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If you surveyed 50 people asking each their definition of
success, chances are you would receive fifty different answers.
Even so, there are certain steps everyone must follow in order to
be successful. One of the most important is – staying
motivated.

Do you have a new job? Have you started your own business? Are
you in the process of earning a degree? Do you have the desire
to lose weight? If one of these scenarios are a recent event in
your life, you are probably still excited about the opportunity.
That also probably means you are motivated, as well. Excitement
and motivation, often, work hand in hand.

But, how do you stay motivated after several weeks or months have
gone by? How do you maintain the same level of excitement that
you had when you began your new adventure?

There are many things you can do to stay motivated. It is
important to set aside a few minutes or more, each day, in an
effort to keep your motivation level at its highest. There will
be days that you may feel less motivated then usual. Let’s face
it; we all have a bad day now and then. So, by doing all that
you can to maintain a positive attitude, your “down days” will
probably be few and far between.

Read a book. There are hundreds of books that have been written
on the topic of motivation. Visit your local bookstore or
library and browse the shelves. Ask the clerk or librarian for
author and title recommendations. Both will be happy to help
you.

If you have a busy schedule, don’t despair. Set aside 15 or 20
minutes each day. Even if you only read a few pages, during that
time, it WILL help to keep you motivated. I do it and can attest
to the fact that it really DOES work!

If you are in the process of achieving a goal such as weight loss
or top salesperson, make a “dream board”. A dream board is a
poster, of sorts. If a trimmer figure is your goal, cut out
pictures of the new wardrobe you will someday buy.

If you dream of out-selling your peers, find pictures of your
dream home or vacation destination… of the new car you would
LOVE to drive. Make a collage with these pictures and hand it
somewhere where you will see it each day.

There are many other things you can do to stay motivated.
Believe in yourself. Stay healthy. Maintain a positive
attitude.

You will be amazed at what you can achieve!

We all have to face disappointment at one time or another. It’s
just a simple fact of life. Not everything is always going to go
our way. How we handle this disappointment plays a huge factor in
our lives and in what we achieve in the future. It also says a
lot about who we are and who we want to be. Knowing what to do
after losing, is the biggest part about finding your way to
winning.

The first thing one has to do to overcome disappointment is to
examine the situation. Why were you disappointed and what caused
it to happen? Figure out if it was something you personally did
wrong or if it was simply out of your control. This way you can
learn from the experience and use it the next time the situation
arises. Try not to make yourself feel guilty if the
disappointment was your own fault. Look at it form an objective
point of view.

Once you’ve figured out what went wrong, you’re ready to move on.
That’s the key – moving on. You can’t wallow in your pity and
expect to get results. The disappointment may truly have thrown
you a huge blow, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t try to move
past it. Let go of the blame and guilt you may feel. Express your
emotions – cry, yell or whatever else you need to do – but do it
and then move on.

Next you’ll need to refocus your attention. Find a new goal or
dream to pursue. You might even want to go after the same goal
that disappointed you the first time. That’s great! Don’t give
up. There are many great people who have failed countless times
in this world. Failure doesn’t make you a loser. At least you had
the courage to try and it’s that same courage that will
eventually make you a winner. Find something new to get excited
about and you’ll soon be on your way to success.

Disappointment isn’t a fun thing to face. It drags us down and
lowers our self confidence. It’s easy to get caught in a rut
after getting hit with disappointment, but it’s important not to
do that. As they say, “get back on that horse.” Know that
disappointment is a normal part of life. No single person is
exempt from it and sometimes we will be disappointed due to
nothing we’ve done wrong. Following the above tips will help you
move on.

You can choose success. Do you believe this? If you do not then
you have chosen (yes chosen) a different route and success will
not be a prominent feature! Success is about choosing what you
want in life and taking the necessary steps to achieve that goal.
Success is not stopping until you get there!

Read the last two sentences again. Easy to say but how do you
get there? What are the choices made by the successful? What
are they doing differently from everyone else?

Choose to remove whatever is holding you back. Has something
happened in the past to affect your self esteem? Do you
immediately have negative thoughts as soon as money and success
come to mind? If you are not choosing success then it is likely
that something is blocking your ability to change and follow a
new path. To remove the block you must have focus. To have
focus you must first have an all consuming dream of where you
want to be. Only when you have defined that dream can you start
to focus on it. Focus so intently that everything you do is done
with your dream in mind. Only then can you move toward that
dream.

Choose to live your success. Live your life as if you were
successful, as if you had already achieved the goal that you are
focusing on. When you are at work, visualize what your workplace
will be like when you have reached your goal, and place yourself
there. Sit at your desk as if you were running the multimillion
dollar business that you are focusing on. When you get into your
car, visualize what your dream car will be like and see yourself
sitting in it. Visualize yourself driving away from your dream
house. When you are in your home – look around it and see your
new surroundings. Get inside the feeling – really be there.

The more you do this, the more your subconscious will think that
you are successful and move you towards these things. Live your
success expecting to realize it. Living it now is a practice run
for when it comes to you. After all, you want to be prepared,
don’t you?

Choose to believe in your success. What your conscious mind
believes, your subconscious strives to achieve. Look around at
your friends and acquaintances and ask yourself how many of them
have unshakable belief in where they are going. Are they
successful? Possibly not – they may be in a good job and have a
nice life but they do not have the success factor. Perhaps you
do know of someone with unshakable belief. They may not be
successful now but they will be moving in the right direction.
Watch that space….

Belief is the catalyst which takes the dream and turns the focus
into a plan to get there. Never underestimate the power of
belief.

Choose to be emotional about your success. Belief plus emotion
are unstoppable. If you have utter belief then you will develop
emotion. If you want something badly enough it is emotive.
Maybe it is to get out of debt. If you have suffered the
hardships of this situation you will feel everything to do with
debt and money is charged with emotion. This is the reason
behind so many ‘rags to riches’ stories. Sometimes only the most
devastating of emotional circumstances are the catalyst for
change and a move toward success instead of away from it.

You can choose success. Or you can choose to stay safe and do
what you do now. Guess what – you will still be doing the same
in ten years time. The question is – do you want to?

It’s not always easy to stay motivated when you’re trying to
achieve a goal. Some experts say that the “goal” itself should
be enough to inspire unwavering diligence toward achieving
it…and there is an element of truth in that. However, the
reality is that the discomforts of striving for a particular goal
can sometimes cause us to lose focus.

Want to get in shape, save for a large purchase, “make the grade”
in your studies? Don’t worry…whatever you’re trying to
accomplish, the following tips can help you stay motivated and on
track.

Visualize the End Result

Can’t you just see yourself pounds lighter and fitting into a
nifty outfit? The key question is how do you imagine yourself
“feeling”? Healthier? Sexier? More self-confident? When you
develop the ability to visualize your goals and imagine what the
end results will be, you are more likely to stay motivated.

Many people have found it helpful to compose a “dream board”
which is an arrangement of images representative of the goal.
For instance, if you were saving money for a tropical beach
vacation, then you’d get some travel brochures or create a
collage of pictures from a magazine of blue ocean, palm trees,
exotic fruit drinks…you get the picture!

Set Intermediate Goals and Reward Yourself for Small Victories

It’s human to want results now. However, some worthwhile goals
may require a great deal of effort and time to accomplish. Don’t
let that deter you. By setting smaller goals, you can work on
each step that will eventually add up to big results in the end.

And don’t forget to reward yourself when you reach small
milestones along the way. Knowing that there are little “treats”
along the journey to your goal will keep you excited and
motivated.

Draw Inspiration from Others

Sources of inspiration to stay motivated can come from success
quotes, lyrics, movies that depict people who attained their
dreams through hard work or even speaking with others who have
achieved what you’re working toward. If they could do it…so
can you!

If your focus begins to fade or you skid on a patch of
discouragement, you may find it helpful to identify an
accountability partner who will encourage you to stay the course.
And, in instances where your partner is also striving toward an
accomplishment, you’ll experience the magic of motivating each
other toward success.

Visualizing the end result, celebrating small victories along the
way and drawing inspiration and encouragement from others are
three powerful, easy-to-implement methods of staying motivated
toward reaching your goals. So, go for it!

There is so much written on planning these days that it’s hard
for nearly anyone to argue against the value of planning.

Some people like to live by the “seat of their pants,” and no one
would argue that a little spontaneity is great to have in your
life. But you do need to plan something at some point, or your
life will simply be one reaction after another. The non-planner
will end up taking no proactive action to improve his or her
life. The most successful people plan their goals and are
motivated to accomplish them.

Everyone needs a master plan. Do you have one? A master plan
should include long term goals, short term goals, and objectives.
You may want to build in some rewards to motivate you to
accomplish them as well. Let’s look at each item that should
appear in your master plan:

Lifetime goals: The first things you should include in your
master plan are your lifetime, or dream goals. These are goals
that you want to do at some point in your life and they shouldn’t
be dependent on money, time, or skill. If you’re afraid of
heights but have the goal of someday being a professional pilot,
write it down! Create a long list by finishing this sentence: “If
I had unlimited money, time and skill, I would want to…”

Short term and Long term goals: Once you have your lifetime goals
list, you should break it down into things that you can
realistically do in the short term and in the long term. Short
term goals might be anywhere from the present to the next five or
ten years. Long term goals are likely anything five or ten years
and beyond. (Don’t worry yet about how you’ll accomplish them;
we’ll get to that in a moment). Put them in order from the things
you want to do sooner to the things you want to do later.

Objectives: Once you have developed your goals, now you need to
create objectives for each one. Objectives are the steps that you
need to take to reach your goals. If you’re afraid of heights but
want to be a professional pilot some day, your objectives might
be to…

1. Overcome your fear of heights,
2. Ride in an airplane,
3. Take flying lessons,
4. Get your commercial pilot’s license, and
5. Buy an airplane.

You might look at this list and say “easier said than done!” but
by breaking down all of your goals into smaller objectives; it
does become easier to do. You now have some small steps to work
on to get you to the next level.

What does all this have to do with e-business? Simple: For many
entrepreneurs, a long term goal might be financial freedom.
Building your e-business might be one of the objectives to reach
that goal.

And within that “main” objective of building your business will
be the smaller objectives that must be reached to do the
building. The more you break down the steps that need to be
taken, the easier it will be to reach your goal.

How do you measure success? It’s probably not exactly the same
for any two people. While athletes measure success by wins or
their personal best, a business owner may measure success by the
amount of money their business nets every year.

Regardless of how you measure success, it all starts in your
mind…..your subconscious mind, to be exact. While most people
are familiar with the concept of the subconscious mind, few truly
understand how to use its power to create the success (and
happiness) that they desire.

To take advantage of this incredibly powerful tool, you must
first program your subconscious mind for the success you are
seeking. Without a clear, consistent “picture” of the results
you seek, your subconscious mind can actually sabotage even your
best efforts.

Any time there is confusion, your subconscious will struggle to
help you achieve your goals. That’s why the more concise your
goal and your mental image of its results, the better the chances
you’ll achieve it. By creating and focusing on this concise
concept of what you want to achieve, you’re helping your
subconscious mind manifest that result in your reality.

It’s very important to monitor what you tell your subconscious
verbally and silently. Most people are surprised to find when
they actually start to “listen” to the words they use on a daily
basis that they are issuing counterproductive “requests” to their
subconscious.

Make sure to use positive descriptions when speaking aloud or to
yourself silently about your goals. Instead of saying “I won’t
be overweight anymore”, phrase your request in a positive way:
“I am thin.”

Also, it’s important to use a present tense, not a future tense
like “I will be thin” as your subconscious takes everything
literally. If your request is in the future, it will think that
it doesn’t need to change anything now. It lives in the
present.

Be careful not to use negative words accidentally: such as “I’m
not going to be poor any more.” Your subconscious mind doesn’t
understand words like “not”, “doesn’t” or “won’t”. It will
automatically delete those words from your request which will
almost always create the opposite meaning and results of your
goal!

There are many techniques you can use to create clear pictures of
your completed goal. Most find that imagining a movie in their
mind of what it will be like when you achieve your goal to replay
in your thoughts to be very effective. For example, if you’re
trying to wipe out your credit card debt, imagine yourself
receiving statements from your credit card companies with a $0
balance on the payment section.

Remember, what you focus on expands. If you constantly see
yourself overweight, or in debt, that’s what your subconscious
mind will continue to create for you in your reality. It’s very
simple and takes very little time to mentally produce a “movie”
that gives your subconscious a clear idea of what results you
want. With consistent attention and effort toward what you DO
want, you’ll be amazed at the results you can create with your
mind!

Most successful people have failed miserably. That’s right. At
one time or another they have flopped, fell short, missed the
mark, struck out and goofed up royally. However, the difference
between these people and the rest of the world is that when they
failed, they made a choice to use the experience to better
themselves…to become stronger.

Are you determined to reach your goal? Do you really believe you
can achieve what you set out to accomplish? With determination
and belief, you too can make the same choice to turn a failed
situation into a winning one. How? By choosing to adapt a
positive perspective and engage in edifying self-talk. Here are
four opportunities to stay motivated in the midst of failure:

“The Only Direction is UP” or “It Can’t Get Any Worse”

Feel like you’ve hit rock bottom? Don’t beat up on yourself too
badly. To experience disappointment, heartbreak, embarrassment
and/or self-doubt is to be human. However, to wallow in this
state for too long is downright destructive. Tell yourself that
it doesn’t get much worse than this point of failure and let
yourself know that the only place left to go is “upward.” Use
the failure as motivation to start climbing back up. When you do
this, you will see that instead of running from failure you will
look it in the eye and overcome it.

“I Have a Chance to Do Better Next Time”

As long as you’re breathing, there’s always room for improvement.
Choose to use your failure as motivation to do better the next
time around. When you remember your goal and envision reaching
it, you will be super-charged to find ways to develop yourself.
For example, if you need to do better in school, make (and
follow) a consistent study schedule. If you are intent on a
promotion at work, take classes to increase your skill-set. No
matter what the failed task consists of, you can use it to
motivate yourself to get more done.

“Hmmm, I May Need to Change Direction”

Does it seem like you’ve come to a roadblock? Then the solution
may just be detouring and moving toward your goal in a different
way. When something does not work out as planned, you need to
re-evaluate the route you are taking. So review the situation,
re-group and get on a track “around” that roadblock. The track
may be a different one, but it may also be a more successful
one.

“This is Not the End of the Line”

Know this: everyone fails from time to time but failure is not
the end of the line unless you allow it to be. You blundered,
you tried, you failed and it hurts. Allow yourself time to
grieve it but then let it go so that you can get back to the
business of reaching your intended goal. Your goal IS your
motivation. Remind yourself that the only positive option is to
seek ways to turn the situation around. Then tell yourself that
in the morning, you will begin again!

Life gives us many opportunities to improve, but whether we do or
not depends on our effort. Once a week a person should sit down
and examine the progress he/she has made towards achieving a set
goal. If goals have not been reached then honest examination must
be undertaken to discover the reasons why. This must be followed
by extra determination that these goals will be met next time.

Do not worry or become stressed if you do not always achieve your
goals, remember you’re only human. However it is imperative that
you dissect why you failed, were they genuine reasons beyond your
control or simply excuses? If the answer turns out to be excuses
then double your resolve and effort that they will not stand in
your way the next time.

Always remember that the harder the goal you set yourself the
greater the reward, not just in reaching the goal but in personal
development and inner belief, making the next goal you set
yourself that little bit easier. Do not be afraid of hard goals
as these will bring you more reward than half a dozen smaller
triumphs.

Too many people who fail when trying to achieve a goal become
defeated and believe they just do not have what it takes. Nothing
could be further from the truth. What they do not understand, or
have not fully grasped, is that all they need is to instill
within themselves a little extra determination, an honesty with
themselves why they failed, and then to have another go.

The secret to success is to always try to improve yourself – no
matter what life may throw in your path. Sure, there will be
obstacles, however, do not view them as insurmountable, be gritty
and work around or over them. Everyone really wants to do
something, but there are few that will put forward the needed
effort to make the necessary sacrifice to secure it. There is
only one way to accomplish anything and that is to go ahead and
do it. A person may accomplish almost anything if they just set
their hearts on doing it and let nothing interfere with progress.
The “bigger” the person the smaller the obstacle appears. The
“smaller” the man the greater the obstacle appears. Always look
at the advantages you gain by overcoming obstacles, and it will
give you the needed courage for their conquest. Look back at
obstacles you have overcome and realize that the present obstacle
will soon be added to the list.

Winston Churchill summed up all the above in two sentences:

“Never give in — never, never, never, never, in nothing great or
small, large or petty, never give in except to convictions of
honor and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the
apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”

Sacrifice of self to self. What does it mean? It means letting go
of the old self for a new and better self. This is a hard thing
to do as we get comfortable with whom and what we are. Our old
self is familiar, seems safe, and is relatively effortless to
maintain.

Change takes us beyond our boundaries, challenges us to what is
not familiar, and forces us to give up well-worn habits. It
requires effort and sacrifice of things we have learned to enjoy.
Those are things that are pleasant but stand in the way of
highest good.

We think we are a mind and a body and do what we can to satisfy
the desires of mind and body. Seldom do we step beyond. Being
stuck in a limited perception, the selfish do not sacrifice.

Do you want to live forever? Well, maybe you do live forever, but
not as you are now. Death means new beginning. Sometimes we are
not ready for it. Other times we feel stagnant and embrace it.

What does it mean to die daily? It means sacrificing your
immediate wants to affect a future result or metamorphosis.
Actually sacrificing of self to self, quite often to the benefit
of others as well. Totally surrender your self and you will find
your true self.

Giving is a virtue. You’ve no doubt heard that it is better to
give than to receive. But oh, how we all like to receive!
Receiving is good too. Exchange cannot take place without both
present. One cannot take place without the other, and it is not
just a one-way exchange.

There is a law of compensation. If you give, you get. We do not
live in a vacuum. Our actions always bring results of one kind or
another, whether we immediately realize it or not.

What I am saying is do not ever feel frustration when trying to
improve your self. Any efforts you make do not go wasted; so do
not think there is such a thing as wasted effort. You are
creating ripples and building a store of experience that will
eventually bear fruit.

Do a big thing, or do any little thing many times toward your
goal. Know that fulfillment will happen through persistence. If
you give up and stop persisting then simply start again.

There may be something you want to have or something you want to
be. That is your goal. You’ve no doubt thought about it and how
to obtain it. Let’s go further and write the goal down on paper
to give you more focus. Put it at the top of the page in pen.

Grab a red marker and draw an arrow pointing up toward your goal.
Now go back to your pen and write along the line of the arrow.
Write things you can do to work toward achieving the goal and how
you can make arrangements to put in the work.

Review this paper often. This is your action plan. It has one
direction and one intention – your goal. You are the archer with
your bow drawn and arrow pointing toward your target. Now let go
the string.

Your new self is the you that has attained the goal. The old self
may try to stand in the way of reaching it. You sacrifice your
old self by keeping discipline, for discipline is what sacrifices
require. Goal achievement often is a process of personal growth.

Sometimes discipline means not trying to get the whole thing at
once. Anxiousness and impatience are not qualities of discipline,
and neither is selfishness. You may have to put in effort a
little at a time over a long period. Don’t worry about it, worry
destroys discipline.

Don’t get angry about it either, but if you do get angry, then be
happy. Why? Because having anger means you have lots of energy.
Channel that energy toward your goal rather than just blowing off
steam and maybe you just might get the whole thing at once.

Discipline makes the difference. It means you have an ideal that
you are willing to sacrifice for.

Got Discipline? Just keep regularity in your efforts and you will
find that discipline builds from there.

Setting and achieving your goals can be one of the most stressful
and sometimes futile things you ever do in your life.

Each new year brings new resolutions. People make unrealistic
promises to themselves knowing that many of them are sure to be
broken. But we do it anyway, because it is a tradition that has
been passed down through many generations.

There are several ways to plan for reaching your goals that can
greatly increases your chances for success and reduce the amount
of stress involved.

First, you must understand that while goals should be written
down, they need not be etched in stone. For instance, say that
you want to lose 20 pounds in the next two months, and two months
later, you have only lost 15 pounds.

Many people would see this as a failure, get depressed, and go
back to their unhealthy habits. The results are predictable. They
gain back the weight they lost (or more) and end up back at
square one.

Achieving a goal is like driving to a different city. You never
travel in a straight line. You make turns, take detours, and
sometimes get lost (although most men would never admit to this).
Do you go back home and start over? Of course not. You just make
adjustments from your current location.

Taking the above example once again, losing 15 pounds instead of
20 is not failure! Absolutely not. You simply need to make the
necessary adjustments in your goal and continue on. Instead of
dwelling on your inability to lose 20 pounds, consider that you
now only need to lose five pounds. Since you just lost 15 pounds
in two months, losing five more in the next month should be a
snap. But if you do not, you simply make the necessary adjusts
once again from that point. Each goal gets easier and easier.

You should also make reasonably achievable goals. If you need to
lose 100 pounds, do not plan to lose it in the next six months.
That is not only unreasonable, it can be dangerous to your
health. However, losing 100 pounds in 12 months breaks down to
slightly less that two pounds per week. That is certainly within
reason.

If your goal is to earn a million dollars in the next year, that
is admirable. But have you thought about how you are going to do
that? If you are starting from scratch, that may not be a
reasonable goal. Perhaps you should start by building a
foundation first and shooting for your first million dollars next
year.

Of course, if you plan on making a million dollars next year and
only make 20 bucks, you only have $999,980 to go.