Week 5 – Finish Strong!

An interesting thing happened while I was listening to the MKMMA webcast for this week.  Mark and Davene played a video of a gentleman named Nick Vujicic.  Now, I had seen a video in the past about him, but I hadn’t let it affect me at the time.  Nick, if you don’t know, was born without limbs.  The only limb he has, as he describes, is a “chicken wing” where his leg should be.  One would think a person with no limbs would be immobilized by fear, self doubt, and basically be the epitome of a depressed soul. However, nothing could be further from the truth!  He is the epitome of courage and self confidence…truly a man to be reckoned with in any situation.

Nick spends quite a bit of time speaking to teenagers, most of which have been cast aside by some in society.  And watching these kids, who might have stared or sneered at him if they walked by him on the street, listen to him as the tears fell down their cheeks, riveted to his every word.  It was something to witness.

But it wasn’t because of his physical abnormalities that drew the kids to him… it was his WILL.  It was his determination to be more than he was able to be physically.  And listening to him, with a lump in my throat, I began to think about how inspirational he is, and his words started to talk to my subconscious mind and I could almost feel the subby vibrating in me (no, it wasn’t my stomach 😀 ).

Last week was a tough one, as I documented in my blog post for week 4.  But three major things happened this week.  First it was the encouraging words of my MKMMA group to keep going.  Thanks guys!  Second, the words of Hanell resonated in my thoughts “If you do not intend to do a thing, do not start; if you do start, see it through even if the heavens fall; if you make up your mind to do something, do it; let nothing, no one, interfere“.  Those words echo’d in my head.  That, along with Mark and Davene’s encouragement to finish the month STRONG charged me up for the week.  But then, it was taken to the next level with Nick’s video (see below)

No matter who we are, or what type of business we are in, there are going to be times that we fall down.  Regardless of the reason, we need to get up, and finish STRONG, because without struggle, there is no growth.  Imagine laying down on the floor, face down, and trying to get up… WITH NO LIMBS! Talk about difficult…SHEESH!  Nick said something when he was showing how he gets up… it’s not the fact that he fell down… he could try 100 times, and if he gave up, he’d still be in the same spot as he was… face down!

If you are determined to finish STRONG, no matter what happens, we must try again, keep going, see the end at the beginning, and lock onto it with laser focus.  He was BEING WHAT HE WILLED TO BE and nothing stopped him… and in just a few seconds, he was upright again… it was absolutely awe-inspiring.

So I go forth this week, rejuvenated and resolved that I will FINISH STRONG in both my life and this MKMMA course…because as I have learned, I can be what I WILL TO BE!

Below is the longer version (about 10 minutes)

Week 4 – Gotta push through!

I have to be honest…this week has been TOUGH.  Mark said it on Sunday when he mentioned that this is the week that people quit… They either quit altogether or quit slacking off and push on and up to 100% daily completion of our MKMMA exercises.

My habits have been good up until today – honestly, quite close to 100%!  But something happened the other day that has rattled me a bit.  I made a choice about something that has made me very nervous, but at the same time, could be something that will help my family greatly.  Was it the right decision?  I have questioned myself today more than a few times… my conscious and subconscious mind are fighting against each other right now.

How am I going to deal with this?  I’m at a cross roads… and I know it… mentally.  I could run from this… and that’s what I’ve done in the past… but if I do… I know that is only going to entrench the ‘failure’ mentality I have been trying to erase completely from my life.

I have told myself… I can BE what I WILL to be!!!  I AM going to push through… I resolve here and now to not let anything prevent me from completing this course… It will be tough, there will be ups and down, but no matter what, I will continue to grow and learn about myself and the person within.  And boy oh boy… when it all comes 100% together…look out world!

I don’t have any major insights this week except one… I can BE what I WILL to be!!!  If you are struggling with your own MKMMA journey or ANY journey in life… push through, push on!  BE WHAT YOU WILL TO BE!

I believe.

Week 3 – Do it NOW! But… do what?

Last week, we discussed fear, and how fear can be a good thing if we view it correctly.  Click here to read it in more detail.

Society conditions us to want the end goal NOW… No delay, no effort, just… gimme gimme gimme…. NOW!  But, is that short sighted and doomed to failure?

The inundation of information available today from email, social media, 24 hour cable news programs and the like, can pull our attention away from what is truly important. We are flooded with information that can distract us from what we truly need to concentrate on. This, then leads to procrastination as our senses are overloaded, causing us to move from one thing to the next, preventing us from prioritizing and filtering out unnecessary information.

So, we agree now that we need to take action… but what kind of action?

One of the things I have learned on my journey in my MKMMA experience is the need for proper focus and action.  I have learned that in order to improve the conditions around me, I need to reach my subconscious mind.  As Og Mandino says, “It has been found that by plainly stating to the subconscious mind certain specific things to be accomplished, forces are set in operation that lead to the result desired.”  To do that, we need to change what we feed our minds.

To speed up (and reach my goals), I needed to slow down.  I needed to fill my mind with mental exercises necessary to reach this subconscious mind.  Looking back on it, when I started, this was something difficult to do… it was a struggle at first, to get into the proper routine for reaching this subconscious mind.  However, as time has progressed, I have come to LOVE this time, and in truth, I yearn for it as the day goes on.  

True, I don’t watch as much TV and I don’t surf the internet the way I used to… But what is that truly going to do to help me improve myself and build my business?  NOTHING. Therefore, I promise to continue to fill my mind NOW with what is necessary to change the person within and then ultimately, I am truly at peace that it will then affect the world around me bringing my definite major purpose to a reality.

Week 2 – Fear

Last week, we discussed habits, and how the proper habits can instill in us the winning formula, just like the example of Michael Jordan.  Click here to read post in more detail.

This week, our theme centers around “Fear”.

Saying the word fear to someone can bring up thoughts of rejection, phobias, and low self esteem.  Fear in its raw and unbridled form can be unhealthy, even life threatening. But fear also can be a good thing.  Wait… WHAT??? HOW?

Plato is quoted to have said, “We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.”  The “light” for us personally could be anything… perhaps you have been presented with a new business opportunity, a new way of thinking, or anything that is not what we could consider to be the “norm”. Many will react to such a thing by running from it, fearful how this “light” will be perceived by family, friends, or peers.

The only way to battle fear is to use it as fuel for our passions.  In 1933, the world was in the throes of the Great Depression, unseen up to that point and never since.  No one knew how to fix the state of the economy.  The situation was hopeless by all accounts. Fear had gripped the world, and no one could fathom a way out. Fear… was the enemy more than anything else. The antidote to fear, was HOPE.

In the midst of this Great Depression, when all looked bleak, US President F. D. Roosevelt said famously in his first inaugural speech, “The only thing we have to fear is, fear itself.”  That laser focus of the President fueled the country and ultimately the world, out of this economic crisis.  Why?  Because his antidote to fear, that of hope, proved to be all encompassing.  He saw the world in his mind’s eye already out of the situation they were currently in.  This hope, along with hard work, ultimately provided the fuel to the engine that drove the world out of the abyss of the economic depression.

Of course, our personal fear may not be as monumental as the Great Depression, but no matter what that fear is, we can overcome it if we learn from the example provided by Plato and F.D. Roosevelt.  The first thing to do, is face it head on…  THAT, my friends, can be the most daunting task.  Human nature can be such that we may want to pretend it does not exist, that it will just “go away”.  This is a pit of despair that must be avoided at all costs.

How can we do this?  Face it, acknowledge that it exists, and see yourself already out of the situation.  The battle can be won, if you tell yourself it will be won, if you believe it will be won, and your hope provides the antidote to any fear.

Week 1 – Habits

I recently read a portion of the book “The Greatest Salesman in the World” by Og Mandino that really hit me between the eyes.  He says, “In truth, the only difference between those who have failed and those who have succeeded lies in the difference of their habits.”

When I read that, I actually stopped, smacked my forehead, and said to myself “WHOA!”  And then…I read it again, and again, and again.  I thought about it, and you know what…that’s powerful! The situation everyone is in is because of their habits – either good or bad.  Think I’m wrong?  What are your habits today?  If you are like many, you got up, drove to a job that you really don’t like, spend time doing what isn’t really your passion, surf the internet that plugs you with things you don’t need, come home to watch television that surrounds you with negativity and products you can’t afford or really don’t need, and then go to bed only to do it again the next day.  I know that’s what most of us do, because I was in that same ‘rat race’.

In contrast, there are people that seem so successful and we wonder, what are they doing different?  What they have changed, is their habits.  In my journey of self-discovery and self-improvement, I have learned habits are going to shape our future, either positively or negatively. 

If your life is full of negativity and despair, your habits need to change.  Think about it… Michael Jordan, winner of 6 NBA championships, now one of the most recognizable faces in sports and advertising, was cut from his varsity basketball team.  What had to change?  His habits. He not only changed his outlook, but he WILLED himself to be the best he could possibly be.  Jordan said, “Whenever I was working out and got tired and figured I ought to stop, I’d close my eyes and see that list in the locker room without my name on it… that usually got me going again.”

Today, we all know who he is… but… in the late 1970’s, he was just another kid shooting the basketball.  To be that person, he changed his habits.  That change in thought and habit changed his world.

How do we do the same and change our habits?  That… is the right question.  You have to WANT to be pushed to do things out of your comfort zone.  Growing, breaking your current habits, is WORK, but it is WORTH IT.  If you stick to it, it will bring great changes to the way you think and how you affect others.  Surround yourself with positive thinking and positive people.  Learn from those that have done it before you.  Make it a part of your DAILY routine to fill your mind with things that help you to grow, to the point that it becomes a habit.  Mandino made another great point when he mentions that you cannot just get rid of a bad habit, you have to replace it with a GOOD habit. 

If you are willing to practice like Jordan, you can be like Mike.