Get your notepad and pen ready because this episode of The Wednesday Call will be filled with laughter and learning with your special guest host Stephen Davies.
Davies stood in for Andy Albright on this week’s The Wednesday Call podcast while Andy was on a safari trip with his son in Africa. Davies, who lives in Asheville, N.C., is a regular guest host for the show and he never disappoints with his unique brand of humor, wit and insight.
The Alliance wants people to enjoy the freedom of being able to make choices because you are at a point financially where you get to choose what you do and where you go every single day. Davies encouraged members of The Alliance to build a big business so that you can slide away for a trip with family whenever you want to. He just did that with his family last week, when they went to Mexico for an end-of-summer vacation with his wife and two children.
Money is easy to make, but memories are not as easy. If you work hard, recruit people to help you and be nice to people, then you can make the income it takes to go and do whatever you want.
What gets people stuck in the mud of life? Why do some people give up and live another 40 years just going through the motions. Why do they give up on their dreams and goals when they have so much left to do?
Davies told the listeners that there are three main things that get people frozen in life.
Don’t take things personal. When you “personalize it,” nothing good can come out of it. When you take something personally, you get down on yourself and think bad thoughts. Most of the time what you are dealing with has nothing to do with you, so why would you make it personal? If something negative is going on, don’t take it personal. It is not about you. We can always get better at different things, but the bad stuff isn’t about you and it isn’t personal.
Don’t make things pervasive. There are nights when you don’t close with a client that you should, but that mean there is some infinite flaw with you. Eliminate saying things like always, never and all. Don’t let one experience define your life.
Along those lines, don’t let anything be permanent. When you have a bad experience, make it a point to correct and improve instead of saying, “well, that’s how it will be from now on.” No!
When you let things be personal, pervasive and permanent then you are in trouble. It’s hard to get out of that funk because you have headed down a slippery slope. Life might seem foggy. You might be in a funk. Here’s the good news: YOU can get out of it with enthusiasm and effort. You are the reason you are in the bad spot and you can fix it as easily as you ended up in the hole you think you are in.
Here’s who you fix things.
You are in control. When you know that, life is easier. You can control your attitude, your activity, your outlook, your smile, the people you spend time with, etc. Make a list and get serious about changing what you are doing to make things better. The faster or sooner you can do this the sooner things will get better.
Controlling your actions is critical to changing your situation. Get specific about exactly what you can change and control so that you get better. The best way to get out of a mud puddle is to start moving. Figure out what direction you need to go in and start taking steps. You can control everything you do. Reading the right material, listening to audios and talking to the right people are all things you can control. Be very specific about it and take action!
Learn to celebrate even the smallest victories to build the momentum to make giant changes down the road. It starts with small things and it all adds up. Don’t make the mistake of watching the scoreboard all the time. Do be aware of the activity and level of your actions. Don’t let numbers affect you in a negative way.
The next step in getting out of a mud puddle is making a list of thoughts you will never think again. Make a list on paper and commit to it. Set a time limit to do this, but get it all down on paper. Once you have your list, you are going to work to debunk the entire list one item at a time. You are capable of so much more than you realize. It will blow your mind. Commit to never thinking the thoughts on your list.
People performing at a high level are thinking differently than those who are less successful. When you are thinking the right thoughts, you are going to perform better.
The fourth thing to focus on is your vocabulary and having definiteness to what you are saying. Do you need to change your talk? Use words like I am, I will, I do, etc. Hope is not a strategy. Hope talk doesn’t get you out of a mud puddle.
Are you around the right people? You have to build relationships and be part of a community that is positive. Get to know people before you need them. Create something special that impacts you in positive ways. Serve others and you will be rewarded.
The next thing you need to focus on is reflection. Make a victory log that you can refer to when you need a positive reinforcement to help you stay on track. These wins can be small, medium or huge. It all matters. Keep building your victory log over time. No victory is too small to celebrate.
When you are helping serve others then you are not likely to be thinking about the bad stuff. Focusing on serving and helping others is huge. The more you can do that the better off you will be even if you can’t see it at the time.
When you are serving others, you are going to create results. It will help fill your confidence bucket up. Your whole outlook on everything will be drastically improved. Don’t just serve others when it is convenient. Do it all the time because it is the right thing to do. Serving others is a choice and it will give you more energy and enthusiasm in all that you do.
You will have more gratitude when you help others. You will gain new perspectives that will broaden your view of life and the world around you. Serving others will also give you more experiences and help you better understand situations and opportunities that you might have missed otherwise.
We are all going to deal with challenges and struggles, but if you can keep your mind right then you will be able to navigate the mud puddles in life faster and easier than if you get bogged down by what you are facing.