Treasure Your Dreams

It’s SO tempting to give up when the going gets tough — no matter what area of life you might be dealing with. It’s important to remember though that those who push through the hard times are the same ones who get to experience the great times!

Nothing great every comes easily… you must be willing to persevere and stick with it until you see the success you’ve been shooting for!

If you don’t have the motivation to work through the hard times, then your “Why” obviously isn’t big enough — if your WHY (your reason for doing whatever it is you’re doing) is big enough, then you won’t be able to quit… you will want that success too bad to give up!

So whatever you’re tackling in life, make sure your reason for doing it is clearly defined, then remind yourself of that reason every day and get busy working towards your goal! And whatever you do… if you want to win, don’t quit!

The quote I leave you with is this, by one of my mentors and friends, Michael S. Clouse,

“Always move towards your dreams!”

One of my favorite books of all time is The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson. I was first introduced to this book by Michael Clouse at our Vegas convention in March of 09… and in the past year I have read it so many times the pages are already falling apart!

Love, love love that book!

The main concept in it is that your whole life is based on the little things you do (or don’t do) every day — it’s the little things that make all the difference. You are always moving either up the Slight Edge curve, or down it. You are never static.

For example, working out. Wow, do I hate to do it. I’ve ridden horses several days a week my whole life, up until a few years ago. Until I quit riding I never had a reason to do any other type of workout, but now… well, anyway.

I finally found a program that seems to be working for me… and by working I mean I actually will do it (most) days. I tried creating my own schedule, tried attending classes at a gym, tried sticking an elliptical in front of my TV… but so far P90X seems to be the only thing I’ve stuck with for any period of time.

Yesterday, I goofed. I did not do my P90X workout. Why not? Well, I wasn’t sick… I wasn’t injured… I wasn’t being held prisoner anywhere… I was just being lazy. I put it off all day, went to a church thing last night and got home late. Could of done it then, but I opted for bed instead.

So, yesterday, I travelled down the Slight Edge curve just a bit.

Can I tell any difference today? No. Can I suddenly not touch my toes because I failed one time to do the Yoga workout? No. But what if I skip today? Will I tell a difference tomorrow? Probably not.

If I skip the rest of this week though… then I might notice a small difference next week. If I skip the rest of the month… that difference will be a little bigger. If I skip the rest of this year… then I might as well have not ever started at all.

And what if I never workout again for the next 30 years?
And what if I do the opposite… what if I workout 6 days a week for the next 30 years.

A small daily decision doesn’t seem to make much difference. So what if you opt for the pizza instead of the salad? Who cares if don’t put a percentage of this week’s paycheck into your savings account? Does it really matter that much?

It might not matter much today… but those small decisions (or indecisions), compounded over time, make all the difference in your life.

If you think about it, the Slight Edge can be put to work in any area of your life — your finances, your career, your health, your family, your relationship with God, etc, etc, etc.

So my challenge to myself… and you too if you’re up for it… is to make it habit to have the Slight Edge work FOR you rather than against you. Start with one area, then add another, then another.

Before you know it you’ll be moving up, up, up! You might not notice it today… or tomorrow… or even next week. But I guarantee you that 30 years from now, you’ll be sitting up high on that mountain very happy that you’ve been climbing instead of digging!

The quote I leave you with is this, from the Slight Edge written by Jeff Olson (of course)…

“Time will either promote you or expose you”

Hands down, one of my favorite things about my chosen profession is that you can incorporate your work into your already busy lifestyle.

I’ve always known this was possible, but it took a long time for me to actually “get it” — once I did though, my life and my business changed incredibly!

Admittedly, before I “got it” my day-to-day schedule was pretty boring. Like most people, I lived for the weekends and for vacations. One of the few advantages I had over the typical 9-5 person was that I was in charge of my schedule — but I was looking for more benefits than that.

I can’t pinpoint an exact moment when I began to make the shift… from living with two separate schedules (life and work) to blending my day into a fun mix of the two… I don’t believe there really was such a moment; more of a gradual change as my mind began to truly wrap around what was possible.

I have always read about lifestyling your business — it’s something I’ve heard about from many different trainers, and even taught on myself. It took several years though for me to finally begin living it!

Yesterday I spent less than 3 hours in the “office” — I was gone from 11:30 – 4:30 eating lunch, shopping and going to a movie with my Nana and my little sister. Talk about a rough Monday

While I was gone though, I met 4 prospective business partners… the man who processed my order at Kinkos; the waiter at Cheddars; and the two people behind the counter at KKs Craft Mall. If you’re a Network Marketer who is actively building a team, then you know prospecting is the lifeblood of your business. Without people to talk to, your business can’t grow, and your team cannot develop. I would have never met 4 people yesterday had I chosen to sit at home and “work” instead of to go out and “play” !

Sometimes I look at the giant calendar on my desk and wonder how on earth I ever get any work done…  appointments like shopping with my Mom, attending church functions and volunteering are scribbled all over it. Then I think back though and remember all the conversations that have come out of those activities. I think about all the presentations that have come out of those conversations, and all the new business partners (and friends) I will have the privilege of working with all because I chose to meld my work time with my play time.

I think back to the time, not too terribly long ago, when I would spend my work day making 50+ phone calls to prospects who had answered an ad online. This worked. I built a good business doing it. But it wasn’t NEAR as much fun as lifestyling! 

So my question to you is this — when you’re playing are you working, and when you’re working are you playing? If you’re not, then you haven’t truly discovered the joys of this industry! You shouldn’t stop living your life because you’re too busy working, but then neither should you stop working because you’re too busy living your life. If you will learn how to combine the two though, your life (and your business) will never be the same!

The quote I leave you with is this, by Arnold Glasgow:

“Make your life a mission — not an intermission.”

When was the last time you had a dream come true? I mean really, something you wanted very very badly — something you had hoped for, longed for, even maybe worked for. When was the last time you allowed yourself to dream so big that when that dream DID happen, you couldn’t wipe the smile off your face for days?

I had an experience like that recently

I’ve always been a big fan of dreaming… ask me what I want out of life and you will probably feel sorry for me by the time I’ve finished answering you because, well, I expect a lot of things!

One of those happens to be owning a horse again, competing in horse shows again, and having a state-of-the-art equestrian facility of my own.

Another facet of that dream is being able to donate a portion of my time and resources to therapeutic riding. It’s something I have ALWAYS had an interest in, and when the word “charity” comes up that’s instantly the first thing I think of!

Well, as of yesterday, I am one step closer to achieving that dream. I was lucky enough to find a friend who’s son is enrolled in hippotherapy at a local equestrian center. I went with her to one of his lessons, spoke to the person in charge and am attending my first orientation tonight.

Finally, after 2 years of not setting foot in a stirrup, I will be riding several days a week and helping to train and school some horses the center uses for their therapeutic riding program. On top of that, I will also be able to help out with the lessons the kids participate in, and even get involved in some Special Olympics events!

WOW — talk about not being able to wipe a smile off your face. That’s what is SO cool about dreaming… about putting things down on paper, setting a goal and then doing “whatever it takes” to make that goal a reality.

I had tried multiple times in the past to get in touch with this therapeutic riding program, but was unsuccessful. Then, when I was least expecting it, I found a connection and was able to jump in and achieve my goal!

So… what are your dreams? And even more importantly… what are you doing to move yourself closer to them?

The best part of dreaming big, is achieving big. So committ yourself to setting a goal and then doing whatever it takes to see it through — I can promise you, once it’s achieved, it will be worth it!

The quote I leave you with is this, by Walt Disney:

“If you can dream it, you can do it!”

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”

Would you rather have a penny, that will be put in a bank account with the total amount doubled every day for a month, or would you rather have 1 million dollars?

On impluse, most of us would probably choose the million dollars – however, I’m here to tell you… that would be a REALLY bad choice! You see, if you have a penny, and each day over the course of the month you double its value (Day 1: 1 cent, Day 2: 2 cents, Day 3: 4 cents, Day 4: 8 cents, etc…), by the end of the 30th day you would have over 5 MILLION dollars in that bank account!

Don’t believe me? Do the math!

This is the incredible value of what we call compound interest — and it works in ALL areas of your life; not just with pennies!

This was one of the many enlightenments I received while reading Jeff Olson’s incredible masterpiece, “The Slight Edge”

Everything we do in life is connected to compound interest — especially the little things! You know, those little things we do (or don’t do) every day that, when compounded over time, make ALL the difference!

It could be something like going to the gym — no, if you don’t go you aren’t going to die of a heartattack…today. But if make that little choice “not to workout today”, or this week, or this month, you will look up 20 years from now and find yourself overweight and out of shape. All of those “not todays” will have compounded over time to produce a very negative result!

But what if you choose TO workout today, and then you get up tomorrow and choose to workout that day too, and then get up the next day and choose to workout again?! Even if it is something as simple as spending 20 minutes jogging around your neighborhood, those 20 minutes a day, compounded over time, will produce a very POSITIVE result!

The same goes for eating healthy, putting a little money in a savings account, taking time to develop yourself daily, improving your performance in your career, enhancing your relationships, etc.

Most couples, when they are filing for divorce, cannot name “that one thing” that ended it all — normally, it’s “all the little things” that were… that’s right, compounded over time.

Take a minute to reflect on your day today, or even your last week — is your life heading up the success curve or down the steep slope of failure? When you look at the big picture, it can sometimes be hard to tell; but it’s those little actions (or inactions) each day that take you where you want to go.

Decide today to get on the success curve. No, you won’t see the results…today. You probably won’t even see them tomorrow, or the next day — or even the next week, or the next month. BUT when you continue to do those little things every day, in each area of your life, you WILL look up in 3 months, 6 months, 1 year, 5 years and see a VERY positive result!

The quote I leave you with is this, by the author of “The Slight Edge”, Jeff Olsen:

“Time will either promote you or expose you.”