2. Goals need to be more than just fun. If my goals are just fun and not motivating – they will not get done.

3. My goals need to stretch me but not be such a stretch that I will never accomplish them.

4. HUGE goals must be broken down into manageble pieces. If it’s too big – I WILL avoid it.

5. Goals are not old school. They are as relevant as they have ever been.

Read your goals EVERY DAY. Put your goals somewhere where you’ll see them everyday. Keeping your goals top of mind is important. You will forget the things that are not regularly in front of you.

Make changes when necessary. Sometimes when you write a goal and start moving towards it you realize that it’s NOT what you want to do. It’s OKAY to change your mind. Trying something is often the best way to know if it’s for you or not.

Keep the ‘why’ in mind. You need to know why you want to achieve something. For example you may want to lose weight and get healthy but“why”. What’s the real reason – your real motivation? Focusing on the why will help you stay the course.

Get help. Getting accountable will ensure you stay on track. Don’t go it alone – you have people in your lives who will help – ask them and then let them help you.

Make it FUN. Make it more fun to reach your goal than to do nothing. If you are engaged in your goals and they are truly fun – you are more likely to get moving and stay moving.

What I learned about DREAMS in Mexico:

BIG Dreams are awesome! Having BIG DREAMS is awesome. It’s so much fun to think about what I want my life to look like, how much money I want to make and what I will do with all my success. It’s definitely a “feel good” exercise and yet if I’m not careful that’s all it will be.

Dreaming BIG is hard! It’s fun to dream BIG until we start thinking about what it will take to make those BIG dreams happen. When I look – really look at the big picture it’s scary. Being successful is NOT easy. Making money is NOT easy. Making a difference is NOT easy. Reaching BIG dreams of any kind is HARD work. Yet the work is worth it. If I can walk through the fear and work hard – I can achieve what I set out to. Or I will at the very least be farther along that where I was when I started. Most of the times going after BIG dreams is more about what we learn in the process than about achieving the end result.

I will be challenged if I DREAM BIG! If I dare to dream BIG – I will be challenged. I got very clear about what my big dreams are while I was away. And when I got home there were opportunities that came up that I wanted to say ‘yes’ too. They were good things – awesome opportunities. And yet they were things that would distract me from my BIG dreams. Unfortunately I said yes to these things and as soon as I did I KNEW that I should have said ‘no’. I tried to just go with the flow but within a few days my gut was screaming at me. I knew I had to say no to the other opportunities in order to truly say YES to my BIG DREAMS.

 “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you have imagined.” Henry David Thoreau

Having dreams is an essential part of having an awesome life. Our dreams keep us passionate, give us something to strive for and keep us excited about our journey. Dream big, share your dreams with others and go after the impossible. In order to build an awesome life, you need to dream big.

Create a goal board. Each year write down your goals and dreams, frame them and hang them in a highly visible location.

Write down goals. Include all new and small goals and update your list frequently. There is power in committing our goals to paper.

 Dream big! And often. Take regular time to dream. Think about your ideal life. And let yourself be unrealistic.

 Start a 101 List. Write down 101 things you want to do before you die. Add to the list regularly and then cross off items as you accomplish them. Make sure to celebrate your successes.

Write a personal mission statement. This will serve as a guide for decision making and a road map for living the life you choose to live.

Take a class. Continual learning keeps our minds sharp and helps us to go after our dreams. Make a commitment to learn something new every year.

Commit to leaving a legacy. Write down how the world will be different as a result of your having been here.

Be spontaneous. Break the rules. Live in the moment. Just do it.

Be prepared for detours. Life does not always go smoothly and there will be roadblocks on the way to your dreams. Acknowledge the roadblocks and choose to move past them.

Get to know yourself better. The more you know yourself, the better able you’ll be to set boundaries and then achieve your dreams.

Create a dream book. This book can include photos or pictures cut out of magazines and travel brochures. Your dream book is an ongoing project, a place to record your dreams visually.  Include big dreams, as well as simply things you like or want.

Put a dream reminder on your computer screen saver. This can be words or a picture – just something that reminds you each day to go after your dreams.

Take dreams tours. Go out and drive your dream car, walk through travel agencies or interview people who are doing what you dream of. Keeping our dreams alive takes a conscious decision.

Ask yourself the question, “If you had no fear and you could not fail what would you do?” Answer it honestly and take time to really think about it.

Share your dreams with others. A secret dream is simply a wish. By sharing them out loud, we make a stronger commitment to achieving our dreams.

Create a dream team or find a dream buddy. Make a decision to meet regularly with this group or individual and hold one another accountable for making steps toward your dreams.

Brainstorm dreams. Be unrealistic and creative when brainstorming your dreams and then be realistic when setting goals. It’s okay to let yourself dream huge dreams. Just make sure that the goals you set to move you toward your dreams are realistic and achievable in the time frame you set.

Rekindle childhood dreams. Spend time thinking about what you loved as a child. What did you pretend to be? What did you want to be when you grew up? And how did you imagine your life?

Start a dream file. Keep this file for great ideas and big dreams. You do not have to do anything about these today – just write them down.

Keep dreaming fun. Involve others. Take risks. And let dreaming be a regular part of your life.

Now is the time to renovate your marketing strategies. To renovate your marketing strategies means you take an active role to restore business development techniques, make new marketing channels, reinvigorate your passion for marketing, refresh your marketing materials and revive your sales pipeline. By renovating your marketing strategies you’ll be investing in your future, making the most of the current economy and bringing in more revenue than your competitors.

A marketing renovation requires effort on your part. It won’t happen by itself and you can’t hire someone else to do the whole thing for you. It’ll require your time and energy. But I guarantee it’s worth any time and energy you will put into it.

I hear many business owners talking about how slow they are right now. They tell me the work isn’t there and they’re experiencing some down time. This makes now the perfect time to get to work on marketing your business. If you have the time, even if you don’t have the time – now is the perfect time.

Sadly, many businesses are cutting back on marketing due to the economy. They look at their budget and somehow decide marketing is a good place to cut. This is the worst thing business owners can do during a tough economy. Those who stop marketing during a recession will fall even farther behind their competition and may not make it through this rough season. Those who continue actively marketing will survive and thrive once this recession passes. Marketing is not a choice if you want to be successful – it’s something you must do no matter what the economy is doing.

You need to be out in front of your clients now more than ever! In a good economy there is enough business for everyone and it often comes without much effort on our part. But in a tough economy, when people are carefully deliberating on each and every purchase – you cannot afford to hide. You must be out in front of your clients and potential clients in creative ways every single day.
If you’re not out in front of your target market – you can bet your competitors will be. If you’re not developing future business – someone else will. You cannot afford to sit back and wait for business to come to you. You must take an active role. You must be willing to market but keep  in mind that marketing doesn’t have to look like what it has in the past. By taking on a marketing renovation project, you can look at what’s working, what can be cut and determine how you can use more low-cost or no-cost marketing solutions.
Your goal with marketing must be to stay in front of your target market consistently and effectively. You must stand out from your competition by sharing what makes you unique and by telling potential clients why they’ll benefit from working with you. Potential clients want to know what’s in it for them. A huge part of a marketing renovation is discovering what your clients are really buying from you and why they buy. Once you know this you’re able to make renovations to your current marketing strategies to reach your target market with more precision.

A marketing renovation isn’t about starting over – it’s about keeping what works, getting rid of what doesn’t and adding a few new pieces that’ll work better. It’s about refreshing or reinvigorating your current strategies to make them more effective and in the end bring in more revenue.

Now is the time to Renovate Your Marketing. Now is the time to be committed to growing your business – to making the changes needed to survive this economy and to bring in more revenue. There has never been a better time to renovate. Make a decision and start today.

What I know to be true about staying positive today is:

1. I will never get it perfect.
2. I GET to choose my own attitude every day.
3. I can start the day over any time I want.
4. My attitude, whether positive or negative, affects other people.
5. It takes more energy to be negative.
6. I feel better about myself and my life when I look at the positive.
7. Being positive starts with being grateful. If I take time to focus on what I am grateful for – my attitude changes.
8. I do not have to engage in other peoples negativity.
9. Today I CHOOSE to be positive.

Have positive reminders. Fill your mind and home with positive reminders and motivational products. Choose to surround yourself with things that remind you to be positive.

Talk nice. Remove destructive language, negative talk, swearing or complaining. These things rob our joy in life. Speak positively or do not talk at all.

Pay for your bad words. We pay our vacation jar $5 for every swear word someone says. Family members hold one another accountable. Find some way to hold yourself accountable for destructive language.

Give me three now! For every negative thing you say about yourself, you must say three positives out loud. Again, family members should hold one another accountable.

Stop gossip. Let others be who they are. Concentrate on only speaking positively about other people.

Be honest. When we tell the truth we never have to remember what we said to whom. Honesty may be hard in the moment, but you will definitely sleep better at night.

There is nothing wrong. Stop telling yourself something is wrong. There is nothing wrong with your life. When we live in the moment and accept what is, we stop creating the idea that something is always wrong. Live life accepting what is.

Notice life. By noticing your thoughts without judgments attached, you are free to just experience life. We do not have to fix or change everything – sometimes we just need to notice.

Enjoy the journey. Life is not a race – we don’t have to get there today. In fact, there is no “there.” Our job is to simply enjoy the process.

Don’t engage in negative conversation. It’s okay to just walk away without correcting or explaining. Just simply excuse yourself.

Pay attention to your positive thoughts. What are they saying? What do they tell you about yourself?

Choose positive people. Surround yourself with people who build you up. Get rid of the “wet blankets” in your life.

Put on your attitude. Choose which attitude to wear prior to getting dressed in the morning. Sometimes having a good day starts by telling yourself that you will have a good day.

You have permission. Give yourself permission to be positive and enjoy life. Being positive is much more fun than complaining all the time.

Plan ahead. Practice and plan what you will say ahead of time when others engage in negativity. Knowing what to say before hand will help you say what you need to say and to stay true to being positive.

Leave on a happy note. End phone calls, e-mails and letters with a positive message. Always leave meetings on an upbeat note. This keeps you from dwelling on the negatives.

Choose carefully. Be selective with your words. Once we speak word, we can not take them back. Speak less and listen more.

Practice. Try saying positive things to strangers. Try out being positive with people you’ll never see again. Try new phrases and take the opportunity to speak positively with each new person you meet.

Study positive people. Watch how they interact with the world. Interview them when possible. Look for ways you can incorporate their techniques into your life.

Down days will come. Realize you will have down days. Plan for them and practice good self-care on days that you feel down. Then remind yourself that life will swing back and you’ll be up again.

“If you look for the positive things in life; you will find them.”Author Unknown

I have heard that 76% of all we tell ourselves in a day is negative and that 84% of all we hear in a day is negative. That’s a lot of negative going into our minds. I’ve also heard that for every negative we tell ourselves or others, it takes nine positives to recover the damage.

Wouldn’t we be better off just putting more positive things into our minds? If we do that we can avoid the mind clutter of negative thoughts. And then live in perfect harmony – yeah!

But that’s easier said than done. I know how hard it is to change my thoughts and to focus on being positive.  My kids often tell me that I can’t be crabby because I am a motivational speaker. Maybe they’re right but I’m still a mom and moms can get crabby. Being a mom is tough and it can be full of negatives at times. Kids get sick, they complain, we nag them to do their chores and the housework is never done. It’s easy to get crabby and feel negative. Yet we have a choice – we can choose to be positive.

I recently had the opportunity to practice what I preach. And I failed miserably.

I had a bad day. I’d been feeling lots of stress. I was overwhelmed, tired and hungry when I came home from work. That combination is dangerous for me. And yet I did nothing about it. I just focused on the negatives and let the feeling grow. I walked in the door and was greeted by our extremely happy golden retriever, who I quickly dismissed. Well the more I dismissed her the more attention she wanted. And then I snapped right as my family was coming in the door. I had a meltdown, yelling at the dog, crabbing at the family and then storming up to my room. It wasn’t a pretty scene.

I went to my room and felt horrible. I had let all the negative things pile up all day long and I’d taken it out on the ones I love the most. Our negative thoughts often do that to us, they come out towards the ones we love the most, the ones who had nothing to do with our negativity.

I had to go downstairs and apologize to my family and to the dog. I told them I was sorry and that I have made a decision to change my attitude. I had to start the day over – at 5pm.

A friend of mine gave me a lizard in a cage years ago. She told me that when we focus on the negative or we are stressed or angry, we begin to think like a lizard. She told me to keep my lizard in its cage – in others words, she told me to keep  negativity, stress and anger under control so the lizard doesn’t get out.

Today practice keeping your lizard in its cage!

What I know to be true about excellence is:

• Excellence can only happen when I take good care of myself.
• Excellence in my life is my responsibility.
• To excel I need other people to  help me.
• Excellence starts in my mind. I must begin with an excellent mindset.
• Excellence is the sum total of all the choices I make every day.
• It’s more fun to excel than is it to suck at something.
• Excellence takes practice. I don’t start out being excellent – I must work to get there.
• Excellence is mine if I choose it.

Today I choose excellence!