Cathy Stucker - The Idea Lady

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13 Reasons You Are Not as Successful as You Should Be

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13-reasonsDo you think you deserve more success than you currently have? Most people do. Instead of blaming bad luck or a lack of connections, take a look at this list of 13 reasons you are not as successful as you should be by business consultant and author Jim Kukral.

Success isn’t something that is handed to you. It is something you earn. And you earn it not just by working hard–lots of people work hard and don’t become successful–but by working hard at the right things. That means having goals and working toward them, believing that you can and will be successful, wanting it enough to do what you have to do and working through failure.

One thing I think is missing from Jim’s list may ultimately be the most important reason for not being successful: [Read more…]

The Resistance Test

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This week’s Monday Morning Message from Wm. H. Danforth, founder of Ralston Purina: What is the Monday Morning Message?

“When the prospect says ‘NO!’ is when the true salesman demonstrates his calibre.”

Think this through. A kite is a thing of beauty high up in the air, and so is a sail boat skimming through the waves—just because there is a strong wind blowing. A kite is tangled up with its tail and takes a nose-dive to earth when wind dies down. What’s the fun in trying to sail in a dead calm? Trout swim up stream. Resistance and “NO” develop MEN at their best.

“Safety First” means something passive. “Live Dangerously” means that you are safe only when you can stand against every danger. Life at its Best is the onward Spur which challenges me.

What application can you make to all of this during this week?

Physical strength is increased when we include resistance in our workouts. When we work against a force, our muscles work harder and become stronger.

The same is true for our minds and spirits. When we take the safe and easy route in everything we do, we get complacent lazy. It is when we challenge ourselves that we discover how much we are capable of accomplishing.

How will you challenge yourself this week?

Glimpses of Achievement

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This week’s Monday Morning Message from Wm. H. Danforth, founder of Ralston Purina: What is the Monday Morning Message?

Here are three quotations form Henry Ford’s (pictured at right) book, “My Life and Work.”

He says of Thomas A. Edison: His knowledge is almost universal. He is interested in every conceivable subject, and he recognizes no limitations. He believes that all things are possible. At the same time, he keeps his feet on the ground. He goes forward step by step. He regards “impossible” as a description for that which we have not at the moment the knowledge to achieve.

An educated man is not one whose memory is trained to carry a few dates in history— he is one who can accomplish things. A man who cannot think is not an educated man, however many college degrees he may have acquired. Thinking is the hardest work any one can do—which is probably the reason why we have so few thinkers.

Everything can always be done better than it is being done.

What will you do this week to retain some of the above thoughts so that the effect will be noticeable in your life?

Of the three quotes above, the one that spoke most clearly to me is the last: Everything can always be done better than it is being done.

How often do we accept things, shrugging and thinking, “That’s just the way it is.” In fact, anything and everything can be done better.

This week, instead of accepting what is, look for how you can make things better for yourself and others.

Our Greatest Need—Fresh Energy

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This week’s Monday Morning Message from Wm. H. Danforth, founder of Ralston Purina:
What is the Monday Morning Message?

We go along in the even tenor of our way until we read a book, hear a sermon, or meet a man with vital power, which starts us off with a new purpose in life.

If you feel that you are at low ebb, or going along in a humdrum way, better get acquainted with that book, or that man, who will stir you to the depths. If you feel the need, then you will find the way to get a new start. Is there any real reason why anybody should remain at low ebb?

                                SATURDAY
                            UP
                        UP
                    UP
               UP
MONDAY

“Every day in every way I’m going Up—Up—Up.”

Who inspires you?

Is there a speaker or author whose words can lift you up and motivate you? Or maybe there isn’t one person, but many.

Get in the habit of watching, reading and listening to people with uplifting messages. People who help you believe in yourself and give you not only the will but the tools to move forward.

Load some of your favorite motivational CDs or videos to your phone or iPod, and listen as you workout or commute, or during breaks throughout the day.

Looking for more? Here are a couple of my favorite sources of inspiration:

TED Talks
TED conferences bring together speakers on a wide variety of topics. Each talk is short–often 10 minutes or fewer. But in those short talks you can discover amazing things. The talks are available to download (free) in audio or video formats at the site or via iTunes.

iTunesU
iTunes has more than 350,000 courses, lectures and other programs from major universities available for free download. You can listen to David Lynch talk about creativity, get ideas from the Harvard Business Review IdeaCast, learn a new language or any number of subjects from professors and guest speakers at some of the world’s leading educational institutions.

Still want more? Try searching the podcasts at iTunes or other sources. Do a search on YouTube for your favorite motivational speakers or topics. Go to your library, where you can borrow CDs, DVDs and books. This can be a good way to “try out” someone with whom you are unfamiliar. You may then want to buy other materials from them for your permanent library.

When you expose yourself to motivational talk, you will lift yourself up and always be your best.