Dear Friend:
Today I want to share some "guidelines
for a successful life" that you
may not have come across in your
formal educational process. I
unashamedly describe myself as a formerly
shy, low-self-esteem underachiever
with a bad attitude — in
other words, I was a pretty normal
young adult. You may be able to relate
to that, along with feeling lost,
confused, scared, frustrated, and
depressed about your prospects for
the future. If that's the case, don't
despair — I believe most people have
a similar experience, something like:
"OK — I've got my degree(s) ... now
what?" Relax — you're not crazy, and
you're not stupid — you just haven't
been given a REAL education on what
it takes to be successful.
So here are a few guidelines and
resources I can share that helped me
get it together:
Mission Statement
In his classic book Think and Grow
Rich, Napoleon Hill interviewed over
500 highly successful people and
found they all had what he called "a
chief definite aim or major purpose."
So the first step in creating a successful
life is to define your mission. To
quickly build your own Mission
Statement online, visit www.nightingale.
com/mission. If you need more
clarity on your career direction, simply
do an Internet search on "career
assessments" — you'll find a number
of free online assessments to help
you narrow down your choices.
Positive Mental Attitude
Henry Ford was quoted as saying,
"If you think you can, or if you think
you can't, you're right." It's critical for
all of us to believe in ourselves, regardless
of our current situation, because
our circumstances can only improve if
we believe they can. I highly recommend
Dr. Norman Vincent Peale's
book The Power of Positive Thinking.
Goal Setting
Once you've created a Mission
Statement and believe you can achieve
it, you'll then need to set your goals in
the four major areas of life: Mental
(your career and financial goals),
Physical (the shape of your body and
what you put in it), Emotional (your
relationships), and Spiritual (those
things that help your spirit soar). The
best teacher of goal setting is Brian
Tracy.
Time Management
You can then manage your time
based upon your goals in these four
areas of life. I highly recommend you
get a daily planner, then set an
appointment with yourself every
weekend to schedule all your activities
for the upcoming week — you'll
sleep well on Sunday night if you do,
because you will have a plan. The
only people who fear Mondays are
people who don't know what to
expect. First Things First by Stephen
Covey is a fine book to help you do
this right.
Visualization
All great athletes, from the professional
ranks to the Olympians, use
mental rehearsal to picture successful
outcomes in their sports. It's no different
for you. The basic technique is to
put yourself in a relaxed state, breathing
deeply with your eyes closed. Then use a "preprogrammed daydream"
to see yourself achieving your
goals, whether it's completing a project,
closing a deal, being in great
shape, or improving a relationship.
Check out Shakti Gawain's book
Creative Visualization.
Lifelong Learning
I was not the best student in high
school — I graduated with a 1.74 grade
point average because I refused to take
studying seriously. I'm now very serious
about not only my success, but
especially the success of my clients. So I now have an annual learning goal
— since 1998 I've read over 40 books a
year related to my field. I've come to
realize that when we stop learning,
we're dead. No budget for books right
now? No problem — your local library
has all the books you'll need. You can
get a wealth of information by reading
past issues of AdvantEdge online at
www.AdvantEdgeMag.com.
Humor
Finally, you GOTTA laugh at life! A
well-honed sense of humor will help
you keep perspective on your life,
especially during the inevitable tough
times, so you can stay focused on success
without taking any setbacks personally.
My best "coaches" on this?
Rodney Dangerfield, Richard Pryor,
Jim Carrey, and The Marx Brothers'
movies.
I hope you find these guidelines and
resources helpful and begin to apply
them today. In the long run they'll
bring you the satisfaction of a life well
lived.
My best regards,
Jim "Da Coach"
PS — I didn't fully embrace all these
ideas until I was in my 40s — and so
can you!
Since developing his first coaching
program in 1982, Success Skills Coach
Jim Rohrbach, "The Personal Fitness
Trainer for Your Business," has
coached hundreds of business owners,
entrepreneurs, and sales professionals
on increasing their clientele.
Learn more about Success Skills Coach Jim Rohrbach.
To find out how a Nightingale-Conant
coach can help you become a high
achiever, call us at 877.512.3100 to
speak with a coaching representative.
