Kick Fear’s Ass by Kay Miller

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Full disclosure: my first sales call was a disaster.  

This happened shortly after I started my outside sales career, just after college. I was the first woman ever hired for outside sales by a company called Amerock. The product: a line of cabinet hardware (knobs, pulls, hinges, and more).  

Amerock wanted to add women to their sales force. The problem was, they were concerned that a woman would be intimidated by calling on the mostly-male hardware market. I convinced them I could do it. I was hired.  

Fast-forward to my first solo prospecting call. I set my sights on a Seattle lumberyard called Blackstock Lumber. Before the call, I’d driven by and studied the layout. I’d packed up brochures and samples. On the day of the sales call, I dressed professionally, right down to the bow tie pinned to my blouse.  

I drove to the lumberyard, and into the parking lot. That’s when things fell apart.  

A huge load of lumber had just been delivered. Men in Levis, flannel shirts and hard hats swarmed in frenetic activity. There I was, a 24-year-old sales newbie. Everyone stared - I stuck out like a sore thumb.  

I slowly pulled into the lumberyard’s parking lot. As I eased my car into a parking spot, I felt my face turn red. I sat there for a moment. Then, to my horror, I watched myself peel a sweaty hand off the steering wheel and shift the car into reverse. I backed out.  

Expletive! As I sped away from my very first sales call, I was furious with myself. I’d chickened out. I’d failed at the exact thing I’d signed up to do!  

Here’s the thing: I didn’t give up.  

After that embarrassing failure, I asked myself, “What’s the worst that can happen?”  I decided NOTHING could be worse than the sick feeling I had after running away in fear. I decided to kick fear’s ass.  

The next day, I went back to Blackstock Lumber. I made it to the door and went inside. That day was the first step in selling a new customer. It took awhile to get to  know the owner and establish a solid relationship. Once I did, I recommended a small Amerock display. Eventually, he upgraded to a larger one. He became a loyal, repeat customer.  

Here’s an Uncopyable Secret: The next time you face the risk of rejection, failure or even looking stupid, ask yourself, “What’s the worst that can happen?” As long as the answer isn’t death, force yourself to push past your fear.  And remember, the biggest opportunities (and sales!) lie outside your comfort zone.  

Famous golfer Jack Nicklaus once joked about facing critical shots during big tournaments. “I still get butterflies,” he said. “I just work hard to get them to fly in formation!”  

Want to make more sales? Decide to Kick Fear’s Ass.  

Kay Miller is an expert on Uncopyable Sales. As the first woman ever hired for outside sales by Amerock, a division of Anchor Hocking, she built her formidable sales career by emphasizing long-term relationships over one-time deals. Kay was later hired by Walker Exhaust, a division of Tenneco and the largest automotive muffler manufacturer in the world. While there, she was named Walker’s Salesperson of the Year, an accolade that earned her the nickname “Muffler Mama.” For more Uncopyable Secrets, order Kay Miller’s book Uncopyable Sales Secrets, available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other fine retailers.

Reframing Your Memories by Jim Stovall

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Most people in the professional development or personal achievement fields would agree that we can control our present thoughts and impact our future success. The idea that we can change our circumstances now and in the future has become universally accepted, but very few people consider the possibility of altering our memories. While we can’t change the past, we can reframe, reconsider, and reevaluate the way we look at it. Very few things in life are either all good or all bad. Even in the worst of times and during the most difficult of circumstances, there are lessons to be learned that can impact who we are and what we do for the rest of our lives. 

While we can’t change the past, we can reframe, reconsider, and reevaluate the way we look at it. 

One of my earliest memories as a child was on a Sunday night in 1964 when my parents let me stay up late to watch the Ed Sullivan Show with them. I don’t know that anyone in our family was interested in that show, but on that particular night, The Beatles were performing for the first time on national television in America. My parents were not big Beatles fans, but they understood the power of that moment in our culture, and they shared it with me. Throughout the ensuing years, I became a huge fan of The Beatles and their music. Their impact cannot be fully understood unless you consider how revolutionary they were during that point in time. 

Recently, hundreds of hours of film rediscovered in The Beatles archives. This film was shot over many days while The Beatles recorded one of their last albums. Rumors of the band’s imminent breakup abounded during that time, and it was considered to be a difficult period for these four young men who had grown up together and changed the world. Over the years, the four Beatles and the other people in the studio for those sessions have recalled how uncomfortable and turbulent those recording sessions became. 

However, when the voluminous amount of film was meticulously reviewed to create a new documentary, it was revealed that, for the most part, those sessions were very positive and upbeat. There were a few brief conflicts, but they had to do more with the creative process than any personality conflicts. The two living Beatles were surprised to discover that the film evidence of those sessions did not match up with their own memories. 

You and I have the opportunity to look at our past and rediscover a new reality. Failure is fertilizer for future success. 

Failure is fertilizer for future success. 

As you go through your day today, reconsider your past as you plan for your future. 

Today’s the day! 

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Follow him on Twitter (@stovallauthor) or Facebook (@jimstovallauthor). His latest book, coauthored with Greg S. Reid, is Passport to Success: Experience Next Level Living, which you can preorder wherever books are sold.

Enthusiasm by Napoleon Hill

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ENTHUSIASM is a state of mind that inspires and arouses one to put action into the task at hand. It does more than this—it is contagious, and vitally affects not only the enthusiast, but all with whom he comes in contact. 

Enthusiasm bears the same relationship to a human being that steam does to the locomotive—it is the vital moving force that impels action. The greatest leaders of men are those who know how to inspire enthusiasm in their followers. 

Enthusiasm is not merely a figure of speech; it is a vital force that you can harness and use with profit. Without it, you would resemble an electric battery without electricity. 

“Enthusiasm is the vital moving force that impels action.” 

Enthusiasm is the vital force with which you recharge your body and develop a dynamic personality. Some people are blessed with natural enthusiasm, while others must acquire it. The procedure through which it may be developed is simple. It begins by the doing of the work or rendering of the service that one likes best. If you should be so situated that you cannot conveniently engage in the work that you like best, for the time being, then you can proceed along another line very effectively by adopting a definite chief aim that contemplates your engaging in that particular work at some future time. 

Happiness, the final object of all human effort, is a state of mind that can be maintained only through the hope of future achievement. Happiness lies always in the future and never in the past. The happy person is the one who dreams of heights of achievement that are yet unattained. The home you intend to own, the money you intend to earn and place in the bank, the trip you intend to take when you can afford it, the position in life you intend to fill when you have prepared yourself, and the preparation itself—these are the things that produce happiness. Likewise, these are the materials out of which your definite chief aim is formed; these are the things over which you may become enthusiastic, no matter what your present station in life may be. 

Napoleon Hill was born in 1883 in a one-room cabin on the Pound River in Wise County, Virginia. He began his writing career at age 13 as a mountain reporter for small-town newspapers and went on to become America’s most beloved motivational author. Dr. Hill's work stands as a monument to individual achievement and is the cornerstone of modern motivation. Now you can preorder his illuminating memoirs, Master Mind, from Sound Wisdom and read previously unpublished, unpublicized details about his life, marriages, businesses, and experience teaching the seventeen principles of success by which the world’s most prosperous entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and cultural icons live.

The Miraculous Mirror by Jim Stovall

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Here in the 21st century, we take it for granted each morning when we look in the bathroom mirror as we shave or apply make-up, consult the full-length mirror when we check our wardrobe before we leave the house, or glance in the rearview mirror as we back out of our garage. That which we take for granted would have been an absolute miracle to most of our ancestors throughout recorded history.  

As I walk on stage in arenas around the world to share my story with thousands of people, I generally begin by saying, “Please don’t miss the power of this message due to the weakness of the messenger. I have not arrived at the mountaintop I seek, but instead, I am a fellow traveler like you seeking my destiny and higher calling. I do not stand before you today with the answers you are seeking, but instead, I am here with questions. These questions will be as if I were holding up a mirror in front of you. If you will be honest with your assessment, you will discover that you already have been given the answers to the questions that are confronting you.” 

We spend far too much time in our lives worrying about what everyone thinks of us when in reality, it is far more important what we think of ourselves. While a mirror can only give us a basic reflection of ourselves as we are viewed by the world, it can be the beginning of a deeper assessment of who we are and who we can become. As a blind person, I’ve always been troubled to hear people say, “I’ll believe it when I can see it.” Then one day, I realized the fallacy of that statement, and I discovered the divine paradox that, “We have to believe it first, then we will see it later.” Therefore, seeing is not believing, but believing is the first step in seeing on a far deeper level.    

I learned this by living the first half of my life with sight and the second half of my life with vision. Sight is a powerful gift. It tells you where you are and what’s around you. But vision is an infinitely more valuable gift as it tells you where you could be and what’s possible. Without sight, we can adapt and function quite well in the real world, but without vision, we perish. A mirror can be a mere convenience or a powerful tool that allows us to begin to assess who we are and all that we were created to be. 

As you go through your day today, use the mirror’s reflection of your outward image to begin exploring the depths of your heart, mind, and soul. Today’s the day! 

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books, including The Gift of Giving, co-authored with Don Green, the executive director of the Napoleon Hill Foundation. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Follow him on Twitter (@stovallauthor) or Facebook (@jimstovallauthor).

Know Your Purpose; Know Your Mission by Sam Silverstein

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What is your Purpose in life? What is your Mission? They are not the same. It is quite common for people (and teams and even entire organizations) to get a little confused about what a Purpose is and how it differs from a Mission. This confusion does not exist for accountable leaders and the team members who report to them. 

Truly accountable leaders know that their Purpose is the reason they are here, phrased in the form of service that they render to others. Their purpose is their big WHY. 

Their Mission, by contrast, is their Purpose IN ACTION. It is what turns the Purpose into a tangible reality for someone else. The Mission is WHAT you do to take action on your Purpose. 

For the sake of example, in distinguishing these two ideas, let me share my own Purpose with you. It is: 

To help people be better, discover their potential, and be the best they can possibly be. 

This Declaration of Purpose is the north point on my personal compass. Notice that it is concise. That one sentence is what I use to determine whether any direction, any idea, any proposed course of action, any attitude, supports who I really am. But my Declaration of Purpose is not, technically speaking, a destination. In order for me to have a destination, I need a Mission that aligns with my Purpose. I must identify that Mission by asking myself, What actions support and fulfill my Purpose? 

As a general but reliable rule, the personal statement of Mission you create and pursue needs to have more depth and be more detailed than your Declaration of Purpose. I believe the words you use to craft the Mission can and should be built around three action words of your choice. These words give a deeper understanding of your Mission. They are unique to you. It is important to notice, though, that your mission is never about just having a list of three words that you can tack up on a wall. Your words must connect to a longer Mission Narrative. 

Dig deep with those three words so you clarify everything of consequence that connects to the actions you are taking in support of your Purpose. That way you—and others—can see and buy into the story of your purpose in action. Your Mission Narrative, in other words, must clarify the ACTIONS of your Mission in a compelling way for you and for other people. The narrative tells you, and anyone else the mission attracts, exactly what it means to step out and go about achieving the Mission. 

The Mission Narrative is all about action, all about doing. It is not abstract or theoretical. It is dynamic and totally in sync with your deepest personal reason for being.  

If you do not have clarity about the Actions you are taking in support of your purpose, how can you possibly expect to share your Mission with others? 

You will know you have found the right Mission when you find that writing or talking about it gives you instant calmness. This calmness is addictive, and it is capable of existing side by side with profound excitement about you Mission. It comes from the very center of your being, and it only appears when there is total certainty about both your Purpose and the action steps you are taking—the Mission to which you have committed yourself—in order to fulfill that Purpose. 

By way of example, here is my personal Mission Narrative. Notice that it supports and fulfills my Purpose. Notice, too, that I use three powerful action words to create a Mission Narrative about WHAT I DO that supports my Declaration of Purpose—and that the Mission Narrative defines exactly what those three words mean to me. 

My mission is to build a more accountable world. I serve my mission through three specific activities: 

Teach 

I am a teacher. I educate people on ways to improve and be their best. I share new insights and ways of looking at issues, challenges, and opportunities. I share different ways of believing and thinking. 

Inspire 

Through the use of events, experience, and evidence I support the beliefs that I teach. This breathes life into the beliefs and helps people take action. I come alongside and help people take the “first step” in their new adventure. 

Support 

I provide ongoing encouragement and resources to help people stay on course. Change is difficult. We all face challenges throughout our journey. I stay ready to help others overcome those challenges and achieve the goals they aspire to. 

This Mission Narrative has resulted in people all over the world buying into my Mission—very often, people I do not even know and have never before spoken to! 

I’ve shared my Purpose and my Mission with you so you can easily see the difference between the two. But these things are unique to each of us. My Purpose is not yours, and my Mission isn’t yours. 

What is the north point on your personal compass? What is the reason you are here, phrased concisely in the form of service you deliver to others? Once you find it, you will have your own Purpose. 

What is your Mission? What is your Purpose IN ACTION? What turns your Purpose into a tangible reality for someone else? What three action words describe WHAT you do to take action on your Purpose? How do you unpack those words, so that it is obvious what they mean to you? 

Accountable Leaders invest the time and effort necessary to fully understand their Purpose and Mission. You can, too. Once you know the answers to these questions, you will be in a position to move forward on your Purpose, and inspire others to join your Mission. 

Sam Silverstein is dedicated to empowering people to live accountable lives, transform the way they do business, and create a more accountable world. He helps companies create an organizational culture that prioritizes and inspires accountability. His latest book, Pivot!: Three Big Questions That Reframe Your Perspective, Maximize Your Potential, and Improve Your Life, is now available from Sound Wisdom. This article originally appeared here on The Accountability Blog and has been edited for inclusion on The Sound Wisdom Blog.

Pre-crastination by Jim Stovall

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One of my treasured friends and mentors, Dr. Denis Waitley, is among the greatest success authors and speakers of our time. He often describes a mythical, magical place he calls Someday Isle (Someday I’ll). Denis describes Someday Isle as a tropical paradise where the gentle waves lap up onto the golden sand and the palm trees sway in the warm breeze. Someday Isle would be a paradise on earth except for one thing: nothing ever happens. Someday Isle is the place unsuccessful people go in their minds when they tell themselves and other people, “Someday, I’ll do…” Just like the island, someday never comes. 

Our lives are the accumulated total of the things we do, not the things we thought about doing, meant to do, wanted to do, or were going to do when we got time. Procrastination kills dreams, success, and goals. For years, I thought the ideal would be to do everything on time and when I had it scheduled. Then, I discovered pre-crastination. Expert sources tell me that there are over 300,000 words in the English language. Regular readers of these columns in newspapers, magazines, and online publications around the world know that there are occasions when the supply of words in the English language is not sufficient for me, so I create a new word. 

Our lives are the accumulated total of the things we do, not the things we thought about doing, meant to do, wanted to do, or were going to do when we got time.   

Pre-crastination is the act of taking something we were going to do at a point in the future and doing it now. This column you are reading will be sent out to thousands of sources around the world in the normal weekly rotation we established when this Winners’ Wisdom column became syndicated. Even though my column goes out each week, I decided years ago to pre-crastinate. Therefore, these words were written approximately six months before you are reading them.  

Pre-crastination is a way to pay it forward to ourselves. When today’s schedule permits, I often pre-crastinate and do something I had slated to do days, weeks, or even months in the future. Pre-crastination will allow you to rarely, if ever, have to deal with deadlines. If you’ve ever been invited to attend a once-in-a-lifetime event in your personal or professional life but found that you didn’t have time, you are not a victim of your current calendar as much as you have failed to pre-crastinate.    

Calendars and “to-do” lists exist to serve us. When we do not follow the minimal schedule we have set for ourselves, we have set ourselves up for failure. When we follow our own schedule, we are doing what is expected and can anticipate average or mediocre results. But, when we pre-crastinate, we are doing what the great author and thought leader Napoleon Hill described as going the extra mile. If you will invest the best of your efforts in every minute, hour, and day of your life, your investment will pay off far beyond your wildest dreams.   

As you go through your day today, do everything you have scheduled, then pre-crastinate. 

Today’s the day! 

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books, including the Wisdom for Winners series. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Follow him on Twitter (@stovallauthor) or Facebook (@jimstovallauthor).

The State of Uncertainty and the Impact on American Business Today by Meridith Elliott Powell

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Groundbreaking research report on turning uncertainty to strategic advantage 

What if I told you that uncertainty doesn’t have to be a bad thing? That we discovered, based on research from our new report, that uncertainty was something that could actually transform your business and take it to the next level? That our extensive qualitative and quantitative study revealed that uncertainty creates new opportunities, stimulates innovation, and can be your greatest competitive advantage? 

We are excited to announce the release of our groundbreaking research “The State of Uncertainty and the Impact on American Business Today.” Click this link to get your copy of the free report: https://meridithelliottpowell.com/state-of-uncertainty-report/. 

Utilizing research and data commissioned from The Center For Generational Kinetics, we have prepared this report in which you will uncover:  

1. The influence of uncertainty in business and new challenges that are emerging as a result 

2. How business leaders think about and navigate uncertainty 

3. The differences between leaders who are proactive about uncertainty and those who are reactive 

4. A 9-step formula that allows you and your team to leverage uncertainty to create immediate opportunities and long-term sustainable growth 

This report guides you through how to leverage uncertainty to your advantage and provides you with current data gathered from personal interviews, surveys, and focus groups with business leaders from a broad spectrum of industries, tenures, ages, genders, and experience levels. The results were profound and proved how vital it is for businesses and leaders to shift their beliefs and actions as they relate to uncertainty.  

Let me share a little background of why I commissioned the study and why I believe that uncertainty can be your greatest competitive advantage. In 2018, I became obsessed with the word uncertainty. I wanted to know everything about it—what we think about it, how we feel about it, and how we react to it. And let me share: it turns out, we do not like it. 

What if uncertainty was actually something we needed in our businesses, and what if disruption was actually something that could fuel growth and transformation? 

In fact, research proves that we would rather know something bad is going to happen instead of living with the unknown. I found that fascinating, and was intrigued that even in good economic times, CEOs and leaders still worried and stressed about what could or might happen. 

That got me thinking, What if uncertainty was actually something we needed in our businesses, and what if disruption was actually something that could fuel growth and transformation? 

I went on a mission to find companies and leaders who had actually done just that: learned to use uncertainty strategically—and not only to expand their companies, but to gain competitive advantage. 

I was able to identify 9 companies that have been in business since the late 1700s and early 1900s and they are still in business, thriving today. That means they have come through world wars, economic depression, and even survived two pandemics.  

From that research, I created my proven 9-step formula for thriving in an uncertain marketplace.  The formula works no matter the size of your business, the industry you are in, the markets you serve, or the depth of your uncertainty you are experiencing.   

To further prove the formula and the concept of uncertainty creating opportunity, we commissioned this study and published this report.  

Uncertainty can be one of the greatest opportunities for your organization, your clients, and your team. But only if you do the work to more deeply understand it, get your team engaged in driving it, and have a strong strategy in place to capitalize on it. Enjoy this report, and please feel free to share, as we want everyone to benefit and capitalize on the opportunity that uncertainty brings.  

Register now for a FREE webinar on May 6 at 12:00 pm EST on “The State of Uncertainty and YOU.” You’ll take a deep dive into the state of uncertainty, its impact on business, how leaders are reacting, the solutions they are discovering, and the 9-step proven formula for turning uncertainty into competitive advantage. Register now at https://meridithelliottpowell.com/webinar-thrive-and-you/. 

Meridith Elliott Powell, CSP, is a business growth expert, keynote speaker, and award-winning author. In her recently released report on “The State of Uncertainty and the Impact on American Business Today,” she shares the results of groundbreaking research on the state of uncertainty and its impact on American business—both small and large organizations. You’ll also learn cutting-edge techniques for turning uncertainty into your competitive advantage. This research informs her latest book, THRIVE: Strategies to Turn Uncertainty into Competitive Advantage, which you can preorder now.

How to Thrive in Unprecedented Times: An exclusive excerpt from Napoleon Hill’s Freedom from Your Fears

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Bearing the subtitle “For men and women who resent poverty,” the original 1937 edition of Think and Grow Rich discloses its motives: Napoleon Hill wrote it to help men and women succeed in the face of difficult circumstances, particularly those brought on by the Great Depression. By sharing the achievement principles that had built the fortunes of America’s self-made millionaires, he believed that any person—regardless of their level of education or experience—could identify their definite major purpose and use it to attain great wealth. He writes: 

“This message is going out to the world at the end of the longest, and perhaps, the most devastating depression America has ever known. It is reasonable to presume that the message may come to the attention of many who have been wounded by the depression, those who have lost their fortunes, others who have lost their positions, and great numbers who must reorganize their plans and stage a comeback. To all these I wish to convey the thought that all achievement, no matter what may be its nature, or its purpose, must begin with an intense, BURNING DESIRE for something definite.” 

If you are experiencing a difficult time, it might seem impossible to bring yourself to a place of hope. And to that Hill would say—you shouldn’t. Hoping and wishing are indicative of a lack of faith and inaction. Instead, you should refocus your thoughts on the certainty that you will rebound and achieve your definite chief aim. All you need are new plans, which you can conceive by visualizing the fruition of your desires and instructing your subconscious to find a means for claiming what has already been made available to you. Understand that everything you want most in life is yours for the taking; you are being held back only by your fears, indecision, and lack of proper plans for obtaining what you desire.  

There are amazing opportunities found within challenging times—you simply have to open your mind and enlarge your perspective so that you can recognize them. Circumstances that have caused the common person to retreat have launched the world’s greatest individuals to the heights of prominence. Hill asserts that “when a great crisis comes over the world, there always comes out some unknown with a formula for dissolving that crisis—like Abraham Lincoln, for instance, in a time of need, when this country was about to be split asunder by internal strife; by George Washington, preceding Lincoln; by Franklin D. Roosevelt, at a time when the people were stampeded with fear and they were standing in great lines to draw their money out of the bank.” 

We remember these individuals because they did not let fear sway them from their definite major purpose. In fact, they recognized that the trials they faced were really opportunities in disguise. Rather than giving in to feelings of helplessness, uncertainty, overwhelm, and fear, they changed the channel to which their thoughts were tuned and, by so doing, changed their perspective. 

You, too, can change the trajectory of your life by learning to control your thoughts and rid your mind of the fears and doubts that are holding you back. Get your copy now of Napoleon Hill’s Freedom from Your Fears, an official publication of the Napoleon Hill Foundation available from Sound Wisdom on April 20, 2021. Preorder your copy today.

The Wonders of Praise by Earl Nightingale

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One day a few years back, I stopped my car for gas at a service station in Hollywood, California. While the middle-aged owner of the station cheerfully went about taking care of my car’s needs, I noticed the station, although not new, was spotlessly clean. I was particularly surprised at the driveway—it was as clean as if my car was the first to use it.

I asked the owner how in the world he managed to keep the driveway spotless with dozens of cars dropping oil and tracking the dirt of the highways on it. He told me how a common product, sold in every supermarket, was in his estimation the best driveway cleaner in the world. He beamed in response to my comment on the way he kept his place of business. It was a valuable moment for both of us: I learned something of value, and he experienced the pleasure of honest praise. 

The need for praise is basic to everyone. With it, a person blooms and grows. Without it, he tends to shrink and withdraw into himself. 

Praise to a human being represents what sunlight, water, and soil are to a plant—the climate in which he grows best. 

We all know children need constant praise and encouragement. When a child brings home a piece of artwork that looks for all the world like an unfortunate accident, he still expects an encouraging word. But his need for encouragement is no less than his mother’s or father’s. Far too many parents are not getting any praise, or at least not nearly enough. 

Understanding the importance of self-esteem and seeing the never-ending need for reaffirmation of a person’s worth, we should make it our business to watch for honest opportunities to give praise—especially to the members of our families and those with whom we work. 

There is a subtle but enormously valuable byproduct or backfire to this sort of thing: In order to praise others, we need to look for the good. It forces us to concentrate on what’s right with people and the things they do rather than on what’s wrong. It focuses our attention on the positive side of the ledger and, as a result, makes us happier, more productive, and more pleasant to be around. Then, too, people like those who praise them and recognize their value. When we give praise, we attract a larger circle of friends. And finally, giving praise is the best known way to receive it. It’s hard for anyone to compliment a chronic grouch. 

 Whenever you hear someone say, “Nobody appreciates me; nobody gives me credit for all I do,” the chances are he is so wrapped up in himself and in getting happiness from others, he has completely forgotten how to give. 

We should try to find some way to commend those we love every day. Praise to a human being represents what sunlight, water, and soil are to a plant—the climate in which he grows best. He does not just want it; he needs it as he needs the air he breathes. 

Molière said, “The most agreeable recompense which we can receive for things which we have done is to see them known, to have them applauded with praises which honor us.” 

This is an excerpt from Earl Nightingale’s Transformational Living: Positivity, Mindset, and Persistence, an official Nightingale-Conant publication. Known as the “Dean of Personal Development,” Earl Nightingale grew up in California during the Great Depression. Because his family was very poor, Nightingale educated himself in his local library. His main focus: what makes people turn out the way they do in terms of their wealth, their career achievements, and their happiness. After beginning his career in the US Marines during World War II, he was hired as a radio announcer. He eventually became a popular daily broadcaster for CBS. Through his interest in both personal development and audio, he partnered with Lloyd Conant to form the Nightingale-Conant Corporation, the world’s largest producer of audio programs. Sign up to receive free samples from Sound Wisdom’s Nightingale-Conant Collection here.

Keeping the Luster in Your Life by Earl Nightingale

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Have you ever thought much about newness? You know, it’s the quality people talk about when they say, “A new broom sweeps clean,” or “Turn over a new leaf.” Well newness, like most things, has its good side and its bad, depending on how we look at it.  

A person in a new job, for instance, may feel he’s at a disadvantage. He may be nervous, uncertain of just what he’s supposed to do and just how to do it. Sometimes he’s bewildered by all that’s going on around him. Maybe he’s even a little scared. Even so, the person who’s new to a business has a unique advantage over some of the other, more seasoned women or men in the company. His job has a sparkle about it. There’s a luster, a challenge in a new job that isn’t always present once that position becomes familiar. 

A rut is little more than a grave with both ends knocked out. 

 Do you remember your first day at work? I do. I can remember the first time I sat down in front of a microphone as though it were yesterday, instead of a good many years ago. Even though it was a radio station so small they used an old walk-in refrigerator for a studio, to me it was one of the most exciting days of my life. I was scared and nervous, and I sounded like a man with his neck caught in a car door, but I was thrilled, too. 

How about your job? Does it still hold the excitement it did that first day? It should and it can, but does it? One of the most common mistakes we make is to let the luster fade from our lives. As it does, we gradually lose our enthusiasm, and if we’re not careful we’ll settle down into a worn, tired groove of boring habits. We become like oxen yoked to a mill, going around in circles with our eyes fixed only on the worn path of our feet. 

People who allow themselves to get in a rut usually don’t realize that a rut is little more than a grave with both ends knocked out. Now how can we stay out of this deadly rut? How can we keep our enthusiasm and maintain the luster in our lives instead of allowing it to fade with time and familiarity? The answer lies in reminding ourselves of things we already know but sometimes tend to forget.  

A Chicago executive once told me how he maintained the luster in his job, how he charged his batteries during the early days of his career. Whenever over-familiarity with his product and service or the negativity of some of his prospects or associates began to undermine his enthusiasm for what he was selling, he’d simply make a service call on one of his best customers. There he could reassure himself of the excellent results being realized through the use of his company’s products. Then my friend would head out again with renewed confidence in himself, in his ability to be of service, and in the benefits he could deliver to every new prospect.  

You see, even though the everyday details of our work may seem old hat to us, we should remember that those we serve look forward eagerly to the product or service. A person may be indifferent about many things, but the things he spends his money on aren’t among them.  

We shouldn’t be indifferent either, and we won’t be if we look at our product or service through the eyes of a happy customer.  

People are on stage every day. Like the actors in a Broadway play, they’re sometimes required to say the same words and go through the same basic actions day after day and week after week. The professional actor learns his lines and movements and then performs the part every day, often twice a day, for as long as the play will run. He can never allow himself to become bored with the role any more than we can afford to become bored with our work. The actor knows his audience is a new one for every performance. What he is doing isn’t boring to them. 

What does the actor do to main enthusiasm, to keep excitement in his acting? He studies and works. He continues to improve his role. He lives his part, constantly refining his timing and movements, forever finding ways to put even greater meaning into the words he must say. 

All of us are in the people business. Each day we have the opportunity to learn firsthand one of life’s most valuable lessons: how to get along well with people, how to make friends with those with whom we work, and how to persuade them to make decisions that will benefit both them and ourselves. Our success in most any type of activity will always be in exact ratio to our ability to influence people. 

And the best way I know to influence people is to care enough, to know enough, to serve them well. Sometimes we lose sight of the value of our work and when we do, we lose the luster—not just from our work, but from our lives. So here are some more luster-restoring ideas you can use right now and every day from now on. 

1. Understand that anything, no matter how exciting in the beginning, will grow—not may grow, but will grow—stale in time if we’re not careful.  

2. Keep in mind that fighting off staleness in our lives is a daily job. There’s something you can—something you must do—every day in order to keep vitality in your performance. It is simply the actor’s technique: live the part. 

3. Realize that there’s no such thing as a job without a future. Every job has a future just as every person has. Whether or not that future is great or small depends entirely upon the person holding it.  

4. See the big picture. See your work in relation to the whole scheme of things. Your work is important to those you serve. Your success will depend on how well you provide that service. 

5. Finally, keep developing your ability to see yourself and your work through the eyes of that most important person, the recipient. And remember, don’t ever lose the luster. 

This is an excerpt from Earl Nightingale’s Transformational Living: Positivity, Mindset, and Persistence, an official Nightingale-Conant publication. Known as the “Dean of Personal Development,” Earl Nightingale grew up in California during the Great Depression. Because his family was very poor, Nightingale educated himself in his local library. His main focus: what makes people turn out the way they do in terms of their wealth, their career achievements, and their happiness. After beginning his career in the US Marines during World War II, he was hired as a radio announcer. He eventually became a popular daily broadcaster for CBS. Through his interest in both personal development and audio, he partnered with Lloyd Conant to form the Nightingale-Conant Corporation, the world’s largest producer of audio programs.

Do It Today: How to Not Let Procrastination Get in Your Way by Adrean Turner

Photo by Magnet.me on Unsplash

You’ve heard the saying “Why do today what you can put off until tomorrow?”  That quote is attributed to Aaron Burr, the vice president of Thomas Jefferson, who’s quoted as saying the opposite: “Never put off till tomorrow what you can do today.” That speaks volumes of the differences of these two men.

Unfortunately, at one time or another, we all have responded like Burr when it comes to getting things done. Procrastination is a widely prevalent phenomenon. Research indicates that before the COVID-19 crisis, approximately 20 percent of the adult population and around 50 percent of the student population procrastinate in a consistent and problematic manner, meaning that they experience significant difficulties in their everyday life as a result of their procrastination. 

Procrastinating until you’re under the gun used to be my way of getting things done. If I had a deadline of Tuesday, I was up all night Monday plowing through the assignment. I can tell you from my own personal experience that it comes at a great price. The anxiety and stress associated with this type of pressure can be overwhelming and affect other areas of your life. 

Timothy Pychyl, a psychology professor at Carleton University, has studied procrastination for more than 19 years. Dr. Pychyl found that the main thing driving procrastination is not avoiding work. It’s avoiding stress. 

In the book the The Five Second Rule: Transform Your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage, Mel Robbins says, “We procrastinate because we feel stressed out. Here’s the catch…you aren’t stressed about the work. You are stressed out about the bigger stuff: money, relationship problems, or life in general.” Procrastinating over our work is a mini stress break from the bigger stress felt in general. 

If you find yourself putting things off and delaying tasks for the future, it’s time to make a change. Try these strategies to procrastinate less and get more done. 

1. Become more aware. The only person you’re fooling is yourself. Stop living in denial. Accept that you are a procrastinator. Otherwise, you’ll never be able to address the issue and work on overcoming it. 

2. Think about what your procrastination is costing you. Is your procrastination putting your job at risk? Do you have a million things to do around the house that just aren’t getting done? If you stop and think about the consequences, it may give you the motivation to work on ways to fix it. 

3. Make a list and prioritize. Sometimes we put things off simply because we don’t want to deal with them. Determine the type of task, the amount of time needed to complete each step, and the required resources to complete the assignment. Then put them in order of importance. Organizing your activities will make it easier to stay on track. Start small and set bigger goals as you gain momentum.

4. Eliminate distractions. If you are in the middle of a project when the telephone rings or the computer pings, let it wait. Your results are determined by your discipline to stay focused. Turn off the ringer and let others know you’re unavailable.  

Keep in mind, these strategies are helpful only if you use them. Start today. Let go of procrastination and say hello to more success in managing your time and tasks. For more tips to get more done and manage your time, watch my video on how to create a success list to accomplish your goals. 

Adrean Turner is an author, certified career coach, speaker, professional development trainer, and business consultant. She leverages 23 years of experience in management, marketing, operations, teaching, and training to partner with individuals, entrepreneurs, and organizations to achieve their maximum potential. For more information and inspiration from Adrean, read her book F.I.T. for Success: Fearless, Inspired, Transformed for Success. You can follow Adrean on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

Are You “All in” on Your Life? by Jennifer Janechek

Stop setting a reserve on your life and start making progress toward your dreams. 

Photo by Christina Morillo from StockSnap 

This article originally appeared in Thrive Global. 

In her new book No Reserve: Take Ownership and Live YOUR Life without Limitations, celebrity “auctiontainer” Letitia Frye presents an extended metaphor comparing life to an auction. Many of us, she explains, establish conditions that are necessary for us to act on our dreams. Or in auctionspeak, we set a “reserve”—or a minimum bid—on our life. We wait to start living our legacies because we think we aren’t or don’t have enough: enough resources, enough connections, enough time, etc. As she writes, “Life is like an auction: you get your best returns if you don’t set a reserve on it. Anyone who wants to live a meaningful, fulfilling, invigorating life that makes an impression on the world must learn to live their life with no reserve.” 

What does it mean to live with “no reserve”? According to Frye, it means that we must go “all in” on our life and our dreams. It means that we have to take risks. It means that we have to give before we receive—without the expectation of a return—and that we have to build our network with an attempt to enrich our lives with multiple perspectives rather than align ourselves only with experts. In essence, it means that we have to discover for ourselves that we are our own greatest mentors and source of strength; we are, as Jason Hewlett’s The Promise to The One reminds us, The One whose Signature Moves can creative massive change—if we commit to sharing our gifts with the world. 

Are you sitting in the back seat of your own life, missing valuable opportunities for growth and progress because you doubt your capabilities or fear the consequences of fully committing to your dreams? Below are three principles that will help you take the reserve off your life so that you can experience unlimited potential for success and enrichment: 

1. Eliminate Project Noise 
   Sometimes we assume that our busyness is an indicator that we are working diligently to achieve our primary goal, but it can be quite the opposite: we might be undercutting ourselves by wasting time on activities that are not directly supporting our success. If we are “all in” on our lives, we have identified our definite chief aim and are ensuring that all our efforts are directed toward that one goal. To determine whether you are unknowingly holding yourself back in this way, write a list of all your responsibilities and activities—anything that requires your time, focus, or energy. Then arrange these responsibilities into three categories: (1) aligns with your primary goal; (2) might support your primary goal tangentially, whether through personal enrichment, financial provision, or another indirect connection; and (3) does not relate to or support your progress toward your primary goal in any way. Strike out all the commitments that fit into the third category. Scrutinize the activities in the second category, determining which ones are worth investing your attention into at the moment. The goal is to eliminate all “project noise”—time- and energy-draining activities that seem like opportunities on the surface but that ultimately keep you from making meaningful progress toward your goal because you’re expending your resources on activities that are peripheral to your chief aim. 

2. Put Passion Before Paycheck 
   According to Frye, “Waiting for someone else’s acknowledgment of your value is a set-up for failure. It prevents you from taking ownership of your life and gifts until you get that external validation.” That validation might be words of affirmation, or it might be the financial acknowledgment of the value that your expertise brings. Regardless of what form it takes, external validation should not dictate whether you pursue your dreams. Oftentimes a significant output of time and energy are required to see a financial return on your efforts, but there is no shortcut to success: you have to learn the ropes and invest time into your growth so that you can receive the maximum value for your contributions. That does not mean you can ignore financial responsibilities, but it does mean that you cannot wait to act on your dreams until the return is there. 

3. Become a Mentor  
   Rather than trying to find a mentor; become one. Build your network by reaching out to people who would benefit from the talents, skills, and gifts you have and determining how you can add value to their life. Through mentorship, you can magnify your impact while building a diverse network that will support your success journey by forcing you to take an active role in it. Stop pursuing the “experts” in your field and start pouring into others whose lives you can make an impression on. You will be amazed to discover what insights and gifts they can share, even if they are outside of your industry. Remember, you are the greatest mentor in your own life: if you’re “all in,” you can add value to others while expanding your own capabilities. 

So many of us are missing crucial opportunities that could alter the course of our lives because we are consciously and unconsciously setting minimum requirements for our engagement—we have that reserve on our life that is limiting our reach. Stop waiting for your resources or the circumstances to be “enough” to merit your commitment; your dreams are worth the investment right now. 

Currently celebrating over 16 years in the auction business and having raised over $500 million dollars for charity, Letitia Frye has truly earned her title as America’s foremost “auctiontainer.” Some of her biggest clients include St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock, and the Make-A-Wish Foundation®, but she brings to every event, no matter the size, her expertise, contagious energy, and unique flair. After a devastating accident in which she was struck by a car while running, leading to a traumatic brain injury, combined with the sudden death of the father of her children, Letitia decided to broaden her span beyond auctions in order to help more people by becoming a motivational speaker. Her book No Reserve: Take Ownership and Live YOUR Life without Limitations is now available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Google Play, and Apple Books. Follow Letitia on Instagram (@letitia_frye) and Twitter (@LFAuctiontainer). 

Top 10 Business Tips for Creating an Uncopyable Competitive Advantage by Steve Miller

Photo by Artsy Crafty for StockSnap

Competition is fierce. That’s one thing all companies today can agree on. Unfortunately, in a race to outpace rivals, too many companies are stuck in a hamster wheel approach to become better than their competition. But here’s the reality: that’s a never-ending race that nobody wins. 

You don’t want to be better. Better can always be one-upped, and better just isn’t good enough if you truly want to gain a competitive advantage. So what’s the answer? You must become Uncopyable. 

Drawing from my book Uncopyable: How to Create an Unfair Advantage Over Your Competition, I’ve outlined 10 tips for business owners looking to shatter the mold and secure a unique position in the market. Let’s take a closer look. 

Top 10 Tips 

1. Develop an Uncopyable mindset. Basically, this means look at what your competitors are doing—and don’t do it. This can be easier said than done. It requires consciously developing a practice of observation and curiosity. And I’d advise companies not to fall into the easy trap of just asking their customers what they want. They don’t know what they want. Did anyone ask for the Internet before it existed? Did anyone ask for a smartphone?  

2. Rethink the marketing process. There’s a good chance you’re approaching marketing backwards. Marketing does not start with the medium (i.e., a bulk-mail campaign or social media). The first step in developing any marketing strategy is defining and understanding your market. This is followed by the message, media, and moment. As I discuss in my book, this model is what I call the Marketing Diamond. 

3. Find what makes you special. Your company’s branding position goes well beyond simply uniquely identifying your products and services. It makes a clearly stated promise as to how you are different from the competition. And smart companies play up what sets them apart. If your promise isn’t exactly unique, maybe your personality is. Maybe there’s something special about your office culture. Find what makes you special. 

4. Build your own box. Creating an effective branding proposition isn’t about thinking outside of the box but rather creating your own box. Then you fill that box with stuff that will resonate with your customers. How do you do this? In my book, I outline tools for building your unique box, including creating your own language and creating specific triggers and anchors. 

5. Steal genius. This is a term that I came up with. The idea is to go out and study “alien” organizations and experiences—ones that are outside of your industry. Once you start to study them, you’ll begin to see what can be extrapolated and applied to your business. The main point here is do not rely on benchmarking from within your industry, because you never get new ideas from your competition.  

6. Create an attachment. Your customers must become attached to your company, professionally and personally. I believe there are five critical pieces that go into creating attachment, one of which is a cool-kids club. Creating a club that all of your customers and prospects want to be a member of creates a personal, emotional attachment, and carries with it a perception of high value. 

7. Create rock stars. Make your best customers feel like rock stars through VIP treatment. Take, for instance, Bass Pro Shops. They created their own rock stars: expert fisherman and women who are featured on Bass Pro’s website and brought out to conduct demos at special events. Your rock stars can be part of your club, but you must elevate them among their peers and demonstrate your appreciation and recognition. 

8. Tell a story. People connect with stories, which makes storytelling an extremely powerful marketing and branding tool. Stories humanize a company; they show “proof” of your claim and resonate with your target market. Every company has a story to tell, and there are at least a half dozen different types of storytelling (as discussed in my book). Which type of story does your company have? 

9. Develop referral tools. Referrals can be nerve-wracking. It can make both you and your customers feel a bit awkward. In order for referral marketing to work, you must have several things going for you, including tools you can give to customers that they can then share with prospects. For example, provide your customers with helpful articles or newsletters, or turn your trade show booth into your own live event and invite people to get their picture with the CEO or some other celebrity (people love that, and it becomes a souvenir they can display). The bottom line: When people have had a great experience with a company, they’re happy to make a referral. You just need to make it easy for them. 

10. Do not “set it and forget it.” Nothing stays fresh and surprising forever. You must continually push the envelope and look for new ways to communicate how you are unique. Nothing, no matter how brilliant it is, is going to stay Uncopyable forever.  

To learn more about the strategies and tools to make your company Uncopyable, check out the updated and expanded edition of Uncopyable: How to Create an Unfair Advantage Over Your Competition, available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Porchlight Book Company, Google Play, Apple Books, and other fine retailers. Steve Miller is an author, professional/virtual speaker and business advisor. Since founding The Adventure LLC in 1984, Miller’s consulting clients have ranged from solo entrepreneurs to Fortune 100 megacorporations, including Starbucks, Coca-Cola, and Procter & Gamble. For more information, visit TheAdventure.com. 

No Risk, No Reward by Letitia Frye

The excerpt below is from Letitia Frye’s book No Reserve: Take Ownership and Live YOUR Life without Limitations, available now from Sound Wisdom.  

From the podium a voice rings out: “Lot 1!” 

You lean in to hear what item is for sale, when images from your past, present, and—seemingly—future appear on the screen. 

You realize, in an uncanny turn of events, that the people around you are about to start bidding on your life, determining what value to place on it. What will it go for? you wonder. You grip the seat, anxiously awaiting to hear the starting bid. What if it sells for too low of a price? 

You look around. From the looks of the scanty crowd, it appears that you might have set a reserve price at this auction, ensuring your life must reach a minimum value to sell. But the poor attendance has made you question your strategy: Whom have I excluded by restricting my reach? How will I grow my value if I’m playing it safe? What’s holding me back? Why am I not “all in”?  

How will I grow my value if I’m playing it safe? 

Life is like an auction: you get your best returns if you don’t set a reserve on it. Anyone who wants to live a meaningful, fulfilling, invigorating life that makes an impression on the world must learn to live their life with no reserve. 

But what does that mean, exactly? 

Let’s say that there’s someone who wants to sell their house for $2 million, yet they really need to move on with their life and follow their new plan. So, they decide to hire an auctioneer. They know that they do not want to take an offer under $1 million for their house. They also are scared that they may not achieve or acquire all that they need in order to succeed in their next step.  

Consequently, they tell the auctioneer that they would like to set a reserve—or a minimum bid—on the sale of their property for $1 million. The auctioneer tells them that might be one of the worst decisions they could make if they truly would like to garner a high price on the sale of their home. Why would she say that? It’s because setting a limitation is tantamount to publicly declaring, “This is as far as I’m willing to go.” In other words, “I’m not willing to take a risk.” Without risk, there is little chance for great reward. 

Without risk, there is little chance for great reward. 

If you listen to the auctioneer, she will tell you to remove the reserve and sell the property absolute, or “no reserve.” A no-reserve auction does not have a minimum bid. It can start as low as a dollar. The reason that no-reserve auctions tend to bring in more money is that when there is no perceived limitation, there is room for chance—as in, unlimited opportunities for success. The public will come out in far greater numbers to this house sale because they think they’ve got a good shot at getting a great deal on a $2 million property. The truth is, more bodies in the room in a competitive environment means better odds that the seller will have better results. The bidding will become fast and furious, with the “hammer price,” or final sale price, reaching heights unheard of for an auction with reserve. 

When there is no perceived limitation, there is room for chance—as in, unlimited opportunities for success. 

Many people are risk averse, yet they talk about wanting to be an entrepreneur or desiring to take their company to the “next level.” How can you create great things in life without taking any risks? I have made a number of daring moves and bet on myself. Some of the risks were successes, and others were painful lessons—and I do not regret a single one of them. I’ve lived a life filled with unimaginable tragedy and yet incredible abundance, and my journey has taught me that if you want to live an authentic life, enjoy great success, and make a difference in the world, you have to remove your reserve, step out of your comfort zone, and seize opportunities as they come. 

Currently celebrating over 16 years in the auction business and having raised over $500 million dollars for charity, Letitia Frye has truly earned her title as America’s foremost “auctiontainer.” Some of her biggest clients include St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Alice Cooper’s Solid Rock, and the Make-A-Wish Foundation®, but she brings to every event, no matter the size, her expertise, contagious energy, and unique flair. After a devastating accident in which she was struck by a car while running, leading to a traumatic brain injury, combined with the sudden death of the father of her children, Letitia decided to broaden her span beyond auctions in order to help more people by becoming a motivational speaker. Her book No Reserve: Take Ownership and Live YOUR Life without Limitations is now available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Google Play, and Apple Books. Follow Letitia on Instagram (@letitia_frye) and Twitter (@LFAuctiontainer). 

3 Cs for Results-Driven Action by Alyson Van Hooser

Photo by Kristin Hardwick for StockSnap

Do you want to be more successful? Understanding the right action you need to take is critical for earning success. Without a high-level understanding of what you do and do not need to do, you’ll be left with long-term lackluster results. How frustrating that would be—for both you and your employer! 

I recently wrote a book titled Level Up: Elevate Your Game & Crush Your Goals (releasing June 16, 2020), and I open the entire book, laying the foundation, with the 3 Cs we’re going to very briefly discuss today. 

The 3 Cs for Results-Driven Action will help you take control of your future success and eliminate wasted time and energy! 

C—Correct 

The first of the three Cs is: CORRECT. You must take correct action…anything else will lead you off-track from accomplishing your goals!  

I suggest the first step in establishing what correct action looks like for you is to get your perspective in check. Understanding who you are, what you want to achieve, and how the world really works is key to correctly seeing what action you need to take. 

How do you know if your perspective is currently correct or incorrect? 

Answer this question for yourself: When is the last time I sat down and deeply analyzed who I am, my goals, and the world around me? 

• If your answer is never, you could be taking incorrect action. 

• If your answer is sometime before your mid-20s, you could be taking incorrect action. Why? The decision-making part of your brain isn’t fully developed until you’re in your mid-20s. 

• If your answer is 6 months ago, then you may very well be on the right track! 

Hear me carefully: correct, results-driven action is critical to building the right foundation for you to grow from.  

C—Calculated 

Calculated action means that every action you take is on purpose, for a purpose. In other words, every word you say and move you make is to get you closer to—not further from—crushing your goals. 

How do you learn what action to take and when? You must deeply understand the people around you. 

Newsflash: There is no one in the world who is a self-made success! If you want to be successful, you’re going to have to be willing to learn about and work well with other people. You must deeply develop your knowledge of who the people are around you, what they like and dislike, what motivates them, etc. 

Why do you need to do that? 

People are forming opinions about you with every interaction they have with you. Their opinion of you matters because it determines how they treat you. They may be your door to opportunity! Make sure you’re interacting with them intentionally. And, here’s the thing: their opinion of you will have less to do with you and more to do with them… 

• How do you make them feel? 

• Do you cause them to have more/less faith in you? 

• Do your actions make them want to invest in or get rid of you?  

That list could go on! People have different personalities, motivations, etc. You need to understand them so you can adapt your actions and create forward progress in your personal and professional life.  

C—Consistent 

I believe that your success hinges on your willingness to choose to be consistent. Consistent action may be the hardest part of all of this. Most people don’t consistently perform well, which is why most people are not where they want to be in life. 

The key to being consistent is to stay focused on your goals. When you clearly know what it is you are trying to accomplish, you will not succumb to incorrect, uncalculated, inconsistent actions in the heat of a moment. Instead, you’ll choose the right actions, the right response, and the right decision. 

My question to you is: Do you know exactly where you’re headed? Do you have a clear goal? If not, you’ll be taking a lot of action that may lead you nowhere. 

I challenge you today to get serious about naming and understanding your own priorities so that when the rubber meets the road, you won’t lose your motivation and your consistency.  

If you want to dig deeper into correct, consistent, calculated action that earns you the respect and trust of others, pre-order copies of Level Up for you and your team today! 

Results-Driven Action for Success 

The bottom line is, you can have that hunger, that burning desire, or that small voice impelling you to live your value. But that feeling alone will not get you any closer to crushing your goals. You have to take action…and by action I mean correct, calculated, and consistent action—right now. That is your only option for success. I believe we have the ability to EARN everything we want. I’m wishing you massive success! 

Alyson Van Hooser is a leadership keynote speaker and trainer on millennials, Gen Z, and women in business. With the grit that only comes from tough experiences, Alyson has learned a thing or two about personal and professional success. From her management experience with Walmart, as an elected city council member, bank manager—all before the age of 30—Alyson has wisdom well beyond her years! Her book Level Up: Elevate Your Game & Crush Your Goals is available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, and other fine retailers on June 16, 2020. Connect with Alyson on LinkedIn and Instagram. This article originally appeared here on the Van Hooser Associates Leadership Blog and has been edited for inclusion on the Sound Wisdom Blog.

Negative Bias by Jim Stovall

In my own unscientific, life-long study of human performance and success, it seems to me that most people think negative thoughts, speak negative words, and expect negative outcomes and, inevitably, they get what they expect. I have long pondered, in a world where there are so many positive thoughts and positive circumstances, why the majority of people dwell on the negative side of the equation.  

My working theory is based on the premise that human beings, during prehistoric times, lived in a hostile environment that threatened their very existence on a daily basis. Since before we human beings came together in societies and cultures, our very lives depended on constantly looking for dangerous, destructive situations and avoiding them. I have no scientific evidence to support my theory, but no one else has any evidence to refute my theory; so until there’s better research, I’m going to stick with my conclusion that human beings developed in a hostile and negative world. 

Every circumstance or situation offers us the opportunity to have a positive or a negative perception. After enjoying a wonderful family meal at home, you might find yourself lamenting the negative vision of a sink overflowing with dirty dishes that you have to wash. While washing dishes is probably no one’s idea of a positive experience, let’s examine the entire picture before we draw a conclusion. 

After enjoying a wonderful family dinner, you should feel very positive that you have a family, that they have food to eat, and that they are willing and able to share a meal together.  Many people around the world do not have a family, don’t have enough food to eat, and are in a situation where no one wants to share a special occasion with them.  As you approach the sink filled with dirty dishes, you could feel negative about the task before you, or you could feel positive because you have dishes—as well as a sink to put them in—in your modern kitchen that would be the envy of most of the seven billion people who inhabit planet Earth today. 

Traffic jams may be a negative waste of time and frustration, or they could be a reminder that you have a comfortable vehicle with the fuel you need to get anywhere you might need or want to go. Tax returns can be a negative hassle or a positive reminder that you made money in the previous year and your tax dollars, along with your fellow citizens’ taxes, pay for roads, schools, and the dedicated first-responders who keep us safe as we enjoy the many positive benefits of the wonderful life we’ve been given. 

As you go through your day today, remember, while there may be reasons to be negative, there are always more reasons to be positive. 

Today’s the day!  

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books, including The Ultimate Gift. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Listen to his Wisdom for Winners series on Audible. Follow him on Twitter (@stovallauthor) or Facebook (@jimstovallauthor). 

Get Motivated to Lead While You #StayAtHome by Alyson Van Hooser

Photo by LinkedIn Sales Navigator from StockSnap 

Where’s your head at right now with everything going on? Like so many people, have you defaulted to feeling overwhelmed, stressed, frustrated or demotivated? 

I used the word defaulted because no one intentionally works to feel those negative feelings. They just happen; they’re most people’s default in difficult situations. 

The fact of the matter is that you DON’T have to accept your default. Let me say it again for those of you who were just skimming up to this point—you don’t have to accept your default; you can flip the script! 

You don’t have to accept your default—you can flip the script! 

Right now, this once-in-a-lifetime season of life is where most people will either crumble or remain static for the next several weeks or months. You aren’t called to be most people. Make no mistake, this is your opportunity to either hit home runs or let everything hit the fan. I want to help you get motivated to lead—both yourself and others—to come out from this situation better than you were before it even happened! Whether it’s business as somewhat usual for you, or if your world has been turned upside down, now is your time to shine! 

Your Mindset, Your Choice 

Because so many people are working from home and practicing social distancing, we are spending a lot more time looking at screens—computers, TVs, phones, etc. I saw a meme this week that made me smile. The meme said something to the extent of “Rapunzel was quarantined and she met her husband…so let’s think positive!” Although I’m not looking for a husband (I locked down one of those almost ten years ago, ha!), I am a big believer in the thought of purposefully focusing your mind on positivity. Being intentional in that way is incredibly powerful. When you own your power to choose a positive mindset, you create a breeding ground for growth and success! 

Here’s what I know—most people are operating off their default mindset. When things get hard, most people default to overwhelm, stress, frustration, and mere survival. Maybe you’re there right now. If you are, I totally get it. This is a tough time for so many. But friend…I don’t want you to stay there! 

Significance > Survival 

Learning to control my mindset is the it-factor to crushing your goals. And what’s encouraging to me through all the struggles surrounding COVID-19 is that it’s been through the struggles in my life that I’ve grown immensely, gained the most value, and skyrocketed my momentum both personally and professionally. 

Whether it was navigating poverty as a child or overcoming abandonment from my parents and then life-altering postpartum depression, etc., it is in the times where normalcy has been ripped out from under me that I had the life-changing choice to either spend my days struggling to survive or fighting to create significance. 

Isn’t that what we are all experiencing right now with #COVID-19…a hard place where normalcy has been ripped out from under us? 

So I ask you again—where’s your head at right now? Are you defaulting to struggling to survive or are you thriving by working from a place of creating significance? 

Here’s the thing, when you operate in survival mode, it’s like you’re treading water. You can’t tread water forever! Eventually you tire out, give up, and go down. 

When you shift your mindset from survival to operating from a place of creating significance during hard times, you increase the momentum in your life to emerge stronger, smarter, and better than you were before. You make the difficult times mean something positive! 

Shifting your mindset is not a matter of how you feel, either. It’s a matter of how you take action. You may not feel like stepping up to the plate and making this a positive season in your life and for the people around you. Do it anyway! 

Stand and Serve 

In this season when so much feels uncertain, as if the ground is shaking, it’s time for you to choose to stand…stand and serve. 

Most people are:  

• looking for ways to take care of themselves right now, not others 

• doing what they can to get by instead of doing what they can to create a better tomorrow 

• will come out of this season of life worse or no better off than they were before. 

You don’t have to be most people! The steps you should take are steps that anyone could take, everyone should take, but very few will take. Whether you feel like it or not, if you choose to take action and step up during this time, it will all be worth it.  

I’m a full-time author, speaker and trainer on leadership. I’m incredibly passionate about developing leaders because leaders have the potential to positively change the trajectory of people’s lives. Leadership is an incredible responsibility and honor! The world needs more great leaders and it simply starts with a person’s choice to say yes to leadership. I want to challenge you to stand up and say “yes” today. 

Regardless of your position within an organization, you have influence with people around you. Up to this point, your influence may be good, bad, small, or large. If you choose to take action to SERVE the people around you, your influence will grow in a positive way and you’ll begin blazing a trail for yourself to becoming a great LEADER. It’s during the hard times like we’re experiencing right now that great leaders become easily recognizable. This is your opportunity to shine…to earn increased trust, respect, and loyalty from your people by serving them well. This is your time to crush your goals while helping others crush theirs. 

Service Increases Motivation 

I mentioned earlier that you may not feel like stepping up and leading right now. I believe to my core that those who want success, fight for it even when they don’t feel like it…even when it’s hard, even when they shouldn’t have to, even when someone else should step up. You need to act the way you want to feel right now. When you do that, eventually the results of your actions will fuel you into a more positively motivated state. 

Think about this for a second…I want you to focus your mind on serving the people around you. Why? Because when you focus your mind on serving other people, suddenly there’s very little space in your mind or time in your day to be worrying about how you’re being negatively affected through hard times. Instead, serving others becomes the action that will steadily increase your motivation! 

“Serving others becomes the action that will steadily increase your motivation!” 

Because you have influence with the people around you—which means you are a leader– it’s your responsibility to lead yourself and your people well. The people you’re leading may be yourself, your co-workers, your employees, and even your boss. Regardless, it doesn’t matter who you’re leading, it matters what you do with this opportunity. 

Ways You Can Serve Your People 

Here are some practical actions you can start taking today to better lead yourself and your people. Anyone can take these actions, all leaders should take these actions, but only the best-of-the-best leaders will actually take these positive actions during this difficult time. I believe you are destined to be among the best-of-the-best, so let’s dig in! 

1. Be the light for your people. 
   For many, this feels like a dark time. Be the light. Lead your people to the light. How do you do that? 
   First, you have to get your own mind right. You need to limit and purposefully choose what you hear, see, and say right now. Listen to music that has a positive message, only look at social media accounts that will bring positivity into your mind, find one news source you trust and only consume that one source once a day for a very limited time. Turn off and unfollow anything that doesn’t fit that description of what you should be hearing and seeing right now. 
   Once you’ve set those things in place for yourself, share the light with your people. Add appropriate joy and humor to your everyday interactions—e-mails, Zoom, face-to-face interactions if you’re still having those, etc. 
   Focus on becoming the light to your people. Give yourself and them a reason to smile and laugh. You’ll help yourself and others relieve stress…and while that is great for a person’s mental health, it is also great for a person’s professional performance (I won’t bore you with the science to back that up right now)! 

2. Dream for your people.
   Many of your people are operating in survival mode where they cannot dream for themselves, but as a leader you can and you should! 
   So where do you start? 
   Think about your team’s goals prior to COVID-19, think about your team’s strengths both before COVID-19 and the ones that emerged amid COVID-19, and then be innovative! What new, more efficient and productive processes can you implement after this is over? What new strategies can you set in motion to escalate performance? The list can go on and on. 
   This is where you as a leader have the opportunity to shine. Think about the things other people aren’t taking the time to think about right now! Be the person that takes yourself, your people, and your company to places no one had even imagined before! 

3. Be steady for your people. 
   Your people cannot predict what the company, governor, or president is going to do or decide next. Proper communication is the antidote to the stress that uncertainty brings. As a leader, be the calm in this storm. 
   Schedule regular communication with your people. Communication time where you tell them what you know. Schedule enough time where you allow them to ask all of their questions and voice their concerns. 
   People are starving for great leadership right now. You can be the solution they need with steady communication. 

This Is Your Time—Get Motivated! 

As a leader, I’m believing that this is going to be the season of life where you step up in a big way and lead your people to feel and accomplish incredible things. All it takes is a choice from you…a choice to say “yes” to taking action to serve the people around you. When you do that, whether you’re in the office or working from home, you’ll reignite your motivation and take back control of your success! This is your time. 

Alyson Van Hooser is a leadership keynote speaker and trainer on millennials, Gen Z, and women in business. With the grit that only comes from tough experiences, Alyson has learned a thing or two about personal and professional success. From her management experience with Walmart, as an elected city council member, bank manager—all before the age of 30—Alyson has wisdom well beyond her years! Preorder her book Level Up: Elevate Your Game & Crush Your Goals on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, and other fine retailers. Connect with Alyson on LinkedIn and Instagram. This article originally appeared here on the Van Hooser Associates Leadership Blog. 

Tomorrow Never Comes by Jim Stovall

These weekly columns have appeared in newspapers, magazines, and online publications for well over 20 years. I try to create a variety of topics, themes, and subjects, but every column every week ends with the phrase, “Today’s the day.” The world belongs to the person who will set a course and begin moving toward their goal today. Those timid individuals who over-plan, overanalyze, and conduct the most trivial preparations right up to the point where they fail to launch are a huge waste of human potential.  

I’m reminded of the sign posted in a convenience store that read, “Free cookies and candy tomorrow.” While the sign created a lot of excitement and enthusiasm, it produced no cookies or candy. Here in the age of social media, it is easy to develop feelings of inadequacy as we review other people’s carefully edited highlight reels online. This feeling of inadequacy far too often causes us to never start. 

Not all people who set a goal and begin their quest end up succeeding, but beyond a shadow of a doubt, fully 100 percent of people who fail to begin never reach the finish line. The great author and thought leader, Napoleon Hill, taught us there is never a perfect time to begin, but if we will just get started with the tools we have, better tools will be provided for us along the way. If you have a goal, a calling, or an ambition in your life, you are responsible for it and should be taking action today. Maybe it’s just reading a book, making a new contact, or taking a course, but the roadmap to success never calls for you to sit idly waiting for something you don’t have. There is always something to learn, something to explore, and something to do. 

When you read biographies of great people, you discover that they invariably came from humble beginnings. We often wonder if we could have scaled the heights that these great men and women reached, but the more poignant question is: Would we have begun the journey given meager resources and limited contacts? My late great friend and mentor Dr. Robert Schuller said, “I’d rather attempt to do something great and fail than attempt to do nothing and succeed.” 

As you go through your day today, draw a line in the sand and just get started. 

Today’s the day! 

Jim Stovall is the president of Narrative Television Network as well as a published author of many books, including The Ultimate Gift. He is also a columnist and motivational speaker. Listen to his Wisdom for Winners series on Audible. Follow him on Twitter (@stovallauthor) or Facebook (@jimstovallauthor). 

The Art of Converting Defeat into Opportunity by Jennifer Janechek

Never has there been a time more favorable to pioneers than the present. —Napoleon Hill 

Napoleon Hill wrote his masterpiece, Think and Grow Rich, in the thick of the Great Depression. It is credited with helping end the Depression by providing people with the strategies they needed to take control of their future by single-mindedly pursuing a definite purpose. He speaks directly to his original readership when he writes, “You have been disappointed, you have undergone defeat during the depression, you have felt the great hurt within you crushed until it bled. Take courage, for these experiences have tempered the spiritual metal of which you are made—they are assets of incomparable value.”  

According to Hill, how a person handles temporary defeat makes the difference between success and failure. Of the 500-plus business leaders he interviewed—America’s greatest minds, entrepreneurs, and millionaires like Thomas A. Edison, Andrew Carnegie, and Henry Ford—every single one of them admitted to meeting with obstacles, many quite heartbreaking, before they “arrived.” 

In fact, they described these moments of crisis as turning points, or make-or-break moments. It is during these difficult times that they met their “other self”—that bearer of indefatigable strength and commitment who summons every ounce of courage and energy to press forward in the face of opposition and misfortune. Their other self helped them channel their fear and passion into creativity, which they used to find solutions to the challenges at hand. For as Hill emphasizes, obstacles, when properly viewed, are prime opportunities for innovation, growth, and achievement. Opportunity, he writes, “has the sly habit of slipping in by the back door, and often it comes disguised in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat. Perhaps this is why so many fail to recognize opportunity.”  

Even in these difficult times in which we presently find ourselves, we have the option to grow and succeed. Consider the following questions:  

How can you use this time to build your knowledge and deepen your awareness by reading more—especially e-books and audiobooks—and taking online courses?  

Where can you simplify your life, your systems, etc., to allow for a deeper focus on what really matters?  

How can you “reset” in your business so that you emerge with a stronger vision, more efficient processes, and a smarter business plan? 

What new problems have been created that you could solve? 

Where are there opportunities to give? What service can you render?  

I’ll leave you with this inspirational call to action, which is as timely now as it was in 1937: “Never, in the history of America has there been so great an opportunity for practical dreamers as now exists… A new race is about to be run. The stakes represent huge fortunes which will be accumulated within the next ten years.” 

Don’t miss your opportunity because you’re focused on temporary defeat. The stakes are too big! 

Napoleon Hill is the founder of the Science of Success. His success principles have changed the lives of more entrepreneurs, thought leaders, and cultural icons than any other system. The original, unedited edition of Think and Grow Rich is available from Sound Wisdom—get your copy now from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Porchlight Book Company, and other fine retailers. 

Sign up here to receive free samples and exclusive content from Sound Wisdom’s Napoleon Hill Collection. 

Do You Have Stickability? by Jennifer Janechek

The most common cause of failure is quitting.

In the first chapter of Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill tells the story of R. U. Darby, who learned a costly lesson about quitting when faced with temporary defeat.   

In Three Feet from Gold, a business allegory based on the principles in Think and Grow Rich, Don Green summarizes Darby’s story: 

Darby’s uncle had been struck by gold fever. He’d traveled west to get rich in the mining business. This would-be prospector had many more hopes than solutions, you see, because he had not invested the time to learn how to do what he wanted to accomplish. He just wanted to find gold. He had not studied mining or learned from others about the proper way to mine or even the travails of mining. He simply staked a claim and went to work with his pick and shovel.  

Fortunately, after weeks of manual labor, Darby’s uncle was rewarded with the discovery of gold, and lots of it! While it was a good problem to have, he quickly realized that he really wasn’t prepared. He needed machinery to remove the enormous amount of heavy rocks and dirt that covered the shining ore. 

Understanding that machinery cost money that he didn’t have, he carefully covered up the mine and traveled back to his home in Williamsburg, Maryland. He loudly proclaimed his great discovery and boasted of the tremendous wealth of gold that lay in the ground just waiting for his return. It didn’t take long to persuade his family and friends to invest toward the needed equipment. 

With money in hand, Darby’s uncle invited his young protégé to return with him to start digging for the promised treasure. When the first gold ore was retrieved, they excitedly shipped it to the smelter. Sure enough, it was high-quality ore and promised to be one of the richest gold discoveries in Colorado. Just a few more loads and they would not only be able to repay their debts to their family and friends but would have plenty of money to spare. 

Darby and his uncle were convinced they were about to make a huge fortune from their gold mine. Then tragedy struck…the gold simply disappeared. Just when their hopes were at their highest, the Darbys were crushed to reach the end of the rainbow—the proverbial pot of gold was no longer there. 

Now remember, they just wanted more gold. They had never studied the art of gold mining and had no true passion for the business of mining, so they didn’t know what to do next except to keep digging. With their impatience and lack of knowledge, it wasn’t long before they became totally frustrated and disillusioned. They had experienced instant success and lost patience when the job became more difficult. They kept digging but found no more ore. It wasn’t long before their dissatisfaction got the best of them and they decided to quit. 

Discouraged and defeated, Darby and his uncle sold both their mine and their equipment to a local junkman. For years this junkman had been looking for an opportunity to break into the mining industry. He had studied mining for over a decade and had always believed that this was his destiny. The sale was completed with the exchange of a few hundred dollars and the deed. With that, Darby and his uncle caught the next train and returned to their home in Maryland, ending their quest for gold. 

But the story doesn’t end there. You see, the junkman was passionate about the idea of mining. Remember, he was just waiting for the right opportunity. He was also smarter than most people gave him credit for. With the deed in hand, he hired a mining engineer to inspect the claim, and together they discovered what is known as a fault line. The engineer explained that gold ran in long veins and that the previous owners had simply drilled through one side of the vein and come out on the other. The engineer explained that if the junkman were to go back and dig in the other direction, perpendicular to where the Darbys had made their first discovery, he would most likely tap back into the treasure. 

The new owner, the junkman turned gold miner, followed these simple instructions and, sure enough, he hit one of the largest pockets of ore ever uncovered—a mere three feet away from where the Darbys had quit mining. The junkman retrieved millions of dollars in gold from the site. He succeeded where Darby and his uncle had failed because of two things: his determination to fulfill his life’s purpose of becoming a gold miner and, of course, his willingness to seek expert advice. 

And what do you think Mr. Darby did when he heard about the success of the junkman? …He learned his lesson about stopping three feet from gold and went on to apply it to his work in the insurance business. Sure, he was heartbroken when he heard about the success the junkman had achieved at his personal expense, but he never forgot that the real reason he lost the fortune was because he had decided to give up too soon. 

He dedicated his life to never again accepting defeat. With this new “Never Quit” attitude, Darby went on to create his own fortune in the insurance industry. He repaid his friends and family from his new fortune. And, importantly, he also started sharing his story so others could learn from his mistake. 

Darby and his uncle initially lacked “stickability”—the ability to persevere toward one’s goal despite temporary setbacks and failures. As Don Green shares with Greg, the protagonist in Three Feet from Gold, “Before great success comes, you will surely meet with temporary defeat. When people are overtaken by these feelings, the easiest and perhaps most logical thing to do is to quit. Quitting is exactly what the majority of people do”—which is why so few people have great success. Don adds, “The reason most people quit is because they fail to unearth their definite life purpose. They don’t have something worth fighting for. Once you discover this truth, then you will gain stickability…the difference between being interested and being committed.”  

Do you have stickability? Are you able to look beyond today’s difficulties into tomorrow’s goldmine? Learn from Greg in Three Feet from Gold what a difference it makes to identify your definite major purpose and unabashedly pursue it. 

Don’t quit now…you might be just three feet from gold! 

Sharon Lechter and Dr. Greg Reid’s Three Feet from Gold is now available from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million, Porchlight Book Company, Google Play, Apple Books, and other fine retailers. This remarkable business allegory tells a fascinating story in presenting the key principles of Napoleon Hill’s revolutionary bestseller, Think and Grow Rich. As you follow a struggling young entrepreneur through a life-changing series of encounters with some of today’s foremost business leaders and inspirational figures, you’ll find encouragement and motivation to believe in yourself, discover your own Personal Success Equation™, and never give up. You are just three feet from gold!