The Art of Exceptional Living

The process of human change begins within us. We all have tremendous potential. We all desire good results from our efforts. Most of us are willing to work hard and to pay the price that success and happiness demand. Each of us has the ability to put our unique human potential into action and to acquire a desired result. But the one thing that determines the level of our potential—that produces the intensity of our activity and predicts the quality of the result we receive—is our attitude. Attitude determines how much of the future we are allowed to see. It decides the size of our dreams and influences our determination when we are faced with new challenges. No other person on earth has dominion over our attitude. People can affect our attitude by teaching us poor thinking habits or unintentionally misinforming us or providing us with negative sources of influence, but no one can control our attitude unless we voluntarily surrender that control. No one else "makes us angry.&q

What kind of reading material is on your coffee table? Or do you not have enough time to read with all the television that you watch? OK, so what kind of programs are you watching on television? The sad truth is that most people spend more time being mindlessly entertained than they do developing their skills and learning their craft. So why is it not good? It is not good because it is not yet a reality! A dream is no good if it is only a dream. Sure a dream can make you feel good, but long term, if you don’t pursue it and make it a reality, it will cause you frustration more than anything. But there is hope! So what are you doing right now to further your education in what you’re passionate about? Are you waiting for the right opportunity to come knocking before you will develop the skills you will need for it? Get ready now! The more information you have, the more advantage you have over the people who don’t. Reading for just one hour a day will greatly increase your level

Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying basic fundamentals. There are no new fundamentals. You've got to be a little suspicious of someone who says, "I've got a new fundamental." That's like someone inviting you to tour a factory where they are manufacturing antiques. Some things you have to do every day. Eating seven apples on Saturday night instead of one a day just isn't going to get the job done. Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day; while failure is simply a few errors in judgment, repeated every day. It is the accumulative weight of our disciplines and our judgments that leads us to either fortune or failure.

One of the difficulties we face in our industrialized age is the fact we’ve lost our sense of seasons. Unlike the  farmer whose priorities change with the seasons, we have become impervious to the natural rhythm of life. As a result, we have our priorities out of balance. Let me illustrate what I mean: For a farmer, springtime is his most active time. It’s then when he must work around the clock, up before the sun and still toiling at the stroke of midnight. He must keep his equipment running at full capacity because he has but a small window of time for the planting of his crop. Eventually winter comes when there is less for him to do to keep him busy. There is a lesson here. Learn to use the seasons of life. Decide when to pour it on and when to ease back, when to take advantage and when to let things ride. It’s easy to keep going from nine to five year in and year out and lose a natural sense of priorities and cycles. Don’t let one year blend into another in a seemingly endless pa

Planning I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps that is because escape is easier than change. If you don't design your own life plan, chances are you'll fall into someone else's plan. And guess what they may have planned for you? Not much. The reason why most people face the future with apprehension instead of anticipation is because they don't have it well designed. The guy says, "When you work where I work, by the time you get home, it's late. You've got to have a bite to eat, watch a little TV, relax and get to bed. You can't sit up half the night planning, planning, planning." And he's the same guy who is behind on his car payment!

A reader once sent me an email thanking me for a column I had written on getting outside the box. She told me how she had lost focus for a while, but had turned things around. She encouraged me to write a column on staying focused. I immediately thought of my varsity golfing days at the University of Minnesota many years ago. Back then The Saint Paul Open was one of the top tournaments on the men’s professional golf circuit. Prior to the tournament, I had a chance to meet Gary Player when he was taking a lesson from our team coach, Les Bolstad. Later that evening I went to dinner with the world’s future No. 1 player when he was still an unknown. The following day at The Saint Paul Open, I saw Gary after he teed off the first hole and ran up to him to say hi. I wanted to tell him what a great time I had the night before. His steely eyes remained focused on the fairway ahead and he never broke stride. “Harvey, please don’t talk to me. I must concentrate. I will see you when I’

When I still was in a Network Marketing Business I was very intrigued by the book the Secret and many of business partner were very fascinated in reading and watching this book/movie. Indeed it contains a very valuable information about the Law of Attraction. I found a power point presentation which describes whole book in 24 slides. After going through this presentation, you will get the basic ideas about the book and it will present a detailed summary before you. You may decide to read the book or see the movie. Enjoy the book review presentation. Feel free to comment. The Secret in Nutshell from Every Day is New Day To purchase the book, you can click: The Secret

One of my friends introduced me to  Jim Rohn  when I was still in college saying: “If you really want to change your life, read Jim Rohn”. I am thankful to my friend for introducing me to Jim Rohn. When I tried to find a few books by Jim Rohn, I came across this really interesting book:  The Five Major Pieces to the Life puzzle. Jim Rohn has been termed as America’s foremost business philosopher. By age 25 (according to his accounts), he was an ordinary, average middle class person like any middle-class family and was in debt, unable to see a way that would lead to his personal ambitions. Around this time, he was introduced to  John Earl Shoaff , an entrepreneur who impressed Rohn with his wealth, business accomplishments, charisma and life philosophy. Rohn joined Shoaff’s direct sales organization, and began a process of personal development that culminated in his becoming a millionaire by age 31. Jim Rohn says: Change comes from one of two sources: 1. Desperation or 2.

If you want to live an exceptional life, listen to  Jim Rohn ! Ideas provided by Jim Rohn are not only exceptional but I can surely state that once we decide to apply what he has said, we can live an exceptional life. Test for yourself. In this post, I would like to share seven key ideas from his audio programs. If you want to remain motivated and inspired in day to day life, my recommendation: Jim Rohn’s audio program. Here are the ten ideas. Take time to think on these and share your thoughts: 1. A prayer for every day: Don’t wish it was easier, wish you were better. Don’t wish for less problems. Wish for more skills. Don’t wish for less challenges, wish for more wisdom. 2. On action: If you keep doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what youve always gotten. 3. On success: Success is neither magical nor mysterious. Success is the natural consequence of consistently applying the basic fundamentals. 4. On making fortune: Formal education will make you

Ask someone why he went to work for his present company or why he bought his current car or house. Some people are motivated primarily by necessity, rather than by what they want. They do something because they must. They’re not pulled to take action by what is possible. They’re not looking for infinite varieties of experience. They go through life taking what comes and what is available. When they need a new job or a new house or a new car, or even a new spouse, they go out and accept what is available. Others are motivated to look for possibilities. They’re motivated less by what they have to do than by what they want to do. They seek options, experiences, choices, and paths. The person who is motivated by necessity is interested in what’s known and what’s secure. The person who is motivated by possibility is equally interested in what’s not known. He wants to know what can evolve, what opportunities might develop. If you were an employer, which kind of person would you most wa

Nothing can bring more joy to life than beautifully fulfilling relationships. The depth of meaning, understanding and appreciation that these kinds of relationships bring is almost unfathomable. And, of course, as many people find out, nothing can bring so much pain as a broken relationship with someone dear to you. Yes, relationships make the world go ‘round. For better or for worse. But the exciting thing is that we can do much to increase our chances of having terrific relationships—relationships that are fulfilling and exciting, rich with meaning, joy and love. There are basics that govern most human relationships, and these basics are what I want to cover below. So here is my list of the eight essentials that I believe make up the basics of healthy relationships.                                                                 Love.  Now, this all depends on your definition of love. Most people think that love is a feeling, but I would strongly debate that point. Actu

Pe rseverance is about as important to achievement as gasoline is to driving a car. Sure, there will be times when you feel like you’re spinning your wheels, but you’ll always get out of the rut with genuine perseverance. Without it, you won’t even be able to start your engine. The opposite of perseverance is procrastination. Perseverance means you never quit. Procrastination usually means you never get started, although the inability to finish something is also a form of procrastination. Ask people why they procrastinate and you’ll often hear something like this: “I’m a perfectionist. Everything has to be just right before I can get down to work. No distractions, not too much noise, no telephone calls interrupting me, and of course I have to be feeling well physically, too. I can’t work when I have a headache.” The other end of procrastination—being unable to finish—also has a perfectionist explanation: “I’m just never satisfied. I’m my own harshest critic. If all the i’s aren’

Studies have proven that attitude is one of the traits that separate average salespeople from their highly-successful colleagues. I have to believe that it’s true in life in general, not just sales.  Think about the happiest, most successful people you know. How do you usually find them? Are they depressed, negative or even apathetic? I doubt it. They’re probably upbeat, smiling and positive about life. Why not take the same positive interested attitude you have toward your hobbies and transfer your passion to your ability to sell yourself, your ideas, or the end results of your hobby? Instead of turning your selling job into a hobby, why not take the hobby you love so much and figure out how to market it or yourself? I’m not saying this change will make you a millionaire, but money isn’t the only measure of success. If you could support yourself comfortably on the earnings from your ho

Communication/Persuasion Better understated than overstated. Let people be surprised that it was more than you promised and easier than you said. For effective communication, use brevity. Jesus said, "Follow me." Now that's brief! He could be brief because of all that he was that he didn't have to say. You cannot speak that which you do not know. You cannot share that which you do not feel. You cannot translate that which you do not have. And you cannot give that which you do not possess. To give it and to share it, and for it to be effective, you first need to have it. Good communication starts with good preparation. The goal of effective communication should be for listeners to say, "Me, too!" verses "So what?" Learn to express, not impress. Effective communication is 20% what you know and 80% how you feel about what you know.

The key to making life really unique and worthwhile is to share. Sharing has a certain unique magic of its own. Here’s what I learned in sharing ideas. If you share an idea with ten different people, they get to hear it once, and you get to hear it ten times. So here’s part of self-interest for yourself, getting you even better prepared for the future. Share ideas. Share with your family, share with the people around you, share with other employees, share with your colleagues. Because, by sharing, two things happen. Here’s what we call it. I don’t know how to explain it, but I do know it happens. And I don’t know all about how it happens or why it happens, it just happens. When one person shares with another, two things happen. The audience could be transformed, and so could the speaker. If you share with someone else, they could be transformed. You may have dropped in at the right time. This may be their moment. They’ve got three numbers dialed into the lock already, and

If you want to be a leader who attracts quality people, the key is to become a person of quality yourself. Leadership is the ability to attract someone to the gifts, skills, and opportunities you offer as an owner, as a manager, as a parent. What’s important in leadership is refining your skills. All great leaders keep working on themselves until they become effective. Here are some specifics: Learn to be strong but not impolite. It is an extra step you must take to become a powerful, capable leader with a wide range of reach. Some people mistake rudeness for strength. It’s not even a good substitute. Next, learn to be kind but not weak. We must not mistake weakness for kindness. Kindness isn’t weak. Kindness is a certain type of strength. We must be kind enough to tell someone the truth. We must be kind enough and considerate enough to lay it on the line. We must be kind enough to tell it like it is and not deal in delusion. Next, learn to be bold but not a bully. I

I used to think that as I gained maturity and experience I would make fewer mistakes. I thought, "I'm going to get better at this, because I made a lot of mistakes in the beginning." I believed that there would come a day when I wouldn't make very many mistakes, because I'd get better. What I learned was that as I gained maturity and experience, I would continue to make mistakes, but I would learn more quickly from them. What I found out was that I didn't lower my "mistake quota" but I learned better from my mistakes, and it's because of maturity. Maturity helps us learn more quickly from our mistakes and here are the reasons why: 1. We become more self-confident.  As we become more self-confident, we're willing to admit things that we would not admit if we had lower self-image. 2. We realize that mistakes are not usually fatal.  It was a happy day for me when I realized that when I made a mi