Archive for Self-Improvement
Success
Friends, I think one very important point, which I may not have mentioned before, is that success is not something that can be clearly defined across the board for all people. Success is a personal matter, more so than some standard that can be defined. In other words, we each define success in different ways. Don’t get caught up in all the nonsense – thinking that success means a certain brand of car, or living in a certain neighborhood, or owning other products is not the definition of success. True success is really a matter of finding happiness in your life. If you can wake up every day, look yourself in the mirror, and determine that you are a person who has done something good in your life, nothing else matters. Don’t get caught up in the hype – being truly successful in life comes from inside, and from who you are, not what you own.
-B
Wow
Due to overwhelming demand, I will begin posting regularly again. I am so happy so many people enjoy this blog! Thanks for your continued support.
Attitude Vs. Adversity
I know we are all in challenging times – the economy has been tough, and it seems things are constantly going wrong. There is more bad news than there is good. So, what to do in this challenging climate?
Use what you have! You will never get ahead if you don’t use what you have. Use your attitude! You may see circumstances that do not look desirable, but that doesn’t mean you have to let it get you down. Keep your chin up! If you think positively, even when things look grim, you can pull yourself out of it. Your attitude determines your altitude, so be careful what you think – what you think is what you become!
Be Happy
Friends – just wanted to drop a quick note tonight…remember, that even when you see all the terrible things going on in the World around us – be happy. Find something in your life for which you can be happy, and go with it. Don’t let the World get you down!
B
Personal Development
Friends, I believe truly that spending just a few minutes every day on something self-improvement related can pay off in many ways. I recommend using the internet, books, seminars, audio books on MP3, or whatever other form you can find. Spend a few minutes every day trying to improve some aspect of yourself. After all, if you invest in yourself, you will benefit greatly, as will those around you. I don’t know of any other investment that pays off the way this one does!
Becoming the best “you” that you can be will ultimately make your life better in myriad ways. If you look through this blog, you will see posts on any number of topics, so you can use this as a starting point – finding resources is always the first step, right? The books listed here will help greatly and the articles may be interesting too 
.
Think about that. I wish you all a happy weekend!
B
Opportunities..
Today, I would like to talk about something that I found online and really interesting. This is a quote from a very famous author that I had to share.
“For everything you have missed, you have gained something else, and for everything you gain, you lose something else.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
Economists refer to this as the “opportunity cost”. Emerson said it much more eloquently, but essentially said the same thing. What this really amounts to is this – for everything we do, we miss an opportunity to do something else. For every opportunity we lose, there is some other gain we have experienced from the path we took. For every opportunity we take, there is another we passed up.
This is something to remember at all times. We may look back and say ‘wow, if only I had invested in that stock when it was $2 – it is now $40!’. In doing so, we must also realize that we gained something else. Perhaps you donated that money to charity, and helped someone else move forward in their life. Or maybe you used that money to buy some item that provided enjoyment, such as a game or other personal item.
The point is simple – if you spend all your time looking at the doors behind you that have closed, you cannot ever see the ones that are open in front of you.
Keep that in mind –
B
Just Because
I want to challenge all of my readers…if you are reading this, consider yourself challenged. I want you to do something tomorrow.
It won’t be hard, but it is worth it.
The challenge is simple:
Do something nice for someone. Not because you have to, or because it is their birthday, etc…just do it because you can.
It is that simple! Please comment to let us know you did it. If we all do just one kind thing, think of how much better the World will be tomorrow!
B
Fear Series #3
I want to continue my fear series with something that many people may not even realize they have experienced.
Fear Of Success
Am I crazy? Would anyone actually fear success? Yes, some people do, and may not even realize it. Many people think there is no way they could fear success, and may even be pursuing it. What they may not realize is they may actually fear it more than they know.
How would you know if you were actually fearing success? Fear of success is usually characterized by things such as:
The best way to address this is to work on improving your self-esteem and realizing what changes will come about if you succeed. Do not let a fear of success keep you from your goals! You deserve to win, and you deserve to be successful in life. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise!
Fear Series #2
To continue on my Fear series, I wanted to discuss yet another common fear, and how to deal with it:
Fear Of Rejection
Fear of rejection is an irrational fear the people will not accept you for who you are, what you believe, how you act, or what you think. This typically results in not doing anything due to a fear of rejection or disapproval.
There are common patterns exhibited by people that act out of a fear of rejection. Typically, this is seen in things such as people who act with little or no assertiveness. They will not speak up when their opinion differs. These people are the typical ‘yes men’, in the sense that they secretly dislike what some people say or do, yet they appear to agree with them in order to keep from ‘rocking the boat’.
How can this change? This is typically caused by a lack of self-esteem, having had a bad experience due to previous rejection, being insecure, or having a physical condition they believe makes them unattractive to others.
The best way to deal with this fear is to start building your self-esteem, identifying what may be causing this in your past, and beginning to voice your opinion.
I hope this helps a bit. This is obviously a more complex fear, but this is a starter guide to understanding that fear, and beginning to deal with it.
Fear Series #1
I would like to now begin a series of posts regarding fear. Fear can be crippling and damaging, or it can be helpful.
Today’s post: Fear of Failure
Fear of failure is one of the most common fears people have. I have noticed, many times, that people let this fear prevent them from succeeding. If you are always afraid to do something, simply because it could fail, you will never begin anything. This can become a bigger problem, by preventing you from ever having any success. You cannot succeed if you do not try, right? Here is a 3 step list to help combat that fear.
#1. There are ways to combat this fear. One way to combat the fear of failure is to begin your path through positive thinking and self-confidence, both of which I have discussed many times.
#2. Another step necessary to combat this fear is to take an action. The best way to accomplish this is to find something you wish to do, evaluate carefully what you want to do, what the risk may be, and the potential reward. If the risk seems relatively low, and the reward worth it, step out of your comfort zone and try it.
#3. Another step is to realize that no one is perfect – we WILL ALL FAIL at some point in time. The mere fact that we have failed does not in and of itself make us a failure. Giving up makes one a failure, however failing does not. Every successful person in history has failed at something at some point. The difference is that these people kept trying until they did succeed.
I hope this helps overcome your fear of failure. Stay tuned for more information about fears we all face!
