Now that you have Established and written down YOUR DREAM, next we will work on establishing some clearly defined GOALS.
GOALS:
One of the first things we need to talk about with regards to goals is this:
Axiom Number Twelve – URGENCY
Nothing happens unless YOU MAKE IT HAPPEN. If you don’t have a TIME by which a specific Goal is to be met, the odds are that you will not only not achieve your Goal, but you may also lose Focus of your Goal.
Think about some of the Goals that you have had in the past. Have you achieved them? Did you move toward them with URGENCY? Was there a “drop-dead-date” by which time your Goal MUST be achieved?
When you give yourself a deadline, you create a time frame by which time you expect from yourself that the Goal you have set is to be realized.
URGENCY IS A CRITICAL PART OF SUCCESSFUL GOAL SETTING!
Another CRITICAL part of SUCCESSFUL Goal setting is determining HOW you are going to achieve the Goal. You may have heard the saying that “Most people don’t plan to fail – they just fail to plan.” This is so true for so many.
HAVING A GOAL DOESN’T MEAN ITS EVER GOING TO BECOME A REALITY!
Remember that in Chapter One we discussed the UNIVERSAL TRUTH that everything that happens starts first with the THOUGHT.
It follows logical thought, then, that having the Goal – the thought, the idea, that Goal that you have in mind, is a CRITICAL step toward achieving it. BUT, CLEARLY it is not the ONLY STEP toward achieving it. Rather, in addition to defining WHAT the Goal is, you need to define WHEN you will achieve this Goal, and HOW you will achieve this Goal.
Otherwise, what you have is simply an idea, not a methodical call to action.
WHAT your goal is, WHEN you will achieve it, and HOW you will achieve it. THESE are the three CRITICAL ELEMENTS to be SUCCESSFUL in achieving your goals.
CREATING GOALS:
Now we’re going to create a list of GOALS! This is EXCITING, because you are shaping Your Dream, which is more of a lifestyle, by adding tangible Goals of physical things that you want to achieve.
YOU ARE NOW BUILDING YOUR BLUEPRINT FOR YOUR LIFE!
I have my Goals in a frame on the wall right in the front of my desk just next to my monitor. It a CRITICAL PART of my SUCCESS. I am FOCUSED on EXACTLY what it is that I am expecting myself to accomplish, and the Date by which I expect to accomplish them!
Since Goals must have time frames by which time they are to be achieved, it is best to design your list of Goals in time-frame order this list is the list of Goals that you will see every day. They will become a part of your daily thought process.
As you are probably beginning to see, PREPARATION IS A CRITICAL STEP TOWARDS SUCCESS. So often, people get an idea of what they want to achieve, and set off to achieve it WITHOUT:
- having a plan,
- taking personal inventory,
- thinking about what their quest will take,
- having goals along the way,
- working toward their ultimate dream,
- knowing where they are and
- knowing what they need to do to get where they want to be.
To quote Vince Lombardi once more, “Practice doesn’t make perfect. PERFECT practice makes perfect.” And so it is with SUCCESS. Sometimes it happens by accident, and when it does, it’s a beautiful thing to witness. But we’re not playing the odds here. We’re talking about YOUR SUCCESS here. And in order for YOU to have the BEST CHANCE AT SUCCESS, we’re going to take the time to leave NO STONE UN-TURNED.
It makes no sense to rush into business without taking all of these factors into consideration. Knowing yourself well, knowing what you want, planning how to get it, paying attention to detail, and then confidently and methodically executing your plan is what we are doing together throughout this Course.
Preparing in this manner offers you the BEST POSSIBLE OPPORTUNITY FOR YOUR OWN PERSONAL SUCCESS! Keep in mind that this list shall include only Goals that require financial achievement.
Follow this format:
Today’s date MY “REWARD” GOALS
DATE FOR MY COST
ACHIEVEMENT GOAL OF GOAL
For example:
1) By 7/01, $ 25,000 CASH in bank account 451-21-2 $ 25,000
2) By 10/01, BRAND NEW Harley Fat Boy $ 25,000
3) By 12/31 BRAND NEW BMW M-5 Convertible $ 60,000
Whether it’s a new car, extra money in the bank, to pay off your home, or to put your kids through college, whatever your dream may be, list them in order of the date you want to achieve them by. I normally keep 12 goals on my list. You may only have 5, or you may have more than 12. The purpose of this exercise is for you to build some Reality into your Dream.
Axiom Number 13 – THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING
What you have just created is a list of the Goals that MOTIVATE you. You now have TANGIBLE ways of proving to yourself that you are on YOU OWN PERSONAL JOURNEY TO SUCCESS.
You are working toward YOUR DREAM, part of which is YOUR “REWARD” GOALS!
HOW EXCITING!
However, there is one CRITICAL ELEMENT that we need to now ADD to our “REWARD” GOAL list. And that element is the POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING.
How do we do this? We do this by making a POSITIVE ASSUMPTION. The POSITIVE ASSUMPTION that we make is that we ASSUME that we have ALREADY ACHIEVED THE GOAL!
Here’s how it works.
In the example listing of goals, our first “REWARD” GOAL entry is:
1) By 7/01, $ 25,000 CASH in bank account 451-21-2 $ 25,000
This entry resembles a “wish list”, doesn’t it! Well, we’re not making this list for Santa to deliver it to us. This is a Goal that we are going to EARN and FEEL GOOD about!
Its time we add two words to this entry to start training our minds toward the POSITIVE DIRECTION OF SUCCESS in which we are headed.
TWO SIMPLE WORDS:
I HAVE …
Look at the difference it makes to add, “I HAVE” to your “REWARD GOAL” list.
1) By 7/01, $ 25,000 CASH in bank account 451-21-2 $ 25,000
1) By 7/01, I HAVE $ 25,000 CASH in bank account 451-21-2 $ 25,000
Now, imagine reading this every time you sit down to work on your computer, every time you’re waiting for a file to download, or a program to load. Your mind starts to OWN that Goal that you’ve set for yourself.
By having your DREAM in WRITING, and by having your REWARD GOALS in WRITING, FRAMED, IMPORTANT, and ACCESSIBLE, you have now thought about how you see your IDEAL LIFE.
You have DEFINED YOUR DREAM, you have WRITTEN IT DOWN, you have now ADDED YOUR GOALS, and you have POSTED IT in a CONSPICUOUS PLACE for you to READ and INTERNALIZE on a CONTINUOUS BASIS.
I HOPE YOU CAN SEE HOW EXTREMELY POWERFUL THE WORK THAT WE ARE NOW DOING IS IN RELATION TO YOUR SUCCESS!
COMPLETING YOUR “REWARD” GOALS
Okay, you have now finished your “REWARD” GOAL list. You should now have your DREAM and your “REWARD” GOALS in order for you to print them out, frame them, and put them up somewhere where you can see them and read them consistently.
To complete them, you need to add this entry:
“MY SUCCESS IS GUARANTEED AND CANNOT BE STOPPED BY ANY MEANS WHATSOEVER.”
Having YOUR DREAM, and YOUR “REWARD” GOALS, framed and in front you, including dates and costs for your “REWARDS”, is a Fundamental, Positive, and Critical part of YOUR JOURNEY toward SUCCESS!
Axiom Number Fourteen – POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS
Now that you have created Your Dream, and Your Goals, you are on our way to creating the overall blueprint that will constitute YOUR JOURNEY TOWARD SUCCESS.
But first we must go back and tie in the Self-Confidence, Self-Worth, and Self-Determination that we spoke of in Chapter One, as well as the Focus, Commitment and Desire that we spoke about in Chapter Two. Just because we raised these issues, doesn’t mean we have everything we need to just roll on ahead.
Remember we discussed that there may be areas that need to be worked on, and that there were some simple exercises for doing just that? Well, what we’re going to do now is to create a listing of POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS.
These are Positive Statements that you will read every day as well as Your Dream and Your Goals while you are at your desk, to build your Confidence and to solidify where you are.
Now before we go any further, let’s talk for a minute about what I mean when I say, “where you are.”
There’s a saying that goes: “You’re only as strong as your weakest link.”
There are 4 major areas in which every human being must be strong. Otherwise, your weakest area is the one in which you are most exposed.
These 4 areas are: MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, PHYSICAL, and SPIRITUAL.
It’s important to discuss these 4 areas one at a time so that you can formulate your POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS to be the best that they can be for you.
Your body is like a machine. Taken care of, it will produce optimal results. Not maintained, its performance will not be the best. Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Spiritual worlds must all be addressed if you are to be operating at your finest level.
MENTAL – What do you enjoy doing on a regular basis to stimulate your mind to keep it healthy? Do you like to read? Play chess? Solve crossword puzzles? Whatever you like to do, you MUST stimulate your mind on a consistent basis having nothing directly to do with work. Otherwise your thinking will get dull, and you will not operate at your best.
EMOTIONAL – Your EMOTIONAL HEALTH is not as easy to nurture as your Mental Health but equally critical. Some of the things that you can do for the betterment of your Emotional Health are: listen to music that moves you, spend quality time with loved ones, treat yourself to something you enjoy and is positive. Examine what if anything is an emotional burden in your life.
Then recognize it for what it is, and deal with it. Whether it involves Self-help readings or counseling, if you have an emotional hole in your heart, you will be preoccupied with that dilemma and unable to give your best effort to YOUR JOURNEY TO SUCCESS.
PHYSICAL – Your PHYSICAL HEALTH is pretty easy to maintain. It takes a minimum of 3 hours per week, 30 minutes for three times a week for light exercises, and 30 minutes for three times per week for aerobic exercise such as treadmill, life cycle, etc. A doctor of course must clear this since there’s no way for me to know what your specific conditions are. But I CAN tell you that you will perform better if you keep oxygen pumping to your brain, if you “feel” good, and if you feel good ABOUT YOURSELF. If you think that because you are running an Internet Business, you can let yourself go, THINK AGAIN!! You are supposed to be very own BEST FRIEND, so take care of yourself!
SPIRITUAL – Your SPIRITUAL HEALTH is based upon your own feelings that you are happy with the person that you are, with the path that you are on, with your beliefs, whatever they may be, and with the amount of time and effort you dedicate in this area. If you are preoccupied wondering what life is all about, how you fit in to the cosmos, what the purpose is of the universe, then devote some time to reading and learning and wondering. For those areas to which you ARE comfortable, put aside time each week to use in a way that is meaningful for you.
The lesson to be learned here is not to get so caught up in Your Journey to Success that you change for the worse. Money has the capacity to change people, a lot of times for the worse. Its not because money is evil. Its because lots of times people think that money somehow makes you a better person. NOT TRUE! Here’s one of my quotes: “The only thing difference between a fool and a fool with money, is the money!” If you’re a fool, you’re a fool, regardless of how much money is in your account or of how many toys you have. We’ve all known people with hearts of gold, that have very little money, and people in the news that have LOTS of money, toys, fame, and prestige, that we would not want to call our “friends.”
Having explored the “FOUR HOUSES”: Mental, Emotional, Physical, and Spiritual, as they are sometimes called, let’s take a minute and think about which of these areas are your strongest areas and which of these areas are ones that you need to focus upon.
We are now going to create a THIRD page for you to put up next to your DREAM and Your Reward Goals. This page is your listing of POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS. Its importance should be apparent to you because in prior Chapters we discussed all that you need in order to be SUCCESSFUL.
These AFFIRMATIONS help to tie the ideas together into one page of reminders of all that you want to be, so that you can strengthen yourself internally and help yourself to achieve your dream.
Follow this format. The first six affirmations should be written exactly as these are. You should modify the next 4, for the “four houses” so that they are meaningful to you personally. The last two should also be written exactly as they are.
POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS
- I am a CONFIDENT person and I achieve my goals
- I look at myself in a POSITIVE MANNER because I am a good person
- I am entitled to SUCCESS and will work with DETERMINATION to achieve my goals.
- I have the ability to FOCUS on my DREAM
- I have the COMMITMENT to dedicate myself to my own SUCCESS
- I have the desire to SUCCEED.
- (MENTAL) I read, play chess, work crossword puzzles, daily
- (EMOTIONAL) I listen to classical music, spend time with loved ones, daily
- (PHYSICAL) I work out a minimum of three hours per week
- (SPIRITUAL) I read scripture, go to worship, etc. daily, weekly
11) MY SUCCESS is GUARANTEED and CANNOT BE STOPPED BY ANY MEANS WHATSOEVER.
- I HAVE SET MY MIND TO ACHIEVE MY DREAM. I AM A WONDERFUL, CAPABLE HUMAN BEING AND I WILL ACHIEVE MY DREAM AND MY GOALS!
As a side note, if you want to add to this list, the things in life that you are grateful for, this would add to your Strength of Character and Conviction as we ready ourselves to move forward and to take the next step, which is to QUANTIFY our DREAM.
After number 10, and before the last 2 Affirmations, these are my additional 6 Affirmations, listed as number 11 through number 16 on my POSITIVE AFFIRMATION list:
I am grateful for the love from and for a higher power
I am grateful for the love I have from and for myself
I am grateful for the love I have from and for my wife and children
I am grateful for the love I have from and for my fellow people
I am grateful for the gift of being able to both give and receive love
I will continue to work on being the very best person I can be
For me, these serve as a constant reminder of exactly where I am in life. It keeps me balanced and focused on everything that’s important to me. It’s the foundation for my blueprint. As we continue, we will build the blueprint that will constitute the framework of Your JOURNEY TO SUCCESS.
I’d like to close this Chapter with a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt:
“The future belongs to those
Who believe
In the beauty
Of their Dreams.”
CHAPTER THREE REVIEW:
In this Chapter we learned Three Important Axioms:
Axiom Number Twelve – URGENCY
Nothing happens unless YOU MAKE IT HAPPEN. If you don’t have a TIME by which a Specific Goal is to be met, the odds are you will not only not achieve your Goal, but you may also lose focus of your Goal.
Axiom Number Thirteen – THE POWER OF POSITIVE THINKING
In the case of Your REWARD GOALS, you do this by making a POSITIVE ASSUMPTION. The POSITIVE ASSUMPTION that you make is that you have ALREADY ACHIEVED THE GOAL!
Axiom Number Fourteen – POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS
“You’re only as strong as your weakest link.”
In Chapter One we discussed the three internal qualities that you must have in order to be SUCCESSFUL.
- Self-Confidence
- Self-Worth
- Self-Determination
In Chapter Two we discussed the three character traits that you
Must have in order to be SUCCESSFUL.
- Focus
- Commitment
- Desire
And now, in Chapter Three, we are talking about the three things you must do in order to be SUCCESSFUL.
- Determine Your Dream and Your Goals
- Determine WHEN Your Goals will be achieved
- Determine HOW will you achieve it
There are 4 major areas in which every human being must be strong. Otherwise, your weakest area is the one in which you are most exposed.
These 4 areas are: MENTAL, EMOTIONAL, PHYSICAL, and SPIRITUAL.
It’s important to consider each of these 4 Critical areas one at a time so that you can formulate your POSITIVE AFFIRMATIONS to be the best they can be for you.
Your body is like a machine. Taken care of, it will produce optimal results. Not maintained, its performance will not be the best. Your Mental, Emotional, Physical and Spiritual worlds must all be addressed if you are to operate at your finest level.