Treasure Your Dreams

Yesterday I was asked to drop everything on my schedule for the next 3 days to attend a “workshop” with two other leaders where we would learn a new method to test in building our businesses.

You read that right… I was asked. As in, I had a choice.

That’s probably one of my favorite things about being a Network Marketer — having choices, to do or not to do things when, where and how I want to. I’m all about choices!

I had a regular J-O-B for a couple of years, and I bet you can guess what my least favorite thing about it was. The work was pretty fun, the people were enjoyable (most of the time), and pay was even pretty good. What I absolutely hated though, was knowing that I HAD to be there at the office when they told me to be. I had no choices!

If I wanted to take the weekend off, I had to plan it weeks in advance. If I wanted to sleep in an extra hour, or leave a little early, I had to plan that too. Everything was dictated by someone’s schedule… and it wasn’t mine!

There’s another cool thing though –

When I was asked to drop everything to attend this workshop, it would have taken some pretty pressing engagements for me to say “no”. Why? Because attending this workshop means that I get to spend 3 days with two of my friends, gathered around the kitchen table having lots of fun and learning some pretty cool things too.

When you love the people you work with, and when you love the work you do, you will really never work a day in your life.

We had so much FUN yesterday — drinking our Life Shotz together between breakfast and lunch, pausing the CD every few minutes because one of us had a “great idea” and laughing almost nonstop for the majority of the day.

I know today and tomorrow will be full of the same activities — and better yet, I know that next week will be a powerful week in my business because when we leaders get together, we ALWAYS come up with something great!

The quote I leave you with today is this, by Peter Drucker:

“The best way to predict the future is to create it!”

“Oh, it’s one of those pyramid things.” — by far the most common response I receive when I share my business with someone. I usually respond with a smile and the words, “Yes… kind of,” because what people usually mean is it is one of “those deals” where the person who gets in at the top makes all the money, and those who get in later do not.

And that is not the case at all!

Have you ever thought of this though? Isn’t everything a pyramid?

Take Corporate America for example… let’s say, McDonald’s.

The CEO is at the very top of the McDonalds Corporation. Obviously, as the person at the very top, he probably earns the most income.

Let’s jump down to the franchise owners — the owners of each individual McDonald’s store. Not quite as high up as the CEO, but not at the bottom either. Their income is somewhere in the middle.

Let’s look at the managers — below the franchise owners, so they will obviously make less than them, but they still earn more than…

The minimum wagers — the 16 and 17 year old kids who go to work for McDonald’s at minimum wage. Their at the bottom, so obviously they are making the least.

“Oh, but they have the opportunity to move up!” you say. That is true. Everyone has the opportunity to move up. But what are the odds that a minimum wager will eventually become the CEO? Sure, there’s a chance. But what percentage of them actually do that?

My guess is much less than 1%.

So let’s jump over and look at Network Marketing. I have a book, “Chicken Soup for the Network Marketer’s Soul.” that describes in its foreward one of the most incredible descriptions of our industry I have ever read. I would like to share an excerpt of that with you here, written by Bill Hyman:

“Since 1979, MLM has pretty much been my life. When I was first introduced to this industry, I knew nothing about it except vague rumors. Today I see it as the most powerful vehicle available to everyday people for transforming their lives. What other career path give you an active network of friends, time freedom, an income level you can control, residual earning, and deep, lasting personal growth?

Not the corporate world, last I checked.

When you realize you receive all of these benefits only by helping others achieve the same, you get a glimpse at what the industry is all about.

Call it MLM, Multi-Level Marketing, Network Marketing or Direct Sales; this industry is a force to be reckoned with. More than thirteen million people in the U.S. and more than fifty three million worldwide are involved in Network Marketing. In one out of ten U.S. households, someone is working in a Direct Sales or MLM company. U.S. sales are over $30 billion annually as of this writing and almost $90 billion worldwide.

Network Marketing affords you the opportunity to establish a business with an investment typically under $500, start out part-time, shift to full-time at your own speed, and build up a truly substantial income (provided you’re willing to put the work in), all while receiving hands-on training.

Network Marketing is like having a franchise, only better. It offerse many of the benefits of a franchise without the franchise headaches — no hefty franchise fee, no employees, and little or no inventory. The business is willable and saleable. Plus, if you build it big enough, you can actually retire and continue earning income.”

Wow. So THAT’S what I do!

Network Marketing is an arena where you are the only person in control of your future. Whether you succeed or fail is entirely up to you; whether you work until you’re earning $1000 a month or $30,000 a month is up to you; whether you work it 10 hours a week or 50 hours a week is up to you!

You have all the options of a business owner, with all the support of a franchisee — and instead of competing against others for job titles and pay raises, you support and are supported by others as you all strive for your goals together.

So in a nutshell, that’s what my business is all about. I’m in the business of helping others achieve THEIR dreams. It’s as simple as that!

The quote I leave you with today is one of my favorites, by Zig Ziglar:

“You can have anything you want, if you help enough people get what they want.”

Well, this post has been a long time coming. I looked back and noticed I haven’t posted since OCTOBER — wow, it’s definitely been a while!

A lot has happened in the past 5 months… well, actually just the last 3. It’s been an interesting year, to say the least! I feel like I’ve reached the point of a new beginning, and finally feel like I’m back in enough of a normal routine to begin writing again

I toyed with the idea of changing all of my old posts over to “private” (or even deleting them all together) as a symbol of this new beginning, but in reviewing them this morning I decided I just couldn’t do that… they’re just too good! *smile*

All kidding aside though, there really is some great content in those posts, so I have decided (for now at least) to leave them be.

To kick off this new chapter in life, and to extend the personal nature of this particular post, I want to share something that I found on my friend Saul Jacobson’s website. I noticed he actually discovered this on our friend Cathy Mahady’s blog, so Cathy, thank you!

7 Things About Me:

1. Why I Get Out of Bed Everyday … The future! Sometimes I sit and marvel at how blessed my life is. I get to help people rediscover their dreams for a living — it doesn’t get much better than that! When I look at my own dreams though, I can’t help but to come flying out of bed every morning because I am so excited to get busy making them come true!

My "Dream Board" in my office!

2. What I Love … Dressage. I miss it SO much! I grew up riding horses, and that’s really the reason I chose the profession I did — to be able to have not only the MONEY to pursue my favorite hobby, but the TIME as well! Taking a mini-break for another year or so until I get my business fully built up… but then I know I will be able to enjoy it for the rest of my life

Aaron and Me

3. Where I Have Been … London, Paris, New York and Alaska. Some of my favorite memories are of the trips my Nana took my cousin Jayci and I on. We’ve had the opportunity to travel to 4 incredible places and spend time travelling together making memories of a lifetime. If there’s one thing I love almost as much as riding, it’s definitely travelling!

Nana, Jayci and I on our balcony during our Alaskan cruise!

4. Where I Want to Go … Germany. Not only is it one of the Dressage capitals of the world, but it was also my Grandpa’s favorite country to visit. I can’t wait for the day that I get to go there and explore everything! 

Castle in Germany

5. What I Know … you’ve got to truly enjoy what you do every day, or you’ll never be truly happy. There is nothing better than waking up on a Monday morning and being truly excited about your week!

6. What Motivates Me … my mentors. I love meeting and spending time with successful people and taking in everything I can from them so I can create that success in my own life.

Michael Clouse and my Mom, Kathy Schneider

7. What I Learned … just when you think you have it all figured out, you don’t. Life is a series of curve balls. You never know when something is going to change, whether it be for the worse or for the better. Sometimes, things that seem like the worst at the time, actually end up being the best in the end. You can’t control change, but you CAN control how you react to it. By keeping a positive mindset in all circumstances, you can create something magical.

One of my favorite quotes!

Wow, there’s just something about listening to a call by Michael Clouse that gets my head spinning. Whether it be a live call, his recorded material or (my personal favorite) at a live event, the information he has to share is always relevant and applicable no matter how many times you’ve heard it before.

Tonight he did a short 30 minute call as a gear-up for our upcoming Texas Event in January. On a side note — man, I can’t WAIT to see everyone again! I guess I will never understand those who grumble and complain about attending live events because  they are one of my FAVORITE things about this business! It was just a little over 2 months ago that I saw everyone last, and already I can’t wait until the next time we meet… just 88 more days!

But back to Michael Clouse… tonight he shared 5 Steps you should take if you are wanting to propel your business forward. While yes, these steps are fabulous for your Network Marketing business, they can be applied to any one’s life in a general sense as well — so here they are:

#1: Decide What You Want

Surprisingly, this one is tougher than it may initially seem. What do YOU want out of your life? What do you want? If you could create your perfect future, what would it look like? Start with something easy… start with 12 months from today. What do you want your life to look like 12 months from now? To make it even easier, don’t even worry about your WHOLE life (yet), focus on one area — if you have your own business (or are in an industry where your income is directly proportional to something you do, rather than a fixed salary) then I suggest you use your income. If you’re not, focus on something that IS in your control.

For me, what came to mind is “What number do I want to see on my check in November of 2010, and what title do I want to have in front of my name?”

#2: WHY do you want it?

Behind every good goal, there is a strong why. Why, you ask? Well, because without the WHY it becomes much to easy to say “Why not.”

As in… “Why not put this off for another day, another week, another month, another…” Yeah, you get the idea.

So — WHY do you want what you said you wanted in #1? Think about it, be honest with yourself… but here’s the trick — as Michael Clouse shared with us on tonight’s call, life WILL get in the way of your goals. If you want to achieve those goals, your WHY must be bigger than anything that could get in the way!

I have a few “whys”…
The first, I have always promised myself that I would start riding again once I reached a certain title. I’m going with the “work hard now, play hard later” mentality and I know that if I dedicate these few years to my business, then I will reach a point where I can ride every day for the rest of my life if I so choose. A little hint… if I reach the title goal I set for next November — I WILL start riding again. After a 4 year hiatus from a passion I pursued everyday for 12 years, I will finally be “back in the saddle” (quite literally, really).
My other whys are more generic… financial security, time freedom, the usual. And then one other that is very personal and close to my heart — a newly developed “why” that just might prove to be the strongest of them all.

SO — what’s your WHY?

#3: Make a Game Plan

Michael Clouse suggests something that I have found to be a gold mine in my life — break your 12 months down into 4, 90 Day chunks. Mother Nature has this one pretty well figured out with the whole seasons thing… reality is, people need “something new” every 3 months or so.

If you focus on an entire 12 months with nothing in between, chances are you will not reach your goal. You will (more than likely) procrastinate, letting the 12-month-mark sneak up on you until all of a sudden BAM! there it is and, well, you’re not much further along than you were a year ago!

3 months though… that’s not very long! So — make a game plan! Set “mini-goals” for how far you want to be along the path to your 12-month goal. For example… where do you want to be on February 1st, May 1st, August 1st, and November 1st (your 12 months)

Get it? Great! Moving on…

#4: Commit!!

Michael Clouse made an interesting point tonight… commitment has become a lost art. I love the definition of commitment he shares — “Commitment is doing the thing you said you would do, long after the feeling you said it in has passed.”

Think about that for a moment — have you ever got really excited about something, promised to do a lot of things and then, 1-2 weeks later realize you over-extended yourself and maybe you just don’t feel up to doing all the things you said you would do anymore?

Of course you have, but unfortunately, that’s too bad. You committed, you must do it anyway! Your ability to stay committed to something long after you have promised to do it says a lot about your integrity and who you are as a person. This is something that I struggle in daily — I’m really good at steps 1-3… but when it comes to sticking with the game plans I set, well… that’s something I work on daily!

This is a good example of why it’s important to have a strong WHY for your goal. A strong why will help keep you motivated and help the “feeling you said it in” to stay with you for longer.

So… BE COMMITTED!

#5: Take Action, Get Better!

Once you’ve decided exactly what it is that you want, figured out why it is that you want it, created a game plan for how to get it and committed yourself to following through (no matter what), the only thing left to do is simply DO IT!

So, what is it that you have to do to reach your goals? If you will apply these 5 steps to any area of your life you wish to improve upon, you will be amazed at what your life will look like 12-months from the time you start. What’s holding you back? Make a goal for yourself today… whether it be a business goal, a financial goal, a fitness goal, a fun goal, a spiritual goal, a relationship goal or a social/cultural goal — set ONE! And then go through the 5 steps and get started achieving it today!

The quote I leave you with is this:
“A goal without a deadline is nothing but a wish.”

We’ve all made them — we wake up on January 1st, determined that “this year will be better!”

This year I will work out consistently.
This year I will save 10% of my income.
This year I will go to church every Sunday.
This year I will…. (you fill in the blank).

And we all know where it goes from there! You stick to your resolution… for a couple of weeks. Maybe a month. If you’re REALLY motivated, you might make it 2 or 3. Then, as all the hype and excitement from the New Year begins to fade, so does your motivation.

THEN 365 days later… you find yourself making the same empty promises to yourself as you did the year before.

So what can we do to end this vicious cycle? What if I told you there was a way to set a “New Year’s Resolution” 4 times a year? Do you think that might be easier? Of course it would!

The method is simple — divide your life into 90 day increments. Set 90 Day goals, a 90 Day Game-plan, and a 90 Day Schedule.

Looking ahead a full year in advance is difficult to do — there is too much time between the act of setting the goal, and the day of accountability. You tell yourself “Oh, it’s only January”… “It’s only March”… “It’s only June, I have half the year left!” Then, you look up and find yourself saying “It’s DECEMBER! How am I ever going to reach this goal now?”

If, however, you set your life up in increments of 90 days, you will find yourself working towards smaller goals that must be completed in a shorter period of time. 12 weeks is all you get — no ifs, ands, or buts about it!

You will be able to look at your calendar and find no logical reason why you could put your goal off for another day, or another week. The day you set your goal is already crunch time — you don’t have the option to procrastinate!

Once you have determined your goals, set up a game-plan for reaching those goals. This is called your Daily Action Steps. Do something each day that will take you one step closer to reaching each goal you have set for yourself.

If your goal is to weigh a certain amount… go for a walk, or spend some time at the gym!
If your goal is to reach a certain income level… go prospecting and do a presentation!
If your goal is to spend more time with your family… take your kids to the park after school!

But as you set up your goals, remember this: These are 90 day goals, so don’t be too hard on yourself! Make sure your goal holds up to the “reality check” — is it doable? Can it be accomplished in the amount of time you have allowed? Start out small, and don’t spread yourself too thin. You are much more likely to reach a goal if it is not too overwhelming!

If you are not in the habit of setting and reaching goals, then begin with VERY small goals! Develop the habit of reaching goals! Become accostomed to that feeling you get when you reach the end of the 90 Day Period and you can say to yourself “I did it!” That feeling alone will keep you more motivated during the next 90 Day cycle.

The final important thing I will share with you today is this: Once you have set a 90 Day Goal, become COMMITTED to reaching it!

And with that, the quote I leave you with today is this:
“Commitment is doing the thing you said you would do, long after the feeling you said it in has passed”

Consistency: Steadfast adherence to the same principles, course, form, etc.

Prioritize: To put things in order of importance.

 I have a very hard time consistently prioritizing. By this, I mean consistently doing the things I KNOW will have the most impact on my day. Sometimes, I wish I could just wind myself up and I would automatically go through the day’s actions without having to constantly motivate myself to do the things I know need to be done.

Now, don’t get me wrong — I don’t spend my day lounging around on the couch with a TV remote in my hand, or sleeping in until noon, or shopping online. No — I truly do feel as if I am busy for most of the day, every day.

My only question is, busy doing what?

In this business, it is SO easy to get busy doing busy work. In other words, doing things that make you “feel” busy but don’t ever really accomplish much.

This goes back to the 80/20 rule — that 80% of the work we do accounts for 20% of our results, while 20% of the work we do accounts for 80% of our results.

My next question is; if we KNOW this, then why do we continue to waste our time on the 80%?

I know from talking with team members (downline, crossline AND upline), that I am not the only one who suffers from this “disease” — the 80% disease, I mean. Knowing this makes me all the more insistent that we find a vaccine of some kind.

Surely, there must be something.

My advice, is this (and believe me, when I say advice I mean advice to myself as much as to anyone else!):

Look at each day, as a new day; completely separate from the day before, or the day after. It’s so easy to say to ourselves “Well, I made 60 calls yesterday, so today I can take it easy.” — this kind of thinking will only hold you back.

If you look at every day individually, you won’t have the success (or in some cases, the failure) of the day before to hold you back. You become responsible for achieving success THAT day, and that day only. Then, when that day is at an end, you can ask yourself that all-important question that any of us who listen to Michael Clouse have heard over and over — “Did I keep the main thing, the main thing?”

In truth, everyone has a “main thing” — whether you are an entrepreneur, a student, an employee, a stay-at-home mom… everyone has a “main thing” that they need to do, every day, in order to be successful.

Take each day, and focus that day on keeping your main thing, the main thing.

Tonight, I had the privilege of listening to a great call by Michael Clouse — he talked about hearing something at a Brian Tracy event that completely shifted his focus, and had an immense impact on his life.

Tonight, I heard something from Michael that I believe will have an immense impact on mine; he said that if you get up every day, and do the #1 most important thing you could possibly do that day, you will look up at the end of the year and be able to say to yourself “This year, I did the 365 most important things I could have done.”

Wow — in all the books I’ve read, and the tapes I’ve listened to on prioritizing, time management, etc, that one sentence put things more into perspective for me than anything else has.

I want to be able to look back at the end of 2009 and say to myself “Yes, I did the 365 most important things I could have done this year.”

He went on to say that those things don’t necessarily have to be related to work– they can be something with your family, something with your friends, something for yourself. But the bottom line is it has to be something that, on that particular day, is the most important thing you could possibly do.

So, my challenge to you (and to myself) is this: Go out tomorrow, and do the most important thing. Keep your main thing the main thing. Then, go out the next day and do it again, and again, and again and again. Before you know it, you will have an entire year to look back on and say, “I did the 365 most important things I could have done.” — and that, is all you can do!

 The quote I leave you with is this — by none other than Michael Clouse:

“Keep the main thing, the main thing!”

This is the thought, or rather the question, weighing most heavily on my mind tonight. For that reason, this blog will be different from my others. Typically, I try to write about things I know; tonight I come from the opposite side of the coin — I will write about something I have a desire to know.

What makes a leader?

I have always aspired to be a leader, but the truth of the matter is, I have really never had anyone to lead. Now, as I see leaders — or rather, potential leaders — begin to form within my team I feel this huge burden to BE a leader to them.

My first instinct is to run to Barnes and Noble, pick up every book I can find on leadership and read and read and read until I “get it” — I know this wouldn’t be a bad place to start, but I know also that this is not enough.

Unfortunately, leaders are not born overnight. In order to become a leader, one must gain the trust and respect of those he or she wishes to lead. Reading books on leadership will not make someone a leader — so what will?

The most logical answer I can come up with is to lead by example — in order to become a leader, one must become a person worthy of being followed.

So, if this is true, then the best way to become a leader is to continually be working on improving oneself.

If I want my team members to commit to their businesses, I must be commited.
If I want my team members to consistently call their prospects, I must be consistent.
If I want my team members to become good managers of their time, I must become a good manager of my own.
If I want my team members to become great leaders, I must first become a great leader.

When you look at the great leaders in history, the best ones are remembered for practicing what they preached. That is what I, what anyone striving to become a leader, must work towards every day.

How could I ever ask someone to do what I do not do myself?

This concept of leadership is a new challenge to me — however, I can only surmise from recent circumstances that it is a challenge that I am ready for; a challenge I can overcome.

The Law of Attraction states that you attract people who are like yourself — in his CD “Recipe for Success”, Michael Clouse states that in looking at the people you have brought into your business, you will be able to see a reflection of yourself.

Well, to me, that reflection is one of leadership. For the first time I can truly look at my team and “see” 5 leaders, or rather, 5 people with the qualities to become leaders if they themselves are lead properly.

In James 1 it states that “God will never test you beyond what you can bear.” God would never hand me leaders to lead, if I was incapable of leading them.

Based on these two things; the law of attraction, backed up by God’s Word, I can only surmise that this test is truly one I am ready for. I am nervous, I am excited, but more than anything I am committed to learning what it takes to become a leader.

I know I do not have all the answers. But I do know that I will start at the most logical place; within myself. I will continue to work daily towards improving myself; however unlike before there is a new passion driving my actions.

In order to truly help others improve THEIR lives, I must constantly be working toward improving my own.

The quote I leave you with today is this, by Michael S Clouse:

“Leadership is knowledge is action!”