How to get what you want in life...

How to get what you want in life...

The book I'm reading right now is How to Get What You Want in Life with the Money You Already Have by Carol Keeffe.  I highly recommend getting a copy of this book if you are struggling financially on a daily basis.  The book provides very revolutionary ideas for reaching your dreams while still paying your bills.  Reading this reminded my of something that I had already done in the past but somehow became side tracked.  Back in 2004 I was bringing in more money then I ever did in my life.  Things were looking good and I had set up some accounts that had automatic deposits.  I never missed the money that went into them and by the years end I had a nice chunk of change set aside for a family vacation.  I did this for 3 years and never missed a beat.  Bills were paid and we still went on a great vacation.  By the end of 2007 I had found a new job in a better community.  In moving I stopped the deposits, closed my checking account and opened a new one in the state we moved to.  The biggest mistake I made was that I didn't restart my automatic savings deposits.  I no longer had a safety net for the unexpected.  3 years later by the end of 2010 our financial outlook was very bleak.  I made the determination that the situation had to change and I wasn't going to lose anything that I valued.  Now midway through March our financial perspective is looking up.  So what did I change?  I went back to my basics and started paying myself first.  Placing money from every paycheck into a savings account before paying bills.

Now you may think this is ludicrous when you're already falling behind on bills but believe it or not it works.  You never miss the money and can still manage to get the bills paid.  When we look at our checking account balances, we think of what has to come out and get paid.  If the money already automatically comes out and is stashed away we tend not to miss it.  That little bit, no matter how small, will then grow.  When we see it growing, we start to find ways to add more.  The book explains something that worked for me and I had simply forgotten it.  The next part even sounded more ridiculous but I also seen the point of what I was doing wasn't working.  Remember that if what you are doing doesn't work then you need to change your strategy.  What I was doing evidently didn't work and hadn't for 3 years.  It was time to make a change.  I always felt that if only I paid something off it would get better.  It didn't, it just became worse.  I'd throw some extra money at the car payment or the mortgage but would fall short at the end of the month.  So the bill that I tried to get ahead of would now fall behind.  Carol Keeffe explains that if we concentrate on paying the minimum, we will have money to cover us until the next pay.  Our bills follow us through our lives and don't go away.  We get sucked into trying to pay them thinking we're getting ahead just to fall further behind.  By paying the minimum my bills were payed and I didn't have to worry about those little extra things that would pop up.

Next she has you make a list of your bills but list what you pay yourself first.  That's the priority, it's your money, you worked for it, you earned it and it's yours.  The bills will always be there so it's time to pay yourself so you can start enjoying life.  Don't sell yourself short by thinking that you can't and there just isn't enough money to go around.  In just 3 short months, I have been able to completely turn things around for the better.  Just by paying the minimum, my one major bill will be history in 8 months.  So why try to push it?  Why jeopardize my family by trying to shave part of a month off?  It is pointless and senseless.

I am half way through Carol's book and will keep sharing the advise she gives.  I will also let you know how it has helped change my financial outlook.  If you get a chance to pick up a copy I strongly suggest it.  It truly is making a difference in my life.

Have you set your expectations?

Have you set your expectations?

Quote of the day:

"The richest man is not he who has the most, but he who needs the least."

--Unknown Author

Remember when you were growing up and someone told you not to set your expectations too high, it will let you down?  Why set yourself up for disappointment?  Well I'm here to tell you, that is BULL!  If you don't set your expectations high enough, how do you expect to succeed?  Sure we are bound to be disappointed some time but by being confident and assertive we keep striving to reach our goals.  Great expectations lead to great outcomes.  Here is a wonderful story provided by Rich German and is a quote from his book

Keep Your Chin Up

by Jan Graham

About six months ago, I joined a gym. Every morning, there is one personal trainer there who works out at the same time that my little group does our workout. He does his routine with such a quiet determination that he makes it all look very easy, although I know all too well how hard he is working. When I am tempted to whine and quit, I watch him push himself to his own limits, and I find myself motivated to work as hard and without complaint.

One day, I was watching him do chin-ups. He made them look effortless. I broke away from my group and asked him if I could try a chin-up. I had never tried before, but he just made it look so easy. He eagerly stepped aside and encouraged me to step up to the bar. I pulled myself up without thinking … once … then twice. That was all I had in me; I had no strength left. I told him that was all I had, so he stepped up behind me and pushed me up for a third and fourth “pull.” It felt so good. I felt strong, and I smiled from ear to ear.

The next day, when I was done with my workout, I asked him to spot me again. Again, I did two. I did the same on day three and so on. I thought it was pathetic that I could only do two, but when I came to the gym at the end of the week, he was standing there just shaking his head. When I asked him what was up, he said he was impressed with my chin-ups. He told me that when they are training firefighters, the men are required to do five chin-ups, and women are required to do one or two. He explained that most people can’t do them at all and that he was impressed that I could. He further told me that if I practiced every day, I would be doing five or six in no time. At this point, I should probably add that I am fifty years old … and female.

The moral of this story … because I didn't know any better, because he told me I could, I saw no reason to doubt. I just jumped in and gave it a try—and I did it! I didn't see it as a great accomplishment because I didn't realize that it was difficult, and it became my goal to get stronger. No one told me I couldn't do it. In fact, I was encouraged to try. Had he told me initially how difficult it was, I more than likely would not have tried at all. Or, I might have tried but given it only half an effort, because failure would have been the expectation. I applaud him for letting me believe that for me, it was not only a possibility, but that success was a realistic expectation.

How many times have we decided not to try at all because we were told that we couldn't, that we shouldn't, that we had expectations that were too ambitious? How many times have we told our children, our friends, and our co-workers that they couldn't do something, that their ideas were impossible or beyond reach? How many times have we told ourselves that we would fail before we even started?

I started to ponder examples that I had witnessed and this came to mind: I recalled a conversation a friend of mine had with his daughter just prior to her heading off to university. He spoke to her (with good intentions) of how hard she would have to work in order to succeed. University wasn't like high school—this was the real world, and now she would have to grow up. This child quit after two years. Another friend spoke to her daughter of the adventure she was embarking on and how proud she was. I remember how we laughed because the mother already had her outfit picked out for convocation day! This child just graduated with her degree in physiology. Looking back, neither daughter was more intelligent than the other. Was it the silent expectations (or lack thereof) that predicted the outcome?

I have a new approach now. I have experience first hand how good it feels to rush in so innocently, to believe that we can do it, and go on to accomplish exactly what we set out to do, because no one told us we couldn't. I've learned how important it is to support others (and ourselves) in their endeavors and to let them know that we believe they can do it rather than telling them we think they can't.

I personally want to be like my trainer, standing there behind the people I love, encouraging them, believing in them, and being ready to catch them when they get tired. I will be the one who is there on the second and third day making sure they try again, because I know they can.

What a powerful lesson this has been for me. I'll be doing five in no time at all. Because I was told I can.

Message: Believe you can and you will.

Jan Graham is a full-time Realtor in Calgary, Alberta. Feel free to visit her Web site at www.jangraham.ca.

You can see that how we perceive our expectations relates strongly to our how the outcome will be.

Brain fitness-memory 43 second tip

Brain fitness-memory 43 second tip.

Here again someone shared this with me and I thought it was some valuable information that could improve your ability to become successful.

Hopefully this reinforces the point I have been trying to make over the last few blogs.  Simply put your mind and the way we use it plays a great part in how we direct ourselves towards our success.  One of the greatest ways to achieve success is by starting with the correct mind set.  Belief is over 90% of what is needed to reach our goals and dreams.  Have you ever become so determined to do something or get something that it was all you could think about until you had it?  Your mind constantly working on ways to reach that goal.  Even when you consciously weren't thinking about it, your subconscious was formulating the next move.  This move would just suddenly pop into your mind as an idea and you would rush off to try it.  Ideas are dreamed up and our bodies work to fulfill that dream.  If we can't seem to find the solution then our minds keep working on the problem to find it.  Don't give up, don't give in, don't despair, for the answer may be just around the corner.

Ever since the financial upheaval started, I've been looking for answers to the problem.  How do I get out of this mess and how do I keep from having happen again?  The answer was so simple that I already had it and used it in the past.  I went to some intense leadership training in the past for a former employer and used the information that they had given me with great success.  Unfortunately somewhere along the last few years I had lost that mind set.  The one that motivated me to do great things with my family.  Now that I have delved back into my books and previous training experiences, I have found the key to it all.  I stopped doing the things that made me successful and helped me to move forward.  I had regressed back to bad old habits which brought back the same old devastating results as before, financial instability.  My methods didn't work then and they sure weren't working now so it was time to change the situation.  Remember if you aren't getting the results you desire then it may be time to change your approach.  So now that I know what happened, I was able to change from an unsuccessful trend to a more positive and meaningful life.  Everyone has a moment where they lose track of what's important.  When we do this we give in to the negatives that brought us down in the first place.  The object is to not let this happen.  Make constant strides to move forward in a positive light.  This one thing in itself will lead you to great success.

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.

Think Bigg...

Think Bigg...

I mean BIGG -- it's a simple process that leads to success all the time.  Most people don't think BIGG... they just think and wonder why their lives never change or get better.  Thinking BIGG is simple... you're probably wondering what BIGG is or what's the BIGG deal.  When you think BIGG and stay on track you'll succeed, no matter what your goals.

Here's what thinking BIGG really means:

B - Believe in Yourself.

I - Inspiration from others.

G - Goal setting.

G - Go for it.

There is a process that you need to apply in order to make thinking BIGG work for you and today I'll show you exactly how to apply the process of thinking BIGG so that you get the results you want.  It's pretty simple and straight forward and when you follow what I outline you'll get the results you want.  So read on and enjoy...

When you think BIGG you get your subconscious mind focused on bringing you the people, situations and circumstances that will help you succeed.  Thinking BIGG is more than just having a few thoughts and big ideas.

The first step is to believe in yourself.

A lot of people want to make more money, they want to be in a great relationship, they want to have a great career, they want to enjoy life but they really don't believe they can.  Believing means you absolutely know that you can and will succeed.  Wanting is a yearning.  You want something to fill a void, it's a good starting point but you need to go from wanting to believing.  When you believe you basically tell your subconscious mind that you're ready for success and that you expect nothing less than success. It's not about saying I will instead, believe that you are succeeding and getting what you want (filling that void).

Next: Inspiration from others.

Draw inspiration from others.  I do this all the time.  Hey if they can succeed so can you.  You can do anything that they can do and you may even be able to do it better.  Learn from them but be inspired there are new achievements being made everyday and your achievements are just around the corner.  Every 4 years we see Olympic records being crushed.  Those athletes believe in themselves and they dray inspiration from their predecessors.  When you're inspired you basically light up your subconscious mind, you give it some extra energy and extra drive; it realizes that what you want is important and begins working harder for you.  When you see somebody succeed praise them and be inspired because you're next.  It's a message your subconscious mind picks up and drives you to succeed.

Step 3 - Goal setting.

Believe it or not this is where a lot of people fail.  They don't set clear goals, they don't know what they want and they don't have measurable goals.  So set a goal.  Be clear and be specific.  Understand why you want this goal.  The why helps you be clear and stay motivated.  Make sure you can measure your success otherwise you won't know if you're making any progress.  Then check your progress and make adjustments.  When you have clear goals, you can stay focused.  When you're focused on something and repeatedly give it attention you begin to draw the positive people who will help you succeed.  Your subconscious mind sees this as a clear instruction and it understands that it needs to get this done.  Your goal needs to be achieved.  Your subconscious says this is so important we have to make this happen.  At this point your subconscious begins to work overtime to help you achieve your goal.  But success won't happen without the final component.

That's the second G - Go for it.

You have to go for it.  You have to take action.  You can't sit around and wait for everything to come to you.  That's not how you succeed.  Olympic athletes train everyday for years... their success doesn't come overnight.  They have to keep going for it; even when they were tired, when they have setbacks, when they get sick or injured, they keep going.  You have to keep going for it.  You have to keep pursuing your goal because the minute you give up you fail and that's a certainty.  When you keep pursuing your goal, when you believe in yourself, when you draw inspiration from others, when you set clear goals and you go for it; you mind, subconscious mind and the universe get the message.  They realize that this is something that must happen and they have to make it happen for your.  You're doing everything you can to succeed and they have no choice but to help you.

Start thinking BIGG today.

Start achieving your goals today.

When you think BIGG you succeed.  When you direct the full power of your mind an subconscious mind you enjoy success sooner and it becomes a habit - so you succeed and achieve your goals more and more often.  Think of it as a way of programming yourself to get more of what you want.

Right now you've likely programmed your mind and subconscious mind to create more and more of what you don't want.  That's why nothing changes.  You may want change but your subconscious mind is programmed to create the same thing over and over again.  It's time to change the way your mind and subconscious mind works.  It's time to re-program your subconscious so that it creates more of what you want.  Begin applying a new thought process.  Begin seeing things differently and begin directing your mind and subconscious mind to create more of what you want.

Remember if you don't do anything - if you don't change the way your mind works and direct your subconscious mind to create the life you want - everything stays the same - nothing changes.  This is you life - make the most of it - begin working with the power of your mind and subconscious mind to create the life you want and deserve.

Super Manifesting Video

Super Manifesting Video

This is such a powerful video that I had to share it with you.  If you enjoy this video then go to Enlightened Messages to view more.

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!