Principles for Peace

“Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.” ~ Napoleon Hill

Since the new year has arrived most of us are thinking about the changes that we want to make.  What’s really going to make you stick to your goals, your resolutions and succeed? Let’s face it - within a month most people have neglected their resolutions.  Will you be part of the majority or will you rise above?  If you want to rise above, I have partnered up with someone to help you do just that….

Lance, of the Jungle of Life, and I have worked very hard to put together this opportunity  for each of you who are interested in success - whatever success is to you.  For a long time now, I have wanted to create a site that is purely dedicated to providing entrepreneurs with real information (solid principles) that will help them succeed while also providing a way for them to get recognized.  While this is different Read More »

As we look closer at what holds us back from inner peace this may very well be the most crucial topic that we have discussed so far.  Not only that, I also believe it is the most critical thing that could ever hold us back from acheiving inner peace or any goal we ever set for ourselves.  Although, a person’s desire to have inner peace and willingness to let go of the things that hold them back are certainly the foundations.  If you are new to the discussion you will find it very helpful to first read our previous posts on this subject by clicking here and here.

We have hit on this several times over the past couple of posts, especially in the discussion sections, but I didn’t want to go too deep into it at the time.  I was waiting for the right time…..

IR Rating

Okay, my question for you is, “What is your IR rating?”  You may think I’m a little confused here and that the “R” should be a “Q.”  No, we’re not talking about your intellegence quotient.  I think we can safely say that you can have peace with about any IQ score.  So what in the world is IR?  I thought you would never ask.

In the latest issue of Success Magazine, the publisher, Darren Hardy, does an exclusive audio interview with Paul J. Meyer, an incredible icon in the personal growth industry.  I have been totally blown away by this man through this interview. 

Darren asked Paul what he did to combat fear in the beginning of his ventures.  He told the story of how he was fortunate to have his mother to tell him at the age of 12 about the IR theory.  She said that who he was was his IDENTITY and on a scale of 1-10  asked how would he RATE himself?  She told him to rate himself a 10 for the rest of his life.  She said, “Do not let anyone, any time, ever say anything or do anything that affects who you are and your identity.  You’re a 10.  You came into this world a 10 and you’re going out a 10.  You started the day a 10 and your going to finish the day a 10.”  (If you haven’t figured it out yet, IR stands for Identity Rating.)  We could also call this IR a belief in yourself. 

Mr. Meyer said that he enters every day without the possibility of defeat.  It never enters his mind that he could fail at anything.  He says that he has a no limitations belief in God and a no limitations belief in himself.  The question is: Has this worked for him?   His life is example that it has.  He walks his talk.  Is he successful in business?  Oh yeah!!!  Just do a little research on him.  For our purposes here, was he a master at inner peace?  His life speaks of that very loud and clear.

Are you beginning to see how a score lower than 10 can hold you back???  If you don’t have a score of 10 do you think it is possible to acheive anything?  I believe that belief in yourself is the number one ingredient necessary to acheive anything in life, whether it be peace or any goal you set for yourself.

A few things for you to consider:  *IMPORTANT* These are not things to take lightly.

* What is your IR on a scale of 1-10?  (Do you have limiting beliefs in yourself? )

* Why is that your score?

* Who have you let tell you that you are not a 10?  Why?  What can you do to move forward? (Is forgiveness in order?)

* Have you allowed yourself to tell you that you are not a 10?  Why?  How can you overcome that?

* Do you have limiting beliefs in God?  What can you do to change that?

* Is your IR causing you to fear failure?   Remember: the past does not equal the future!  (that is…. unless you allow it to do so.  Then you allow your thoughts to become a self fulfilling prophesy.)

* The world gives you the exact same IR you give yourself.  You project that number at all times.

* Make a resolution to change your rating to a 10 - TODAY.  Write on an index card   “I am a 10.  God made me a 10 and that will never change.”  Carry it with you wherever you go.  Look at it when you get up in the morning and when you go to bed and often through out the day.  (I just made this card for myself.)

I HIGHLY recommend subscribing to Success Magazine if you are interesting in growing to become a better person.  Each issue has a free audio CD in it that is worth more than the subscription itself in my opinion.   You can download a free copy of the current issue to your computer, but you miss out on the CD that has so much great information.

Consider learning other gems from Paul J. Meyer.  He is an amazing man with lots to teach us.  Some of his most influential works are in a series called “Believing in Yourself.”

Harness the Power of Your Attitude (Believing in Yourself Set, Volume 1 of 5)

Positive Expectancy to Win (Believing in Yourself Set, Volume 2 of 5)

The Courage to Succeed (Believing in Yourself Set, Volume 3 of 5)

Never, Never, Never Give Up! (Believing in Yourself Set, Volume 4 of 5)

There’s Magic in Believing (Believing in Yourself Set, Volume 5 of 5) 

(Last I checked there were only one or two copies of each one.)

Share your thoughts on this post.  Tell your score if you want and how you plan to move your score to a 10. 

photo by: Darren Hester

Well, we all go through it. It’s called adversity. It’s called problems. It’s called trails. It’s called struggles. It’s called whatever you want to call it, but we must all admit that it happens to all of us. No one can escape them. We can live our lives in such a way as to avoid some of them and hopefully we are all working to do that, but things do come up. So if they are inevitable what can we do about them? How can we win over them and come out on top and even become better because of them? That’s what we will talk about today. As I think about all the ingredients necessary to come out on top this may become a series in stead of just one post… It’s so good I can’t write it all in one post

1. Recognize that Problems Do Happen.
As we have already noted, problems do happen. Don’t be foolish enough to think they will never happen to you, because they do happen to EVERYONE. Don’t go around expecting bad things to happen or be paranoid. That will only make things worse. Instead, simply recognize the fact that anything can happen. Recognizing this fact, helps us to be prepared when things do come up. We’re not shocked and taken off guard. Thinking they will never happen to you only sets yourself up for failure. I heard a wise person say one time that you’re either in a problem now, coming out of one or about to enter one.

2. Decide Ahead of Time How You Will React.
Since we know that problems will come up decide ahead of time to be positive. Decide ahead of time that you will come out on top. Decide ahead of time that you will look for the good in each and every problem. It all starts with a decision. If you don’t decide ahead of time how you will react, then you will be devastated with each and every problem.

Success Through A Positive Mental Attitude

3. Look at the Big Picture.
This requires you to HAVE a big picture. In the whole scheme of things how important is this? Will it really matter in one week, one month, one year, ten years or 100 years from now? Sometimes, simply asking yourself that question will eliminate your frustration all together and you can give it up.

The big picture requires you to have vision and goals and priorities. Know where you are going and what’s important to you. Step back and look at things. How does this problem fit into all of this? Does it really fit into your vision and goals? If not, maybe it’s not worth worrying about. Actually, just knowing and laying out a clear vision will prevent you from even considering some things as problems. If you have a clear vision, you may be able to just laugh at some things. If the problem does fit into and effect your vision and priorities follow the rest of the principles laid out here.

4. Focus on the Future.
Again, this requires you to see the big picture and have a clear vision. Know where you are going. Whatever you are facing, focus on the future, instead of the past. Our natural tendency is to turn toward the past and dwell on past failures that remind us of this particular problem. That will only make things worse as that will cause us to be dwelling on the negative. Focusing on the future forces us to think on the positive. Focusing on the past can easily get us into blaming mode, whether that be blaming others or ourselves for this and previous problems. Instead look forward and focus on where you want to be and take responsibility to move yourself in that direction. Focusing on the problem and the past only makes the problem bigger.

Make a decision to start implementing these steps steps today. You CAN come out on top!

More for next time….

There once was a bunch of tiny frogs who arranged a climbing competition. The goal was to reach the top of a very high tower.

A big crowd had gathered around the tower to see the race and cheer on the contestants. The race began. No one in the crowd really believed the tiny frogs would reach the top of the tower.

Heard throughout the race were statements such as, “Oh, way too difficult,” “They will never make it to the top,” “Not a chance they will succeed,” and “The tower is too high.”

The tiny frogs began collapsing, one by one—except for those who, in a fresh tempo, were climbing higher and higher. The crowd continued to yell, “It is too difficult! No one will make it!”

More tiny frogs got tired and gave up. But ONE continued to climb higher and higher. This one refused to give up!

At the end of the race, all had given up climbing the tower except for the one tiny frog who, after a big effort, was the only one who reached the top!

All of the other tiny frogs wanted to know how this one frog managed to do it. They asked him how he had found the strength to succeed and reach the goal.

It turned out that the winning frog was DEAF!!!!

So what can we learn? The main point I would like to make is that we can all choose to be “deaf.” That’s right - we can choose to be “deaf” and “turn a deaf ear.” The question is - how do we do it? We can choose ahead of time - beginning right now - that we will not listen to anyone - no one - who says negative things to us or utters discouraging words.

We can CHOOSE right NOW to:

• be happy and
• reach our goals no matter what anyone says.

When I learned this a while back it was one of the most liberating things, if not the most liberating things I ever discovered. Is this difficult? It can be, especially if you have been used to letting yourself be discouraged with everything every one says.

So how do you do it then?

CHOOSE to - right NOW. Remember that no one can rob you of your happiness or keep you from reaching your goals unless YOU give them permission. Life can only be grand if we CHOOSE to make it grand. I would also like to add that we can also CHOOSE not to let any outside circumstances get us down as well. CHOOSE today to be happy and to go for your dreams no matter what anyone says or no matter what happens. Is is possible? Just give it a try. It is a strong person who can turn a deaf ear. The rewards are innumerable!!

I would also like to add that not everyone is fortunate enough to know this lesson. To help them out, be a frog that says only encouraging positive words to others. The difference it can make can set the world on fire for good. Not only will the ones you encourage benefit, but the satisfaction it brings you will grow and warm your heart beyond measure.

Recommended reading:

The Choice

I came across this information and am not sure where it came from, but it most certainly sounds like Brian Tracy’s information since it mentions the phrase “eat that frog” which Brian Tracy talks a lot about.

I found this to be a very eye opening and informative article on time and life management that I am going to consider and practice now. It really makes you consider how you’re spending your time and life.

APPLY THE 80/20 RULE TO EVERYTHING

The 80/20 Rule is one of the most helpful of all concepts of time and life management. It is also called the “Pareto Principle” after its founder, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who first wrote about it in 1895. Pareto noticed that people in his society seemed to divide naturally into what he called the “vital few”, the top 20 percent in terms of money and influence, and the “trivial many”, the bottom 80 percent.

He later discovered that virtually all economic activity was subject to this principle as well. For example, this principle says that 20 percent of your activities will account for 80 percent of your results, 20 percent of your customers will account for 80 percent of your sales, 20 percent of your products or services will account for 80 percent of your profits, 20 percent of your tasks will account for 80 percent of the value of what you do, and so on. This means that if you have a list of ten items to do, two of those items will turn out to be worth five or ten times or more than the other eight items put together.

Number of Tasks versus Importance of Tasks
Here is an interesting discovery. Each of the ten tasks may take the same amount of time to accomplish. But one or two of those tasks will contribute five or ten times the value of any of the others.

Often, one item on a list of ten tasks that you have to do can be worth more than all the other nine items put together. This task is invariably the frog that you should eat first.

Focus on Activities, Not Accomplishments
The most valuable tasks you can do each day are often the hardest and most complex. But the payoff and rewards for completing these tasks efficiently can be tremendous. For this reason, you must adamantly refuse to work on tasks in the bottom 80 percent while you still have tasks in the top 20 percent left to be done.

Before you begin work, always ask yourself, “Is this task in the top 20 percent of my activities or in the bottom 80 percent?”

The hardest part of any important task is getting started on it in the first place. Once you actually begin work on a valuable task, you will be naturally motivated to continue. A part of your mind loves to be busy working on significant tasks that can really make a difference. Your job is to feed this part of your mind continually.

Eat That Frog!: 21 Great Ways to Stop Procrastinating and Get More Done in Less Time

Motivate Yourself
Just thinking about starting and finishing an important task motivates you and helps you to overcome procrastination. Time management is really life management, personal management. It is really taking control of the sequence of events. Time management is having control over what you do next. And you are always free to choose the task that you will do next. Your ability to choose between the important and the unimportant is the key determinant of your success in life and work.

Effective, productive people discipline themselves to start on the most important task that is before them. They force themselves to eat that frog, whatever it is. As a result, they accomplish vastly more than the average person and are much happier as a result. This should be your way of working as well.

As a continuation of of the last post we’ll take a look at the 6th law of time management and quiet possibly the most important.

Evaluation - We talked about analyzing things as you go throughout the day, but let’s take that a step further. At the end of each day take a look at your list of time wasters and evaluate yourself on how you did. Mentally go through each part of your day and see how you can make improvements. Commit to do better each and every day and becoming more and more conscious of time management and eliminating time wasters and replacing them with things that work toward your goals until it is second nature to you.

What we’re talking about here is replacing bad habits with good habits. The result will be peace of mind and extra time to do the fun things in life and not feel guilty about them.

Goals! How to Get Everything You Want–Faster Than You Ever Thought Possible

In his book, Good to Great, Jim Collins clearly distinguishes between good and great companies. Jim and his research team present a hierarchy of business leadership styles. The great organizations have what he calls Level 5 leadership. If you can imagine a pyramid with 5 levels, the bottom layer is the level 1 leader (highly capable individual), level 2 is a contributing team member…all the way to the top with a level 5 leader.

The level 5 leader is an executive that builds enduring greatness within the organization. When things are going well, the level 5 leader gives the credit to others. When things go wrong, he/she takes full responsibility for missed chances (rather than participating in thinking errors, such as blaming or controlling). In addition, the level 5 leader is humble, and has the attitude, “It’s not about me.” Instead, he/she sets an example, and channels ego needs away from himself (has a low me factor).

All of the great companies in Jim’s book had level 5 leaders. In my opinion, level 5 leadership can be applied beyond the workplace. I need to be a level 5 leader for my family, in my community, at church, etc. Can you imagine the impact we could have if we were surrounded by level 5 leadership?