New Years: Think Big

Getting it Together:

With the New Year the stores are once again filled with every organizational device imaginable. Storage boxes of all sizes and shapes...gadgets to make your life easier and less cluttered, and books on how-to-do it all in the New Year. Yet, I've found one thing missing. There is no one telling us to think-big. There are plenty of books with coping with the recession, and how to find jobs and even experts telling  us that the recession is over. Tell that to the jobless in Southwest Florida, where I reside. I don't think they will be in total agreement. Yes, the recession has eased a bit but there is a long way to go. One way to ease ourselves away from a recession-mentality is to point our expectations toward our willingness to think outside of the box.

Shoot for the Top

I've always been a big-thinker. That is the way I am wired. When I was in school I considered many jobs as possibilities but each had an outcome and the only real goal was the top position. Coming from a family of entrepreneurs it makes sense that I would follow in their footsteps. With owning your own business comes the risks as well as the reward. Whether or not you own your business there is always something to strive for...and aiming for the top shows you are not afraid of hard work and the sweat that goes into a job well done.

For me (as a past educator) everything boils down to an understanding of the vocabulary and the sense that we are on the same page. Thinking big can mean many things and to each of us something different. Here is the sense in which I think of when talking about this ideal.

Thinking big includes:

Not sweating the small stuff
Doing a job to the best of your ability
Doing a job even when it is not your job
Getting things completed by the deadline
Thinking outside of the box
Over delivering on a project
Working hard and not looking at who else is or is not working hard
Not worrying whose idea it was, only how the idea came to fruition

Do you see where I am going with this? Thinking big is getting the job done, by the deadline (self imposed or external) and doing it to the best of your ability. In the past posts on this blog I've been talking about blogging. Use this idea of thinking Big on your blog. Why? Well, in order to obtain readers you need to offer them something they want to come back for...and come back...and tell others...and continue to return. In the next posts I will be sharing about other social media outlets and the pros and cons of each.

In the mean time, begin the New Year by thinking B-I-G...and let us know how you plan to use your big plans in the new year!

You can visit Felice on  her website at http://www.InformationInANutshell.com

The Inner Game - Play to Win

When you think about playing a game what is one of the first questions you ask?

Chances are whether it's football, tennis, golf, bridge or monopoly the main interest is what does it take to win? Even in the most recreational board games or the family football game at Thanksgiving - we generally play to win! Whether it's bragging rights until the next family gathering or big dollars at stake. We understand the primary goal of being in the game is to win.

But when it comes to the game of life are you playing to win? If there were one strategy that would catapult your efforts to the finish line would you clear your calendar to learn it? Would you spend time each week training and fine tuning the strategy? It's easy to say YES! But the truth is many already know that one strategy and yet do nothing.

Every win, every success in your personal life, every success in your business, your relationships, your health all begin with the power of a thought. Zig Ziglar puts it this way "Others can stop you temporarily. Only you can stop yourself permanently." In Proverbs it's said like this "As a man thinketh, so is he." The game of Life is won when you win the inner game of the mind.

Almost every day people approach me as a Life Coach to help them work on specific goals. Yet as we begin to talk about the goals they want to achieve, the steps they are taking, the steps they want to take, etc. there lack of movement towards their goals generally grinds to a halt because of their thoughts. Fear, self-doubt, lack of confidence, self-defeating thoughts, are just a few of the issues that quickly come to the surface as the key struggle that is holding them back from achieving their goals and the life they desire.

Here are a few of the tips and tools that I use personally as well as work with my clients on implementing in their lives as well.

~Become aware of the thoughts you are having. Write them down or even say them aloud. The power in this is that once these items are stated objectively it's clear they are untrue.
~Take the thought captive. Throw out the thought that isn't serving your success and replace it with one that does serve you. For example: Thinking "They don't need what I have to offer so why make contact" to thinking "What I offer is of value and to serve others I must reach out".
~Feed your mind with what is true, what is positive, what is right. You can do this through books, tapes, music, the people you choose to listen to or associate with
~Identify the area of life that the negative thoughts shows up for you the most. Whether it's in relationships, career, health, or others. Then begin educate yourself with successful means, methods and thoughts of how to win in that area.
~Reprogram your thoughts. Now that you are aware of the negative thought, you have taken the thought captive, now it's time to replace the negative thought with a positive truth.

And like winning any game, your inner game gets stronger with practice, practice, practice.