Josh Hinds Motivation and Inspiration Journal

Lest the title of this article lead you to think I’m totally discounting the role that planning plays in the overall success equation, I do want to point out that I’m not against planning. Rather, in most cases it’s the order in which most people set out on the path towards achieving their given endeavors which I believe deserves reconsidering.

Have I totally confused you?

Stick with me and I believe things will be clearer in just a moment.

Most people follow a path similar to the one listed below when setting out in the direction of whatever worthwhile endeavor happens to be occupying their mind at the moment.

1. The initial idea comes to mind. They decide they want to pursue whatever it is.

2. They setout about planning and thinking about ways to accomplish whatever it is that they’ve deemed worthy of pursuing (starting to sound familiar?).

3. During the regular planning process generally one of two things begins to happen…

A. They begin to believe that by following the plan they’ve formulated they have a good chance of reaching success. From there they move forward working their plan.

OR…

B. Self-doubt begins to kick in and before they know it, they’re literally swimming in all the reasons why whatever it was that what once held promise in their mind is now suddenly something that they couldn’t possibly achieve. At this point most folks can just about hang it up, unless they’ve got someone, or they’ve developed the mindset necessary to overcome this “stinking thinking” and get their line of thought more along the lines of option A.

Fortunately, there’s another option to consider. Which is actually something I feel pretty strong about — that no matter what conventional wisdom may tell us — there’s always another way, even if it’s not always obvious.

So if that’s true, what’s the other way I can hear you asking…

Rather than taking the approach most folks choose to take…

Which is basically a Ready, Aim, Fire approach towards getting things done (i.e. achieving ones intended goals and dreams). Instead I suggest adopting the Ready, Fire, Aim approach.

The difference you ask? Look at it like this…

In the first example: Ready = your initial decision or commitment that you want to pursue something worthwhile in the first place. Aim = the planning phase of things. I won’t rehash it as we covered it in depth above. And Fire = the action which you take which ultimately becomes the difference between whether or not you get started in the first place. On it’s surface this first option is fine. In fact It has been proven to work just fine for many people.

Yet, I’m convinced the second option of… Ready, Fire, Aim would work even better.

Why? Let’s look at it like this.

You make the commitment to pursue whatever it is you’re committed to accomplishing. But rather than running the chance of letting loose that part of each of us which wants to convince us why we can’t do something, we bypass it almost completely. Instead, we lead with some real action. That is to say, we get real, honest to goodness buy-in on whatever it is we happen to be pursuing. We’re in the game so to speak.

Of course, the last step is important too, because after we’ve gotten started by taking action, we take Aim — that is we do plan. To some this might sound silly, but think of it like this. Our planning is in alignment with the importance of making corrections. Have you ever heard someone say, “what’s the definition of insanity? It’s doing the same thing over and over again.”

On a more serious note, that’s why the system I’m suggesting is Ready, Fire, Aim — and not just Ready, Fire, Fire, Fire, Fire — you get the idea don’t you? Because it is possible that in taking action first, even though taking action early on is a good thing, it is possible that the action we have chosen is well — wrong. That being the case I will say that the same end result can happen to our friends who made the choice to go the ready, aim, fire route.

You see, just because they made the choice to plan every thing out to the best of their ability prior to kicking into gear, certainly doesn’t guaranty that they’re not going to end up taking wrong actions anyway.

The big difference of course is that you and I, by making a point to lead with action, and at the same time giving ourselves the wiggle room to learn from any wrong turns we make — inevitably end up achieving in our given endeavors far quicker than those who chose to take the more common ready, aim, fire approach.

While there are any number of reasons which could lend proof to what I’m saying, about the best I can come up with is that when we set out with a sincere willingness to follow a  worthwhile goal, and are truly willing to learn whatever is required of us in order to reach the pinnacle of success in our particular undertaking, those people, events, and yes skills which are necessary show up.

There’s a saying I bet you’ve heard before — it says, “When the student is ready, the teacher will appear.” To the best of my thinking that is very much why “Ready, Fire, Aim” — gets results.

In virtually every one of life’s adventures the person who makes a choice to lead first with action, even if initially it’s little more than a sincere willingness to take action and move forward (provided they commit to learn what’s necessary along the way) will be better off than their counterparts who choose to run the risk of getting stuck in the planning phase of things.

In summary, I want to make it very, very clear that I’m not saying that planning in and of itself is the problem, rather it is the fact that most people either plan to the point that they never get started in the first place, or they allow the fear of actually doing what is necessary to get in the way — knowing they would be that much better off had they simply made the choice to step out into the unknown and gotten started sooner rather than later.

As you give thought to what you’ve just read, consider the following quote, “the doing of a thing makes it so” — throughout your day look for times when you can repeat that simple phrase and gain strength from it.

It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

*Josh is an entrepreneur, keynote speaker, and author. For details on having him appear at your next seminar, event, or company meeting visit www.GetMotivation.com/speaker/

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Write the following question down and answer it honestly…

My definition of success is________________.

Good, now that you’ve answered that question compare what you’re doing each day to what you’ve written above. Will the actions you’re taking move you closer to what you wrote down? Or like so many, do you find that much of your day is made up of mostly filler, designed (either knowingly or unknowingly) to get you through to the end of each day.

Really give that some serious thought. If you find that you’re not giving ample time to tasks which are necessary to move you in the direction you want your life to be — don’t beat yourself up over it. Instead, right now — at this very moment take a real, concrete step which will lead you in the direction that you want to go. After you’ve done so, take another step!

Keep the following saying in mind — the doing of a thing makes it so… now get doing!

– It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Learn more about Josh’s audio cd program version of ‘Why Perfect Timing is a Myth!’ at http://www.getmotivation.com/wptmaudio/

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Today, make the choice to focus on your strengths. It is easy to look at oneself and see areas where you may need improvement. While it’s true that taking time for honest reflection on the areas where we’d like to see improvement is important — it’s equally  important to give yourself your due credit for all the wonderful talents you’ve already acquired — all the bits and pieces that go into making you the incredible person you are.

Please understand that I’m not suggesting we live in “la la land”, acting as though there’s no area for improvement. Of course there are areas we can all improve in — that’s what personal growth is all about.

Instead, what I am suggesting is that you and I spend at least as much time accepting and being thankful for all the positive traits we have acquired already — not just those areas we believe we need to improve. It’s all about balance. Seek ongoing to improve where you can, but be sure to celebrate all that makes up the amazing you as well!

Think about it like this — if you want to help someone improve, and in the process not have them take it as a personal attack — one way to approach the task would be to compliment them on something they are doing particularly well — acknowledging and pointing out one of their strengths (making sure it’s a genuine and sincere compliment of course) — and then bringing up ideas which might be helpful in improving in a given area. Along the same lines, give yourself the same positive boost by acknowledging the “good” things you’re doing, right along side areas that you’ve identified where improvement is needed.

Consider the saying, “we become what we think about most” — if that’s even half true, wouldn’t it stand to reason that giving a little thought to your past achievements, in addition to any areas in which you’d like to improve would be a good thing to do? I think so. Give it a go and see for yourself the positive difference doing so will make.

– It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of the booklet: Why Perfect Timing is a Myth! available at: http://www.getmotivation.com/booklet/

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If we knew just how much talent we have inside us I am convinced it would absolutely boggle the mind. The reality is that we all have within us some unique greatness just waiting to find its way into the world.

The unfortunate thing is that all too often our talents lay hidden, and so we don’t always know what they are. Therefore, if we do not take the time to explore and identify our gifts – we run the risk of having them never fully materialize, or lay dormant far longer then they need be.

-To Your Success, Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of Why Perfect Timing is a Myth: Tips for Staying Inspired and Motivated Day in and Day out! Grab your copy at http://www.getmotivation.com/booklet/

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While I might concede that the spoils of life don’t always go to the most deserving. I hold true to the belief that without a doubt the “spoils” are always more enjoyed when one has lived a life with integrity and not sold out on the things they value most.

I have known men and women who have gone from the top, to the bottom, and back to the top again, and a common thread among most all of them is that they always held tight to their integrity.

I would advise that you always make the effort to remain the person who never looks down on another, no matter what place in life you may currently find yourself. If you are in an enviable place, be thankful, but don’t live in a way as though you are above anyone else.

Life rewards those who remain humble no matter what success they may acquire. At the same time, often the person that brags or begins to believe they are above another tends to find themselves caught in a bit of “success quicksand” for lack of a better term. Be sure you never become that person struggling to get unstuck.

Yours in success,
Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of Why Perfect Timing is a Myth: Tips for Staying Inspired and Motivated Day in and Day out! Grab your copy at http://www.getmotivation.com/booklet/

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It has been said that you and I tend to become what we think about most. If we believe this to be true doesn’t it stand to reason that we would do well to take an active role as to what we allow to become our most dominant thoughts?

Hopefully you would agree that we would all benefit greatly by choosing to recount the daily achievements we experience. No matter how small or insignificant you may view them at the moment each should be acknowledged — and framed in our mind as they are — successes. If we neglect to do so there’s a chance that we will end up focusing on the occurrences of our day that don’t help to build our own self-esteem.

There’s great personal power that comes from celebrating both our larger achievements as well as the small successes that we experience ongoing in our lives.

The reality is that you and I have the choice to allow ourselves to gravitate towards thinking about the negative things we have experienced, or we can choose to take a more pro-active approach where we make the choice to re-live in our mind the positive accomplishments of the day.

It really does get right down to making the choice to see things from a half full versus half empty mentality. Make the choice to see the positives and that’s exactly what you’ll notice more of.

Action exercise:

At the end of each day just before heading to sleep take a moment to write down several successes from the day. Remember that they don’t have to be monumental to count as a success. Anything from meeting a new person to calling on a new client and just about anything in between qualifies as a worthy achievement.

After you have written down your daily list — read over what you’ve written and each time you do so close your eyes for a moment and try to experience the positive feelings associated with your given accomplishments.

By following this idea we can actually control what we choose to focus in on. While we don’t always have complete control over what happens to us, we do have the choice to focus our minds on (and thus give power to) those things that are most likely to get us on a positive path.

My hope is that the ideas shared above help you to better take control of your most dominant thoughts. Always remember that if one person can succeed in a given endeavor then so can you and I.

– Here’s to your success, Josh Hinds
http://GetMotivation.com

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If I were to ask you what your definition of success is could you answer it in a relatively quick fashion? Or would you do as so many do, fumble for an answer — rattling off the common responses which tend to show up when one is asked this question. Answers such as… I’ll be successful when I have x number of dollars in the bank.

Or would you instead have an answer which is highly personal to you, to your own life, where you are now, combined with a carefully crafted vision of where you want your life to take you in the future?

As Henry David Thoreau so eloquently said — “Most people lead lives of quiet desperation and go to the grave with the song still in them.” In my humble opinion many people miss the mark, not because they lack the ability to achieve success in their given endeavors, but rather because they never take the time to truly identify what success means to them. And as a result end up moving aimlessly hoping to hit upon what it is they think they want to achieve — often not even truly realizing what it is they are seeking.

When we have a solid definition crafted we can use it to lay out a plan which we can follow that will naturally put us in alignment with whatever it is that we believe to be most important.

Believe it or not I have had conversations with people who after taking the time to define what success means to them personally — realized in that very moment that they had in fact already experienced many times where they had met with great success in their life. Imagine that, here were people who longed to achieve this magical place, but up to that point hadn’t ever taken the time to get clear on what that “place” even was.

Upon doing so, they acquired a different outlook, one which they could feel good about, knowing that they had already experienced many times where they’d already met with personal achievement.

I’m fond of the saying, “success begets success”. Which in its simplest form means that one achievement — no matter how small it may appear at the time allows us to build upon that achievement and move forward on the next task, which upon completion will propel us further on our next undertaking. Hence, success begets success. Or, one successful outcome leads to greater accomplishments.

If you have yet to get clear on what success means to you — take the time to do that now. Be sure that your definition is highly personal. Acknowledge times in your life where you have met with positive outcomes. Take pleasure in those times and be sure to give yourself your due credit (you earned the right to do so).

When you have your personal definition of success clearly defined you will have a powerful road map from which you can make decisions — you will have a gauge from which you can look at potential goals and ideas and measure the commitment it will take to see them through to completion based on those things that are most important to you.

In some instances you may find that a given undertaking isn’t really in alignment with your definition of success — and that even if you were to achieve a goal or set of goals that it wouldn’t move you closer to what you personally define as leading a successful life.

At other times it will be crystal clear that your current endeavors — the path you find yourself on are totally in line with what you’ve taken the time to define as being successful after you’ve compared them to what you’ve identified.

Most of all you will gain a sense of peace from having clearly defined what success means to you — thus ensuring you stay on the path towards living your perfect life.

Action steps:

1) Take the time right now to get clear on what success means to you. What will it look like? What will it feel like? What things are truly most important to you? What resources will be available to you when you are leading a truly successful life? What difference will having those resources available to you make not only in your life, but in the lives of those around you — family, friends, co-workers, etc.?

2) Each morning, before you begin your day recite to yourself your personal definition of success. Close your eyes as you recite it to yourself and take a moment to think about what it will be like when you are truly living your own definition of success. Consider any actions that you must take in order to move yourself closer to whatever you define as successful. See yourself doing those things with ease — and as you’re doing so moving closer to whatever it is that you have identified.

For the steps mentioned above to work you will need to create a habit around doing them. At first, it may appear that you aren’t being authentic — or you may even feel that you’re telling a lie to yourself. The main thing is to do it anyway.

The reason it may not feel authentic is because it’s something you may not be used to doing. Think about the first time you learned how to ride a bike. You had to tell yourself that you would learn to ride a bike. You had to instill the belief that you could do it — which of course eventually led you to a point where you were able to do it with ease.

Through this simple exercise you will develop the positive habit of keeping your own definition of success nearby at all times — which will ensure that you are working on and staying plugged into what is necessary in order to fully live your own definition of success.

It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of the booklet: Why Perfect Timing is a Myth! available at: http://www.getmotivation.com/booklet/

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Believe in the power of your dreams and be your biggest own biggest cheerleader. When we set out in pursuit of a particular goal it’s natural to want the support of others. Unfortunately, this isn’t a luxury we always have the benefit of. For this reason, consider taking time each day to visualize (that is experience in your mind as fully as possible) receiving the full support you would otherwise want to get from others (be it family members, friends, etc.).

Sounds silly doesn’t it? Sure it does, but before you decide to discount it as nonsense consider that it’s been said by folks far smarter than I that the brain can’t make the distinction between a thought that is vividly imagined from a real one. Knowing that makes a pretty interesting case for visualizing the support you need doesn’t it?

Besides, be real for a moment. Even if it doesn’t work 100% for you personally, you’ll still be better off with a little imagination time then where you are now.

Develop the habit of visualizing the outcomes and things you want to see transpire in your life and you’ll be better for it.

And don’t forget… It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of the booklet: Why Perfect Timing is a Myth! available at: www.GetMotivation.com/booklet/

(c) All rights reserved.

Long before I started speaking, writing and coaching on personal development topics I was a student. In fact I’m still very much a student first.

During my studies, as you might imagine I’ve learned a lot of ideas — some I’ve found applicable and have implemented in my life, and some, as I’ve progressed in my own personal development journey no longer fit quite like they once did. If you think about it, that makes sense — we are always growing after all.

Throughout my years of study and application in the field of personal development, one idea always seems to ring true. In fact, it has played such an important part in my own life’s journey that I feel compelled to share it with you here now.

Ready? here goes…

You can’t always control what happens to you, but you can always control how you react to what happens to you.

Did you get that? Please read that again as it’s that important. Even better, grab a 3×5 index card (or your journal) and write it down.

In life, any number of things can happen — good or bad. As someone far brighter than I once said, “the only constant is change.” Before I continue let me say that the point of my writing here is not to get into a discussion on the line of thinking that says that we are attracting into our life each and every negative event — be it disease, the death of a loved one, or insert whatever devastating thing you can think of — that happens to us (either consciously or on a subconscious level). That’s not my point here. Besides, there are no shortage of experts who have addressed that particular line of thinking elsewhere

What I am saying, is that no matter what may have happened to us, whether it was someone taking advantage of us, a shift in the economy that led to being downsized, or virtually any other situation you choose to apply to this, the simple truth remains — how we choose to react to it is well within our control.

That is not to say that it’s always going to be easy, sometimes it means accepting things we have a hard time accepting, and taking corrective measures that are anything but comfortable.

However, the powerful thing about acknowledging this truth is that in doing so we come to realize that we are able to get over simply accepting the role of victim — the part that says, this happened to me — this is why I’m this way, and as a result I can’t do anything to change where I am.

Instead we are able to move to a more empowering position of, this happened, but by taking action I can change my particular situation for the better.

Through fully embracing the belief that you have control over how you react to what occurs in your life you unleash your personal greatness. You no longer have to accept that you are at the mercy of whatever may come your way, but rather that you can take an active role in defining, and in turn get on with living your perfect life.

While it is true that it isn’t always easy to fully embrace and accept this truth day in and day out — it is imperative that you do make the effort to do so just the same. Fortunately, in most cases it is as easy as being aware of it — even if at first you notice you have resistance to it — by keeping the idea in mind, in time you will come to accept it as well as benefit from all that goes along with viewing challenges and adversity in this light.

Inside this simple, yet profound thought is exactly what is needed in most cases to move you from a place where you feel stuck or out of control to a place where you realize that by applying action — and acquiring new skills, whatever you identify that is needed to learn — you can in fact take an active step towards changing your place for the better.

If you find yourself in a place in your own life where all is going well, then all the better. The idea will only make more concrete the reality that you have all you need to achieve your goals and dreams.

Keep clearly in mind that great personal power comes from knowing that come what may, for better or worse you can play an active role in shaping — and in turn living the life you were meant to live.

It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Josh is a speaker, coach and writer on motivation and personal and professional development. You can learn more about having him speak to your group or organization at www.GetMotivation.com/speaker/

(c) All rights reserved.

There’s a quote I absolutely adore from keynote speaker and author Zig Ziglar — in fact I share it a lot with audiences during the speaking presentations that I give. It’s that good

I think it hits the nail on the head when it comes to the common question I get of, “how do I stay motivated” or when someone says, “that motivation and personal development stuff doesn’t work”.

But before I get ahead of myself — here’s the quote…

“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing - that’s why we recommend it daily.” - Zig Ziglar

I just love that one — in fact, about the only thing I can find wrong with it, is that I didn’t think of it myself

On a more serious note though, doesn’t the truth in that simple saying come through so crystal clear?

Motivation is a feeling found in the moment — often we’re either motivated to take on a given task or endeavor, or we’re not. And like it or not, even the most highly motivated individuals experience this at times.

It’s not a destination in the sense that we wake up one day and no longer need to re-charge our internal batteries. In other words, we shouldn’t expect not to experience certain times where we need to re-fuel our level of motivation — just as we understand that we need to take a bath in order to keep the stink off ourselves

So with that said, don’t beat yourself up if you have times where you’re not at your peak level. It happens to everyone. The difference of course is your willingness to do the little things that will change your level of inspiration at the moment.

Fortunately, for you and I — regaining that feeling of inspired action is often as easy as reading a book or listening to a tape that carries with it a positive message. It could also be as simple as doing (even the smallest actions) the very thing you happen to be resisting doing.

Think of the saying, success begets success. What that means is that each new feeling of accomplishment gives us just the boost we need to move forward — very much like the snowball effect.

We start out resisting the thing and by “forcing” ourselves to take action on it, before we know it we end up getting involved in it and at the same time feeling the sense of accomplishment that goes along with making progress in our given endeavor. In summary, do the thing you’re resisting and the very action you’re taking will renew your inner motivation.

It sounds simple, because it is. Yet, don’t make the mistake of thinking its simplicity makes it any less effective. The reality is that you have inside you all you need to un tap your potential at any given moment.

It’s your life, LIVE BIG! Josh Hinds

* Josh is the author of Why Perfect Timing is a Myth: Tips for Staying Inspired and Motivated Day in and Day out! Grab your copy at http://Getmotivation.com/booklet/

(c) All rights reserved.