How to Create All of the Wealth and Success You Want In Your Life – Tip #11

This is tip #11 of at least 10 in the series. I will try to publish most of them as e-zine articles, but if any are missing, they will all be available on my blog. Thanks, and enjoy Tip #11…

Tip #11 – Be thankful for what you have, instead of complaining about what you don’t have. Since I and many of you are real estate investors, the timing of this tip couldn’t be better. We need to stop complaining about what the market is doing, and start giving thanks for things we are doing that are working! We need to stop complaining about escalating property taxes and insurance, and start giving thanks that we are of able enough body and mind that investing is an option for us!

Let’s take a little timeout here, and do an exercise. For those of you who have been with me long enough, we have done this once before, but it was long enough ago that I can’t find it on my blog or in my material, so I guess we can do it again.

Take out a blank sheet of paper, and write down something you have to be thankful for. You must stop, and do this now, or you will not get the desired effect from the exercise. It won’t take long – just a few minutes… Seriously, stop reading now and get you a blank sheet of paper, and a pen or pencil, and write down something you have to be thankful for. Now write down something else you have to be thankful for. Then, get a little crazy, and write down everything you can think of that you have to be thankful for. Don’t be stingy here… Even include simple things like having arms and legs that work, and eyes and ears… Not everyone has those things. Family. Friends. Include things like having a roof over your head, and food in your belly… Not everyone has those things, either. Since most of my readers are Americans (yes, we have some international readers/subscribers now – thank you and welcome aboard!), let’s be thankful for living in the land of opportunity… Not everyone lives in a country where upward mobility in life is even possible. So really go after this list, and write down everything you can think of that you have to be thankful for, including the basics. Timing being what it is, tip #11 will be our Thanksgiving article. Now, you must complete the assignment of writing down things to be thankful for before you go to the next step, or, again, you will diminish the benefits of the exercise.

Next, after you have finished writing down things to be thankful for, go back to the top of your list, and start numbering the things you wrote down. Now what are you doing? You are counting your blessings!!! What’s more, if you were not stingy about it, and you really wrote down all of the things you have to be thankful for, you should find that the things you have to be thankful for probably far outnumber your problems in life… Interesting that people, in general, seem to have 90% blessings, and only 10% problems, yet we spend more time worrying about and focusing on our problems than we spend being thankful for our blessings.

Referring back to tip #2, we said that what we focus on expands. If we focus on our problems, we seem to have more and more problems. Do you know anyone in your life that just seems to be constantly mucked down in problems and issues? Someone that constantly complains about everything that is wrong in the world? Well, if what we focus on expands, and we always focus on the crap in our lives, guess what happens? We become a giant crap magnet!!! (I think the giant crap magnet terminology is borrowed from T. Harv Eker)

If, instead, we focus on what we have to be thankful for, we will start to notice more and more things in our lives that we have to be thankful for, and we will start attracting more and more good!!! Try this out in your life, and see if it isn’t true for you! Personally, I have fallen off of this horse lately, but from past experience, I can vouch that it works, and I am going to get back on this horse starting tonight (I like the things I have to be thankful for in my life much more than I like the crap!)! I hope you all do the same!!!

How to Create All of the Wealth and Success You Want In Your Life – Tip #3

This is tip #3 of at least 10 in the series. I will try to publish most of them as e-zine articles, but if any are missing, they will all be available on my blog at http://thelundletters.blogspot.com/
Also on my blog are some motivational quotes that have become quite popular, as well as other articles, so earmark my blog as one of your favorites, make a habit of going there, share the link with others, and let’s see if we can create some magic in your life!

Thanks, and enjoy Tip #3…

Tip #3 – Figure out your dreams, and set goals to get there… Most of you have probably heard something along the lines of, ‘you can’t hit a target that you can not see’. Hopefully you recognize the wisdom in that.

Let’s, for a minute, liken the importance of dreams and goals to flying on a commercial airplane. Suppose the airplane has no particular course, but just takes off and flies around. Do you want to book a flight? How do you know you won’t fly into objects or other airplanes, since air traffic controllers are not guiding the plane? What are the odds you are going to end up at your desired destination, much less within an appropriate timeframe? Will you even find an airport or other place for safe landing? Or will you run out of gas before you land? A commercial airplane flying in this manner sounds ridiculous, but is it really any less ridiculous for people to go through life, hoping for all kinds of wonderful dreams to come true, but never stopping to figure out what it will take to make their dreams come true, and never making plans and setting goals to make it happen?

“If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.” -Zig Ziglar

I once talked to a close relative about whether or not they had dreams and goals. They responded to me that not everything was about money. Well, I responded that dreams and goals don’t have to be about money. I said that dreams and goals can be spiritual, mental, physical, emotional, or other. Dreams and goals are about figuring out what you really want out of life, and charting a course to make sure it happens.

Let me get serious and say, for a moment, imagine yourself on your deathbed… Now consider this question… “Was your life a complete success?” Then, if not, ask yourself, “What things do you wish had happened that would have made your life a complete success?” If you don’t have planned, written dreams and goals for your life, when would now be the right time?

Not sure where I heard this, but it is also pretty deep: “Talent is God’s gift to you; what you do with it is your gift to God”.

I could probably go on for pages and pages about dreams and goals, but if what I have said already doesn’t convince someone of the need, then I doubt anything else I say would. Plus, I could use the extra time to get some sleep!

Now we are 3 tips into a journey of at least 10, so you are probably starting to have a feel for what to expect from my articles… I try to give you great information, and I hope that you find it useful. I hope something I have shared with you, or share with you in the next few weeks, changes the rest of your life for the better!!! If you like my 10 tips, please pass this on to anyone you know who may benefit from it… Together, let’s get inspired, let’s get motivated, let’s create some buzzzz, and let’s help some people (family, friends, and ourselves) create all of the wealth and success they want in life!!!

Also, a sneak preview of some coming attractions… Possible tips to look forward to include: the role mentors play in your success, how important the people you associate with are to your future, and why dreams fail.

How an Olympic Effort Can Make All Your Dreams Come True

Since many of us are enjoying the Olympic Games in August 2008, I thought it would be interesting to look at a few similarities between Olympic athletes, and people who aspire to make their dreams come true!

First, note that to compete at the highest levels, you almost have to have God-given talent and ability for your sport. I am a five feet, ten inch, slow white guy who makes up for it by not being able to jump. If my dream is to be the center on the Olympic basketball team, my odds aren’t very good. If you wish to pursuit your dreams, start by figuring out some of your natural abilities, then determine ways to achieve great success in some of those areas. Abraham Lincoln said it this way… it is much easier to ride a horse in the direction it is going! Amen.

Second, note that Olympic athletes have to have a passion for their sport. If you don’t love what you do, being the best in your field will be too difficult! Amen.

That leads me into our third similarity. Olympic athletes are devoted. They have heart, and courage, and dedication beyond comparison. Most Olympic athletes are up training and pursuing their dreams while the Average Joe is still in bed dreaming. Just the other day I was working alongside my handyman and a helper, putting down tile and grouting. It was Saturday night, about 8pm, and both of them said they were too tired to work any more. I said if we work just a few more hours we can finish the job, so we can all rest on Sunday, and get back to another job on Monday. I even offered to throw in a bonus if we completed the job Saturday night. They decided to go home to watch TV in lieu of the bonus. I worked a couple more hours, then got up early Sunday morning and worked another half day by myself to finish the job. I picked up supplies early Monday morning, and still beat them to the other job site. The handyman works steady, but slowly, and has a habit of wanting extra time off on a regular basis. The helper at times looks like he is a professional, at taking breaks. I just switched him back from pay by the hour to pay by the job, so his breaks will be on his time, instead of on my dime. While I don’t have my handyman’s skills, I work harder, and longer, and move faster than either of them. They work for seven to twelve dollars an hour. I work to make the world I live in better, and to build a fortune for my family, that I can eventually pass on to my children. They work to pay next week’s bills (and occasionally last week’s bills). I work because I choose to, and not because I have to. Don’t misinterpret me - I would not for a second claim that I am better than them; but I would say I have a better plan. The difference I offer up between my financial success and their struggle (besides a better plan) – heart!!! They just don’t want it as bad as I do! Amen.

Fourth, Olympic athletes are persistent. They keep plugging away at their sport, at their skills, at their routines, day after day, week after week, year after year, giving it their all as they reach for glory. Back to that tile job… It was 3:55pm Saturday, and we realize we are going to need one more bag of grout to finish the job. The place I ordered the tile and grout from closes at 4pm, and it takes them several days to get grout, because they don’t stock it. My handyman says, “You might as well give up.” Thirty minutes and 5-6 phone calls later, I am on my way to pick up the grout we need at a different local store. My handyman says, “You sure are lucky.” Well, if I did it his way we wouldn’t have got more grout – we would have gave up. I wasn’t lucky – I was persistent. I frequently have people tell me I am lucky, and sometimes I explain to them and sometimes I don’t, that I have no more or less luck than anyone else. What I do have is more heart, and more persistence. When I determine to do something, I go after it like a pit bull, and God help someone who tries to prevent me from reaching my goals. Persistence makes all the difference for Olympic athletes, and it makes all the difference for me! Amen.

Fifth, Olympic athletes visualize. They prepare mentally as well as physically. They rehearse their events in their minds, over and over again, seeing perfect performances in their mind first, and then when they actually perform, they just make reality match the way they already did in their minds so many times. Most of those who have experienced success at the highest levels in other areas also used visualization techniques. Try this. Figure out exactly what would be your dreams come true, and then visualize them happening. See in your mind what your successes were, and what obstacles you had to overcome, and see in great detail how you suceeded. Then break down and analyze exactly what you did on the path to making your dreams come true, and then start doing those things now! Determine the price that needs to be paid, and decide in advance that you are willing to pay it! What you think about comes about, and your future starts today! Amen.

Sixth, Olympic athletes don’t make or accept excuses for their own poor performance. They use failure like rocket fuel for improvement. In one of the Star Wars movies, the wise Yoda explains to a young Luke Skywalker, “there is no try; there is only do, or do not”. When you fail, learn the lesson and move on. If you have read any of my past material, you probably already know my next line – “you can have your excuses, or you can have your dreams, but you can’t have both”! Amen.

So, putting it all together, here are six things taken from Olympic athletes that you can use if you really do aspire to make your dreams come true:
1 – Find your God-given talents and abilities
2 – Love what you do
3 – You gotta have heart
4 – Persist, persist, persist…
5 – Visualize things working out the way you want them to
6 – No Excuses, no exceptions; use failure as fuel for improvement

Thank you for checking out my article, and if you liked it, make sure you check out my blog for other articles!!!