Entrepreneurs R Us: The Future of Biz

Back in 2002, Daniel H. Pink wrote the book, "Free Agent Nation" (www.amazon.com). No, its not about pro athletes or those that get them the lucrative deals and movie star lifestyles. It has to do with a subtle shift in the workforce, a definition of "employment" that goes beyond the traditional corporate culture to one of "working for yourself."

A "free agent" according to Pink includes entrepreneurs, consultants, contract/1099 individuals, temps or basically anyone who approaches work as their own microbusiness. Many authors such as Robert Kiyosaki in his Rich Dad-Poor Dad book series in his E/B/S/I model hint at this type of individual, which has only recently become much more prevalent in society.

Just look around you. A lot of people I know in the corporate world are involved in a side venture, or something they do in their spare time for either fun or money or both.

In the blog from Success Magazine entitled "What will the business of the future look like? Like YOU" by Andrea Mondello found at http://www.successmagazine.com/blogs.php , the author outlines several interesting small biz trends, culled from a study released last week from Intuit and the Institute For the Future. To summarize: Entrepreneurship goes mainstream.

Check out the article. Then, challenge yourself to think of what you love to do and how you could turn your hobby into a sideline biz that generates income. And who knows where it could go from there--the sky's the limit!

Exercise & Nutrition as Blackmail

Ok, I didn't really get blackmailed, but it felt like a set-up nonetheless. As it goes, my wife and I were at our chiropractor and she's like, "oh, yeah, they're having the 'body for life' thing tonight. Let's stay." I'm an avid planner and my next step was food--I was starving. So, during the presentation I went and grabbed something.

And, actually, I'm so excited that we will be eating more healthy and exercising, together! I believe that we'll feel better in no time and look back on this commitment as something that was life-changing, positioning us to live out our lives, the way we want. This can happen to you, as well, if you make the decision. I encourage you to consider it. (Better health & nutrition, that is).

Now, I want to set the record straight. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Body for Life Challenge, it's a national contest where people compete for prizes and money, to see who can put together the best physique, have the greatest weight loss and achieve the most results over a 3 month period. Check it out: www.bodyforlife.com.

Physical, Emotional, & Spiritual Balance: Living the Life of Your Dreams

If you've always wanted to be a competitive bodybuilder or achieve that body that others would die for, go for it. For me, I have modest goals: I just want to feel better (all the time). That way, I can live the life of my dreams, with no limits. For me (as I mentioned in a previous post), that lifestyle encompasses physical, emotional and spiritual health--what I refer to as life-balance. And really, I'm just getting started.

At present, I'm a "apprehensive exerciser" at best, since over the last few years I've struggled with my health. But that is about to change. Honestly, it's been years since I've consistently been to the gym and decided to eat healthy as a lifestyle. So, I face this with mixed emotions, if not somewhat muted excitement.

Oh and thanx to diynaturally at http://diynaturally.wordpress.com/ who got me thinking in the right direction. Then, before I knew it--it all came together--and here I am (gulllppp!)

Selling Dehydrated Water-What Gives?

I came across this website that sells, get this, dehydrated water. Check out: www.buydehydratedwater.com

It's a great site, with very interesting content and I got a kick out of it. Apparently they put a lot of work into it and it appears that they’ve been around since 2000.

What I want to know is, are they really making money at it? Or is it just a fun side venture that someone does for “kicks and giggles?”

It just goes to show you, you can set up a business based on virtually any concept and make a go of it. It might work--and if it does--look out! Talk about unlikely products…

Go After Your Dreams (funnier things have happened!)

So, whatever your dreams--no matter how outlandish they are--go for it and don’t ever let go! Who knows, you may end up doing something you really love and making a lot of money at it.

Healthy Eating Is Hip...& It Helps

The last few weeks (3 in fact) I've been eating healthier than I ever have in my entire life. I've gone vegan, well, vegetarian, at least for the most part. I don't know how people do it. But before you congratulate me, I have to admit It's something I've done out of necessity. No chicken, beef, pork, sodas, dairy, etc. It's been mostly a vegetable diet and I've gone virtually crazy coming up with tasty dishes that fit the bill.

The bottom line: I've lost almost 17 pounds. The health people I talk to say that it has a lot to do with cutting out the sodas. AMAZING! Also, I've been concentrating on taking great vitamins and other supplements.

I believe that physical health is a key component in success.

A balanced life is comprised of equal parts physical, emotional and spiritual health. If you don't have the physical, it's almost impossible to get the emotional and spiritual together. (more on this in a later post)

Here's a special reach out to the "BetterMeister" at www.iambetterthanu.com. He's been doing his own brand of health: largely cutting out sodas and drinking tea instead, for starters. Also, taking vitamins, well in his words, "manamins," in case anyone's wondering.

I know I'm definitely feeling better. The only negative: I no longer have jeans that fit.

For more info on health-related stuff, organic whatever, or basically anything that's "good for you," check out: www.diynaturally.wordpress.com. You might learn something--I know I did.

Success Storyz: Selling Snow on Ebay

I found this little tidbit that truly points out that if you're creative and imaginative, you can accomplish whatever it is you want.

It takes place back in December with a Colorado couple. The story goes that Mary & Jim Walker needed money to purchase a snowblower and had the zany idea of selling snow on eBay to pay for it.

Well, it sold, believe it or not! A Connecticut firefighter had the winning bid for 3 organic Colorado snowballs. Here's where it got serious. The couple had no idea how they were going to ship the snow, without having it melt. They considered dry-ice, but were saved the trouble when Frontier Airlines heard about them and offered to fly them free, round trip to Connecticut to deliver the snowballs in person.

A great story. An even greater illustration of my belief that no matter what the situation, there is always a solution or a way through, if you persist and have faith.

So, wherever you are and whatever it is that you want to do, BE YOURSELF and PURSUE YOUR DREAMS at all costs!

Final Jeopardy & Nerves of Steel

Last night I had my life coach final.

If successful, upon graduation I would become a Professional Certified Life Purpose & Career Coach with a Life Coach designation. Hours of preparation, studying and coaching went into this. If you're in school or have been, you know the drill.

Well, all of us were nervous and under a lot of pressure. We had to answer a series of questions orally and then coach someone "on the spot." When it came my turn to be tested, I thought I'd try a little humor and answered my first question exactly opposite of what we'd been taught. I thought it was obvious...

DEAD SILENCE. Then I said that I was just kidding. Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief and started laughing. It broke the ice and put everyone at ease.

Throughout this entire process, I learned many lessons. Chief amongst these include:

• Despite how I felt physically, I could persevere, overcome and be successful.
• I had a lot more ability/capacity than I gave myself credit for when it came to accomplishing things.
• What I set my mind to I can do, in spite of appearances.
• Fears are deceptive and rarely have merit or basis in fact.
• I have the power to choose: my responses, my mindset, my thoughts and beliefs.

So, my encouragement to you is to go for your dreams and desires, persevere in the process and before you know it, you'll be past your comfort zone and into a whole new world!

EndNote: We all passed except one person and will be certified by the end of February or sooner!

Change Your Thinking--Change Your Life

I was just talking to a good friend last night about affirmations. In an earlier post I mentioned the tie-in with beliefs and success or accomplishments.

For me and a lot of other people into the self-help movement, lasting change is a bit of a challenge. How many motivational seminars have you been to? How many positive books have you read? I've read tons of stuff on personal growth, success and change. I've even attended a few powerful seminars, to boot. By all means, continue to do this--but don't stop there.

The bottom line?

It doesn't seem to last. In other words, you've read that book, attended that life-changing seminar and it fades in a few days, for most. You're motivated, excited and enthusiastic about the changes you're going to make and what you're going to do, then reality hits again. And your back to where you were. Why?

I personally believe it comes down to application. A lot of people including myself struggle with that. The reason they do is that their deep-seeded personal beliefs get in their way, and basically prohibit them from making the change. I know, I've been there.

As I mentioned last week, if you believe you don't deserve to make good money, chances are you won't. Your subconscious mind will work to ensure that that's the case.

The Answer
Being an avid researcher and always looking for tools that help, I stumbled upon something pretty fantastic. It's a meditation technique where you use headphones while listening to CDs. It only takes about 30 minutes a day and it's painless. But the results are out of this world! Really.

There are thousands of people already enjoying wonderful changes in their lives as a result and there's tons of in-depth scientific research backing it.

Here's What It Does:(& it's not some new age garbage either, but applied science)

1. Using music and pc-generated signals, it puts your brain into an alpha-beta-theta state.
2. It relaxes and de-stresses you as it slows you way down.
3. You can record your own personal affirmations and have them embedded on this CD.

Why it works...
As I've said, affirmations are great, but you have to do them a certain way to make them work. Here's how they do. By putting your brain into a meditative state and playing your affirmations in this manner, you're bypassing your conscious mind where your beliefs reside, and literally creating new beliefs or pathways in the brain.

I know, I know, it sounds weird, maybe scary, but it works!

Check out this link where they do a better job of explaining the whole process. (I've been a client for years but don't profit by my relationship with them):

www.centerpointe.com

Honestly, there are few tools out there that are as powerful as this one! So, check it out--you'll be glad you did.

Do It To It!

"Just do it!" Nike's familiar slogan sounds great in theory. However in terms of personal application, practically speaking it may not fly.

I know for me, I like to understand and know why I'm doing something, so blind action is not usually my strongpoint.

For others, its easy to just get something done by an act of sheer willpower. Still, there are others who seem defeated before they even start. And they don't understand why. On the surface, many people have great goals and desires, but when it comes right down to it, they're stuck. They have significant blocks that keep them from achieving the success they desire and living the life they want.

The reason? Subconscious beliefs. I touched on this in an earlier post. These types of beliefs aren't easy to change, though it is possible.

Dr. Norman Vincent Peale wrote the book, The Power of Positive Thinking. Honestly, it was the first thing that made sense to me in the midst of all the other self-improvement books out there. But it was incomplete. I tried thinking positively. I attempted affirmations and reading positive books--none of it really took--nor had the lasting affect I was going for.

Most everyone knows of Napolean Hill, who wrote Think and Grow Rich. He has this great quote that goes like this: "Whatever your mind can conceive and believe it can achieve." Now this makes sense to me--focus on the word believe.

If in the deepest part of who you are, you do not really believe you deserve success or money or whatever, its never going to happen for you, regardless of how hard you try.

Why?

Because your subconscious is busy making sure your circumstances match your beliefs, whether you know it or not.

So, what do you do? What works? I stumbled upon something that is a surefire method to lasting change. I'll let you in on it in my next post.

Fear Failing Forward

FEARS can immobilize, paralyze and keep you stuck. Forget about how unrealistic they are or that they may not make any sense at all--to anyone but you. Fear can keep you from achieving your potential and stretching outside your comfort zone into someone you desire to become or doing something you've wanted to do for a long time.

Fear can be gut-wrenching, sickening and depressing. It is also one of the most LIMITING BELIEFS someone can have.

But don't give in to the pressure or the LIE that is holding you back, whatever that may be. Be courageous and stand up to it--believe me, in time you'll be glad you did. And, I realize it won't be easy. Doing great things usually isn't.

Someone once said that F.E.A.R. stands for: False Evidence Appearing Real. Nothing could be more true. When you internalize this and walk in it, you will find freedom to become who you desire to be and do things you never thought you could do.

Here's an encouraging snippet from Nelson Mandela's 1994 Inaugural Speech. I hope you find it uplifting and that it helps to move you forward. (Let me know what you think or if you have anything to share regarding this post.)

Our Greatest Fear

Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest far is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us.

We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God.

Your playing small doesn't serve the world. There's nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you.

You were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within you. It's not just in some of us; it's in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.

As we're liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Attitude Matters--How's Yours?

This is your second helping from my toolbox of favorite quotes.

We started with "Destiny," to kinda give you the big picture, now I'll give you a few from "Attitude." My experience has been that you can have the world's greatest goals and "shoot-for-the-moon" aspirations, but if your attitude STINKS, then it's not likely you'll get where you want to go.

The foundation of your attitude is your BELIEFS, which is something everyone must look at along the road to success, if they don't want to lose everything (or everyone) along the way. I'll spend some time covering this later.

Attitude:

"The greatest discovery of my generation is that human beings can alter their lives by altering their attitudes of mind."--William James

"Your living is determined not so much by what life brings you as by the attitude you bring to life."--John Homer Miller

"You are searching for the magic key that will unlock the door to the source of power; and yet you have the key in your own hands, and you may make use of it the moment you learn to control your thoughts."--Napoleon Hill

"For as he thinks in his heart, so is he."--Proverbs 23:7 (Amplified version)

Food for Thought (or quotes to live by)

This weekend I was going thru some old stuff and found some of my long-lost quotes, dear to my heart.

Over the next few weeks, I'll talk about these more in-depth. I'll hit on what they mean to me and how they can serve as reminders to keep us moving along the signposts of life in the pursuit of our goals, dreams and desires.

They are especially helpful when you hit a snag, become discouraged or things take a turn for the worse--when there's not much else you can do.

And oh, yeah. Scripture works well too. By this I mean verses from the Bible. More on that later.

But, for now, here are some of my favorites:

Destiny

"We become what we think about. Life is a self-fulfilling prophecy."--Kierkegaard

"Concentrate on where you want to go not on what you fear."--Anthony Robbins

"It's a funning thing about life; if you refuse to accept anything but the best, you very often get it."--W. Somerset Maugham

"To love what you do and can feel that it matters - how could anything be more fun?"--Katherine Jackson

Got any earth-moving quotes or sayings that have rocked your world? Let me know.