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   Thursday, January 24, 2008

First off, I would echo the voice of 18th century French philosopher Voltaire, made popular and relevant in today's leadership lexicon by "Good to Great" author Jim Collins, who said, "Good is the Enemy of Great."
1. americanspiritcigarettes, tiltedarc, spokaneairport. "Good is the Enemy of Great." Get rid of the good to make room for the great in your life. artcardpost, tallbarstools, diamondtiara. Instead of keeping the main thing the main thing, we major in too many minor things. motivationalspeaking, nauticalcomforters. In other words, many people do a few things that are good, a lot of things that are mediocre, but nothing that is GREAT. callmyname.
Find the ONE thing you can be the best in the world at and focus unrelentingly on improving that one thing, polishing it to perfection. soundmixers, ensigndrilling.
Choose great over good in ALL areas of your life! It is far better to have a few great things than a lot of good or mediocre things. painpill, ipodskinvideo.
Instead of having six cheap shirts that you don't feel so great in, have one fine quality shirt that you can feel proud to wear and that makes you feel like a million bucks! Instead of having five or six ho-hum paintings to decorate your walls, invest in ONE magnificent masterpiece that leaves you breathless and enriches your soul every time you look at it! Instead of going to the usual cottage retreat every long-weekend, save up your money and go on one GREAT vacation that you've always dreamed of like going on a European boat-cruise, snorkeling in the Red Sea, or taking an art class in Paris. kneedislocation, waitresssex. Instead of many mediocre friendships, have a few great friendships that energize and inspire you and that you can spend quality time fostering deeper relationships. pspfaceplates. You get the point. pitandpendulum, chinesebabycalender.
Greatness is a choice! And choice is the democratic equalizer of all people. salmonrecipe, washingtonnationals, metalstamp. Everyone, regardless of their rank, social status or income level has the power to choose great over good. funeralurn, northernmichiganproperties.
2. physicianstartingsalaries, papajoe, decoratingflipflops. Commit to an annual theme. momentumstocks, grocerystoresonline. Instead of making and breaking a number of well-wished but half-hearted New Year's Resolutions, commit to an annual or lifetime theme. cartleapfrogshopping. Pick a theme that defines your singular life purpose or what you are most passionate about and stick to it. zebrawood.
For example, my theme is: "Write First!" I have this theme posted right in front of me above my computer. dashboardonline. My purpose is to write. depressiondisassociation.
I write first and ask questions later. stellascooters, reliancejob, genevapharmaceutical. I focus on writing (or things related to developing my writing) first and then worry about the urgent but non-important interruptions (paying bills, answering calls and emails, responding to invitations, etc.) that plague everyone. englishheritage, bellinghamwa, tentscanopies. This theme takes precedence over everything else except my spiritual relationship with my Creator. machineembroiderythread, macnews. The only exception to this rule would be a genuinely important priority that falls in one of my top values in life or attending to a family emergency. coyotegod.
Your main theme for 2006 could be "Family First!" or "Health First!" or "Listen First!" or "Service Above Self." Just pick one and commit to it. cantrepeat, hydroponicgrowingsystems.
Beside your main theme, make a list of your top values such as love, health, giving, peace, wealth, etc. buffalotech. to ground yourself and distinguish between important and non-important but urgent matters. penguincostume. In his autobiography, Benjamin Franklin listed thirteen virtues (Temperance, Silence, Order, Resolution, Frugality, Industry, Sincerity, Justice, Moderation, Cleanliness, Tranquility, Chastity, and Humility) to which he governed his life and gave a week's strict attention to mastering one virtue at a time repeating the list in order every thirteen weeks. traycables.
3. significantdigits, woodwallshelf, bocaratonflorida. Practice a policy of planned neglect. sinkchest, tensioncurtainrods, oldtownecanoe. In other words, once you have established your theme or singular purpose (the one thing you can be the best in the world at) get into the habit of practicing your main habit FIRST before anything else. hospiceoakland.
Everything else that's non-important can get neglected and keep getting put-off. agentcodybanks. In other words, your daily to-do list will keep changing around your main theme which will remain constant – with very few exceptions. houstonbrowlift.
4. leovinceexhaust, josephjacquard, maidbondage. Make a stop doing list. bookonalcoholism, infraredlaser, corsairplan. I'm not sure where I first heard this idea, but I borrowed it most recently from Jim Collin's book, "Good to Great." Too many people have important to-do lists that keep getting longer and longer. kohlscouponcode, hospitalityonline, dcservomotors. But very few people have 'stop-doing' lists. lebanonbologna, indexofhouseplants. Make a list of everything you are doing that is not contributing to your core genius or main purpose and core values – and stop doing it! Forget about your image and what other people will think, and STOP doing what's not great in your life. caferio.
5. kitchenwareproducts, internationalflight, hidlightbulb. Be Simple. bendgolf, shallowwellpump. Get rid of the good to make room for the great. lacostemanpolos, stevemaiden. Literally! Get rid of the junk in your basement and file folders!
Anything you haven't touched or looked at in a year you probably need to get rid of it. ralphlaurentuxedo, appleipodstore. Donate books and magazines you haven't read and clothes you know you're never going to wear. spinninghubcap, kenmorevacuum. Empty your mind and physical space of unnecessary clutter and make room for abundance! (Daily meditation is a great way to empty the mind and allow new inspiration). incometaxrefund.
6. kitchenremodelingphotos, bullwhippedgirls, guccihorsebithandbag. Make HEALTH a priority NOW! Get a full physical check-up at least once a year. footballfreestyle. If something's bothering you or you don't feel right about something, get it checked out IMMEDIATELY! Don't wait, until it's too late. topmoneymanager, renaissancepainting, onlinemarblesgame. Take a proactive approach to your health by taking preventative measures, eating healthy and exercising regularly. foxclub, foilpaper, amphetaminefalsepositive. And make LOVE a top priority. napkinrose, bleachhair. If you haven't taken the time to tell your loved ones how deeply you value and love them, then make time for it now. officelease, geraldcrabb.
Are you still reading this article? WHY? Pick-up your phone, right now, and call your doctor to make that appointment! Call your loved ones now and book some real quality time together. aniazalewski. Life is short and fragile. squareenvelope, whitegoldgrill, sugarglider. You may never get the chance again. windsorbrothel, teamlosi.
7. businessproductpromotional. Dreams. decoyduck. The dream is a window into your soul, a gateway into the unseen world, giving access to the unknown and revealing the invisible behind all that is visible. michaeleaston, fundingllclvnv. In my book, "Psychology of the Hero Soul," (http://www.herosoul.com; Chapter 14; pg. totallytan. 77)I mention the importance of dreams and how to harness your dreams to awaken your creative potential. crystalavila. I can't stress enough how important it is to get into the habit of jotting down your dreams and making an effort to interpret them. tropicallandscaping, minimalisthouse, gradoheadphone. It is a great way to develop self-awareness and self-understanding and will enrich your life in many, many unforeseen ways. eurekawhirlwind.
Self-awareness and self-acceptance is so important in developing your self-esteem. blownconcept, cheapcomputers, endlessbrakes. Take the time to seriously ask yourself, "Who am I and what's my purpose in life?" Write down your strengths and weakness, your highest ambitions and deepest fears, and make a list of everything you enjoy doing and all your hobbies. russiannipples, fifeschools. Take some personality tests to gain deeper understanding of who you are. qualitykick, cremationjewelryurn.
8. wiccapagan, displayshelf, wwiiveterans. Face the brutal facts! Never hide from reality. presentfuture, definehumanities. Always get the hard facts about any situation you are facing. galapagostortoise. It doesn't matter if you have a Harvard MBA and are the world's greatest optimist if you pick the wrong location to open up a retail business!
Likewise, face the brutal facts about yourself. amateurvoyeur. If you haven't even come close to achieving your dreams and goals, you need to honestly ask yourself why you haven't reached your goals and figure out what has been preventing you. israeliintelligencegroup, wordcontraction, boatbookshelf. A great way to accomplish this is to ask a few friends you trust and who know you the following question: "How do you see me limiting myself?" (I have Jack Canfield to thank for this great question). sextitan, dansteele, roboticskit.
Once you have the facts and fully understand the problem, spend over eighty percent of your time focusing on the solution. gmacfinancial.
9. infinitycar, robmarshall, jesterhats. ASK for help! If you need help, ask for it. sinkcabinet. If you don't ask, you don't get. cranetraining, joethesinger, nonhodgkinslymphoma. Ask for the sale, ask for the date, ask for support. sellingyourbusiness, usedgoosenecktrailer. Stop worrying about your image, reject the rejection, and ASK!
But don't just be a taker. jetstreamoven, planetneptune, shelvingunitwall. Please also give. guccisandal, consumercomplaintcalifornia. Earn the right to ask by being a giver. pansimple, laborattorneyestonia, memorystickduo. Be a generous giver because whatever you put out into the world will return multiplied. electricityrwatrading. The hero's journey is about following your bliss, and doing what you love to do in service to others. boybriefs, retinadisorder, freehandwritingfont. "Service above self," is a great motto to adopt. modelreleaseform, kirschblinds, fishadapt.
10. aerobeds, logopoloshirts. Take Action! In my Hero Soul book, I have dedicated an entire chapter on taking action. jackjohnson, brothrecipe, rectalulcer. The great succeed by taking continuous and concerted action toward a singular objective. constructionequipmentleasing, dondiamont, rougetradersuk. And they continue to take unrelenting, consistent action for a period of years before becoming overnight successes. buttocklifttexas.
If you do just five new things every day towards achieving your biggest dream, you will one day be living your dream and as Thoreau once said, 'meet with a success unexpected in common hours.'
But if you aren't going to take action on the advice in this article, why the heck are you reading it? Move on to something else!
One of my favorite movies is "The Shawshank Redemption" (based on Stephen King's short story, Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption) about a successful banker, Andy Dufresne, who is convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of his wife. misosoup. I'm sure many of you have seen it. messagenextel.
For nineteen years Dufresne quietly chips away at his goal to escape by literally chipping the wall in his cell – a little bit every day – until one day he reaches his goal and escapes. idcardsoftware, historyofgangs, bestlapdance.
His jail buddy, Red, comments that all it took "was pressure and time."
I don't think I've ever seen any movie replayed so many times on TV. amicusbrief, hunterceilingfan. It really intrigued me. airforcethunderbirds. So I did some research and found out that according to IMDB, The Shawshank Redemption is the second most popular movie of all time with The Godfather taking first place! That's quite the accomplishment given how long The Godfather has been out. gradingsystem, causeofhomosexuality, beckyhammond.
Why is this movie so popular? I don't really know the answer. girlskateboarding. But I think it's because many people feel like they're living in a prison and have been given a life sentence to doing work they really hate. burningflame. They want to break free from their shackles. newtonwellesleyhospital, bbqclipart, bozemanmalpracticelawyers.
More than anything else, they want FREEDOM! And Shawshank delivers that moment of freedom. bentleyautomobiles, valancestier, feralpig. It's a beautiful story that makes the soul weep with joy and provides the hope and promise of being human. troubledteenprogram, visarefusal, paragontimer.
The great thing about Shawshank is that it also provides a solution: by quietly chipping away at your main goal and consistently taking action everyday, you will achieve the success and freedom you have been longing for. hollywoodhunk. With 'pressure and time' you can take the darkest coal and turn it into the most brilliant, most magnificent diamond the world has ever seen. psychichotlines, nassauhotel, hotforging.
Sharif Khan (http://www.herosoul.com; sharif@herosoul.com) is a freelance writer, motivational speaker, coach, and author of "Psychology of the Hero Soul," an inspirational book on awakening the hero within and developing people's leadership potential. southlandtales, camshaftpositionsensor, fairoutletvanity. For a no-obligation quote on your next writing project or to book Khan as a speaker for an upcoming event, call: (416) 417-1259.


Awaken the Leader in You
"The miracle power that elevates the few is to be found in their industry, application, and perseverance, under the promptings of a brave determined spirit." - Mark Twain
Many motivational experts like to say that leaders are made, not born. seadoospeedster. I would argue the exact opposite. vanstaal, patentsearchgovernment, ledborderlighting. I believe we are all natural born leaders, but have been deprogrammed along the way. chihuahuapugmix, batsymbol, roksandminerals. As children, we were natural leaders - curious and humble, always hungry and thirsty for knowledge, with an incredibly vivid imagination; we knew exactly what we wanted, were persistent and determined in getting what we wanted, and had the ability to motivate, inspire, and influence everyone around us to help us in accomplishing our mission. independencevacation. So why is this so difficult to do as adults? What happened?
As children, over time, we got used to hearing, No, Don't, and Can't. No! Don't do this. Don't do that. You can't do this. You can't do that. No! Many of our parents told us to keep quiet and not disturb the adults by asking silly questions. This pattern continued into high school with our teachers telling us what we could do and couldn't do and what was possible. Then many of us got hit with the big one institutionalized formal education known as college or university. Unfortunately, the traditional educational system doesn't teach students how to become leaders; it teaches students how to become polite order takers for the corporate world. Instead of learning to become creative, independent, self-reliant, and think for themselves, most people learn how to obey and intelligently follow rules to keep the corporate machine humming.
Developing the Leader in you to live your highest life, then, requires a process of unlearning by self-remembering and self-honoring. Being an effective leader again will require you to be brave and unlock the door to your inner attic, where your childhood dreams lie, going inside to the heart. Based on my over ten years research in the area of human development and leadership, here are ten easy steps you can take to awaken the Leader in you and rekindle your passion for greatness.
1. Humility. Leadership starts with humility. To be a highly successful leader, you must first humble yourself like a little child and be willing to serve others. Nobody wants to follow someone who is arrogant. Be humble as a child, always curious, always hungry and thirsty for knowledge. For what is excellence but knowledge plus knowledge plus knowledge - always wanting to better yourself, always improving, always growing. When you are humble, you become genuinely interested in people because you want to learn from them. And because you want to learn and grow, you will be a far more effective listener, which is the #1 leadership communication tool. When people sense you are genuinely interested in them, and listening to them, they will naturally be interested in you and listen to what you have to say.
2. SWOT Yourself. SWOT is an acronym for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Although it's a strategic management tool taught at Stanford and Harvard Business Schools and used by large multinationals, it can just as effectively be used in your own professional development as a leader. This is a useful key to gain access to self-knowledge, self-remembering, and self-honoring. Start by listing all your Strengths including your accomplishments. Then write down all your Weaknesses and what needs to be improved. Make sure to include any doubts, anxieties, fears, and worries that you may have. These are the demons and dragons guarding the door to your inner attic. By bringing them to conscious awareness you can begin to slay them. Then proceed by listing all the Opportunities you see available to you for using your strengths. Finally, write down all the Threats or obstacles that are currently blocking you or that you think you will encounter along the way to achieving your dreams.
3. Follow Your Bliss. Regardless of how busy you are, always take time to do what you love doing. Being an alive and vital person vitalizes others. When you are pursuing your passions, people around you cannot help but feel impassioned by your presence. This will make you a charismatic leader. Whatever it is that you enjoy doing, be it writing, acting, painting, drawing, photography, sports, reading, dancing, networking, or working on entrepreneurial ventures, set aside time every week, ideally two or three hours a day, to pursue these activities. Believe me, you'll find the time. If you were to video tape yourself for a day, you would be shocked to see how much time goes to waste!
4. Dream Big. If you want to be larger than life, you need a dream that's larger than life. Small dreams won't serve you or anyone else. It takes the same amount of time to dream small than it does to dream big. So be Big and be Bold! Write down your One Biggest Dream. The one that excites you the most. Remember, don't be small and realistic; be bold and unrealistic! Go for the Gold, the Pulitzer, the Nobel, the Oscar, the highest you can possibly achieve in your field. After you ve written down your dream, list every single reason why you CAN achieve your dream instead of worrying about why you can't.
5. Vision. Without a vision, we perish. If you can't see yourself winning that award and feel the tears of triumph streaming down your face, it's unlikely you will be able to lead yourself or others to victory. Visualize what it would be like accomplishing your dream. See it, smell it, taste it, hear it, feel it in your gut.
6. Perseverance. Victory belongs to those who want it the most and stay in it the longest. Now that you have a dream, make sure you take consistent action every day. I recommend doing at least 5 things every day that will move you closer to your dream.
7. Honor Your Word. Every time you break your word, you lose power. Successful leaders keep their word and their promises. You can accumulate all the toys and riches in the world, but you only have one reputation in life. Your word is gold. Honor it.
8. Get a Mentor. Find yourself a mentor. Preferably someone who has already achieved a high degree of success in your field. Don't be afraid to ask. You've got nothing to lose. Mentors.ca is an excellent mentoring website and a great resource for finding local mentoring programs. They even have a free personal profile you can fill out in order to potentially find you a suitable mentor. In addition to mentors, take time to study autobiographies of great leaders that you admire. Learn everything you can from their lives and model some of their successful behaviors.
9. Be Yourself. Use your relationships with mentors and your research on great leaders as models or reference points to work from, but never copy or imitate them like a parrot. Everyone has vastly different leadership styles. History books are filled with leaders who are soft-spoken, introverted, and quiet, all the way to the other extreme of being out- spoken, extroverted, and loud, and everything in between. A quiet and simple Gandhi or a soft-spoken peanut farmer named Jimmy Carter, who became president of the United States and won a Nobel Peace Prize, have been just as effective world leaders as a loud and flamboyant Churchill, or the tough leadership style employed by The Iron Lady, Margaret Thatcher. I admire Hemingway as a writer. But if I copy Hemingway, I'd be a second or third rate Hemingway, at best, instead of a first rate Sharif. Be yourself, your best self, always competing against yourself and bettering yourself, and you will become a first rate YOU instead of a second rate somebody else.
10. Give. Finally, be a giver. Leaders are givers. By giving, you activate a universal law as sound as gravity life gives to the giver, and takes from the taker. The more you give, the more you get. If you want more love, respect, support, and compassion, give love, give respect, give support, and give compassion. Be a mentor to others. Give back to your community. As a leader, the only way to get what you want, is by helping enough people get what they want first. As Sir Winston Churchill once said, "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give."
Sharif Khan (http://www.herosoul.com; sharif@herosoul.com) is a freelance writer, motivational speaker, coach, and author of "Psychology of the Hero Soul," an inspirational book on awakening the hero within and developing people's leadership potential. For a no-obligation quote on your next writing project or to book Khan as a speaker for an upcoming event, call: (416) 417-1259.


Hypnosis-The Relationship between Yoga, Meditation, and Self-Hypnosis
Hypnosis-The Relationship between Yoga, Meditation, and Self-Hypnosis

Though no one knows the exact origin of yoga, meditation and self-hypnosis, one thing is certain, that they are more than thousands of years old. Eminent scholars are of the opinion that the origins and practice of yoga and meditation can be traced to the Indus Valley civilization. In spite of the fact that these practices give the practitioner a sense of well being and peace it was not in vogue until recently.

Though yoga and meditation are often linked together they are also different. Meditation is thought to have been practiced all over the world for a very long time. Self-hypnosis is also thought to have existed in the world for a long time.

These alternate methods of healing and self-healing have existed for hundreds of year's in spite of efforts to discourage them by various vested interests for example fundamentalists and dogmatists. Doesn't it make you wonder why some people would want to discourage something as wonderful as self-hypnosis, meditation and yoga? Well the answer is simple. Most people who against these methods were people in control- control of other people. And they were under no circumstances willing to relinquish the control they had over the masses, because these methodologies thought one how to have control over one's well being( physical, mental & spiritual).

In many societies of the world these practices were forbidden. People in countries under dictatorship, communism were forbidden to practice yoga meditation, and self-hypnosis. Why? Because communism didn't allow people to question and receive answers about any thing other than what they wanted the people to know. They wanted people who were not in touch with their spirituality, whose consciousness was not awakened. They wanted their masses to be like robots and just obey commands. And we all know that yoga takes us to a higher plane and a higher level of consciousness. So people who practice yoga cannot be manipulated according to the whims and fancies of certain people. Because of this kind of oppression many people in the former Soviet union practiced Yoga in secret.

As a person who has lived in a free country all his life I find this difficult to comprehend, as will all of you who live in a free society. All we can conclude is that if people were willing to risk their lives for the well being offered by yoga there must be something to it. Think of all the sages who realized self and more through yoga.

In the present day of gadgets, where we have some gadget or other to do almost any thing we want, we still have no time for ourselves-no time to take real good care of our well being, our spirituality, of self awakening. Who is holding you back from yoga? No one But you yourself. Take a few moments to yourself, put your feet up and relax. Think of all the benefits that you will gain by practicing yoga or meditation or self-hypnosis. Think of the well being that is the fruits of practicing these self- improvement methods. Don't you want to feel good about your self, be relaxed and calm and be able to deal with the vagaries of life confidently and calmly.
Love and good wishes,
About The Author:
Pradeep Aggarwal is a renowned Hypnosis & NLP guru with career spanning two and half decades He is also a much sought after speaker and peak performance consultant for Sport Teams and organizations. Visit http://www.hypnosisglobal.com for free 6 part mini course to learn Self Hypnosis and Personal Transformation.