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Success Leaves Clues
Do This Before You Obsess About New Year's Resolutions
Even the best laid plans don’t always work out. You don’t have to look farther than my 7th grade school photo to know that. Let’s just say that a girl with naturally curly hair shouldn’t get a perm. Even if all her friends are doing it. Unless of course, her dream is to look like Little Orphan Annie. If so, then I nailed it.
Anyhoo, its only January 2nd, and I already feel behind. I had planned my last week of the year as I do every year. Year-end review, goal setting, vision boarding, word of the year. All. The. Things. For a goal setting junkie like me, this time of year is nirvana.
Fresh clean calendar. Check.
Brand spanking new set of colorful markers and inspirational stickers. Check.
A few days off to reminisce about last year and dream about the next. Check.
A nasty virus from the rugrats (aka my adorable nieces and nephews). Check.
Hmm, that last one threw a kink in my well laid plans. And I was, well--laid out. For a week. If we’re keeping score on Netflix hours logged, I’m the winner. But my productivity. Not so much.
My type A, achieving self reared it’s ugly head yesterday. I’m so far behind! I haven’t done anything in days!! How will this year start without MY PLAN??!!!
If you can relate at all, it’s time for a pep talk. I gave myself one this morning, so I’ll pass it along to you just in case.
It’s going to be ok. Just breathe. Now breathe again. Press the easy button. Look at only what must get done today. You can work on your word for the year later. Or maybe you can choose it now. How about relax? That’s a good one.
And before you start working like mad on New Year’s Resolutions or goals, maybe take some time to look back at 2018 and take account for all that is good.
In our last mastermind meeting of the year in December, I gave our group a few questions to answer before diving into 2019 strategic planning. I’ll include them for you below. But promise me one thing before you get started. Take a deep breath and know that everything happens on time at the right time and for your ultimate good if you’re willing to let it.
End of Year Review:
What did I do, create, or experience this year that I’m really proud of?
What mistakes did I make that taught me something? What lessons did I learn that I can leverage?
What were my fondest memories?
Am I closer to friends and family? Why or why not?
What books and mentors had the greatest impact on me? Why?
What did I procrastinate on and fail to get done? Why?
What did I accomplish in 2018 – big projects, milestones, new habits, new thought patterns, anything that achieved a positive result.
What is one thing in my business that got the best results?
What really worked this year?
What were the biggest revenue generators this year?
Do a quick brain dump of dreams / goals to possibly pursue in 2019.
What kind of person will I need to be to accomplish those goals?
How I Used a Business Trick to Finally Lose Weight
“I am not putting ‘lose 10 pounds’ on my goal sheet one more time,” I told one of my mastermind buddies several months ago. I was discouraged that quarter after quarter, I set the same seemingly easy goal, but could never mark it off as complete. I mean really, just stop eating already!! Don’t you wish it was that easy? As with everything, there’s always more to the story. So, let me back up a bit.
Two years ago, when I was diagnosed with cancer, it was a big shock. Well thank you for pointing that out captain obvious. But really, it was on several levels.
One reason the doctors had no explanation was because I had none of the big four risk factors which can cause a woman to get breast cancer – over 60 years in age, heavy drinking, obesity, or family history of breast cancer. I was in great shape, 42 years old, and healthy otherwise. But as they told me, sometimes cancer happens and they still can’t explain it.
With a double mastectomy, you are faced with the decision of whether to undergo reconstruction surgery. I chose to undergo the process and started learning about what that would involve. One way to reconstruct is through fat grafting. At the time, I didn’t have enough on my abdomen to rebuild. So, we opted for the implant route.
After the initial surgery, I was experiencing major depression. I was going to work and going through the motions. But I just didn’t have any joy. This was aggravating as I had just beat cancer so figured I should be elated. But instead, I remained stuck and melancholy, often eating comfort food to numb the pain.
After a mastectomy, you also experience huge hormone shifts. Most of the estrogen in your body is contained in the breast tissue, so that hormone is wiped out from the surgery. Estrogen regulates food intake and body weight, so pairing the lack of that hormone with my comfort food cravings, added up to about 20 extra pounds around my stomach.
Having long been a student of fitness and diet, I thought I could easily fix this situation. But month after month, I continued to exercise with no change in my weight. In fact, I kept adding a pound here and there. It was very discouraging. I gave up. A lot.
We all have varying reasons that we may have put on some unhealthy weight from time to time. And we all have periods in our lives that we set goals, but just can’t seem to pull through to reach them.
One of the biggest reasons I feel we abandon our goals is we set these big goals and get discouraged when we don’t see immediate results or progress.
Faced with having to go up yet another pant size, I decided enough was enough. So, I started trying to do things a little differently. Here are the 3 things I changed:
1) Slow your roll. I’m all for big goal setting, but when it makes you stall out, it’s more of a hindrance than a help. Instead of setting a ton of big goals that were a complete lifestyle shift for me, I decided to go a little easier on myself. I mean who was I kidding. I was not going to give up cupcakes for life. The thought of that sends me into a little bit of a panic anyway. I set 2 goals – one about physical activity and one about my diet.
2) Set lead indicators. I made a list of 5 small daily habits that would move me towards my goals. This did not include weighing myself. In the business world, that is a lag indicator. It’s an after the fact kind of number. What we’re focusing on are lead indicators, the things that we need to do daily that will change the scale. (i.e. stop eating 3 hours before bed, eat 4 servings of veggies/day)
3) What gets measured gets managed. I used my business goal tracking spreadsheet to track the lead indicators. Each day I completed a habit or task I had set up, I got a check mark. At the end of each week, I would be able to see how many days I actually completed the daily habits or tasks toward a healthy lifestyle.
What I liked about this simple spreadsheet method is that even though I wasn’t losing weight at the beginning, I kept going. Because my focus was more on the small daily practices, I felt like I was winning even though the scale didn’t reflect that yet. It’s the same method I use for our Mometum90 plan in business.
Recently I started reading the book “The Slight Edge”, by Jeff Olson. I was thrilled to find out that my method of small daily habits is exactly what he attributes as the secret to his success as well as his multiple businesses. While he agrees that success lies in mundane, every day simple things, he says that people don’t consistently do the simple things that will make them successful for 3 reasons:
1) While they’re easy to do, they’re also easy not to do
2) You don’t see any results at first
3) They seem insignificant, like they don’t matter
After reading this book, I was even more committed to my weekly tracker that I’ve been using for half a year now. It’s so simple, but I am now seeing results in my weight, my business, and every area that I’ve set habits in.
If you’d like to use my weekly momentum tracker, you can download it here. Use it for any goal you’re working on. I just shared with you how I used it with my weight because it’s something a lot of us can identify with. With small daily steps, you’ll move closer to your goals and the success you’re working towards. Time is the variable that will multiply your small daily habits into massive success. So, keep on moving forward and you’ll get those results that have eluded you.
Why I Mastermind and Why You Should Too
Imagine brain storming with your own personal board of directors. Other high-level thinkers who can help you problem solve and believe in your dreams. That's the power of two or more minds that come together in a Mastermind Group.
I started an official mastermind group 4 years ago. But I’ve actually been part of mastermind groups long before that. You probably have been too. You see, mastermind groups can be just two people brainstorming together over a shared problem or obstacle. Napoleon Hill is credited for coining the phrase mastermind when he researched over 200 successful men in the early 1900’s.
What he was looking for was common ground. If I were Mr. Hill, I can imagine the list of questions I would be armed with if I had the opportunity to sit down with the likes of a Rockefeller or Vanderbilt.
To what do you attribute your success? What were your parents like? Did they make you study all day? What helped you succeed even in the face of setbacks and challenges? Did you come from an affluent background? The best prep schools? Are you an extrovert? Where did you get your entrepreneurial spirit?
But what I would discover after this barrage of questions is what Mr. Hill discovered. The common ground came not from backgrounds or pedigrees, but in the power of the mind. More specifically, the power of the master minds.
Each of these successful people attributed their success to surrounding themselves with people, often in the form of a board, that helped them strategize, see new perspectives, and overcome obstacles in ways they couldn’t see on their own.
So, what can you expect from a mastermind? Here are 4 main outcomes I’ve experienced from participating in a mastermind group in the past 4 years.
1. Mastermind groups have helped me gain clarity. While assembled with a group of other high-level thinkers, I’ve been able to talk through opportunities and ideas I’ve encountered. Through these sessions, I’ve been able to hone in on my purpose in life and how I can best use my strengths to fulfill that purpose.
2. Mastermind groups helped me increase my income. Often, we’re unwilling or unable to see the value we bring to the marketplace. When successful people confirm your worth and show you how to put a dollar figure on that, the sky is the limit on what you can earn.
3. Mastermind groups helped me see my worth after being fired. Losing my job equaled losing my identity. Through my groups I realized this was just another stepping stone on my path to where I ultimately was supposed to go anyway. It would have taken me much longer to rebound from that gut check had I not had the support and encouragement of my group.
4. Mastermind groups helped me reach for my dreams. Have you ever had an idea or dream, but are too afraid to pursue it? Or didn’t even know where to start? Yeah, me too. But when you bring these ideas to a group of go-getters, they’ll tell you all the reasons why it will work instead of letting you camp on all the things that could go wrong. A group of successful people will have ideas on where to start, networks to help you get going, and support when you’re not sure where to go next. It’s a must have for anyone working on a new project outside your comfort zone. Someone else has already done what you want to do, so why not capitalize on their knowledge to help you through?
One of the best parts of mastermind groups, is you gain a lifelong support system of people who care about your success. Having a personal board of directors to help you with the tough stuff is the best decision you can make for your future. After joining a mastermind group, you’ll look back a year from now with astonishment at how far you’ve come.
Momentum Mastermind groups are starting now. Click here to learn more about this life-changing tool.