Are You Achieving or Deceiving?

We are still in the beginning of a New Year.  Two months we are never going to get back in 2016, gone.  In December I talked about goal setting.  Did you set your goals for the New Year?  Is this going to be the year that you make a quantum leap in your life?  I am not talking about New Year's resolutions that everyone gets motivated to make and by now most are broken.  We all know that most people don't keep those resolutions.  What I'm talking about are real changes.   Even minor tweaking can make a difference if you want a more secure future.  Can you list some of your achievements so far?

I believe most people's biggest challenge is that they're unsure of what they really want or they think it's too big and they could never have it anyway. If you think about it, there's probably a way you could chunk down a big goal into something smaller and more manageable. Take baby steps.  Don't deceive yourself into thinking there is lots of time.  You will get around to taking some action, tomorrow.  Well today is tomorrow so now is the time to start.   

 

Still need help? Then maybe you better consider coming to my personal growth workshops that are being held throughout the year. Check our website for dates and locations, including the topics. 

Remember don't let another year fly by.  What are you going to do to make the most of this year?  This is no dress rehearsal.  We get one kick at the can so make it a good one.  Here’s to a fantastic, unbelievable 2016. It is not too late to make it the best yet.  No more deceiving yourself, you are an achiever. 

    

Happy New Year and an Attitude of Gratitude

This month I thought I would talk about how grateful I am for having you all in my life. All the people I have in my life are people that I want to be around.  Having gratitude for you, my health, my career, and my life, is putting out to the universe that in life, it is important to be grateful for all the little things we have each and every day.

When you reflect back either on last year or in a lot of the years previously, I'm sure you can find many things to be grateful for. What I'm talking about is the more grateful you are for the little things the more good things seem to happen to you. This is what's called the law of attraction. There has been a lot of talk in recent years about the law of attraction. Many people believe the more grateful and positive you are, the more the universe will bring back to you.  You attract a lot more in your life that's good when you are positive and grateful. With the law of attraction you do have to take some action.  Action is the last part of the word in attrACTION.

Have you ever noticed how some people seem to be very lucky?  We all know people who we envy a little bit. And it's not that we are jealous, but it always seems like good things keep happening to other people.  You may ask yourself why not me?  Have you ever stopped to analyze why those people seem to be so lucky?  It may be the law of attraction at work.  If that's the case why not try making some small changes in your life to have the law of attraction attracting things that you really want.

Remember you have to change your attitude, be grateful everyday, and take some action in the right direction and maybe 2016 will be your year.  

The Squeaky Wheel Gets the Oil

A few years ago when I was on a training course I learned a very valuable lesson.  That lesson was to ASK.  You may be wondering what you ask for.  You ask for anything you want.  If the answer is no, then it is no.  You have lost nothing because you did not have that thing you asked for in the first place.  If the answer is yes then you have now received something you wanted but were afraid to ask for.  So now you are better off because someone said yes.

So why am giving you this lesson in life?  I am giving you this lesson because it is time to start asking for discounts and other areas to save money.  One of my biggest pet peeve is to pay fees on things that I determine have no real value to me.  Whoever heard of paying a fee to find out how much money you owe a company?  I am referring in this example to cell phone bills.  You sign up for a service and you used to get a paper bill showing how much you owed.  Next thing you know the company tells you if you want to continue getting a paper bill you must pay for this privilege.  Well since I hate paying fees more than going on-line, I went on line. I like my paper cell bill because I actually look at it.

Thank goodness there were people who fought this injustice.  Apparently you can now ask to have your paper bill back with no fee.  Talk to your provider about waiving the fee on your paper bill, I did.  Not only am I getting my paper bill back without a fee but CRTC has banned three year contracts.   Now may be a great opportunity to renegotiate your monthly bill.  Remember no one is going to volunteer to save you money as I recently found out when I called.  My new cell phone plan offers a $10 a month savings with more data.

Remember it is up to you to ask.  Saving money has to be your decision.  No one will automatically do it for you.  Until next month, what is on your mind?

One Step Back, Two Steps Forward

Do you ever watch a child trying to walk?  In the beginning they fall on their butts more than once.  The thing with a child is they don't realize they are failing at something so they keep on trying until they succeed.  The child will eventually succeed at walking no matter how many times he or she falls down. 

Why is it as adults we are afraid to take a step back so we can move forward?  Most people are afraid to fail at something so most of us won't even try.  In life failure should be an option.  If you don't fail, you really don't get the valuable lesson that failure teaches us.  The most successful people are the ones that had the most failures.  The more you fail at something the more successful you should be in life.  I know that you have to understand the differences with failure.  You cannot go through school without trying, then failing, and think you will succeed at your chosen career. 

I am talking about taking a chance in trying something new.  Whether it is a sport or applying for a new job.  You won't know if you can do something until you try, fail and then learn from your mistake.

I met someone recently in my travels who had very successfully built an amazing business.  What he failed at was in planning his finances.  He overspent and over leveraged to a point where he found himself broke.  He went from rags to riches to rags again.  When this man looked at the failures he had had he took away some valuable lessons and today he is back financially sound and making better choices.  In this case this man needed to go broke to become a better person.  This was an extremely valuable lesson for him.  We all will take away a different lesson from a failure.  The point is learning and growing from all the steps back so we can move forward in life.

O' Holy Day, No Regrets

I know for most of you Christmas seems a long way off.  Wouldn't it be nice if this year you gave the holiday more thought and planning so you will not experience January blues when the credit card bills come in?  What if the day could be more about the true meaning of Christmas instead of a competition with the Jones's giving your children, friends and relatives the latest and greatest gifts stirred on by advertisers of course.  You should start seeing Christmas ads soon I am sure.

I remember growing up where families were large and money was tight.  Some of my best Christmas memories were being together as a family and having a few simple gifts.  We truly felt blessed.  Now for the most part Christmas is about an exchange of gift cards.  I thought this year I would help you to plan in advance by providing some food for thought so this will be the year your best memories get created.

First start making a list of the people you feel you want or need to buy for.  Then start thinking about what you can commit to for your Christmas budget.  You will have to budget some of your disposable income.  Choose an amount you can comfortably put aside each month without jeopardizing your current savings plans.  Allow for some extra since it is like a home renovation, it always costs more.  Assign a monetary value to each name. 

Next think about the person and what they would like.  If you were them, what would you enjoy receiving?  This may be something homemade like gift certificates of services you would do such as washing and waxing their car, making a meal, or offering to babysit someone's children.   Think of what the receiving person would appreciate.  If you have plans to purchase store bought gifts then start looking now and take advantage of sales.  Shopping now can really save you money because over time everything goes on sale up and until it gets closer to Christmas.  Retailers know you will pay anything as it gets closer to Christmas so few things go on sale.

If you really want to save money and have a lot of fun, you can plan for one family to host the holiday party or look for a restaurant with a private room and do a gift exchange.  If you have a lot of children within the immediate family you can have one dedicated to the children and another one for the adults.  You set a price limit say $50 and only buy a gift for that value.  If you get the gift on sale it will be even better. 

Nobody gets to know in advance who will receive the gift.  All gifts purchased are wrapped by the individual that will participate and put under the tree.  Each person draws a number and then gets to go in order to pick something from the tree.  The next person that picks a gift has a choice from under the tree or a gift already chosen and opened.  The person that picks at the end gets their choice of gift.  It is the most fun because you won't really know what you will end up with until the very end.  You can wrap the gift in disguise to make it even more fun. 

We did this one year and had the most fun that even the children enjoyed it.  Everyone got to see what the other person got and had a lot of laughs doing it.  If this is done at one person's home then the family members coming over will bring a main dish of food so no one gets stuck doing all the work and expense of hosting. 

A restaurant is easy because there is no mess and you know exactly in advance how much it will cost each person.  Try thinking outside the box this year and remember what Christmas is really all about.  Celebrate in a way that brings families closer together.  Make January blues a thing of the past.  No regrets.

Sharing, caring and saving you money

Summer is a time when there is a lot of activity going on.  Houses are being

bought and sold; renovations are happening; vacations are being taken.  It

recently came to my attention that even though we live in great communities

around this country that there are still a lot of people unsure who to do

business with. Whether you need your air conditioning serviced or have a

major project like landscaping to do, how and where do you find the trades

you trust?

Given that a lot of business is done by referrals I thought this month would

be a good opportunity for my clients to share their stories and trades people

with the rest of our community.  I will put the trades in categories and

addresses so other clients can use your great person.  I only want names

and contact information from people that you were extremely happy with

their services and that you also felt gave you good value for the money you

paid.

Names will go on the website but will only stay on as long as the service

person continues to provide excellent services to our clients.  We all want to

know we can trust the person to provide services in our best interest and

not be self-serving.  

We are looking for names in every category you can think of that has

provided some service to you such as lawyers; doctors; accountants;

salespersons (in any industry); handyman; landscapers; hairdressers; etc. 

If you know of someone please submit all their contact information to us.

Thanks for sharing and for caring.

“What’s easy to do, is also easy not to do.” Quote from Jim Rohn.

I talk to my mother almost everyday.  My mother is typical of a lot
 of people and she finds it hard to get herself motivated to do things 
on her own.  In fact on my personal side I would say I take after my 
mother.  Luckily for me I take after my father when it comes to being 
and staying motivated on the business side.  In any event I have to try 
to get my mother to do things that will benefit her on the health side 
without having her rely on other people.
 
What I am talking about
 is getting up and walking across the street to the mall.  My mother is 
84 years old and in pretty good health.  I want my mother to stay 
healthy so I have to encourage my mother to go for a walk.  The mall is 
right across the street from where my mother lives.  Walking is not only
 good physically but it is also a really good mental workout.  When you 
see other people, and you are outside enjoying the sun or taking in the 
activities at the mall, you feel like you are a part of something and 
not isolated.
 
Well it is easy to do, but as the title says it is
 also easy not to do.  In life we are faced almost daily with things we 
know we should do that are easy and would surely make a difference in 
our life, but we find it is just as easy not to do so we don't do it and
 then wonder why our life is turning out different.