Personal Excellence and Growth – Success and Failure Formula
A New Headstart for the New Year! This is the topic of Personal Excellence and Growth meetup last January 2011 organized by the dynamic couple, Mr. Patrick Yc Lim and Ms. Jessica See.
Success purely depends on the choices we make in life. There are two choices that we can decide to do.
1. Simple Disciplines – these are small steps of action you take that will lead you closer to your goals. Some good examples are choosing to eat less carbohydrates or sweets in a day, reading a book 30 minutes a day, or a simple exercise 15 minutes a day. A few simple disciplines practiced everyday is the key formula for success. All disciplines affect each other since one discipline always lead to another discipline.
2. Simple Errors in Judgment – these are things that you do that will drift you further away from your goals. This is the opposite of simple discipline, the lack of discipline. A surefire formula of failure is a few errors in judgment repeated everyday.
First, let us define what is discipline. It means training expected to produce a specific character or pattern of behavior, especially training that produces moral or mental improvement. It also mean a: control gained by enforcing obedience or order b: orderly or prescribed conduct or pattern of behavior or c: self-control
I remember a colleague who was on a diet plan. She told me she's not taking her lunch because she was on a diet. So everyday she was consistent on skipping her meal for a diet. Not until I saw her during an afternoon break, she was eating chocolate like a child. There was another colleague who was also on a diet by just eating few apples instead of the normal rice and meat meal. After more than a month, he was back to his comfort level of eating food. Here's another classic story that I've been hearing from most people I've talked to, I asked"Hey why are you eating that food (high cholesterol)? Most of the response sync each other, "Just once in a while (until it became once is a month or once in a week) and besides I am still young. " We've been living in the world of instant gratification against temporary inconvenience. These are deliberate acts of errors in judgment or simply the lack of discipline.
Here's a question worth pondering, how can we change the errors in judgment formula for failure into simple disciplines required in the formula of success? The answer is by making the future an important part of our philosophy and value system.
"We must all suffer from one of two pains: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret. The difference is discipline weighs ounces while regret weighs tons." – Jim Rohn
You got to live above the line. People who live below the line are fond of always blaming, making excuses and justifying their own failure or lack of success. People who live above the line are those who take responsibility of their own actions, whether it's a failure or success.
The results are almost immediate once you practiced a few simple disciplines everyday. Reading a book for 30 minutes to an hour a day had brought me positive results. It helped me refine my philosophies, increase my self esteem, improved my relationship by being a better father, husband and a friend. Whatever new discipline we begin to practice daily will produce exciting results that will drive us to become better at developing new disciplines.
Here' a classic Jim Rohn seminar about Formula for Success and Failure
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PS
If you’re looking for an environment of positive and personal development in your life then Personal Excellence and Growth meetup is place that will help you become the person you want to be. Its free of charge, no obligation. Bring your pen and paper to capture ideas for personal development.
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How to Coach Yourself to Success
Achieving Your Goals and Dreams
Persuasive Communication – the Art of moving people through to action
Walk Away from the Ninety Seven Percent Crowd
I want to share this one of my favorite Jim Rohn's philosophies.
Walk away from the ninety-seven (97%) percent.
Don't use their vocabulary, don't use their excuses, don't use their method of drift and neglect.
Won't even walk around the block for their health. Won't even eat an apple a day,won't even take the time to refine their philosophy for a better life…walk away! Walk away and join the three (3%) percent.
Take charge of your own Life
Take charge of your own day, don't have days like most people have. You'll wind up broke and poor. Pennies, no treasures. Trinkets, no values.
It starts as simple as an apple a day. It starts as simple as the first book in your new library. It starts as simple as the first journal that you get and make the first entry that when people sit will say this is the beginning of the study of a serious student. They're going to be healthy, they're going to be powerful, they're going to be rich, they're going to have it all.
What's easy to do is easy not to do but walk away from the ninety (90%) percent. Don't go where they go, don't do what they do. Don't talk like they talk. Develop your whole new language. Be part of the few.
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How To Make A Presentation for the First Time
How to Make a Presentation for the First Time
Finally, I was able to do a first time presentation to an audience about the topic “Loving Your Neighbor”. The goal of my topic was to be able to explain the meaning of Christian love and to help us in applying to our daily lives.
I never hesitated when I was given the invitation to to be a speaker from one (1) of the nine (9 ) series of talks on Christian Life Seminar (CLS). This activity is just one of the many programs of CFC FFL Singapore as an evangelistic and missionary community. It has been my thought principle to be able to make a little difference to my fellow people in everyday life. I knew God was the one who invited me to share my talent and be able to teach. You can never say no to Him, right? I remember Jim Rohn shared one of his philosophies. There are three (3) disciplines that you need to do if you want to pursue spiritual development:
1. Study – means you have to learn the disciplines, study the Holy Scriptures, attend seminars, and listen to sermons or preaching.
2. Practice – implement what you learn. Set a personal prayer time. Start to make a habit to pray with the family.
3. Teach – sharing what you’ve experienced from the first two (2) will accelerate the learning process.
Of course I accepted the responsibility. What should I do next? I want to share with you some practical steps about how I prepared to do my first time presentation:
- Know your stuff – pick a topic that you are interested to share. In my case, the topic was handed to me by our service leader. The nice thing about each particular topic was that you have a reference from previous speakers who have done the presentation. I borrowed their personal resource like PowerPoint, reference book, recorded audio and other stuffs that may be helpful. Ask and ask. Never be afraid to ask questions or tips that can help you in delivering a good presentation. Thanks also to my mom for helping me too. Do some extra research on the topic over the internet. Another tip is to add some of your personal experiences or you can also borrow other person’s experience.
- Practice – Rehearse out loud with your PowerPoint and tickler notes. I need to improve more on this one. A good idea is to record yourself either video or audio. I actually recorded the actual live presentation for my purpose of review and further improvement. The key is to keep on practicing again and again until you gain the confidence.
- Relax and pray – having deep breathe-ins and breathe-outs will help relax and calm down the butterflies in your stomach. I know a friend who does some exercises to pump out the energy. Prayer is a very powerful resource to ease up tensions and build up confidence.
- Visualize – Imagine yourself speaking your voice confidently to a large crowd. Visualize the audience clapping out loud. I must say that this is very effective and yes indeed it became true. They really did clap. They even gave me handshakes and gave uplifting praises. The feeling was awesome.
Some additional advice is to look directly to your audience faces as if you’re speaking to a friend. It’s a good way to involve them in your conversation. Look for people who smile as they can help you gain your confidence. If you are nervous to look at their faces, just look straight to the wall on the level of their faces but it is really nice to have an eye contact with your audience.
Lastly, if you are given an opportunity to speak in front of an audience, never hesitate to volunteer. This is very effective in overcoming your fears of public speaking.
Personal Development Leadership – a Leader Without a Title
Myth – I can’t be a leader if I’m not at the top or a title is needed like CEO, president, manager, supervisor, team leader. This is definitely a fallacy. Anyone can definitely become a leader without a title needed. The most important thing you need to do before you can lead other people is to lead yourself first. To become a great leader, one must first become a great person. To attract other people you need to be attractive first.
Personal development leadership is challenging yourself to become someone more than mediocre. Here are some fundamental ideas that I can share with you to develop your personal leadership.
Continuous Learning – to quote the great Jim Rohn, “Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” So make it a habit to read books or in my case listen to audio books. I make sure that I visit the library as often as I can or when I have finished the books that I listened. Read books that will inspire you, strengthen your character and get to know and model the life story of the greatest leaders of our world.
Positive Affirmations – another habit that you can practice (though it may look weird) is to get in front of the mirror and talk to yourself with positive statements. In my case, I say to myself “I’m the best; I like myself “over and over again. It is best if you reinforce the statement with intense emotions. Gratitude is the best affirmation you can give to yourself. Everyday I make it habit to thank God for the day he had given me like when I finished working.
Book Journal – this is a must have. This is your book of life. Write down your insights, feelings, dreams, and goals, ideas from a seminar, mission, or purpose.
Visualize – close your eyes and envision yourself achieving your goals or the person you want to be by playing at your very best. The mind works best with pictures of yourself in the future.
Goal Setting – Goals make you move forward. It generates hope and positive energy. Definitely you need to write down your goals because it works. Believe that you can achieve and exercise concentration and focus. Begin with the end in mind.
Exercise – you need to sweat it out. Doing something physical each day boosts brain function and fuels high energy levels. Everyday I walk a kilometer long from office to the MRT train station. I do also a 2-3 kilometer jog just along our home vicinity and some occasional aerobics at my room.
Nutrition – your performance depends on the food you eat. Be organic as much as possible, eat green in moderate amounts. Just like an automobile you need to feed it with premium oil and gasoline to maintain its peak performance. Take nutritional supplements as necessary.
Here’s an experience that I want to share with you during one of my son, Justin Daniel, swimming lessons when he was still 5 years young. At that time his coach was teaching older batches of teenagers on how to jump on a 10 ft diving platform. The coach took him a lot of time convincing or motivating the student to jump. This is part of their training to conquer their fears. His coach noticed my son where we are on the other side of the pool to come over the platform and to show how a very young kid can jump over the platform. Without hesitation, Justin Daniel climbed up and jump down the board. This scene inspired the student to finally dive down the pool. My point is anyone can become a personal leader. You just have to start to conquer yourself first before you can influence others.
Here’s how Justin Daniel dived down the 10 ft deep swimming pool.
Make Extra Money Online while Asleep – Is It Really Possible?
Yes, it was indeed very possible. Last Saturday February 27, 2010 when I woke up in the morning, I was surprised yet inspired upon reading my email. I got a commission sale from an affiliate marketing program. Wow, thanks be to God! Oh yes it was really possible to make extra money online. It was time for me to celebrate even if it was just a small amount because I know that the amount will grow without ceiling soon. Again, I remember a very important lesson that I've learned from one of the internet marketing seminars that I attended last year from Christopher Guerriero. He said never make money as your main motivation or never chase money instead pursue personal development. At that time, I silently told Christopher, you're right and you're referring to me right? haha…because I am obsessed with personal growth. I have to really work harder on myself than what I do on my job, a very great advise from a great mentor, Jim Rohn. He said, your income is proportional to the value you give to the marketplace. The more you add value, the more your income grows. I should be able to provide solution to a hungry market with specific problem. You see, I have been working as a Mechanical Engineer for more than a decade yet I was never as excited as I've been in this journey. In my job, I will never make money while I am asleep. I have to exchange my skills with time in a job so that I can add value to my company. Ultimately, my boss or the owner of the business gets the most leverage. Lastly, I want to thank God again for the blessings,the wisdom, and the passion to do what I love doing. Please watch the video that I captured during that day. Please Check out The Complete Guide To Making Money While You Sleep! 
Goodbye Jim Rohn – the legacy continues!
Everyone in the personal development community is in the mixed state of sorrow, surprised, shocked, or bewilderment. Our grandfather of personal development, Jim Rohn died last December 5,2009 of pulmonary fibrosis. My first encounter with him is through an audiobook CD that I bought, “Building Your Network Marketing Business” at a network marketing convention in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. From then on, his philosophies made a great impact in my life by listening to his audiobooks repeatedly and continuously. I want to share with you in one of my audio CDs disc 6 entitled, “Waking The Sleeping Spirit Within”.
The 7 Fundamentals for Wealth and Happiness
This based from his early journal taught to him by his mentor Earl Shoaff. One of the major things taught to him by his mentor is to keep a journal. Don’t miss anything that comes your way. Don’t trust your memory. Be serious and take notes all of the things that you hear. Keep it in a journal.
1. Personal Development – Nothing happens For You until it happens To You. Learn to Work Harder on Yourself than You Do on your job. Wow, this is such a great philosophy that I learned and am continuously applying. Wealth is not something that you go after, wealth is something You attract. Success is not something that you pursue; success is something You become. So, If We Want more, We must become More.
Jim Rohn great business philosopher
2. The Search for Knowledge – If you wish to be wealthy, if you wish to change your life you must go in pursuit of the ideas that can make a difference in your bank account and your personality. Search for among your experiences; search for among other people’s experiences but by all means continue the search. Be a searcher of ideas.
3. Setting Goals – zero in on what you Want, Your Objectives! Earl Shoaff told him, if you don’t have a list of your goals, I can guess your bank account within a few hundred dollars. It meant that if you don’t have a list of your goals it can affect your bank account drastically. Jim Rohn divided it into two parts, 1.long range – your dreams for the future. Don’t give up on your dreams. Without dreams and the vision, we perish.
“Goals. There’s no telling what you can do when you get inspired by them. There’s no telling what you can do when you believe in them. And there’s no telling what will happen when you act upon them.”
If you go to work on your goals, your goals will go to work on you. If you go to work on your plan, your plan will go to work on you. Whatever good things we build end up building us”
4. An activity plan – having a game plan that is visual. Operate from document not from thought. Put your ideas on paper so that you can show to someone. It’s like building a house. You build a house based on a paper (blueprint) not on your head. Don’t start the day until you have it finish. Don’t start the month until you have it finish. And if you think long term, don’t start the year until you have it finish.
5. Association – you got to be careful with people you associate with. This can be both positive and negative. Never mistake the value and the effect of influence. Be careful about those people who are influencing you. There are 3 questions quiz that can help you in association. 1. Who am I around? Who do I spend a fair share of my time with? 2. What are they doing to me? Where have they got me going? What have they got me saying? What have they got me reading? What have they got me doing? How have they got me thinking? 3. Is that O.K.? Find people of substance and spend more time.
6. A plan for your resources – your best resource is your money. If you will be faithful over a few things they will make you ruler of many things, a bible phrase. Poor people spend their money and save what is left. Rich people save their money and spend what is left.
7. Lifestyle – don’t just learn how to earn but learn how to live. Lifestyle is culture and uniqueness. Read the books, enjoy the concerts, and study the fine. Sophisticated people know that a few treasure is better than a house full of junk. Sophisticated people know that just small things well-designed start the idea of culture and refinement in the person’s life.
Let others lead small lives, but not you. Let others argue over small things, but not you. Let others cry over small hurts, but not you. Let others leave their future in someone else’s hands, but not you.
