Just a little while ago my wife and I were in Flagstaff Arizona and happened to be in the Kohl’s parking lot waiting on a buddy of mine to pick me up. We had planned a trip to LA for a training seminar at the Hubbard College of Administration and were going to travel there together. While waiting there in the parking lot, I couldn’t help but notice an empty parking spot right up front. I thought to myself, how could that spot still be open? There were people coming in and out of the parking lot and it should have been taken by now.

So I strolled over there and noticed a sign posted there at the head of the parking spot. As I got closer, I noticed that the sign read, “Reserved for Associate of the Month.” I stood there in awe for a moment just thinking about the whole thing. I thought to myself how badly I would not want to have that parking spot and I will tell you why. I know that the associate of the month probably only makes around $25,000 to $35,000 a year, tops. That income may be great for a college student or someone who is looking for a job, but not me. I also know the amount of time that associate has put into that job to reach that status and also know that there had to be a little kissing up to get there. They probably get a plaque or a framed picture on the wall in some hallway or break room as well. There is no monetary reward, maybe a promotion in the future is all. The perks involve a first class parking spot and some sought after recognition.

Associate of the Month

All I have to say is WOW! Congratulations to all of you who have ever received an “Associate of the Month” award. You know what it reminds me of? It reminds me of the movie, “Employee of the Month,” with Dane Cook and Jessica Simpson. Funny movie. You should watch it if you haven’t! It made me appreciate where I am in my life even more.

Now, in my business opportunity we also have an associate of the month. Here you also get a lot of the same perks as you do at a retail store. You get your picture put online, you get a video of you and your success to put on your website, your name is announced on a company wide call and you are given the recognition for your success that you deserve. The differences are in the income. The difference is over 6-figures! At Kohl’s an associate of the month may clear $30,000, with this business opportunity one will probably clear $250,000. And this is the crazy thing, they do it in about 20 hours of work per week. That’s probably less than half of the time an employee puts in whether associate of the month or not! It’s amazing what can happen to your income by simply thinking at a bigger level. The bigger level is Entrepreneurship.

Big difference right!? So as much as I love the front parking spot, I think I will stay right where I’m at. What do you think?

A man was walking down a street. It was a very nice street with all kinds of shops, restaurants and people. It was the most prosperous street in town and this certain man was having a fantastic time. He was headed to a restaurant he had heard about and lunch time was approaching. Well, before eating the best meal he would ever have, he looked at a wall down an alley, and read something someone wrote. It said, “This is the worst street in the world. Don’t eat the food, it’s the worst food you will ever have and it costs way too much!” Well, naturally, the guy decided not to eat at the restaurant, which is also the choice that most people would make. Only very few actually go into the restaurant after reading the writing on the wall. These very few are the people that enjoy the best food and will continue to return to the restaurant regardless of what someone else says, because they know first hand and create their own opinions. It turns out, the guy who wrote that comment on the wall, which is graffiti, lives just below it in a cardboard box.

The Graffiti Restaurant

The internet is a wall full of graffiti from people who have been offended, found fault, found what they thought were greener pastures or just plainly quit. That’s why it is there. They can’t blame themselves for their own failure. That would be crazy right?! So they make their blame public by using the internet.

I mean, someone could walk into paradise and still find something wrong with it if they were looking for it. Right!? Thus is life. As an example, I live near Phoenix Arizona. I’m not saying that Phoenix is paradise okay, but when it rains, it cools off the entire town, and for a brief moment, can be paradisical. It only rains a few times a year there and people were actually complaining about the rain, wishing it would stop. This is proof that people will complain about anything, regardless of what a blessing it is.

Ten times out of ten, the guy to listen to is definitely not the guy who moves from one opportunity to the next, hoping that it will be better than the last. And ten times out of ten, the ones to listen to are not the bums writing graffiti in forums. The ones to listen to are the people who have created success. It just makes sense! You just have to ask yourself the questions, “Who do want to become like?” If you want to be a graffiti bum, take advice from the graffiti bum. If you want to be outrageously successful, take advice from the outrageously successful. Simple!

I eagerly await the day when the majority of the people take the advice of someone successful over the opinion of 30 people who are not. Following the majority has never been the way to create success in life. Otherwise, everyone would be outrageously successful. If you are following the majority, chances are, your results are just like the majority, average! Ask Albert Einstein if he followed the majority, Abraham Lincoln, Michael Jordan. There a leaders and there are followers. A follower, is not a leader.

It turns out, the restaurant owner in the story decides to leave the statement on the wall that deters so many people and is glad it is there. Why? It’s because he now gets the perfect customer. The customer who is loyal and returns often and tells all his other loyal friends about this great restaurant. The statement on the wall keeps out the ones who would have found fault, even in paradise! It keeps the ones out that are “wishy-washy” in their decisions and jump from one thing to the next. It keeps out the ones who are terrified to experience change. It keeps out the followers of the majority. The graffiti bum has actually done the restaurant owner a huge favor!

You, the one reading this, might be the one who bases decisions on what the graffiti says. If it is you, I hope you are enjoying “average!”

Choose to be the one out of 30 who can see past the graffiti and the bum living below it, who was the author of it.

Have you ever sat there just wondering what might have happened if you would have done one thing or another different? Have you ever asked yourself the question, “What if?” What if I would have gone out for football when I was a senior? What if I hadn’t injured my knees my junior year in basketball? What if I had started that business I was thinking about starting a while back? The questions could go on and on and if you are a normal person, you have asked yourself similar questions throughout your life.

Now, in a sense, these questions can also be considered as mild regrets. It’s not that your life would have been completely different with some of the choices you wonder about, but with others, your life would be on a completely different track. So are all choices important? Absolutely they are, and it kills me to see people who are so undecided when faced with a choice to act. Indecision is still a decision not to act. If a person never acts, they become victims to the term, “Whatever happens, happens!” They are not in control of where they end up.

Now for me, I love being in control. In fact, I spend time every day to visualize my life in the near and distant future. I know exactly where I am going to end up. I devote time to knowing where I will be. Then I choose to act on the things that will move me closer to where I already know I am going to be. It’s simple really and just a matter of knowing.

This question can also be used in direct correlation to fear. What if I fail at this new business, what if I make the wrong decision, what if everybody hates the way I sing, what if nobody likes the subjects I blog about. I read a quote yesterday from Dr. Seuss that read, “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

My goal is to have the lowest amount of, “What if’s” in my life. If you think about the path you have traveled in your life up to this point, how would it be different if you had made some different decisions? What if you would have married that other girl, what if you had gone out for sports, what if you had chosen a different major, or what if you had started that business when you had wanted to? Your life would be on a different path, a worse path or may even a better path.

Here’s my advice, make your decisions, and make them quickly. Success is all about momentum. Don’t waste away your precious time thinking about things. That will only kill your momentum and thinking will not get you anywhere. Acting on those thoughts is the secret.

Be decided, always. You are either on one side of the fence or the other. There is no middle. Indecision is a decision not to act, thus staying on your current path of being tossed to a fro by the wind of life. Decisions are the rudders on your ship. Use them to chart your course to your predetermined, premeditated destination. Don’t be the one sitting around months or even years from now asking yourself the question, “What if!”

As I study different people and look at the results they are having in their life I notice that a lot of their success or failure stems from their language. You may not think so but by adjusting your language, in your mind and that which comes out of your mouth, can make a huge difference in your results. I know you have all heard of the phrase, “Do as I say not as I do!” That is the dumbest phrase! If those words have come out of your mouth before, your life may not be going as smoothly as it could, and you know what? It’s all your fault.

The correct phrase is “Do as I do!” Surprisingly, most people do as they say and you can see a pattern in people’s speech that will determine what they do. There are so many words that can be switched around or not used at all. For this post, I am going to call attention to the word “because.”

“Because” most of the time, is an excuse word. I can’t go to the store because……

Quick story: I assist people is creating wealth from home right? Well, occasionally I will speak with people who have huge income goals. They want to make millions and want it to happen right now. I present to them a business that has 7 figure income potential. The cost to get started is very minimal compared to the income they will make. Now tell me if you have ever heard this line: “I can’t get started because…..I have no money, I am living paycheck to paycheck, all my income goes to bills, I can’t afford to!” It all starts with “I can’t because.” Having no money is just an excuse. If they really wanted to get started and if they really wanted their millions, a small start up fee would not deter them in any way.

By using “because” in a negative way just means that you have only made a choice. You have chosen to be a victim of your circumstance and are allowing something else effect your choices. Money issues, sickness, schedules, school, friends, family, time, etc…they are all the same. Anything can get in the way of you achieving success. My goals include my family and friends because I allow them to be included in a certain way and still have control over that. The same applies to everything else.

Take a look at your vocabulary. Do you use the word “because” a lot? Is is being used as an excuse or is it empowering?

Empowering: “I am successful because I chose to be, or I did this or I did that.” That is positive and is used in a way that I can control. It’s not used selfishly if you are deserving. Credit is due.

Not Empowering: “I am successful because the stock market turned for the better, or luck came my way, or I won the lottery.” Those are all things you have no control over.

Excuse: “We lost the game because John missed that shot. I can’t make millions because I can’t afford to start a business. I am broke and unemployed because of the economy. I can’t market on the internet because I don’t know how!” All of these are ways “because” can aid in your excuses.

Take an inventory on your vocabulary and use words to empower yourself and I promise you that you will see a tremendous difference in your life.

Stop settling and start living! No excuses!

The other day I was having a conversation with an associate of mine about choosing to do one thing or another. It seemed in his mind and set in stone that he could only have one or the other. Having both didn’t seem to be an option. Now, I am sure he visits this site often so I am confident that he will read this post, which is good. I may be a little of on his thought process but am not off at all in a general sense for the rest of you, or the rest of the world.

Where did the mentality of having to choose come from? I mean, if someone has two items they want to buy at the store, usually the thing to do is to pick one and I think we all learned this as children. As I think about it, what do you say to your child as they come running up to you in the store with two pieces of candy in their hands asking if you can buy them both? You say, “pick one,”  right? I know I always do. They have to choose one or the other and having both of them is just not acceptable. Why? Because we don’t want to spoil them or have all their teeth fall out from cavities. The answer is obvious. Kids that get everything they ask for usually aren’t appreciative of the things they already have because they know they can just get more, or get something else. Until they learn the principle of gratitude they can’t have all that they want.

So what do I want? Do I want the Coke or the Pepsi? It’s simple. Get them both. Drink the Coke now and the Pepsi later! I actually like them both. Why do I have to choose which one is better instead of just having them both?

As adults, we have to learn to forget the concept that we can only have one or the other and not both. Now that we are mature we know that we must first be grateful for what we currently have, otherwise we won’t be blessed with more.  We can leave behind this limiting belief. That is exactly what it is. It is a belief that is restricting and limiting in nature. It is telling me that instead of having the ability to get all of my dream, I have to settle for one half or the other. Instead of hitting all of my goals I have to settle, or choose just one.

Know that you have the ability to create anything you desire in this life. Anything! If you want to pay off that credit card and take that vacation, you can have both if you believe you can and take the action to go out and get it. You can have both. You can have all of everything that you want and nobody is going to tell you that you can’t!

Let go of this one little but destructive belief and excel in your enterprise! This is just one of the many empowering principles of the $19 billion industry of Personal Development. I teach ambitious people how to create a mountain of success and wealth in this industry and do it while working from home in their pajamas! Improve yourself, improve your bank account!

In a supermarket, Kurtis the stock boy, was busily working when a new voice came over the loud speaker asking for a carry out at register Four.

Kurtis was almost finished, and wanted to get some fresh air, and decided to answer the call. As he approached the check-out stand a distant smile caught his eye, the new check-out girl was beautiful. She seemed a little older than he, (maybe 26, and he was only 22) but her smile was irresistible and he fell in love instantly.

Later that day, after his shift was over, he waited by the punch clock hoping to see her just one more time before calling it a day. She came into the break room, smiled softly at him, and he fell speechless. She took her card and punched out and smiled once more before turning to leave. He waited until she was out of site and rushed to the shelf of time cards, he found hers…BRENDA.

He walked out of the store and spotted Brenda walking home. That would be his opportunity tomorrow. The next day, he waited outside as she left the supermarket, and offered her a ride home. He looked harmless enough, and she accepted. When he dropped her off, he asked if maybe he could see her again, outside of work. She graciously declined simply stating that it would be impossible.

He pressed and she explained she had two children and she couldn’t afford a baby-sitter, so he offered to pay for the baby-sitter. Reluctantly she accepted his offer for a date for the following Saturday. That Saturday night he arrived at her door only to have her tell him that she was unable to go with him. The baby-sitter had called and canceled. To which Kurtis simply said, “Well, lets take the kids with us.”

She tried to explain that taking the children was not an option, but again not taking no for an answer, he pressed. Finally, Brenda brought him inside to meet her children. She had an older daughter who was just as cute as a bug, Kurtis thought. Then Brenda brought out her son, in a wheelchair. He was born a paraplegic with Down syndrome.
Kurtis asked Brenda, “I still don’t understand why the kids can’t come with us?” Brenda was amazed. Most men would run away from a woman with two kids, especially if one had disabilities – just like her first husband and father of her children had done. Kurtis was not ordinary – – – he had a different mindset.

That evening Kurtis and Brenda loaded up the kids, went to dinner and the movies. When her son needed anything Kurtis would take care of him. When he needed to use the restroom, he picked him up out of his wheelchair, took him and brought him back. The kids loved Kurtis. At the end of the evening, Brenda knew this was the man she was going to marry and spend the rest of her life with.

A year later, they were married and Kurtis adopted both of her children. Since then they have added two more children to their loving home.

So what happened to Kurtis the stock boy and Brenda the check-out girl? Well, Mr. & Mrs. Kurt Warner now lives in Arizona.

Overlooked by the NFL draft, cut in training camp by the Green Bay Packers, and thwarted by a venomous spider bite when trying out for the Chicago Bears, Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner’s path to victory hasn’t been an easy one. Yet despite setbacks, Warner persevered–whether stocking supermarket shelves or leading teams to the Super Bowl.

I just wanted to share this with you, because I feel that we all have the ability to achieve greatness, yet so many of us are not willing to take the extra step, go the extra mile, try new things, or even stick our neck out there towards unknown territory. Kurt Warner pursued his wife and career in a way that fashions a hero of perseverance.

True story!