Daily Thought Archives: May 2007

May 1
EVERY THOUGHT IS A ROAD TO SOMEWHERE
Everything you do or accomplish has started first with your thoughts. In fact, our life is really directed by our thinking and what dominants our thinking. Successful people focus their thinking on what they want most and this places them on the road to the success they desire. Where is your thinking taking you?

May 2
ASK FOR FEEDBACK AND TAKE ACTION
Have you ever noticed that the weak people are always afraid to ask for feedback? It is the confident people who ask for feedback, as they know it is one of the fastest ways drive their self-development. Ask for feedback, take action and watch your own self-development grow much faster than before.

May 3
WHAT'S YOUR IMAGE OF LEADERSHIP?
The images we have in our minds are really powerful drivers of our behaviour. For you as leaders, what's your image of leadership? People say leaders are not born, but they are made. Great leaders develop themselves and their leadership image, and this drives their behaviours and actions to become an even better leader. Take a few minutes to think about your leadership image.

May 4
THERE'S NO PROGRESS WITHOUT CHANGE
In everything, for individuals and companies, making progress is important. However, there really is no progress without change, and so many people and companies just don't get it sometimes. They do the same things each day and expect progress. To create real progress in your life and in your company, decide and act on the changes you need to make.

May 5
IT IS ALL ABOUT HOW YOU RESPOND
What happens to you and how you respond is what makes up your life. For a better life, we all need to be better at responding to what hits us every day. The most successful people respond to what hits them in positive ways, always looking to turn any negative experiences into positive ones. Keep in mind; it is all about how you respond.

May 6
GOALS WORTHY OF YOUR TALENTS
Most people don't have the success they would like in life because they set too low a target for their life. They either lack goals or are really setting goals that are not challenging them at all. They are not setting goals worthy of their talents. How about you? Are your goals truly worthy of your talents?

May 7
DOING WHAT'S REQUIRED VS. COMFORTABLE
Look back on your life and some of your proudest moments are when you did what was required (maybe even achieved the impossible), but you probably weren't totally comfortable during that time. Personal growth comes from doing what's required and getting out of our comfort zones.

May 8
MAKE BETTER CHOICES AND CREATE MORE SUCCESS
Life is really around making choices of how we use our time. Those choices are made by what we think is important to us and based on how we have defined our focus. If we don't have a clear focus, how could we make the right choices on how to use our time? Have a clear focus to make better choices and create more success.

May 9
LIFE EXPANDS TO ONE'S LEVEL OF COURAGE
Take a look around and you see people with the same skills and abilities as yourself. Why do some achieve more and have a full life when others don't? It is often down to courage. People who have strong courage know that their life will be as full and rich as the level of their courage. How is your level of courage?

May 10
REAL WEALTH IS BETWEEN YOUR EARS
The real wealth of successful people lies within them. It is their thoughts. The thoughts create possibilities for them to pursue, and their thoughts keep them focused on those possibilities until the day they achieve them. Remember, it all starts with your thoughts.

May 11
HOW MUCH...AND BY WHEN
Everyone would like more money in his or her lives. Money provides flexibility and with flexibility the positive people can create a fantastic life for themselves and also help others. However, most people never get that more money in their life because they are never specific enough in their money goals. Be the one who gets it by defining how much and by when. Then, grow yourself to be the person who deserves that amount.

May 12
WE ALL KNOW IT, BUT DON'T ALWAYS DO IT
Everything is attainable in life if we would just discipline ourselves to do what is necessary to get it. Key daily habits are what often make the difference. We all know them, but don't always do them. What key Daily Habits should you move from "Know" to "Do"?

May 13
FIRST WHO, THEN WHAT AND HOW
Successful leaders focus first on who, then what and how. They focus their time and energy into getting the right people in the right spots, and then defining what needs to be done and how together. A good "What" with the wrong "Who" never creates the right "How". A good "Who" will always create the better "What" and "How" to achieve the best results possible.

May 14
DON'T ADAPT TO YOUR LIMITATIONS
Many people just adapt to their perceived limitations. Too often they just accept (tell themselves) that they can't do something and accept it as one of their limitations. Remember, people only have the limitations that they create for themselves. What limitations have you created for yourself that you should forget from today?

May 15
MAKE CHANGES INSIDE TO ENJOY CHANGES OUTSIDE
Too many people look for outside circumstances to change their own situation. However, things don't work this way. It's from the changes we make inside that drive the changes we enjoy on the outside. Remember, a better life with more enjoyment is always based on what you do, not just what others can do for you.

May 16
TIME IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER
Everyone gets the same amount of time, but some make much better use of it than others. That makes everyone treated fairly (equal) - No better, no worse. The people who get ahead in life concentrate on using their time in the best way possible. They view what they do as investing their time versus spending their time. In this way, they are creating their own opportunities.

May 17
GETTING COMFORTABLE BEING UNCOMFORTABLE
Sounds a little strange, but absolutely true. We all need to get comfortable being uncomfortable. We are always uncomfortable at first when we are learning and trying new things. However, that is the way we grow. You never grow by doing the same things day in and day out. How comfortable are you being uncomfortable?

May 18
RECOGNITION IS A POWERFUL DRIVER
In almost every employee survey, being recognised for their contribution is always high on the list of what employees want from their boss. If providing recognition is such a powerful driver of boosting a person's passion and performance, then why don't more leaders do it? Be the one who does.

May 19
COURAGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY
The more you achieve in life, the more responsibility you have taken. The courage to be accountable is a strong driver of success, as you can see the opposite in unsuccessful people who constantly avoid being accountable for anything. To increase your success, have the courage of accountability.

May 20
ASK FOR HELP TO REMAIN STRONG
All successful people are constantly asking for help and advice. It is not because they are weak, but because they want to remain strong. Think in this way every day, and you will never be afraid to ask for help or advice ever again.

May 21
BE BIGGER THAN THE OBSTACLES IN YOUR WAY
When we have big goals there will be obstacles in our way that are just as big. The way to make those obstacles seem smaller is for us to be bigger than the obstacles we encounter. We rise to the challenge of these bigger obstacles by looking every day at the opportunities to grow ourselves. Be bigger than the obstacles in your way.

May 22
NOT TAKING ACTION - YOU'RE JUST PRETENDING
Many people say to themselves or others - "I'm going to....", but never take action on it. They talk about great plans or goals, but never do anything about what they are talking about. Remember, if you are not taking action, you're just pretending. Start by taking at least one small action toward those plans or goals today.

May 23
LONG-TERM VISION AND A SHORT-TERM FOCUS
To get ahead, it is important to know where you are going. That's having a long-term vision. However, you get nowhere unless you take action, as it is the results from daily actions that delivers that long-term vision. Do them both well, and you will get the success and the life you desire.

May 24
YOU TELL THE WORLD WHO YOU ARE
What you say and how you react to everyone around you tells the world who you are. Are your behaviours and habits showing the world the person you want them to know? If yes, that's great. If no, then what would you do differently from tomorrow?

May 25
WHEN YOU ADD MEANING
Successful people and unsuccessful people manage pressure, stress and other factors that impact their performance in different ways. It all comes down to the meaning that they attach to the events in their lives. Successful people have a positive self-concept and attach more positive meanings to what hits them every day than unsuccessful people do.

May 26
METRICS OF SUCCESS PRECEDES SUCCESS
Many people search for success, but never really invest the time to define what it is and means to them. Defining success and how you will measure it is important to provide the energy and drive for your daily and weekly actions. Remember, the metrics of success precedes success.

May 27
SEE YOURSELF AS YOU COULD BE
Too many people see themselves as they currently are versus what they could be. Seeing yourself as you are doesn't drive you to do any personal development. Seeing yourself as you could be can generate the energy and drive to then go make it happen. See yourself as you could be from today.

May 28
VISIBILITY DRIVES MORE CHANGE
If you are leading others, the more you make information and achievements visible across the organisation, the more focus and change you will get. Visibility of metrics and information helps to keep everyone focused on the goals of the organisation, and drives change in what everyone does (their daily actions and habits).

May 29
MAKE NOTES ABOUT THE PEOPLE YOU MEET
Too often we have a good initial meeting with someone and don't take the time to make some small notes about some of the interesting comments they made about themselves. If you take the time to capture some notes, you can then review them prior to your next meeting. It is very surprising but true; often a very small comment remembered is appreciated the most.

May 30
ENERGY FLOWS WHERE FOCUS GOES
Your focus is the single most powerful thing for you to invest time in both creating and maintaining. Wherever your focus goes, so do your energy, drive and action. If you are not focused in what you are doing, your energy is spread all over the place. Think of the image of a light bulb and a laser. Which has the better focus of light? Which is more like you?

May 31
RECEPTIVE TO NEW IDEAS
One of the best compliments people could say to you is that you are receptive to new ideas. Everything is changing at a fast pace these days and the most successful people (in both business and life) will be the most adaptable. Become adaptable and enjoy more success.