Daily Boost Motivation and Coaching

How Opening New Doors Fuels Your Dreams One of my favorite questions is, “What CAN I Do?”  No matter how challenging a situation.  Answering that question always reveals a clear path. As they navigate our new world, I hear my clients ask me that question too.  My answer usually goes something like this - “Can can you do? When you open a new door, you will find a new opportunity. Start opening more doors.” Feeling empowered in a world that is draining your energy is like Tesla on a cross-country trip without charging stations is difficult. If you want to ensure you are never running low, remember that dreams, possibilities, potential, and a feeling of certainty are all powered by new opportunity. When you open a new door, an opportunity reveals itself. Your challenges will fade as you focus on the new way. But you must be willing to open a new door to find it. The key to thriving in uncertain times is finding opportunities behind new doors. All you have to do is open the door.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why You Should REST More Steven Covey called it sharpening the saw. If you take a break to sharpen the blade, you will always cut more wood. The same applies to life. My formula is Ritual, Rest, Rejuvenate, Reactivate. Repeat: 1) Success comes when you perform ritual actions every day. Figure out what works and do it. 2) Running full-out all the time is not sustainable. You must stop and rest. 3) Resting allows your body and mind to rejuvenate and become healthy again. 4) When you are ready, it's time to reactivate into action mode. 5) Repeat until you get what you want. It's easier to cut more wood when you take a break to sharpen your saw. A walk in the park on a busy day counts too. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jerry Seinfeld’s Success Secret I’ll never forget the day a friend called and made me an offer I couldn’t refuse - and I didn’t. Rob was an event promotor who had snagged the chance to book an up-and-coming comedian named Jerry Seinfeld into a local venue. He needed somebody to warm up the audience and introduce Jerry. I was all in when he agreed to cover my drink tab and let me hang out with Jerry before the show. It was 1986, and Jerry’s television series about nothing was still in development. I know that because it’s what we talked about before the show. As he munched on veggies and sipped sparkling water, I’ll never forget how focused he was on getting what he wanted. Tired and worn out from living on the road, I asked how he managed to keep going. He said — “I know exactly what I want. I’m a comedian, so I have to be funny. The only way to be funny is to write funny jokes. The only way to write funny jokes is to write every day. So, I write every day and put a big red “X” on the calendar. Eventually, there is a chain of X’s on the calendar. My goal is not to break the chain.”  Then, in a very Seinfeld way, he screamed, “Don’t break the chain! That’s how you get what.” Over the years, I’ve read that others have had the same conversation with Jerry. I’m guessing it was a rule of success that he practiced and shared often. I’m happy he shared it with me. As we begin 2024, pick an action and do it every day until you get so good people notice. And, whatever you do, “Don’t break the chain!” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are S.M.A.R.T. Goals Really SMART? I’m a big fan of setting big-ass goals. Dreaming BIG is my natural state - which is why S.M.A.R.T. goals are not all that smart. S.M.A.R.T. stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Bound. While it may seem like a good plan, I can't wrap my head around not setting goals because they don't seem achievable or realistic. Excuse me? Since when did big - goals seem achievable and realistic?   If that were true, you would already be doing them. Anytime you are moving from dreaming into doing, you will be living in the land of crazy and scary. If you hold yourself to what is achievable and realistic, you might as well keep doing what you're doing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Your Rules of Success If you study people who have had success in any area of their life, you will find they have much in common.  Not only do they follow a set of rules, they follow those rules no matter how much life gets in the way. What are those rules? The person who has the strongest "Why" wins. The person who shows up wins. The person who shows up on time wins. The person who is most persistent wins. The person show never assumes wins. The person who is the best at what they do wins. The person who plans and documents their journey and interactions wins. The person who never gives up total control to others wins. The person who acceptances responsibility for themselves wins. The person who serves the most wins. The person who is grateful for everything wins. The actions you take automatically become the life you experience. It's essential to be mindful of where you are heading.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What’s Your Word? Around this time every year, successful people are planning next year and many, declare to me the WORD they have chosen to guide their life.  I like words - especially when combined with wisdom and a few wisecracks - but that might be just me.  Still, I'm always amazed at how excited people get and how much they believe their WORD will guide them into the next year. I'm jealous. I need a WORD, too - and that's where the trouble begins. I can't imagine choosing a single word to represent 365 days of getting after it. However, having a WORD is an emotional trigger and fires neurons in your brain to keep you moving, so why can't my WORD be several WORDS? Just like magic - they arrived… Simple. Sophisticated. Focused. Automated. Delegated. Deleted. Ritualistic.  It's a little Stoic, and a lot of Scott LOGIC - it works for me. Still… I missed one. And it turned out to be the GLUE that held all those other words together. Resilient. That’s the key to success. If you could use an emotional supercharger, choose a WORD… or WORDS for next year… and see how everything goes your way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Run Your Life Like a Business Not a day goes by without someone asking how to get what they want. I almost always say, "It's all about return on investment." After all, it would be a shame to work hard toward your goals and end up with less than you started - right? That's why you should run your life like a business: 1) Decide what you do when you are living a happy life. Be very specific. 2) Be flexible in your approach. When you find what works, lock it in, refine your method, and keep doing it. 3) Set benchmarks and measure your progress. You can only get where you are going when you know where you are. 4) If you don't achieve your milestones, immediately adjust and get back on track. Life is better when you get a positive return on your efforts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How to Overcome Bad Experiences Do you ever get stuck on memories from the past? Bad memories? Unpleasant memories? Focusing on the good is good for the soul. Dwelling on bad is terrible for everything.  The other day, my wife asked, “How do you completely disconnect from bad experiences? It’s as if you don’t see them.” Trust me. I do.   A long time ago, I made a couple of distractions that guide me:  1) If you dwell on the past, you bring those experiences into your life. They become real again. You also neutralize positive energy. You will be stuck. 2) Lessons from the past are valuable. Even bad experiences yield wisdom when not attached to negative energy and emotions. Hang on to those lessons. 3) Some bad experiences are pesky. You will have difficulty shaking them from your mind. The solution is defining actions that will put them to rest. You become what you think. Dwelling on past negative experiences will create more of them in your future.  Instead, look for every opportunity to think good thoughts, do good things, and enjoy a good life. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Surviving Holidays with Family It’s that time of the year! Millions of folks will soon be heading over the river and through the woods, hoping for a special celebration in the coming months.  In the spirit of good times, here are a few ideas on surviving upcoming conversation bombs: 1) It’s a stressful time of the year. Money. Kids. Travel. Show empathy. It’ll go a long way. 2) If Uncle Bob speaks his mind, it’s time to practice self-control. There is no need to add fuel to the fire by adding your two cents. Smile. Nod. Exit stage right as soon as possible. 3) Show interest in others and redirect conversations back to the person standing in front of you. They will love you even more. 4) Give yourself plenty of space. Don’t fill every moment with others. Take a walk. Sleep late. Enjoy a cup of coffee. That should take care of almost everything. If not, repeat number four. As the season approaches, focus on the meaning and celebrate with your heart.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stay Focused on Your Goals in 5-Minutes It's the world's most straightforward recipe for success: Stand up, take a step, REPEAT!   A member wrote asking the best use of that simple advice: 1) Stop what you are doing. Block out everything. Focus on YOU. 2) Find a place where nobody will interrupt you for 5 minutes. 3) Ask yourself, "How is my life going?" Open your mind and let your thoughts flow into your life's different areas and roles. Bring them into focus. 4) For things to go well, continue your momentum. For areas of concern, ask," What CAN I do to make it better?" 5) Immediately take action based on your answers. Checking in with yourself 5-minutes a day is all it takes to stay focused and on track toward your goals. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

How to Define Your Life Values As you stroll through life, you will find opportunities that will present you with a VALUE choice. Your response speaks volumes about your character. There's no right or wrong. Only your inner voice guides you in your destiny's direction. One selection moves you away. Another moves you closer to the person you want to be.  Values are your GPS to navigate life—rules you choose to follow. Honesty, integrity, family-focused life, and work-life balance are all examples of positive Values. Others are not so positive. My number one Value is to do my best to do the right thing based on my rules. If I mess up, I say, "I'm sorry," and try again. Something to think about. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Breaking Bad Habits the Easy Way Have you struggled to break a habit? Bad habits are not good. They will mess up your day. They are also not permanent. You weren’t born with bad habits and are not required under penalty of law to keep bad habits.  Since there’s no real reason to keep bad habits, let’s replace them easily. Nobody likes to give up what’s comfortable - even if it’s not serving you. Instead, start a new behavior and replace the bad before it messes up your life again.  Breaking bad habits is doing new behaviors instead of old behaviors. No muss. No-fuss. Be consistent and persistent, and you will forever wipe that old habit away. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Success From Doing Nothing Before I begin, I want to define what I mean by doing nothing. I don’t see doing ‘nothing’ as something unproductive. Instead, I see ‘nothing’ as a protected personal space between your thoughts and actions.  It is a place that provides a contemplation and planning opportunity before launching into massive and focused action design to reach your outcome and achieve your goal. It is a holding space where inspiration, desperation, motivation, and even intimidation bubble into your consciousness and await your next action. Instead of moving your thoughts immediately into action mode or never moving at all, both of which cause unnecessary drama, you purposefully quarantine your thoughts until you are assured of your success plan or decide to take a new direction. Doing nothing looks like this: 1) All thoughts and potential actions arrive in your mind and are held for evaluation. 2) Unless based on a previous decision and cleared for instant action, you always take the time to ensure that your actions will lead you to your vision. 3) If you don’t know the absolute endgame of your journey, you are still on another path. Don’t step until you know where you are on your new path. Ultimately, doing nothing is a place in your mind where you choose your path, direct your actions, and create your legacy. It is a place of personal respect built into you and will allow you to impact yourself and the world around you significantly. I don’t know about you, but I get a lot of good thinking when doing nothing. That time is priceless. If doing something takes you off track, you might be better off doing nothing - at least for a little while. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Change Anything in 3 Steps Is a title like "Three Steps Required to Change Anything" an oversimplification of what it takes to get what you want? Or… is it the acceptance that everything is simple - until we complicate it? If you guess the second, you will get along just fine. So, what are those three steps? The first step to getting anything you want is to KNOW what you want. Many will argue that the first step is the most difficult. Like they say, "work with the outcome in mind." I don't see it this way and believe it's not more complicated than what follows. Next, you need to know how to accomplish your goal by establishing a framework or roadmap. No, you won't see every step you must take, but unless you are living under a rock, you will know the significant accomplishments that must happen. Just look around, and you'll see them everywhere. Finally, you must take consistent and disciplined action toward your goal with every waking moment. You take longer to reach your outcome every time you allow your focus to drift. So, there it is. While many nuances will challenge you, the basic steps to getting what you want are simple - Know it. Map it. Do it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Believing in Your Future Self I’ll never forget the day a mentor of mine said to me — “You have to become the person you want to be before becoming the person you want to be.” What?  So, do I have to fake it until I make it? Heck no! I’m not going to change who I am - no way! “No. You’re not changing who you are. It’s just that you have to understand that in the future, you will have a different set of beliefs than you hold right now. That’s called growth. Whatever you believe, you will become.” At first, I thought he meant I would have to sell my soul to the devil and take on beliefs, not mine, to get what I wanted. But one day, I realized that day-to-day living is changing me anyway. I may as well make a choice myself. My thinking went like this — If I hold a self-image because of what I believe, all I have to do is create a future self-image, decide what that person would believe, and design a set of rules and actions that make those beliefs happen. What’s the best part? There’s no waiting. The very minute you decide what you believe, everything begins to change. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is Your Morning Routine Focused You hear a lot about using morning rituals to get more done. But what if you could use your mornings to get more done for YOU? In the fast-paced world we live in today, there seem to be two groups when it comes to how to use mornings—personal and productivity. Once folks remove themselves from the craziness of jumping out of bed, taking care of the kids, and hitting the drive-through, they choose one of the two.  But what if there was a third group that was more satisfying? Before I go on, I need to admit that I didn't use to be a morning person and didn't like getting up early at all. I even quit my first couple of jobs as a morning radio host so I could sleep.  Later in my career, I would hit my desk at 5 AM and pound through my to-do list as fast as possible. I must have been saying, "I…MUST… GET… IT… DONE!" That didn't work well because I didn't see the purpose of getting out of bed early if it was only to work. For a few years, I spent my mornings reading and meditating before heading off to the gym. I got in better shape, but my bank balance was less, and my future goals were seemingly unreachable. Then, one day, out of pure frustration and sporting a brand-new I don't give a heck attitude, I asked myself a question that changed everything - "What's the first thing I should do tomorrow morning that, if I do, will allow me to live a life of my design?" Notice that I didn't ask about work or what was on my to-do list. It had nothing to do with getting more done or getting in better shape. I focused on the lifestyle I wanted to live - and it was life-changing. In the years since I made that decision, I've started my days doing the most important thing I deem required to live the life of my choosing, and I've been happier for it. I've also come across dozens of morning do-gooders who are getting everything done except what they dream of doing, and when they realize it's not their fault, everything changes. They get caught up in the buzz of life, and everyone does. But, the minute you focus on YOU before anything else, you start making real progress. When you focus on what is important to you, you get what is important to you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Secret to Taking Action Is today the day that you self-activate and step into your power? After all, your dreams are waiting. Feeling intimidated and unsure of the next step on your life journey is easy. Nobody likes leaving their comfort zone - even if it will someday make them feel more comfortable.   Remember this. Everything in life happens when you realize that you control your destiny. Even if you do nothing at all, you are in control.   Deciding to walk your true path is a simple act of self-activation. It is choosing to remove yourself from the masses and stand up for yourself. It is exploring the possibility of life and making a difference. Is today the time to declare your power, self-activate, and show everybody who you are?   Don’t wait. The world is waiting for you to come out of your shell. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Traveling From Intention to Success An epidemic infecting dreamers worldwide is nothing more than a dream buster. Living a happy life, enjoying excellent relationships, and making more money? It seems that everyone has intention. Some intentions are good. Some intentions are bad. In any case, moving from having intentions to succeed requires two steps: 1) Intention becomes actionable when you DECIDE to follow through on your intention. If not, nothing will happen. When you do, move on to the next step. 2) Once you’ve DECIDED to follow through on your intention, ACTION is required. What kind? Actions that form a direct path to your anticipated outcome. Become someone who knows what you want, decides to do it, and follows through until you get it. That’s how you become unstoppable! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Where You Should Put Your Focus I was speaking with a young man who was doing something familiar. He was living in two realities: 1) He had finished school; one reality was pursuing his dream career.  2) While he worked toward his dream, he earned a job certification to pay the bills. During our conversation, he said something that got my attention. “I’m hoping I can get a good job supporting my dream.” My ears perked up. Years of Coaching allow me to hear de-focused and dream-erasing thoughts loud and clear.  Yes, everybody needs to pay their bills. However, what you focus on is what you get. When the certainty of earning income becomes your focus, dreams disappear. What you focus on is what you get. Most folks don’t notice their dreams are gone for twenty years. What you focus on is what you get. Focus your mind and actions on turning your dreams into reality. Whatever you do to earn a living alone falls into the category of necessary and temporary.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Motivation to Always Reach Your Goals You’ve heard if you want success, you must go after your goals with consistency and dedication. You must want it for yourself—more than anybody wants it for you. YOU are the engine that drives your dreams. Others will help, but in the end, your actions are the only thing that will lead to the reward. I remember when my kids got older. I had a talent for manifesting what I wanted in life, and my Son asked, “Dad, how do you always seem to create what you want?” I said, “YOU must decide that you want it before you can get it. You are the engine that drives your dreams.” I laughed when he said, “Is that telling me to make my bed when I was a kid?” One more thing. Some people think when they reach their goals, they can take a break. Not so. Permanent success does not come from temporary actions. Your real reward will be all the new opportunities in your life. Everybody loves a winner. YOU are the engine that drives your dreams. Always remember that. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices