Lower Your Stress With Free e-Book from Michelle Casto

Are you a bit stressed out?

Well, you know I like to give you cool stuff for free whenever I can, right?

So you can imagine how excited I am to help you lower your stress levels with an exciting free offer from my pal, Dr. Michelle Casto.

Michelle, who is also an Aspiration Advocate and Life Coach, is offering free access to her e-book called "41 Ways to Alleviate Stress" for a limited time only. I recommend it personally. Just click here to enter in your basic email to receive this power book informing you how to lower your stress:

http://www.brightlightcoach.com/41ways.html

Let me know how you like it!
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Lance Armstrong - Inspiring Us Again - Lessons from the GREATEST

When you're great, you're great. Some people excel at certain things. In sports, I like to study the greats in matches that require individual greatness, such as tennis, golf, bicycling, skiing, etc. And, often, the greats perform at their best in the most difficult of circumstances, such as major tournaments.

For example, of his 14 major championship tennis court victories, Pete Sampras won Wimbledon 7 times.

I recall watching Pete Sampras defeat his nemesis, Andre Agassi in the last of his major victories, in 2002. Andre is another great I loved watching. Today, Roger Federer is the man to beat, who is also racking up the victories.

Can you think of people in your field of interest who are great? What made them great?

Continuing with my sports greats, how about Tiger Woods?


Tiger, currently age 33, achieved more victories in less time than any other golfer in history. The previous great was Jack Nicklaus, some thirty years ago. Then, along came a Tiger who changed the history of golf. Being a multi-racial golfer is something I recall that stirred up the pot when Fuzzy Zoeller made some comment about telling Tiger not to order "fried chicken" or "collards and greens or whatever" at the Master's ceremonial dinner - the racism was ridiculous (although it was argued that Fuzzy was a jokester just trying to be funny). Tiger rose above it and won the tournament by something like 18 strokes. He is noted as the first African-American descendant to win the Masters. Yet, here's this amazingly talented golfer just cleaning up the field, time and time again. Clearly, race had nothing to do with it.

It's about vision, training, goals, coaching, and performance. In all of these things, Tiger prevails again and again. He sets his vision upon being the greatest ever. He trained in unique ways, and developed an incredibly powerful swing, chipping, and putting style that could dig out of holes that would bury most good golfers. I've seen him make shots that simply defy the eyes. Then, he double-pumps his arm in a victorious celebration indicative of his winning intensity.

Since his record-breaking win in the 1997 Masters Tournament, Tiger went on to become the youngest player in history to win the Grand Slam (considered the golfing world's most difficult tournaments). Currently, Tiger is ranked third for career victories, behind the other great golfers, Sam Snead and Jack Nicklaus.

1Career Wins on the PGA Tour
Sam Snead - 82
Jack Nicklaus - 73
*Tiger Woods - 68
Ben Hogan - 64
Arnold Palmer - 62

From the players playing, Tiger Woods is at such a fast pace it is easy to see how at his age he is likely to become the greatest PGA Tour golfer of all-time. Jack Nicklaus, the player who Tiger most sought to emulate and surpass, is now only 5 wins ahead of him for career victories. According to Wikipedia as of the date of this publishing, Tiger Woods is currently ranked #1 in the World and achieved more earnings at $110 Million this past year. But from among his tour championships, he is ranked #2 in MAJOR tournaments, which receive the bulk of attention on the PGA Tour. He is only four victories behind Jack Nicklaus for most Major victories, career.

Some people are just great.

Saying that, I turn my attention to Lance Armstrong, who once again is making headlines by pushing the field at the Tour De France and creating a likely scenario where he will capture the yellow jersey in this famous bicycling race, yet once again. Coming out of retirement, he now is on pace to not only amaze us having won his seventh Tour (having survived cancer), now four years later he is back doing it again!

Kudos to Lance Armstrong!!! I am pleased to say I saw this one coming: http://aspirenow.blogspot.com/2009_04_01_archive.html


If you want to be great at something, study those who are great. Find out what they did to become great. Did they practice a certain way? How did they study or train? What did they do to create a unique "winner" mindset? Did they hire a coach? What type of coaches did they use? Can you break down the elements of their greatness and incorporate those elements into your own "game"? These are all questions that start you on the path to your own greatness.

I can guarantee you that a great general studies other great generals. In addition, great leaders study other great leaders.

What makes Steve Jobs, Bill Gates, Warren Buffett, and other leaders able to achieve the success they do?

For example, Warren Buffett is known for making very good investment choices on Wall Street.

This makes Warren's advice highly valuable, because anyone who can pick winners is likely to help you make more money, right? According to the CBS News, investment firms paid $2.1 Million and $1.68 Million in an eBay auction each of the past two years for the rights to have lunch with Warren Buffett.

Last year, Pureheart China Investment fund won the bidding, this year Salida Capital came in with $1.68 Million to win the lunch.

Can you imagine, someone paying $2 Million dollars to have LUNCH with YOU? WOW. Amazing, wouldn't you say? That's how valuable an experience like that can be, if you're at that level.

What can you imagine to accomplish, as an aspiration, for your own life? Winning a trophy? Accomplishing a rare achievement? What can you do to rise above the pack with your unique gifts, dreams, and capabilities?

Set a goal. Study the greats. Hire a coach. Then do the hard work to become great. And, don't be shocked when you surprise everyone else around you when you become the one who future greats study to learn how to be great in the next generation. Be the very best you can, with what you've got, and you just might do something truly stellar. We all have the capability within us to accomplish great things. I encourage you to develop, research, and take action to be your own great self!
_______________________________________________________

Photos courtesy of Wikipedia and used through the Creative Commons license for this article. Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Life In The Craziest Places

Have you ever found life in a place that surrounds you?

As I write this question, I remember this photo my brother took in the California desert, where he illustrated this one yellow flower, shooting up from the desert floor, somehow finding a unique and barren position to proudly spring forth a lovely bloom of yellowish white petals. No other flowers competed for attention. This one flower not only survived, but apparently flourished in such an odd place!

Well, last week, I noticed the swallows seeking out the eaves and rafters (in lieu of trees) for their nests. They build nests in the same places annually. My condo resides right where they like to lay their eggs to hatch in the nests. They make nests out of sticks, leaves, dirt, and water (they make a mud-pack using the water from the pool). For a look at what their nest is like, check out this video:



Pretty funny, huh?

Anyway, I encourage you to seek out life and interact with it. I talk to my swallows every day when I come and go. Every part of life is there for us to enjoy, if we merely take the time. It is a valuable aspect of "life purpose" to interact with other creatures in nature. Enjoy!
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Please Post Legit Comments To This Blog!

Okay, faithful readers and posters! I've just rejected three comments that were purely "spam-links" in disguise as a comment. If you're going to post to someone's blog, please make it a legit comment. You can put your return link in your name - if people like your post, they'll follow it, trust me.
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Life Ends Now - Are You Happy?

I watched a very inspiring movie last night called The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, starring Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. Good movie with an interesting perspective about life (no, I won't spoil it here). My favorite part is when the character of Brad Pitt asked "If your life ended now, would you be happy?" He then followed that up with "If the answer to that question is 'yes', then okay, keep living the way you want!" and then "But if the answer to the question is 'no', then start over."

So, how is your life, right now? If you were to die and transition from this Earth right now, would you be happy?

Yes ________ No ________.

If your answer is YES - RIGHT ON! I love empowered people!

If your answer is NO - I'd like to ask you to immediately write down the three things you feel are missing from your life. Or, if the list is longer, take as long as you need to write your list. But do it now. Do not delay.

After you KNOW for SURE what is MISSING or NOT RIGHT I'm going to encourage you to CHANGE IT RIGHT NOW. Start a new direction towards what you want, right now. That's right, DON'T WAIT UNTIL TOMORROW or HOPE for a BETTER TIME. The time to make change when you don't like what is happening is right now. *

*The only exception to this is if your job sucks, you might want to make sure you get another job before leaving your existing job - especially if you're supporting a family.

Okay, now, if you've made a decision to make a difference, but you're still SCARED, I want you to email me your list. Send it to Scott [at] AspireNow (com) take out the brackets and spaces, and your email will reach me. If you're interested in coaching, let me know, and I'll hook you up. If you just want to share, indicate that. If you want feedback, please indicate that, too.

WHAT DOES LIVING HAPPILY RIGHT NOW REALLY MEAN?

If life ends now, how do we live within our truth to live on purpose and be happy with our life?

The answer is comprised between two words: perception and choices.

How we perceive our situation (predicament) and our attitude (based upon perception) may dictate how we see our possibilities and how we choose to act.

What we choose to do with our time also is what dictates our life path and happiness.

The truth comes when we follow our path and take action towards our dreams, every day. Whether your dream is to be a good golfer or swimmer, take action now towards that goal and sign up for golf lessons, buy a Jack Nicklaus golf video (helped me), or start swimming at your pool or a local pool nearest you. Or whether it is to share more joy with each person we meet, take action with each new person you meet towards that goal. Or whether that truth is to start that hobby or turn that hobby into a career, then take steps towards that, right now. Perhaps your dream is to start a new business, then take action towards starting that business (one way I recommend is to contact www.ARRiiVE.com, a company I created out of AspireNow who helps you launch your product or service).

Whatever is not yet decided, whatever is not a "done deal" -- that is what we've got to go after, if it truly is what we want.

Last, I want to examine our perception more closely. What is blocking you? Is your internal and external language you speak SUPPORTING your dream or BLOCKING it? Tape record a conversation with a coach and/or a friend and pay attention to things you say. If you use words like "I feel stagnated with... " or "I hate..." or "I would if only..." whatever follows those types of negative statements is what is blocking you. Or, at least, your PERCEPTION of those things is blocking you.

If you then notice when you say "I love..." and "I enjoy doing..." and "I'm most happy when..." and ".... makes me smile and feel good..." those types of statements are the things you MOST WANT TO DO and MAKE YOU HAPPY. Pay attention to these, do them more often, and make sure you prioritize these things.

If you do not know what you truly want from life I suggest you hire a coach to help you out.

You can also start with a workbook on discovering your purpose.

The good news about life is that we are always seeing life from INSIDE OUR EYES so we truly CAN start a new life from where we are, at whatever age, when we believe and take action towards that dream. I encourage you to start immediately. Your happiness depends upon it.
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Being Safe Or Being Great?

Are you a great leader?

Right now, many people are retreating into their shells in order to be "safe". However, I'd like to pose the question: "Do you want to be SAFE? Or do you want to THRIVE?"

If you want to be safe, okay, do that. Just don't complain to me in ten years that you never really lived your dreams and never reached your full potential!

But if you want to THRIVE, you must take a risk every now and then.

Two years ago, a friend of mine was launching a consulting business. At the time, the real estate market was at an all-time high. She had a secure (safe) job. She was making good money. And, she knew she was going to leave the secure job for the unknown. She asked me for my advice. I told her to sell her house, sell her expensive car, and downsize everything, then build from that smaller expense base for her new business.

She told me that such an idea was unthinkable. She played it safe.

Wind the clock forward. The real estate market collapsed. She's been out on her own consulting and no longer has the "safe" harbor of her job AND she now needs to refinance the house in order to keep it. With the real estate and lending market tightened up, she cannot qualify to refinance her house unless she has a secure job. However, getting a job in this market is not an easy thing to do. She now has herself backed into a much more difficult position. In this market, if she were to sell her house, she would actually lose money.

Do you see the risk you take by being safe? When you have the position of equity, and you want to launch a new business, that is the time to cash out, lower expenses, and then build your business with the equity in the form of cash, rather than asset. Normally, I'd say build assets, and then use that cash for growth. That works great until you're launching something new. And, even when you're launching something new I recommend this approach. But if the market turns south, you must first have a secure fort, then venture out to forage.

"The desire for safety stands against every great and noble enterprise." - Tacitus

As you can see, wise leaders in the past took a stand against being safe and promoted taking risks if you want to be GREAT. When I play a military strategy game, I've noticed that if a general is attacking one of my cities, I can react a few different ways. First, I could take a strike at the general's attacking army. Second, I could wait for him to attack me. These are both defensive postures. Or, I can be bolder and leave my city to defend itself (risky) and attack one of the general's cities with my roving army. More times than not, I end up fending off his attacking army with my smaller defensive force left behind, then win the battle against his city with my attacking army. When I do this, I not only keep my city, but gain one of his. This is the bold strategy and the quickest path to being great in the strategy game. Taking the risk produces the reward. Now, there is the risk that my attacking army could be defeated, and that the defending city could be surprised by an even greater foe and fall to his attack, in which case I'll have to double back to defend the next city he will attack. But, more times than not, I prevail using this strategy of attacking with part of my defensive army. General Lee used this very same strategy against General Hooker at Chancellorsville when he split his army and sent General "Stonewall" Jackson in a flanking maneuver around Hooker's army in one of the greatest victories for the South during the American Civil War.

In order to be bold, you must have a superior strategy. When your strategy is superior, you will win even when the odds in numbers are against you. If your strategy is weak, you will lose if all else is equal. So, if you are losing more than you are winning, rather than pull back ALL your forces, why not evaluate your strategy. Discover where you are weak, and improve upon that position.

This is my recommendation for us, in life, too.

When my band was struggling to get gigs, I evaluated our CD. The song I was sending out did not position the band as "feel good, happy music" so we missed out on the festival season's gigs. The next time I went into the studio I focused on the songs that create a feel-good, happy vibe. Those will be the songs I release next.

When Bruce Springsteen released Born To Run, he already released two albums. While the critics thought the albums were good, they still did not sell. When he released Born To Run, the song was about breaking free, with the protagonist positioned as a motorbike and a woman named Wendy the person going on the journey. The idea was to break free down the turnpike, strap in for love, and go for it! This is the energy that SELLS! It is the energy of GOING FOR IT that people will be drawn to. The energy of making SAFE, SOUND decisions might bring you SOME success but most likely will not propel you to stardom.

If you, like me, seek to go ALL the way, then you must look at the ways you're playing safe, and then break free from those safety nets to GO FOR IT! Let others know how you're going for it and that you want them to come with you, buy from you, taste the excitement of the journey. It is an invitation that is hard to resist. And, as they join in with you, watch your abundance flow!
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!

Overcoming A Bump In The Road

For people aspiring to live their life on purpose, we often reach the mountain-tops and live life large, full of gusto, supreme satisfaction, and happiness.

However, even those living an "empowered" life occasionally hit bumps in the road.

People who are "experts" on relationships break-up with their partner. People known as the richest people file bankruptcy when business takes a bad turn. The healthiest fitness coach slows down after a heart attack. Case in point: Barbara De Angelis went through a divorce. Paul Sterling and Kristen Denton, fellow relationship coaches went through a break-up this past year. Heck, I went through one, myself, last year, with my own girlfriend. Donald Trump once filed bankruptcy. In fact, many members of congress have filed bankruptcy. Think about it - if you fail at a campaign, how do you pay back the debts? It is a challenge many politicians face. And, I'll never forget the story of how Lance Armstrong won the Tour de France AFTER his testicular cancer diagnosis.


Things like this happen to people. It's part of life. The amazing Lance Armstrong (pictured above, courtesy Wikipedia) is currently in the middle of a comeback to win the 2009 Tour de France and raise awareness for cancer. If he wins, it will be his 8th victory in that bicycle race.

When life seems to deal us a bump in the road the biggest question isn't whether we're affected by it, but rather how we adjust and grow in spite of the challenge.

If you're currently in a bump situation, remember that you can handle it. You're strong. You're here for a good reason! Go back to what makes you happy, what makes you feel fulfilled, what makes you feel you've added the most value to the world or to others. Embrace that purpose and do it better than ever.

Remember: when we focus on our strongest purpose we're always able to weather the bumps in the road.
_______________________________________________________

Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. All rights reserved. Want more? Subscribe to the A-Blog.

Like it? Share on del.icio.us or Stumble Upon!