Posts

Finding Happiness in Life by Not Giving In to Negativity

March 6/by JC

In this post (originally posted August 6th, 2012) I talk about why it’s important to not dwell in the negatives. Since I originally posted it, I’ve personally grown to come to a point where I think it’s necessary to see the negative in the world – but to not dwell on it. However, I think to get to that point, you have to actually detox from a negative world and mindset. Only then will you be able to be aware of all of all the stuff we’re being barraged with day after day.

It’s at that point that you’ll be able to make better choices for yourself.

So how do you enter a positive mental space when all the messages you receive are negative by nature?

Here’s a few pointers:

This morning I had the opportunity to be on a coaching call with a gal by the name of Linda. She is battling cancer. Horrifying to to even think about, right? Well… yeah, of course!!

However, what separates Linda from a lot of people, especially those that are going through a tough patch in life, is that while she could be focusing on the negative, she actually chooses to focus on the positive. Even when she’s going through radiation treatments in “gray, dark, lifeless rooms”, she still manages to jokingly say to the staff “It would be nice if we could have some colors in here!”.

Linda doesn’t have to have this courage. She doesn’t have to fill her life with laughter and continued hope. She could easily give in and fill every second and every minute with negativity. But she doesn’t.

I’m sure Linda is not alone in her perspective. In fact, I know that a lot of people who beat cancer actually keep a positive perspective on life as they’re going through treatment. I wonder what the ratio of positive cancer survivors to negative cancer survivor is… I’d be willing to bet that the positive outweighs the negative.

Choosing to Be Happy and…

What I’ve found out since Mom’s passing is that you can either dwell on the negative or you can get energy from the positive. Either way – you’re going to have to live life! Might as well make it a good experience than a bad one, right?

Once I make that decision to be happy, I have to be able to do something to actually back that decision up. Interestingly enough, nothing makes most people more happy than helping others. Either they enjoy the act of giving to those other people – or they love the feeling they receive from getting recognized for making an impact. Either way, they get something out of it.

I’ve been thinking recently that depression is the opposite of happiness, right? And since one can be happy with helping others, doesn’t it make since that depression comes from the lack of involvement with people? Perhaps Expressives are probably more prone to going through depression due to their need of being the center of attention? That’s an interesting concept…

Adding to that – another thing that leads to happiness is not only having people in your life – but those that you can call positive anchors. Look for those people to share common things with and then get involved with them on a more personal level!

Actions to ‘Happiness’:

What keeps you happy? It’s different for everyone – but a big part of it is sharing with others. Whether you’re an introvert with a few close friends or an extrovert with plenty of them, you always feel better when you share experiences with others.

What if you don’t know what to share with others? Then here’s a few more steps I’ve found for myself.. (I’m pretty sure I’ve covered this before.)

Figure out your passions. (Passions are things that you do automatically and make you happy.)
Determine your purpose from your passions. All 6 Billion people in this world have different passions thus they have a different purpose. Those that identify themselves as their job usually don’t know their individual purpose.
From your purpose – figure out a plan that includes helping or sharing with others.
Figure out where those others group together and then execute (find them)!!
Keep out all negative sources from your life as much as possible. In the end, there’s nothing more unsettling and unproductful than negative sources. This includes most news, gossip, and other negative people. (Sometimes that last one is EXTREMELY difficult.)

If you’re following your purpose then you’re automatically not giving into negativity because you’re doing exactly what makes you happy!!

Bonus: Once you execute, there’s a good possibility that if you’re bringing enough value to enough other people – you might be able to make income on your passion! (Don’t let this be the reason you do what you do, though!!)

Actions Steps

So – how about you? What are great ways that you’ve learned to get and stay happy? Does true happiness always revolve around others? Please, as usual, share your thoughts below!! Look forward to expanding my understanding of this topic!

Solving Community Problems through Social Innovation with Harrison Painter (AoL 117)

March 1/by JC

Having a business is one thing, but starting one that’s on a mission to make an impact in your community is something else. Especially one that focuses on creating Massive Positive Social Impact.

What does that mean exactly?

Well imagine if your sole focus of your business is to amplify purpose driven entrepreneurs, creators, and nonprofit founders in your community. This is what Amplify Indy and it’s creator, Harrison Painter is all about.

By working with Collaborate 317, Harrison has helped start an awesome community through the Amplify Hope Program.

In this interview with Harrison, you’ll learn what it’s all about and what sparked this vision.

It’s our hope that you’ll want to make Massive Positive Social Impact in your area and join us in the Junto on Facebook.

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

How did Harrison originally get into marketing and event promotion? 7:19
How did he realize that it was time to leave the traditional job world and strike out on his own? 13:22
What made him move to LA with his business? What’s the difference between there and the midwest? 21:00
How did Amplify get off the ground? 33:34
What are some secrets to launching and marketing an event? 44:07
What’s the Amplify Hope Program all about? 47:36
What else is Harrison looking forward to in 2018? 55:43
What are three favorite movies or documentaries? 1:04:13
One gift he likes giving others? 1:06:21
What’s a topic people should be talking about hardly anyone is? 1:07:57
What was something Harrison believed when he was 30 and now believes was inaccurate? 1:13:46
How can someone be a difference maker in their community? 1:15:27

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

ITEMS and PEOPLE MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

SHOW NOTE EXTRAS:

Harrison reveals the Amplify Hope Challenge:

Dr. Pingnan Shi shares with us the Amplify Youth Program:

Thomas “TAG” Griffin shares with us Hearts in Hand Homeless Outreach

Thank You, Sam Ash from HIH: Homeless Outreach

Thanks for Listening!

Thanks so much for joining us again this week. Have some feedback you’d like to share? Leave a note in the comment section below!

If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the top of the post.

Also, please leave an honest review for The AoL Podcast on iTunes! Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated! They do matter in the rankings of the show, and we read each and every one of them.

If you have any questions feel free to email them over via the email mentioned in the show or by our contact form.

And finally, don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes, Stitcher, Soundcloud, and/or Google Play Music. It’s absolutely free to do so.

A huge thank-you to you guys for joining us!

Cheers!

15 Professional Etiquette Tips to Help Your Business Blossom

February 27/by JC

You know that feeling. When someone doesn’t quite live up to your standards. It’s hard to describe that particular feeling though.

Do you feel let down? Sure.

Maybe a little bit of shame because you feel you might have dropped the ball somehow? Quite possibly.

Maybe, it’s neither. Maybe you just brush it off and place a label on that person as “not up to par”.

Well, having grown up in a old patriarchal family that was HUGE on manners, I can tell you a thing or two about how it’s helped me throughout the years.

I remember one particular instance where I reached for food in a wrong manner, and was stabbed with a fork.

It taught me a lesson in being polite at the table. Reaching for things across other people – not a polite thing to do.

Today, however, stabbing someone with a fork (or most discipline for that matter) is not acceptable in our PC liberal leading world. In fact, I’m sure it would be considered child abuse.

Unfortunately, there’s a lot of people out there practicing business that might not have been taught how to be polite growing up themselves.

Quite regularly, for example, I hear the question “does profanity bother me in business?” Well, that’s kinda like asking “Does nudity bug you in public?”.

I mean, of course they’re not the same thing. But the same principles of self control are used in both.

Personally, it’s hard for me to trust people who don’t show self control up front. It makes me wonder if they’ll show self control in the rest of their life and business.

Manners Matter!

That being the case, what are some ways of making sure that people don’t get the wrong impression of you when you first meet?

Of course the answer is being mindful with your manners.

Manners are a great way to illustrate that you practice self control. And self control is one of the keys in building long lasting trust.

You want a good working relationship, that first impression (as well as your 2nd, 3rd, and etc.) is huge when it comes to self-selecting yourself when it comes to opportunities.

Likes attract likes. If you want to attract Gary Vaynerchuk type folks in your life, work it like Gary. But I’m not saying just be crass – I’m saying have people skills and know how to get the job done. Otherwise you might end up like looking like a try hard Jesse Pinkman type of character.

So here’s a few things that I think many of us online business folk should probably get a little better at:

First Impressions

First impression is the best way to start building good moral right away. Besides not swearing as if you’re beer buddies, it’s also good to present yourself in the manner you want to known. Sure, you can dress like Elliot Alderson if you want or you can suit up. Personally, I’m somewhere in the middle.

Few more pointers include:

When meeting someone, always shake hands firmly while making eye contact. No wimpy hand grabs. And make sure that if you’re sitting, that you get up to shake their hand when you first meet them. Note: It’s ok to sit while shaking hands when you’re agreeing on something!
Pay attention to their name and use it as frequently as makes sense. Up to a point, the more you use it, the more they feel important. (Just don’t use it in negative examples.)
Besides learning their name, give other cues that you’re paying attention to what they’re saying. Repeat what they say sometimes.
Use your inside voice. Sometimes people are obnoxiously loud when meeting new people. Might be because they’re over-excited. Might be because they’re not aware that their voice carries as well as it does.
Put away any digital devices when meeting someone. Better yet, put it on silent or turn it off completely so that you can have a good uninterrupted conversation.

Communication

Speaking of turning off digital devices, there’s some things that you should probably think about with communication etiquette:

When it comes to a phone in particular, maintain your usual speaking volume. Also, if you’re speaking with someone on the speakerphone – let them know. This might actually keep them from looking like a tool… or both of you if they drop something on the line that might not be the best thing for people near you to hear.
When it comes to email and other online messages, you can never be too cautious. Generally speaking, in person, we all have an easier understanding of what others are trying to say. But if you use too many exclamation marks, reply in all caps, or use too many emoticons.
Also, when it comes to emails – use professional email addresses. At one point, this meant just not using names like “sweetie@…”, “coolsugarman@…” or other cute or fun names. That still is good rule, but we live in a time where if you have a business, you should have a business email. You can get up to 10 of them for free at zoho.com.
When it comes to messaging people, whether it’s on Facebook or through texts, try to keep the conversation short. Also, don’t be a negative through messages. Important conversations need to be had on the phone or in person.
If you miss someone’s call, get a text, or an email try to respond to them promptly. In a world where ghosting is a thing, you don’t want people to get the idea that you’re avoiding them on purpose.

Other Stuff

A few things that don’t necessarily fit above include:

When in Rome, do as the Romans do. A good rule of thumb is to not disrupt the ways of the locals. Whether that means keeping your space tidy or labeling food in a refrigerator in a coworking space or knowing a bit about the language.
Be timely. Be on time as much as possible. End meetings on time and never use more words when you could use less.
Unless someone is volunteering information or you have their permission, don’t brain-pick! Always ask permission to get someone’s advice or when you want to be direct with them.
Be strategic when choosing meals. You don’t want to order anything that splatters with new people. If you can, only do meals with people you feel comfortable with.
Might be a little old fashioned, but handwritten thank you cards go a long way. Pat Flynn has a wall where his fans’ notes end up! Also, when not handwriting, make sure you always use spell check!! 🙂

Action Steps

That’s a good list to get you started. I’m sure there’s plenty of pointers I’m missing, though. What are some things you’ve noticed people have done that left a sour taste in your mouth? Let us know in the comments below!!

10 Ways to Find Places of Interest In Your Own Backyard

January 9/by JC

When I was growing up, I lived in a small town in the middle of flyover country. (I wouldn’t be until later that I even knew that the Midwest was called that.) One of my biggest goals in high school was to go out and see the world. This interest, I’m pretty sure stemmed from watching way too much Discovery Channel over the years.

That, and well, mom was an art teacher. And she loved teaching art from around the world.

It just seemed like something I was always going to do.

Then college hit and I ended up telling myself that if I wanted to graduate on time, I need to book it. Traveling abroad, for the foreseeable future, was not in my cards.

Even though that was the case, I did do a fair share of domestic traveling during the long college summers. When I wasn’t taking a summer class, you could find me making road trips to all kinds of places east of the Mississippi.

Sure, that might not sound like a lot compared to other online entrepreneurs, but here’s the thing. I feel like I appreciate more of what we have in our own backyards a little more than others might.

I don’t feel like I need to leave the country to get the same benefits they do.

Heck, there are still places here in the Midwest that are on my list to check out!

That being the case and it being a new year, I thought I’d share with you guys some of my favorite ways to engage more with your own hometown or places that aren’t so far away.

That way you still get some of the benefits of traveling, but don’t have to go out of the country!

1. Pick up Travel Guides and Local Magazines for Nearby Destinations

This is probably one of my go to cheats in finding interesting things to do when I’m traveling around Indiana. When I was working at AMS daily back in 2014, we found ourselves going to various towns around Indiana as part of our whirlwind tour of events. When I was at those towns, I made sure that I got travel brochures while I was there to find out more about them.

Now some of my favorite towns in Indiana are those that might not seem too special if you’re just traveling through. Towns like Richmond, New Castle, and Noblesville are much higher on my list today.

Another thought, if you’re into museum exhibits, check to see what’s coming up in your city and cities that are within a day trip. Some of the best exhibits I’ve seen have been in Chicago, Dayton, and Columbus, Ohio.

2. Seek out Free Activities: Festivals, Art Shows, etc.

One of my favorite activities to take part in during mid summer to early fall is to attend festivals throughout Michigan and Indiana.

For example, in Traverse City, MI they have the National Cherry Festival. Many people who tell you that they’ve been to Traverse City is because of this festival. While I’ve never been, I know it’s a great time.

That said, there are tons of other festivals that are going on around the area at this time due to the harvest period. One of these festivals is called the Venetian Festival which takes place in the town that I’d visit my great aunt in yearly – Charlevoix.

If you like fireworks and being up close to them when they’re going off, their Friday night display could possibly be one of the best shows you’ve ever seen!

After that, I always make it a point to go to Indiana festivals including the Johnny Appleseed Festival, James Dean Festival, and any others that might be happening in Indy. Many these festivals have tons of artisans selling their wares – so festivals make great places to find one of a kind gifts.

Not in the Michiana area? Check and see what kind of festivals are in your area!

3. Let your Phone Guide You

Some of my favorite apps help me discover towns (and cheap gas) I’m traveling through. If you haven’t added them to your phone yet, check out these out:

Gas Buddy

One of the first apps I downloaded when I got my first Android back in 2010. It’s changed a bit since then, but still pretty useful if you like shaving a few bucks off your fillup.

During my quick detours off the interstate, I might find myself traveling a few miles to get to where I’m going. During that time, the area might catch my eye for future exploration. This is especially true in Indy when a quick drop off of i-465 might lead me to discover a new store.

Yelp

Tired of the same ol’ cuisine? Maybe want to see if there’s any new stores in your area? This is a classic app that I’ve been a fan of over the years. Those that take the time to review on here are usually very transparent, so what you see in the reviews of a place is probably right. You can’t say that all the time for Google Reviews.

FieldTrip

Perhaps you’re the type that while you’re driving down the road, you don’t mind a notification that suggests you might like a certain landmark that’s a mile or two off this upcoming exit. Or maybe you’re staying with some extended relatives and want to make yourself your own tour guide of the area?

If either of these seem plausible, you’ll love this app.

Side note: If you live near or in Virginia and you haven’t witnessed the Natural Bridge – you have to go check it out and many of the caves in the area.

4. Wander until Your Curiosity Piques!

When I was in high school, there was a popular activity called “Cruisin’” that many of us took part in. If you’re not familiar with the term, It’s basically when you’d aimlessly cruise up and down a certain main stretch on a given evening and eventually bump into friends from school. Then, depending on who was out, you might continue on the same route or perhaps you and a convoy of friends would go on a short excursion somewhere in a nearby town or country.

People had been doing this for decades, so it was ingrained pretty heavily as “something to do” in my hometown.

When I was in college, I took this method to explore Lafayette and the surrounding counties so that I felt like I actually knew where I was. I’d go drive to the Purdue airport and watch planes take off and land while I was doing some homework. Heck, I’d even find some legendary backwoods restaurants that only the higher-ups in the community knew about and socialized at.

If you live in a small to mid sized college town and you don’t really know the surrounding area that well, I challenge you to just drive and find out what’s out there without using your phone. Just make sure that you have enough gas so that if you get lost, you can get back to where you started!

5. Switch up your Transportation: Walk, Bike, or Take Public Transportation

When I was at Purdue, I was definitely a different person than I am today. I feel I was certainly more introverted… but I think that’s just the nature of the beast when you’re studying engineering!

When I went to grad school, I felt like I had the opportunity to make changes in my life and one of those changes was, when it was cold, take the bus. Up through this point I had always ridden my bike, but one too many slips made me change my ways.

When I started riding, no one told me that I wasn’t aloud to talk to people on the bus. So I started striking up conversations with whomever I was sitting next to. Interestingly enough, sometimes those conversations were interesting enough that a bus stop might be missed!

Eventually those people I had engaged with before, started shouting back at me. Whether it was on the bus or on campus, there seemed to be people coming out of the woodwork to say hi!

6. Check out Nearby Sporting Events

If you’re not into sports, I understand. This might not work for you. But if you’re into one sport, there’s a good chance you might like to dabble in others from time to time.

Or maybe, while visiting other towns, you might want to get a taste for their fandom.

When I’ve visited Pittsburgh, for example, you can’t help but realize that you’re in a sports happy town. Having all their teams’ colors the same really makes it all part of a unified group of fans. Even though the Steelers have been a rival to the Colts over the years, if I was given the opportunity to go to one of their games, I’d consider it to just take in the atmosphere of one of their games.

7. Be a Visiting Friend’s Tour Guide

You know your town better than someone who’s visiting. So what better way to explore than by seeing it from the perspective of a visitor?

When Maria and I were first married, there were a couple of things she hadn’t visited yet in Indy. One was the zoo, believe it or not. Having been there a number of times growing up, I had the chance to show her some of the old exhibits as well as learn about the new ones that they had put in there in recent years.

8. Try New Restaurants in your Town or your Friend’s Favorites in Theirs

If you’re in a medium sized town to the size of a city, there’s no reason why you should run out of places to go try out on a week to week basis.

When I was at Purdue, we had a selection of all kinds of international cuisine. Plus, some restaurants would change from year to year while others, like XXX, have been staples for years.

Make it a point to try as many places as you can so you really have a taste of the town your in. And likewise, when you’re visiting friends in other towns, have them take you to their favorite places as well as experimental ones. You might help them find a new favorite!

9. Make a Bucket List and Commit to Achieving It

I remember a few years ago a friend of mine randomly went skydiving with a group of her friends. They didn’t stop talking about that event for the entire year.

Is there something that you’d want to do in your area? Maybe it doesn’t have to be skydiving. Maybe you could just learn how to fly a plane? Or perhaps take pictures?

Maybe 2018 is the year that you stop talking about something and finally actually do it?

10. Create a Mini-Adventure!

If you’re finding it hard to find something to do, then maybe you can make a circuit of activities. Having been part of AMS for awhile, I know that there’s some adventure races out there. And if there’s nothing like that near where you’re at, maybe there’s a scavenger hunt company, or a murder mystery company you could utilize to help you and some friends have a good time together?

Action Steps

So hopefully these give you a little spark in coming up with places to go to in your immediate area. The big thing about travel is that it gives you new perspectives. You can find new perspectives in your backyard by simply seeing how others work on their own crafts.

If you have any other ideas in how someone might be able to explore their own backyard, let me know below!

Developing a Moral Compass: 21 Standards to Live and Work By

January 2/by JC

Here we are at the beginning of a New Year. In a lot of blogs across the web regarding business and self development, you’ll be seeing a lot of posts talking about planning your upcoming year.

I’m going to change it up just a bit here. Instead of giving you yet another one of those posts (which I have done my fair share), I wanted to focus more on having a good mindset to start out the new year.

Because, really, when you think about it, planning and reflection shouldn’t just be a particular once a year activity. It should be ongoing.

That being the case, one can talk about doing these things until you’re blue in the face. But if you don’t have the right Attitude or “Lattitude” as the podcast would suggest, you’re not going to be getting too far.

You need a moral compass.

So here’s a post originally from March 20th, 2011. When I first heard the information, it really helped me out of my funk. Not only that, but it was one of those pieces of knowledge that set me on my current trajectory.

I hope it does the same for you!

So here’s a question for you. What’s holding you back? What is the main problem that keeps you from achieving whatever it is that you’re trying to achieve? Have an idea? Ok. Now let’s see if you agree with one of these next sentences. It’s someone else’s fault. Someone else got the promotion. Someone else got first place in the last tournament.

But is that really the reason why or is it that you beat yourself? Through all the conversations I’ve had over the years (including the podcast) it seems that there’s one main reason they’ve failed. Up to a point, they believed that to be successful, you had to work by beating the competition.

What we’ve found is this simply isn’t the case. To be successful in life, you simply have to beat the you of yesterday. That’s really one of the keys of success. A mentality of “If not today, then when?” or “Don’t put off ’til tomorrow what you can accomplish today.”

Back when I was active member of LTD, we had a subscription to a weekly CD called the Continued Education Program (CEP). Many times the topics that were covered relate to business development itself, but more often than not, most of the time it relates to living a successful life in general. (Side note: you can’t be successful in one thing without being able to be successful in another. The rules and laws of success transfer.) One example is a CD I was listening to by Joe Markiewics. In it he talks about something that I think definitely needs to be brought up to the front of my things to write about – Standards to Live By.

In my Freemason studies, one of the things that I’ve also come across is the idea of the ashlar block. At first it starts out as a rough ashlar, but after the work of educated workmen it becomes what is known as a perfect ashlar. In construction, a perfect ashlar is a standardized building block that is then used to build reliable structures with.

So with that said, how does one become a perfect ashlar? How do we become a part of a community in which others can trust them to be valuable part of the community? It all starts with standards. If you want to be successful in life, then I suggest you determine your own standards. With a bit of help from Joe in reminding me, here are standards that I try to live by:

1.) No one person is more important than another, the group as a whole, or the vision of that group.

If one person thinks that they’re better than the next guy and causes problems, then that person can and should be left behind. If you ever get the chance to study a pack of dogs (via Dog Whisperer), notice what happens when one starts acting weird. The others start noticing right away and soon leave it behind. In a pack of wolves who have to hunt to survive, unpredictable behavior can not be tolerated.

2.) No excuses.

If something isn’t done, it’s not done. Period. “Do or do not, there is no try.”

3.) Never complain.

I know that things aren’t fair and they may hurt your feelings, but it’s not for you or me to retaliate in complaining. Just do better next time. Make your reasons to not do something your reasons to do it.

4.) No weak faces.

This means no bad body language. In a sports team, if one member drops the ball repeatedly because their head is not in the game, can they ever be trusted to actually catch it and be a go to guy of the team? All it takes is one person to feel sorry for themselves and the rest of the team falls apart. Don’t lose your poise.

5.) Be unselfish.

There are other people. Make sure they get their share as well.

6.) Positive mental attitude (PMA) at all times.

Learn what to say when you talk to yourself. “I can do this. I just got to figure out how!”

7.) Never talk negatively about somebody behind their back.

Never gossip for gossiping sake or for small talk. If you feel you have to be negative, only be constructive about it and do it in a manner that is not mean or backhanded. State only the facts. Use the sandwich method.

8.) People matter – care about them.

If there’s someone sitting by themselves in a group setting, go be a friend to them. Invite them into your group. Offer to do something for them. (When my mom passed, I got more cards from LTD members than from any other group. I haven’t opened them yet, but I really truly appreciate them!)

9.) Be a giver – go the extra mile.

Be a giver with time, friendship, and money when and where possible.

10.) Be enthusiastic.

Have fun! It brings energy to people you’re with and rewards them in being with you. Never mail it in.

11.) Edify all success.

Promote and congratulate people for all levels of success. People like to be noticed – they probably do the same back to you.

12.) Be committed to people you team up with.

Have each other’s back. Pray for each other when they’re having troubles.

13.) Be honest all the time.

Your word is your worth; your worth is your word.

14.) Personal conduct.

If you wouldn’t do it in front of your family or people you work with, then why do you think you should do it all by yourself? Don’t be a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Remember there should never be double standards – ever. You don’t need to give people a reason to be skeptical of you – especially if they’re not a trusting person to begin with.

15.) Take personal responsibility for your decisions and actions.

This is something that is taught to kids early on. Why would it change as an adult? It’s not the alcohols fault you were drunk. It was your fault you were drunk and yours alone.

16.) Be accountable

Especially to those that are important to you. This includes friends and family. (If you’re at all spiritual or religious, don’t forget God.)

17.) Collective responsibility.

Aka Unity with your group. You win together, you lose together. It’s not the failure of one person on the team to fail, it’s the teams. (Example – it’s not the kicker’s fault he missed the last chance field goal, it was the team’s fault for putting him in a position where it was up to him to be the clutch guy. Ask Peyton Manning about this one…)

18.) Preparation

If you don’t prepare to win, you don’t deserve to win.

19.) Pride

Have pride in what you do and who you are. Be proud of your lineage. Be proud of your work ethic.

20.) Never settle for good. Go for the great.

No matter what happens, you have not arrived. Never settle for what you have now because you can always be better. Success only gives you a platform to be a motivator and helper of others. Create a vacuum of inspiration.

21.) Perform to your standards at all times.

So there are my standards. I’ll admit, I don’t live up to them all the time – I’m not perfect. But I don’t go out of my way to break them either. What are some standards that you’ve set in place that work for you and you work towards them?

Action Steps

There have been many times where I thought the rest of the world would profit quite a bit from the things I learned during my time in LTD. Many of the topics that were discussed were very eye opening. This was definitely one of those lessons.

Let me hear from you. What principles do you use regularly in your day to day life? They can be your own or items from this list.

6 Red Flags Telling You to Move on In Your Career: (or What to Do When You Hate Your Job)

December 27/by JC

I remember one of my favorite shows in high school was the Drew Carey Show. Yes, Drew Carey had his own sitcom before he was the host of the Price is Right and even before “Whose Line is It Anyway?”. It was really cool having a sitcom based in the midwest.

In fact, you could probably say it was a midwestern take on the show Friends.

As I remember it today, the show was built around his frustrations with life and how things simply weren’t working out the way he and his friends had hoped they’d work out.

I liked the show so much. I think it was because I could relate with Drew as a character on the show but also as the actor, himself. So when I saw his biography, I had to pick it up.

It was called Dirty Jokes and Beer: Stories of the Unrefined. And like his show, I loved that book quite a bit. Enough that I probably read it 5 times over before going to Purdue.

One quote that I can visually remember him saying in that book was this:

“My mind was a mess back then as I drove across the country [from gig to gig]. I was driving to clear my head, and all I could do was obsess on my uncertain future. It’s like you’re at a crap game, and on your biggest roll, the dice go in slow motion. For months, you watch them spin and roll and bounce around, waiting for them to land so you know if you’re a winner or a loser. Total limbo.”

During my time in college, I came to understand what he meant by this. It wasn’t until after getting out grad school that I finally felt the need to start seeing a need to develop a vision for my own path.

So many of us do what we feel like we’re supposed to do. But, what we DON’T do is what we CAN do to because we actually WANT to do it.

Instead, we get our instructions from external forces – not internal ones.

In other words, we don’t live our lives with intent. We haven’t really developed our own wants.

Sure we have all kinds of aspirations, but without actual personal intent – very little of it will come true.

Don’t Make the “Money First, Mission Last” Mistake!

Many of us continue to live life in that limbo state that Drew was talking about. Looking for a sign from the world to tell us that we’re doing the right thing.

But for many, that feeling never comes.

For Baby Boomers and a lot of Generation Xers, this seems to be the norm. Their biggest concern as an adult was to get a stable paycheck.

And most of the tie, that steady paycheck has come from being an employee – a follower – because the advice to get that paycheck was to get a job. The higher the pay, the better, right?

As we know, this isn’t the case.

But you can’t blame these generations for not wanting more for themselves than a steady paycheck. Society has taught us for decades that supporting our families was the most important thing to do as an adult. It was a perk if we were to do that work in a field we actually like. But the truth is, many of us in the 9 to 5 world simply don’t.

Case in point, here’s another quote of Drew’s:

“Oh, you hate your job? Why didn’t you say so? There’s a support group for that. It’s called EVERYBODY, and they meet at the bar.”

Kind of a sad reality, huh?

Laila Featured in Carmel Magazine! (Click for info)

It Doesn’t Have to be This Way

As I alluded to in a recent post, no one has to work a job they hate – especially with the sharing economy picking up the way it is. For example, look at my cohost Laila! She quit her “dream job” at NASA because she knew she could be more impactful as a fitness coach.

Later, while she was building her coaching business as the Fitness Astronaut, she worked as a tutor to have income to support that goal. While the tutoring didn’t necessarily bring in the same level of income as a high flying NASA position, it did leave her enough energy to work on building her business.

Today, she’s really blossoming into her new life as evident from her recent story in a local magazine.

6 Signs to Know if You Need to Ditch Your Current Path

As Laila and I chatted over her transitional time, I came to understand that there were a few flags that she noticed at her time at NASA that suggested that maybe she wasn’t doing the right thing for her.

In fact, I’d even go on to say that many of these flags, I noticed myself during my brief time in the corporate world.

Here’s a quick list of reasons NOT to stay in a bad position:

1. Doing it for the Money

As we’ve been talking about, money doesn’t directly buy happiness – especially if you focus your life on acquiring it.

2. Doing it for a Title or Status

If you’re working some position because you think it impresses your friends, family, or your old self but the position sucks, it’s ok to give it up. Titles mean jack at the end of the day and we all change over time. What we would identify with 5 years ago isn’t actually us!

3. Doing it because your Family did It

If you know Gary Vaynerchuk’s background, you know he got his education in the liquor business world. But that’s not the kind of entrepreneur he is or even pretends to be today. Sure, every once in awhile he’ll come out with some sort of wine related offer (like his recent wine club), but he’s moved on to other things that are more important for him.

You’re allowed to move on, too!

4. Doing it Because you Don’t Want to Look like a Failure

This was one of issues I shared with Laila. We both had spent all that time pursuing a degree to work in the STEM world. But yet, at the end of the day, it didn’t satisfy us. And during our transitional time, we might have looked like we were idiots for giving up what we strived so long to achieve!

Here’s the thing – failing is a part of life. For you to not admit that you screwed up and went after something that might not have been you in the first place, that would be a bigger failure than realizing it and adjusting as quickly as possible.

We learn through failure, so don’t try to avoid it unless the outcome is surely life threatening.

5. Because It’s Easy

When I taught at Ivy Tech, I went into it knowing that I could teach Algebra – no problem. What I didn’t realize is that the students I’d be teaching it to – really didn’t have any reason to know what I was teaching them.

Many of them had a bigger need of learning what I’m teaching you guys than learning about Algebra.

Sure, Algebra can be interesting to the right people, but I realized that there were some things that I felt needed to be taught first.

6. Because You Can Tolerate It

Very similar to the last point. Just because you can tolerate having a certain position… doesn’t mean that position is for you specifically. Depending on the job, there’s probably a good chance that someone else could use that position and be grateful for it. You just getting by not only does a disservice for you but for that other person as well.

Don’t tolerate positions. You’re wasting your time, the company’s, and potentially someone else’s whose potentially stuck in an even worse position than you.

Action Steps

So the next time you realize that you’re miserable in whatever position you’re in, whether it’s a regular 9 to 5, or even running a business that you’ve grown tired of, realize that it’s never too late to move onto something that’s more fitting for who you are now.

Your next step might just be finding out what your Personal Mission actually is. If so, my guide is just around the corner.

Until then, don’t forget that if you don’t necessarily hate your job, but want to eventually leave, you can use it as a launchpad to your next endeavour. Here’s how.

Oh, and if you have moved on to a new career after putting substantial time into your previous time, let us know about it! How’d you know it was time to change it up? What red flags did you see?

Rachel Pedersen – From College Dropout to International Influencer: How a Former Hairdresser made her Side Business a 6 Figure Recurring Revenue Machine (AoL 112)

December 21/by JC

When we’re building a side business, it’s easy to get the mindset that because we have some sort of disadvantage compared to someone else that we won’t be able to do what they’ve done.

Truth is, though, that’s usually an excuse more than anything else. It’s a victim mentality.

If you truly want to do something with your life and your work, then having that mentality isn’t going to get you anywhere.

For me, when I was growing up in my hometown, I knew I was going to go to grad school. Both of my parents had their master’s degrees, so it was an automatic that I would at least have that. It didn’t matter how long it took or what I had to do to achieve that goal. It was going to happen.

However, a lot of my peers didn’t have that perspective and/or support that I did. So their goals weren’t as “big”. While they might have dreamed about leaving our hometown and doing great things, many fell short. They just didn’t have the missing ingredient to get to that point.

I’d argue that this particular missing ingredient, for most, is unfortunately hitting rock bottom. Where things are so unbearable that we are forced to dream of a better life.

For this session’s guest, this was definitely the case. Rachel Pedersen has lead a life peppered with all kinds of ups and downs. Growing up in Minnesota as a pastor’s daughter, she had great expectations. But somewhere along the line, life took a turn and she found herself a college dropout with kids AND on welfare. But her story doesn’t stop there. It got much better.

In fact, today she finds herself working on her own 7 figure marketing business. What happened in the middle there? That’s what we’re going to be finding out in today’s session.

Enjoy!

SPECIFICALLY, YOU’LL FIND OUT MORE ABOUT:

Did she ever see herself being as successful as she’s become? 7:50
While growing up, did she live her life based on what others expected of her or did she do her own thing from get go? 9:49
What was the first mental click Rachel had where she realized she needed to start building a side business? 12:38
Did she start working with her clients for free like Russell Brunson suggests in his book or did she charge right away? 19:03
What are some tips for someone to become as successful as Rachel even if they live in a “small town” or don’t have the best support in getting there? 23:34
What are 5 steps that someone should take if they want to start their own side business? 29:44
How does Rachel build a real human connection with people through social media? 39:14
Who does she pay attention to when it comes to watching FB Live videos? 42:42
How do you build a following and how does one define that? 44:52
What’s Rachel looking forward to in 2018? 46:57
One gift she likes giving others? 53:11
What’s something that’s going to affect entrepreneurship in the future she’s excited about? 53:37
What’s an issue that’s not being talked about enough? 54:42
How can someone be a difference maker in their community? 55:04