Art for your Lifestyle

The chapter on persistence in Napoleon Hill’s book “Think and Grow Rich” really strikes a cord with me. Hill defines persistence as “the sustained effort necessary to induce faith”.

In week two of my ten week action course we learned that the key to success is persistence. Hill writes that you must have a crystal clear picture of what you want and a plan to achieve it. Focus on creating a timeline and acting on your plan with persistence.

It is okay to have a plan that changes over time. Plans can be flexible and molded but they must be made. A plan without a timeline may never get done at all. Our instructor inspires us: “Do all that you can do, not as little as you can do. Create and follow a habit of persistence and you will win in ways you never dreamed possible!”

Hill aknowledges that most people are ready to “give up at the first sign of opposition or misfortune. A few carry on despite all opposition, until they attain their goal.” It’s so true. Where many have equal opportunity it is those who persevere who attain their desires.

We have all heard the expression “get back on the horse” but do we really understand and apply it in our own lives? My friend and fashion designer Kim Cathers says: “I think life is all about being torn down and broken down and then building it back up again. And what you have in the end will be bigger and stronger than what you ever had before.” That is huge.

Life can throw you down and sometimes it seems like it would be easier not to get up. It is hard to do anything when you are not feeling motivated. My uncle always said though that action comes first and then motivation. You see, motivation comes FROM action. Through analyzing thousands of people Hill “discovered that most ideas are stillborn, and need the breath of life injected into them through definite plans of immediate action.”

It is better to aim high than wide. If your goals are too broad and vague, then you are less likely to achieve success. Focus in on what you really want. Be specific. Famous motivational speaker Zig Ziglar says it best: “You cannot make it as a wandering generality. You must become a meaningful specific.”

In every book and course I have taken on success, the theme is consistent: Have a clear goal of what you want. Taking this further, when you write down your goal you will have a more powerful intention to complete it. There is even a book called “Write it Down, Make it Happen” by Henriette Anne Klauser. In her book, Klauser tells stories of unbelievable dreams coming true after they have been put down on paper.

People who write down their goals and focus in on what they want are more likely to succeed at what they do. In his book “Think & Grow Rich” Napoleon Hill explains that if you have a deep and burning desire and you write your goals down clearly and concisely then you can have anything you want. He writes that “Whatever the Mind of Man can CONCEIVE and BELIEVE it can ACHIEVE.”

When the movie “The Secret” came out in 2006 it explored the idea of attracting what you want in your life through your thoughts. Philosopher and Motivational Speaker Bob Proctor describes this theory in his book “You Were Born Rich”: “desire without expectation is nothing more than wishful thinking and as we have already pointed out, since the vast majority of people wish positive but expect negative, they seldom attain what they are after… In other words, your ideal, dream or goal — this wealth you wish to see materialize — can only become a desire once it has been properly planted in the subconscious mind.”

The law of attraction states that not only must you think positively of what you desire, but you must also feel as though you already have it. Being open and ready to receive your dreams is sometimes more important than the journey to get there. Be in a constant state of gratitude for what you already have in your life and know in your heart that your dreams are going to come true.

So follow your heart. Seek your dream. Chase your desire. Write down your goals. If you believe in yourself and follow your dreams then you can achieve anything you set out to do. Aim high; you don’t need luck, you just need faith.

I am taking a 10 week course right now on goal setting, action plans, positive thinking and building your business. Here are some of the steps to success that we have been focusing on in the training:

• Where are you in life and how did you get there? Nothing happens by accident.
• Focus on where you are going next. Have a crystal clear picture of what you want.
• Put it in writing.
• Read your mission statement every day.
• Have a time line for your goals.
• Develop a plan to achieve your goals.
• Have no limits ~ Do not let limits stop you.
• Don’t expect too little out of life.