66 posts categorized "Abundance"

November 23, 2011

ThanksGiving Prescription: Exercise Your Gratitude Muscle

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Think of Thanksgiving as a platform to express, feel and share gratitude. 

It's easy, with all this Black Thursday Night and Black Friday talk, to think of Thanksgiving as a commercially made up holiday.  But it's not.  It's certainly at risk of being hijacked by the money changers, but still, it was created to observe a moment in spirit.  A moment of abundance, community and fulfillment. 

Many of you are up to your ears in last minute work or travel plans.  But don't let that distract from the opportunity at hand: Give thanks.  In Today We Are Rich, I talk about how my grandmother Billye always reminded me that gratitude is a muscle, not a feeling.  "If it was a feeling," she'd say, "you'd feel it all the time!" 

So, the key to staying gracious (gratitude is a compound word: Gracious+Attitude), is to flex your mental ability to sense bounty, attribute it correctly and express your feelings accordingly.  There's no time like Thanksgiving to do that, without raising any suspicions amongst the cynics.  Here's what I recommend for tomorrow, before the Turkey and football: 

1 - Itemize your support system: Spiritual, Family, Friends, Work and Community.  Think of their intentions towards you, how much they love you or are aligned with your goals.  Always start gratitude exercises out focused on the sources of abundance (people, God, etc.) and not the symptoms of abundance (wealth, stuff, luxuries).  

2 - Review how much your supporters have done for you over the last year.  Don't forget to include the smallest gestures, often, they are the ones that make the biggest difference to us.  Think of how far you've come in the last year, and how you couldn't do it by yourself. 

3 - Invest a sitcom's worth of time writing a note or making a phone call to one-loving-soul to share your feelings and express your gratitude.  There's an old saying that's appropriate here: Feeling gratitude and not expressing it is like wrapping a gift, but never giving it."  You'll find that this part of the exercise leads to a real feeling of abundance on your part - far more effective than merely counting your blessings. 

4 - Now, as a leader, help others in your life do this too.  Be public about your exercise and encourage others to join you. Don't let the Thanksgiving Grump have his way, push him to admit that he's not alone in life, and that others are there for him.  This is the season to realize that we have so much to be thankful for, and there are so many forces in the world that want to take that feeling away from us - because scarcity is the ultimate motivator of men to act. 

Express your gratitude in comments, and experience the joy of expressed-thanks.  Thanks to Sue Jenks for the graphic above, which I found this AM on my Top Stories feed on Facebook. 

 

November 07, 2011

Thoughts On Turning 50

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Yesterday I turned 50.  I've been thinking about it for months. 

Not in a good or a bad way, just in a profound way: What does it mean? When I turned 40, the theme was, "it's the new 30, just a number!".  The last big birthday milestone for me was 21, the age of legality and adulthood.  

Our society makes a big deal out of turning 50, punctuated by my receipt of my inagural edition of AARP's magazine with my name emblazoned on the address label.  Others I know have wrung their hands or shrugged their shoulders at turning 50.  Everyone has a different POV about it, largely influenced by circumstances. 

For me, turning 50 was a milestone, but not necessarily the last one.  My thoughts crystalized over the weekend at a hot dog stand in Studio City, where I stopped for a guilty pleasure lunch.  First: I got a polish with sauerkraut instead of a chil-cheese dog (my all time fave).  That symbolized my sort-of-recent focus on eating and living healthy.  I can still have fun, I realized, it just needs to be thoughtful.  

As you get older, you realize you are not invincible and lifestyle decisions have real consequences. I went to the doctor with a cold last week, and she reminded me to have annual blood work, especially to check my blood sugar. "Diabetes will cost you 10 years of your life," she repeated to me.  Wow, 10 years is a long time, I thought.  I contemplated all the live I lived between September 11, 2011 and today.  It was a life's worth of challenges, opportunities and thrilling adventures.  Wouln't trade that for anything.  So, I'm going to live healthy, to live longer.  

Second, I noticed an octo-generian with her grandkids, huffing and puffing to keep up with them. She fawned over them like it was the last time she'd ever see them.  In that observation, my second thought emerged: You are not getting older, just closer to the end of your story. 

Everyone of us lives a story.  It has a beginning, a very long middle and an end...sometimes sudden and short.  We are the producer, director and protagonist of it.  Sometimes the antagonist too.  I've been thinking about my story, my significance, that I'm trying to tell with my words and deeds.  It's a Love Story, that's for sure - my relationship with the world based on my belief that people are good and shouldn't suffer unecessarily.  

As I get closer to the end of my story, I become more attuned to the feedback loop that informs me as to whether I'm giving, using or taking in my day-to-day life.  50 isn't the end, but by all accounts, it's the clear beginning of my life's Second Half (or 2nd Act).  So, wishful intentions are not enough. I need to contribute in a meaningful way I can measure, iterate on and improve on until the day I die. 

And so 50, then, is a milestone that means this to me: Live long and (help others) Prosper. 

October 13, 2011

Now is the time to make your bold move!

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Today, I challenged my audience to embrace the opportunity that a recession offers us all. 

Whoa!??? That was their first response.  They were used to hearing this spin from politicians, trying to deflect blame for misery by uttering the O-Word.  But not from a leadership coach, who argues that our role is to define reality then give hope. 

But the research is on my side.  Take the article Hanging Tough, which I've been touting for two years now. It reviews research on every recession since 1901 and reveals some of the boldest moves ever made in US Business History: The launch of Rice Krispies, Miracle Whip and Chevy (all in the 30's). The launch of the iPod in Oct 2001 (the double whammy of the dotcom bust and 9/11).  The rise of Hyndai in 2009 and 2010, doubling down with new products and aggressive advertising. 

Why were all these moves prescient? Because, as Mark Cuban once said, "Recessions are the great equalizer.  Everyone is a genius in a Bull Market."  He's right too.  Recessions usually start because of a technical breakdown in an industry (tech in 2011, mortgage/stocks in 2008, so on).  Then the impact ALWAYS spreads to every industry and no company is immune to the shrinkage.  

Too often, though, we have blinders on - thinking that we are alone in our misery.  The fact is that your competition is hurting too, and likely, they are in survial mode.  Cutting budgets, waiting to see if there's a double dip coming, laughing at you when you introduce a disruptive produce or launch a startup.  The point is, they are watching you, not responding to you like they did in better times.

And that's why the time is now.  You have a chance to try someone 'under the radar' - and perhaps leapfrog your bigger competitors with more to lose.  Try this in a few years when the economy is humming again and watch your innovations get copied, scaled faster via deep pockets and pummeled.  

Here's the way to balance it all: Form a mastermind group of trusted sources of financial and technical market strength.  Bootstrap everything you can, and execute-learn-improve your new ideas as publicly as possible to steal mindshare.  Harness collective fear as your shield, and take advantage of today - because today you are rich in opportunity to be the Phoenix and not the Fodder. 

 

June 30, 2011

Barry J. Moltz on Feeding Your Mind Good Stuff

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An excerpt from the forward of the Barry J. Moltz Edition of Feed Your Mind Good Stuff

Many of us think a lot about the food we put in our bodies. We realize that if our bodies does not have good fuel, it can’t perform well.

Tim Sanders, in his new book, Today We Are Rich asks if we similarly think about the information that we put in our mind. This is critical because we are what we think about. How can we have the resiliency to ride the daily business roller coaster up and down if we feed our minds junk? This includes the hor- rors of the nightly newscasts, sitcoms and reality TV shows. What shape is our mind in after answering a barrage of emails or aimlessly surfing the web? What about the negative people, gossip and nasty attitudes that we are exposed to every day?

Tim believes that we need to go on a “mind diet” in order to radically change our attitude and therefore our level of confi- dence. He says that “When good stuff goes into your mind, good thoughts emerge. People who maintain purposeful mind diets of positive stimuli think healthy thoughts”...

Click here to read Barry J. Moltz's entire forward from Today We Are Rich - Principle 1 - Feed Your Mind Good Stuff.

Because the seven principles of confident living are principles that some of the most successful people you know live by, I wanted to provide a forum for these same people to tell you why they love this book. Each custom edition features a special forward written by our participants. Find out more about the Today We Are Rich Custom Editions here.

 

June 17, 2011

The problem with "Just Think Positive!"

These days, I spend my time promoting positive thinking. 

But, there's an important distinction between my work and the modern psycho-babble movement that tells people "Just Think Positive", "Fake It Till You Make It" or "Snap Out Of It!".  In each case, when we give this prescription, we ask for the impossible. 

It's like telling someone who's fighting obesity to "just think thin".  They would tell you that it's not that easy.  Same goes with people and their thinking patterns.  Positive thinking (confidence, optimism or the absence of negative thought) are all OUTCOMES of lifestyle design or circumstance. 

Circumstance is when good things happen to you, and your thoughts get sunny.  Those come and go, and this explains why some people are up and down, depending on the direction of their times.  In my work, I offer lifestyle design tips that will produce positive thinking, confidence and happiness - independent of external circumstances. They are outlined in full in Today We Are Rich: Harnessing The Power Of Total Confidence and the first four include:

1 - Feed Your Mind Good Stuff (free 34 page mini ebook)

2- Move The Conversation Forward (talk like you want to think) 

3 - Exercise Your Gratitude Muscle 

4 - Give To Be Rich 

In each case, you need to invest time and energy and in some cases, change your life patterns.  I won't kid you, it's hard work to think positive, even when circumstances are not favorable.  But it's essential if you want to be consistently happy, helpful or effective.  I invest about as much time on positive thinking daily as most people do in physical fitness or beauty.  And it's worth it! 

June 09, 2011

Update: Today We Are Rich Book-Launch Tour

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I gave over twenty talks in May to support the release of the book - thanks to everyone that stepped up with promotional opportunities.  In the above pic (credit: Kenny Kim), I'm presenting from the DJ booth at the Chicago Social Media Club monthly meeting at Frontier.  

As a result of our hard work, Today We Are Rich was the #2 best selling book on the Inc. Magazine/800ceoread business best seller list for May!  Check out bulk order packages.

There are a few tour stops to go this month, and all of them are open to the public:

1 - Weds 6/15 - Phoenix "Valley of the Sun HR" luncheon. Registration and Information Page

2 - Thurs 6/16 - Dallas "Social Media Club" evening reception. Registration and Information Page

3 - Tues 6/21 - NYC "Leader Connections Executive Forum." PM  Registration and Information Page

4 - Weds 6/22 - Bronx NY "Burroughs Business Breakfast" Registration and Information Page

Check out tour picture on the book's Facebook Page.

Recent media coverage for Today We Are Rich:

1 - KARE "News at 4:00" TV Program

2 - Careersparx "Harness Confidence In Your Job Search"

3 - Investors Business Daily "Train The Working Mind"

 

May 31, 2011

Gratitude Is A Compound Word: Gracious + Attitude

During my book tour, I've met a lot of great people. 

One of the most remarkable was a driver, that took me to my hotel in Denver.  His  name is Shawn, and prior to being a driver, he was a nurse at an assisted living facility.  I told him about Today We Are Rich, and the principle of gratitude.  When anyone asks me why I'm in town, I talk about the book and Billye.  

He responded that his grandmother taught him gratitude too, and how important it was to your attitude and behavior.  He said that until he was an adult, he thought that gratitude was a compound word: Gracious + Attitude.  His grandmother said that being grateful wasn't just about saying thanks or appreciating the source.  Gratitude should make you polite, forgiving and thoughtful - gracious.  (See his video interview)

This is why I start off every day with a Gratitude Exercise.  It begins the day by injecting gratefulness into my psyche.  In the book, I explain that this will increase your confidence by telling you that "you are not alone."  My conversation with Shawn takes it a step further, beyond the appreciation or 'thanks for the help' expression. 

Gratitude can/should/must transform your attitude.  It should make you empathetic and sympathetic to others, especially those that might irritate, annoy or disappoint you.  You should be forgiving, loving and understanding when you are grateful.  As Billye taught me growing up, "you can't be hateful when you are grateful." 

So start off tomorrow with gratitude, fill yourself up to the brim, and measure your attitude all day long with this thought: Gratitude should lift my attitude, making me the giver, lover and helper all day long.  

Try this one next time you are traveling for business! Be gracious when the flight is delayed.  Be gracious when going through security or boarding the plane.  Be gracious as you go from the airport to the hotel, to dinner and to meetings.  I promise, you'll enjoy this trip living in the good loop!

May 26, 2011

What Executive Coach and Author Scott Eblin Learned from His Rock

Billye, Tim’s Grandma, raised him from the age of 5 and became his "rock" in life. She taught him principles that grounded him and helped him succeed later as an adult. Her influence, words and love had profound effect on Tim’s life and inspired his book "Today We Are Rich." Think of a particular person who has had a similar impact on your life. Who was that person and how did, or do, you know them?

My grandfather, Leonard Eblin.  To me, he was Pa-Pa..


How did they help to shape your life or life philosophies?

Before I was born, Pa-Pa was a Scoutmaster who took troops of Scouts to Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico on a regular basis.  When I was old enough as a little guy to understand what he was doing, I desperately wanted to go to Philmont with him.  Of course, I wasn't old enough to do that as a six or seven year old but as soon as I was old enough I joined the Cub Scouts because that was the way I'd get to do what Pa-Pa was doing.  That path eventually led to me becoming an Eagle Scout.  Like they say, once an Eagle Scout, always an Eagle Scout.  The tenets of the Scout Law, trustworthy, brave, loyal, thrifty, brave, clean, reverent and all the rest have been guideposts for me throughout my life.


Tell us about a specific lesson you learned from them, or a piece of advice they gave to you?

My grandfather was very practical.  Two lessons from him really stick with me.  First, when you're camping in cold weather, always change out of the clothes you wore all day before getting into your sleeping bag. The reason is the sweat that's retained in your clothes from the activity of the day will give you the chills at night.  The second big lesson from Pa-Pa is to serve others.  He was 93 when he died and he helped build over 50 houses for Habitat for Humanity between ages 75 and 85.  I'm still a lot younger than that but aspire to serve in the way he did.


Have you ever drifted away from their grounding advice?  What price did you pay? 

There have certainly been times when I've been more focused on the extrinsic markers of success than the more intrinsic ones I learned from Pa-Pa.  I don't have any dramatic stories of failure from those times but definitely recognize the difference in my overall peace of mind and happiness.

 

Find out more about Leonard Eblin at http://scotteblin.typepad.com/blog/2008/08/a-good-scout.html

Find out more about Scott Eblin, executive coach and author of The Next Level: What Insiders Know About Executive Success at:

www.eblingroup.com  (company site)
www.scotteblin.com (leadership blog)
@scotteblin  (Twitter)
The Eblin Group (Facebook) 

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Scott-eblin From Tim Sander's to Scott's grandfather, Leonard Eblin, we want to thank you for helping make Scott who he is today. You have helped make the world a better place.

 
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This interview is part of a series of interviews focusing on some of the great Rocks that have influenced our lives. Just as Tim's new Book, Today We Are Rich, shares what he learned from his rock, Billye, we want to pass on the knowledge of some other great rocks out there.

Rock on! Be a Rock, or applaud a Rock you know. 

Was your grandma your Rock, or did she have some grate advice? Tell us on Great Stuff My Grandma Said.

May 13, 2011

Sideways: Here's a question that can change your life

The key to getting back on your feet again is likely inside you. 

That's what I learned in my encounter with Eric (as told in my new book) about a decade ago.  He was a rock star during the boom, was rattled by the dotcom bust and recession - and found himself going sideways for an entire year. 

He was suffering a "personal recession" where he stopped growing as a person, leading and believing in himself.  It's very natural for all of us to experience this when faced with economic adversity and prolonged periods of uncertainty.  We stop boning up for the future and just focus on "getting by." That's what it means to move sideways, wasting valuable time and letting our lack of emotional control eat away at us. 

What can you do?  Ask yourself, "What am I not doing today that I was doing back in the day, when I was on top?" Think about where you put your energy.  What was your focus point of attention.  Who were you giving to and how often?  These sub-questions may shake loose the personal performance techniques you were using when you were rocking it.  Sure, there was probably a market-tailwind, giving your circumstantial confidence - and a freedom to invest in yourself and others too.  

Don't wait for the market or your pocketbook to starting investing, giving and Going Positive again. The recession didn't happen because you were studying up, reaching out, being social or mentoring others.  If not now, when will your good biz-habits of 2006 really move the needle at work? 

Ask yourself these questions, discover your personal growth strategy and end your personal recession.  NOW.  While you go sideways, others move forward and leap over you with their faith. Besides, are you really happy being stuck in time?

 

 

May 10, 2011

Michael Gilbert, Chief Executive Officer of element6, on Feeding Your Mind Good Stuff

An excerpt from the forward of the Michael Gilbert Edition of Feed Your Mind Good Stuff (an excerpt from the book, Today We Are Rich)

Why do you think it’s important to Feed Your Mind Good Stuff?

As a successful entrepreneur for 16 years (and 14 businesses) I have found the businesses that failed were a direct result of focusing on the negatives instead of the positives. One business I started was the first company in the country to launch wireless broadband in Republic, Missouri alongside Motorola. That did not guarantee our success. Years after we shuttered that business I realized there were many things we could have done to make it a success. I believe the main reason wasn’t lack of funding, lack

of know how, or lack of sales. It was the negative people we had associ- ated ourselves with. They focused on the negatives, instead of the posi- tives. That was reflected in our concentration of our competition and lack of funding. If we had focused on the positives we could have come up with different solutions that are now evident to me. Now I realize that negative people influence me much more that positive people. They are like a virus. If you don’t feed your mind positive and motivating thoughts and associate yourself with positive poeople, you’ll get caught up in their illness and soon you’ll be spreading the disease as well.

How has this changed your life or improved your performance?

In our current business we have “Ferris Bueller’s Day off DAY”. It’s the day that any employee can call in sick, with pay, if they are in a bad or negative mood. Negativity is an illness. It spreads through the office like a plague...

Click here to read Michael Gilbert's entire forward from Today We Are Rich - Principle 1 - Feed Your Mind Good Stuff.

Because the seven principles of confident living are principles that some of the most successful people you know live by, I wanted to provide a forum for these same people to tell you why they love this book. Each custom edition features a special forward written by our participants. Find out more about the Today We Are Rich Custom Editions here.

 

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