THE SEVEN C’s OF SUCCESS by Brian Tracy

After having studied top achievers and peak performers over the past 35 years, I’ve concluded that these unique men and women, have in most cases, mastered what I call the Seven C’s of Success.

1. Clarity: Eighty percent of success comes from being clear on who you are, what you believe in and what you want.

2. Competence: You can't climb to the next rung on the ladder until you are excellent at what you do now.

3. Constraints: Eighty percent of all obstacles to success come from within. Find out what is constraining in you or your company and deal with it.

4. Concentration: The ability to focus on one thing single-mindedly and see it through until it's done takes more character than anything else.

5. Creativity: Flood your life with ideas from many sources. Creativity needs to be exercised like a muscle; if you don't use it you'll lose it.

6. Courage: Most in demand and least in supply, courage is the willingness to do the things you know are right.

7. Continuous learning: Read, at the very least, one book a week on business to keep you miles ahead of the competition. And just as you eat and bathe, organize your time so you spend 30 minutes a day exploring email, sending messages, going through websites, because like exercise, it's the only way you can keep on top of technology. If you get away from it, you'll lose your edge.

In the beat of a Heart by Denis Waitley

In the beat of a heart, a child is born. In the beat of a heart, a celebrity or unknown person faces mortality. In the beat of a heart, an Olympic speed skater wins the gold medal. In the beat of a heart, history is made by something someone did or did not say or do. In the beat of a heart, our children will have grown and flown, with families of their own.
I looked in the mirror this morning and saw Rip Van Waitley, the little boy I used to be, now able to get my senior’s discount at the movie theater. I already suffer from “Dessert Alzheimer’s.” When I go to the buffet, I ask the restaurant staff: Was I just here? Did I already have the carrot cake and chocolate decadence? Or is this my first trip, as I think it is?
Let’s make a pledge together, you and I, to seize this moment and live it to the fullest, rather than yearn for the past or simply dream of a bright future. Let’s keep the playful spirit full of curiosity and energy like a child, and live in the now, in this beat of a heart.
Of all the wisdom I have gained, the most important is the knowledge that time and health are two precious assets that we rarely recognize or appreciate until they have been depleted. As with health, time is the raw material of life. You can use it wisely, waste it or even kill it.
Make your decision to grab this precious moment in joy, faith and thankfulness, and count your many blessings instead of your blemishes.
In the beat of a heart, this moment will be history.
—Denis Waitley

Reproduced with permission from the Denis Waitley Newsletter.To Subscribe to Denis Waitley's Newsletter Use this link© 2010 Denis Waitley International. All rights reserved worldwide.

The "Best" Test by Chris Widener

Some time ago, I spoke to a group of salespeople in Kansas City as they kicked off their new team. It was exciting to see them get excited about making a difference through their work.
The topic they assigned me was “Simply the Best.” So as I prepared, I asked myself: What characteristics would help someone pass the “Best” Test? That is, what are the characteristics of those who become the “best” at what they do? Here are the thoughts I shared with them:

The Best Are Optimists. You can’t get to the top if you don’t think that there is a top or if you think you can’t make it. One characteristic of those who reach the peak is that they always believe that things can get better or be done better. This pushes them on to be their best.

The Best Have Vision. They can see ahead of the pack. Their eyes aren’t locked into the here and now. They see the bright future and what things will look like when they reach their destiny. While working hard for today, they live for the future! They do what Stephen Covey calls “begin with the end in mind.”

The Best Relentlessly Pursue Excellence. The status quo is not for them. They want to be the best and experience the best. And that means giving their best. They go the extra mile so that in everything they do, in everything they say and think, they are striving for excellence.

The Best Have a Lifelong Habit of Personal Growth. They don’t want to stay at the level they are at. They want to grow in their work, their intellect, their spirituality, their relationships, and in every area of their life. And they discipline themselves to put themselves in situations wherein they grow. Personal growth doesn’t “just happen.” You choose to grow. I always suggest what Zig Ziglar does and that is to enroll in “Automobile University.” Whenever you are driving around, listen to a personal or professional growth CD or MP3. Over the long run you will grow. Also, read more. The old saying is true: Leaders are readers. So are those who pass the “Best” Test.

The Best Understand That They Will Be Pushed by the Competition—and They Welcome It. Like the lead runner in the race who has someone on his heels, the best know that the competition is right behind them. They love it, though, because they know that the competition keeps them from becoming lazy and resting on their laurels. Instead, the competition pushes them to go faster and to achieve more—to remain the best by forging ahead.

The Best Have a Quest for Leadership. Someone has to lead—it may as well be the best! Those who attain it get there because they want to. They want to lead and help make a difference. And they want to be equipped with the skills necessary to lead others on to a better place.

The Best Leave a Legacy. They aren’t in it just for themselves, though they will surely reap the rewards of being the best. Rather, they build things that last beyond themselves, things that can be enjoyed by others as well.

The Best Are Adept at the Two Most Important Pieces of Time and Personal Management: Prioritize and Execute. Just like weight loss boils down to eating right and exercise, personal management boils down to prioritize and execute. First, prioritize your activities. The important stuff goes on the top. Then, execute: do them. The best have habits and discipline that get them to the top by doing the best things and doing them first.

The Best Focus on Building Relationships. Success does not come alone. Everyone who achieves much does it with the help of countless others. How do the Best get others to help them? They treat them right. They embrace them and help them. People become the best because they help other people, and people like them.

The Best Make No Excuses. When they fail, they admit it and move on. They get back up and do it right the next time. They let their actions speak louder than their words. They stand tall and do the right thing the next time. No excuses, just results.

The Best Understand That the Good Is the Enemy of the Best. Yes, they could say, “This is good.” But that would mean they have settled for less than the best. Many people think that good is good. Good is not good. Good is the enemy because it keeps us from the best. Choose your side: the good or the best. The Best choose, you guessed it, the Best.

The Best Dare to Dream. While others live the mundane and settle into a life they never bargained for, a rut, the Best dream of a better life. And then they take the risks necessary to achieve their dreams. They live by Teddy Roosevelt’s quote: Far better it is to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs though checkered by failure, than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy nor suffer much because they live in the grey twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat.

Want to be the best at what you do? Take inventory on the above characteristics and then start moving to bring your life in line with the characteristics of the “Best.” Then when you get to the top you will know that you have passed the “Best” Test.

Reproduced with permission from the Chris Widener Newsletter.To subscribe to Chris Widener's Newsletter Use this link© 2010 Chris Widener International. All rights reserved worldwide.

The Sweetest Sound

Dale Carnegie wrote about it in his best-selling classic, "How to Win Friends and Influence People."

It's a proven fact that it's the sweetest sound to a person's ear...

...the sound of their own name.

You make a lasting impression when you can recall someone's name you previously met.

Stop and think how you felt the last time someone surprised you by recalling your name. Didn't it make you feel special?

Zig Ziglar tells us, "People don't care how much we know until they first know how much we care."

The person who demonstrates that he or she cares by recalling names will have an endless supply of friends, customers and admirers.

Knowing this, how many times have you been introduced to someone and two seconds later can't remember their name?

Have you ever been at the bank, the grocery store or a ball game and seen someone that you knew and you couldn't recall their name?

Was it a customer (or prospect)? Did you lose the ability to build a strong relationship by recalling their name?

Simply put, making the effort to learn how to remember names and recall them is an important skill and goes a long way towards making your interactions more memorable.

Put some effort into this skill and improve the lasting impression that you make in the eyes of your customer. Hey, you may even make a few new friends in the process.

Todays quote - July 29, 2010

"Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can." ~ Arthur Ashe

Having Fun Yet? by Chris Widener

“People rarely succeed unless they have fun in what they are doing.” —Dale Carnegie

Chris’s Commentary:Have fun and be successful at the same time? Is that possible? I thought to get ahead you had to lose yourself in hard work, pain and suffering? Not so! In fact, you should be engaging yourself in something you find to be fun. When you find a passion that is fun for you, you will give it your all and succeed extraordinarily!

Action Point:Are you having fun? Is your job fun? If not, you need to find one that you enjoy! Is your family fun? If not, make it fun! Life is too short, my friend. Have a little fun TODAY! It will make you more successful!

Reproduced with permission from the Chris Widener Newsletter.To subscribe to Chris Widener's Newsletter Use this link© 2010 Chris Widener International. All rights reserved worldwide.

Choose a Course by Daryl R. Gibson

As I mentioned over the last couple of weeks, I've been listening to Earl Nightingale, and one of his most vivid images is used to illustrate the lack of planning that so many people exhibit.

He said that when we are without a goal or a plan, we're like a boat that "goes off in all directions at once." He noted that as a boy, he would go to the marina, and ship captains would sometimes allow him to tour the navigational bridge of their ships. He would see how a destination was set, a course laid down, and as long as that ship followed a true course, even when occasional corrections were required, then the ship would slowly but surely reach its destination.

But for many of us -- perhaps most of us -- a destination is never set, the boat is never fueled, the course is never determined, the engines are never started, and the ship never leaves port. Most of us sit there at the dock, and our ship of a life rusts away, rather than taking us to great and marvelous destinations.

Perhaps it's fitting that this quote turned up while I was writing a piece dated for Memorial Day. It's from General Omar Bradley: "This is as true in everyday life as it is in battle: we are given one life, and the decision is ours whether to wait for circumstances to make up our mind, or whether to act, and in acting, to live."

Most of the time, we never really set sail on our lives. We wait for circumstances to determine our path, or we choose to never set a course. We allow the twists and turns of life to bruise us. We choose to give in to the battle, just because we never take up arms to win control of our own life. We surrender without even firing a shot in our own defense.

Life should be an active thing -- it should be full of challenges we select, paths we scout out, and a course that we determine, as much as possible. Sure, twists and turns will happen in life -- they always do -- but we can return to our course, we can choose to act, and "in acting, to live."

Success Is Easy, But So Is Neglect by Jim Rohn

People often ask me how I became successful in a six-year period of time while many of the people I knew did not. The answer is simple: The things I found to be easy to do, they found to be easy not to do.

I found it easy to set the goals that could change my life. They found it easy not to. I found it easy to read the books that could affect my thinking and my ideas. They found that easy not to. I found it easy to attend the classes and the seminars, and to be around other successful people. They said it probably really wouldn't matter. If I had to sum it up, I would say what I found to be easy to do, they found to be easy not to do. Six years later, I was a millionaire and they were all still blaming the economy, the government, and company policies, yet they neglected to do the basic, easy things.

In fact, the primary reason most people are not doing as well as they could and should, can be summed up in a single word: neglect.

It is not the lack of money—banks are full of money. It is not the lack of opportunity—America, and much of the Free World, continues to offer the most unprecedented and abundant opportunities in the last six thousand years of recorded history. It is not the lack of books—libraries are full of books—and they are free! It is not the schools—the classrooms are full of good teachers. We have plenty of ministers, leaders, counselors and advisors.

Everything we would ever need to become rich and powerful and sophisticated is within our reach. The major reason that so few take advantage of all that we have is simply neglect.
Neglect is like an infection. Left unchecked it will spread throughout our entire system of disciplines and eventually lead to a complete breakdown of a potentially joy-filled and prosperous human life.

Not doing the things we know we should do causes us to feel guilty and guilt leads to an erosion of self-confidence. As our self-confidence diminishes, so does the level of our activity. And as our activity diminishes, our results inevitably decline. And as our results suffer, our attitude begins to weaken. And as our attitude begins the slow shift from positive to negative, our self-confidence diminishes even more... and on and on it goes.

So my suggestion is that when given the choice of "easy to" and "easy not to" that you do not neglect to do the simple, basic, "easy" but potentially life-changing activities and disciplines.

“Always demanding the best of oneself, living with honor, devoting one’s talents and gifts to the benefits of others—these are the measures of success that endure when material things have passed away.”—Gerald Ford

Forging your Character by Jim Rohn

Personal success is built on the foundation of character, and character is the result of hundreds and hundreds of choices you may make that gradually turn who you are at any given moment into who you want to be. If that decision-making process is not present, you’ll still be somebody—you’ll still be alive—but you may have a personality rather than a character, and to me that’s something very different.

Character isn’t something you were born with and can’t change, like your fingerprints. It’s something you must take responsibility for forming. You build character by how you respond to what happens in your life, whether it’s winning every game, losing every game, getting rich or dealing with hard times.

You build character from certain qualities that you must create and diligently nurture within yourself, just like you would plant and water a seed or gather wood to build a campfire. You’ve got to look for those things in your heart and in your gut. You’ve got to chisel away in order to find them, just like chiseling away rock to create the sculpture that previously existed only in the imagination.

But the really amazing thing about character is that, if you’re sincerely committed to making yourself into the person you want to be, you’ll not only create those qualities, you’ll strengthen them and re-create them in abundance, even as you’re drawing on them every day of your life. That’s why building your character is vital to becoming all you can be.The article above is excerpted from Jim Rohn’s influential book, Leading an Inspired Life.

Today's Quotes - March 28. 2010

“Be faithful in small things because it is in them that your strength lies.”

“Being unwanted, unloved, uncared for, forgotten by everybody, I think that is a much greater hunger, a much greater poverty than the person who has nothing to eat.”

“Everytime you smile at someone, it is an action of love, a gift to that person, a beautiful thing.”

“It is not the magnitude of our actions but the amount of love that is put into them that matters.”

“Spread love everywhere you go. Let no one ever come to you without leaving happier.”

Mother Teresa

Book Review: The Shift by Dr. Wayne Dyer

“Thoroughly unprepared, we take the step into the afternoon of life. Worse still, we take this step with the false presupposition that our truths and our ideals will serve us as hitherto. But we cannot live the afternoon of life according to the program of life’s morning, for what was great in the morning will be little at evening and what in the morning was true, at evening will have become a lie.”

Carl Gustav Jung

Every once in a while a book comes along that truly gives you pause and forces you to deeply reflect on life and the driving forces behind your decisions and your philosophy. For me, Dr. Wayne Dyer’s latest work; The Shift – Taking your Life from Ambition to Meaning is one of those rare books.

The Shift, a companion book to the movie of the same name illustrates how and why to make the move, or the shift, from ambition to meaning. Dyer focuses on the reconnection that is possible with our spiritual connectedness as we first decide, and then begin this transformation.

The book starts with a piece from an inspirational documentary titled Hasten Slowly: The Journey of Sir Laurens van der Post:

The bushman in the Kalahari Desert talk about two “hungers”.
There is the Great Hunger and there is the Little Hunger.
The Little Hunger wants food for the belly;
But the Great Hunger,
And the greatest hunger of all, is the hunger for meaning….

The book is divided into 4 chapters, smartly titled: From, Ambition, To and Meaning. The first chapter follows the transition from the spiritual realm into a physical one which is the first shift; from energy to form. This chapter explores the question of who am I and where did I come from in a way that I have never read before. I found it to be well thought out and extremely thought provoking.

Ambition, the second chapter, follows our progression as in our travels we leave a place of spiritual connection and then shift to a life that is ego driven and is constantly in search for more, a pursuit that is fruitless as each accomplishment is simply replaced by the desire for another. Dyer refers to this shift as a natural progression that requires us to edge God out and learn to believe in our false self. This explanation is followed by a thorough description of six lies that ego needs us to believe and how these affect our actions.

The third chapter, To, unfolds as Dyer describes the next shift as we attempt to step away from the demands of the ego and move towards the authentic self and a life of purpose. This is really defined as a return to the “fromness” from where we started. At this point our sense of separateness can be replaced by an understanding of how we are all connected and how attempting to control others runs counter to our true essence. He quotes both the Tao Te Ching with “never think of conquering others by force. Whatever strains with force will soon decay. It is not attuned to the way” as well as the words of Jesus; “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew 5:9) to illustrate the point. The seven steps of our U-turn illustrate in detail what we can expect as we begin this journey.

The fourth and final chapter, Meaning, takes us full circle as we arrive, ironically, back to where we started and describes how to prepare for a life of meaning and begin a life practicing the virtues that constitute our original nature.

At just over 100 pages in length, this is a small book with an enormous amount of information. It is supported by meaningful and beautiful quotes such as:


“Life is not meaningful…
unless it is serving an end beyond itself;
unless it is of value to someone else.”

- Abraham Joshua Heschel

“The one possible way of giving meaning to (man’s)
existence is that of raising his natural
relation to the world to a spiritual one.”

- Albert Schweitzer

As a committed student of life and personal development, I am always seeking well written sources of inspiration and learning in order to better understand life and my role in it. I found Dr. Wayne Dyer’s “The Shift” to be one of those sources of inspiration and it is a book that I will return to again.

For more information, visit Hay House at:
http://www.hayhouse.com/details.php?id=4672&utm_id=3313
or Amazon at:
http://www.amazon.com/Shift-Taking-Your-Ambition-Meaning/dp/1401927092/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1265149999&sr=8-2

Please note that Hay House provided a copy of The Shift at no charge in exchange for being considered for review. My written review of this book is an honest reflection of my feelings towards it. Cam

Today's Quote - March 8, 2010

"Time is limited, so I better wake up every morning fresh and know that I have just one chance to live this particular day right, and to string my days together into a life of action, and purpose."
— Lance Armstrong

Book Review - Chants of a Lifetime by Krishna Das

In his book, Chants of a Lifetime: Searching for a Heart of Gold, author Krishna Das takes us on his journey of self discovery and his quest to find peace and harmony. In colorful detail, Das describes his self destructive youth and his lifelong pursuit of a full understanding of life. All through his life, Das struggles to understand his purpose and explores different avenues, always feeling, with a deep conviction, that there is something more.
Das’s life changes when he travels to India and meets Neem Karoli Baba. Baba, or Maharaj-ji, as he is referred to by his followers, opens Das’s eyes to a higher spirituality and is the catalyst that changes his life.
This book is very much an homage to Maharaj-ji and the intense love and admiration that Das has for him is evident throughout.
Krishna Das is drawn to the practice of Bhakti Yoga – the yoga of devotion and the practice of kirtan which translates to “chanting the divine names” and goes on to explain how these practices allow him to find love and inner peace.
Through this process, Krishna Das gains a fuller understanding of love and life itself. He states: “Learning to be ourselves, seeing life as our teacher rather than as something that happens to us, all this is based on the faith that there is something to learn and something to become.”
I found it interesting that even in different cultures and at different times in history, the concept of the “Golden Rule” permeates the teaching of all of the great guru’s and philosophers of life. On this topic, Das quotes Shirdi Sai Baba with these words:

“Whoever or whatever creature comes to you, do not drive away but receive with due consideration. Give food to the hungry, water to the thirsty, and clothes to the naked. Bear with others reproach. Speak only gentle words. This is the way to happiness. The world maintains a wall – the wall of differentiation between oneself and others, between you and me.
Destroy this wall.”

Krishna Das describes the practices that he has learned and draws you into his world as he travels back to the United States and shares his chanting with people there.

As an added bonus with this book, Das has included a cd containing a number of the chants that he has recorded. The haunting music and beautiful tone of his voice is incredibly peaceful and helps the listener to better appreciate his story.

I found Chants of a Lifetime to be an interesting read and would recommend it to anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of Bhakti Yoga, Kirtan chanting or the stories of others journey for peace and a fuller understanding of life.

For more information, visit Hay House at http://www.hayhouse.com/details.php?id=4593&utm_id=3313
Or Barnes & Noble at http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Chants-of-a-Lifetime/Krishna-Das/e/9781401920227/?itm=1&USRI=chants+of+a+lifetime

Please note that Hay House supplied the book Chants of a Lifetime at no charge in exchange for being considered for review. My written review of this book is an honest reflection of my feelings towards it. Cam

Today's Quote - February 24, 2010

"At the end of each day, you should play back the tapes of your performance. The results should either applaud you or prod you."

—Jim Rohn

Today's Quote - February 20, 2010

Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.To keep our faces toward change and behave like free spirits in the presence of fate is strength undefeatable.

-Helen Keller

Hard Work!!!!!!

I often use this blog to talk about the importance of goal setting and developing a plan and although these are critical components to success, they need to be supported by a foundation of solid effort. The key to achieving goals is taking action, sometimes massive action, executed in an intelligent, well thought out manner.
Often, people can give up, perhaps when they are closer to reaching their goal than they even know!
I wanted to share with you a couple of quotes that really demonstrate the importance of effort, or hard work:

“If I work on a certain move constantly, then finally, it doesn’t seem risky to me. The idea is that the move stays dangerous and it looks dangerous to my foes, but it is not to me. Hard work has made it easy.” —Nadia Comaneci

“Talent is cheaper than table salt. What separates the talented individual from the successful one is a lot of hard work.” —Stephen King

“Hard work often leads to success. No work seldom does.” —Harvey Mackay

Ensure that solid effort executed in a manner consistent with your goals is part of your plan each and every day!

Today's Quote - February 5, 2010

"If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put foundations under them."

Henry David Thoreau

Chris Widener on Excellence

“Excellence is the gradual result of always striving to do better.” —Pat Riley

Chris’s Commentary:The best way to ensure that you will one day reach your goal of excellence in work and life is to make sure that you are day by day continuing to learn, grow and improve yourself. I once heard Zig Ziglar say that he has read for three hours a day for 25 years.

The point is that he has taken control of his mind and his learning and it has transformed his life, his work, his family and his income. What about you? What can you do to improve yourself each and every day? The idea of continual self-improvement must be one that you diligently take by decision.

You must decide that every day will see the successful completion of self-growth. While you may not be able to read for three hours a day, certainly you can do so for 15 minutes. And in what ways can you improve your skills? Look each day for a way to do what you do better, faster or smarter.

Action Point:Starting today, make some improvement in your life each day for the next seven days. By then, you will see it forming into a habit!

Reproduced with permission from the Chris Widener Ezine. To subscribe to Chris Widener's Ezine, go to http://pr1.netatlantic.com/t/12194731/31467344/590990/0/ Copyright 2009 Chris Widener International. All rights reserved worldwide.