Success Goes With The Flow...Sometimes

You might remember that old country song "You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em, know when to walk away, and know when to run..."

(In case you think I'm dating myself by asking that, I'll go ahead and REALLY date myself now: I remember that song from "Urban Chipmunk" with none other than Alvin adn the Chipmunks. It was a Christmas gift one year! LOL!)

Anyway, that song about sums up what it takes to be successful.

Put another way:

sometimes, the path to success is going with the flow and not rocking the boat. Sometimes, success means the boat should not only be rocked, but flipped over...or sunk.

Successful people seem to have a natural knack for figuring out which is the right move at the right time. Some call it luck, some call it good fortune, others call it "blessed" or attribute it to serendipity But that's a bunch of hogwash.

It's intuition. Period.

Successful people listen to their intuition which NEVER steers us wrong. How many times have you said (or heard someone say) "I should have known!" or "I had a really bad feeling about that" or "something was telling me not to do that!" or "I had a strong feeling I should do this, even thouhg it made no sense." Intuition works every time, but we can get confused when ego gets in teh way.

How does Ego interfere, you ask?

Simple. Ego has only two motives:
Look good, or
Don't look bad.

That is our prime driving force of our conscious mind at all times. It is only when we allow our true self, or subconscious mind, to guide us that we can be authentic and achieve massive success.

For example, intuition (subconscious mind) may be gently pushing you to do or say something. But our "rational" or conscious mind is saying "What? I can't say that--I'll sound ridiculous! They might laugh at me. No one will listen to me. I don't want to do it."

All this "monkey chatter" gets in our head and prevents us from following those gentle nudges.

Successful people have learned to trust their intuition and act on it. The more you can do that, the closer you will get to your goals, and the more successful you can be.

Monkey chatter can also interfere with what our intiution is guiding us away from. Let's say you REALLY want something. Ego thinks we will look good if we buy this/enter into this business transaction/get that. Intuition says "don't do it! Wait!" But Ego really wants it. So we do or say or buy something that isn't good for us, only to find out that if we had passed it up, something better would be waiting.

And intuition is stamping its feet, saying "I told you to wait! I knew this other thing was much better for you and if you had only listened to me you'd have that now!!!!!"

Apparently all those "flighty" sayings (can you hear Ego talking now?) actually have some merit. You know what I'm talking about:

"Follow your heart!"
"Chase your dreams!"
"Listen to your heart!"
"Trust your intuition"
"Go with your gut"
"Let your heart be your guide"

If you want success, trust your intuition. Adn don't worry about looking bad. No one's looking at you anyway--they're all too worried about looking good themselves!!!

Your question for today:

Can you agree to trust your intuition--just for today--and act on those subtle urges and nudges, and see where it gets you?

P.S. Thanks for reading - our Alexa ranking has climbed and climbed adn we finally broke through teh 100,000 barrier! We appreciate our readers! :-)

Signs, Signs, Everywhere Signs

It never ceases to amaze me how obtuse we can really be. Oh, believe me, I include myself in that statement.

I can look back on my life and see all the signs--all the clues and hints to suggest that I was destined to be a writer and to coach people on the path to success and true happiness--and I totally missed them.

Or ignored them.

Or convinced myself I'd better "get a real job."

And now it's all come full-circle. I went down the "real job" role, corporate junior exec and all that. And I felt empty, dissatisfied, taken for granted. Which prompted a soul-searching trip, which led me to leave my job and live my dreams. Which brings me to today. Like I said, full-circle.

Often I think we ignore signs as opposed to missing them. WE have millions of excuses why we can't succeed at this or that. Why we SHOULD be doing something else. Why it will never work. Why it's not the right time. Why we should wait. Why we should want something else, or just settle for what we've already got.

I hope you realize these are all just excuses. They're just stories you made up, that you tell yourself over and over until you start to believe them. You have the potential to soar beyond your greatest dreams, and I'm not just blowing smoke here. Look around, there are clues EVERYWHERE in your life. They will continue to surface until you start listenting to them.

Yesterday I came across an article I wrote years ago. I was very involved with my youth group, even as an advisor in my late teens and early 20s. In fact (I had forgotten this fact) I used to write a "Deep Thoughts" column for our monthly newsletter. Apart from far too many exclamation points, I think it's not bad. The message is of course, spot-on even today (although I seem to have forgotten to take my own advice for a few years between then and now). This is what I wrote at the tender age of about 20:

The Less I Try to Be Happy, the Better off I Am
By Amy Scott, circa 1993

At a prayer meeting last month, we discovered the secret of happiness. Just in case you weren't there, I'll share it with you RIGHT NOW. Get it? No? Well, maybe you understand NOW. Still confused? Well, if you thought you had it, you don't anymore and if you think you'll get it, you probably won't. The secret is RIGHT NOW. That's right! The way to be happy is to LIVE IN THE PRESENT.

When we get wrapped up in the past (regretting things we did or didn't do), we are unhappy because we know we can't change the past. When we get caught up in the future (worrying about what will happen to us, where we will go, how a relationship will go) we are not happy because we are afraid of the unknown.

It's important to make every moment the best it can be--there will never be another today! Focus on what is happening RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW (all the time) and be your best. Start RIGHT NOW!

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

My question for you today is this:

What clues are you ignoring? What would you do if you weren't afraid?

The Big Announcement

OK, I have been "teasing" you for weeks now, telling you that my revolutionary new product--the one that's going to change the way you live, in a good way--is coming soon.

You've been very patient (well, most of you anyway).

You've been supportive (again, mostly. You know who you are.)

You're about to be rewarded. Big-time.

This week, the revolutionary new Success Method(TM) will be released.

Because YOU are one of my loyal readers, you get to know about it first (I haven't even told my FRIENDS yet, that's how new this scoop is! Plus I figure, if they claim to be my friend, adn they aren't even reading my blog, too bad for them!)

The Success Method will completely change the way you live. This nine-week course will teach you to:

- manage your time better and "find" up to ten hours per week to do what you want
- reduce or even eliminate stress completely from your life
- set and attain outrageous goals
- balance your life, regardless of how many "top priorities" you think you have
- do what you reall want to do (but have been to afraid)
- achieve massive success
- maintain this momentum for a lifetime, no matter what happens

And a whole lot more, but I'll let you read about The Success Method for yourself.

As you can see, I'm pretty excited about it. I also have over $400 worth of free bonuses to give you, as one of the first to claim your Success Method. Now that's something YOU can get excited about too.

Check it out.

In case you missed it, it's The Success Method or http://thesuccessmethod.com

Happy Living!

Success: Knife vs. Spoon

It seems that as humans, we feel it is our responsibility -- our sworn duty -- to complicate things.

No matter how simple, how ordinary or how plain it COULD be, we always find a way to foul it up.

You can see examples of this anywhere in your life.

Check out your workplace for starters. I'm sure you can think of a "Top Ten" list of things the company COULD do in an easier way than they're currently doing. You can probably think of 10 things that the company doens't even need to be doing at all! We love to add extra steps, create job security and form ad hoc committees to show how important we are and how much we can do.

Unfortunately, we don't get as much done.

I'm sure you see it in other parts of your life, too. Maybe the clerk performs extra steps when checking you out with your purchases at the store. Maybe the hotel makes you jump through extra hoops when you check in or check out.

Perhaps you can begin to see where you go out of your way in your own life to complcate things.

But it doesn't have to be that way at all.

I was recently asked to do a little experiment. First, I was told to collect three items--a knife, a spoon and a cardboard box (I used a cereal box). See if you can mentally picture this while I'm explaining it to you. (If it helps, the box was Lucky Charms.)

First I took the spoon and tried to pierce the box. Kinda tough, but I managed to put a dent in the Leprechaun's face after expending a fair amount of energy and focus.

Then I tried again with the spoon. I am sorry to tell you that I stabbed the poor leprechaun in nothing flat.

What's the point?

The lesson was to demonstrate the power of focused energy. While the spoon is blunt, it has diffused energy. This means that when I pushed with it, the energy was going in several different directions. On the other hand, the knife has focused energy. When I attempted to pierce the box with the knife, the design of the knife is such that I was focusing all my energy and force into a small point. Which resulted in better, faster accomplishment of my goal.

Would you like better, faster accomplishment of YOUR goals? Faster success?

Then stop complicating things! Look, if you're running around in a million directions at once, you're working with a spoon. Focus on what you want, and then focus on each task that will take you to what you want. Use the knife.

My question for you today is this:

Where in your life can you benefit from using a knife-approach instead of a spoon-approach? What actions will you take TODAY with the knife-approach to move you closer to your goals?

The Value of Listening

Actually, it often feels more valued to be listened TO than to listen, doesn't it? I mean there are few things more frustrating than not being listened to. Are you paying attention? I mean it! Nah, only kidding.

Have you ever been in a store and you tell someone who works there what you want and they try to give you something totally different? Because they're not listening! And what do you do? Well, first you attempt to restrain yourself from strangling them from all the frustration you feel, adn then you calmly attempt to explain yourself again. Or you ask to talk to someone else. Which works on occasion, depending on the caliber of workers at the particular store.

Of course, it's easier to listen to someone if they are actually interesting. So if you want to be listened to, attempt to be interesting and you'll improve your odds.

When someone is passionate about somehting, it often doesn't matter what the topic is because their enthusiasm is so engaging.

For example, I had a conversation with my sister today. My sister is a pretty good listener, I have to admit. She uses active listening techniques, and all that. (I wonder if she is even aware that she does that?) You know, paraphrasing what you just said, asking clarifying questions, wrapping up a conversation with a summary or a key point or a reminder who is bringing the potato salad to the family event, that sort of thing.

She started asking me about my work. And when I began to tell her about it, she did something really interesting.

SHE LISTENED.

She asked me questions to clarify. For example, while I was on the phone with her, my Alexa ranking jumped to about 101,000 (thank you loyal readers!!!! See, people really DO want success!). She had never heard of Alexa and wanted to know all about it, and what the heck it meant to be at 101,000 and why I was shrieking with delight to have that kind of rank.

I can't tell you how good it felt to be LISTENED TO, that intently. I mean what I'm doing--sharing my success secrets and assisting people by challenging their thought patterns--this is what I am passionate about.

But nobody wants to talk about me, you know? It's all about the information and what they can do with it, and that's fine. The success stories are what drives me--how people take the infomration I provide in this forum, and through my coaching (and success products, coming soon!) and how they apply that info to their lives to create dramatic, positive changes--I LOVE hearing about that!

But nobody wants to talk about me, and how I hone my craft.

Until today!

Today was a very long day--I got tons accomplished, but pretty much worked non-stop all day. We are about to launch The Success Method: 9 Simple Steps to a Life That Makes Sense and there is much to do. So it was a great boost to get to talk about everything I've been doing to ensure the success (pun intended) of this breakthrough product.

So my question for you today (although I am reluctant to stop talking about ME now, but of course I do want to maintain my loyal and growing fan base!) is this:

Who deserves to have you listen to them today--really LISTEN? Who's day can you make by giving them your undivided attention and your riveted interest in what they're up to?

HEre's a hint: get them talking about their PASSION...then it will surely be interesting and you won't have to fake it!

I Won't Let You Down

What a simple statement: I won't let you down.

Yet what a profound impact.

I have been masterminding with a friend of mine--someone who is becoming a more treasured friend all the time. If you don't have a mastermind group, you should read this post. Anyway, this friend is assisting me with launching my new product, and I am currently relying on him for several things.

But of course, he's got a life, too. In fact, he just sold his house in 8 days for an amount ridiculously higher than he paid for it AND would you believe that his neighbor is the one buying it?! Now THAT'S what I call law of attraction (can you see why I mastermind with this guy?) Anyway, he is moving his family to North Carolina and he is actually there now, buying a house. In other words, he's kind of got a lot going on, in addition to assisting with my project. But then, successful people are typically busy!

So I start to feel my old doubts creeping in...the ones that tell me not to be too trusting. The ones that say "do it yourself." The limiting beliefs that tell me "you better have a backup plan."

And because this guy is a friend, he can sense this in me. Suddenly, I'm calling him more often and "checking in." I'm reminding him of deadlines. I'm showing signs of stress.

Guess what this friend says to me after I run through the litany of stuff I require from him and what my timelines are. He says this:

"I won't let you down."

Instantly, and I mean INSTANTLY, I am put at ease. I didn't fret about it again that day. Because he was sincere and I believe him.

I'm thinking about that sentence again today. I got up this morning and started hammering away at my to-do list. And when I get to the stuff that I require from him, I hear a voice in my head say: "It's ok. I don't need to worry about that becasue I know he won't let me down."

What a tremendous feeling!

Do you know the feeling I mean? That precious, priceless feeling of PEACE OF MIND. Oh, how we long for that feeling of peace. And how sweet it is to experience. But yet, many of us lack patience when we critically need it.

All this prompted me to think about why that phrase worked--why it truly put my mind at ease. For one thing, he really meant it. I would not have a sense of peace if I had picked up on any incongruence in what he was saynig and what he was thinking. In other words, I know he wasn't just blowing smoke to shut me up. He sincerely meant what he said. The meaning seemed to have more of an impact on me than the words. Patience became attainable in that moment.

Then I realized that I *never* use that phrase myself.

Why? I certainly don't intend to let people down! When I accept a task, I intend to complete it to the best of my ability. But then why don't I say "I won't let you down" ?

Well, for one thing there is an ENORMOUS responsibility packed into that one statement. I mean, think about what you are promising if you tell someone you won't let them down. They are counting on you, and there is tremendous pressure to succeed. So you better be sure you can deliver on whatever you're promising.

After all, your Word is at stake. Your very Integrity is on the line.

Think about it--if someone told you they would not let you down, and then they dropped the ball, is there anythign that person could ever do to win your trust again? Probably not. For sure you would never again believe them if they told you they won't let you down. No matter how good their excuse was for not delivering the goods, your brain would be thinking "Yeah, right! Remember last time? There's no way I'm gonna count on you again!"

So maybe we don't use that phrase a lot because we don't want the responsibility.

And becasue we don't use it (or hear it) a lot, perhaps that's why it means so much when we do hear it.

In a world where many things are uncertain and you don't know who you can trust, it sure feels good to know we can count on someone. It feels very reassuring to know that someone won't let us down.

My question for you today is this:
How would it feel if every time you made a promise to yourself, you followed it by saying "I won't let you down"? What kind of impact would that make on your ability to follow through on your promises? How would that impact your life?

Can't Stand the Suspense

There's so much stuff going on here at New Success that I can hardly sit still. It's just making me crazy not to be able to share all this stuff wtih you, but my business partner (he's the sane one) says I have to wait.

But I hate waiting, don't you?

I want what I want now, NOW, N O W !

You know what that's like, don't you? If you have kids, you're seeing it all over again in them as well. When a toddler is hungry, she doesn't understand why mommy can't feed her while she's driving. All she knows is that she wants to eat NOW! If you tell your little boy that you're going to take him to the park tomorrow, he will likely put on his shoes and his coat and head to teh door right now. All he heard was "park" and like a big slobbery dog, he's chomping at the bit to get a move on.

Are we born seeking instant gratification, or do we learn it over time?

I tend to think we're born with it becasue as babies our every need is met instantly (well, assuming our parents were taking their parental role seriously). So we kind of have to un-learn instant gratification.

As a parent, I even notice that while I'm teaching (attempting to teach I shoudl say) my daughter to have patience, there are certainly times when I give her the toy or a cookie just to keep peace until I can get her what she really requires.

I think we start out wanting instant gratification, adn as babies we get it. Then, as we get to be toddlers, we are told we have to wait. No wonder this is a hard lesson to learn! I once read an excellent children's book that said "It is far easier to train than to re-train." This really clicked with me.

Wow, I thought. How much simpler would my life be now if I had been trained in everything perfectly? I would have no limiting beliefs! I would not have to retrain my brain to think differently! What would that be like?

And then I get real. I remember that my parents (like yours, and yours, and yours over there) did the best they could. They trained/taught me based on THEIR beliefs (which may or may not have been the best possible beliefs to have, but it's what THEIR parents gave THEM when they were growing up...during hte DEpression, I might add). So much for blaming anyone...at some point we must take personal resposibility, in spite of what society preaches.

But we continue to want this instant gratification--we continue to rebel against "patience" and instead we prefer gimme gimme gimme and I mean now. As a culture, we have manifested massive ways to get infomration adn contact instantly.

Can you even remember a time wehn you had to wait until you got home to call someone and ask them a question? and when you had to wait for THEM to get home and get your message that you left on their answering machine? And then hopefully YOU were home when they called you back? That world seems a million miles away. I can barely remember calling someone and getting a busy signal because there was no call waiting yet.

What about the Internet?
Can you honestly recall a time when you couldn't just get any infomration you wanted for free at the touch of a few keystrokes? I am only 32 and I don't remember what it was like before the Internet and cell phones. I mean REALLY what it was like.

Which begs the qeustion, what on earth is next?

But before we go down that road, let's talk about success.

Do successful people have to have patience?

Think about the successful people you know. Are they patient or impatient? Do they demand instant gratification or are they willing to wait it out?

Does patience play a significant role in success?

It's hard to say without definitive research. Let's take a look at Donald Trump, a man who is successful at everything except hair. Do you think he is willing to wait in line at Starbucks? Doubtful. I'm sure he has a room full of lackeys to keep him caffeinated. He doesn't seem to have much patience with the blame-placing slackers on The Apprentice. And why should he? After all, he's a very busy man, he doesn't have time to waste on foolishness. But what if there's a real estate deal the Trump wants...and it requires patience to make it happen. Do you think he shows patience there? Undoubtedly so! And do you think he would rush into a multimillion dollar deal without getting the infomration he requires to make an informed decision based on calculated risk? Of course not!

So I think the answer to the question of the correlation between success and patience is twofold:

On the one hand, successful people are generally busy people. Which means they don't have time to waste. Which means they probably won't have patience if someone is wasting their time.

On the other hand, successful people don't make rash decisions; they take calculated risks. They are willing to wait if patience is required to get what they want.

So yes, patience is related to success. And successful people seem to know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em when it comes to having patience.

My question to you today is this:

Are you using patience appropriately to move you closer toward your goals? If not, what changes can you implement beginning TODAY to exercise patience when it's required for success?

More Ice Cream for Success?

I don't know about you, but I politely ask all my friends not to send me forwards. I've been online a loooooooooooooooong time, so chances are, I've already seen whatever you want to send me.

(It's funny, most people just delete emails or roll their eyes. Why not just politely reply with "Thanks, but I'd prefer not to get forwards. Personal emails, however, are always appreciated!" It goes back to the principle that successful people being able to ask for what they want -- and expect to get it. Check out this post for more proof.)

Teh result is that the only forwards I get (generally speaking) are either super-fabulous or super-hysterical. (Speaking of super....well, more on that later. Let's just say something Super is coming soon.)

This is one of those super ones that I felt was worth passing on.

But BEFORE you read it, check out this question of the day:

Based on the limited info you are given (trust me, it's enough), which of the characters in the following story do YOU believe is or will be a success?

***DISCLAIMER: Please note, though it's written in teh first person, I didn't write it and it didn't happen to me*** Now, on to the good stuff:

Last week I took my children to a restaurant. My six-year-old son
asked if he could say grace.

As we bowed our heads he said, "God is good, God is great. Thank
you for the food, and I would even thank you more if Mom gets us
ice cream for dessert. And Liberty and justice for all! Amen!"

Along with the laughter from the other customers nearby I heard a
woman remark, "That's what's wrong with this country. Kids today
don't even know how to pray. Asking God for ice-cream! Why, I
never!"

Hearing this, my son burst into tears and asked me, "Did I do it
wrong? Is God mad at me?"

As I held him and assured him that he ha d done a terrific job and
God was certainly not mad at him, an elderly gentleman approached
the table.

He winked at my son and said, "I happen to know that God thought
that was a great prayer. "Really?" my son asked. "Cross my heart,"
the man replied.

Then in a theatrical whisper he added (indicating the woman whose
remark had started this whole thing), " Too bad she never asks God
for ice cream. A little ice cream is good for the soul sometimes."

Naturally, I bought my kids ice cream at the end of the meal. My son
stared at his for a moment and then did something I will remember
the rest of my life.

He picked up his sundae and without a word, walked over and
placed it in front of the woman With a big smile he told her, "Here,
this is for you. Ice cream is good for the soul sometimes; and my
soul is good already."

The End.

(So, who did you choose that is/would be successful? My vote is for the child, the parent adn the old man. The woman has the potential to be a success--we all do--but she's too caught up in negativity adn judgment to see or do any good. But don't go wishing she chokes on her ice cream--then you're just as bad as she is !!!!)

And the Number One Home Based Business Pitfall Is....

Are you searching for the perfect home-based business? I'm actually in the process of writing an ebook teaching people how to find hte perfect home business for success. Here's what I realized: no home business is perfect.

I think some people go out in search of the "perfect" homebased business and then get disappointed when they can't find it. That's like looking for the perfect man or the perfect woman: they simply don't exist.

Instead of looking for the perfect man, the perfect woman, or the perfect business, you SHOULD be looking for...

the perfect MATCH.

Here's an excerpt I wrote today (sure, I;m going to charge for the e-book but I think my loyal readers deserve a free sneak-peek):

Enjoy! (and scroll to the end for your question of the day)

It’s important to remember not to throw the baby out with the bath. In other words, don’t completely disregard a business opportunity just because it may have a flaw or two. Just uncover the flaw, determine whether or not you can live with it and whether you can be profitable and morally comfortable in spite of it, and then go for it!

Here are some of the types of “imperfections” you may come across while evaluating a business opportunity that should not be overlooked:

+ The product is illegal
+ The company’s practices are illegal
+ A class action suit against the company is pending
+ You have a moral objection to the product
+ You have a moral objection to the company’s practices or ethical standards
+ The product does not work, is a placebo or a sham
+ The product is not safe and could actually harm people through use
+ Your intuition or “gut” is telling you to stay away

If you discover any of the above while hunting for a business opportunity, a red flag should be raised in your mind immediately. Beware!

On the other hand, the following “imperfections” may or may not be objectionable, depending on your own circumstances and preferences:

+ It’s expensive to get started. Do you have capital or can you get it? If not, how serious are you about owning your own business? Maybe you are better suited in a job.

+ The product you’d be selling is one that you don’t particularly want to use. Can you sell a product that you haven’t personally used? Some people can, some can’t—it’s entirely a matter of preference. Can a woman sell after-shave? Absolutely.

+ The product works for some people, but didn’t work for you. Are you skeptical that it works at all? You’re probably better off NOT trying to market a product if you don’t believe it works at all.

+ You don’t like the product. But can you see value in the product? I never was particularly fond of perfume, but I found it easy to sell because so many women loved it and saw the value in it.

+ The company offers no refund or a limited refund (this may or may not be important to you and your potential customers, depending on the product)

+ It’s hard work (Whether or not you have an aversion to hard work depends on your personal work ethic. However, it is generally true that hard work is involved at least in the beginning of a new enterprise.)

+ You don’t presently have the skills required (How good is the training program? How quickly do you learn new skills? How willing are you to learn new skills in order to be successful? Would learning these skills benefit you in other areas of your life, or in other potential careers?)

+ It’s time-consuming. Most businesses require a lot of time during the initial start-up phase. In Chapter 4 we will make a list of your resources and determine how much time you can devote to a new endeavor.

+ You’re unsure whether to proceed. This is where Due Diligence (see Chapter 6) comes in handy.

+ The market is too competitive/saturated. Can you find a unique selling proposition? What are the successful people in the company doing and how are they consistently generating sales?

In contrast, the following so-called “imperfections” are often illusions and should generally be completely disregarded:

+ Someone tells you that starting a business is risky and you should stick with a job. Don’t let someone else—who is probably in a job—steal your dream of self-employment and personal freedom. Live your own life!

+ Someone tells you that their friend/neighbor/cousin/etc tried that business and it didn’t work. Don’t let one person’s experience dictate your own. You are unique and you will have unique experiences. Live your own life!

+ Typos in their advertisements or website. Typos are part of life. Unless the business is advertising or typesetting or copywriting, typos are to be expected. Perfection is not a requirement for life (unless you are a neurosurgeon, maybe.)

+ Extensive disclaimers. Let’s face it, we live in a litigious society. Legal-ese is just part of our daily existence. Don’t rule out a potential business opportunity just because they have a lot of disclaimers. That probably just means they have a lot of lawyers and they plan on being in business for a long time.

+ The initial information does not include projected startup costs. Savvy marketers know that it’s the opportunity, not the price, that sells. Therefore, many will not include startup costs or operating expense projections in the initial information they send you. Don’t make your initial decision based on price—you can always find a way to procure the money if the opportunity is right for you. Therefore, there is no need to ask cost-based questions from the get-go. Get the information on the business first, ask educated questions and when you have gained a general understanding of the program, if you think it sounds like a good match, go ahead and ask how much you can expect to put into the business initially and on an ongoing basis.

+ Sounds too good to be true. Many people dismiss a business before receiving any tangible information, simply because they remember the old adage “if it sounds too good to be true, it usually is.” Keep in mind that this could be one of those times when it really is so good to be true, and do you really want to miss out without finding out all you can about the opportunity?

+ The company name. I have seen many people dismiss a viable, lucrative business as soon as they hear the name. Believe it or not, many people continue to earn a substantial income through Amway, Avon, Mary Kay, Tupperware, McDonald’s franchises, and many others. Unless you truly know what a particular business opportunity has to offer, don’t be so quick to dismiss what could be your perfect match.

In the next few chapters, we’ll explore your motivation for searching out your perfect business, what you want to accomplish, and what resources are available to you.

Stay tuned for more great infomration!

And here is your question of the day:

What is your idea of the perfect home-based business?

Refrigerator Graveyard?

Do you recall awhile back I was telling you about the horror of horrors of attempting to clean my refrigerator out post-Hurricane Katrina? EVERYONE in New Orleans can relate to this...with the power being off for at least 10days in parts of the city, the smell of spoiled fridge contents permeated the city for weeks while awaiting the resumption of trash pickup. Ugh.

Anyway, if you're wondering where all those nasty, ruined (and replacements not covered by insurance, I might add!) refrigerators went, you simply must check this link.

I personally found it quite interesting.

Notice the HazMat suits in picture #7. That was kinda cool. Wimps. I didn't even use a mask when I did mine. I'll bet the photographer puked right after he shot picture #5 (unless he has one of those super-telescopic lenses like they use at sporting events.) I get the heebie-jeebies just looking at that one.

But read the text too, it explains a lot. Maybe if you look really closely you can see my old fridge. Gosh, I miss her. She was good to us. I miss the reimbursement for a new one, too, damn insurance fine print!!!

However, when looking at these photos I do have one thought:

this is one of those times I'm actually glad we DON'T have Smellivision. Yuck.

My question of the day is:

Do you take your clean, sweet-smelling refrigerator for granted? If so, go give it a big hug right now and tell it how much you love it!

P.S. that long, ugly direct link is:
http://www.nola.com/katrinaphotos/tp/gallery.ssf?cgi-bin/view_gallery.cgi/nola/view_gallery.ata?g_id=4313

and a shorter, prettier link to it is:
http://tinyurl.com/9omjn

What if Money Isn't Real?

What if money isn't real?

I mean, what if it was never meant to be, and it was just a figment of our predecessors' imagination? Perhaps God created the world, and on the eighth day, he created money because otherwise human beings could never coexist. Somehow I don't think that's the way it went.

Sure, it started out as a harmless bartering system. But it evolved into Something Major. Something We Can't Live Without. Something We Worry About.

How many times a day do you think about money?

Ten? One hundred? None? I would guess it's about ten times more than your first guess. How often have you seen somehting you liked (in a store, on your friend, on the internet) and thought to yourself: "I wonder how much they want for that?" How about dining out, looking at the price which in some part, small or big, determines what you order. Looking at the bill to see if it was correct. Calculating the tip. Commenting on the high price of gas. Feeling sad about your paycheck. Worrying about bills or unexpected expenses. Saving money. Clipping coupons. Looking for a good deal. Avoiding ripoffs. Signing up for something free. Buying a lottery ticket. Thinking about stuff you think you can't afford.

It's kind of a lot, don't you agree?

The average person thinks about money constantly thorughout the day. It permeates our very existence.

But do you thikn that is the way life is meant to be?

It's funny, I've noticed that the LESS I think about money, the MORE I seem to get. And the more free stuff that comes to me when I'm not looking to get stuff for free.

It's strange how that works, I think.

What about you?

Do you have money issues? or do you have the "money thing" all figured out? IF you have money issues, ask yourself how many times a day you think about money. Begin to catch yourself when you do it.

And think about this (your question of the day):

What if money isn't real? What if money really has nothing to do with my health, my happiness or my ability to be free?

Some Very Exciting News...

My trip to Cancun is cancelled! Isn't that wonderful news? Have you ever heard anything so amazing?

No, I'm not being sarcastic, why would you ask me that? I can hardly sit still in my chair, I'm so excited!!!! I am literally bouncing my leg up and down as I write this, like a kid who just found out Christmas is coming a week early this year, and something EXTRA-special is going to be under the tree!

Hold on, let me back up a bit. As usual, I'm getting ahead of myself here. OK, let me take a deep breath and calm down just a bit. Whew.

OK, here goes.

So many people have been asking me when The Success Method will be ready and available...and I've been working on getting everything ready to launch as fast as I can. HOWEVER, Katrina and Rita have slowed me down. But NOW (believe it or not), Hurricane Wilma is actually helping me out.

Don't get me wrong -- I *hate* that Cancun and Cozumel are gonna get totally pounded. No one should have to go through what New Orleans is going through. Tampa is apparently next on the list after Cancun. But--get this--I was supposed to head to Cancun on Monday for a business trip/much-deserved vacation and that trip is now OFF because of Hurricane Wilma.

What does that mean? and why am I so excited about it?

Well, it means although I am slightly disappointed (I was really looking forward to the trip), that I have an opportunity to do something absolutely incredible!

I can finish the essential items on my punch list for The Success Method launch and pre-release it early! So I can get this groundbreaking new method into the hands of all those people who've been patiently (some, not-so-patiently) awaiting its release!

Look, this information is unprecedented -- just hold on to your socks because you are not gonna believe what this thing will do for you and your life. And your success level. And your success potential!

Like I said, I'm excited!!!

HAve you ever seen anyone so excited about cancelling a trip to Cancun?!? I doubt it!

OK, I will attempt to finish this post without using any more exclamation points! Oops, ok, I meant starting NOW.

If you want to be among the first to know when this breakthrough new product is available, be sure to sign up for my Success Secrets Revealed at http://newsuccess.org. I'll also be posting the direct link to The Success Method here in this blog, eventually. But if you're like me, you like to be a little bit ahead of the curve and know what's coming instead of finding out what everyone else already knows. In which case you'll definitely want to sign up for the newsletter.

Oops, I got so excited I almost forgot about your question of the day:

Where in your life do you want to create better--breakthrough--results? Where exactly are you seeking success?

The Secret Power of the Takeaway?

Why does the takeaway work?

I mean, you would think that once you know the secret, it would lose its power...but it doesn't.

Why is that?

When you know how a magic trick is done, you don't want to see it again and again. No one went to see the Sixth Sense movie more than twice. No one wants to hear the same joke told three times in a row. And yet we are so completely drawn in by the takeaway.

Ah, I see a few of you are scratching your heads. Perhaps I should explain the term "takeaway."

If you're around my age (early 30s) you might remember it was called "reverse psychology" when we were growing up. If you were dying to tell someone something, adn they didn't seem too interested, you mgiht pretend like you werent' going to tell them in order to pique their interest.

It's also called "playing hard to get."

It's an attitude of indifference that honest-to-God, works every time.

It's not rude, it's not aloof, it's just....indifferent. Like saying hey, I'm secure with myself and what I've got, and if you want it great, adn if you don't then it's no skin off my nose. People of success know how to use the takeaway to their advantage.

You might not want a particular thing AT ALL but suddenly, when you find out you can't have it, it becomes irrisistible.

Works every time.

Some "anonymous" joker keeps posting comments to my blog. They aren't valuable comments, they're just plugs for (his? her? who knows, it's anonymous!) blog, but they always end with something like "It's nothing special, but you might like it anyway."

And even though I know exactly what this person is doing--how they are attempting to manipulate me--I still have a strong urge to click on teh link and check it out. It amazes me, even now.

Don't believe me?

Try it for yourself. The next time you're talking to a friend of your spouse try saying this:

"The most hilarious thing happend to me today--you'll never believe it!"

and when they ask (with mild to minimal interest): Really, what?

Just say in a friendly, matter-of-fact way:

"You know what? Now that I think about it, it isn't really that interesting after all. Nevermind, just forget I brought it up."

and WATCH what happens.

You'll be amazed. You'll say to yourself "by golly, Amy was right! This takeaway stuff really works!" and then you'll be wondering where else in your life you can apply it to get what you want. But PROMISE me you'll only use it for good and not evil, OK?

So here is your question of the day:

How can YOU use the power of the takeaway in a productive way to gain more of what you want in YOUR life?

The First Step to Success...

Are you wondering why you're not getting the results you want? Perplexed about the fact that you are doing all the "right" things but not achieving the breakthrough success you desire? Want me to tell you what's wrong?

OK, I'll be blunt: it's YOU.

That's right, YOU are the problem. (Wait, stop crying because you are also the solution.)

The first step to success is to work on you.

Someone once told me "Life gets better when you get better." My first thought was, "How rude!" Then I thought "ah, he must mean positive thinking." WRONG! When you work on yourself and improving yourself, getting rid of those limiting beliefs we talked about...THAT is when you start to see a radical improvemet in your world. For a refresher on the success formula, check out the license plate formula for success.

How do you work on you?

1. Embrace personal development. Stop dismissing it as esoteric blah-blah or touchy-feely nonsense. Here;s the bottom line: someone hurt you when you were young, either with words, actions, or lack of words/action. In that moment, you made a decision and you have spent the rest of your life making decisions based on the reasoning and rationale of a six year old.

Ouch. YEah, I didn't say it would feel good while you're doing it. But it suuuuuure feels great afterwards (and for the rest of your life, when you get to the source and stop attracting the same crappy situations and people in your life over and over and over and over....) Sure, you could go through therapy but PD books are a lot cheaper and keep in mind that therapists are paid BY THE HOUR. IT does not benefit them for you to feel better. Exploring your feelings doesn't get it done, but it creates billable hours. Finding the root of your limiting beliefs and eliminating those limiting beliefs is bad for the shrink's business. But which way benefits you? Think about it.

2. Forgive. Yeah, it's that simple. Have you ever noticed that when you refuse to forgive someoene (i.e., hold a grudge) that a lot of times, they are so arrogant NOT to even NOTICE that you are resenting them?!?!? Can you believe that? Yeah, it's because wheen you hold a grudge, the only person you're hurting is Y-O-U. Whatever they said (or didn't say) or did (or didn't do) is just a reflection of something in your past--some limiting belief that they accidentally found the hot button for and PUSHED it. They don't even know they hurt you in most cases. So don't be stingy with your forgiveness. When you finally forgive, you will feel a HUGE weight lifted from your own shoulders. And you open the way for good things to come to you instead of blocking your good with resentment and animosity.

3. Learn to accept the fact that there is nothing to "fix" about you. These limiting beliefs are just that -- beliefs. They do not represent a character flaw, a defect or a missing part of you. They are simply beliefs that were probably crated in childhood or early adulthood, adn tehy can be changed. You are whole, complete and perfect, RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW. When you can accept that (for you touchy-feely types, yes I'm telling you to love and accept yourself but if I say that the analytical and bottom-line types will tune out) you create an opening for success to come to you. Period.

So what are you waiting for? Get to work on YOU and watch what happens in your life. People smile more. You get help more often, sometimes without even asking for it. Things suddenly start to go your way. Some will call it serendipity, luck, good fortune...I call it the Law of Attraction, baby!

Oh, I know what you're waiting for--the question of the day. Here it is:

Are you willing to work on you in order to improve your current situation, or are you more content to do nothing and complain? If yes, will you start today?

P.S. Have you seen this yet? Thanks to my buddy Melissa for forwarding it on!

My listing for Technorati

OK, this post is simply for hte purposes of being listed with Technorati. You're free to read it of course, but we will resume our regularly scheduled blogging tomorrow. Feel free to read previous posts or come back tomorrow. Thanks for watching! Ciao!

This blog is all about success, and every aspect of success, which includes appropriate time management skills, people skills, stress managemnet skills, life balance, and more.

In this New Success blog, we talk about business, Hurricane Katrina(or just "Katrina" like I like to call her), people, or whatever fits the bill on any given day.

Here you will find an abundance of resources including educational and thought-provokingstories, tips, tricks, tools and techniques for successful living. If you've been searching for answers, you've come to the right place.

Welcome to the New Success weblog!

The Secret to Successful Leadership

If you're leading, who is following? How important is it to you who's following, or how many?

This could be a clue to your success as a leader. Not how many peopel follow, but how concerned you are with who's following. A friend of mine recently put it into perspective this way:

I think every adult on earth has seen the movie "Forrest Gump" with Tom Hanks. Remember the part when he just starts running, and people start following him? Forrest Gump is like, well, whatever. He doesn't worry about who is behind him or what they're thinking about him, or what his butt looks like or how many people may have gottne tired and stopped following him. He is focused, and he runs...and runs...and runs.

Then one day, he's done running.

He stops running, turns around and there is a huge crowd following him. He is turning around to go home, and the crowd is like, "Wait! What are we supposed to do now?" HE doesn't really care what they do, becaues he was never doing it for them anyway.

That's what leadership is all about.

People are so starved for leadership today that they will follow anyone who seems confident enough to know where they are going. It doesn't necessarily matter what your cause is--if you are passionate about it adn you have a vision, there are people somewhere who will follow you.

But if you get caught up in your following or in the drama of your followers, that's when you take your eyes off the prize and things get sticky. If it becomes about YOU and not your GOAL, then you have a problem. And people will scatter like rats because if you STOP being the leader they're looking for, they will drop you like a hot potato and find someone else to follow.

Yeah, it's that simple.

So what's the answer?

Stay focused on your goal and keep moving forward. PEriod. Don't let anyone or anything stand in your way, and don't stop to look back. There will be plenty of time to admire how far you've come, once you've arrived at your destination. And you may be surprised to see how many people have followed you all the way, becaue you never lost sight of your goal.

My question for you today is this:
Do you know where you're going and are you willing to remain focused on your goal, no matter what? What single step can you take today that will move you closer to your goal?

How To Achieve Success

I am reading an incredible book right now -- you're crazy if you don't rush out to Borders or Barnes and Noble and snatch up your own copy right now. It's called The Attractor Factor by Joe Vitale and it is fascinating.

As you may recall from a previous entry, we discussed the license plate formula for success: Be-Do-Have.

Meaning, to get whatever you truly want, you must first be the person who has that, then you will naturally do the things that person will do, to ultimately have what that person woudl have. If it's wealth you want, you must first be wealthy in your mind (and think like a rich person) which will naturally lead you to take the steps and make the decisions that a wealthy person would do/make, which will eventually lead you to have wealth.

Some of you reading this alreayd know about this be-do-have thing. However, you may find yourself stumbling because you are secretly and invisibly sabotaging yoruself.

Whether it's money, love, or whatever, you may find that when you follow the be-do-have formula for success, you have temproary results. In other words, you get some of what you want, or you get it for a short time, but then you're right back where you were before.

Sound familiar?

I know, becuawe I've been through it personally many times. And I'll probably continue going through it, because that's part of life. But knowing the secret to success will certainly help.

OK, I'll tell you the secret to success, but you have to promise not to tell anyone, OK? I mean, this isn't the kind of thing you want floating all over the Universe, is it?

The secret is a lie.

It's a lie you tell yourself, that you've been telling yoruself for so long, you don't even realize you're telling it to yourself. It's probably something that happened when you were a little kid that really made an impression on you (probably a bad one) and it has subconsciously stuck with you your whole life.

Maybe you got snubbed on teh playground, slapped around by a parent, or heard or witnessed something a child has no business seeing. Maybe you tried to buy something with your own hard-earned allowance money adn got ripped off. Maybe it's something your parents or teacher or grandparents said. It could be anything, and sometimes the hardest part is actually identifying this limiting belief.

In the book the Attractor Factor, Dr. Joe Vitale tells us we can identify this hidden saboteur by looking at what irks us.

That's right, whatever is bugging you on a constant basis is a major clue.

So what's eating you? Is is aggressive drivers, bad manners, inconsiderate lovers, typos (such as the ones featuered here!), bigots, snobs, egotistical people, complainers, whiners, suck-ups, jerks, what? Whatever gets your blood boiling is a great indicators because it's inadvertently hitting that old hotbutton from childhood.

Basically, if you can identify the feeling associated with that age-old event, which keeps getting brought up constantly in your adult life, you can see it for what it is, and let it go forever. Then you won't keep sabotaging your diligent Be-Do-Have efforts. Ah-hah. There it is.

And if this sounds like a bunch of hooey, fine by me. Keep having the same irritations adn frustrations in your life - it's no skin off my nose. Meanwhile, I am working through some O L D stuff without high-priced therapy mind you, and I am having breakthroughs and experiecing amazing things in my life. You live your life nad I'll live mine. Oh, but I do have one question for you: How is your life? Do you love it or does it suck? Becuae I love mine, so you know, that could be a clue. Maybe you're happy with a sucky life because it gives you somehting to complain about? Yeah, that's helpful.

Anyway, if you are serious about making a substantial change in your life, and finally getting whtaever it is that you want, I suggest you grab a hold of this book.

And speaking of books, my new success method should be available shortly. I have asked Dr. Vitale to co-market this phenomenal product, which means sales will explode! However, as promised, you all get first dibs, so I will keep you posted. And thanks for the encouraging comments and emails, I really do appreciate all of your continued support! (By the way, our Alexa ranking is up to about 129,000 so thatnks for reading!)

You know, now that I think about it, this is EXACTLy thd kind of thing we want floating all over the Universe, so PLEASE go out and tell everyone this secret. Better yet, email your friends (and not-quite-friends) this blog post so they can see for themselves. Watch what happens!

In the meantime, here is my question for you:

What really bugs you? Why? Why is that importnat to you? What limiting belief are you holding on to that is preventing you from achieving massive success?

The Secret to Success

Do you know the secret to success?

Well, as with any good movie, I don't want to be the one to ruin the special ending. The Stepford Wives are robots, in the Sixth Sense Bruce Willis is already dead and Verbal is Kaiser Saucier in the Usual Suspects. Hopefully, you've seen all those. Here's something you haven't seen yet.

Truth be told, I know the secret. My intent is to unfold it to you through this website, including this blog. But I'm absolutely salivating at the prospect of a movie that plans to reveal teh secret to all of humankind. And human unkind, which is a little frightening, since of course the secret can be used for good or bad. Hmmm. Interesting.

I found out about this upcoming movie from teh great Joe Vitale ("Mr Fire") who apparently is actually in the movie. Hmm. Even more interesting.

For anyone who was enchanted and enthralled by What the Bleep, I have a feeling you will be chomping at the bit to see The Secret. Go watch the teaser/trailer, it gave me goosebumps, chillbumps, chicken skin or whatever you call those tiny bumps that surface when you raelly connect with something big.

And this looks like it could be big.

But time will tell...it will be a few mnonths before the movie is out.

Until then, I guess it will remain a secret.

Me! Me! I Need Attention! Look at Me!

I had an interesting conversation with someone the other day about fame, recognition, and praise.

We had very different perspectives on the subject.

She believes that it is never a good idea to do something for recognition. (In her opinion) if your ultimate goal is fame or accolades, you are on the road to ruin. She believes that the only way to truly gain success is through serving. If fame, recognition and kudos should come as a by-product of that, great.

I, on the other hand, think there is nothing wrong with wanting a little fame, so long as you understand the reasons behind your motivation to do so. Of course, I don't agree with seeking notoriety at any expense (including illegal, immoral, or unethical means). However, let's say your goal is to help people on a HUGE scale, I'm talking tons of people and in your mind, you'll know you've "arrived" when you appear on Oprah. What's wrong with wanting to appear on Oprah?

Well, it depends why you want to be on Oprah. If you've got a "I'll show them" attitude towards past relationships or you want to be able to brag at your next high school reunion, that indicates some insecurity on your part. You're seeking external praise when what you really want is something that must come from within. If you want the free publicity that comes with being on Oprah, well there's nothing wrong with that, especially if your main motivation is to help people.

It comes back to that same question I'm always asking people: what do you really want?

One of the ways you can get to bottom of that question is to ask "Why" at least seven times.

For example, let's say you want a new car. More specifically, you want one of those hot new Mustangs. Yowsa. That's great that you want the car, and if you truly desire it, you shoudl have it. But to find out what you REALLY want (in other words, what hte car represents to you), you simply keep asking yoruself why, and the conversation may go likt this:

Why do you want the new car?
Because I love the way that car looks.

Why is that important?
Because I've never had a new sports car before.

Why do you want a new sports car?
Because I work really hard and I deserve something nice.

Why do you want the car in exchange for working hard?
Because I deserve a reward for everything I do.

Why do you want a reward?
Because no one appreciates what I do.

Why is being appreciated important to you?
Because I feel taken for granted.

Ahhhh, now we're getting somewhere. And it only took 6 why's. Now you can see that (if this were your scenario) that what you really want is to be appreciated. After you do this exercise, you may no longer feel excited about the thing you thought you wanted. But that's OK, becasue now that you've identified what you really want, you can find ways to get that instead of chasing otehr things. If you are still passionate about the car (or wahtever) after discovering your true motivation, by all means go for it!

So if it's fame, recognition and notoriety that you're seeking, just ask yourself WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY WHY and see what you really want. The way you feel after dsicovering that will give you some indication as to why you want it and whether or not you should pursue it.

AT least, that's what I should have told my friend when we had this converstaion!

But I had to process it in my own way, and here we are with something worth sharing with you!

My question for you today is this:

Why do you want what you say you want? Why Why Why Why Why Why? Do you still want it? If so, go for it. If not, what DO you want?

You Know You Survived Katrina When...

I received this clever list from a friend named Mike Patin today. Mike is a motivational speker who specializes in Christian youth ministry. He's also a pretty funny guy. Check out Mike's website here or read his blog. Thanks for forwarding this, Mike! And yes, I definitely know what it means to miss New Orleans (although Colorado is GORGEOUS so, no regrets.)

You know you're from New Orleans and have survived Hurricane Katrina when....

1. pre-K has nothing to do with the year before Kindergarten.
2. The flies are bigger than your Chihuahua.
3. Your bank, dry cleaner, and grocery store are closed but your bar is not. (Thank you, Cooter Brown's)
4. You judge your elevation by the brown horizontal line in the city.
5. You have to show an ID to get into your neighborhood.
6. Your neighborhood has no children, so you actually start to miss the little boys across the street that used to throw rocks onto your roof.
7. You go to Sam's Club, but instead of coming home with a case of pop tarts, you buy masks, bleach, rubber gloves, and baking soda in bulk.
8. You know five remedies to get the smell out of your refrigerator.
9. You spend a lot of time talking with your friends about the five remedies to get the smell out of your refrigerator.
10. Ice becomes more precious than gold.
11. Your office goes from 40 employees to 5.
12. Living in a house with twelve other people is not a sign of how poor you are, but how rich you are with friends and family.
13. You know what a double-evacuee is. (Damn you, Rita!)
14. FEMA means "failure to effectively manage anything" and hearing the words "Red Cross" makes your blood boil.
15. You get sick of hearing people from Baton Rouge tell you how bad the traffic is now. You remind them that Baton Rouge traffic was terrible before there were 200,000 more people in town.
16. The strip clubs on Bourbon street have power before your house does.....
17. The Salvation Army, a firefighter from Michigan, and cops from Wauconda show up at your house to make sure that you are OK.
18. There is a pirogue on your roof.
19. You return to your home and all of your belongings fit into two boxes.
20. Contra flow just doesn't seem so bad.
21. You have to purchase hip boots to walk in your neighborhood.
22. You pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and start all over again.
23. Lakeview becomes Lake.
24. The crosses on your wall and kitchen counter top remain despite the five feet of water in your house.
25. You know what it truly means to miss New Orleans

The Secret to Sanity?

Have you ever gotten a song stuck in your head, so that you were silently singing the same song over and over until you thought you were going nuts? I hate when this happens, especially when I don't know all the words to the song, because then I wind up mentally singing the same 2 or 3 lines repeatedly.

I don't know about you, but for me this madness will sometimes continue for days or almost a week. Sometimes I experience a similar frustration while dreaming.

You know those dreams when you are stressed out in the dream so much that you can feel the tension remaining in your body when you wake up? Or the dream has you doing repetitive, tedious work over and over and over, so that when you wake up you are still tired after a full night's sleep? Or maybe tehre is constant "noise" in your dream--a TV, loud music, the sounds of typing or people talking. You may feel like you can't escape the noise and you can't get any peace and quiet.

If you experience any of these things, these are clear signs that should not be ignored.

These symptoms are ways for your mind to tell you to SLOW DOWN. Your brain is sending a message: YOU'VE GOT STRESS. Relax, decompress, stop working so hard. Everyone knows that dreams are usually not meant to be literal, but are symbolic representations.

In a nutshell, there are two parts to your mind: your conscious (waking) mind and your subconscious (sleeping) mind. Because the entire job of your ego (consciuos mind) is to protect itself and look good, the ego is somewhat blinded. However, the job of your subconcious mind (higher self) is to achieve your full potential. These two are often in conflict and while you're awake, your conscious mind typically rules your thoughts nad actions. However, when you sleep, your conscious mind is turned off for a few hours, giving your subconscious mind the ability to roam free.

Here's the fun part: your subconscious mind speaks to you in pictures, to disguise its message from teh ego. Because if the ego really knew what hte subconscious mind was up to, it would fill your head with monkey chatter and not let you pursue your higher goals.

If you think I'm full of crap, read The Power of the Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy, or read anything by Barbara Dewey.

OK, lesson is over, now back to the stuck song and the busy/noisy dream thing.

I've noticed that I only have the "busy" and "noisy" dreams when I have been going full-tilt, non-stop for days, usually working on or worrying about the same thing. The stuck song usually happens when I am too busy for too many hours in a day, or when I'm listening to the radio too much. For example, I have done almost nothing but unpack for the past 3 days, adn my dream last night was about busy-ness. That's my brain telling me to take a break adn do something fun today. But I really want to get unpacked (that's the ego talking) but I know if my subconscious is telling me to slow down, that's exactly what I shoudl do.

My intellect knows that my subsconsious mind is right on this one (well, it's always right, but my ego can't always rationalize why--see previous entry on intuition). For one, if I DON'T slow down adn take a break, the stuck song will never go away adn I just may go nuts. Plus, I'll keep having teh stressful dreams, which means I won't get my much-needed and much-deserved rest at night, which means I'll be less productive (and almost certainly more irritable!) during the day. So I pretty much have no choice but to listen on this one.

(Incidentally, the song stuck in my head right now is "I Love My Elbows" by Kermit the Frog. I haven't even heard it in 3 days, but it's there, stuck like a broken record. Anyone with a toddler understands how these Sesame Street songs can make you NUTS after awhile. I definitely have a love/hate thing going with Elmo.)

The next time you get a song stuck in your head for more than a day or two, or the next time you have a dream that is repetitive adn isn't restful, LISTEN to your subconscious telling you to take a break. Clearly, you've got too much stress right now. Call in sick to work, schedule lunch with a friend, take a massage or just go to the park by yourself on a beautiful day, but for pete's sake, don't ignore this sound advice. Relax and take care of you. Here are five ways to manage stress and take care of you.

My question for you today is:

Still Searching for Patience?

If you read the patience post from a few days ago, you know how I feel about patience. For a recap, click here.

Today I am thinking about patience again, as I am anxious to get my new home unpacked so I can feel settled and have all my stuff where I want it--at my fingertips instead of "missing" in a box somewhere. But I have only been here 2 days, so I know it will take time.

Unfortunately, my office is not my top priority, so I admit I am not very motivated to write today. However, as I have mentioned in previuos posts, one of the secrets of success is consistency. Integrity is another, which is why I must blog every day, since I have committed to doing so.

Since I refuse to write some meaningless patter just so I can say I blogged, I must find something of substance for my loyal readers today.

Here's what I came up with:

Excuses.

That's right--every time I don't go after what I want, it's always about whatever excuses I'm telling myself. Until I stop buying my own excuses, I can't move forwrad and make any progress.

Today, my excuse is that I'm so busy unpacking that I haven't finished the next issue of my ezine and the two articles I planned to post to the New Success site this weekend. After all, I just moved across the country, blah blah blah. Please. Even my own excuses make me sick. And I know that some of you are chomping at hte bit to get your hands on the success program I've been talking about, and I still have to finish teh website to launch the product. I know, it's pathetic.

What's even more pathetic is that some people don't even realize that their excuses are excuses. They're so busy blaming circumstances, situations, their boss, their spouse, their kids, their parents, their neighbor, their insurance agent, their ex, the guy who cut them off in trafic, etc, that they refuse to take personal responsibility. Which is why they can not achieve success.

Success is all about personal responsibility. Which means you DON'T accept your own excuses. Even if they are disguised as legitimate reasons, justifications or even rationalizations.

So I continue to press onward, because I know my excuses are just that--excuses. I have all the time in the world if I can only focus and continue pressing onward. If you desire success--if you have truly lofty goals that drive you forward, you must do the same.

My question for you today is this:

Are you willing to let go of your excuses and move forward to get what you really want? What action can you take today to mvoe you forward despite your excuses?

Mind Over Money?

Do you struggle with poverty consciousness?

In case you're not familiar with that term, let me explain. Poverty consciousness is a mindset in which you are constantly worried about money--not having enough, running out, not being able to pay your bills or get what you want. You make decisions, selections and purchases based on cost instead of what you really want or need. You deprive yoruself of luxuries because you can't help but focus on lack of money.

For example, if you've ever gone out to dinner and saw an entree that you really wanted, but ordered something else because what you wanted was too expensive, THAT was an example of poverty consciousness in action.

The truth is that we are surrounded by abundance, and there is plenty to go around.

But sometimes I forget that. Even after as long as I've been studying prosperity consciousness (the opposite of poverty consciousness), I still slip every now and then and get caught up in my old "stories."

Today the old limiting beliefs about money reared their ugly heads again as I battled mind over money.

Let me set the stage for you. After Hurricane Kartina, When we decided to pack up and move here to Colorado, we had a small window of opportunity. We basically came back as soon as we were allowed to return adn stay (about 5 weeks after the storm struck New Orleans) and we knew that with intermittent itnernet, we wouldn't really be able to work while we were there, so we watned the trip to be as short as possible. Plus, we wanted to get our house on the market as soon as possible, so there were time issues involved.

Therefore, my father-in-law and his wife, andmy sister in law came to new orlenas for about 3 days to help us pack. His wife was a frenetic packer--she had to be packing every single minute, she jsut couldn't sit idle or it would make her nuts. Therefore, she packed a lot of stuff that I didn't want, mainly because I didn't have hte time to go through it and throw out everything I didn't want. And tehre was no point having a garage sale in new orleans, with so fre people there, and many with no house to bring things home to. So it was pitch or pack, all the way.

We had professional movers pack the important stuff--china, fine crystal, framed art and photographs, and we (collectively) packed everything else.

In addition, we had to clean out my hubby's office and our garage, both of which were a mess. And I had been working on the garage for weeks, already had 2 garage sales, threw out bushels of stuff adn gave away more than some people even own. But there was still much to do.

Keep in mind that this move was decided abruptly, so it's not like I ahd weeks to go through evrything--literally 8 days was all we took to pack our entire house and its contents and to make all the repairs from teh storm damage. AND to meet with a realtor to get it listed, say goodbye to neighbors and family (friends were mostly still gone to their respective evacuation sites), etc. All this wtih a toddler and three cats in tow.

Anyway, now you've got me rambling. Back on topic.

In case you don't already know this, movers charge you based on 2 things: 1) distance and 2) weight. Since no one was avaiable in new orleans to give us an estimate, we had to ballpark it on the phone. If you were gone from your house for 5 weeks do you think you could list everyhing you have to maek an estimate for a move? If so, you're better than me--we forgot a lot of stuff.

The distance was dead-on, naturally, but the weight was WAY more than anticipated--about double. So instead of being a $4000 move, it's more like $8000. Yikes. Nobody said moving was cheap...

In the grand scheme of things, the additional $4000 is NOTHING. I don't know how much money you make in a year, but when I put it into perspective with what we make in a year, $4000 is pocket change. In our line of work, one sale can net us almost 3 times that much.

Yet....

As I unpack things today, I would unwrap something that someone else had packed for me, and realize that if I had packed it, I would have thrown that out. All day today, I kept finding myself getting irritated that I had paid movers to ship something I didn't even want.

Poverty consciousness.

It creeps in sometimes, doesn't it? After a few times, I realized I was doing it. As soon as I noticed it, it was easy to stop. But it kept coming, and coming, and coming. Instead of being grateful that my father-in-law and his wife both took off work to drive 6 hours each way to new orleans to help us pack when they both know damn well that we could have afforded to have movers pack all our stuff, AND they had to eat MREs or whatever limited fast food items were availble in our destryoed city of New Orleans...no, instead of being grateful that someone else cared enough about me to assist me when I require it, I was stuck in what-it-cost-me-to-have-this-crap-moved. Interesting.

So I had to sit down and ask myself why this keeps coming up. Otherwise, I am doomed to keep repeating the thoughts.

And my question for you today is this:

What area of your life keeps bringing repeated reminders of poverty consciousness? Are you willing to take the time to explore WHY that keeps coming up for you?

Is Patience Really a Virtue?

They say patience is a virtue, but then I've heard that "they" are the biggest liars of all.

I'm not a fan of patience, and my husband is even less tolerant of waiting. When we don't get what we want when we want it, it could get pretty ugly. Seriously, you don't want to mess with us. Haha, no it's not that bad but we are pretty persistent.

I'm thinking about this todya, because today we moved into our new home in Colorado. For those of you who are just joining us, I'll update you in that I am born and raised in New Orleans, adn thanks to hurricane KAtrina, I am done with teh south, for good. So here I am with my family in our new house in beautiful COlorado.

Isn't it funny that just two months ago, I was happily packing for a business trip, delightfully unaware that what I packed would be all I'd have for hte next 6 weeks, and if not for a massive stroke of good fortune (and excellent choices on my part), it would be all I would have to my name if HurrKat (that's what I call her) had wiped out my Metiaire home? I find that mildly interesting, how about you?

The past two months have been crazy, hectic, chaotic and stressful, to say the least. Yes, I am fortunate that I had only minor damage adn I now have my house for sale. I am in a position not to have to take a loss on the sale of the house, either, which is a great thing.

This day, this moving-in celebration of a day, has been a long time coming, adn I am so relieved that it's here. In fact, I'm so relieved that I'm not even stressing over how much stuff I have to unpack or the fact that I can't find my bedlinens or pillows. WHO CARES? I am so relieved to finally, after 2 months of living in other people's homes and state-hopping around the country, I finally have a permanent place to hang my hat. I breathe a sigh of relief as I write this tonight.

So you might be thinking that my point is that it pays to have patience. But I couldn't disagree more.

Patience sucks.

I mean, there are some certain occasions when patience is a good thing...otherwise, we'd all have jumped into bed with the first person that paid us a compliment when we were 15. Which is not necessarily a good thing, but let's not open that can of worms, shall we?

I think that a lot of people mistake submissiveness for patience.

I say, if you know what you want, go get it.

Now, I'm not talkigna bout being rude or breaking laws or doing anything immoral, mind you...I'm talking about gentle persistence to get whta you want.

How else do you think I got ALL my home repairs done in the 8 days that we were home in New Orleans. Rememnber, this is acity that has virtually been wiped out by HurrKat, plus people are still away from their evacuation, plus everyoen is hiring and labor is scarce, plus every contractor in town is super-busy, plus there are less contractors in town, plus materials are hard to come by, and I could go on and on. Despite all that, I managed to get all repairs made and be able to list my home for sale on the market. It's more of the Law of Attraction.

But it's also the fact that I refused to be "too" patient. I would not be passive. When someone tells me "that's not possible" it only makes me more determined to prove them wrong. This is a key component of success.

If you can learn to be a silent giant, to calmly and quietly persist without passively submitting adn waiting, you can truly achieve anything you want in life.

But do you have what it takes?

You have to be thick-skinned. You have to be able to remain calm in the face of opposition and challenges. You have to remember to ask for a supervisor when you're not getting anywhere. You have to be willing to compromise a little to get what you want--you may pay a little more, wait a little longer or somehow endure a minor inconveneicne in order to get whta you want. Of course, that assumes that you actually know what you want. But that's a topic for another day.

So my questoin for you is this (and I know that those of you without patience have alreayd skipped ahead to this part):

Are you passionate enough about what you want to calmly persist until you get it?

P.S. Speaking of patience, I know you are wondering when that product I told you about will be available. I've got my copywriting and webdesigner finishing the final pages now, so it won't be long now! Sign up for my Success Secrets Revealed mailing list, and you'll be the first to know when it's avaialble.

Attraction in Action?

Unless I'm mistaken, we've talked about the Law of Attraction in this blog before. And of course, by "we" I mean "me," since I get to talk and you get to read if you so choose. Haha.

Anyway, the basis of the Law of Attraction is that you get what you put out there.

If you're worried about running out of money, you get unexpected bills and a dwindling bank account. If you think all men are jerks, guess what kind of men you get to meet? If you think your job sucks, you better be beefing up your resume because it's about to get a lot worse. If you worry about your poor health, I'd fatten up your health insrance coverage.

Of course, if you believe people are wonderful, radiant beings, guess what kind of people you get to meet? And if you believe you will find hte perfect mate, it's only a matter of time until that happens. If you think about the abundance that surrounds us, you get more of teh same. Get it?

Law of Attraction means you get what you think about.

Of course, the fun part is taht it's a LAW so it's always true, no matter what. It's not like it won't work part of hte time or only for certain people--it's a L A W. So it's working all teh time, whther you notice it or not, whether you let it work for you, or not. Cool, huh?

If you're attracting good stuff, and you learn to make the Law of Attraction work for you, then YES, you would probably agree that the Law of Attraction is pretty cool. On the other hand, if you are thinking crappy thoughts and attracting crappy stuff, you're probably not a fan (or a believer) of the Law of Attraction. Of course, the great thing is that you are free to choose to change your thinking at any time. So whether or not the Law of Attraction works for you is entirely up to you.

How can you tell what kind of thoughts you're having? Take a look at what you've attracted into your life. Whatever experiences, relationships, situations and circumstances you have NOW are a direct results of thoughts you've been having in the PAST. (Incluyding the immediate past).

So if you're not happy with your current experiences, relationships, situations and circumstances, begin to change your thinking NOW so that you will soon have new experiences, relationships, situations and circumstances in the immediate future. Makes sense?

If you're not familiar with teh Law of Attraction, and if you're scientifically minded, you're probably wondering WHY and HOW this Law of Attraction presumably (your word, not mine) works. Well, I really don't feel like going into that here, so I suggest you check with teh King of the Law of Attraction himself--Michael Losier. His book is cheap, fast to read, and the info adn techniques can be immediately implemented. Go ahead, you're worth the $12, or whatever it is.

Now don't be discouraged if you think wonderful thoughts toeday and your world is not miraculously transformed overnight. After all, your not-so-wonderful experiences, relationships, situations and circumstances did not get to their current state overnight -- it was the result of months (years, in some cases) of the thoughts you previously thought. So give your new thinking a couple of weeks before you throw up your hands in exasperation and say "this isn't working!" Remember, it's a LAw, it always works even when you don't think so. This is a Universal Law, I am not making this stuff up.

For example, I can see that my thinking is changing because of the people who are naturally attracted to me. Yesterday, my family traveled with our 3 cats by plane from Houston to Colorado. Imagine taking 3 cat carriers, an active toddler, a stroller, a carseat, a diaper bag anbd a laptop bag through security. It was like having our own personal traveling circus. Yet peoeple were bending over backwards to help us out.

The airport security people were the nicest I've encountered to date..the cart drivers were super-helpful. We even met a lovely Chinese couple in their 80s who were headed to Vegas to celebrate their nephew's 70th b-day. Most of hte flight atendants were friendly (which, for Continental is saying a lot). We even got a decent sandwich on a 2-hour flight, and my daughter slept the whole time.

Two total strangers each carried a cat on board for us (and were immediately rewarded for stepping up becaue they got to pre-board with us). People were calling carts over, helping us load and unload, entertaining the baby, etc. It was amazing.

Then it's time to claim our 3 checked suitcases at baggage claim. I've got our carry-ons and cats loaded onto 1 cart (Where is a skycap when you need one?) and I'm wondering how I'll get the 3 suitacases, teh cart, teh stroller and myself down to where my hubby is going to pick us up after renting a car. Then one of the cat-carrying ladies from earlier says "oh, let me help you." She rents another cart for me, loads it up and pushes it (while rolling her own luggage!) down to the 4th floor. She even waited with us and kept my daughter laughing until HER daughter arrived to pick her up.

Serendipity, you say? Law of Attraction, says me.

So my question for you today is this:

How can you immediately put Law of Attraction into your life to create positive changes?

A Homecoming of Sorts

Today we FINALLY arrived back in Colorado. But we're not home yet. So it's a homecoming of sorts.

Once again, we are relying on teh kindness of others - since our new home won't be ready to move in until Saturday, and we had to fly today, well, that puts us "Presently Without Residence" for another 2 days. We've done 2 months, what's 2 more days?

I can hear whta you're thinking...Why not just stay in a hotel room if you're tired of living in other people's houses for 2 months straight? Well, we didn't want to fool with finding a hotel room large enough to fit us, our business, a very active toddler and 3 cats.

See, part of being successful is related to taking care of your own needs. Staying in a hotel at this point, after all we've been through, would put a great strain on our marraige and our business, even for just 2 more days (consider that after these 2 days we deal with movers, moving in and unpacking--not exactly stress-free!!)

Anyway, we talked awhile back about teh fact that you can't share from an empty cup. You have to take care of your own needs before you can possibly have anything to offer to those around you.

That's what I'm doing. I'm already making plans to join a massage club, and I'm looking for a yoga club to join (hot yoga, anyone?) I've gotta take care of me--there are a lot of people (including a little girl and a few others) who rely on me, and in order to give, I've got to keep my cup filled.

My question for you today is this:

Are you adequately taking care of yourself so that you can offer the very best of you to the important people in your life? If not, what are you willing to do today to change that?

A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to Galveston Today...

OK, actually it was IN Galveston that this funny thing happened.

We are still in Houston (flying to Denver tomorrow) and we decided to drive down to Galveston to have lunch with a friend of ours. This friend shared an interesting story that got me thinking...

When we posted our webpage post-hurricane Katrina (before we knew our house had only minimal damage), this friend made a substantial contribution. Things were hectic for us, we weren't sure of hte status of our cats, our house, and all of our belongings. It was a crazy time. In fact, it took 3 emails/IMs from her and about 4 days for me to respond that we received the funds. It took me 2 weeks to get a thank you note in the mail to her. I'm not making excuses, I'm just telling you what happened.

Today, this friend confessed that she had MAJOR issues with teh fact that we weren't instantly showering her with gratitude over her generosity.

Of course, we had no knowledge of this whatsoever, and we never would have unless she had shared this with us today.

She went on to say that it brought up a lot of issues from her past (imagine that!) and that the whole situation gave her the opportunity for a major breakthrough, which she had. Wow!

Who knew that by our decision to offer a way for people to contribute, one of our benefactors could wind up having a major breakthrough and letting go of some old limiting beliefs??!?! More proof that you never know who you will touch by your actions, great or small.

More importantly, I got to hear about her breakthrough with regard to giving adn receiving. Which is something I have (admittedly) been thinking about myself. I was listening to someone speak about giving without any expection of receiving (even of receiving a thank you) and for the first time, that message hit home.

This friend said that she did receive my thank you note, adn it came after she had worked out all her "crap" so she was truly able to appreciate the note. How interesting.

The other thing I find interesting about this situation is to think about who was the only person affected by her initial state of indignance over our slow reponse to say thank you? Her, of course.

Whenever we hold a grudge, refuse to forgive or give with expectations, teh only person who ever gets hurt is US. Not the person who (in our egocentric perception) has "wronged" us. How Interesting.

So my question for you today is:

Where in your life are you hurting yourself by refusing to let go? Are you willing to take that step adn let go so that you can experience joy and peace?