JustThoughts

I notice as the average person learns something new they will learn the process to repeat themselves. They rarely will question why they are doing it or if it can be done better/differently. 

When thinking more in to this it becomes apparent that it comes from school years as we are thought to remember streams of information as though it is 100% factually correct. We then have to relay this memorised information to pass a test without questioning what it is we have earned. Even though this information changes all the time as new knowledge & understanding comes out. 

I picked this book up in WH Smiths for £0.50 and it has turned out to be an incredible purchase. So easy to read (2-4 page chapters with real life stories) It also has really great quotes from really successful people at the top of each chapter, I really couldn't recommend enough. Here are some takeaways, it might be rather long as I am fairly new to self-development an this is the first book I have made notes on but this is what I gained from the book;

·         ‘’Want to achieve something special. Ordinary wouldn’t be enough for someone who has the mind-set of a champion. Champions think big. Champions work in a big-time way. Champions are focussed. Champions are disciplined’’  (p39)

‘’A champion is someone who gets up when he can’t’’ – Jack Dempsey (p39)

·         We all have target markets so always consider the people you are creating for while staying true to your own yourself and your beliefs.

·         Always keep an open mind to new ideas and do not throw anything away without first considering how something innovative could come out of it. However do not dwell on the mysterious if it is clearly not going to achieve what you are setting out to do. Do not be a know-it-all as this diminishes your chances for new discoveries and opportunities. 

·         Gain as much knowledge as possible!! (This is a point that is emphasizes so much throughout the book and links with keeping your mind open to new ideas) ‘’comprehensive education dissolves the line between knowing too much and knowing too little on a variety of subjects – subjects that are necessary for success’’ (p47)

·         ''Never think of learning as being a burden or studying as being boring. It may require discipline, but it can be an adventure. It can also prepare you for a new beginning.'' (p17)

·         Ask yourself once in a while, what do I need to know more about? Then set your mind to learn more about it, gain as much knowledge about as many things as possible. 

·         ‘’The more you learn the more you realise you didn’t know’’ (p35) Something new can be learnt every single day, ask yourself what can I learn today that I don’t already know?

·         Integrate your education, make notes on different subjects and link them together, that way you will be more innovative and the knowledge will stick with you so much easier. Connect the dots between an array of different topics.

·         Information is so readily available that you have no reason not to be able to get the information you need and want. Acting on this information ultimately creates success though.

·         Learn something, apply it and make progress. 

·         Take a few hours a week to learn something outside of your normal interest zones as you might just find a new interest! Many topics come up in conversation in life and by knowing about a wide array of topics you will always have something to say in reply.

·         Some financial courses are dry but necessary. To make them interesting simply when you are learning fit it in to your business and visualise how the topics will fit in to your business and be useful to you. This way it will be easier to learn too.

·         Train and train and train as Arnold Schwarzenegger says reps, reps, reps creates success. Success takes years of perseverance and training.

·         Do more than what is expected, especially study more that way the details in the future will take care of themselves as you already have a sturdy knowledge base.

·         ‘’Talent has to do with aptitude for what you are doing. Some people are simply doing the wrong thing, and when they find the right thing, they become successful. Working hard and working intelligently should go together.’’ (p58)

·         Believe you are lucky and then luck will seem to favour you.

·         Be creative as the guidelines are just that… guidelines, you have to make them work for your situation.

·         Do not waste time, keep it short, fast and direct as people do not have time to waste and they value their own time. Just the same don’t offer anyone junk mail only offer the good stuff the stuff they will appreciate and use in their daily lives.

·         Give yourself deadlines, that way you will work faster and more efficient.

·         View very carefully and gain knowledge about what is going on around you and the world in whole every single day as you will then be able to see if this will affect you and how therefore you will be able to plan for this and it will not hit you as hard or will benefit you more. Pay attention to  every detail in your life, ask yourself what s stong/weak/missing/can be done to make the big picture better.

·         Be a team player. Very little of the outcomes in your life will be as a result of solely yourself they will be as a result as of a number of people so always work with others to gain success.

·         ''Find a blessing in the midst of adversity''(p14) Whatever is happening right now or has already happened there is always something positive that can be gained from it so always look for the good in things be thankful for them. That way when something really good comes along it will seem even more amazing and by seeing positives in negative experiences nothing will affect you. 

·         See every day as a challenge and attack it at full speed with full effort. This way you will never be complacent, you will learn to think quick and you will accomplish so much.

·         Prepare yourself fully and prepare for every possible outcome, know every detail so when what happens, happens you are already prepared. That’s what truly successful people and competitors do ‘’Just because you don’t see someone working doesn’t mean that they haven’t been working in their spare time or private time. I prepare myself thoroughly, and then when it is time to move ahead, I am ready to sprint.’ Being able to think on your feet it the result of training and discipline. You can’t sprint unless you have built up the strength to do so. Building the stamina is up to you. If you don’t work at it, it is not going to happen by wishful thinking. In other words, set a goal and work toward it Athletes know that no one else can do the training for them, and business people should have the same discipline. You have to be self-reliant.’’ (p20)

·         Why would anyone set their goals low? Aim big and achieve bigger. Work on the big goals day by day with smaller goals, these will ultimately add up to your big goal with time.

·         To think on your feet think right now what you should be thinking of. ‘’Thinking takes time. It’s the preparation for being able to think on your feet. First we walk, then we run, then we sprint.’’ (p20)

·         ‘’ask yourself: What is it that you are aiming for? What precisely is your motivation? What’s the point of building a bridge if you are not sure what you want to get on the other side, or if you don’t know what you will do once you get there? A bridge must serve a specific purpose, and your goals have to be just as specific. Visualisation is a powerful tool for bringing your intentions in to focus.’’ (p49)

·         Ideas only become something great if you act on them so make them more that just ideas by applying your brainpower to step forward to make your ideas reality. Without action thoughts will not result to much in the long run.

·         Be ready for anything at all times by testing yourself daily, do not wait for dire circumstances to make you have to act.

·         Lead the way, pave a direction for your ideas and ultimately your success.

·         Do not sell yourself short. You are capable of amazing things and what you believe in your head is or can become your reality.

·         ‘’He who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead; his eyes are closed.’’ – Albert Einstein (p23)

·         Never pretend that only giving 50% of your all is good enough, always perform your best and you will in turn receive back the best.

·         Always move forward, have a next goal and attack all challenges that try to attack you. ‘’Your higher self is in direct opposition to your comfort zone. An indication of life is growth, and signs of growth have to be there.’’ (p27)

·         Move in to new waters, you will learn more, develop as a person quicker.

·         ‘’Always know you could be on the precipice of something great – that’s being connected to your higher self. Its also a good way to keep those negative thoughts far away’’ (p28)

·         Never fear to do something. In life there will always whatever you do be a chance of failure but there is a greater chance for success if you actually try to do something versus doing nothing at all.

·         ‘’If you label something as fear, then it creates fear when sometimes it is not fear but just a concern’’ (p51) Are you concerned about something? Why? What specifically are your concerns? It is much easier to break down concerns than fears as fear blocks your creative thinking and is much harder to tackle. Simply attack ‘fears’ as concerns and problem solve them. ‘’Don’t find fault. Find a remedy’’ – Henry Ford (p65) emphasize the solution not the problem.

·         Give full attention to your work, be extremely dedicated and focussed.

·         Learn from what you did well when you did do well, pay special attention at what you success and what more you can do in the future that will give you success.

·         Pay attention to the details, the details add up to the big picture hence the saying ‘the devil is in the detail’.

·         Gain momentum from what you are doing by giving full energy to everything you do. But do give yourself time to wind down too otherwise you will burn out. Find your current and then go with it.

·         Don’t be too timid, attack things with full force and power.

·         ‘’Ask yourself is this a blip or a catastrophe’’ (p73) This will give you perspective and will help you learn from mistakes and learn what to do next. We all experience problems but they can be blips if you keep your momentum by moving forward and not dwelling on them.

·         Never give up. You never know when the tide might change and you will be able to ride huge waves of success.

·         Tell others about your successes, people will be proud of you and it will make you feel good about yourself and motivate you to keep going. However do not gloat, don’t over do it just tell people enough and ask people about their achievements too and pay real interest in to their achievements too. ‘’If you can’t say great things about yourself then who will be able to?’’ (p79)

·         Have prescience so that you know what to do and say before events take place.

·         Have a reason for doing what you are doing and be passionate as that way you will never struggle to keep going and will ultimately achieve success in the long run.

·         ‘’The opposite of fear is faith, that is why you have got to believe in yourself and see yourself as victorious. You will know you are capable of dealing with any discouragements, bullies, or problems along the way’’ (p53)

·         Keep your eyes on ideals as well as reality, that is what being prepared really means.

·            Take responsibility for actions and you will have no need to blame others. The ones that blame others are the naysayers and they never amount to anything much. Don’t be one of these people. Always look at yourself first when things go wrong.

·         When you own your own business you will have to do a lot of the major work yourself so accept that responsibility and do not fear it.

·         We all have a unique quality to offer the world and our work is to find out what it is and how to help other people through it so go out there and go for it all speed ahead.

·         Do and try as many different things as possible and develop knowledge and have integrity. These are the three traits that all successful people have to have if they are to provide value to the world; experience, integrity & knowledge. People are more willing to work for you and buy your product if they trust you (especially if you need financial backing).

·         Learn history so you know who we area as a society today and how we got here. (recommended book The Art of War – Sun Tzu)

·         Go great lengths to achieve the desired result and compete with yourself to be and achieve the best you can, truly impress yourself and you will impress others on the journey.

·         ‘’Asking the right question is already half the solution to a problem’’ – Carl Jung (p51)

·         Be knowledgeable about what is going on financially around the world and you will have an insight in to what direction your industry might take before it happens.

·         Plan ahead. That way you will be able to navigate past detours and roadblocks on the path.

·         You can always achieve more so never be satisfied with where you are. Always view yourself as just getting warmed u for the main event.

·         ‘’Do the brain work first, asking yourself a lot of questions’’ (p97) do the assessing first and then act. Do the scenario test of what will happen next and if I to this?

·         Do not dwell on dead ends just learn from them and move on. Cut your losses quickly.

·         Scrutinize your capabilities and knowledge and then develop more from this scrutiny.

·         Get the best people you can, do not settle to work with someone who is not on your wavelength and that annoys you even in a small way.

·         See problems as good things as without problems there would not be a job to be done. Your challenge is to prove your merit on these unsettling tides. Deal with your problems head on, do not let them hold you back. They can be resolved. ‘’ Wo is the boss – you or your problems? If you have some problems then that is a good sign. It means you are alive for one thing. So give that some thought, and make the most of that situation.’’ (p111)

·         ‘’Sometimes it’s not so easy to get started – Maybe you have procrastinated, but finally one night you get down to it, and after a while, you are producing the pages without a lot of agony. Thinking about doing it was probably harder than actually getting it done. Something takes over and the work evolves. A lot of that is tempo, or getting into the groove, and pretty soon performance takes over and you’re done.’’ (p118)

·         ‘’ If you see every day as an important day for your future and a special day just because you have it, you will be amazed at how productive and energetic you will be. It’s the best way to be at your best at all times. Ever say to yourself, ‘what a great day!?’ Say it to yourself today, right now, and see how your enthusiasm level begins to improve.

That’s the first step, and it helps if you are already doing something you love doing. Things just work out better that way, and you won’t have to work very hard at creating momentum or enthusiasm. But no matter how well you’ve done, you can always do more and do better. That’s how I avoid complacency and how I maintain a high level of productivity’’ (p121)

Donald once sacked someone because they said ‘that’s good enough’ so never be satisfied, you can always do better and more.

·         Take chances, you never know where they will lead you. Even if they do not create a huge amount of success or money, they may be great memories and in the end they will be what you remember.

·         Don’t take failures personally otherwise you won’t be in business very long. Equally people will always hate you, do not be afraid to be hated for if you are not by some small majority they you are probably not doing much in the world.

·         ‘’Aristotle held metaphorical thinking in high esteem, Einstein found visualisation to be helpful in solving problems, and da Vinci believed in restructuring a problem to make it more accessible or broader in scope’’ Find your way to create and use it to your advantage. Take some time in learning about the creative process and how to use it to your advantage.

·         ‘’Tell yourself that you are a genius’’ (p132) Believe it too and you will always have faith in your decisions, you will ask yourself then why you are a genius and you will open yourself to deep self-discovery. Always ask yourself questions and find an answer.

·         Produce and produce and produce even if it is not good at first and everything isn’t successful you will then have practiced and experience under your belt.

·         Take in to account both sides of everything in deciding what action to take.

·         ‘’Anyone who has never made a mistake has never tried anything new’’ – Albert Einstein (p133)

·         Think positively and act on your positive thoughts. Positive thoughts alone do not achieve action on thoughts creates success.

·         When you ask ’What if’s’ make them positive ‘what if’s’ i.e what if I did succeed, what if I made an impact on other’s lives?  

·         Never think there is only one way, there are so many different routes to achieving what you want. ‘’Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail’’ – Ralph Waldo Emerson (p147) focus on your path and merely learn from others paths do not follow them.

·         Think big and live large.

·         Set the bar high and set your standards even higher. Ask yourself what standards you would like to be known for. No one else can set your standards for you.

·         Ask yourself what do you have to offer? What is your creative capital? What have you gathered in your experience and studies that makes you valuable? Are you aware of your own potential? Will you be equipped to make a difference when your time comes to stand forward?

·         Know what you are doing and how to do it.

·         Be alert of what your instincts are telling you and trust your gut even if everything in the outside world seems to disagree.

·         Know your audience. Always learn where the other side is coming from, what is the common denominator between you and your audience and lead with it.

·         Don’t invest 100% of your money in to one single person or entity, it is stupid as you never know what that person will do next. You cannot have your wellbeing determined by one single person as you will never have any control. Do not let your guard down as there are pirates out there that want to steal your treasure.

·         Work hard and you will attract people with the same work ethic.

·         Do not panic when performing, your head will get confused and you won’t know what to do or say. Remain calm, take a deep breath and go forward.

·         Get back on the horse when you are knocked down. But also learn what you need to do when you are knocked down and struggling to get back up so you are fully prepared.

·         Be adaptable to your surroundings and what is happening, don’t be fixed in your ways, this is the same as being a know it all so stay open to new situations and ideas always.

·         Do not always follow the crowd ad then you will only be able to achieve what is already possible if you want to achieve the impossible you must set yourself apart and do things differently.

·         ‘’You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do’’ – Henry Ford (p169)

·         ‘’Everything you say and do is important. Actions matter. You are, literally, your own brand, whether you have a business yet or not. If you are serious about what you’re doing, taking responsibility for yourself starts now.’’ (p169)

·         Always be thorough about everything you do. Learn or discover the details.

·         “Second hand information will always be second hand” learn things for yourself and find the source yourself.

·         Build yourself on the three words ‘Responsible, Professional, Loyal’  

·         Think huge, plan huge and you will achieve huge. Know these things yourself and make sure they are what you want not what others want.

·         If you want to do something that you perhaps are not too keen on doing or even if it is something you love doing (both things must be in the direction to something you love) then set yourself a time limit. This will make you work faster towards your goals. It will make you more efficient too in the long-run.

·         Work with people you like, do not put up with people you don’t like as they will drag you away from your passion and will change you as a person too. Work with people that are on your wavelength and that you enjoy working with.

·         “If you don’t like the people around you, you might be well off to start looking at yourself first” the world is a reflection of yourself so if you are attracting the wrong people then maybe you are not acting the way you want to be. Make your work environment enjoyable and the least stressful as possible.

·         Take in to consideration where the other side is coming from at all times and you may well end up changing your own perspective for the better. No-one can be always right including you so start looking at things from a multitude of angles.

   Book recommendations;

·         Poor dad rich dad – Robert Kiyosaki

·         Cashflow Quadrant - Robert Kiyosaki

·         The Art of War – Sun Tzu

·         The Power of Positive Thinking – Norman Vincent Peale

·         The Golden Ratio – Mario Livio

·         Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln – Doris Kearns Goodwin

·         The Last Lion: Winston Spencer Churchill – William Manchester

·         No Ordinary Time: Franklin & Eleanor Roosevelt: The Home Front in World War II – Doris Kearns Goodwin

·         Ideas & Opinions – Albert Einstein

·         Essays & Lectures – Ralph Waldo Emerson

A tactic I have employed recently and it seems to be working wonders is to every night write down something from that day that;

a) I have achieved. Something positive and helpful to the future or the present that I have done or worked towards during that today and some thoughts and feelings about it. This has been things like; finishing a book or writing a blog post. 

b) Something I have given back. This is something that I have done for someone or for something as a collective for example singing a petition to save people getting kicked out of their homes, lending a stranger some money when they didn't have enough at the shop or helping someone out with their work. 

c) Something I am grateful for. This could be someone helping me with somethings or even something simple as being grateful to have enough money to be able to eat good healthy food or to be in a good mood that particular day. 

These are some little tactics that I have started to do to be able to help myself be happier more often and see that there is ALWAYS a reason to be happy. Please let me know if you are going to do something similar and how it works out for you.

All the best.

When you climb a mountain there is the hard uphill struggle to the top of the mountain to get to the glorious view at the top, to get that feel good feeling and feel true achievement. You also have to climb to the top in order to have the slightly easier trek down the hill too. 

What I am trying to say is that there are always going to be hard uphill struggles in life that may at the time seem arduous but in the end you will achieve what you set out to achieve, you just need to endure the drudgery of work work and more work to achieve your dreams. It may not be easy and that is a GOOD thing, it is the struggles that truly defines your character and leads you to be able to succeed in the future. 

IT IS WORTH THE STRUGGLE

Never give up!

Always keep a sharp vision, by that I mean that you should always keep your eye on the ball, always be observant of what is going on in your life, how others are acting and how you are acting too. Are they inline with how you wish them to be? Are you achieving what you want to achieve? Are things going as you planned? And how can you further develop where you are now and further develop yourself?

You must not let yourself get comfortable with success or with not doing what you need to do daily. You must always push yourself to the max to achieve your dreams and always keep your eye sharp watching out for things that could go wrong, looking for new avenues of success and always seek to develop yourself more and more each and every day.

If you do not keep your eyes sharp and on the ball all the time someone or something will take advantage of you and before you know it you will be further back that you were before.

Always keep your head focused on achievement with constant observation of what is happening to yourself, your surrounding and the people in the world and around you.

This way you will always be sharp and will be very successful in life.

Money should not always be the biggest goal of actions within your life, living your life fully. If you always spend your time focusing on money you will miss the journey you are taking and your life will be over before you know it with nothing to show for it. 

Instead what I invite you to do is to take at least on step DAILY towards the direction of your dreams and enjoy your life. Don;t let other people own you and your desire for a better life in the future with more money overcome your passions and your dreams. Follow your heart and the money will take care of itself. 

“If you say that money is the most important thing, you’ll spend your life completely wasting your time: You’ll be doing things you don’t like doing in order to go on living, that is, in order to go on doing things you don;t like doing” 

-Alan Watts

When you live your life chasing more money you totally miss the point of life; that is to LIVE it fully and appreciate, love and enjoy it to the fullest. 

You will literally be trading your time for a bit of money which won’t make you any better or happier right now when you deserve to be happy!