Being A Real Super Hero

Isn’t it always a good feeling when you find something good in the world (be it an action, behavior, thought or idea) and then you see it again and again, soon after? I love it when this happens. You can only imagine how stoked I was when I bought this month’s issue of SUCCESS magazine and one of my major thoughts of the moment was the theme of the entire issue. The thoughts that I was having and the theme of the issue are both based on one of the most important pursuits of life (if not the most important): living your potential.

At many points in life I find myself wrestling with this concept and all that it entails. What am I capable of accomplishing? What is possible (as opposed to probable)? How great can I really be? These are all questions that bounce around in my head like ping-pong balls whenever the topic comes up. To start to answer these questions, I will leave it to Thomas Edison who once said, “If we did all the things we are capable of, we would literally astound ourselves.”

The unfortunate thing about this is that most of us spend most of our lives doing less then we are capable of. It stinks to admit it but I, more often then not, am one of these people. This is something that I am going to actively start working on in all areas of my life, today. I am going to get to work on being a better father, husband, friend and employee. For me that means I have to be more goal oriented- writing down my specific goals and then accomplishing them, checking them off as if they were a grocery list.

One of my mentors once wrote to me not long ago, “We are super heroes. Every one of us. We all have basic powers that at times of fear, joy, desperation, whatever…is off the charts. Some of us don’t realize that we have them. Some of us choose to ignore them. Some of us are told to suppress them. But we all have them. To be an effective hero, one must be consistent in their deployment of their power.” I hope that you can see that this directly applies to living our potential. When we are consistently displaying our power…day in and day out…we are living the life of a real super hero.

Our individual power may not be super flashy and incredible like Superman but remember that Batman is still a super hero and he was a normal guy, just like you and me.

What is one thing that you can do today and everyday that will help take you one step closer to living your potential? Please feel free to leave a comment and share with me your action…no matter how big or small it is.

Changing from Unsuccessful to Successful

Success and failure in life comes in every job or occupation—what one is doing isn’t in itself going to change an unsuccessful life into a successful one. How one performs, attacks or approaches life makes all the difference. Successful people have learned how to approach life in a certain way that puts them at a tremendous advantage—that is why they are successful. Unsuccessful people approach life in ways that put them at a disadvantage—not understanding that keeps them that way.

To escape an unsuccessful life and enter into a successful one—questions, not answers are first necessary.

*How am I approaching life and how is my approach hurting me more then helping?
*Do I understand that I am solely responsible for the position I find myself in?
*What changes can I make today that will begin the transformation of my life from unsuccessful to successful?
*How do successful people act and think and what can I do to emulate them?

Success is a term that has many definitions and you need to know how you define it in your own life. Without knowing what success is to you, you are in a race with no finish line—you have no idea where you are headed.

Look around you and notice who has in life the things you desire. It might be wealth, relationships, work ethic, character or something else. Whatever it is, figure out somebody to be a role model for you and start making changes in your life to bring you closer to the life you want.

Remember, success is not dependent on what we do (occupation) but it is very dependent on how we do things (process). From the little things (how I dress, how I walk, how approachable I appear) to the big things (how I work, how I learn, how I communicate, how I think) how I do things makes the biggest difference between success and failure.

Napoleon Hill: “Thoughts are Things”

I have been reading Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich and it really has a ton of great information in it. Being that it was written in 1937, I am sure that at the time it was groundbreaking stuff but what amazes me is that the principles and ideas contained in it are still greatly important today.

The book details 13 steps to riches but the first chapter, which isn’t one of the thirteen steps, might be the most important part of the whole book. He begins with “thoughts are things” and that single idea sets the stage for his following 13 steps. It is so powerful and yet so rare in today’s world. Many people seem to think that the answers they are seeking in life can only come from outside sources and don’t even consider that they may come from inside their own mind.

Hill writes, “As you read, the answer you may be seeking to the questions which have caused you to ponder over the strangeness of life may be found in you your own mind, through some idea, plan or purpose, which may spring into you mind as you read.” How awesome is this concept? This statement to me says so much to the power of the individual and how we have the ability to change our life if we so choose.

I will not read this book and forget about it. I will read it, re-read it, study it and file it in my brain housing group as long as I live. I will also share the information that I learn with those that are seeking it. The information is simply too important to the world to keep it to myself and not share it.

Truly, thoughts are things and our thoughts lead to our feelings which lead to our actions. What is a thought that you will choose to have today to make tomorrow be better then yesterday? After all, today is the only thing that can make tomorrow be different from yesterday.

My Attitude and the "Awesome Scale"

It’s been quite a while since my last post and so many great things have happened during that time. A big reason why things have gone so well is because I have started overcoming the greatest obstacle in my life—myself.

For such a long time I believed that everybody else was part of the problem and I was part of the solution and nothing seemed to make sense to me. I understand now that I was the problem and only I can be the solution. What I was doing wrong was choosing not to admit my failures and I was choosing not to find a solution. I can see now why things made no sense to me—my perception of life was way off.

During this time away I’ve come to realize and really know that I am the only person that can make a difference in my life. If I want different results, I must change my actions. If I want to change my actions, I must change my feelings. If I want to change my feelings, I must change my thoughts. If I want to change my thoughts, I must change my programming. I know for certain that I can’t make a difference in the world if I don’t first make a difference in my life.

Realizing all of this, I have decided to start making some major changes in my life. The first area that will make a big difference is my attitude. I am now a big believer in using the “Awesome Scale” to view things in my life. The “Awesome Scale” states that everything that happens to me is awesome; the only thing that changes is the percent of awesomeness. Great, fantastic or wonderful things that happen to me sit on the 90-100% area of the scale. Unfortunate and not necessarily happy things that occur sit at the .01-10% area of the scale. The key is to realize that no matter how tough things are, they are still awesome because I can make the choice to overcome these obstacles and make them a learning experience. If things are tough in life but you are able to learn from it, that’s awesome and we can always learn something form every experience in life.

Positive change isn’t necessarily an easy thing to accomplish in life and I recognize this. What makes it much easier is knowing that if I am not where I want to be, I have to change the things in my life that aren’t working and do things that do work. For me, this starts with my attitude and it’s made a big difference already. Ultimately I know that in order to accomplish great things in life, I need to possess a great attitude. With a poor to mediocre attitude I will only be able to accomplish poor to mediocre things in life---and that is not awesome enough for me.

I’ve stated that my attitude was one of the things that were part of my problem and not part of my solution. What is something in your life that you know is part of the problem that can be changed to being part of the solution? Feel free to comment and let me know what you think.

Deliberately Plan on Being What You Are Capable Of Being

I will admit that I am a sucker for a good quote. I don’t why I am that way but I would much rather read a profound truth in one simple quotation then digest endless lines of windbaggery.

Today I came across one that really made a lot of sense to me and I will later put it above my desk at work. Abraham Maslow wrote, “If you deliberately plan on being less than you are capable of being then I warn you that you will be unhappy for the rest of your life.”

I think this speaks directly to why many of the people we come across seem so beat down by life. Through their actions and inactions, they have chosen to be less than they are capable of being. I don’t think they look at it in this way and because of that they are confused why life has seemingly kicked them in the gut.

Life presents us with many problems and it is up to us to figure out a way to solve and overcome them. When we are focused on becoming what we are capable of, it is much easier to avoid problems that take our focus away. We see them, solve them and move on.

I am going to spend my free time wisely today in order to help reach my maximum capabilities. As Henry Ford said, “It has been my observation that most people get ahead during the time that others waste.” What are you going to do today to help you reach yours?

Always "On the Clock"

I think that we can all learn a great lesson from the situation that “Big” Ben Roethlisberger is going through right now. I’m not saying that I think we can learn how to handle accusations of sexual assault, so get that out of your head. The lesson that we can learn is to understand that we are always “on the clock” when it comes to our reputation and character.

My reputation and my character are two things that are mine and mine alone. Only I have to the power to add to them and only I have the power to tarnish them. Everything I do in life puts my reputation and character on the line and therefore, there is no time when I am not accountable for my actions. My action and inaction combine to show the world who I truly am. When I place myself in good situations and act appropriately my reputation and character benefit and when I place myself in bad situations and act inappropriately they suffer. Sometimes being in a bad situation is enough to damage my reputation and character, even if I did nothing wrong.

Roethlisberger made a very foolish decision by putting himself in a position where his reputation and character took a huge hit. Even if it turns out that he did nothing legally wrong—his reputation and character have suffered and will continue to suffer. Regardless that he is a professional athlete, this is a situation that none of us should put ourselves in.

We are always “on the clock” and our reputation and character is always on the line. It matters what we do, what we say, how we say it and the situations we put ourselves in. There are no “do overs” in life and once we put ourselves in a bad spot the best thing to do is own up to it and begin to rebuild our reputation and character. It takes years to build sound character and a good reputation and it takes only a second to ruin them.

How important is someone’s reputation and character to you? Would you trust someone that has repeatedly put themselves in bad situations, even if they do nothing wrong? Feel free to leave your opinions and your thoughts.

Today Will Only Be As Good As You Make It

It seems to me that society is more inclined to focus on the negative aspects of life instead of the positive. I believe this is why so many people are down about things—they’ve focused so much of their energy on negative forces that they have subconsciously dragged themselves down to a negative place. This is a cycle of life that I have no interest in.

I’ve talked before about how awesome youthful enthusiasm is and I believe it applies here. A child can play with a cardboard box for hours—it becomes a clubhouse, a grocery store, a rocket ship etc…--it becomes exactly what they want it to become and it brings joy to their life. An adult should be doing the same thing in a way—take a situation, figure out how to make it a positive experience and in the end it becomes what they believe it to be. Tough situations can become great learning experiences if we desire them to be—a situation is as good or as bad as we think it is.

Today I am going to make every experience I have a positive learning experience. While at work, I will try to increase my job knowledge, efficiency and leadership; at home I will try to increase my capability of being a good husband and father; and during my alone time, I will try to become a better person through education and keeping my attitude positive. Today will only be as good as I make it...and I will make it great.

What will you do to make your day the best it can be?