Do You Need Some Change?

Do you ever find yourself questioning why you are doing what you are doing? Has life lost its luster? Do you ever feel like for some reason you have gotten off track and don’t know how it happened? Does it feel like your life is stuck on a treadmill? That you’re always busy but never getting anywhere?

If you’re like me, and you probably are, you’ve asked yourself these and other questions similar to these hundreds of times, and your answer is a big fat “YES!” Now the question is, “So what are you going to do about it?” You can either give in and settle for less than what is possible, or you can make the decision to do whatever it takes to break out of the mundane existence you find yourself in.

From time to time we all find ourselves in some sort of rut. It’s easy to get in a rut without even realizing it. You know you are in a rut when what used to be fun and was a challenge has become ritualistic and boring. Someone has rightly said, “A rut is nothing more than a grave with both ends kicked out of it.” It is existing instead of excelling at what you were created for.

It is important to examine our lives from time to time, in order to discover the rituals, habits, or ruts that we have developed. Especially the ones that are making us miserable. Plato is quoted as saying, “The life which is unexamined is not worth living.”

Notice what the Bible says about examining your life. “But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.” (Galatians 6:4) Taking personal inventory of your life, and examining yourself, is not always a fun process. But, it is vitally important so you can make adjustments that lead to greater success and productivity.

Right now, in our world, with the economic crisis that is getting so much press, individuals, businesses, and organizations are having to examine their practices as to what is working or not working. They are having to take a long hard look at what is necessary and what is unnecessary as to their projects, their spending, and their work force. Then they have to make the changes necessary to succeed in the face of failure.

One of the keys to success is the ability to adapt. To make the necessary on course adjustments that will get you to where you want to go. When NASA launches a spacecraft or satellite into orbit, there are countless numbers of adjustments that have to be made along the way in order to get them in the proper orbital pattern. So it is with all of life. If you don’t make the necessary adjustments along the way you’ll miss your destination (goals) by miles.

My challenge to you today is to set aside some time and ask yourself the hard questions. Make the time to examine all areas of your life; Your attitude, your life purpose, your gifts and talents, your passion, your dreams, your spending habits, your work habits etc. Then make the decision to make the necessary adjustments and changes that will lead to personal success and productivity. “If what you are doing isn’t working, then you need to change what you are doing!”

The I Am Messiah Syndrome

I was once caught up in what I call the "I Am Messiah" syndrome. I was of the opinion that if something had to be done; I had to do it in order for it to be right. If there were problems that had to be solved, I had to solve them. As a result I ran myself ragged trying to do things that I wasn't qualified to do. Fortunately, I woke up one day and realize that I was not "all knowing" or "all powerful!" I not only couldn't do everything, I wasn't required to.

Unfortunately, I meet a lot of people caught up in the same rat race. They are on the same treadmill that I was on. Always busy but never really accomplishing anything. Always on the go but never going anywhere. This is a fundamental reason why so many people burnout or fizzle out before their time.

The "I am Messiah" syndrome causes people to never fully maximize their potential. It keeps them limited in their accomplishments. As a result they fail to build relationships with people that could lighten their load and help them become more contented in life.

Here are some thoughts I have on breaking free from the "I Am Messiah" syndrome:

Know your limitations.

You can only be one place at a time. You can only do one thing at a time. You'll only be able to do so much. You cannot "save" the world. Go with your gifting and skills. Quit trying to do things you don’t know how to do. For instance, if you are good at fixing computers it doesn’t mean you are good at fixing automobiles. If your car needs repairs you are better off finding someone who is skilled in that area than to try to do it yourself.

Know your strengths and weaknesses.
Admit it, there are some things you're good at, and there are other things that you're not so good at. Capitalize on your strengths. Develop them. Hone your skills. Become the best you can be, as the person you were created to be.

Network with others.

Find people who are strong where you're weak, and enlist their assistance. Two are better than one. Get people involved in your life. It is amazing how quick people are to assist you, if you only ask. You also need to learn how to delegate tasks to others and then allow them to do them.

Recognize that you don't know everything.
This is essential to lifetime success. People who are know it all's, have trouble learning, adapting, and excelling in life. Life is an ongoing learning experience. Allow those that are experts in areas you aren’t, teach, train, and mentor you.

Learn to say no.

Quit trying to do everything others want you to do. Set guidelines for the type of assignments you will and will not accept. Only agree to do those things that you know you can get done and can do your best. Don’t allow yourself to be caught up in trying to please others by taking on responsibilities you aren’t qualified to do or don’t have the time to do.

Realize you can't save the world.

You can only do so much to affect positive change in the world. If everyone would simply do what they can do to make the world a better place to live, how much better we all would be.

Don't compare yourselves to others.

One reason so many people get caught up doing things they are not qualified to do is because they are trying to keep up with those around them. Unfortunately, this will lead only to frustration. The fact of the matter is you may not have the same qualifications, desires, and vision that others have. Be the person God created you to be.

Turning Negatives Into Positives

High achievers have the ability to turn negative situations into positive ones. They have the knack when given a lemon to make lemonade. Regardless of how difficult the circumstances are they are able to turn them into stepping stones instead of stumbling blocks.

Life is filled with negatives. They cannot be escaped. Everyone goes through difficulties from time to time. However, those who refuse to be defeated by adversity are the ones that enjoy success in life.

Robert Schuller says, “Tough times never last but tough people do.” A friend of mine says, “When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping!” Being tough, in this sense of the word, means not giving up or stopping short of what you are striving to accomplish.

The following suggestions will give you some ideas for turning negatives into positives.

Expect the best.
You get what you expect. This is true both in the positive and the negative. Jesus said, “As your faith is so be it unto you.” Quit expecting the worse. Don’t borrow trouble. Determine to look for and anticipate the best.

Get a different perspective.
Sometimes you can’t see the forest for the trees. At times you have to step away from the problem and look at it from a different angle. Ask others close to you what they see. Get their input as to what to do about the current condition. Taking a break from the situation can give you a whole new outlook.

Ask questions.
When writing a story a good investigative reporter always asks Who? What? Why? Where? When? and How? Asking these same questions about your situation gives you great insight not only into the problem you are faced with, but also into what caused it, and how to turn it around.

Failure isn’t final.
It is one thing to fail it is another to see yourself as a failure. Failure is not an event it is an attitude. Just because you have blown it doesn’t mean you’re finished. By not giving up or losing heart you are able to turn your negatives into a positive. I like to look at my times of failure as learning experiences. Every time I try something and fail I have simply discovered something that didn't work. I am constatly seeking to find ways to improve what I am doing. Babe Ruth was the strike out king of baseball. But he never quit swinging. His failure isn't final attitude led him to become the home run king of baseball. So you've failed. Big deal! Get up and keep trying. Success is just around the corner!

Change the way you speak.
According to Solomon, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” Your words have power. People that talk failure, struggle and negative situations all the time, experience exactly what they are speaking. Much of what happens to people is the result of self-fulfilling prophecies. Choose to begin to speak positively about your situation. Begin to declare what can be not what can’t be. Jesus taught, “A good man out of the good treasures of his heart brings forth that which is good. An evil man out of the evil treasures of his heart brings forth that which is evil. For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.” What you say has an impact on what you experience.

What Is Important to Me?

All of us have different priorities in life. Some value a foreign sports car, others a big home, others an important title or position. What are your priorities? When was the last time you even thought about what is really important to you?

Making a list of your personal priorities can be an interesting and rewarding thing to do. It can help you get your life in order, increase personal success and make you feel better about yourself.

A sample list of priorities could be, 1) Serving God, 2) Spending time with your family, 3.) Your career, 4.) Having a hobby, 5.) Reading, 6.) Going back to school, 7.) Exercise, 8.) Eating right and so on. You get the picture!

By compiling a list of your personal priorities you are able to determine what is truly important to you. You are also able to gauge how much time you spend in each area and make adjustments as necessary.

Making a list forces you to be all you can be. It also protects you from the demands and expectations of others.


“Seek first the Kingdom of God and all these things will be added to you.”(Matthew 6:33)

Be Kind and Considerate

Mean spirited, manipulative people seldom enjoy success over the long haul. Bullying people, acting as a dictator, forcing people to do things your way or the highway, seldom produces respect and honor in others. In fact people resent aggressive, hard to get along with, domineering personalities.

As a young man my mother told me, “You’ll catch more flies with honey that you will with vinegar.” I have never forgotten this truth. I have seen firsthand the value of treating others with kindness and being considerate of their feelings.

The quickest way to earn the respect of others is to treat them with respect. Honor others for their abilities, knowledge and opinions. Praise them for their accomplishments. Celebrate their personal victories.

People will go to the ends of the earth for you if you treat them with kindness. There is something almost magical that happens when others know they are appreciated and needed.


“Be kind one to another.”(Ephesians 4:32)

Positive Thinking

All high achievers are positive thinkers. Being an optimist is essential to success in life. Believing for, and expecting the best are marks of people that accomplish great things in life.

This is true in all areas of life. Businesspeople, athletes, factory workers, homemakers, students, can all benefit from positive thinking.

Positive thinkers don’t just see things as they are now, but as they can be. They tend to be problem solvers instead of problem spotters. They see the silver lining behind the dark clouds.

Positive thinking has its origins in scripture. Solomon once wrote “as a man thinks in his heart so it is he.” Jesus said, “as your faith is so be it unto you.” The Apostle Paul declared, “be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

Repentance, in its simplest definition means to have a change of mind. In other words, quit thinking thoughts that are causing you to fail, and begin instead to think positive, uplifting thoughts that will lead you to success.

Thinking in a positive manner is the result of making a conscious decision to do so. It is a skill that can be developed over time. You can train and discipline yourself to be optimistic.

Choose today to clear your mind of negative thoughts and determine to replace them with positive, faith-filled thoughts. Begin to focus on what can be, instead of what now is.

Achievement

There is nothing greater than the feeling of accomplishment. To set out to do something and then to do it. President Franklin Roosevelt said, “Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort.”

Anyone can start a project, only winners finish what they start. The writer of Ecclesiastes wrote, “Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof.” Highly successful people are not those who know how to start a project, but rather those that know how to finish it.

The key to achievement is persistence. Persistence is the ability to stick with something until you have accomplished it. It is the ability to not quit or give up when the going gets tough. Robert Schuller says, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Persistence keeps you going in spite of the opposition, setbacks or difficulties you may face.

Determine to finish what you start. Develop your persistence muscle. Be determined to not stop until you reach your goals. As author John Mason says, “Let go of whatever makes you stop.” A dream, hard work and persistence will make you a person of achievement.

Polishing Your Marketability

In order to maintain your marketability it is important to keep your image polished at all times. These days of downsizing demand that you do all you can to secure your position in the workplace.

It is always imperative to stay on the cutting edge of your profession. Those that are able to do the most tasks with the most excellence are the ones that will be in demand. The ones that do just enough to get by are not.

Your future is totally in your hands. Only you can control your future. By applying the following principles you can enhance your public image. You can get noticed and stay noticed.

Polish your personal appearance.
It may sound trivial, but it is important to maintain a positive professional image. The way you dress, comb your hair, polish your shoes, carry yourself etc. all go along way in marketing yourself. If needed consult a fashion expert to assist you with dressing properly.

Constantly improve your communication skills.
Perhaps nothing is more important than your ability to communicate. Communication involves both listening and speaking. While most people are continually trying to find the right thing to say, they neglect the most important part of communicating with others, listening. The only way you can understand what someone else is saying or feeling is to listen to what they are saying. Then and only then are you truly communicating.
Whether communication is in front of a group, or is one on one, how you communicate goes a long way in determining your success or failure. Seek to be clear and concise when sharing with others. Take a specialized course in public speaking.

Develop your writing skills.
In order to increase your marketability you must constantly seek to improve your writing skills. Improper use of words, misspelled words and poor grammar, when in written form, hurt your marketability. In their book “Smart Moves,” Sam Deep and Lyle Sussman write, “Whenever you communicate you are saying three things: something about your message, something about your reader, and something about yourself. When you write clearly you’re showing that you understand the reader, you’ve thought clearly about your purpose and have expressed it well, and you’re presenting a positive image of yourself.”
Read, Read, Read!

One of the common denominators of highly successful people is the amount of reading they do. In order to polish your marketability you need to read everything you can regarding your career field. The late President, John F. Kennedy said, “Knowledge is power.” The key to knowledge is reading. Stay up to date with information that is relevant to your profession.

Stay current.
Staying current in your career field gives you a positive advantage over those that don’t. This makes you more a more valuable employee, contract worker or entrepreneur. Stay on the cutting edge of information and technology in your field of expertise. Take every course you can. Attend every seminar you can. Become an expert in your field.

Stay in touch.
Don’t unnecessarily burn bridges behind you. Always keep the door of communication open with both current and former business contacts. Send thank you notes. Call on special days. Let others know that you genuinely care about them. Offer to assist them in any way you can. Ask them to assist you when you need it. Show your gratitude when they come through for you.

Mind your manners.
It is vitally important that you remember your business etiquette. Don’t overstep boundaries that you shouldn’t step over. Treat everyone with respect. Always show courtesy to those that you seek to do business with. Be aware of your table manners. Say excuse me when you interrupt a conversation. Know and follow the protocol of the activity you are involved in. Basically treat others the way you want to be treated.

Maintain a positive attitude.
People like to be around, and do business with, those that have a good attitude. No one likes to have to deal with people that are difficult to get along with. Attitudes, like measles, are impossible to hide. By being positive, enthusiastic and optimistic in business dealings you are increasing your personal marketability.
Develop your skills.

Those whose skills are developed most are the most marketable. People who know what they are doing, and who can do it most efficiently, are always in demand. Constantly work at developing and honing your skills. Don’t be afraid to learn new things. Be adaptable. Change with the times. Stay current by keeping your skills up to date.

Develop your trustworthiness.
Be a person of your word. Say what you mean and mean what you say. Practice loyalty to your company and bosses. By being dependable you make yourself less expendable. Go above and beyond what is required of you. Volunteer for projects no one else wants, but you are qualified to do. These things can only enhance your marketability.

The Power of Expectation

It has been said, “You cannot rise above your current level of expectation.” What you expect, or believe is going to happen, usually does. We tend to get out of ourselves and others exactly what we expect to get.

I read sometime ago about a salesman that for several years had earned $25,000.00 per year. It didn’t matter what he did, he always earned the same amount. His company decided to give him a new territory, where the salesman before him made $100,000.00 per year. Believe it or not even though he should have and could made considerably more, he only made $25,000.00. Why? Because that is all he expected to make.

Listen to people around you, and you will hear them say things such as, “I expected that to happen.” “Nothing good ever happens for me.” I even heard one man say, “If it weren’t for bad luck, I wouldn’t have any luck at all.” And, you know what? They were all right. They all got exactly what they expected.

To be a person the person you were created to be, and to achieve what you have the potential to achieve, you must begin to develop the power of positive expectation. Determine today to begin believing for good things to happen to you. Get rid of your “stinkin thinkin!” Change your attitude. Begin to expect the best in life.

Expect success. Expect to make a sale. Expect for your efforts to be fruitful. Expect others to be favorable to you. Expect to be everything you were created to be. Expect love. Expect promotion.

If you will begin to raise your level of expectation you will be surprised at what begins to happen for you. Jesus once said, “As your faith is, so be it unto you.” Nothing could be truer. You get what you expect.

You’ve Got to Go For the Root – Letting Go of What’s Holding You Back

The number one deterrent to success in any area of life is self-imposed limitations derived from past negative mental conditioning. The reason for the action steps in the last blog was to assist you in discovering the obstacles standing in your road to success in life. It is important to understand that every single limitation you have is imbedded in your mind. It is in how you have been programmed to think about yourself, God, others, your potential, your life purpose, health, finances, relationships, vocation, and future.

These limiting thoughts though, are not based on truth, they are based on lies. Lies you believe to be true. I have learned this first-hand. For a number of years I had behaviors that were incredibly damaging to my life. Try as I might I couldn’t overcome them. Counseling, prayer, accountability groups, behavior modification, nothing worked in helping me overcome them.

One day when reading “Shattering Your Strongholds,” by Liberty Savard, I read a chapter that addressed finding the root of the problem as the only way to truly overcome negative behaviors. Since nothing else to this point had worked, I decided to spend time searching for the root cause of my destructive behaviors. Sure enough, when I uncovered the root, I found the answers. I discovered the lies I had believed, and I was able to replace them with truth that brought me freedom. When I replaced the lies with the truth, my behaviors literally changed overnight!

Everything that happens in life, good or bad, positive or negative, is the result of something else. There is a natural law in effect that is just as powerful as the law of gravity. It is the law of cause and effect. In Philosophy it is known as Causality. Causality is the relationship between an event (the cause) and a second event (the effect), where the second event is a consequence of the first. The Bible calls it sowing and reaping. Galatians 6:7 declares, “Be not deceived, God is not mocked. For whatever a man sows that shall he also reap.”

According to scripture, words are seeds. (Read Mark 4) Whether the words are from God or the enemy doesn’t matter. They are still seeds. The purpose of a seed is to produce a harvest in your life. The words (seeds) that dominate your thinking will produce after their kind in your life. This works in both the positive and negative sense. Positive, faith-filled words produce positive faith-filled results. Negative, fear-filled words produce negative fear-filled results in your life.

If you were told all your life that you will never amount to anything, you grow up believing you are incapable of being who God made you to be. The result is you never truly become the person God created you to be. Why? Because the seed, based on the lie, has been planted in the soil of your mind and is producing after its own kind. It has conditioned you to accept failure, low self-esteem, and living below your potential, as your lot in life.

On the other hand, if you were told that you could do anything God created you to do, and become everything God created you to be; you expect to be productive in life. Your expectation, created by the seeds planted in your mind, produces the harvest of being productive and successful in life. You will always rise to the level of your expectation.

So the key to letting go of what’s holding you back is to uncover the root and destroy it. By uncovering the root to your lack of growth, effort, and negative results, you uncover the lie that’s holding you back, and are able to replace it with the truth. Jesus said, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” (John 8:32

Here’s a simple method, which I was introduced to by my wife, that has had a profound effect in my life. As you uncover the root (lie) of what is holding you back, write it down. Then find the truth, what God’s word says about you, and write it under the lie. Then write down an action you can take to ingrain the new belief in your mind.

For example:

Lie: You’ll never amount to anything in life.
Truth: I am created in the image of God. I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me. Other people just like me have accomplished great things in their lives.
Action: Find something you’ve always wanted to do, but have never attempted because of the lie you’ve believed. Study up on the subject and take a step of faith to accomplish it.

Lie: What you are attempting to do is impossible.
Truth: All things are possible to him that believes. Other people have accomplished what they were told was impossible. The Wright Brothers were told by their father “if God wanted man to fly He would have given them wings.” Yet they believed they could do the impossible, and they did.
Action: Spend time reading about ordinary individuals that did extraordinary things such as Walt Disney, Thomas Edison, Bill Gates, and Sam Walton.

By doing this you are exposing the lie to the truth of God’s word and taking the power the lie has had on you away. You are getting rid of the lie and replacing it with the truth, which makes you free.
After you have written the lie you have believed, and replaced it with the truth of what God says, you need to keep the list with you and review it on a daily basis until the new seed begins to produce new thoughts. In turn the new thoughts begin to produce new actions which lead to new results in your life. This is the key to what the Bible calls “renewing the mind.” (Romans 12:2)

It is a fact, “Change your thoughts and you will change your life.” From this day forward as you begin to change your thoughts, by dealing with the lies you have believed about yourself, and replacing them with the truth, you will begin to see more positive, life changing results.

Action Steps:
1. Review the list of limiting beliefs you uncovered in the previous blogs action steps.
2. Write down the limiting belief, which is a lie, on a piece of paper.
3. Write the truth of what God’s word says right below the lie.
4. On a daily basis for at least 21 days (how long it takes to form a new habit) read and speak the truth out loud.
5. Write down and implement actions that will help imbed the truth in your mind.