Archive for motivation
Dreams Come True: Story of Audacity
Posted on 01.25.11 | 20 Comments
Photo by Kai Z Feng. Follow him on flickr.By Tina Su
What are your dreams? What are you passionate about?
Around the time I graduated University I became fascinatedwith photography. It became my first passion. I dreamed of becoming a professional photographer.
I loved photography, and dove in head first determined to make my dreams come true. I read books, took countless images, invested in equipments, spent countless hours in Photoshop, attended gallery showings, and took classes on specialized subjects.
I loved photography so much that –at one point- I built a darkroom from scratch, rented a large loft space to have my ideal studio setup and eventually married a photographer – who I admired, because he was so confident with his craft and was among the few successful working photographers I’d met. Most other photographers I encountered all struggled to make ends meet.
Popular search terms for this article:what would you do to make your dreams come true, dreams come true, are dreams true, dreams come true stories, What would you do to make your dreams come true?, dream come true story, story about dreams, stories about dreams coming true, article on dreams come true, dreams do come true stories
5 Essential Lessons on Success
Posted on 08.11.10 | 20 Comments
Photo by Aeschleah DeMartinoToday I want to talk about the ingredients that cause success. Why do some people succeed, while others fail? what separates the two. I’m constantly intrigued with the concepts involved in success and failure. I’ve dedicated my life to discovering and explaining what separates one from the other.
I spend my days learning about the laws and the principles of success. I believe if we learn these laws and principles we will succeed. In fact, if anyone learns these laws and principles, they will succeed.
The laws of success will move your life from the pit to the palace, from ordinary to extraordinary. With that, let’s take a look at five essential lessons on the causes of success.
(read more…)
Popular search terms for this article:on success, success is dependent on effort, lessons on success, lessons for success, success lessons, Success is a science; if you have the conditions you get the result, No journey is too great when one finds what he seeks, lessons of success, success is a science if you have the conditions you get the result, studies on not being passionate wont be successful
Goal Setting Secret – How to Achieve Any Goal
Posted on 08.04.10 | 31 Comments
Photo by Wynona RobisonBy Scott Young
This article looks at how a deliberate shift in our views on goal setting can net drastic cumulative results in the long run.
Whether it’s career goals or personal goals, we’ve all been there – setting aggressive and sometimes overtly ambitious goals, chasing after it, hitting road bumps and eventually become de- motivated to never see the goal come to fruition.
Nobody likes to be stuck in a plateau. You might spend months working hard towards a goal without seeing any progress. It can be incredibly frustrating to feel your motivations go unrewarded.
How you react to a plateau will decide whether you’re going to eventually be successful. While many people react by burning themselves out or quitting, some people continue showing up, every day. The people that show up, through sheer patience, will eventually break through their plateau.
Popular search terms for this article:how to achieve a goal, how to achieve any goal, goal setting, how to accomplish goals, i want to always achieve any goal i want, how to reach a goal, how to achieve goals, achieve goal, goals, how to achieve goal
The Ultimate Guide to Personal Motivation
Posted on 07.12.10 | 26 Comments
Photo by Edwin StempThis is going to be the last blog post I ever write. That’s it. After this one you won’t be reading any more articles by me online. In fact, the only reason I’m writing this is because I promised Tina I would and I don’t want to let her down.
If I promise someone something I try to follow through, so even though I’ve decided to knock blogging on the head and give up writing for good I wanted to finish with this one post for Think Simply Now first.
Hence the ultimate guide to personal motivation. I like the sound of ultimate because it means final and implies it’s the only guide you’ll ever need. This should be the motivational guide to end all guides because that’s what lazy people need. Reading’s brilliant for entertainment or education yet it’s also a great escape and procrastination device but if you’re reading about personal motivation there’s something you want to achieve. You’re ready to stop procrastinating, spinning your wheels and being lazy because there’s something you want to get done.
What do you want to do or what should you be doing? Is it a long term task like writing your memoirs or something quick but unpleasant like booking a dental appointment or going to it? Why can’t you get motivated? Are you reluctant to vacuum and mop the floor because you know within six hours of completing the job a mob of hungry children will have sprinkled it evenly with bread and cookie crumbs then smeared mud and honey on top? Or is there something deeper holding you back like fear, lack of confidence or perfectionism?
Popular search terms for this article:personal motivation, personal motivators, personal motivation examples, personal motivator, motivation personal, what is personal motivation, ultimate motivation, personal context motivation, motivation guide, what are personal motivators
How to Wake Up Inspired …
Posted on 06.09.10 | 34 Comments
Photo by Simón PaisInspiration is typically viewed as something that comes and goes. Some days you “feel it” more than others.
But what if you could be deeply and unconditionally inspired everyday? I bet it would make a difference in the quality of your life. You would probably wake up excited to start your day. You’d get more done, be more creative and feel more of that elusive “flow.” Being inspired also means enjoying the process more, instead of feeling forced and unnatural.
The best part of persistent inspiration is that action tends to be effortless. There isn’t so much trying, rather you’re more simply being and allowing whatever action is natural to flow out from you.
Most of us just wait for inspiration though. We passively anticipate our muse, instead of actively seeking it out.
“You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club.“
~Jack LondonI’ve been experimenting with something different for a while, purposefully taking responsibility for being inspired. For a while I didn’t know if it would work. Inspiration is kind of an elusive phenomenon after all. And even if you choose to look for inspiration, does that mean it will come?
Popular search terms for this article:how to be inspired, morning inspirational readings, waking up, how to wake up inspired, inspiration to wake up, Wake Up Inspired, wake up inspiration, how to wake up, how to be inspire, how to inspired
The Ups and Downs of Life + Personal News
Posted on 10.15.09 | 109 Comments
Photo by Vadim PacevBy Tina Su
Coming back from India, I was floating on a cloud of utter joy, blissfully unaware of the personal challenges and surprises that were about to hit me in the coming month.
While I had fantasized over the telling of what has happened over the past month, it quickly became obvious that the toughest part of my job is the potential of disclosing too much about my personal life, thus invading the privacy of those closes to me. Despite the juiciness of the story, I’ve decided to leave most of the details private.
I contemplated on why I wanted to write about it, and it became clear to me that the essence of the story is that we are forever riding the ups and downs of life, and that sometimes when the downs get really down, we lose touch with reality. In those moments, all we need is hope and a gentle nudge to remind us that it is only temporary, and that the highs are not far away.
Popular search terms for this article:ups and downs in life, life is full of ups and downs, ups and downs of life, lifes ups and downs, ups and downs, the ups and downs of life, life\s ups and downs, life ups and downs, life has ups and downs, ups and down in life
Overcoming a Rough Week
Posted on 06.03.09 | 40 Comments
Photo by Carlos Yepez (flickr stream).We all have bad days, but have you ever had one of those weeks when it seems everything is going wrong?
Monday, your alarm didn’t ring and you were late for work. Tuesday, your car broke down. Wednesday you lost your credit card. Thursday was your annual review and your employer informed you that, due to the economy, the company is not issuing raises this year. By the time Friday arrives and you can see the light at the end of the tunnel, you get a ticket for speeding. How do we handle a series of setbacks and bad news?
I recently had one of those weeks where it seemed that anything that could go wrong – did go wrong. The natural reaction most people have when the walls begin crumbling is to crumble right along with them.
I have developed a habit of not letting outside circumstances consume me. I have learned in the past that the events in your life do not determine the course of your life. Rather, it is your reaction to those events that will determine the quality of your life, and your life direction. In other words, it’s not what happens to you, it’s how you react to what happens to you.
Most of us can experience certain negative events and dismiss them. But when negative events seem to happen simultaneously – as they often do – they feel suffocating and impossible to overcome. This is when thoughts of giving in to that feeling of helplessness seem to evade the mind.
With the state of the economy and many people losing their jobs and homes, many of us feel powerless. But the truth is that there are many things we can do to help us cope with, and even change a bad situation.
Popular search terms for this article:rough week, rough week quotes, bad week quotes, quotes about a rough week, having a bad week quotes, rough week quote, tough week quotes, rough week meaning, A rough week, quotes rough week
Design Your Life
Posted on 01.08.09 | 78 Comments
Photo by the incredible Tom Palumbo of Anne St. Marie, 1959.By Tina Su
Are you tired of setting New Year’s resolutions only to find yourself faced with the same resolutions a year later? Don’t you just hate that feeling of guilt rising in your stomach at the thought of lost time, lost opportunities and lack of self-discipline?
I was at the gym last night and was shocked to see 3 times as many people there than normal. Rushing out of a locker room filled, hip-to-hip, with half-clothed ladies I’ve never seen before, I hopped on the last of twelve treadmills and gazed around the room in amazement – nearly every machine was occupied, the personal trainers were fully engaged, and there were countless new faces.
This is what I call “New Year’s Resolution Syndrome”.
It is well-known that gyms will overbook annual memberships at the start of each year, banking on the fact that many people will not follow through and will eventually stop showing up. Over the next few weeks, the traffic will slowly die down and the gym will be back to its normal and quiet self again.
What’s the problem here? The problem is that resolutions do not work. Especially the socially coined, “New Year’s Resolutions”. It’s a cliché that only 12% of people actually take action on and resolve.
What we need is a different approach. We need a system of designing our lives to sustainably improve the quality of our daily experience.
This article details a step-by-step system that I personally use for creating and living a balanced and meaningful life. Throw away ‘them TO-DO lists, and resolutions, because they don’t work – at least, they don’t last long enough to make a sustainable impact. Let’s drill down and focus on what really matters.
Popular search terms for this article:how to plan your life, ideal life, design your life, plan your life, life design, ideal lifestyle, blank performance profile wheel, how to design your life, the ideal life, my ideal life
13 Tips to Building Self Esteem
Posted on 12.23.08 | 48 Comments
Photo: Kevin Russ“People with high self-esteem are the most desired,
and desirable people in society.”
~ Brian TracyCan you recall the last time you were in an emotional slump, such that your beliefs in yourself and your abilities were slipping away? How can we maintain the beliefs we have in ourselves, such that we can live with less anxiety and more joy?
Just imagine the things we would accomplish if we had the belief that we could do absolutely anything, especially if we could maintain a level of self-esteem that no circumstance could shake. What would you be doing?
Self-esteem comes from positive self-imaging, and it is something that we proactively build for ourselves. Self-esteem doesn’t happen while we wait passively. When we leave it up to external factors, we build our self-esteem on sandy ground. What we want is a rock-solid foundation, and this only comes from building it within.
Throughout our daily routines, our minds are very good at picking up all the things we’ve done wrong, and it makes sure we are aware of them. With such a counter-productive force at work, we can benefit greatly by regularly working towards establishing and building our own self image.
I’ve learned that the way we view ourselves directly affects everything we do. People with high self-esteem get along easily with others, rarely get sick, and seem to have high energy reserves. Also, their high level of self-esteem corresponds with their high level of productivity, capacity of happiness and state of well-being.
Popular search terms for this article:building self esteem, improving self esteem, self esteem building, building self-esteem, developing self esteem, building self worth, self-esteem scale for high school folk dancers, tips for building self esteem, self esteem builders, raising self esteem
How to Achieve Anything
Posted on 12.10.08 | 84 Comments
Photo: Kevin Russ. Check out his stock portfolio.By Tina Su
Is there a goal you want to accomplish, but just cannot find the time to start it? It might be something trivial like, to reduce the amount of TV watching, or time spent browsing the Internet. It might be, to become an early riser, or to quit drinking alcohol, or to start a home business. Whatever it is, what is keeping you where you are instead of reaching your desired destination?
I have several such targets in my life that I often think about, but rarely take action on. Each time I’m reminded of one of them, I would guiltily say, “I really should do [blah]“, and then forget about it until the next time guilt creeps back into my head.
One such target I have is to exercise. I’ve been talking about wanting to get in shape for about two years now. I even setup an arbitrary goal of doing a triathlon to get me excited. I did start to go running shortly after setting the goal, which lasted for about a week, before I became distracted with another target.
I like to think of myself as a pretty disciplined and motivated person – I mean, I write about this stuff! But, something about this particular target has been very psychologically challenging for me to take consistent action on. And I want to understand it.
Popular search terms for this article:how to achieve, how to achieve anything, how to accomplish anything, achieve anything, how to achieve what we want, how to achieve everything, how to achive, how to accomplish, how to achieve what i want, I can achieve anything
