The
Authentic Entrepreneur
Issue # 23 - June
2001
"Unleash Your Inner Power for True Success."
CONTENTS
WHAT ARE
YOUR PRIORITIES?
THERE IS NO
SUCH THING AS FAILURE!
WELCOME
RESOURCES
ARE YOU LIVING YOUR
PRIORITIES?
by Aleta Pippin
Do
you find yourself doing things that don’t move you any closer to
your goals? Have you experienced those times when you are supposed
to be enjoying yourself and you end up doing something you don’t
enjoy, but feel obligated to do? What about when you’re supposed to
be spending quality time with loved ones and your cell phone keeps
interrupting you with work-related calls?
Recently, I journeyed to Michigan to help out with our new
grandson, born March 5th. Yes...I spent lots of time holding this
tiny bundle. However, I also felt the need to keep busy, so I
decided to help my son and daughter-in-law by stripping the stairs
and priming the woodwork in the entrance hall. (They've been working
on refurbishing an old house.)
Little did I know, the project would take every bit of free
time right up to the time of our departing. On the last day, I had
grown frustrated that I didn't get enough baby-holding time, but
felt that I must finish the stairs, after all ... I started the
project. So, I pushed on, wondering about my priorities, making a
mental note of my habitual way of being compulsively busy, and
wondering whether this habit really served me?
Have
you found yourself off track from where you intended to be? Did you
wonder how you got there? And why? Could it be that you are acting
from an old pattern?
What's really important to you? Obviously, I thought sanding
the stairs was important. However, as I look back, holding my
grandson was far more important ...and satisfying.
Once
you know what's important to you, how do you free yourself from a
habitual way of acting that stops you from accomplishing those
things?
Here are some steps to assist you.
1.
Know what's important to you. This seems basic, doesn't it? Yet, how
often do you find yourself going off on a tangent reacting to what's
going on around you? It seems that our lives are so busy, we don't
take time to determine what's really important to us.
2.
When you're doing something that's important and you find yourself
pulled off track, note your thought processes, also note whether
your actions seem familiar.
For
instance, when I was sanding the stairs, I thought about why I was
doing it and acknowledged that I like to be busy and I like to do
that kind of labor. I also noted that this project prevented me from
having time to do some other things I wanted to do. And lastly, I
noted that the job went a lot faster in my mind than in reality. All
of these are old patterns.
3.
Now that you've consciously noted how you get pulled off course,
you'll be more aware of these same patterns the next time they
occur. Once you're aware of a pattern, you can begin to change
it.
4. You change an old pattern by substituting the new pattern you
want to establish every time you become aware that you're acting
from the old behavior.
Changing a habit takes commitment and a willingness to feel
uncomfortable. After all, some of your old habits may have been with
you since childhood and doing something different makes you feel
like "a fish out of water." That's natural. Be easy on yourself and
you will succeed.
"To exist is to change, to change is to mature,
to
mature is to go on creating oneself endlessly."
Henri
Bergson
THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS
FAILURE!
by Mitch Axelrod
How
do you define failure? Take a minute and go back in your mind to
your biggest "failures" in life. What comes to mind, and more
important, what does that do to your body and physiology? Recounting
feelings of "failure" can raise blood pressure, alter body
chemistry, and create a depressive state of mind. That's the power
of the mind in action.
Now,
reframe those "failures" as learning experiences. Ask yourself,
"What was the most valuable thing that came out of those
experiences?" What success did that lead to?
In
the intrinsic (spiritual) world, there is no such thing as
failure.
Failure is a concept. Failure can only exist in the context
of systemic thinking as the perfect/imperfect, either/or (opposite)
of success. In the two-dimensional "systemic" world of value, you
either succeed or you _ _ _ _. I don't have to finish the
sentence.
The
"systemic" world of value is the either/or world where something
exists in our minds as either perfect or imperfect. In this case,
it's success or failure. WE define success, and then we aspire to
achieve the concept we defined. For every single person on the
planet, there is a different definition of success. Sure, there are
common characteristics we all tend to ascribe to success, but the
reality is that each person has his or her own unique and individual
concept of success.
In
the extrinsic (physical) world, what is failure? If you believe
Henry Ford's definition, failure is "the opportunity to more
intelligently begin again." I like that. No failure, just
learning.
In
the intrinsic world of value, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS FAILURE. Our
spirits don't fail. Our bodies fail, and often our minds "fail" but
our spirits cannot fail. Failure is another one of those systemic
set-ups, and for some people, a major source of tension and
dissatisfaction with life. Just as there is no "perfect" purpose,
there is no perfect success.
When
you come right down to it, failure is a word we use to describe
anything short of absolute success. Like perfection, success is
somewhat unforgiving, when measured systemically. You either
succeed, or you don't. For many people, there is nothing in between
success and failure. It's an either/or, all or nothing
outcome.
It's
tough enough to bear the pressure of having to succeed at everything
we do, and suffer the (self-inflicted) pain of non-success
(failure). It's doubly tough when the standard of "success" is
absolute. Using this definition, 99% success is still
failure.
My
personal feeling is that the world and everyone in it could do very
nicely without the systemic concept (idea, belief, definition) of
failure. For nearly two decades, I have been encouraging people in
my seminars and personal interactions to eliminate the word failure.
I'd like to see it removed from our dictionary. But since that will
never happen, let's abolish it from our vocabulary.
I
propose a different either/or - success, or learning. Even better,
how about we succeed AND we learn. That creates a guaranteed win-win
outcome for every choice. This is not Polly-annish thinking. It's a
true reflection of the outcomes of choosing.
For
the extreme perfectionist or the success obsessed, this perspective
could border on heresy. After all, there has to be some absolute
measure of success, otherwise how will we know when we achieve
it?
Most
of us see success as an end result, a destination, a positive
outcome. What if success were actually the journey? What if success
was not dependent upon achieving a favorable outcome? What if
success were defined as the willing attempt, rather than only as the
result? How would like improve if we truly saw choices in the
either/AND light of succeed and learn?
Stress kills. For many of us, one of the major sources of
stress is the process of decision-making, especially the BIG ones
that can significantly affect and alter the course of our
lives.
As
beings, we crave comfort and prefer the status quo. Decisions and
choices create stress because we have a vested interest in the
outcome. People literally make themselves sick over life decisions.
The consequences of "failure" can wreak havoc with our thinking, and
in turn, weaken our immune system. There is great synergy between
the mind and the body, even if we don't consciously see the
connection. Just the idea of "failing" at something can send the
body into spasms. I don't know a single person who has not
experienced this.
Let's shift our either/or thinking of succeed or fail, into
either/AND thinking of succeed and learn. After all, there is
success in the attempt regardless of the outcome. The truth is,
outside of our systemic thinking, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS
FAILURE.
Impact your life, livelihood and living today and every day
in a big way. Don't accept success OR failure. SUCCEED, AND
LEARN.
Written by Mitch Axelrod. Visit his website for more of The
Daily Bread!™ - Food for Thought! Turning Small Distinctions into
BIG Poss-Abilities.™ http://axelrodlearning.com/
"I have missed more than 9000 shots in
my career.
I have lost almost 300 games.
On 26 occasions I
have been entrusted
to take the game winning shot......and
missed.
And I have failed over and over and over again in my
life.
And that is why....... I succeed."
Michael
Jordan
WELCOME
Welcome to new subscribers this month. Inner Sources® provides information to assist you in
creating a joyful and meaningful life. When you're living joyfully
it spills over into your business, your relationships, your health,
and your finances.
Other web sites that I write for and highly recommend -
AspireNow <http://www.aspirenow.com/>
for personal and business development. Discover your higher purpose.
Learn the art of elegant simplicity. Check your Astroguide. All this
and more at AspireNow.
InspireCast.com <http://www.inspirecast.com/>
- a community of like-minded individuals. Share your thoughts, hear
what others have to say, interact with empowering minds like Wayne
Dyer, Alan Cohen, John Demartini and Jeff Keller. Be sure to join us
August 2nd at 7:00 p.m. PT for a live chat with yours truly.
Register on the live chat email list to receive information and
reminders about the chat. You can enter the list and leave as you
wish.
NEW
* NEW * NEW *
Our first downloadable book - "Seven Habits of a
Centered Person". Download
it now to begin enjoying the insights today!!
RESOURCES -
Want to learn more about prosperity and how your
thinking is impacting your wealth? Visit Joan Sotkin's web site
Prosperity Place <http://www.prosperityplace.com/>
and sign up for her newsletter.
Another outstanding resource is Michael Angier's Success
Networks <http://successnet.org/index.shtml>.
Develop the belief, the skills, and the passion to fulfill your
dreams.
"At each stage of learning we must give
up something even
if it is a way of life that we have always
known."
Ginevee, Austrailian Aboriginal
To republish
any of my articles, be sure to use the complete article and include
the following signature:
Copyright '01 by Aleta Pippin, founder The Authentic
Entrepreneur. Visit http://www.aentrepreneur.com
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