Fountains inspire and delight us with their beauty. Streams of glistening water particles catch the sunlight and sparkle like fine crystal. The purity and intricate design of the spray fascinates us and mesmerizes us. The fountains throughout Europe are particularly ornate and plentiful.
Fountains present an image of serenity. How much of your life resembles a fountain? Are you sitting back as a casual observer watching the hours and days shoot up as streams of potential only to fall into the pool of water at the end of the day and dissolve into oblivion? Each hour possesses its own magic potential and yet we let it slip away almost unconscious of its passing.
Each one of us receives 24 hours per day. How we manage those hours determines the results of our day and ultimately our life. We profess the goal of happiness and yet far too often we sacrifice the long term happiness by indulging in momentary pleasure. Aristotle declared that the ultimate purpose of human life was to achieve your own happiness. I agree. The pointed question is what you are willing to sacrifice right now in this moment in order to achieve long term happiness.
You hear the auto mechanic or even your doctor say “pay me now or pay me later.” Focused concentration on your goals today will require some temporary lack of fun. Nothing worthwhile is delivered to you on a golden platter. You must work for it.
Either you eat nutritious food, exercise and maintain excellent physical and mental health now or pay the penalty of enormous medical bill later. Pay now or later. Either you perform minor routine maintenance on your vehicle or pay large repair bills later.
Vehicles and health represent essential elements of life for most people, but the most important element of career is swept under the door mat. How happy are you with your career? Do you truly feel fulfilled or are you just getting through the days in exchange for a pay check, a check which probably does not even cover your basic needs.
Gaze at the fountain again, are you allowing your life to shoot up as you awaken every morning and fall into oblivion every night? Unless your thoughts, feelings and actions are aligned, your life is slipping into obscurity as the droplets of water from a fountain.
Stephen Covey said, “Be sure that, as you scramble up the ladder of success, it is leaning against the right building.” When you reach the end of your days, will you sink into the “what if I can” thoughts or the “win or lose, I reached for all of my dreams” feeling? Everyone has been given a dream. Whether or not you stuff it in a corner or fill it full of hopeful warm loving intention is totally your choice. More people regret not having even tried than pedal to the metal effort regardless of the outcome.
As we begin this New Year, new decade and new week, listen intently to your intuition, your “whispering inner voice.” Determine what is truly important to you and design a plan to bring it into reality. Dare to dream big dreams. Dare to stretch for something which makes your blood churn with a red hot heat of passionate desire.
Bring that fountain of beauty and majesty into your soul and thrill to the excitement of new challenges and new potential. Allow the particles of enthusiasm to shoot up through your heart and mind and spread out to every part of your body.
Fountains represent beauty and potential or waste. You choose one or the other every day – by design or default.
To explore your true potential and goals, join me at www.Elaine4Success.com.
Showing posts with label potential. Show all posts
Showing posts with label potential. Show all posts
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Saturday, December 12, 2009
Risk Taker
Every leader takes risks. Risk represents the only way to forge new territory. Without an element of risk, nothing would ever be accomplished. New lands would never have been discovered or settled. New inventions would never be created. Physical feats such as mountain climbing would never occur. Everything we do in life involves an element of risk.
For one person risk could mean jumping out of a perfectly good airplane with a parachute. For another person it could mean something as simple as preparing a new recipe for when your new boss comes to your house for dinner the first time. Risk to a young man could be as simple as asking a girl out on a date for the first time. Risk means different things to different people. Driving a car on a snowy mountain road at night involves risk. Some risks are avoidable and others help us to stretch and grow.
Business involves a risk. Whether you are starting a new business or working on a new marketing method within your current business. There is an element of risk. You can reduce the risk by doing some research to determine what has been successful for others in the past. Thorough research lessens the risk but nothing ever removes all of the risk.
When I lived in Michigan, I worked for a wonderful man. Together we built a large chain of Goodyear dealerships. The company grew from one store to five stores plus a corporate office. The business was extremely successful and the owner treated me very generously. Some of you might be thinking that I had lost my mind to leave such a situation.
As a single mother with two small sons, I wanted a better life for the boys. The influences of Detroit, MI were not compatible with my values and desires for them. We moved to a quiet little ski town. Well, it was quiet in 1981. Today Steamboat thrives as a world class ski resort.
I purchased a struggling bakery at the base of the mountain. I did not have any formal bakery training nor had I ever owned a business. Was this a risky move to spend our savings, move to a new area, open a new business (especially one for which I did not have any experience) and start a new life? Of course. Was it worth every minute of the learning curve? Absolutely. The risk paled in comparison to the potential reward of having the boys grow up in a healthy community.
Risk to reward determination forms the basis of the decision. Staying with an excellent employment situation in Detroit would have assured us of material comforts and a degree of financial security. Risking the move and new business provided potential rewards. The boys would grow up in a healthy atmosphere with plenty of fresh air, outdoor activities, friendly people, and wholesome values. I would realize a dream of owning my business and stretching myself to grow as a person and a business professional. The potential for long term gain always increases by owning your business. I had the opportunity to do so much more for them and for myself as a business owner than an employee.
Happily the results proved that the decision was excellent. The boys are happy, healthy, well adjusted and excellent athletes. I am now psychologically unemployable. I absolutely love being an entrepreneur. Once I experienced the joy and freedom of owning my business, I was hooked.
Henry C. Link expressed the fear of taking a risk, “While one person hesitates because he feels inferior, the other is busy making mistakes and becoming superior.” Reward comes in direct proportion to the risk involved. Remaining as an employee would have earned a comfortable living for me with very little risk; however, the personal growth both the boys and I experienced would also have been minimal. By stretching our wings and taking a risk, we experienced a new world of growth and opportunity. I continue to take risks and expand my horizons as do the boys.
How do you put a price tag on growth and potential for yourself and your family? We may feel as if we are out on the edge of the cliff sometimes, but the view is magnificent. For more inspiration and exploration of your potential, join me at www.Elaine4Success.com
For one person risk could mean jumping out of a perfectly good airplane with a parachute. For another person it could mean something as simple as preparing a new recipe for when your new boss comes to your house for dinner the first time. Risk to a young man could be as simple as asking a girl out on a date for the first time. Risk means different things to different people. Driving a car on a snowy mountain road at night involves risk. Some risks are avoidable and others help us to stretch and grow.
Business involves a risk. Whether you are starting a new business or working on a new marketing method within your current business. There is an element of risk. You can reduce the risk by doing some research to determine what has been successful for others in the past. Thorough research lessens the risk but nothing ever removes all of the risk.
When I lived in Michigan, I worked for a wonderful man. Together we built a large chain of Goodyear dealerships. The company grew from one store to five stores plus a corporate office. The business was extremely successful and the owner treated me very generously. Some of you might be thinking that I had lost my mind to leave such a situation.
As a single mother with two small sons, I wanted a better life for the boys. The influences of Detroit, MI were not compatible with my values and desires for them. We moved to a quiet little ski town. Well, it was quiet in 1981. Today Steamboat thrives as a world class ski resort.
I purchased a struggling bakery at the base of the mountain. I did not have any formal bakery training nor had I ever owned a business. Was this a risky move to spend our savings, move to a new area, open a new business (especially one for which I did not have any experience) and start a new life? Of course. Was it worth every minute of the learning curve? Absolutely. The risk paled in comparison to the potential reward of having the boys grow up in a healthy community.
Risk to reward determination forms the basis of the decision. Staying with an excellent employment situation in Detroit would have assured us of material comforts and a degree of financial security. Risking the move and new business provided potential rewards. The boys would grow up in a healthy atmosphere with plenty of fresh air, outdoor activities, friendly people, and wholesome values. I would realize a dream of owning my business and stretching myself to grow as a person and a business professional. The potential for long term gain always increases by owning your business. I had the opportunity to do so much more for them and for myself as a business owner than an employee.
Happily the results proved that the decision was excellent. The boys are happy, healthy, well adjusted and excellent athletes. I am now psychologically unemployable. I absolutely love being an entrepreneur. Once I experienced the joy and freedom of owning my business, I was hooked.
Henry C. Link expressed the fear of taking a risk, “While one person hesitates because he feels inferior, the other is busy making mistakes and becoming superior.” Reward comes in direct proportion to the risk involved. Remaining as an employee would have earned a comfortable living for me with very little risk; however, the personal growth both the boys and I experienced would also have been minimal. By stretching our wings and taking a risk, we experienced a new world of growth and opportunity. I continue to take risks and expand my horizons as do the boys.
How do you put a price tag on growth and potential for yourself and your family? We may feel as if we are out on the edge of the cliff sometimes, but the view is magnificent. For more inspiration and exploration of your potential, join me at www.Elaine4Success.com
Monday, June 15, 2009
Discover Your Genius
In order to gain the maximum potential from my life, I have been paying close attention to my feelings and energy as well as my preferences.
We each have one special gift or ability. This ability or talent is something we do better than any one else. In some circles, this is called our genius. I know most of you think of genius as Einstein genius or Mozart genius. Instead celebrate the special gifts you possess.
Don’t know how to find your genius? Pay attention to how you feel when you are going about your day to day activities. What are you doing when you feel the most fulfilled? When do you feel the happiest? What are you doing when time just flies by and disappears? When an athlete is “in the zone” or when an artist is so focused that they do not see anything happening around them, they are ”in their genius.” What are you doing and feeling when you feel empowered and productive and blissful?
Now also pay attention to the activities or events which seem to drag on. What activities or events seem to drain the energy out of you? When do you have that itch to get up and go do something else – anything else? Those are absolutely “non-genius” activities.
Refine it a little further. What activities or events are you engaging in when you feel not only energized and happy but also productive? What combination brings you fulfillment as well as being income producing? This is where you concentrate your focus and time.
Never put off until tomorrow what you can delegate today. Seriously, the best business decision is to focus your time and energy in your genius and delegate the other tasks to someone else who has a genius in those other areas. Most people spend far too much time in low production areas and not enough time focusing on what they do best. Yes, everything must be done, but if you spend your time doing what you do best and delegate the other tasks to someone else who loves to do those other things, everyone profits emotionally and financially.
We each have one special gift or ability. This ability or talent is something we do better than any one else. In some circles, this is called our genius. I know most of you think of genius as Einstein genius or Mozart genius. Instead celebrate the special gifts you possess.
Don’t know how to find your genius? Pay attention to how you feel when you are going about your day to day activities. What are you doing when you feel the most fulfilled? When do you feel the happiest? What are you doing when time just flies by and disappears? When an athlete is “in the zone” or when an artist is so focused that they do not see anything happening around them, they are ”in their genius.” What are you doing and feeling when you feel empowered and productive and blissful?
Now also pay attention to the activities or events which seem to drag on. What activities or events seem to drain the energy out of you? When do you have that itch to get up and go do something else – anything else? Those are absolutely “non-genius” activities.
Refine it a little further. What activities or events are you engaging in when you feel not only energized and happy but also productive? What combination brings you fulfillment as well as being income producing? This is where you concentrate your focus and time.
Never put off until tomorrow what you can delegate today. Seriously, the best business decision is to focus your time and energy in your genius and delegate the other tasks to someone else who has a genius in those other areas. Most people spend far too much time in low production areas and not enough time focusing on what they do best. Yes, everything must be done, but if you spend your time doing what you do best and delegate the other tasks to someone else who loves to do those other things, everyone profits emotionally and financially.
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