How are you making this difficult?

Is your ego holding on to old thoughts and ideas and decisions – and doesn’t want to be wrong by you changing your mind now?

Probably.

Comparing yourself to others

Comparing yourself to others to make yourself feel better and to feed your self-esteem is a bad idea.

There will always be someone who is smarter than you, richer than you, prettier than you, or has a bigger/better _________ than you.

In the end, comparing yourself will only drain your self-esteem.  And even in the moments where you are better than others, feeling good as a result is still putting your happiness outside yourself – and that is a dangerous place for it to be.  You will get older, grayer, slower and you won’t be at the top forever. 

Don’t compare yourself to others.  Instead, just focus on being better than you were last week.  Follow your interests and talents and beat yesterday. 

It doesn’t matter if anyone else notices.  You’ll know.

Make you proud of you.

Liked by everyone?

You don’t want to be unpopular, because you have to work with people and get their cooperation to get things done. 

At the same time, if we are liked and accepted by everyone, we probably aren’t making a difference and using our unique abilities.

We know that most people do not like change.  And if you are the one causing it, even if it’s good change, you will ruffle someone’s feathers.  If you are very talented and using that talent, someone will not like that you are showing them up.  If you are stepping up, some will not like you because “who are you to do that – get back down here with us!”.  If you want to make things better, you may have to call someone out, or leave them behind.

Of course, you don’t have to make it worse than it needs to be.  A graceful style, listening, and humility can all soften reactions, while you are going forward.

Being your best and making a positive change can make you unpopular.  Most heroes throughout history have experienced the same thing.  

Self-Control

Can you discipline yourself to do what must be done today to make your future better, and delay gratification?

Unsuccessful people can not.

Prioritize goal achievement over entertainment and leisure.  

Better yet, a real master makes getting better and achievement his entertainment. There is no difference.

If you're juiceful you're useful!

Find excitement in what you do.  Have a zest for it.  Love it.

Find “the juice”.

“If you’re juiceless you’re useless.  If you’re juiceful you’re useful!” – Brian Cain

Are you the best of the worst?

“The world needs you at your best.  You can’t be normal, you must be elite.  When you are average you are the best of the worst or the worst of the best.  It’s a terrible place to live.” – Brian Cain

Be an elite performer at something.

Create your own reality

Don’t deal in other people’s beliefs and ideas of what is possible.

Otherwise, you’ll be like them.  Which is fine if that’s what you want.

But if you believe you CAN do better/more, then you find yourself WANTING to do better/more, and taking the action to make it happen.

Create your own reality.

It is impossible…unless….

It is impossible….unless…

What is the unless?

Your life is up to you now.

It wasn’t always this way.  Not long ago in history, our lives were not up to us.  We struggled to survive against the circumstances we were born into, and it was brutal.  Somehow, our forefathers figured it out for us and thankfully, we are here, now.

This is your Great Chance.  You’ll have somewhere between 50 and 90 years.

“Whatever you vividly imagine, ardently desire, sincerely BELIEVE, and enthusiastically act upon – must inevitably come to pass.” – Paul J. Meyer

Don’t waste it.

The most expensive information

When you don’t know or aren’t sure, that’s bad enough.  But when you get information and it’s bad information, that is much worse.

Believing something is true or the best way, when it is not, can cost you dearly.

The world is full of information, and people who are giving it out.  Some of it is just plain bad advice.  Often there is a context – what may be good for one person is not good for another because they have different circumstances.  Sometimes we hear the part of it we want to hear and ignore important details of the rest.

Consider the source of information and their credibility and motivation.  You can not assume because LOTS of people are listening or doing it that it is the right thing or true.

Sometimes you can reframe your question.  Instead of asking “Is this true or not true”, ask “Is the useful or not useful to me, given my position and my goals?”

The most expensive information is bad information.  You have to decide each day what you will consume and accept – and those decisions, day after day, will take you where you’re going.