If you're gonna' be dumb, you gotta' be tough!

If you are going to be satisfied with being ignorant, or if you ignore doing what you know is the right, healthy thing, then you had better be tough enough to live with the consequences.

Hard days, easy life.  Easy days, tough life.

Ignorance

“Ignorance is a self-generating state-of-mind; one of its characteristics is that it doesn’t recognize itself as ignorance.” – Jane Smiley

“Reason obeys itself, and ignorance submits to whatever is dictated to it. – Thomas Paine

What area do you know little or nothing about that is hurting you? 

Do you know? 

Do you want to know?

Are you thinking about right now, or later?

I love eating a rich calorie-filled meal with a great dessert.  I don’t like it an hour later or that night.

I don’t like a healthy meal quite as much, but I love having eaten a healthy meal later.

I don’t like working out too much, but I love having worked out.

I don’t like sitting down and working on something big and complicated that is not in my sweet spot, but I like having done it and being past it.

Successful people aren’t thinking about what feels good and most comfortable right now.  

Are you?

What you're doing produces the result you're getting

You know that now.

What do you need to do differently?

It's awesome already.

“People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle.  But I think the real miracle is not to walk on either water or thin air, but to walk on earth.  Every day we are engaged in a miracle that we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the curious eyes of a child – our own two eyes.  All is a miracle.” – Thich Nhat Hahn, The Miracle of Mindfulness.

The "wills" and the "will-nots"

Successful people formed a habit of doing things that unsuccessful people do not like to do.

Is that you?

Today's "Risk"

Risk used to be going hunting for large animals with a spear, taking to the sea in a boat made with crude hand tools, or betting your family could make it through the winter with the poor autumn harvest you saved in a root cellar.

Today, most “risk” is not life and death.  It’s mostly risking your ego being bruised or risking the criticism of others as you step out of your comfort zone to be someone you aren’t yet, or do something you don’t know how to do yet.  

We’re so controlled by what others think of us that we play cool where we are to please them – and it becomes an excuse for ourselves to not step out of our comfort zone.

If you stop worrying about what others will say, there’s very little risk at all.

Invest in YOU.

Last week I made a joke that I’d start charging ten cents a message unless you referred someone else to Think Daily.

One person commented that it was enough for them to unsubscribe. (I’d bet they paid for a college education).

Many people say they want to get better.  They will attend a free training at work when they are getting paid to attend.  But when it comes to spending a dollar to invest in themselves, that’s where they draw the line.  At the same time, they will buy lots of things that go down in value.

Years ago I learned (on an audio program I spent good money for) to invest in lots of things that go up in value, and less in things that go down in value. 

Things that do down in value – cars, clothes, furniture, most “stuff”….

Things that go up in value –  real estate, shares of good companies that are projected to continue growing into the future, my OWN business, and most importantly – my education.

In fact, Brian Tracy suggested I spend 10% of my income on my own education.  Darren Hardy recently suggested if you can’t afford 10% then you should probably spend 20%.  

An investment in your own education will pay for itself many many times over.  Books, audiobooks, seminars, courses, and classes.  And let’s not forget time spent on the internet finding and reading or watching things that are important to your chosen field – or that orbit around it (if you can help yourself from getting sucked into the “news” or entertainment part of the web.

Invest lavishly in yourself – without hesitation.  It’s the difference between people at the top, and the rest.

Refuse to Complain

When you blame others or outside circumstances you give your power away.

Take 100% responsibility for what is happening around you.

That’s how to change it and make it better.

More Noise, Less Certainty

The more noise in your life, the less certainty.

Limit the media you consume to voices of value who are helping you get where you want to go.