Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

"Hope walks through fire, Faith leaps over the fire". Have faith in your self and your journey👍

You are not entitled to Success!

Everyone wants success. They might want it in different forms, but I’ve never met anyone who didn’t want to be successful at something in their lives. I believe everyone is entitled to pursue success; but success itself is not an entitlement.

Success is largely determined by our hard work and our choices. I know many people who work hard but make bad choices. It’s amazing how many of them think they deserve success because they feel they’ve worked hard. On the other hand, I don’t know many, if any, successful people who have made good choices but didn’t work hard.

I knew someone who was constantly lamenting her “bad luck.” She wasn’t happy with her job. Her personal life was in shambles. She was almost forty, didn’t have a degree, and constantly had money problems. She often blamed situations or other people for the various predicaments she was in.

However, the glaringly obvious truth was that although she worked fairly hard, she continually made horrible choices. One day she would complain about money; the next day she’d buy something totally extravagant and unnecessary. The following week she’d complain about not being able to get a good job while showing up to work an hour late for personal reasons.

From time to time she’d talk to me about her issues, and I’d point out the choices she made that led to her current problem. Each time she’d seemingly acknowledge the connection, but the truth is she never took ownership of the real problem: her choices. She once lamented, “Why me? I deserve better!” I didn’t offer my opinion, but what I wanted to say was, “Everyone feels like they ‘deserve better’ at some point in life. Now stop complaining, and start doing something about it!”

Working hard is only one part of success. Making good choices is the second. It truly takes both to achieve success.

As the CEO for an international business, I know the choices I make are sometimes pretty important to the business. They can impact hundreds of employees, franchise owners and associates, as well as tens of thousands of clients around the world. Years ago, I was talking to a friend about some tough decisions I had to make. He gave me some great advice. He said, “Not every decision you make has to be a good one. Just make sure you make more good ones than bad, and when you make a bad one, minimize the impact by fixing it quickly.” This squarely hits the point about working hard and making good choices.

Not long ago I was talking to someone I’ve known for years about the growth of my business and some other goals I’ve met and he said, “Man you’re lucky. It must be nice.”
I responded to him by saying “Yeah, I’m lucky; let me tell you the secret to my luck. First, I went to college for ten years. During that time, I started my own business and worked really long hours for two decades. Along the way, I used my house as collateral for loans for the business a couple times, and I wrote five books. You can have this kind of luck, too. All you need to do is apply this kind of effort to whatever you do.”
He laughed and said, “Okay, okay, I get it!” Did he really? I don’t think so. He hasn’t changed his behaviour or started making different choices. If being successful was easy, everyone would have the success he or she thinks is deserved.

For most of those two decades I mentioned above, I didn’t feel very lucky or successful. It took time, effort, hard work and adequate choices before I felt any modicum of success. The problem is that many people want to go from point A to point Z and bypass the challenges in between.

The other day I asked my nine-year-old son to recite the success mantra I’d been teaching him. He replied in a young boy’s slightly bored sing-song tone, “The secret to success without hard work and good choices is still a secret, Dad. Can I go out and play now?”

OK, maybe nine is a little young to start the training… but, maybe not.

Culled from http://www.smallbusinessadvocate.com

Monday Motivation

Are you working for love or money??

"Money alone cannot win success. Focusing only on money is like playing tennis while watching the scoreboard and not the ball. Money is a reward for playing the game well; it is not the game" – Robert Holden (author, Success Intelligence)

Focusing on money is a trap many of us fall into as employees or business owners. Our attention instinctively goes to where the money is today. In the process, we only consider the present and often miss the big picture.

As an employee, you want a better paying job, no matter the job function. You would rather be a store keeper in a multinational oil company than an Executive Director in an ICT firm where your passion lies. You need the money now. Developing the skills required, gaining experience running a business and going for your dreams can wait. Most people look for where the money is when starting a business. They want to know which area is lucrative, hence the question ‘what business do I go into?’ If their focus is on what they really love and are willing to give their best, the question ‘what’ would not arise. It would go like ‘I am passionate about ABC and have identified a gap in the market, how do I turn it into a profitable business?’

Are you working for money or for love?

Many will gladly admit they are working for money. They are proud of the fact. They will even tell you that they did not leave their villages to come admire the city, and in the case of Lagos, flyovers or skyscrapers etc.  Money is the reason they show up at the office.
In some cases, both Dad and Mum willingly leave home every day without adequate day care arrangements for their children, to work for money to take care of the children they love so much. They believe the children prefer material things to their presence.

I often imagine a scenario whereby the Managing Director will call a staff meeting to inform the staff that the company can no longer continue to pay salaries, that rather than fold up, it will continue as a charity with volunteer staff. I am sure the car park will empty after the meeting and the company premises would turn to a ghost town. One question coaches often ask clients to help them clarify where there passion lies is the question about what they would love to do if they had all the money and time in the world. What would you do with your life in you suddenly came into an inheritance of a hundred million dollars from an uncle you never met? Taking the rest of your life off to go enjoy is not an option because in a year or so, you would have been there, done that and gotten tired of doing nothing. Until you find what you truly love doing, you will not be fulfilled at work, a place you spend most of your waking hours and by extension your life. If you are not fulfilled when you are awake, when do you plan to be fulfilled? While asleep?

This is not a call to quit your job or change your line of business. It is a call to find your place. If your heart is not in what you are doing, then you don’t belong there. Anything done outside of love is a chore. It is a stressful place to be. Your spirit is not in it and your soul is struggling, dragging your body along. You are not in alignment. This is not the place peak performance happens, where you fire from all cylinders almost effortlessly like fish swimming in water or an eagle riding the storm. You cannot bring out your best playing in a position meant for someone else.

You are not living your life by doing something that your heart is not in. You may make the money but you are missing out on life. Working for money runs down your battery while doing what you love charges your batteries. When you get to the top of your game, you end up making much more money than you would have, working for money.

‘Love does not put food on the table’

The biggest challenge we face is the fact that doing what you love seems slow in putting food on the table. Getting a job in an area you love may mean foregoing more lucrative jobs. That is very true, especially if you discovered what you really love rather late in the game, like most of us. Those that started early while in school are ready to hit the ground running after the National Youth Service, some looking for employees while their colleagues are looking for jobs.

What happens if you wake up late in the morning or mid-afternoon? In that case you have to go through a transition process, moving from your job to your dream. There is no one size fits all, and circumstances vary widely. There are organizations that try to match your passion with business needs. It is your job to clearly articulate who you are and where your hear lies. If you can find that place in your organization, then that is a dream job. It becomes a stepping stone towards your ultimate dreams. If you are out of place, knowing your place is a good start. Working to get there becomes your next goal. It may mean pursuing your passion in your spare time rather than waste time on activities or friends that do not move you forward.

The best way to succeed at what you are doing is to focus on it, pour your heart and soul into it and do an excellent job. Being in love with what you are doing gives you the drive to keep going even when the going gets tough. If you focus on finding your place and being the best you can be, you will make much more money than the guy that is playing with one eye on the score board.


Culled from http://www.financialfreedominspiration.com

Monday Motivation

Monday Motivation

"Winning cannot become your habit unless defeats have torn you apart and you sit in the battle field stitching back yourself one piece at a time, laughing in the faces of all defeats.” 

― Chetan M. Kumbhar, Panasu The Golden City & The Capasstars

Leverage your way to Success!!

"Give me a lever long enough and a place to stand and I can rule the world"-Archimedes (Greek Philosopher).

His words have universal application and as you will read in this article, you too can use the principle of leverage to expand the reach of your talents and strengths. By fully developing this principle in your career or business, you can achieve vastly more than you ever could on your own.

In their book TurboCoach : A powerful system for achieving breakthrough career success, Brian Tracy and Campbell Fraser talked about the seven forms of leverage that can help you expand the reach of your own talents and strengths. Each leverage involves building on the work, talents, experience, and contacts of other people.

                       

1. Leverage on other people’s energy.

The most productive people make sure they have time for the few things that give them the highest payoff by routinely seeking to delegate and outsource their lower-value activities.

2. Leverage on other people’s knowledge.

Applying one simple piece of key knowledge to your situation can make a big difference in your life. So follow the lead of successful people by reading books, magazines, tapes, articles, and conferences for ideas and insights you can use to help you achieve your goals faster. Thanks to the Internet, the task of researching other people’s knowledge is faster and simpler than ever.

3. Leverage on other people’s successes.

Study the successes that other people and companies have achieved to gain insights into their challenges and solutions. Most successful people have paid their dues in terms of money, energy, commitment, and even failure to arrive at the top of their fields.

Do not forget that success always leave some clues . So learn from their experiences and study their success stories to see if there are lessons there that can save you considerable time and trouble.

Do not hesitate to seek out current role models and ask their advice. You may be surprised to find that many people who have achieved success take great pleasure in helping others who are committed to making a mark in the same field.

Once you have realized your own goals, remember to do what you can to return the favor to those coming along behind you.

          

4. Leverage on other people’s money.

Knowing how and when to take advantage of other people’s money by borrowing or otherwise tapping into other people’s financial resources empowers you to achieve things that would be beyond your reach if you relied solely on your own resources.

In the world of financial market, many companies have borrowed funds to enable them expand, develop new products or projects. In fact, a firm could be at the risk of takeover if its management failed to leverage on their balance sheet.

You should seek out opportunities to borrow and invest, achieving returns in excess of the cost of the borrowed funds.

5. Leverage on other people’s failures.

As Benjamin Franklin said, ‘‘Man can either buy his wisdom or borrow it.

By buying it, he pays full price in personal time and treasure. But by borrowing it, he capitalizes on the lessons learned from the failures of others.’’

History is marked by great successes born of the careful study of the failures of other people in the same or similar fields. The valuable lessons taken from others’ failures can lead the way to better, more informed choices in your own career or business. Watch and listen carefully to the stories some of the world famous failures .

Those who genuinely wish to support you will share with you their failures as well as their successes. Their stories of disappointments and failures can be very valuable to you.

6. Leverage on other people’s ideas

                      

A single good idea like Facebook, Apple etc were developed with passion and commitment and have given birth to a fortunes. The greater your exposure to a range of ideas gained through reading, studying,interaction and experimentation, the greater the chance you will come across one that will lead you to enduring success.

The idea can be your own or one that comes to light from your research. Whatever its source, the right idea in the hands of person who is willing to commit energy and resources to developing it can lead to substantial rewards.

7. Leverage on other people’s contacts or other people’s credibility.

Everyone you know has friends, acquaintances, and professional contacts. Many of these people can make a positive impact on your career or business. Among all the people you know or are connected to in some way, who might open doors for you? Who can introduce you to people who will help you achieve your goals faster? One key introduction can make all the difference in your life.

Leveraging on other people’s network is yet another easiest and most cost-effective ways to grow your business.

                

               

Mastering these seven forms of leverage will give you a tremendous edge toward turbocharging your productivity. Study and, most important, apply the seven forms of leverage. Watch your confidence, influence, and prospects grow!

Culled from http://www.successvalues.com

6 years to becoming.. My Uplevel story

Hey guys, 

I am glad to share this good news with you. I received an email from Tale Alimi, a business coach I follow and learn from on Facebook. She is an amazing woman who is eager to share her knowledge and help people grow.  

The email stated details on a book she has written  (yaaaay🎉🎉🎉) and I volunteered to serve as a social media ambassador to promote her book. The title of the book is "Uplevel - find your niche, share your story, build your tribe and profit from your passion ".

Excerpts from her mail below 

"Uplevel is a call to action to raise your standards in life, to live and serve the world to your highest potential.

I provide both inspiration and practical exercises that will guide you to find your niche,  teach you how to craft a compelling story, show you how to build a tribe of raving fans and customers and then guide you to profit from your passion as you serve the world at your highest potential. Uplevel is a call for you to raise your standards, to awaken that part of you that 'life happened' has shut down. It is also a practical guide to show you how to do this. 


Visit www.talealimi.com/uplevelbook to pre-order the book and start your journey today! 

Monday Motivation

Another great Monday!

New week... New goals.. A new beginning for many of you, I hope.

This word is for someone out there who is about to give up because you aren't where you want to be yet. Enjoy the "small times". If you give up now, you give up on your chance to be the next Aliko Dangote, Bill Gates, Bishop David Oyedepo, Oprah, Elon Musk, Steve Jobs, Strive Masiyiwa and many other world greats.

Your small season is an opportunity to experiment, try out new things. That other idea you have been nursing, why don't you launch out? What do you have to lose anyway? Learn new skills, read books, network, attend seminars/workshops etc.

The small season is your foundation season. The bricks you lay in your foundation season determines the strength and future of your business and life. Lay good bricks and you will be the better for it. Great things begin from seemingly little things..

Have a fantastic Monday😘😘!!

Monday Motivation

Buenos Dias,

It's another week, a week of opportunities, blessings beyond imagination and a beautiful dose of divine grace to spice it up.

I pray you make the most of the week and may all your heart desires be granted according to GOD's perfect will in JESUS precious name.

Did you start the day like this 😁😁??

I encourage you to go into the week with this quote to ginger you.


“Go confidently in the direction of your dreams! Live the life you’ve imagined.” » Thoreau


Cheerio!

Too scared to make a move..?? This post is for you.

Hello guys,

I came across this wonderful piece by Padebi Ojomo on Facebook (you should search for her on Facebook). She is highly intelligent and comes across as someone who knows her onions. This particular post struck a chord with me and I hope this message hits home and gets someone to make a move. The time to start is now! I encourage you to read, digest and get to work asap.

What 10 things I wished someone had told me when I started my business. 

1. Just start. There will never be the right time. You will never feel ready. Just jump. Clarity will come from action. Action dissolves fear. A year from now, you'll wish you had started today.

2. Done is better than perfect.

3. Your mindset is your most precious asset. Take care of it.
Forget what other people think. Don’t try to change or convince naysayers. Instead lead by example, carve out your own path and demonstrated to them there is a better way with your actions not your words.

4. Likes and followers are an illusion of success. A lot of broke people look good on the outside. So stop comparing yourself when you don't know what's really going on behind the scenes.

5. What seems like so much information now will become second nature in no time. In one year, I went from no idea what an optin, hosting or wordpress was to having a optin pages, sales pages, email series, autoresponder, website, traffic, etc.

6. Make your goals non-negotiable. It’s not if, but when. Take steps every day to make your goals come to fruition. Measure your results daily. Don’t feel deflated if you miss the mark, learn from it and keep going.

7. You don’t know it until you implement it. Your results reflect what you know. So, do you know?

8. Trust that you know the answer. Follow your heart and do what makes your heart sing.

9. Don’t ever stop getting uncomfortable. What feels uncomfortable now will soon feel normal. But if you’re not scared or uncomfortable each and every day, then you’re not stretching yourself or growing.

10. Ask for help. Invest in yourself. Not by throwing spaghetti at the wall with every new shiny object. Not by investing in things where the price is right. Not by investing in programs because they are from some big time guru. But invest in an A-Z structured program that will help you with getting booked and getting paid consistently.

Hire others to do what you suck at or dislike. It will save you time and money in the long run.

But never ever think you can outsource your sales and marketing until you master those skills first.


From your greatest fan

Padebi Ojomo

Source : Padebi Ojomo (Facebook)