We will open the book. Its pages are blank.
We are going to put words on them ourselves.
The book is called Opportunity.

Its first chapter is New Years Day.

~ Edith Lovejoy Pierce

What do you want? Do you have any idea how hard it is for most people to answer that question?  Even many who practice productivity management are sorely lacking in details.  Maybe you, too.

New Years is for reconnecting with the cycles, realizing how many choices we go around making every day, and thinking about making this cycle count for something different, or special.

It makes sense to decide what you want before trying to get it!
What do you want your life to look like in 3 months? — a year from now? — 5 years?

What are the secrets of making and keeping good plans?  Extraordinary Minds say…
(To learn more about the League of Extraordinary Minds free broadcasts, go here.)

One secret is in Reaching Out.  Here are some ways to connect with your opportunities more clearly:

Reaching Out with your mind.
The beginning of all change starts with an idea.
Think of what you want and reach out for it with your mind.

Reaching Out with your heart.
The beginning of motivation is in the heart.
Connect your desire with your ideas, and reach out with your heart.

Reaching Out with your hands.
The visible beginning comes from daily action.
Reach out with your actions and connect motivation with practice.

Reaching out with your heart and mind is powerful, and takes courage.  You risk wanting something without knowing the outcome.  This ‘inner game’ part of reaching out is scary for many people.  If we admit to ourselves how much we want something to change, it brings the tension of unknowing and responsibility.  And if we take no action, that can cause inner conflict and all kinds of negative emotions, like guilt and shame, even feelings of low self-worth and failure.

Enter: Daily Action.
(Daily Action wears a Mighty Mouse cape, and is singing, “Here I come to save the day…”).

If you want to find those opportunities and keep your resolve, there is a secret within the secret:  Repeat steps one and two, reaching out with mind and heart, again and again, to shore up Daily Action.

As you start to practice the new habit, revisit your ideas and motivation daily. Think of more new ideas, about how to keep motivation high, and about exactly what will help you want to succeed. Then act upon your ideas.  Observe your progress without judging.

Where are Your opportunities?  How do you get involved in your own goals? After the thinking, and desire, doing your dailies is the only answer which brings success.  It’s the one that falters first most of the time.  But you can be different…

By reaching out.  And reaching out.  And Daily Reaching Out.

As you listen to one of the last free broadcasts of the world-class coaches in the League of Extraordinary Minds, start imagining yourself moving toward that kind of success.  Then Reach Out to your goals bravely and make a New Years difference in your own personal and professional life.

Go for Your New Years Opportunities!

And one of the simplest solutions is learning, or re-learning, the habits of regular relaxation.

• Easy on the budget, on the heart, on your total health.
• Good for your productivity, your creativity, and hey, your relationships.

Relaxation is a resilience builder,  socially sanctioned or not!

Here’s a 5-minute video of David Riklan, from Selfgrowth.com, reminding us all how simple, and simply effective, changing our daily stress levels can be.

Be wise — practice good stress management, and see how it can increase your productivity and success.  That’s not really even counter-intuitive, if you think about it.  Quality trumps quantity in this genre.  Let the good relaxing times roll, in work and play, and in relaxing sounds, scents, flavors, sights, and seat cushions!

(A variety of self-improvement ideas can be found on David’s video blog page.
Check it out here.  (Not an affiliate link.) You can beat much of the holiday stress by intentionally becoming more relaxed and healthy. Enjoy your practice!

54 Master Success Coaches in Conversation

It is near Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.  Not that we should save gratitude for a feast day, but still, a good reason to pause and reflect.  The following is taken from the Ultimate Feel-Good Article. Enjoy, and practice the surprise!  And don’t forget there are some League of Extraordinary Minds Panels still to be aired. You can listen to them Here.

What if the Ultimate Feel-Good Article is something WAY DIFFERENT than you expected? Something you can’t even look for. Kind of like what they say about a solution to a puzzle only showing up after you sleep on it, or the answer to a prayer not coming from where you thought it would.

What if the Ultimate Feel-Good Article is one you write yourself? Hey, don’t feel cheated, at least not yet. Like Billy Mays said, “Wait, there’s more.”

• Proposition 1: Spend 15 minutes a day (5 min. for new mothers/fathers and other time-challenged creatures) being with yourself, and jot down a few things you are grateful for. Lists, prose, poetry, outlines, stick-up notes, napkins, doesn’t matter. What matters is that you practice — five minutes every day that you don’t have an all-day migraine.
• Proposition 2: Let the habit sweep you into a new mindset.
• Proposition 3: Allow yourself to think this is important, and it carries the potential to make a BIG difference. Keep your tidbits, WRITTEN.

THE BIG PROP: Read the stuff on the days when you least want to do so.

Read it aloud.

Recite your lists to pets, babies, sleeping squirrels in your oak tree, house plants, mirror, friend on the phone, partner if you have one, favorite lamp, doesn’t matter. What matters is that you listen. Listen, huh?!

The Ultimate Feel-Good Article turns out to be ephemeral, unless it gets to take root in your psyche. So you have to actually listen to yourself to have this work for you long term.

(Short-term yada-yada is quite acceptable, however, because it gets your brain used to the messages, even if your mind still thinks it’s hogwash.)

Try this. Yes, of course, come back and explore our offerings, but first…

Go read YOUR Ultimate Feel-Good Article. Then come back and leave us a comment, or questions about getting the hang of it. We’ll be here for you.

Spot-on.  We agree.  Give your mind this extraordinary habit-gift.  It can be yours.

And bend an ear toward these conversations.  That gift can also be yours.

Both opportunities can morph into game-changing habits that last a lifetime!

Two friends, one who obviously had training, and one who appeared to be a newbie, were having a little contest to see who could balance the longest, and do it the most times in a row without a shin-skinning fall.

The person who had been mentored got up on a rock and showed the newbie how to hold out the arms, bend the knees, etc.  The newbie followed suit, laughing and learning, and having some beginner’s success.

Newbie and ‘Daniel-san’ enjoyed a good little contest on the beach — until one fall ended the fun.  While ‘Daniel-san’ was good at helping Newbie learn the fun part, ‘Daniel-san’ hadn’t covered how to fall off the rock without getting hurt.  When Newbie’s balance faltered, Newbie felt helpless and more than skinned a shin.  There they were, the Keen and the Clueless.

~~ Cut to a Scene in Your Own Life ~~

~~ Cut to the most powerful business brain-trust ever assembled ~~

Now imagine combining scenes two and three and see what happens…Your Own Life getting access to over 50 of the most accomplished coaches and business strategists ever, gathered for one purpose:  To help Your Business.  To help you get started, take off, scale to huge proportions.  To give you hope and courage to pursue your dreams and goals…

…and… to help keep you from self-destructing when you fall off a ‘rock’.

Oh my, I would LOVE to have access to The League of Extraordinary Minds!

If Newbie had all these perspectives and balancing skills, Newbie could have:

• Avoided a lot of pain
• Learned how to cut the Newbie-losses
• Found out about consistency and continuity and how to survive the long-haul
• Been privy to the Missing Pieces which can make ALL THE DIFFERENCE in success.
• Learned how to risk without killing off the Newbie-juice, or our so-many chances for success.

There is a tremendous amount of “Buzz” around this august group and their League of Extraordinary Minds project.  It’s all good, so just go find out for yourself right now!

Even for those of us who are experienced business owners and entrepreneurs, there is always another barrier to jump over, another meadow where we are ignorant about which new plants to cultivate, and about where the hungry, eager markets hang out.

So vetted and trained marketers are always perpetual beginners — we live and operate in that creative tension between the keen and the clueless.

Go join this series of free listening opportunities to hear panels of wildly successful minds discussing how they went from clueless to keen, and how you can apply those principles to Your Business.  DO NOT MISS THIS!  All we have to do is show up and listen.

No books or CDs to buy, in order to listen.  No obligation at all.  It’s all FREE.

The free line is within your reach.  Grasp it immediately.

Do it quickly — because the kick-off first call with Tony Robbins is this Thursday, the 29^th.
(Yes, THAT Tony Robbins!)

There appear to be insider similarities between certain puppeteers and really good entrepreneurs.  These five tips were discovered recently and we offer them to you, for your Apt Success:

Be able to speak with more than one voice.

• Communicate effectively with lots of people
• So they feel your attention is specifically on them, and
• Help them feel you understand and care for each one.

Get caught doing something that makes you happy.

• Communicating your satisfaction and happiness
• Makes you a source of positive motivation
• And encourages interest and audience participation.

Be willing to share the spotlight.

• No one likes a mega-limelight hog.
• Collaboration can make competing even more effective
• And send you to stardom with less ego bruising.

Use your talents and skills for good causes.

• Give back to the community
• It’s good business —
• And it’s the right thing to do.

Leave your audience wanting more.

• Athletes call it leaving at the top of their game
• Great singers say their voice will tell them when to retire
• The most effective marketers put out a clear call to action
  and then let the buyer make the decision to act

Find The Five Hidden Tips and More Here:
Eben’s Fabulous Free 47-minute Business Training Video

Veritably all successful entrepreneurs (or other performers) know these rules.  Comedians use common experiences to establish feelings of connection among their audiences.  Listeners feel they are a part of the process because they catch glimpses of themselves in the act.  Sometimes both figuratively and literally!

Laughing is contagious.  So is happiness.  Broadcast your positive image and be a presence everyone will want to associate with.  Invite participation both directly and indirectly.  Model the attitude you hope to foster in others.

How engaging would a ventriloquist be all alone on the stage?  Much of her best material could not be communicated in it’s usually effective way.  The same is true of entrepreneurs who need others to help them achieve goals and dreams.  Going Big means getting support, sharing tasks, collaborating on projects, and sharing the spotlight. Be appreciative of your helpers, mentors, and cohorts.  Find good ones.

Giving and giving generously are standard markers of success.  Whether referring to moral character, community image, networking acumen, or business strategy, giving is good.  For all the right reasons.

This is the hardest one for most folks.  Saying your piece and exiting, leaving your audience wanting more, is a learned skill.  Getting to the place where you have confidence can be a lengthy journey.  Shorter, much shorter if you have good teachers.

Find The Five Hidden Tips Here:

Find The Five Hidden Tips and More Here:
Eben’s Fabulous Free 47-minute Business Training Video

(Way more than Five Tips)  Enjoy Taking Action!

Whether you get to ‘follow your bliss,’ as they say, is huge.  And yet, we can all think of someone who is so serious about it all, they couldn’t find bliss in a bowl full of bliss.

This post wants nothing from you but this:  Mix it up!

Yes, yes, improve your mood and increase your energy with more and more of what helps you succeed.  Great teaching can be unspeakably helpful.  Follow the good ones.

Then go forget about everyone else for awhile and be.  Try actually being with yourself!  As noted in the Attention Age report, that’s not so easy.  Way too many pieces of information vying for top-dog in our brains.

Employing your imagination is born out of giving it room to wander.

Find your next resource and begin learning — AFTER you make joy.  Sustainable entrepreneurship covers more time-distance than the sprint.  Joy helps maintain the stamina and resilience you’ll need on that challenging road to success.

P.S.  Anyone know this little fellow?  Source is lost, but can’t resist using this.  Please let us know!

Next, think of something very valuable you wish everyone could have in their lives.  Tangible or Intangible, Practical or Just for Fun or Beauty.  These should be things you really believe in for this thing to work.

Now put those two steps together:  (an example in action:  Jeff Johnson’s new video)

Think of how to make it possible
for more folks to know what they need to know
to have the valuable things they want and need.

Some people learning how to be affiliates begin by trying to answer those questions.  What do I wish I could teach people so they could have the freedom they desire?

The freedom to pursue their passions,
and the freedom from life’s pains.

One way to accomplish this is to find outstanding teachers and connect them with new students and followers.

• Teachers who actually care about their students,
• and who practice what they teach.
• Trainers who are ethical, experienced,
• and in the case of entrepreneurs, highly successful long-term.
• Coaches who fit their leadings into the broad context of people’s real lives.
• Students who want to know the material being taught — because they want that value and freedom in their lives.

We at APTservicesgroup.com are very picky.  We have done some serious homework in finding you reputable and talented resources.  We have checked out every person we recommend, and have studied something and benefitted from every one.

These are the Cream of the Crop.

Their courses, newsletters, products, and email lists deliver massive value to someone trying to live healthily, get their own online business going, manage time more effectively, kick fears away, and in short, Move Forward.

This week, check out Jeff Johnson’s new video on his blog.  If you don’t know Jeff, he’s a fast-talker.  He moves so fast, video is perfect — you can replay it to take your notes and capture all the juicy gems he tosses out to you.

If you’re a newbie, Don’t let the marketty-sounding parts turn you off.  Get past that and think of the value and benefits his training could bring your life.  He’s a family guy from Michigan who is so comfortable with his knowledge of business that he’s not even embarrassed to sound marketty.  But he takes beginners from clueless to ethical cash with great care and skill.

You’ll want to try his mailing list for awhile.  He sends out great content and free software all the time.  He never spams and every email includes an opt-out option.  We love his clear, detailed videos. Put your email address in the bold green bar on Jeff Johnson’s Underground Training Lab blog.  Yeah, we know, it looks “marketty.”  But it’s safe and wonderful.

Are you still here?  Go find out how to make it possible. Get the means to have

Yeah.

What a tall order. Too Tall, for some of us to reach easily.  In fact, it may take some real cleverness, or at least some great tricks and tools.

Good news!  There are such tools.  Some of them are habits and skills that make a huge difference in our resilience and success.  They can give us increased energy and improve our mood.  They can lower our anxiety and help us feel like we do have some control over things.  They can move us out of the stuck places in our lives.

So take heart and check out the resources we offer, and then begin to practice some of the suggestions and learn the skills.  They can help you get through difficulties with better self-esteem, and maybe with your dreams and visions intact.

Watch this space!  Exciting new resources are always coming and going, so take advantage of those time-sensitive offers. Look for things that help you define and reach your goals.  And things you want to learn because it simply makes you happy.

In the meantime, see if you can begin to believe you can.
Make it so today is not like yesterday, and tomorrow will be…different forever.

Share this video with your friends ]]> http://aptservicesgroup.com/40/attn-age-understand-and-profit/feed/ 1 http://aptservicesgroup.com/72/a-question-about-success/ http://aptservicesgroup.com/72/a-question-about-success/#comments Fri, 07 Aug 2009 13:08:26 +0000 Leseo http://aptservicesgroup.com/?p=72 What is your most burning desire?

We all have some deep desires waiting to be realized.

• Some say the prize is getting debt-free.

• Some say it is being your own boss and setting your own goals.

• Some say being healthy and feeling good is gold.

• Some have waited a long time to get their own online business going.

• Some would like to be free of clutter and distractions.

• Some want better relationships, or a special mentor to appear.

• Some want to find extraordinary tools for achieving success.

Tell us, “What is the biggest question mark in your mind?”

What is REALLY keeping you from living your dreams?

Hey, how are we supposed to follow some creative paradigm, if we don’t even know what our paradigm is?  Help.  Help is on the way.  What do you wish you could find out how to do?

One lucky person will be selected to get a FREE StressBuster™ Script for offering their response to this post.

Keep a sharp eye here, for we are in the process of selecting some of the finest training materials anyone could offer you.  Grab your chance for some relief-bringing success right now.

What’s your burning question about your success?  Simply Click on ‘Comments’ below to ask your question.