How to learn anything in 20 hours

Overcome the emotional barrier!

Your Daily Quote - Better Self

“I always wanted to be someone better the next day than I was the day before.” ~Sidney Poitier

Are You the Best Version of Yourself Today?

By Shivani Parikh

Do we all need bad experiences to change for better? Can we all try to change for better each day just because? Can we do one thing today that was better than yesterday?

It could be thanking a colleague for help given. It could be observing the flower outside your window and appreciating that it took months to bloom to give you a beautiful sight. It could be looking at the rain and appreciating the water it gives us rather than cursing it for the shoes it spoils.

I worked harder than ever at being a better person each day. Every night I would ask myself a few questions:

Am I any better today than I was yesterday?

Were there any negative experiences today from which I could learn?

Did I accomplish something today?

By setting aside some time daily to reflect on my behaviors, I have created an opportunity for myself to grow. I developed a list to help me be a better person today than yesterday. If you’d like to start being the best version of yourself now, ask yourself:

1. Did I pay attention to the people around me?

I try to reflect on whether I talked or listened more today. Did I genuinely show interest in what other people were saying? Did I give them the attention they deserved when they spoke? When I listened more, I made more friends. When I was interested in people, I could make a positive difference in their day, which in turn made me more content.

2. Am I stuck on a bad yesterday?

I can’t be a better person today if I am stuck on my bad yesterday. Dwelling on a bad yesterday makes my today bad as well. This results in two bad days—a bad yesterday and a bad today, and a bad today would be a bad yesterday the next day (complicated).

I try to forget and forgive nasty remarks made by a friend, boss, neighbor, or my husband. I stopped regretting mistakes; I needed to move on. I stopped thinking about time wasted in past since thinking about it now wastes time today. I let go of past resentments.

3. Did I work on my character today?

More than anything else that matters in life, it’s your own character that counts. I keep trying to improve my character through good thoughts and more importantly, good deeds. Our character determines how we will respond to situations and circumstances of life.

4. Did I work on my habits? 

I try hard to get rid of my bad habits and develop good ones. None of us are born with fixed habits. They are developed and cultivated with practice. It is easy to get hooked on bad habits, but difficult to get rid of them.

I was a very impatient person, and a slave to the clock. Everything had to happen on time, but with a six-year-old child, this slavery to time is extremely stressful.

My child wouldn’t think about whether I’d be late to work and would take ages to get dressed while I was waiting for him. This would bring about a round of threatening or fights to hurry him.

Over last one year I gave up wearing my watch to slow down a bit. I decided I didn’t need it. It really wouldn’t be a big deal if I was five minutes late, but yelling and screaming at my child would induce a guilt/unhappiness that lasted for hours, and it would start his day poorly as well.

Now every time I look at my wrist out of habit to check the time, having no watch reminds me to slow down. It is now a constant reminder throughout the day to slow down and appreciate what I have.

Working on little habits like this can make a big difference in our lives.

5. Did I allow anger to consume me today?

It’s inevitable we’ll feel angry from time to time, but we don’t have to let it control us. Working through my anger with people, life, and my circumstances was the toughest in the list to do—but also the most beneficial. Deep breaths worked for me. 

6. Did I exercise today?

This one is an instant mood booster, which allows us to be better for the people around us. I realized that sometimes I might be too tied up for an hour workout. So I break it into parts and look for opportunities to walk a little, since every step counts. Every time I talk on the phone I walk. So now my daily chat with my sister for ten minutes provides me with ten minutes of walking.

—

We all deserve to be the best versions of ourselves; it not only reduces our own suffering, but also allows us to make a positive impact on the people around us.

Cars, phones, computers, technology are all becoming better each day. Shouldn’t we?

In business we follow the principle of “continuous improvement.” It’s time we replicate the same in our lives.

Each day is a new opportunity to grow. Each day we can be better than yesterday.

Source:

http://tinybuddha.com/blog/are-you-the-best-version-of-yourself-today/

Your Daily Quote - Happiness

Try to make at least one person happy every day. If you cannot do a kind deed, speak a kind word. If you cannot speak a kind word, think a kind thought. Count up, if you can, the treasure of happiness that you would dispense in a week, in a year, in a lifetime!

Lawrence G. Lovasik

How Millionaires Schedule Their Day

Download Brendon's awesome productivity tool!

Your Daily Quote - Habit

“Habit is the intersection of knowledge (what to do), skill (how to do), and desire (want to do).” 
― Stephen R. Covey, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change

5 Tips to Stay Totally Committed to Your Goals

by David K. William | The Web Writer Spotlight

Most of us know what we really want to do in life but just haven’t pursued it because we are too attached to the comfort, safety or simplicity of our routines. However, if you truly want to grow and actualize your innermost dreams and capabilities, you must get to a point in life where commitment supersedes comfort. Here are five tips that will help you stay totally committed to a clear goal you’ve set, whether the goal is to make a career change to freelance writing in six months or build up your online income to $3,000 per month by the end of the year.

1. Desire hard

Napoleon Hill, in his classic book, Think and Grow Rich, says: "The starting point of all achievement is desire. Keep this constantly in mind. Weak desires bring weak results, just as a small amount of fire makes a small amount of heat." You need to deeply desire the actualization of your goal to make it happen. Sure, there will be good days and bad days along the way. There will also be times when you question your decisions and future, but if you can picture yourself achieving your goal and you really want to achieve it, chances are high you will stay committed to and achieve the goal. Miracles happen when you throw yourself fully into what you want to achieve.

2. Plan well

Stephen Covey, author of the best-selling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, says: "All things are created twice. There's a mental or first creation, and a physical or second creation of all things. You have to make sure that the blueprint, the first creation, is really what you want, that you've thought everything through. Then you put it into bricks and mortar. Each day you go to the construction shed and pull out the blueprint to get marching orders for the day. You begin with the end in mind." You must plan well and map out the route to follow in order to accomplish your goals. Needless to say, the beaten adage still remains true: “Failing to plan, is planning to fail.”

3. Invest wisely

Deb McAlister-Holland, a freelance marketing professional in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, says the $5,000 she spent remodeling her home office was the best thing she ever did to realize her freelance dream and increase her productivity. "I love my home office. It has a big leather sofa, three walls covered with built-in bookshelves and storage cabinets, dedicated circuits for my computers, special lighting, and a soft hand-woven rug on the floor that's the perfect spot for my dog to nap while I work," she says. It’s important to arm yourself with the tools and knowledge you need to realize your dream. Arming yourself with the right tools and knowledge calls for wise investing―a material and immaterial effort that compels you stay true to your goal.

4. Sacrifice wholly

George Santayana, 20th century philosopher, poet, essayist and novelist, says: “Nothing so much enhances a good as to make sacrifices for it.” And he is right. A key sign that you are totally committed to something is when you are willing to make sacrifices for it. Army officers literary sacrifice their lives because they wholly believe and are committed to the greater good. Top-level athletes train and practice countless hours every day because they believe they can do better. If you believe in and are fully committed to your goal and mission, you will be willing to sacrifice. Step out of your comfort zone and trod the rocky path toward the realization of your dream.

5. Review regularly

Diana Scharf Hunt, renowned author and time-management guru, says: “Goals are dreams with deadlines.” Review your goal regularly to make sure you are making progress in the right sequence of time. Don’t allow your goal to fall by the wayside or let it be overtaken by time. Document everything and assess what you need to do to make things happen. If you are not making progress, tap into a support group to ensure you get all the help you need to realize your goal.

Source:

http://webwriterspotlight.com/5-tips-stay-totally-committed-your-goals

Your Daily Quote - The 7 P's

Proper Planning and Preparation Prevents Piss-Poor Performance.

Military adage

How to Start a Dream and Take Action

Once you master change, anything is easier...

Set up a journey map - what do you need to learn? Schedule what you need to learn, to achieve competence

Your Daily Quote - Learning

Learn to get in touch with the silence within yourself, and know that everything in life has purpose. There are no mistakes, no coincidences, all events are blessings given to us to learn from.

Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

8 Ways to Discover Your Passion and Live a Life You Love

By Ashley Wilhite

1. Slow down.

When we slow down, we are able to tap into the best version of ourselves, which is most often when we find the answers we’ve been searching for. This might mean practicing yoga, going for daily walks, or setting aside time each day to meditate. Slowing down allows you to quiet the outside voices and listen to yourself.

2. Change your story.

We all tell ourselves stories about who we are, what we’re capable of, and what we deserve. If we can identify our self-limiting stories (I’m not good enough; I don’t deserve to be happy, etc.), then we can begin writing new stories that are grounded in confidence and courage, and map out actions that move us from one to the other.

3. Own your uniqueness.

We are here for a reason. No one else has your unique blend of talents, wisdom, strengths, skills, and creativity. We all have something great to offer, and learning to accept and own what makes you unique is crucial to sharing your gifts with the world.

4. Cultivate confidence.

If we are continually telling ourselves we can’t, then we will never believe we can. There is a chance you may fail, but it will be impossible to succeed if you don’t believe in yourself. You can create affirmations, focus on the things you want, or make a vision board that shows your future success.

5. Find the themes.

Recognizing the recurring themes in our lives creates a pattern for us to either follow or change. What themes or lessons seem to constantly surface in your life? What are you drawn to again and again? What areas of life seem to be full of discomfort and pain? What areas are full of joy and light?

6. Write.

Ideas flow more freely when we write without an agenda. New inspiration may appear unexpectedly and it becomes easier to connect the dots. Spend a few minutes of quality time each day with a pen and paper allowing yourself to process your thoughts without influence from the outside world.

7. Focus on the fun.

Too often we get wrapped up in the expectations we set for ourselves. We focus on the details and the to-do lists instead of what is most important. What do you love to do? What makes you smile? If money were limitless, what would you be doing today?

8. Push past fear.

It’s so seductive to tell ourselves that we’ll go after what we want when we have more experience, more money, or more time, but the truth is, that will never happen. We must identify these excuses as masks for our fear. It’s only when we get clear on our fears and recognize how they are holding us back that we can begin moving forward.

Full article:

http://tinybuddha.com/blog/8-ways-to-discover-your-passion-and-live-a-life-you-love/

Your Daily Quote - Determination

“The greatest oak was once a little nut who held its ground.”– Author Unknown

Bob Proctor - Positive Affirmations and Changing Paradigms

Never change things by fighting reality.

If you want to change something, build a new model that makes the old model obsolete.

Your Daily Quote - SMART goals

Deepak Chopra's S.M.A.R.T goal system:

Stretch for more than you can reach

Make everything measurable

Agreements from your team and supporters

Record your progress

Time limits

How to Deal with Rejection

by Elena Long

How often has the fear of being rejected, of being given the answer “no” stopped you from taking a step towards something you want? Maybe at uni you didn’t ask that gorgeous girl out for a coffee because you assumed she would say no? Or when you negotiated the terms of your new job you didn’t dare to ask about higher salary? Was there a project at work you wanted to get involved with, so that you could learn new skills, but you thought your manager would say you don’t have experience to be involved…

The truth is, if you don’t explore new possibilities, if you don’t get out of your comfort zone and take this moderate risk of getting “No” for an answer, you are raising barriers to your own development. And you will wonder for the rest of your life: “What if?”

One of the golden principles of personal development, life coaching and success is that how happy and fulfilled you are with your life is dependent not on what happens to you, but how you react to what life throws at you. Quite often the hiccups you encounter along your journey are just tests, areas that you need improvement in. You lack confidence when approaching girls? Then practice ten times a day. You can’t work with PowerPoint? Then volunteer and help prepare the presentation for the next workshop in the office, or with your study group.

What is the worst that can happen when you ask the question: “May I?” I love the example Jack Canfield gives in his book, The Success Principles. If you choose to apply to Harvard, but fear of rejection is stopping you, think twice. If the worst happens and they say “No”, would you be able to handle it? Of course you would – you have spent all your life NOT studying at Harvard, surely you know how to deal with that. And if you do get in – well, it was worth trying!

After all, Colonel Sanders got over 300 rejections before he found someone to believe in him and his special “KFC” chicken recipe. Nor did Sylvester Stallone get disheartened with ”No” after “No” for the script of the first Rocky, until United Artists agreed to produce the script on his terms, with Stallone getting the lead role.

So next time when you toss between: Should I, Should I not, think about that: “some will, some won’t – so what – someone’s waiting.” Or, the SWSWSWSW formula. If someone now says “No”, there still is someone out there waiting for you skills, your ideas, your smile, your contribution. Work your way out to getting there, one rejection at a time.

Your Daily Quote - Success and Momentum

“People who succeed have momentum. The more they succeed, the more they want to succeed, and the more they find a way to succeed. Similarly, when someone is failing, the tendency is to get on a downward spiral that can even become a self-fulfilling prophecy.” 

Tony Robbins

7 Steps to Embrace Personal Progress & Rise above Emotional Blockage: A Love Letter to You

By Kathleen O’Keefe-Kanavos

When was the last time you dreamed of success? 

 Each day is progress in this life-time. Yet, it is so easy to ignore all the positive things you have accomplished and focus on what still needs to be done to feel fulfilled. 

Fulfillment is a mind-set.

 Fulfillment is a state of thinking that manifests itself into a state of being—mind over matter. As human beings, we must be in the moment to see our past accomplishments.  

Accomplishments are the result of challenges.

During your most trying moments, what was the “cross you had to bear”?  Take a second to remember it. Now, focus on how you have risen above it?  Next, imagine being handed a gift box.  Peek inside.  See the gift left behind by the challenge.  This achievement is proof that you are a winner. The gift is a promise for a new day. Time for the next step— thanking your Inner-winner.

Focus on rising above the strife in a Love Letter to Yourself.

 Writing can help you be in the moment of triumph by putting abstract emotions into concrete words. You will celebrate with your inner-selves; those incredible aspects of yourself that you may not be aware of, but are always there for you. As you write, they will be reading the love letter through the windows of your soul—your eyes.  

By focusing on your accomplishments, your mind is set to create more positive results. 

 Your thoughts and memories can also bring to light your life-purpose and help you stay on the correct path to your Life Destiny. 

Here are 5 steps to write your Love Letter to Yourself:

 1.) Remember—You may be holding the pen, but Inner Wisdom is guiding the words. Let them flow.

 Although a hand written letter may be more therapeutic, a typed one works well, too.  The importance is not in HOW you connect with yourself but THAT you connect with yourself.

A Love Letter to You is a simple letter to all the inner aspects of yourself — Inner Wisdom, Inner Knowing, Spirit, God, or the Higher Power of your choice.  Your letter can be addressed to any name that resonates with you.

          2.) Start with a phrase of gratitude, Mantra, or Blessing at the top of your letter. 

Write a phrase or mantra that has power for you. This is your letter heading.

It can be acknowledgment of your Inner Winner. Acknowledging gratitude is one of your most powerful healing and connecting energies. Your mantra/phrase will reflect that principle. If you do not have a personal phrase of gratitude, borrow one that most resonates with you.

  3.) Today’s Date –Dating your letter helps ground you in the moment while you visit the past. The past is a great place to visit.  But, don’t live there.  

 4.)  Salutation – Dear, your name, or Inner Winner, etc.   Address the letter to whomever feels right to you. Imagine sending a  private message or group email to all your best friends.  This can be one, many, or all your Inner-people who are responsible for helping you succeed.

 5.)  The Body of the Letter – Write whatever feels right to you. Let it all out, but try to start and end on a positive note.  You may want to start with: 

     “Thank you for all you have done for me.” 

 6.)  Sign your name. Feel free to use a name you can embrace as the new you rather than your given name. The Love Letter is to you. You’ll get it.

  

If you need more guidance for your letter, use my example of what your Love Letter might look like and fill in the blanks:

  

“I am grateful for any opportunity to connect with my Inner-winner.”

April, 9, 2015

Dear Inner Winner,

Thank you for all you have done for me.  

I remember when ____________________________________ 

Then you helped me _________________________________

We worked together by _______________________________

Now, these positive things have happened to manifest the promise of a wonderful future ______

Love,

(sign your name) Super Kat

 7.) What to do with your Love Letter. You may either save the letter and read it whenever you need to reconnect with your Inner-winner, or you may perform a ritualistic act of sharing.  If you  save it, put it in a place that is easily accessible, like your wallet. Take it out and read it when you need it. 

Send it to yourself in a personal email, or post it on a blog where your love and gratitude can be shared with many.

 Burning is a ritual act of sharing. It uses fire to cleanse away any residual negativity and allows smoke to carry the message of gratitude to your Higher Power.  The ashes left behind will be fertile ground for new positive thoughts and deeds just like the mythical bird the Phoenix.

So, take a minute out of your busy time to reflect on what you have done to leave a positive foot-print on someone’s heart or in the sands-of-time. Find that hidden gift in your mind.  Write it in a love letter to YOU because you deserve it.

Then watch for answers and validation from your Inner-winner in your dreams.

Original article:

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/aboveandbeyondthe5senses/2014/04/7-steps-to-embrace-personal-progress-rise-above-emotional-blockage-an-easter-love-letter-to-you/

Your Daily Quote - Trust Yourself

Trust yourself. Create the kind of self that you will be happy to live with all your life. Make the most of yourself by fanning the tiny, inner sparks of possibility into flames of achievement.

Golda Meir

How To Set Goals – Lessons From Napolean Hill & Tim Ferriss

by Keep Inspiring Me

A goal is a dream with a deadline — Napoleon Hill

Think And Grow Rich is “The Secret” for hustlers, for people who want to go out and make things happen for themselves, but just need a push in the right direction.

The process of goal setting taught in Think and Grow Rich can be distilled into the following points:

1. Determine exactly how much money you desire – don’t be vague.
2. Determine exactly what you intend to do in order to earn the money you desire. What value are you going to offer? Remember, there is no free lunch.
3. Establish an exact date for when you plan to possess the amount of money you desire.
4. Establish a definite plan for achieving your desire, and start right this moment, whether or not you feel you’re ready.
5. Write out a clear statement of how much money you are going to acquire (the amount from step 1), what you intend to do in exchange for the money (the value from step 2), the date you’ll acquire it by (the date from step 3), and your specific, actionable plan for reaching the desired monetary goal (the plan from step 4).
6. Twice daily, read your written statement out loud to yourself. Do it once in the morning, and once at night. While you read the statement, visualize yourself executing on your plan and visualize the money in your possession.

The goal setting principles above fit into a larger framework of what Hill calls creating “burning desire to win”, but it is essential to the framework presented in Think And Grow Rich. While Hill focuses on goal setting as it applies to financial success (the book is called Think and Grow Rich after all), the same principles can be applied to anything you want to achieve.

In The 4 Hour Work Week, Tim Ferriss describes how he went from working 100+ hours a week on his online supplements business to turning it into a passive income business that funded his travels and hobbies. He accomplished this by creating what he calls a “dreamline” for his ideal lifestyle.

*Note: Don’t let the catchy title fool you, the 4 Hour Work Week isn’t about only working 4 hours a week – it’s about rejecting social norms regarding how we “should” live and work. It’s about using out-of-the box thinking to minimize the work we don’t want to do, so we can spend time doing what we really want.

What Ferris calls a “dreamline” is essentially a list of things you want to acquire and/or accomplish, without concern for how exactly you will accomplish it. The idea is to not limit yourself to your preconceived notions of what is or isn’t possible, but to design an ideal lifestyle for yourself, figure out how much money you’ll need to accomplish that lifestyle, and then aim to create income streams that will support that lifestyle. Its about setting fixed deadlines for creating our dream lifestyle, rather than using a vague notion of “the future” to indefinitely defer what we truly want from life.

Here is an excerpt from the 4 Hour Work Week where Tim talks about creating a dreamline.

Create two timelines—six months and twelve months—and list up to five things you dream of having (including, but not limited to, material wants: house, car, clothing, etc.), being (be a great cook, be fluent in Chinese, etc.), and doing (visiting Thailand, tracing your roots overseas, racing ostriches, etc.), in that order.

For now, don’t concern yourself with how these things will be accomplished. That’s all covered later.

Consider the question: What would you do, day-to-day, if you had $100 million in the bank? If still blocked, fill in the five “doing” spots with the following:

• 1 place to visit
• 1 thing to do before you die (a memory of a lifetime)
• 1 thing to do daily
• 1 thing to do weekly
• 1 thing you’ve always wanted to learn

Chances are that the ultimate TMI figure will be lower than expected, and it will decrease over time as you trade more and more “having” for once-in-a-lifetime “doing.” 

The key takeaway from the 4 hour work week as far as goal setting goes, is not to let our preconceived notions of what is and what isn’t possible dictate our goals. Much too often, people set goals based on what they think is realistic.

The other takeaway is to set both a short term and long term goals. You can write down a specific goal with a specific deadline, but if the end goal is 5, 10 years down the line, how do we measure progress in the meantime? Its important to create short term goals that you can start working towards right now, and to always give yourself less time than you think you’ll need to accomplish any given goal.

Conclusion

So now that we’ve looked at goal setting from the perspective of two authorities on the subject, what common elements can we draw here? Whether we’re talking about the great depression, or the modern internet era of remote working and the digital nomad, it looks like there are certain elements that remain universal truths when it comes to setting goals:

1. Don’t let your pre-conceived notions of what is and isn’t possible define your goals. Rather, describe what you want to achieve, and work backwards from that to create a plan to get from point A (where you are now) to point B (where you want to be).
2. Part of your goal setting should involve a plan of action to achieving your goal, starting from today.
3. Goals must be specific and exact in nature. They should state exactly what you want.
4. Goals must have a specific timeframe for accomplishment.
5. Goals should be written down so they’re concrete.
6. Re-visit your goals daily.