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In a way, human beings behave like bees. If you place several bees in an open-ended bottle and lay the bottle on its side with the base toward a light source, the bees will repeatedly fly to the bottle bottom toward the light. It never occurs to them to reverse gears and try another direction. This is a combination of genetic programming and learned behaviour.

Put a bunch of flies in that bottle and turn the base toward a bright light. Within a few minutes, all the flies will have found their way out. They try all directions—up, down, toward the light, away from the light, often bumping into the glass—but sooner or later they flutter forth into the neck of the bottle and out the opening.

We often allow ourselves to become locked in our present circumstances—even if we are unhappy and really want to be reaching in a new direction. What we’re doing may make us miserable, but at least it’s familiar. One of the most important factors in achieving personal success is the willingness to try things out, to experiment, to test new ground. In fact, this is the only way to learn and progress: trial, error, feedback, knowledge, trial and success. It is a far better thing to try to succeed and fail, than to do nothing and succeed.

This week:

* Try it
* Change it
* Do it

Stop stewing and start doing!

-- Denis Waitley

Let me pass on to you these four simple steps to success:

Number one is good ideas. Be a collector of good ideas. My mentor taught me to keep a journal when I was twenty five years old. I've been doing it now all these years. They will be passed on to my children and my grandchildren. If you hear a good health idea, capture it, write it down. Don't trust your memory. Then on a cold wintry evening, go back through your journal, the ideas that changed your life, the ideas that saved your marriage, the ideas that bailed you out of bankruptcy, the ideas that helped you become successful, the ideas that made you millions. What a good review. Going back over the collection of ideas that you gathered over the years. So be a collector of good ideas for your business, for your relationships, for your future.

The next step to success is to have good plans. A good plan for the day, a good plan for the future, a good health plan, a good plan for your marriage. Building anything is like building a house, you need to have a plan. Now here is a good time management question: When should you start the day?

Answer: As soon as you have it finished. It is like building a house, building a life. What if you just started laying bricks and somebody asks, "What are you building?" And you say, "I have no idea." See they would come and take you away to a safe place. So, don't start the house until you finish it. Now, is it possible to finish the house before you start it? Yes, but it would be foolish to start before you had it finished. Not a bad time management idea. Don't start the day until it is pretty well finished -- at least the outline of the day. Leave some room to improvise. Leave some room for extra strategies, but finish it before you start it.

And here is the next piece that is a little more challenging: Do not start the week until you have it finished. Lay it out, structure it, then put it to work. Then the next one is a little tougher yet; do not start the month until you have it finished.

And finally the big one, don't start the year until it is finished on paper. It's not a bad idea, toward the end of the year, to sit down with your family for the family structure plans, sit down in your business for the business plans, sit down with your financial advisor for your investments and map out the year... properties to buy, properties to sell, places to go with your family, lay out the year. I finally learned to do that. It was also helpful for my family to show them where they appeared on my calendar. You know I used to have my business things on there and I used to have my lectures and my seminars all laid out on my calendar, and guess what the children said, "Where are we on the game plan, please show us our names on the game plan." So you need to do it for your children, for your spouse, for your friends.

Now, here is the third step to success, and it can be really challenging. Learning to handle the passing of time. It takes time to build a career, it takes time to make changes, so give your project time, give your people time. If you're working with people, give them time to learn, grow, change, develop, produce. And here is the big one, give yourself time. It takes time to master something new. It takes time to make altered changes and refinement in philosophy as well as activity. Give yourself time to learn, time to get it, time to start some momentum, time to finally achieve. It is easy to be impatient with yourself. I remember when I first tried to learn to tie my shoes. The shoe strings, it seemed like it would take me forever. Finally I got it and it didn't take forever, but it seemed like for a while I'd never learn, I'd get it backwards; the bow goes up and down instead of across. How do I straighten that out? Finally I got it, it just took time.

Mama taught me a little bit about playing the piano. "Here is the left hand scale", she'd say. I got that, it was easy. Then she said, "Here is the right hand scale." I got that, that was easy. Now she said, "We are going to play both hands at the same time." I said, "Well, how can you do that?" Now one at a time was easy... but at the same time? Looking at this hand and looking at that hand, finally I got it. Finally I got where I could play the scales with both hands. Then I remember the day she said, "Now we are going to read the music and play with both hands." I thought, "You can't do all that." But you know, sure enough I'm looking at the music, looking at each hand, a little confused at first, but finally I mastered it. It took a little time to read the music and play with both hands. Then I remember the day she said, "Now we are going to watch the audience, read the music and play with both hands. I thought, "Now that is going too far!" How could you possibly do that? But see adding them one at a time and giving myself time to master one before we went to the next one; sure enough I got to where I could watch the audience, read the music and play with both hands. So the lesson here is: Give yourself time, you can become a better pro, you can better master the art of parenting, you can better master the art of managing time, conserving resources, working together as a partner. Give yourself time.

And here's the last one; learning to solve problems. Business problems, family problems, financial problems, emotional problems, etc. -- challenges for us all. Here's the best way to treat a problem: As an opportunity to grow. Change if you have to, modify if you must, discard an old philosophy that wasn't working well for a new one. The best phrase my mentor ever gave me was when he said, "Mr. Rohn if you will change, everything will change for you." Wow, I took that to heart, and sure enough the more I changed the more everything changed for me.

So learn to master good ideas, have good plans, handle the passing of time and solve problems, and you will be on your way to more success than you could ever imagine!

To Your Success,
Jim Rohn

Most people think that failure is bad and success is good. I want to help you change your thinking about that if you fall into that category. I will give you that failure isn't fun and success is, but I think the following is true:

Both failure and success are good... if you know what their specific purpose is.

Of course we know that success is good, but why? Success is good because it confirms things for us.

Success confirms our plans.
Success confirms our decisions.
Success confirms our resources.
Success confirms our strategies.
Success confirms our hunches.
Success confirms our teamwork.
Success confirms our risks.
Success confirms a lot of things!

So when you are successful, ask yourself the following question: What does this success confirm in my mind?

Now, what about failure? What is the role of failure and how in the world can it be GOOD?

Failure's role is to teach us. We learn from failure.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our plans.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our decisions.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our resources.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our strategies.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our hunches.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our teamwork.
Failure teaches us that we need to change our risks.
Failure teaches us that we need to change a lot of things!

But at least now we know one more thing that won't work! With every failure, we learn one more way we can abandon and focus in on what may be the correct way in the future! When we look at it that way, we set ourselves up for a powerfully successful future! So when you fail, ask yourself this question: What does this failure teach me? Remember, Success and Failure are both good. They can both be your friend... If you know what role they are to play in your life. Learn From Failure and Confirm with Success.

-- Chris Widener

1. Dream Big.

All the millionaires, interviewed had big dreams. They believed they were worth more than a 9-5 job. They believed there is more to life than working for 40 hours a week(or more), for 40 years, only to take a 40% pay cut once they reached retirement. Along with those dream they were prepared to risk some capital. They are prepared to risk the odds (or accept reasonable risk) and just go for it. A number of them risked the farm a few times. Now don't get me wrong, I don't want you to risk the farm. But you may decide to take a few of those hard earned bucks and try something new. Something part time. To see if you can build a small business, option a stock, flip some real estate properties, for cash.

2. Get Out of your Comfort Zone.

We all move into a comfort zone. Unfortunately, the comfort zone often holds us back. For years, I believed I was worth about $50,000 a year. And during those years working for someone else that is what I was paid. After an awakening I an awakening I believed I was worth $250,000 a year. I quite my job and started my own business. Well I didn't hit the $250K. I only earned $245K that year. You must attack your comfort zone. You must get out side of it. Push yourself to do things you don't like. Push yourself to break your limiting beliefs and poor habits. All successful people know the undiscovered planet. The realm of the unknown and the new. It is your turn now.

3. Work Smart not Hard.

Millionaires tend to work smarter not harder. Don't get me wrong, they are still prone to 16 hour days, etc, but they use their time much more effectively. They have a better plan for making money. A better plan for cashing in on their labour. And if they are going to work 16 hours a day the fruit of their labour will be their own. They won't necessary make it for someone else. Here are a couple of smart strategies. Invest in real estate, own a small business, let your money make money, invest in stocks, manage do not do, be unique in the marketplace, and copy someone else's success.

4. The Quick & the Dead.

One of the major rules for these folks is action. While you are thinking about this right now, someone else is taking action. Starting a new business. Taking control of their credit. Starting an internet business. Buying their first home or an investment property. Cutting their taxes by 50%. Don't analyse to death. Make a judgement and take fast action.

5. Take Emotions out of decisions.

We are taught in our culture to weigh both sides of a decision. Good advice. The problem is most people get caught up in the weighing. We spend all the time searching for one more piece of information. They review it to death. Should we, shouldn't we. By that time the opportunity is gone. The reason is that most people are stopped by one thing...FEAR. Fear of loss, Fear of failure, Fear of rejection. Let me suggest to you that that fear is holding you back. It is costing you financially & emotionally. Millionaires learn to conquer fear. To push past it. To simply look at 3 things. First, the investment. Second, the return. Third the probability of success. If it has a good return on investment... go for it.

6. Total Commitment.

Successful people give all their all and never say the words "I tried." Either they got the result or not. They give everything to a project. It keeps them up late, gets them up early. They work their 40 hour week job and then put another 20 hours in buying real estate or starting their small business. Even if they are tired. Let it not be said of you when you are old and gray "That you missed your dreams because you were watching TV." All you have to do is schedule some time for success. 8 hours a week. May be every Saturday morning or Monday night (well may be Tuesday night during Football season). If you simply schedule the time the results will follow.

7. Mentors.

Are worth their weight in gold. Why? Because mentorship and coaching work! You can only learn so much from a book, a self study manual, a video or a website. It kind of reminds me of when I first learning to golf. I played hockey when I was younger and I have terrible slice to the right. I bought every magazine, book, video, on golfing to correct the problem. Yes I was cheap I did not want to spend the money for lessons. Finally, I decide it was not me, it was the clubs. So I bought new clubs (fire sticks). All that did was make the ball travel further into the trees. I broke down and bought some lessons. In the first lesson the problem was corrected. Immediate feedback, a coach, mentor can get you on the path to success quickly.

8.Student of Success.

Millionaires never stop learning. They study success. They study money, real estate, business, and asset building. They have a thirst for new knowlegde. They are the first to buy tapes, books, manuals or go to training. Several years ago I documented over $81,000 in seminars, training and self study materials I had purchased for my education. It is a key to my personal success, as well, as countless others.

9. Bounce Well.

Millionaires have failures.They have lost. But they keep the positive attitude. I will get them next time. I just have to work a little harder or smarter to get the results. A better plan. They remember a flat ball does not bounce, so they have to keep it pumped up.

10. Selective Memory.

There are no failures, only learning experiences. If they swing at a baseball, they don't the 66% of the time they miss, they remember the 34% of the time they hit. They hold their successes close and their failures get lost somewhere. The problem for most people is they remember the last time the failed. No wonder they stop swinging the bat. Selective memory is a key to success.

11. Don't Quit.

The character of a man or woman is not measured in the number of failures, but in the number times they come back from those failures to attempt to win! Ask Sylvester Stalone (over 300 rejections for the movie screen play Rocky). Ask Edison 10,000 plus attempts at making the bulb. Ask Lincoln. A dozen failures attempting to gain political office. Do not give up. Success is just a decision and action a way!