Expect—The Success Word by Janet Callaway, The Natural Networker

If you were to interview achievers in business, sports, the arts or any other endeavor, and ask them to pick a single word which best describes the reason for their success, no doubt you would hear the word Expect repeatedly. When each of them thought about whether or not they would be able to achieve their goal, they knew they could and would achieve it. If you Expect Success and act accordingly, you will achieve that success.

“You were born to win, but to be a winner, you must plan to win, prepare to win, and Expect to Win.” Zig Ziglar

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12 Mondays to Changing your Life by Janet Callaway

Internationally known leadership consultant, educator, speaker and author of more than twenty books David Cottrell gives terrific advice in Monday Morning Choices. He tells you, and I agree, that if you change your Mondays you can change your life. What he suggests is that each Monday you focus on one personal and positive choice for the week. 

Following are his timeless and proven principles for successful living; I have selected one quote for each choice.

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One Millimeter Philosophy by Tony Robbins

What will it take for us to realize our potential? Could we be so close that the next step could be the one that opens the door?

I love the 1 millimeter philosophy. We are all closer than we might imagine. Dr Terry Paulsen even goes so far as to say that we might be winning and not have realized it. Whether we have already won and haven’t realized it yet or are 1 millimeter away focus on what you want to accomplish and why you want to accomplish it.

Know that you can make a difference by persevering. Having met and worked with a lot of very successful people I know that they are not much different from everyone else. They have had doubts, fears and frustrations along their paths but they believed in themselves, knew why they were making the necessary sacrifices and went the extra millimeter. One Millimeter is the difference from average to great.

Take the next step and change the world.

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5 Keys to Success by Janet Callaway

This is the first in a series of articles on keys to success. Success is neither a single thing nor talent rather it is a result of many consistent actions. The combination of these disciplines and actions leads to success. Use these keys and walk through the door to your success.

1.  Be Responsible. You are 100% responsible for what happens in your life. You and You alone are responsible for creating the life you want. You and You alone are responsible for the quality of your life. When you accept 100% responsibility and understand what it means in your life, it is liberating. Give up blaming and complaining. Accept Responsibility.

2.  Believe. Believe in Yourself. Believe it's possible.  Oftentimes when you hear someone interviewed after an accomplishment, they say that a quote by Napoleon Hill was instrumental in their success. The quote: “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve.” We must be able to see ourselves as successful, losing weight, being a better golfer, tennis player or whatever else is our dream, our goal. If we cannot imagine ourselves as having or being something different, we are destined to stay as we are. To build belief in yourself, listen to the CDs, attend the seminars, read the books, take the lessons and talk to supportive people. Borrow their belief in you. Follow the trail of “what if . . .” one step at a time until you learn to Believe in Yourself.

3.  Why. Know your why. Why is it that you want what you want? How will your life be different when you achieve your dream, your goal? Is your why big enough, important enough to you that you will keep going, when the going gets tough?

4.  Focus. Know what you want and what you need to do to get there. Don't get distracted by what you can't control. Ask for help from those who have what you want. Remember, focus on the step you are doing. Know and get ready for the next step. Keep moving. Do it Now.  There is no perfect time.

5.  Visualize Success. Picture your dream, your goal in your mind; think about it often during the day. What will it look like? Make a dream board or vision board and paste pictures of what you want on that board. Look at the board every morning and every evening. Albert Einstein said, “Imagination is everything. It is the preview of life's coming attractions.” What are you imagining? What are you visualizing—your success or your failure? You choose. You take 100% Responsibility.

Change yourself; change your future. You are a Masterpiece.   Are you working each day to improve the Masterpiece of You?

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The Confidence Game by Chris Brogan

Confidence is an integral part of success whether it be actual confidence or perceive confidence. In this article Chris Brogan discusses both types, their importance and gives you suggestions for what to do if you are lacking in confidence. As always, Chris is specific and gives you easy-to-follow advice.  

Janet

One way you can guarantee yourself success in life is by improving your confidence and your appearance of confidence.

Note that I've separated out the two, and I'm sure you know this, but let's talk about it. There's a big difference between being confident and appearing confident. In the first case, you might be fairly confident, but are choosing not to display it for some other reason. Maybe you're being deferential to someone else's opinion. Maybe you feel it's fair to be more democratic, so you don't want to appear overly confident. Here's the thing: people react positively to confidence. Even small boosts in your outward appearance of confidence will change how people perceive you.

IT'S EASY TO START PRACTICING

The smaller things are where you can start practicing. Here's one: when someone asks you where you want to go for lunch, what's your first reaction? If you're like many people, you throw the decision back at the person, asking what they want to eat. Try doing this simple thing: answer with the first food choice you think of, immediately and without hesitation. "I was thinking of having shrimp scampi today."

If people ask for your opinion, practice giving it without disclaimer, or with the fewest possible disclaimers.

If you are asked to participate on something and you don't want to do it, practice saying the following: "Thank you for asking me. It sounds really interesting, and I hope that you are successful with your project. I'm not able to work with you on it at this time." If they persist, restate. "Thanks for that. No, I'm afraid, I've got a lot on my plate and am not going to be able to help. Thanks again." See if your universe changes.

WORKING UP TO BIGGER CONFIDENCE MATTERS

Once you get good at the little stuff (and by the way, you could practice those for months before you feel like it's the first response out of your mouth), you can start practicing your bigger confidence moves. Want to learn how to talk with strangers?

Sign up to attend a local event. Not sure what? Check out out Meetup.com. Remember, you don't really even have to care what the topic is (though it'd help if you knew just a hair about it). Go to the event, and when you get in, look for a wallflower or nervous person. Walk over (careful not to block their possible escape routes, which is how people spook out shy people everywhere), and when it's appropriate to talk, start with, "I've never come to this event before. What should I expect?"

Pow. You're talking to someone you don't know. They can just lob into whatever they're going to say. When they eventually pause, say, "Oh, by the way, my name is Janet ," and hold out your hand (depending on the culture). Pow squared. You've just done it.

Practice this a ton.

YOUR THOUGHTS

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