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Issue # 24 | To Your Success | January 2006 |
Announcing the launch of our new and improved website! 
Please visit www.growingintosuccesstraining.com and check out only a few of the many new resources soon to be available for you to enjoy. In the coming weeks we will have many more informative articles, as well as an ever expanding list of my personal favourite authors and titles in recommended reading. Today however, we're pleased to announce the launch of the first of our many live programs in the form of an e-course workbook manual: "I'm in Business For Myself, What Do I Do Now?"! THE NEW YOU Happy New Year! Isn't this an exciting time? Oh sure I know, Christmas is over and because of so much anticipation and busyness leading up to it there is sometimes a temporary 'let down' when it's over. We're now entering a NEW year though … 365 days of pure potential. What do you have planned for those 365 days? What do you hope to accomplish? Are you clear about what it is you want, and why? Do you have a plan of action and some accountability process in place to ensure that it happens? We'll explore these topics in upcoming issues of 'To Your Success' but today we'll address something that SHOULD be considered before even going there. Those of you who have participated in our live workshops have no doubt heard me suggest that we each "GROW into our life successes, they rarely if ever come about by accident." Although wonderful opportunities are always out there, we typically attract only those for which we are ready. Not surprisingly, should we somehow manage to maneuver or stumble into a life success prematurely, one of two things will generally happen. 1. We experience rapid personal growth that allows us to retain that success. 2. We crash and burn out of that success. Unfortunately for most, the latter is frequently the case. Unfortunately also, this principle applies equally to all of the important life areas, including but not limited to, business, relationships, finances and health. So how do we ensure that we attract the opportunities we want and capitalize on them when they arrive? The key is to deliberately prepare. For several years now, in the last part of December or first half of January, I block out time (5 to 10 hours of quiet, personal time - often spread over several days) to work through a series of exercises from our core program The Thoughtshop. This is an investment in myself that involves a fair amount of self-analysis and more than a little self-honesty, but it's been very rewarding. In a nutshell, it entails answering a series of self-directed questions that provide me with a pretty good snapshot of who I am now, who I aspire to be, and what I must change and do to become that. After all, the 'me' of today is only going to attract more of what I already have in each and every area of my life. To have something better in the future, the 'me' of tomorrow must be consistent with that. This process simply follows the natural order of things. It's fair, predictable, and historically proven. What this means is that in order for me to benefit from the wonderful potentials of 'then', in the future, I am well advised to take action 'now', in the present. The exercises I've described point to what that action must be. They do this by clarifying what's important to me, who I am now, who I would like to be, and what personal changes I can make to become that. It's not practical to introduce ALL of these exercises in this newsletter, but I am including a few questions you may wish to give thoughtful consideration to. My recommendation is to print them off, then sit down in a quiet place with a pen and pad of paper. If you reflect on and answer each one with candid honesty you will without question gain some valuable insights and direction for this coming year. Are you ready? Okay, here we go. 1. What are my values? People commonly associate values with terms such as Honesty, Fairness, Integrity, Fidelity, Equality, etc. These are Moral Values (principles actually) and certainly important, but there are likely other things, very personal things, that you also value greatly and should identify. These are Life Quality Values that may include watching the sun rise, solitary walks in nature, a particular sports activity, reading, traveling, quiet moments with a loved one, entertaining, preparing a special meal, and much more. Anything that you really, really enjoy and appreciate, that you can't imagine not having in your life, is a value. So make your list. Write out (under the heading of 'My Personal Values') everything you can think of that is true for you. Be aware, this may require more than one sitting over several days. 2. Who am I as a person? Which traits and qualities (positive and negative) do I now have that make up my personality and character? (Examples: Generous - Selfish, Respectful - Demeaning, Confident - Arrogant, Allowing - Controlling, Balanced - Extreme, Determined - Stubborn, Forgiving - Resenting, Helpful - Meddling, Honest - Deceitful, Brave - Cowardly, etc.) Write out every word you can think of that describes your personality and character at this time. 3. Who do I aspire to be? If you could snap your fingers and instantly become your ideal person, who would that be? Which positive traits and characteristics that you've identified in yourself would you like to have in even stronger measure? Which positive traits and characteristics that you see in others whom you admire (and perhaps didn't identify in yourself) would you like to add? Which negative traits and characteristics would you like to eliminate, or at least diminish? Draw a vertical line from top to bottom on your foolscap sheet and make 'Expand' the heading for one column and 'Eliminate' the heading for the other. Now write down all of the positive traits and characteristics that you already see in yourself (or have identified in others) in the Expand column. Next write down all of the negative traits and qualities that you see in yourself in the Eliminate column. So what do you do with all this? What you'll have in front of you after completing this little exercise is a personal compass that points to 'where you can be', and the outline of an action plan. - Your list of values - reveals what you think should be the priorities in your life. (Isn't it interesting though how so often we invest far more time and energy in what we supposedly don't value as highly as what we say we do?) If you see a discrepancy here perhaps its time to re-evaluate. Do you really value what you say you do, or do you value something else more? What do you CHOOSE to value? - Your list of existing traits and characteristics - exposes who you presently are. Without self-honesty this is a worthless exercise. With self-honesty however it becomes your reference point against which all progress can be measured in the days and months to come. - Your list of desired traits and characteristics that you wish to Expand or Eliminate - provides clear direction as to who you truly would like to be. You CAN begin today to become whomever you aspire to be … all that's required is a conscious intention supported by daily action. Just imagine that you already are this person. Begin thinking and behaving now in a manner consistent with that. At first it's difficult, then a little easier, soon becoming second nature, until one day it's just who you are What will your future life be? It's not hard to determine ... it will simply be a mirror image of the inside of you. "We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers - you can blame anyone but never blame yourself. It's never your fault. But it's always your fault, because if you wanted to change, you're the one who has got to change. It's as simple as that, isn't it?" ----- Katherine Hepburn UPCOMING EVENTS: Stay tuned for the calendar of events for January and February Public Venue workshops. We are in the process of setting dates for the following courses in the Chilliwack and Abbotsford areas in the latter part of January through the end of February. We'd appreciate your input as to which days of the week are most convenient for your organization and will do our best to accommodate the majority of respondents. The Power of Communication for Team Building and Successful Relationships "Life is change. Growth is optional. Choose wisely." ----- Karen Kaiser Clark To Your Success, Reg Neufeld and the Growing Into Success Training Team Growing Into Success Training www.growingintosuccesstraining.com SHARE WITH FRIENDS!... If you're enjoying this free newsletter, why not pass it along by simply forwarding this issue to someone who might appreciate it? Should they wish to receive it regularly they can be automatically added to our subscription list by simply emailing newsletter@growingintosuccesstraining.com with their name and 'subscribe' in the subject box. WE VALUE YOUR FEEDBACK! … Our intent for this FREE newsletter is that it be brief, informal and include articles, tips or suggestions to help you achieve the life success you desire … and for each one to be of real value to you. Also included are dates, times and locations of some of our upcoming programs. (Complete Calendar of Events on our website.) If you have any comments, questions or suggestions we would love to hear from you. Simply click Reply on your toolbar, jot down your thoughts, and hit send … or email us at info@growingintosuccesstraining.com. Should you no longer wish to receive 'To Your Success', just hit Reply on your Toolbar … type UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject box … and we will take you off the list immediately. Thank you. Growing Into Success Training |