Balancing Corporate & Homesteading Lifestyles
Simple Strategies To Harness The Power Of Positive Thinking
Every self-help guru on the planet will tell you that the way to experience happiness, prosperity, and health is through the doorway of positive thinking. And while that's easy to talk about when all is going great in your life, it may not be much comfort to you if things are crashing and burning all around you.
But the self-help gurus are right about the power of positive thinking. You can begin to take control of your thoughts and guide them in the direction you want your life to go. Your thoughts are the driving force toward your destiny.
Use these simple strategies to head toward the happiness you crave:
⇒Smile and be thankful. Much of what you experience in life depends on what you pay attention to. Each day, some things will go right and some things will go wrong. If you pay more attention to the things that go right and dwell on those things, you'll experience more happiness.
⇒Smile and greet everyone you meet warmly. Smiles are contagious, and you'll instantly begin to feel a difference inside yourself.
⇒Pause throughout the day to think about things that you are grateful for. The more you practice gratitude, the better you'll feel about life and about yourself.
⇒Surround yourself with positive people. Most people who soar to incredible heights of accomplishment in their lives do so because they surround themselves with positive, encouraging people. It's hard to have a positive outlook when everyone around you is complaining all the time.
⇒If you surround yourself with people who routinely seek the good inside of you, you'll begin to do the same. Spend less time with negative people and more time with those who speak words of support into your life. If you do, you'll experience greater power, self-confidence and joy.
⇒Think constructively. For positive thinking to truly make a difference in your life, you must replace negative thoughts as they occur. Most important, however, is the need to get whatever benefits you can out of the negative thought before you erase it from your mind.
⇒Instead of ignoring your negative thought and hoping it will go away, ask yourself if the critic inside of you is trying to teach you something valuable. Take note of the lesson, and then quickly discard the negative thought. Replace it with a positive perspective on the same situation.
⇒Whenever you experience negative thinking, ask yourself: "What else could this mean?" If someone treats you unfairly, it could mean that they don't like you very much. But it probably means they're just having a bad day. How can you help? Do you see how this question can change your entire outlook?
⇒Use positive affirmations. Often, when faced with a stressful situation, we resort to a pattern of thinking and behaving that has become a habit. How do you create new habits that support your success instead of sabotaging it? Positive affirmations are the key.
⇒Write out the things you want in life and the qualities you want to possess. Write these statements in the present tense, and use positive language. Repeat these statements to yourself over and over again. Do this every day, and before long you'll strongly believe the words of the affirmation you've created for yourself.
⇒If a habit of thinking is holding you back, what's stopping you from creating a new habit? Try this today and experience its power for yourself.
The negative thoughts of the critic inside of you serve a valuable purpose. Things aren't always rosy, and it's important to learn from your experiences so that you don't make the same mistakes. However, you can begin to harness the power of positive thinking today. Apply these simple strategies to move closer to the joy and success you deserve.
How The Top 1% Think
The top 1% aren’t just working harder than the bottom 99%. You can’t grunt your way to the top. High levels of success do require hard work, but the work must be smart, too. The bottom 99% are focused on the wrong things, prioritize short-term comfort over success, and fail to take enough action.
The top 1% aren’t smarter or more capable, but they do use their time wisely and manage themselves effectively.
Understand the differences between the top 1% and everyone else:
⇒Being the only one is better than being the best. One famous quote goes, “Competition is for losers.” While the average person that wants to aspire to great accomplishments is concerned with being the best, the ultra-successful look for ways to avoid competition. Create a new market or field. Be the only one.
⇒They attack the day early. They get a good start on the day. While the other 99% are trying to figure out what to do, the top 1% are already busy. They have enthusiasm in the morning and make the most of the early hours.
⇒Action trumps knowledge. The top 1% are knowledgeable, but they know a secret. A good plan that is followed aggressively and persistently always beats a great plan that’s implemented half-heartedly.
⇒Know what you need to know and then get busy making it happen. An unquenchable thirst for knowledge is often fear in disguise.
⇒Goals are achieved by systems. A system of eating nutritiously and exercising results in health and fitness. A system of saving and investing leads to wealth. The top 1% look for effective systems to implement. With the right systems in place, goals are attained automatically.
⇒They have priorities. Having too many priorities results in having none. You can’t be a world-class artist, dog trainer, yoga expert, and bowler. Be strong enough to whittle down your priorities to the few that truly matter the most to you. Having too many priorities is a path to mediocrity.
⇒The top 1% make networking a priority. You can never have too many friends. Good networking skills can be learned by anyone. Having many long-term acquaintances can be powerful. You’ll have a constant supply of assistance and opportunities. Knowing the right people is an important part of becoming part of the top 1%.
⇒They make money a priority. They’re not just good at saving. They’re also good at investing their money wisely. They pay their bills on time, avoid unnecessary debt, and get professional help when necessary. Manage your money wisely and join them.
⇒They are aware of their weaknesses. The top 1% know what they can and can’t do. They avoid their weaknesses or find a way to deal with them. Play to your strengths.
⇒They focus on the long term. Delaying gratification is a key to becoming highly successful. Let the average people satisfy their short-term cravings. Keep your eye on the grand prize.
⇒They emphasize finding solutions to their challenges. The key to making a lot of money or achieving challenging goals is resolving your challenges. Search for solutions and avoid getting too hung up on the issue itself. Find a possible solution and get to work.
Anyone can become part of the top 1%, but it requires a change in thinking and focus. Set your priorities and stick to them. Manage your money wisely and network like your life depends on it. Focus on developing the right systems to achieve your goals and emphasize action. Only action will bring the results you desire.
Using The Law Of Attraction To Boost Your Income
We've all heard about how positive thinking can benefit you in many ways, but did you know that positive thinking and the Law of Attraction can help boost your income as well?
These days we all could use some extra income! This article will give you an understanding of how positive thinking and the Law of Attraction are interrelated, as well as explain how you can use these principals for your financial benefit.
Positive Thinking
Positive thinking is more than just being upbeat all the time. The term "optimistic" comes to mind; however, positive thinking is much more than just being hopeful, also. Positive thinking is the opposite of negative thinking.
Sounds simple right? Well it's easier said than done!
Why It's Important to Think Positively
I'm sure you know someone who's a negative thinker. They're usually down most of the time, get depressed easily, and have negative things happen to them recurrently.
Have you ever wondered why this happens? It's because the negative thinker surrounds himself with negative energy, which attracts more negative things. His thoughts are in harmony with negativity, so that's what he gets - more of the same!
Positive thinkers, on the other hand, think about encouraging things and surround themselves with positive energy. Their thoughts are in harmony with good things, so they attract more positive opportunities.
Whether you're aware of it or not, you gravitate toward the outcome of situations because of your thought processes.
Therefore, when you think positively, you'll make decisions based on that type of outcome, consciously or unconsciously. The same goes if you think negatively.
How to Use the Law of Attraction to Attract More Money
If you dwell on the negative - such as how bad the economy is or how tragic situations are - your thoughts, and therefore your decisions, take you down a path to negative outcomes.
However, when you think positively, you now have a fresh start to do something you really enjoy and your thoughts and decisions move you toward those goals.
5 Excuses That Derail Success
No matter how impossible you might think something is to accomplish, there’s someone out there getting it done anyway. Most often, excuses are a way to justify fear of failure, fear of success, or a lack of resolve. Excuses get in the way of success and living fully.
By overcoming your excuses, success becomes much more likely!
Avoid letting these excuses sabotage the life you desire:
⇒I don’t have the right education. A surprising percentage of the most successful people never completed high school. It’s true that education is required to be a doctor, lawyer, or engineer, but education isn’t required in many situations.
⇒Our society places a high emphasis on education, but it’s not always necessary. Motivation and commitment are far more valuable than education in most cases. How committed are you?
⇒I don’t have enough money. Many of those wealthy in the present were poor in the past. Some of the biggest companies were started in a one-car garage. Money certainly makes things easier, but it’s not always necessary to get started.
⇒A lack of financial resources is a convenient excuse to stay stuck in your current situation. The world is full of money. If you don’t have enough money to move forward, find a way to acquire more.
⇒I don’t have enough time. With careful planning, you can find time in your schedule for your priorities. How much extra time do you need to achieve your goals?
⇒You might need to eliminate some of the activities that aren’t as crucial to making your dreams come true, such as club meetings.
⇒If you regularly overextend yourself by saying Yes every time someone asks you to do something, practice politely saying No until you can sometimes make that your answer.
⇒Delegate some of your responsibilities.
⇒Cut down on watching television. You’d be surprised how much you can get done during the time you usually spend watching shows on TV or the internet!
⇒It’s too late to get started. Do you think life has passed you by? An 80 year-old man climbed Mount Everest successfully. People over the age of 60 have graduated from medical school. Is it really too late? It’s possible that your age or life circumstances can make success more challenging, but it’s unlikely that it’s too late.
⇒What can you do today to take that first step?
⇒I don’t know how to get started. There was a time when Tiger Woods didn’t know how to play golf and Warren Buffett couldn’t even spell “stock.” It might be true that you don’t know how to get started. That just means you require some education.
⇒There’s never been a time in history when more free information was available. You can find anything you need to get started online or at the local library. And there’s no law that states you can’t sit in the bookstore all day and read to your heart’s content.
If you feel that success is eluding you, thoughtfully consider the possibility that you might be making excuses. You might discover that what you thought was stopping you all along was really you! Now that you know, you can get past your excuses and on the path to success.
Recommended Reading For Building An Online Business
Below are some recommended reading to help you grow and monetize your audience for marketing online. Note: Below are affiliate links, at no extra cost to you, we may make a small commission if you choose to purchase from our site.
Mindset, Positive Thinking, Productivity
Building Your Online Community
Selling & Converting
Eliminate Your Fear of Failure and Soar to Greater Success
Fear of failure can alter every choice we make. This fear can be helpful. Some of us are able to use the fear of failure as motivation to do our best work. However, most of us are influenced by this fear in a negative way. We often change our plans altogether and find an alternative that feels safer. This is a sure way to limit your results and experience feelings of regret.
Put the fear of failure behind you:
⇒Understand that failure is part of the process. You’re very lucky if you figure out the right way to do something with your first effort. Short-term failure is much more common. Anytime you want to accomplish something significant, you can expect failures to be part of the process. Keep improving your process until you’re successful.
⇒Realize that failure is only a temporary condition. A single failure isn’t a permanent condition. Failure is like a rainy day. Sunny days always show up again.
⇒Find something meaningful. With enough motivation, fear isn’t an issue. For example, if you’re feeling overly bashful at work, maybe you aren’t working in the right field or with the right company for you. When you have enough passion for something, fear is much easier to overcome.
⇒Failure isn’t personal. Failing only means that your approach wasn’t the best option. It doesn’t say anything about you as a person. Even the most talented people deal with failure on a regular basis. A wrong choice isn’t indicative of a fatal flaw.
⇒Stay present. You can’t worry if your mind isn’t living in the future. It’s only when you project a negative outcome that you become anxious. Reality is happening right now. The future is only a daydream. If you’re going to think about the future, imagine success. At this very second, you’re okay. You’ll be okay in the next second, too.
⇒Learn to enjoy fear. If your life isn’t in danger, being afraid is a sign that you’re doing something new. Only new behaviors will change your life. No one wants to live the same day repeatedly. That uncomfortable feeling is a sign that something amazing might happen.
⇒Minimize fear by taking action. The people that are most afraid tend to be the most paralyzed, but they didn’t start out that way. You weren’t born afraid of the things that you fear today. But by giving in to fear, you teach your brain that fear is an effective way to control your behavior. It will continue ratcheting up the fear because it knows it works.
⇒Ignoring fear and taking action has the opposite effect. You can teach yourself that fear doesn’t impact your behavior. In time, the amount of fear you feel will decrease.
⇒Look ahead. If you continue to allow fear to dictate your behavior, what will your life look like in 20 years? How would your life be different if fear didn’t control your actions? Would you rather be a little uncomfortable now or be filled with regret for the rest of your life?
⇒View failure as an opportunity to learn. Failure might provide a small sting, but the information you gain is invaluable. A few, small improvements are often enough to turn a failure into a success. Look for the lesson and apply it to your next attempt.
Has the fear of failure had a negative impact on your life? Dealing with the fear of failure is something everyone faces. Avoid allowing fear to dictate and limit your life.
Remember that the fear is self-created. You can choose to have an attitude that supports.
Are You Strong Enough To Succeed?
Are you too fragile to succeed? Discomfort is part of success, but be grateful. That discomfort limits the amount of competition you’ll face. Learn to handle feeling uncomfortable, and your success will skyrocket. Are you tough enough to succeed?
Success isn’t easy. There is a lot of discomforts that must be overcome to change your life in a dramatic way. Most people are too mentally fragile to deal with discomfort. Our natural instincts are to retreat to places of comfort.
What’s more comfortable than watching your favorite movie from the comfort of your couch while eating your favorite snack? But it’s a trap.
Are you strong enough at this moment to move toward success? Consider these questions:
⇒Are you able to make decisions? You’re thinking, “Of course, I choose to eat a grilled cheese for lunch over a cheeseburger.” But, we’re talking about big decisions here. Choosing a career, a life partner, a marketing plan for your small business, an investment strategy, a lifestyle, or long-term goals require the ability to make decisions and stick with them.
⇒Without decisions, your life is on the fast track to nowhere. Unsuccessful people struggle to make up their minds. They don’t want to make a mistake, so they do nothing. You have to be brave enough to risk making a mistake and just decide.
⇒Are you able to deal with adversity? Adversity abounds on the road to accomplishing anything significant. The vast majority of the rest of the world doesn’t care, and they’re not going to help. There will even be a few people in your way. Are you strong enough to deal with adversity?
⇒Failure is another type of adversity. Do you work through failure or use it as an excuse to quit? Overcoming failure is key to success. The odds of being successful without experiencing failure are slim.
⇒Can you handle criticism? Plenty of people want to hold you back. It’s the easiest way for them to feel better about themselves. You lose 15 lbs, and someone asks you if you’re sick. You make a few dollars, and someone tells you you’re just going to waste it or that you’re being greedy.
⇒Listen to average people and you’ll be average.
⇒Some criticism is constructive. Use it. The rest is harmful. Ignore it.
⇒Are you persistent? Some things take a long time to accomplish. Earning and saving $5 millions will take most people many years. Losing 100 lbs takes time. Can you eat another chicken breast and a salad again tonight instead of ordering a pizza? Are you tough enough to persist? Fragile people aren’t persistent.
⇒Are you able to change your perception of yourself? If you’re used to being financially challenged or overweight, are you strong enough to change your perception of yourself to that of someone wealthy or fit? Changing your perceptions is uncomfortable, but doable.
⇒Are you able to be flexible? Can you change course when the situation calls for it? Or would you rather stick to what you know? How much change can you handle before you crumble? It’s not easy to take a new approach, especially if you have to start from scratch.
⇒Can you make mistakes and still have confidence in yourself? Can you maintain faith in yourself after you’ve made a few mistakes and misjudgements? How much do you trust yourself? How unshakeable is that trust? Think of the most successful people you know. Their self-confidence is rock solid.
Choose To Have A Great Day
Life is full of surprises. In an average day, a seemingly endless number of unexpected events can occur that might create stress, worry, and frustration. But instead of letting these negative emotions take over, what if you were to make a conscious decision to have a great day?
Try these techniques to bring joy to each day:
⇒Use self-suggestion. First thing in the morning, make a conscious decision to have a great day. As you’re brushing your teeth, look yourself in the eye. Tell yourself, “I’m going to have a great day,” and mean it. This is your chance to set yourself up for a fantastic day, whether you’ll be with your family, at work, or hanging out with friends.
⇒Empower yourself. You’re taking control of what might have turned into a negative situation when you decide to allow events to just roll on by and not affect you adversely. Take the bull by the horns and state to yourself what you will and won’t do in a challenging situation.
⇒Refuse to allow someone or something other than yourself to ruin your day. When you do this, you’re saying “no” to negativity. You’re taking a stand. When you’re resolved in this way, your healthy stubbornness will ensure you have a great day.
⇒Recognize what really matters. When you encounter a challenging situation, prompt yourself to see the bigger picture. If one part of a project isn’t going well, identify that you’ve been in similar circumstances before and will most likely be in them again someday. Know, however, that such situations don’t last, and easy times will come again, too.
⇒Remind yourself of the positive. Remember that you still have other things to do today and the trying situation isn’t the only event you’ll encounter. Before the day is out, you might win the lottery or get that promotion you’ve wanted. Or maybe all the traffic lights will be green on your way home. Whether big or small, positive things are likely to happen today.
⇒Consider a challenging event as an adventure. When you look back, you’ll find that many prior situations that you were initially disappointed in turned out to be great opportunities for you. Shift your paradigm from “Oh, this is bad” to “This could be interesting.”
⇒Discover the silver lining. What are the positives about a trying situation? You may feel challenged at first to find something positive about a difficult occurrence. However, with some practice, this will become easier. You’ll eventually be able to identify what the real beauty of the tough event is.
When life gets you down, you always have a choice. You can either let yourself be completely overtaken with the weight of your challenge or decide to have a great day.
Turn negative situations into adventures and seek the silver lining in every challenging event. You have all the power you need within you to make your life as enjoyable as you want it to be!
Entrepreneurial Success: Enhance Your Mindset to Increase Your Revenue
While the first step to become an entrepreneur is locating a profitable business idea, the true foundation of entrepreneurial success rests within your mindset. A good idea can take you only so far. However, true determination to stop at nothing to achieve your goals can carry you through to the finish line.
You may have hundreds - if not thousands - of competitors in your field. Many of them sell the exact same product as you. Yet, one business may be raking in huge monthly revenue, while the other can barely get off the ground.
So, what separates these two businesses?
It's the difference in mindset of the entrepreneurs behind the ventures. The successful businessperson boasts a heightened business mindset that leads to higher revenue. The unsuccessful one may know a thing or two about business, but he's okay with doing the bare minimum.
Below is a chart that displays the key differences in the mindsets of a successful and unsuccessful entrepreneur. Adopt the mindset philosophies of the successful entrepreneur and you'll happily discover that your profits increase as well!
The Mindset of the Successful Entrepreneur
⇒Always reaches higher and focuses on the up-sell. He knows how to turn $5 into $20.
⇒Has an elevator speech prepared and will recite it to anyone who's willing to listen.
⇒Values the power of marketing and employs proven marketing tactics. He markets whether business is booming or in a lull.
⇒Believes in his ability to achieve the best and constantly pushes himself beyond his comfort zone for the greater good of his business.
⇒Believes that customer service is just as important as promotion and providing quality products.
⇒Is a problem solver. He can allocate funds as if it were his natural talent. He knows how to run a tight ship in order to keep revenue up and overhead down.
⇒Values his intuition over the advice of another. He truly understands what's best for his business.
⇒Keeps moving when things are slow. He's always quickly moving on to the next task that must be done to improve his business.
⇒Thrives under pressure. He's always attentive and alert. When his business begins to see red, he is an entrepreneurial hero.
⇒Implements sound ideas into his existing business plan in order to increase revenue, customer service, and promotion.
⇒Stands his ground. He confronts rotten eggs with a cool attitude and a firm intent. He notices everything and handles all confrontation with class.
The Mindset of the Unsuccessful Entrepreneur
⇒Believes that good enough really is good enough. He believes that a dollar in revenue is better than no revenue at all.
⇒Feels embarrassed to toot his own horn and often downplays the complexity of his business.
⇒Employs marketing tactics only when business is slow. He's all about cutting corners, and when business is booming, marketing expenses seem unnecessary.
⇒Allows his personal low self-esteem to translate into his business leadership. Because of this, his marketing, networking, public perception, and revenue take a hit.
⇒Customer service is an afterthought. He takes personal offense to most customer complaints.
⇒Is a problem solver only when it comes to menial issues, but he cracks under pressure when the hard times come knocking.
⇒Ignores his intuition and runs to all the wrong people for advice before taking action.
⇒He takes advantage of the slow times in his business to indulge in his personal life while he should be working.
⇒May thrive under pressure, but it's his fear that keeps him going rather than his optimism. This same fear can cause panicky, unwise decisions.
⇒Lets his ideas lie dormant until his business is bringing in more money.
⇒Stands his ground and he does so with an overly aggressive and threatening attitude. His business mindset is out the window when he feels as if he's being taken advantage of.
As you can see, a heightened mindset - a willingness to succeed and take risks for your business - is the foundation for attaining higher profits. By following the mindset of the successful entrepreneur, you'll experience the success you've been dreaming about in your business.
The 3 Filters and Gossip
Everyone has gotten caught up in gossip at some point. It's easy to do. In reverse, many of us have been on the receiving end as well ... and it hurts.
Reading Socrates might not be for everyone but I love the lessons ... just saying ... a lot can be learned.
In Ancient Greece, Socrates had a great reputation of wisdom. One day, someone came to find the great philosopher and said to him:
Socrates, the great Greek philosopher, was once stopped by an acquaintance as he passed through the markets.
“I’ve something important to tell you,” he said. “It’s about your friend.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Socrates said. “But, don’t tell me just yet.
I run all information through the Three Filters Test to ascertain if I want to know it.”
The man looked somewhat puzzled as Socrates continued, “First is the filter of truth. Whatever you want to tell me, have you seen or witnessed it first-hand?”
“Umm…I actually heard it from someone,” the man said, “and, it is from a trusted source.”
“Alright. But that does not pass my first test,” Socrates added, “since you don’t know whether it’s true.”
“Second is the filter of goodness. Is that a good statement you want to make about my friend?”
“Not really. That’s the reason I wanted—”
Socrates interjected, “So, you want to tell me something bad about someone but don’t know if it’s true.”
“The last is the filter of utility.” He continued, “Your statement about my friend, is that gonna be useful to me?”
“Not really as such. I just wanted to share”
“Well, if the information is not necessarily true, it is not good, and, it is of no use,” Socrates concluded, “please, I don’t want to know about it.”
