Real Estate Information

BUILD A WALL OF HAPPINESS!

To affect the quality of anything first requires action of some sort. Affecting is the opposite of passivity. In a passive state we can only BE affected, but we ourselves have no effect on our surroundings or other people. Hold that thought for a moment and consider next the result of your "affecting."

Ambition leads to action. Your ambition leads you to affect the quality of the day through some action. So what is the ultimate result of your ambition transformed into action? Johnson suggests it is "to be happy at home."

If, as Johnson recites, being "happy at home" is the ultimate result of your ambition, then why are you working so hard? Is there a way to avoid working evenings and weekends? Could you schedule your child's soccer game into the week's plans? Is that next appointment more important than celebrating life with your spouse at anniversary time?

One way to affect the quality of your day, which in turn may result in happiness at home, is to "build a wall," to paraphrase Frost. Keep in mind that walls may limit you if they are constructed of heavy gauge steel mesh rimmed with concertina wire. Walls can also be formed as a low hedge or a split-rail fence - even more simply as a line in the sand. Rather than limiting us, they become a mere reminder of how far we are willing to go.

As we affect the quality of our life and push our ambition to the limit, we may also make choices about the boundaries of our lives. By choosing sound principles of living, for example, we may say, "No!" to friendships with those who operate outside our boundaries of accepted activities. We may decline meaningless activities, or the occasional committee appointment, which robs us of our valuable time.

In the end, WE are solely responsible for affecting the quality of our individual lives. We must choose wisely.

LISTEN!

Ever notice how difficult it is to break out of your routine to take time just for you? Yet, when you do, you experience a sense of refreshment. You're more observant, more aware of your surroundings - if only for a short time.

Those brief periods are when the mind is most receptive to creative thinking. The sub-conscious, with its defensive barriers temporarily lowered, is more likely to receive and accept new ideas. Use that time wisely by letting go, giving yourself permission to dream new dreams, to reach for the "brass ring."

You don't have to analyze or give form to those dreams - just allow them to occur. When an idea begins to grab you and arouses inner excitement, pay attention. Avoid letting your conscious mind scoff at the value of your idea or throw roadblocks in your way. Listen to your quiet inner voice. Allow what Napoleon Hill describes as "infinite intelligence" to speak to you.

Read Henry Ford's quote again and concentrate on the last seven words, "doing more than he thinks he can." It's what your conscious self "thinks you can do" that is so limiting. Remember the expression "Think you can, think you can't - either way you're right"? Whatever your conscious self thinks is the limit to your doing - IS the limit. To exceed the limits you have placed upon yourself requires expanded thinking.

To get started, find your own quiet place - and go there for just fifteen minutes each day. In good weather, sit outside at dawn with a fresh cup of coffee. If you're a night person, find a quiet corner after the house is settled for the evening. Let the family know you want 15 uninterrupted minutes - just for you. Close your eyes and begin by clearing your mind of trivia - like wiping off a blackboard - then just let go. You'll be amazed at the results.

IS IT ABOUT POLITICS OR . . . RELATIONSHIPS?

Have you ever lost out to another for an appointment to an important committee . . . or leadership post . . . or career promotion? If so, you may have commented (at least to yourself) that it was "politics" that deprived you of the opportunity.

So was it really politics, or were there relationships involved? Consider the difference. The term "politics" is often used to cast doubt on the values or principles employed to influence an outcome. Just using the word "politics" tends to excuse us for failing to win the approval we seek.

Now consider the power of relationships. If you were caught in a blinding snowstorm with two individuals - one a personal friend with extensive outdoor survival training, and the other a total stranger - which would you choose to lead you to safety? When the youth soccer league asks you to coach next season, whom would you choose for your assistant? Would it be a fellow professional associate, with whom you have worked successfully on various projects over the past ten years - or a total stranger?

What those on the outside (looking in) call "politics" is really no more than the power of existing relationships at work. We tend to feel more comfortable with those we know and trust. Trust and familiarity are built over an extended period, and once in place become bonds difficult to break.

To continue growing in your career, as well as your personal life, consider forming new relationships with those you feel are excellent role models. About our teenagers, we tend to say "You can tell how they're doing by the friends they keep." The same rule applies to us. Make time in your life to build enduring relationships. Your world will expand, your disappointments become few, and your friends become many.

THE RICH GET RICHER!

In "Rich Dad's Guide to Investing," the author talks about taking risks. As an example, "Rich Dad" says, "There is risk driving a car. But driving the car with your hands off the steering wheel is really risky." With regard to driving a car, his point is easily understood.

His real message, however, goes a little deeper. He's really speaking of the risks people associate with investing. While there are inherent risks in any investment (just as there are in driving to the grocery store), if you don't take control of the risks (as in keeping your hands on the wheel), the risks can quickly overwhelm you. Rich Dad goes on to say that, "It is not necessarily investing that is risky, it is the investor who is risky."

Whether you are investing in yourself, your business, real estate, or a stock portfolio, Rich Dad advises that you first gain control over yourself. This is accomplished in two steps: first by creating a written financial plan, and second through intensive study. Both make it possible to get a firm grip on your investment wheel. The written plan is your road map to successful investing, while study provides the knowledge level needed to invest wisely. Collectively, they put you in the driver's seat, giving you control over your investing direction.

If the idea of investing your way to wealth appeals to you, you must first commit to pay the price in time. You do not necessarily have to "have money to make money." Like any successful endeavor, however, you must be willing to invest your time, and we all realize just how valuable that can be!

PLAY BALL!

With the start of the major league baseball season, a simple success formula recently heard comes to mind. It uses baseball words, but contains plenty of success wisdom.

Which do you think is more important, a home run or a single base hit? Most of us would choose a home run - even a "grand slam" home run. Most of us were also brought up to believe that someday our "ship would come in" - that all of our success or wealth or whatever would arrive at once, in one grand port call.

Funny thing is - more ball games are won with base hits than with home runs. Most ships arrive slowly in port - guided by tiny tugboats - and only after having navigated the wide oceans through a series of thousands of minor navigational corrections.

Yes! Big wins and successful journeys occur most often as the result of daily decisions - not life-altering, once-a-year, mega-decisions. Want to lose weight? It won't happen because you vow on January 1 to do it. It will be the result of your daily decision to walk, run, or work out. Want excellent health? Your daily, even moment-by-moment, decisions to ingest only healthy foods and avoid junk are the ones that will win the day.

The same holds true for your success in business. While a master plan at the beginning of the year is important, it's really the steps taken each day that produce the results. As you face each of the very small daily decisions, be careful to make only the right choices. By day's end they'll add up to valuable progress both on and off the field.