Mission: Excellence

Posted on September 29, 2010

Wow …Wow and Wow….This article that I just read from www.Successmagazine.com is fantastic I had to share it here for you to read..

Pilot Waldo Waldman here relates his flying to living Life…I’m sure you will enjoy this as much as I did…

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Mission: Excellence
Pilot Waldo Waldman says how you respond to challenges determines the altitude you’ll reach in life.

Waldo Waldman
Imagine being strapped into a single-seat fighter jet at 25,000 feet above enemy territory. You tear through the pitch-black sky at the speed of sound in a cockpit so small there’s barely enough room to shrug your shoulders. You must maintain laser-like focus as you operate dozens of weapons and sensors and fend off surface-to-air missiles.

This was a typical day in my life as an F-16 fighter pilot. But, despite the challenges of combat, I loved every minute of my U.S. Air Force career. I was constantly pushed to my limits and challenged to break my performance barriers. Because in addition to the missiles I faced in combat, I also faced the missiles of adversity and fear. My battles didn’t just occur over the skies of Iraq; they happened each day as I struggled to overcome my fear of failure, self-doubt and a lifelong battle with claustrophobia.

You and I have more in common than you may think. Sure, I’ve flown fighter jets, but we both have to dodge the missiles of change, fear and adversity as we seek to fulfill our mission objective. The flight path to success is never easy, and to stay on target we have to earn our wings every day.

Regardless of profession, missiles will threaten to keep us from reaching our potential. How we respond to those challenges will ultimately determine the altitude we reach in life. I learned many powerful lessons in combat that helped me break my performance barriers, and I would like to share four of them with you. They have worked for me as a pilot, entrepreneur and professional speaker, and I am confident they will work for you.

Push It Up: Commitment is attitude in action.
Before flying a mission in the 35th Fighter Squadron in Korea, my wingmen and I called out three words while simulating pushing the throttle to full power. Those words were “Push it up!” It meant we were 100 percent committed to the mission and had each other’s backs.

In today’s constantly changing and stressful world filled with budget cuts, layoffs, and limited resources, it’s not a matter of if the missiles of adversity will come your way, it’s when. They key is not to get shot down. The question you must ask yourself is, are you willing to face the missiles or will you abort the mission because of your fear?

You have a choice each day: You can either push it up and stay committed to your mission, or you can pull it back and allow yourself to be discouraged by adversity. The key is to take action. Living up to your potential means resisting the temptation to ease up and pull back on the throttle of commitment when the missiles start flying. This is where your character and courage are tested. Growth comes when you face the missiles and stay the course to reach your goals.

This type of commitment takes effort and discipline. One of my favorite sayings is “The more you sweat in peace, the less you bleed in battle.” Winners work. They sweat, sacrifice and take action. They avoid becoming complacent when things are going well. Remember, complacency kills.

Mission-Ready: Preparation leads to confidence and success.
One thing was certain when my wingmen and I strapped into our F-16s: We never flew by the seat of our pants. We prepared relentlessly, studied the threat, and knew our tactics inside and out. By the time we took off, we were mission-ready. One of the keys to our planning success was our focus on “chair flying” every possible contingency. We mentally rehearsed every missile launch, engine failure and aircraft malfunction. We did this on the ground, so that in the heat of battle, we would be able to confidently execute the plan.

How do you prepare for your missions? Are you mission-ready? Do you execute a well-prepared plan, or do you fly by the seat of your pants and simply react when adversity strikes? Preparation is a critical factor to reaching your potential. Study your competition, stay current on new technologies, attend seminars on personal development, leverage social media to build your brand and practice responses to business objections before heading into battle. When you rehearse for success, you’re much more likely to achieve it. Preparation leads to confidence and confidence builds trust. Trust sells. Remember, Wingmen never “wing it!”

Check Six: Mutual support inspires trust and leads to success.
When I was a young instructor pilot, I committed a major faux pas by missing a critical flight briefing. I accidently slept through my alarm and my negligence cost the squadron valuable training time. I was subsequently grounded from flying that day and I expected to be reprimanded by my commander (a rather intimidating officer whose call sign was “Psycho.”) But instead of the reprimand I expected, he asked a few questions that changed my opinion of him as a leader. “This isn’t like you Waldo. You’re never late. Are you feeling all right? Is everything OK at home?” His questions surprised me, but they also made me feel appreciated.

Psycho showed me he cared by the questions he asked. He connected with me as a person, not just a fighter pilot. In fighter-pilot lingo, Psycho was checking my six.

Fighter pilots provide mutual support by checking six, or watching for threats in their wingman’s most vulnerable blind spot—directly behind them (i.e., their six o’clock). Checking six is about keeping an eye out for the missiles being fired at your teammate, co-worker or friend. It means helping them see what they cannot. It also means respecting your wingmen, being receptive to critical feedback and having the courage to give honest feedback.

We all have blind spots, negative habits and personal emergencies that may limit our potential. But when we have a wingman in our formation who has our best interest in mind and who can help see what we can’t, we’re less likely to get shot down.

How are you acknowledging, appreciating and connecting with your wingmen? Do you have the courage to tell them what they need to hear, and not just what they want to hear? Are you checking their six or are you checking out?

When you build a check-six culture of mutual support at work and at home, you help create an environment of trust where people aren’t afraid to make mistakes or take risks. Most important, it helps people to push it up and take action when the missiles start flying.

Release Your Brakes: Find the courage to face your fears and take off.
The greatest factor in limiting our potential is fear. I remember being overwhelmed by fear on many combat missions. Rather than trying to eliminate it, I learned to shift my focus by “thinking outside my cockpit.” I looked outside to my wingmen and realized that even though I was flying alone, I wasn’t flying solo. Their support gave me confidence and helped dissipate my fear. I also looked down at a picture of my niece and nephew. They reminded me of what was important in my life, and how I needed to get back home for them. They gave meaning to my mission and helped me build the courage to push up my throttle, release the brakes, and take off.

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Why Failure Is Good for Success

Posted on September 23, 2010

Hi…..

I had to share this article from the **Seeds of Success ***
When I read this they were talking to me. I have been a business owner and Company owner, really I think I have tried most things with different levels of success.

So I considered that I had failed but at least I had tried and knew that I deserved to Live the Life of my dreams..
Anyone that says they have never failed has never attempted anything.

So I stand proud of my failures.
Those failures also made me look for more ways to improve my Life and this is where I discovered my new business.
The best part is I have discovered Personal Development that has me on the most amazing journey with the most incredible people.

So very grateful for my past experiences and that is the most important lesson of all …

********Be Grateful for your amazing Life as it is now************

********You have to learn that you are ************

“The Absolute Supreme Authority Over Your Own Life”

I hope this article helps you know that you can…
Fail your way to Success**I know because I did..

Chrissy

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Why Failure Is Good for Success
To achieve the greatest success, you have to embrace the prospect of failure.

The sweetest victory is the one that’s most difficult. The one that requires you to reach down deep inside, to fight with everything you’ve got, to be willing to leave everything out there on the battlefield—without knowing, until that do-or-die moment, if your heroic effort will be enough.

Society doesn’t reward defeat, and you won’t find many failures documented in history books. The exceptions are those failures that become steppingstones to later success. Such is the case with Thomas Edison, whose most memorable invention was the light bulb, which purportedly took him 1,000 tries before he developed a successful prototype. “How did it feel to fail 1,000 times?” a reporter asked. “I didn’t fail 1,000 times,” Edison responded. “The light bulb was an invention with 1,000 steps.”

Unlike Edison, many of us avoid the prospect of failure. In fact, we’re so focused on not failing that we don’t aim for success, settling instead for a life of mediocrity. When we do make missteps, we gloss over them, selectively editing out the miscalculations or mistakes in our life’s résumé.

“Failure is not an option,” NASA flight controller Jerry C. Bostick reportedly stated during the mission to bring the damaged Apollo 13 back to Earth, and that phrase has been etched into the collective memory ever since.

To many in our success-driven society, failure isn’t just considered a non-option—it’s deemed a deficiency, says Kathryn Schulz, author of Being Wrong: Adventures in the Margin of Error. “Of all the things we are wrong about, this idea of error might well top the list,” Schulz says. “It is our meta-mistake: We are wrong about what it means to be wrong. Far from being a sign of intellectual inferiority, the capacity to err is crucial to human cognition.”

Life’s Greatest Teacher
When we take a closer look at the great thinkers throughout history, a willingness to take on failure isn’t a new or extraordinary thought at all. From the likes of Augustine, Darwin and Freud to the business mavericks and sports legends of today, failure is as powerful a tool as any in reaching great success.

“Failure and defeat are life’s greatest teachers [but] sadly, most people, and particularly conservative corporate cultures, don’t want to go there,” says Ralph Heath, managing partner of Synergy Leadership Group and author of Celebrating Failure: The Power of Taking Risks, Making Mistakes and Thinking Big. “Instead they choose to play it safe, to fly below the radar, repeating the same safe choices over and over again. They operate under the belief that if they make no waves, they attract no attention; no one will yell at them for failing because they generally never attempt anything great at which they could possibly fail (or succeed).”

However, in today’s post-recession economy, some employers are no longer shying away from failure—they’re embracing it. According to a recent article in BusinessWeek, many companies are deliberately seeking out those with track records reflecting both failure and success, believing that those who have been in the trenches, survived battle and come out on the other side have irreplaceable experience and perseverance. They’re veterans of failure.

The prevailing school of thought in progressive companies—such as Intuit, General Electric, Corning and Virgin Atlantic—is that great success depends on great risk, and failure is simply a common byproduct. Executives of such organizations don’t mourn their mistakes but instead parlay them into future gains.

“The quickest road to success is to possess an attitude toward failure of ‘no fear,’ ” says Heath. “To do their work well, to be successful and to keep their companies competitive, leaders and workers on the front lines need to stick their necks out a mile every day. They have to deliver risky, edgy, breakthrough ideas, plans, presentations, advice, technology, products, leadership, bills and more. And they have to deliver all this fearlessly—without any fear whatsoever of failure, rejection or punishment.”

Reaching Your Potential

The same holds true for personal quests, whether in overcoming some specific challenge or reaching your full potential in all aspects of life. To achieve your personal best, to reach unparalleled heights, to make the impossible possible, you can’t fear failure, you must think big, and you have to push yourself.

When we think of people with this mindset, we imagine the daredevils, the pioneers, the inventors, the explorers: They embrace failure as a necessary step to unprecedented success.

But you don’t have to walk a tightrope, climb Mount Everest or cure polio to employ this mindset in your own life. When the rewards of success are great, embracing possible failure is key to taking on a variety of challenges, whether you’re reinventing yourself by starting a new business or allowing yourself to trust another person to build a deeper relationship.

“To achieve any worthy goal, you must take risks,” says writer and speaker John C. Maxwell. In his book Failing Forward: Turning Mistakes into Stepping Stones for Success, he points to the example of legendary aviator Amelia Earhart, who set several records and achieved many firsts in her lifetime, including being the first female pilot to fly solo over the Atlantic Ocean. Although her final flight proved fateful, Maxwell believes she knew the risk—and that the potential reward was worth it. “[Earhart’s] advice when it came to risk was simple and direct: ‘Decide whether or not the goal is worth the risks involved. If it is, stop worrying.’ ”

Of course, the risks you take should be calculated; you shouldn’t fly blindly into the night and simply hope for the best. Achieving the goal or at least waging a heroic effort requires preparation, practice and some awareness of your skills and talents.

Easing Into a Fearless Mindset

“One of the biggest secrets to success is operating inside your strength zone but outside of your comfort zone,” Heath says. Although you might fail incredibly, you might succeed incredibly—and that’s why incredible risk and courage are requisite. Either way, you’ll learn more than ever about your strengths, talents and resolve, and you’ll strengthen your will for the next challenge.

If this sounds like dangerous territory, it can be. But there are ways to ease into this fearless mindset. The first is to consciously maintain a positive attitude so that, no matter what you encounter, you’ll be able to see the lessons of the experience and continue to push forward.

“It’s true that not everyone is positive by nature,” says Maxwell, who cites his father as someone who would describe himself as a negative person by nature. “Here’s how my dad changed his attitude. First he made a choice: He continually chooses to have a positive attitude. Second, he’s continually reading and listening to materials that bolster that attitude. For example, he’s read The Power of Positive Thinking many times. I didn’t get it at first, so once I asked him why. His response: ‘Son, I need to keep filling the tank so I can stay positive.’ ”

Heath recommends studying the failures and subsequent reactions of successful people and, within a business context, repeating such histories for others. “Reward them and applaud their efforts in front of the entire organization so everyone understands it is OK to fail. So employees say to themselves, ‘I see that Bill, the vice president of widgets, who the president adores, failed, and he is not only back at work, but he is driving a hot new sports car. I can fail and come to work the next day. Bill is proof of it.’ ”

Finally, Heath stays motivated by the thought that, “if I become complacent and don’t take risks, someone will notice what I am doing and improve upon my efforts over time, and put me out of work. You’ve got to keep finding better ways to run your life, or someone will take what you’ve accomplished, improve upon it, and be very pleased with the results. Keep moving forward or die.”

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Personal Development and Lifestyle Business
If you would like to know more on how to Live the Life you deserve then please go to my website
www.christinegreig.com
I look forward to talking to you about your goals and dreams very soon and how we can work together to achieve your success.

17 Principles of Personal Achievement by Napoleon Hill

Posted on September 22, 2010

Hi Everyone…I have listed below the 17 Principles of Personal Achievement by Napoleon Hill…

The book “Think and Grow Rich” is an amazing read it was the first book I read when I decided to start my journey of Personal Development.

Also a challenge that I set for myself was to read the Chapter in the book on PERSISTENCE (chapter 9) every day for 30 days.

If you want to achieve anything in Life you have to learn PERSISTENCE.

If you have not read “Think and Grow Rich ” I would suggest you go and buy a copy of the book right now…

Please feel free to comment on what you have achieved in your life through Persistence..

Talk again soon

Chrissy

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17 Principles of Personal Achievement by Napoleon Hill

Lesson 1: Definiteness of Purpose
Definiteness of purpose is the starting point of all achievement. Without a purpose and a plan, people drift aimlessly through life.

Lesson 2: Mastermind Alliance
The Mastermind principle consists of an alliance of two or more minds working in perfect harmony for the attainment of a common definite objective. Success does not come without the cooperation of others.

Lesson 3: Applied Faith
Faith is a state of mind through which your aims, desires, plans and purposes may be translated into their physical or financial equivalent.

Lesson 4: Going the Extra Mile
Going the extra mile is the action of rendering more and better service than that for which you are presently paid. When you go the extra mile, the Law of Compensation comes into play.

Lesson 5: Pleasing Personality
Personality is the sum total of one’s mental, spiritual and physical traits and habits that distinguish one from all others. It is the factor that determines whether one is liked or disliked by others.

Lesson 6: Personal Initiative
Personal initiative is the power that inspires the completion of that which one begins. It is the power that starts all action. No person is free until he learns to do his own thinking and gains the courage to act on his own.

Lesson 7: Positive Mental Attitude
Positive mental attitude is the right mental attitude in all circumstances. Success attracts more success while failure attracts more failure.

Lesson 8: Enthusiasm
Enthusiasm is faith in action. It is the intense emotion known as burning desire. It comes from within, although it radiates outwardly in the expression of one’s voice and countenance.

Lesson 9: Self-Discipline
Self-discipline begins with the mastery of thought. If you do not control your thoughts, you cannot control your needs. Self-discipline calls for a balancing of the emotions of your heart with the reasoning faculty of your head.

Lesson 10: Accurate Thinking
The power of thought is the most dangerous or the most beneficial power available to man, depending on how it is used.

Lesson 11: Controlled Attention
Controlled attention leads to mastery in any type of human endeavor, because it enables one to focus the powers of his mind upon the attainment of a definite objective and to keep it so directed at will.

Lesson 12: Teamwork
Teamwork is harmonious cooperation that is willing, voluntary and free. Whenever the spirit of teamwork is the dominating influence in business or industry, success is inevitable. Harmonious cooperation is a priceless asset that you can acquire in proportion to your giving.

Lesson 13: Adversity & Defeat
Individual success usually is in exact proportion of the scope of the defeat the individual has experienced and mastered. Many so-called failures represent only a temporary defeat that may prove to be a blessing in disguise.

Lesson 14: Creative Vision
Creative vision is developed by the free and fearless use of one’s imagination. It is not a miraculous quality with which one is gifted or is not gifted at birth.

Lesson 15: Health
Sound health begins with a sound health consciousness, just as financial success begins with a prosperity consciousness.

Lesson 16: Budgeting Time & Money
Time and money are precious resources, and few people striving for success ever believe they possess either one in excess.

Lesson 17: Habits
Developing and establishing positive habits leads to peace of mind, health and financial security. You are where you are because of your established habits and thoughts and deeds.

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Personal Development and Lifestyle Business
If you would like to know more on how to Live the Life you deserve then please go to my website
www.christinegreig.com
I look forward to talking to you about your goals and dreams very soon and how we can work together to achieve your success.

Free E Book **Happy Marriage**

Posted on September 18, 2010

Hi Everyone…I hope every married couple can take some thing away from this E book…Colin and I have been happily married for nearly 30 years and together for 33 years. Many have told us that we should be in a glass case at the Museum as there is not many of us left that have been married for that long.

Let me know what you discover about your relationship after reading this E book..

TIP: Don’t expect your partner to be a mind reader, because apparently he or she
isn’t. The best thing to do is to tell him or her what’s going on inside your mind. Tell
your partner exactly how you feel about certain things. With this on hand, conflict
can be resolved properly in just a snap of a finger.

Use this below link to grab your copy now.

HappyMarriage

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Personal Development and Lifestyle Business
If you would like to know more on how to Live the Life you deserve then please go to my website
www.christinegreig.com
I look forward to talking to you about your goals and dreams very soon and how we can work together to achieve your success.

Harness the Power of Your Associations

Posted on September 15, 2010

Hi Everyone….I just love this from Jim Rohn …..This is so true ….I have had to make some decisions on family and friends who I call stoppers and limit the amount of time that I spent with them…Now with my home business I’m surrounded by positive people that are motivated to live their life on their terms…and our Personal Development products have made a huge difference to the way I think.. So do you have some people in your life that are holding you back..What are you willing to do to live your dreams…

Jim Rohn says you become an average of the five people you associate with most. The people we spend our time with determine what conversations dominate our attention, and what observations, attitudes and opinions we repetitively are introduced to.

Spend your time with a team of high-achievers and you’ll be inspired to stretch for your next accomplishment, be it in your business, finances or personal agenda. On the converse, hang out with people who are “less than inspired” and you could quickly find yourself stagnant.

Evaluate and shift your associations into 3 categories:

1. Disassociation
There are some people you might need to break away from completely—these are negative, toxic people who infect you with their bad attitude. It’s difficult to ignore someone and their negative influences but doing so will put YOU in control of deciding the quality of life you want to have. Then surround yourself with the people who represent and support that vision.

2. Limited Associations
There are some people who you can spend three hours with, but not three days. Others you can spend three minutes with, but not three hours. Decide how much you can “afford” to be influenced, based on how those people represent themselves.

3. Expanded Associations
Whatever area of your life you want to see improvement in, find someone who represents the success you want, the parenting skills you want, the relationship you want, the lifestyle you want, and spend more time with those people. Join organizations, clubs, businesses and health clubs where these people are and make friends.

Decide who of your friends are the best influences and make more time for them; it’s an investment of time that will prove profitable.

Jim Rohn

Facing the Enemies from within

Posted on September 9, 2010

Hi.I really wanted to share this from Jim Rohn with all of you…
How true it is…..Our fears stop us from doing so many things.
Please enjoy this post and share with me what you have not done because of fear. And I would love to hear from all of you that have achieved goals by working through your fears…Your story may assist someone else smash through their fears to Live a fantastic Life.

Fear only exists when you do not understand that you have the power to project thought and that the Universe will respond.
— Abraham

Facing The Enemies Within
Jim Rohn
We are not born with courage, but neither are we born with fear. Maybe some of our fears are brought on by your own experiences, by what someone has told you, by what you’ve read in the papers. Some fears are valid, like walking alone in a bad part of town at two o’clock in the morning. But once you learn to avoid that situation, you won’t need to live in fear of it.

Fears, even the most basic ones, can totally destroy our ambitions. Fear can destroy fortunes. Fear can destroy relationships. Fear, if left unchecked, can destroy our lives. Fear is one of the many enemies lurking inside us.

Let me tell you about five of the other enemies we face from within. The first enemy that you’ve got to destroy before it destroys you is indifference. What a tragic disease this is. “Ho-hum, let it slide. I’ll just drift along.” Here’s one problem with drifting: you can’t drift your way to the top of the mountain.

The second enemy we face is indecision. Indecision is the thief of opportunity and enterprise. It will steal your chances for a better future. Take a sword to this enemy.

The third enemy inside is doubt. Sure, there’s room for healthy skepticism. You can’t believe everything. But you also can’t let doubt take over. Many people doubt the past, doubt the future, doubt each other, doubt the government, doubt the possibilities and doubt the opportunities. Worse of all, they doubt themselves. I’m telling you, doubt will destroy your life and your chances of success. It will empty both your bank account and your heart. Doubt is an enemy Go after it. Get rid of it.

The fourth enemy within is worry. We’ve all got to worry some. Just don’t let it conquer you. Instead, let it alarm you. Worry can be useful. If you step off the curb in New York City and a taxi is coming, you’ve got to worry. But you can’t let worry loose like a mad dog that drives you into a small corner. Here’s what you’ve got to do with your worries: drive them into a small corner. Whatever is out to get you, you’ve got to get it. Whatever is pushing on you, you’ve got to push back.

The fifth interior enemy is over-caution. It is the timid approach to life. Timidity is not a virtue; it’s an illness. If you let it go, it’ll conquer you. Timid people don’t get promoted. They don’t advance and grow and become powerful in the marketplace. You’ve got to avoid over-caution.

Do battle with the enemy. Do battle with your fears. Build your courage to fight what’s holding you back, what’s keeping you from your goals and dreams. Be courageous in your life and in your pursuit of the things you want and the person you want to become.

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

Take Time (excerpted from Denis Waitley's Safari to the Soul)

Posted on September 8, 2010

Hi Everyone….I came across this wonderful poem and it is so true take the time to relax and enjoy your life.

When we were five years old, one year represented twenty percent of our total lives. At fifty, a year represents two percent, or one fiftieth, of our life experience. No wonder it took so long for holidays to arrive when we were in grammar school—and little wonder also that after age fifty, when a year represents such a small portion of the time we’ve already spent, it goes by in a seeming blink of an eye. It’s a little like a videotape speeding up as it rewinds and accelerating almost wildly near the end of the reel. So goes your remaining time as it dwindles down.

Take time to hear a robin’s song each morning
Take time to smell the roses as you go
Before you leave, please say “I love you”
To the ones you know
Take time out for a sunset
And its afterglow

Take time to climb a tree with kids this summer
Explore each country back-road you can find
And take a moment now and then
To build a castle in the sand
Take time to hike that mountain
When you can

Take time to play, your work can live without you
Give up the urgent for the afternoon
And take a loved one by the hand
And slowly gaze at that full moon
Don’t let this minute pass you
For the years go by too soon

And make each day “safari” day
Before this moment slips away

Take time to live.

—Denis Waitley