One Success At a Time

Success is a fairly short word that packs a lot of power. It is the driving force behind every accomplishment. Goal attainment consists of many smaller successes along the way.

If your goal is to purchase a new vehicle at a reasonable interest rate, you must first be successful in managing your expenses, paying them in a timely manner and saving for a down payment. The accomplishment of each component denotes a personal success and will eventually lead to the ultimate success, the vehicle you desire.

Too often we associate success with a major win and forget that it took many smaller successes to reach the ultimate goal. We also often tend to wait until the major goal is accomplished before we celebrate.

Those who have received my newsletters over the last ten years are well aware of my belief that celebration should be a key component of our daily life. Every accomplishment should be cause for a thank you and a self-congratulatory pat on the back, thumbs up or fist pump.

Celebrating the little wins provides motivation to keep moving forward toward the bigger win. Also, knowing there is a reward at various milestones/mini-goals along the way gives us a short-term incentive, as we work towards the long-term endpoint.

Let’s also not forget the most important success of all. Upon awaking each day, I say, “Thank you” for another opportunity to learn, grow, share and love. Don’t take this success lightly or for granted. As I’ve recently experienced (with the unexpected death of a family member), you never know when a day might be your last. Cherish, be thankful and celebrate every day as a success bonus.

Try this for the next 30 days. Each evening, write in your journal, Blackberry, Ipad or any other place, one success of the day. You might even want to make it a family affair and use this exercise as a dinner table activity or topic of conversation. However, recording successes provides a record of accomplishments over time.

At the end of 30 days, review your recorded successes. You’ll be surprised at how many wins you’ve had (at least 30) and how much you’ve accomplished. Also, remember to set your milestone rewards in advance. Doing so will provide additional motivation to stay the course, drive for tackling future challenges and desire to set additional goals.

Let me know how you’re doing.  Post your successes in the comments section.

Stand Tall

"You have to have confidence in your ability, and then be tough enough to follow through."
Rosalyn Carter

Stand Tall

One of the biggest challenges we face is hanging in there when life doesn't go as we expected. Too often, we give up when we're closer to reaching our goals than we realize. When you feel like giving up, Stand Tall. When fear knots your stomach, Stand Tall. When others tell you it can't be done, Stand Tall. Persevere. When the going gets tough, Stand Tall for what you believe in. Stand Tall in the face of adversity.

Regardless of appearances, stay focused on where you want to go. It doesn't matter where you are now, where you've been or what other think about who you are. Keep the finish line in your mind's eye. If you should start to lose sight of your vision, direction or goal, here are some ways you can Stand Tall:

• Stay true to who you are, not what others want you to be.
• Do what's right, regardless of whether it's politically correct, or the "in" thing to do.
• Be kind to others, even when they may not have offered you the same courtesy.
• Take a risk, even if the outcome is uncertain. This "stepping out on faith" may be just what your spirit needs.
• Find ways to become more self-sufficient. Doing this may be uncomfortable, but you will stimulate personal growth and creativity.

Go for your dreams. Do something everyday that draws you closer to the life you dream about.

What are you waiting for? Beginning now, find more opportunities to Stand Tall, Get Tough, & Be All You Were Meant To Be. It all starts with a choice. You are the only one who gets to choose for you. Go ahead, choose your dreams and Stand Tall!

Kennette Reed

Lessons From The Fishermen

"The sea does not reward those who are too anxious, too greedy, or too impatient. To dig for treasures shows not only impatience and greed, but lack of faith. Patience, patience, patience, is what the sea teaches. Patience and faith."

Anne Morrow Lindbergh

I've been working on being more patient for the past seven years. This change in attitude started when I chose to leave my last job and start my current business. As a serial entrepreneur, this wasn't my first time around the block as a business owner. Though I began with an idea of what I'd do this time around, time and a desire to follow my passion, morphed that idea into something else. However, getting there was a process. It was, and continues to be, an exercise in patience.

We can learn a lot from fishermen. They take a line with bait on it and cast the line into a sea, lake or other body of water. To be effective, they must use their knowledge of:

• What the water has to offer (type of fish)
• When it is most likely to offer it
• What type of bait will be most interesting to their target fish
• What will most likely entice the fish to take the bait
• How to reel in the catch

With this knowledge, the fishermen cast a baited line into a large body of water and wait. They sit quietly and patiently with hope and belief of eventual success in attracting their target fish. Impatience is not a word associated with fishermen. It is understood, there are days when he may catch nothing and days when he will be rewarded with a bounty. Despite the uncertainty, each outing, he returns to the water with hope.

It's about patience, and to some extenet, relinquishing control. Though they can't see or control what lies beneath the surface, their faith in eventual success is unshaken. So, they adjust the type of bait, the location of their line casting or the time of day during which they fish. Then again, with faith, they wait.

I've read that impatience is a lack of faith. Too often we give up when our reward is at hand, because we can't see how or when it will come. As a friend once told me, "You are planting seeds. They will sprout in their time, not yours." Once you plant seeds (marketing efforts, prospecting, presentations, article writing, advertising, etc.), it doesn't matter how often you go out into the garden and tell them to grow. They will sprout when the conditions are right. Some seeds will never sprout. Your job is to plant them, nurture them (fertilizing, watering, etc.) and wait. And so it is in life. Choose the right bait, location and time for the type of fish you'd like to catch. Cast your lines into the water. Then, you wait with patience and faith. Don't give up. Don't give in.

How many times have you given up on a goal, an idea, a project or a person due to impatience or an inability to see the fruits of your labor (in what you thought was an acceptable timeframe)? What have you been or are you currently impatient about? Is it possible you gave up too soon? Is it possible to revisit that project, idea or relationship and give it more time, effort or energy?

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant."

Robert Louis Stevenson

Kennette Reed
http://www.resiliencecoach.com

Knock Three Times On The Ceiling

For some reason that old Tony Orlando and Dawn song, "Knock Three Times On The Ceiling" keeps going through my head. When my husband and I met, we lived in the same apartment building. I lived upstairs and he lived in the apartment directly below mine. We quickly became friends and came up with a system for letting the other know we wanted to talk (not sure why we didn't always use the phone). When I wanted him to phone me or come upstairs, I'd stomp on the floor three times. To let me know he got my signal, he'd take a broom handle and knock three times on the ceiling. If he didn't respond, I'd know he wasn't home. I know, it sounds silly now, but it was very effective.

Those thoughts led me to thinking about the many times we knock on doors during our lifetime. There are times when we knock and don't readily get an answer, or the answer we get wasn't the one we expected. Sometimes, we never bother to knock, because we believe no one will answer or we're afraid of the answer we'll receive.

Woody Allen is quoted as saying, "80 percent of success is just showing up." Yes, you must show up to even be able to knock on the door, but if you get there and never knock, what was the point in showing up in the first place? Futhermore, if you get there, knock on the door, but walk away in defeat when no one answers the first time, you eliminate the possibility of success. Success is more than just showing up. Success is showing up, remaining focused on why you showed up and not giving up until you accomplish your goal or shift your priorities (change your mind about the importance of your goal).

You see, as time passes, our priorities change. What's important today, may seem trivial in five years. But today, keep knocking. Knock three times, five times or whatever it takes. The key to success is, keeping your attention on intention.

Kennette Reed
http://www.kennettereed.com/
http://www.discoveringyourpassion.com/
http://www.stepsalongyourpath.com/
http://www.resiliencecoach.com/