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Last Night we’ve hit a milestone, we’ve surpassed over 200k in unique videos distributed! I am so happy to be helping you all to reach new levels of success in all areas of life.
To celebrate, we are going to add a significant bulk of videos over the weekend.
Please share this incredible Success TV with those you know would enjoy, or could need something like this….
This week, I came across an article by Jim Rohn titled, Change Begins with Choice.
Powerful!!
Any day we wish; we can discipline ourselves to change it all. Any day we wish; we
can open the book that will open our mind to new knowledge. Any day we wish; we can
start a new activity. Any day we wish; we can start the process of life change. We
can do it immediately, or next week, or next month, or next year.
We can also do nothing. We can pretend rather than perform. And if the idea of
having to change ourselves makes us uncomfortable, we can remain as we are. We can
choose rest over labor, entertainment over education, delusion over truth, and doubt
over confidence. The choices are ours to make. But while we curse the effect, we
continue to nourish the cause. As Shakespeare uniquely observed, “The fault is not
in the stars, but in ourselves.” We created our circumstances by our past choices.
We have both the ability and the responsibility to make better choices beginning
today. Those who are in search of the good life do not need more answers or more
time to think things over to reach better conclusions. They need the truth. They
need the whole truth. And they need nothing but the truth.
We cannot allow our errors in judgment, repeated every day, to lead us down the
wrong path. We must keep coming back to those basics that make the biggest
difference in how our life works out. And then we must make the very choices that
will bring life, happiness and joy into our daily lives.
And if I may be so bold to offer my last piece of advice for someone seeking and
needing to make changes in their life - If you don’t like how things are, change it!
You’re not a tree. You have the ability to totally transform every area in your life
- and it all begins with your very own power of choice.
Success Showdowns by Chris Widener
I confess, I love westerns. There is nothing like those “Showdown” scenes where the
film is shot from down low and you see those boots moving slowly, step by step until
they come to a stop just 100 feet from the other guy. Tumble weed blows by. The wind
stirs the dust. The camera moves up and you see fingers twitching, getting ready to
draw. You know that it is only a few moments until the good guy lets the bad guy
have it and he’ll be on his way to saving the day and setting the town free again.
All that stands in his way is this one obstacle. But that obstacle must be put away.
What would you do in that situation? Would you save the day and proceed to victory,
or would you run and hide? Running and hiding is tempting when you see the guy all
dressed in black, symbolizing your impending doom!
Isn’t that what happens regularly though? Our journey to success always has these
“Showdowns” that we have to go through if we are going to get there. There are
always going to be “bad guys” we have to get through.
Let’s take a look at a few:
Fear. Fear is the pre-imminent “bad guy.” He keeps millions of people from success.
Here is a secret: There are times when I am stretching myself to achieve all that I
can, when I am taking huge risks, that I wake up in the middle of the night and I am
so scared I can’t sleep! Fear will tell you anything to keep you from even trying!
But do you know what takes care of fear?
Persistence. You see, everybody has fear. The most successful people I know have
fear. But they work through it rather than give up! To be successful you have to
have and win that showdown with fear.
Crowd mentality. I have become increasingly aware of this in recent years. The crowd
is loud. They are tenacious in letting you know that they expect you to do things
their way or something is just not right. You know, it is the relative who calls you
a dreamer. It is the naysayers. They want you to do what is normal. Well friend,
nobody ever got successful doing what the crowd does. The crowd is average, that’s
why they’re the crowd! To be successful you have to have that showdown with the
calling of the crowd. Hear their voices screaming, “Don’t do that. Be like us,” and
win the showdown.
Doubt. Success usually takes a while. It rarely comes overnight. And after some
time, you will begin to doubt. “Am I dreaming too big?” “Did I take a dumb risk?”
“Should I quit and go back to something safe?” Rest assured, it will come. But this
is when your vision must be string and you must keep going. Stick with the dream.
Don’t give up! Overcome your doubt and the doubts of others! To be successful you
must have that showdown with doubt and win!
Yes, there will be many showdowns. The above are but a few, though they are the
major ones. Maybe you are experiencing them even now. Your time has come. The old
western music is playing. Your foe dressed in black grins that devilish grin. He
thinks you can’t do it. But have your showdown. Win. Then ride off into the sunset!
Chris Widener
Chris Widener’s Ezine
April, 2008
Welcome!
Life always presents us with interesting scenarios and those often provide
opportunities for thought and learning. For example, several years ago after we’d
moved into our new house, we had a new riding lawn mower delivered with a large
attachment that hooks onto it and sucks the grass up and into a container. I think
they called it a grass catcher…
Now, you have to know that I have, and I can’t stress this enough: absolutely no
mechanical ability whatsoever! So I did what any normal guy like me would do: I paid
my then 14-year-old boy to put it together for me. He got ten bucks, I got a grass
catcher - we were both happy!
An hour after giving him the task, he came into my office and announced that he was
done. I promptly handed him ten bucks and he said, “I can’t believe that I just got
paid $10 for doing something I like to do.” To which I said, “No, you got paid $10
for doing something I don’t like to do.”
Well, that got me to thinking about who gets paid what in our society. Think about
it for a minute:
Doing things that others could do but don’t want to do will get you paid very
little. Things like garbage collection. That will get you $18-30,000 a year.
Doing things that others could do with a little effort and education but choose not
to do will get you paid more. Things like tax preparation. That will get you
$60-120,000 a year.
Doing things that others could do, but would require a lot of effort and education
and so they choose not to do will get you paid quite a bit. Jobs like being an
attorney or a doctor come to mind. That will get you $80-750,000 a year.
Doing things that others can’t do but would like to do will get you paid a lot!
Things like being able to dunk a basketball, hit a 95 mile an hour fastball over a
fence or throw a football 60 yards to a man running a 4.2 forty come to mind. That
will get you from $400,000 to $25 million a year.
Have you ever given thought to why you earn what you earn and how it is related to
what others are able and/or willing to do? It is insightful because if you want to
increase your revenue, you can just tweak what you provide to others based on what
they are willing to pay for it.
Chew on that… I know I am. You Are Made for Success!
Chris Widener
ACTIVITY/LABOR
“Don’t wait for mentors to seek you out. Don’t ever wait for your phone calls to be
returned, your letters to be answered, your faxes to be responded to. Keep going out
and asking questions.” — Denis Waitley
“Success is dependent upon the glands–sweat glands.” — Zig Ziglar
“Action may not always bring happiness; but there is no happiness without action.”
– Benjamin Disraeli
“Without constant activity, the threats of life will soon overwhelm the values.” –
Jim Rohn
ADVENTURE
“Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either
a daring adventure or nothing.” — Helen Keller
“It is good to have an end to journey towards; but it is the journey that matters in
the end.” — Ursula Le Guin
“Never forget that life can only be noble inspired and rightly lived if you take it
bravely and gallantly, as a splendid adventure in which you are setting out into an
unknown country, to face many a danger, to meet many a joy, to find many a comrade,
to win and lose many a battle.” — Annie Besant
“The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious.” — Albert Einstein
ASKING
“When I hear somebody sigh, ‘Life is hard,’ I am always tempted to ask, ‘Compared to
what?’” — Sydney J. Harris
“Before beginning a hunt, it is wise to ask someone what you are looking for before
you begin looking for it.” — Winnie the Pooh
“Ask for the job you want. Ask for the salary you want. Ask for the responsibilities
you want.” — Brian Tracy
“When you take charge of your life, there is no longer need to ask permission of
other people or society at large. When you ask permission, you give someone veto
power over your life.” — Albert F. Geoffrey
“The organization that can’t communicate can’t change, and the corporation that
can’t change is dead.” Nido Qubein
Taking Time for Yourself in a Relationship by John Gray
We have all heard this advice before. No matter how wonderful togetherness feels in
a relationship, it is still crucial for partners to take time for themselves. There
is simply no way that a man or a woman can fulfill all of their partner’s needs;
it’s just impossible to do. Too often people will give up a favorite hobby, sport or
pastime in the beginning of a relationship in order to devote more time and energy
to making the relationship work. But, what happens down the road when one or both
partners realize that they are terribly out of balance and not taking time for
themselves? Relationship stress, miscommunication, or worse: resentment and
emotional pain can result.
It is healthy to have different interests. In fact, giving up our own interests and
the little things that we do to nurture ourselves when a relationship starts will
eventually lead to resentment down the road.
It’s important for both partners to value quality relaxation time. There is
absolutely no need to feel guilty about spending time alone. Independence is good
for both men and women, no matter how close they may be in the relationship.
Typically, when one partner actively takes some alone time, their partner is
encouraged to do the same.
How our differences compliment each other:
Just as men and women have different needs in a relationship, they also have
different reasons for needing time to themselves. Too much togetherness usually
results in partners expecting too much from each other. Women may tend to smother
their mates, while men may seem cold and uncaring. It is healthy for each partner to
take time out to explore his or her individual interests.
What Men Need:
Men need to periodically pull away. Remember that men are like rubber bands. It is
his natural cycle to get close, pull away, and get close again. It is important for
men to fulfill their need for independence. Men automatically alternate between
needing intimacy and autonomy. Give a man his space and he will be a better, more
attentive, partner. When a man gets too close and doesn’t pull away, he often
experiences increased moodiness, irritability, passivity, and defensiveness.
Also, when a man is in his cave, he wants to be left alone. He is working out his
problems and frustrations by either doing something alone, like reading the paper or
watching TV, or doing something active with his male friends.
Most men are happy when their mates do something fun for themselves at these times.
It means that she is not sitting around waiting for him to come out of the cave. He
will come out ready to talk and be intimate again, and she will have curbed her
frustrations by being good to herself and having some fun.
What Women Need:
It is good for a woman’s self esteem to take care of herself. She can get wrapped up
in taking care of her family and forget how much she needs to nurture herself.
Particularly when a man is off in his cave, she can enjoy the time alone to go
shopping, work in her garden, go to a class at the gym, or simply languish in the
simple pleasure of soaking in a hot bath with a glass of wine.
It is especially important for a woman to cultivate relationships with other women.
Women need to talk about what’s happening in their lives. On Venus, this is an
important part of relationship building. Since this is not the case on Mars, it is
wonderful for a woman to get together with her girlfriends so that they can talk
about, and listen to, each other’s problems, without judgment or offering
unsolicited advice.
Couples can even plan these separate times apart. For instance, Tuesday could be his
poker night with the boys, and Thursday her night for dinner and a movie with her
girlfriends. Both partners will not only appreciate the time to do the things that
make them feel good, but will come back feeling renewed and excited to be in such a
healthy, well-balanced relationship.
– John Gray
Keep in mind that winners are people who are willing to do the things losers refuse to do - even when they don’t want to. - Glenn Van Ekeren
Things like..
I Learned from My Grandma that the Seeds of Greatness Are… by Denis Waitley
My grandma, Mabel Reynolds Ostrander, and I shared one of those special
relationships as rare as a double rainbow. She was fifty-three when I was ten.
That’s when we planted our first “Victory” garden together during World War II. We
planted seeds together — in the soil — and in each other.
Grandma lived eighty-seven seasons without a complaint. I was forty-four when I last
saw her. But I remember every mince and lemon tart, every bite of “made from
scratch” apple pie, and every lingering wave of her hand as she stood (out of sight
or so she thought) behind the rayon, Priscilla curtains in the little house at 718
West Pennsylvania Avenue in San Diego, California, where I was born and raised. As
our station wagon full of kids and contentment would slowly pull away from the curb,
we would all look back at her and wave – and I would gaze at her fragile silhouette
through the rear view mirror, wishing I could frame her there forever, just that way
– wondering how many more Easter and Christmas dinners we would share.
Most of all, I remember my grandma and me planting seeds. We planted squash, beans,
corn, watermelons, beets, pansies, mums and other flowers. I’ll admit I rode my bike
those twenty miles each Saturday more for the bonus of the conversation and the
homemade pastries, than for the vegetables and flowers. But no matter how full I was
after I ate, I was always left hungry for more of the wisdom and optimism she shared
with me.
I’ll never forget the day we tasted our first harvest as a result of crossing a plum
tree with an apricot tree. The ripe fruit was pink, not purple like a plum, nor
orange like an apricot; but a combination of both. “Gee, do you suppose they’ll be
any good?” I asked. “Why of course they will be wonderful,” she chided. “Didn’t we
do the planting, nurturing and pruning?”
Sure enough, they were delicious, even though they were different than any fruit I’d
ever seen before. “That’s because they are uniquely unlike any other fruit you’ll
ever eat. They are plumcots!” she exulted. “You always get out what you put in,” she
continued as we sat under the tree eating most of what we had picked.
“Plant apple seeds and you get apple trees, plant acorns and you get majestic oak
trees, plant weeds and you will harvest weeds (even without watering), plant the
seeds of great ideas and you will get great individuals,” she said softly and
intently, looking directly into my eyes. “Do you understand what I mean?” I nodded,
remembering I’d heard her say the same thing before, in different ways.
I learned from my grandma that the seeds of greatness are not special genes,
dependent on the gifted birth, the inherited bank account, the intellect, the
skin-deep beauty, the race, the gender, or the status. The seeds of greatness are
attitudes and beliefs that begin in children by observing, imitating and
internalizing the lifestyles of significant role models and heroes.
“Model your thoughts and actions after men and women who have been passionate,
excellent, honest, unselfish and creative in their service to others,” my
grandmother had counseled. Armed with that affirmation, I ventured forth to sow and
reap my own legacy in life.
I’ve traveled the world to the seven seas.
I’ve been up at the top and down on my knees.
I’ve been blessed with abundance and plenty of weeds.
But I’ve never stopped caring about others’ needs.
As you tend your own garden, unlike any other.
Remember the words of my lovely grandmother.
“If you’re hoping to harvest a life of great deeds, remember you first have to plant
some great seeds.”
Denis Waitley
What you leave in your children is more important than what you leave to them.
Parents and grandparents have enormous power to influence their children’s lives and
directions. So, how can you and your children achieve the goals of self-confidence
and self-esteem?
You know the old joke about the weather, right? Everyone talks about it but no one ever does anything about it. In the area of Self Help, our “weather” is definitely happiness. Everyone has it on their mind, and it comes up frequently in conversation. People want to talk about it, and they most definitely want to possess it, but when it comes to doing anything about it….. they kind of fade into the background. The reason might be that they don’t know HOW to just be happy.
I lean toward the belief that, as Abraham Lincoln said, “People are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.” (That, of course, doesn’t include people who find themselves in the middle of grief, or a physical or mental illness.)
For most of us, however, I think that if you’re a happy person today - you’ll be a happy person tomorrow. If it takes a perfect balancing of planets, harmony in all relationships, and butterlies outside of your window to MAKE you happy, the happiness isn’t coming from within - it’s coming from without. That’s not a good thing, of course, because that’s forever changing.
Think about the people in your world. Some are happier than others, right? Some are so happy, being around them is about like watching an episode of Andy Griffith! Even when circumstances are foul, they’re generally light-spirited and smiling - maybe even joking around. The good news is that they weren’t born that way, so what happy people “have” is available for everyone. Basically, there are nine secrets that happy people have sewn into the fabric of their lives, probably without even realizing that they’ve done so. Three are below, the other six will be hot on their heels.
1. Happy people know, understand, and even embrace the fact that life isn’t perfect. They stopped expecting their days to sail by without any turbulance long ago. They’ve simply adapted their thinking and reactions to “ride” the waves rather than fighting against them. By contrast, unhappy people think that every turbulance, every bump, every misstep is a catastrophic event. It “wouldn’t” happen to other people - only to them. They think God has allowed this injustice and they, quite frankly, resent it very much. Even little events can snap the smile off of an unhappy person’s day - their balloon will burst just as easily over a slow internet connection as it would a flat tire. When bad things happen (which they tend to do), someone who is generally happy simply deals with it. No panic, no melt downs, no throwing blame around or raising their voice. Oh the drama! Granted, the smile will disappear as they get down to business, but it’ll return right after they’ve put everything back together again. Happy people know they can’t control life, but they CAN control the way they respond to life.
2. Happy people don’t live in the past. Some people feel unhappy simply because they won’t leave the past in the past. Happy people know that, for better or worse, the past is gone - living there, or even visiting too frequently, is a waste of time and energy. Some things have to be LET GO. You have to tell yourself - out loud even - “I’m letting this go before it proves to be my undoing.“ Happy people live in the present and realize that it can be a beautiful place if you accept it for what it is.
3. Although it may seem unusual, happy people are the best fighters in the world. If you think of the happiest person you know, the word “fighter” may not come to mind. After all, don’t we picture fighters as angry, determined, even mean? In the boxing ring, sure - but think about outside the ring. If someone is hit hard by one of life’s punches, and they refuse to go (or stay) down, how’d they find their feet? They fought for them, and they fought hard. The harder the punch, the harder to stand back up…but oh so worth the fight. Unhappy people are very weak. Usually they gave up long ago and got somewhat comfortable on the mat.
What some people don’t realize is that happy people feel the same pains the rest of the world does. If a happy person loses their dream home, for example, they most definitely register the pain. They cry the tears. They feel the loss. But they don’t let the situation win. They stand back up, dry their eyes, and look ahead to the great things that lie in the future. An unhappy person would use an experience like this as a crutch - a crutch that will only lead them to one of two places: Anger or Bitterness. Neither place is worth visiting, let alone moving into!
If you’re a “happy person,” give a big sigh of relief because you’ve learned one of the most important lessons in life. If you’re an “unhappy person,” give a big sigh of relief because you don’t have to stay that way.
Unless you want to.
There’s a difference between interest and commitment. When you’re interested in doing something, you do it only when it’s convenient. When you’re commited to something, you accept no excuses; only results. - Kenneth Blanchard
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We are nearing 200k mark of distributed videos broadcasted for free.
We are adding new content every day, and we are working hard to ensure that everyone here will be able to get the best free success videos to help you get to where you want in life.
Spread the word, theres a movement, a Success movement going on!
1. Charting Your Course to Success Article Attitudes of Successful Learners by Chris Widener (excerpted from Week 44 of the Jim Rohn One-Year Success Plan) Hi there, Chris Widener here. This week I want to talk with you about the attitudes of successful learners. We can choose our attitudes about anything, including learning and education. That's right. We get to choose what our attitudes are. Here is the definition of attitude: "The feeling or opinion about something or someone, or a way of behaving that follows from this." We choose our opinion about people and situations. We choose the way we will behave in relation to other people and circumstances. We choose what we believe about learning. We choose it. Learning doesn't have to be bad. It doesn't have to be anything but what we want it to be. We have the option. We can have tremendously optimistic attitudes about learning - attitudes that will help us grow in ways we have never achieved before! The choice of a right attitude will significantly determine new circumstances. Choosing to have the right attitude will change the world around you. This isn't any sort of magic; it is just how the world works. Now, don't get me wrong. It won't cure everything and turn your world into a virtual Shangri-La, but it will significantly improve the world you live in. For example, let's say that every day you go into work and you gripe about life and work from the moment you get there until the moment you leave. Will others want to be around you? Will others ask your opinion? Will others like you? Will others ask you to join them for lunch? Probably not! But what if you come to work every day and you are the positive optimist of the crowd? Will everybody love you? No, but significantly more people will than if you are the office pessimist! Your choice of attitude will determine what kind of circumstances you get! The same is true with learning. What we feel about learning, and what we believe about it will determine the outcomes of our learning. And the outcomes of our learning will determine the outcome of our lives. Ultimately, our attitude is a choice. Nobody else can force you to have a bad attitude. Nobody else can force you to have a good attitude. It is simply a choice we each make. Where are you with your attitude about learning? Is it positive? Take some time to give it some serious thought. Then, no matter where you find yourself, decide to take your attitude to the next level! If you have a really bad attitude, decide to take it up a couple of levels! So, if our attitudes determine to a great degree what kind of life we have, shouldn't we focus on the best attitudes to have and then make them ours? Absolutely! If we want to soar with the eagles in this life, and if there are attitudes that will make us soar, shouldn't we pursue them with all our hearts? By all means! So here we go! Attitudes of Successful Learners 1. "I can." This is the most basic of all attitudes. We simply must choose to believe that we can learn. In our house we are not allowed to say, "I can't." We can say, "I'll try," or "I tried and failed," but not "I can't." Telling yourself that you can't will in effect make it so. But telling yourself that you can, will in effect enable you to learn much more. Even if you actually only achieve 50% of what you tell yourself, you will achieve at least that much more than if you told yourself you couldn't. So many people were told at a young age that they couldn't learn. Many others were allowed to engage in that kind of negative self talk (tell themselves, "I can't learn", "I don't understand", I'll never get this", etc.) and their parents and teachers didn't intervene. This enabled them to develop the "I can't" attitudes that become self-fulfilling prophecies. I actually have a standard way of going about getting myself off of the starting block. I simply say if somebody else has achieved great learning heights, then I can too. I have to be smarter than at least one of those who has already done it. I have to be able to work harder than at least one other. There has to be at least one other person who has come from more difficult circumstances than me. And if they can do it then certainly, "I can!" 2. "This is a long-term approach." Learning isn't something that happens overnight. Yes, you can learn individual facts, but the real growth comes when you see your learning build on itself and compound for years, when your knowledge meets up with your experience. When we take the attitude that it all has to happen immediately, we hurt ourselves in the long run because the fact is that it takes time to learn (even though we can accelerate it). If we expect it to happen immediately and it doesn't, then we can get frustrated and stop learning altogether. Instead, we need to take a long-term view just as we do in financial matters, weight management, leadership, etc. Long-term thinking, including our learning is always the best way to go for success. 3. "Learning is valuable." Some people have a "learning schmearning - who needs learning" attitude. They think that learning is overrated. I hate to tell you this, but not only was that wrong 5000, 500 and 50 years ago, it is especially wrong today. We live in the information age. We must gain knowledge and the ability to apply that knowledge if we are going to be successful. We must tell ourselves and cultivate the attitude that learning is valuable and that it will affect our lives. 4. "I will make a difference in the lives of those around me." People who soar are generally people who have the attitude of helping other people. Yes, they may do it for monetary gain, but they are others-focused. They want to change the way people live and experience life for the better. They are difference makers all around. This is the same in what we learn. We learn first for ourselves, but then with the goal of taking what we have learned, and what we make of ourselves, and we then help others to do the same. I live in a town that is very affluent. Most of the people I know, work with and have as friends are very successful in this world. They have learned a lot about life and how it works. They have learned how to make money and be successful in business. One thing I can say, as almost a universal truth, is that as people, they are not self-consumed but genuinely care about others and will do what they can to help others. This is what I know to be true about the attitudes of the genuinely successful. These are the attitudes of people who are not just successful at getting information into their minds, but in becoming good people because of that information. Learn all that you can, and be sure to keep the attitudes that will make you a successful learner and a successful person! Have a great week! Chris