive to every experience life brings your way.

The experience of being open, receptive and available spontaneously happens when you have an unshakable trust that this highly intelligent loving existence always knows what's best for you. Unstoppable receptivity is your ticket into Heaven, and yet to open the door and walk through the gates you will need 100% trust. When you've reached absolute trust on your inner world, your outer world feels this divine quality radiating from you, and the spark of enlightenment instantly ignites within you.

Living in this supreme state of trust and enlightened availability means you need to be a spiritual warrior on your inner world. You get to constantly choose to be a radically free from all limitations that arise in the mind, and decide to live beyond the confines of every social belief the world presents. To go beyond the limits of your own ego/mind takes a very courageous warrior-like energy that is ready to die for freedom. This may be the most terrifying and/or a liberating experience you'll ever have in your life, yet it also means that you are ready to truly be alive, and live your truth on the deepest levels.

Inside your heart of hearts is a state of immense joy, unfathomable love and freedom that is independent of any outer cause or experience. This enlightening experience is found only through letting go of this constant struggle to attain some better, new and improved experience of life. As you slowly tire of the ego's constant outer search, you will naturally start being divinely receptive to the Light within and discover an exquisite infinite source of inner peace inside you. It is already here, at the core of your being, just underneath all your desires. This enlightening path leads you to a life that is naturally spontaneous, creative and devoted totally to this moment of existence. From here you don't have to search for any profound life experience, the enlightenment experience simply finds its way into you. As you become available to experienc e anything and everything that arises inside you, you'll see this enlightening existence naturally awakens within. Have a deeply profound and super enlightening week...enjoy!

As you can see that this message holds great meaning and is inspiring.  Find your inspiration and let it enlighten you to great success.

How badly do you want it?

How badly do you want it?

That is the question of the day.  How badly DO YOU want it?  How badly do you want Success?  I recently found myself asking that question.  When I look at how the past year turned out, I realized that it was time to change the strategy.  I had written down in "My book of knowledge" that you can't expect a change if you don't change the strategy.  If the results you are getting now are not what you want then you'll need to make a change.  How big of a change?  You may only need to make a small adjustment in order to get your desired results.  When I look back at the past few years I realized that I had made many mistakes.  I didn't stick with what was working for me.  I didn't even realize that I made that change until the results were near devastating.  I took a step back and formulated a new game plan to make this year the best yet.  It still comes down to how badly I want it.

I had mentioned in the past about conviction to yourself and your goals.  This still holds true and correlates to how big your desire is to achieve something.  I also spoke about perseverance and this also ties to your conviction and your desire for success.  This is why Writing your goals down is essential and placing reminders in plain sight.  This keeps that burning desire to drive forward towards your goal.  Success does not come from thin air.  I wish at times that I could just wave my magic wand and say "Abra freakin' cadabra" *POOF* your a success but that just isn't realistic.  I have had such burning desires to accomplish a task that I couldn't sleep at night.  My mind constantly thinking about the problem at hand, searching for a solution.  Sometimes the solution is so simple that is often overlooked.  So how badly do you want it, the success, the achievement, your dream, your goal?  Do you have that overwhelming desire and drive to see it through?  Here again I'm on top of the soap box, preaching about things I have found to work for me.  You may get tired of hearing it but I can't drive this home hard enough that everyone and I mean everyone runs into a state suspended animation.  By this I mean we literally stall out and float with no motivation to move forward.  Inspiration does not always just come to us, we need to find it.

I enjoy receiving The Daily Energize sent out by Rich German or receiving my daily Enlightened Messages.  They both help to keep me focused and on track.  They have a way of picking me up when I have fallen into a state of inactivity.  People like Rich German or Patric Chan are an inspiration by overcoming the obstacles and reaching a level of life that they enjoy. So as I had mentioned in a previous blog along with a Stevie Nicks video, don't let the "Landslide" bring you down.  Here is to all of your future successes.  Cheers! 

The power of positive thinking!

The power of positive thinking!

"Expect your every need to be met, expect the answer to every problem, expect abundance on every level, expect to grow spiritually. You are not living by human laws. Expect miracles and see them take place. Hold ever before you the thought of prosperity and abundance, and know that doing so sets in motion forces that will bring it into being." ~Eileen Caddy

Every once and a while I receive an email that truly moves me.  The message above was received first thing this morning and I just had to share it with you.  I have been testing different products that deal with the mind.  These principles utilize many different aspects of how we think and perceive things.  Subliminal messages and brain entrainment are two of the many ways people have been trying to adapt their minds for a more positive outlook.  I have downloaded and listened to many of these programs.  I have been discovering some great results in how my everyday thinking has changed.  I have become more positive and outgoing.  I have been able to stay more focused and concentrate more on the tasks at hand.  I have also been able to reduce my over all stress that the last few years have presented me with.

Manifestation has been a topic of discussion for decades.  The purpose is to will what you want to happen or materialize in your life.  The object being that if you want something bad enough the universe will work in your favor to achieve it.  Everyone emits an energy or ora that is either positive or negative.  This energy effects things and people around us.  If start out positive, this energy can be transferred to other people and things throughout our day to create more positive energy.  Take for instance a simple smile.  Just by smiling at someone can cause a contagious reaction that will spread.  While on the other hand, negative energy, can bring other people and things around you down.  Both energies are equally powerful and have great effect on how your day may progress.  Though certain techniques you can actually learn to train yourself to manifest your way to a positive and glowing life.  Reduce stress and anxiety to produce a healthier outlook on life.  Once your reduce the negative, you can focus on producing the positive.  With creation of the positive energy and proper direction, your goals and dreams become unstoppable.

Imagine that you can write out your deepest desires and withing no time at all achieve them.  Once trained to think positively it will become second nature and you will automatically produce positive actions in your life.  You will only need to re-enforce those thoughts through occasional supplemental training.  The initial training may take days, weeks or even months to produce results.  This all depends on how truly receptive you are to the training program.  Belief is over 90% of the course.  Only through true belief that the program will work can a quick change be realized.  If you are sceptical then the training will take longer but your subconscious mind will slowly change to bring you the results that you desire.  Some downloads are free, so try it out for a few weeks and watch your life change for the better.

Creating Convictions to Live By

Creating Convictions to Live By

How do we "Create Convictions to Live By"?  Through faith, focus and commitment, we create our goals.  Our desires and dreams can only become a reality if we completely commit ourselves to them.  We must live by these convictions that we have created or they will die and be lost forever.  As a student we strive for good grades and we study to get them.  As an athlete we practice or workout everyday to strengthen our weaknesses so we can perform at our best.  As parents we strive to provide for our children and give them the best the world has to offer.  Then there are those who do as little as possible to get by.  These are the critics and people who ridicule because they don't understand or know any better about what we are trying to accomplish.  They are the dream stealer's, the goal smasher's, the people who are only happy when the rest of the world is miserable.  Only through our own convictions can we overcome and surmount the negativity that these people spew out at us.

2011 Bring it on!

          That's right, 2010 is gone and aren't you glad?  So many problems affecting everything we do and love.  Making so many sacrifices to keep what we have.  Selling off precious heirlooms, 401k's, collectibles and what ever else may contain some sort of value just to maintain our ability to live.  Turning down the heat that you can see your breath and feel a cold breeze across the floor.  Giving up that vacation timeshare or any kind of vacation at all for the sake of paying bills.  Dodging the repo-man, tax collector, debt assessor or who ever else wants what you don't have.  Afraid to open the mailbox or answer the phone.  Getting nervous every time a strange vehicle pulls up to the front of your house.  These are all things that all too many of us have had to face some time in our lives.  We work long hours or multiple jobs to make ends meet and they only get further apart. 

Don't sweat the small stuff!

       In these hard economic times we are constantly faced with choices and fill ourselves with worry.  Stress is a very serious problem during financial hardship.  Back in the early 90's, I made an average income of $14,000 a year.  I was lucky to get my own health insurance let alone get any for my wife.  The house and cars needed work and our first child was on the way.  On months that had 5 weeks in it made me over qualified for assistance by a mere $15.  My daughter was born under the Welfare System and after that experience I swore that it would never happen again.  With in the next year I more than doubled my average yearly income.  I could have sat around worrying or stressing out but instead I went into action.

"3 Things
That Do Not Exist For Success"

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Success Secrets Now

There is more to success than focusing...

I know we talked about the need to focus on your goals but check out what Patric Chan has to say about it...

"More Than Just Focus"

Click Here To Access Patric's
Success Secrets Now