What Is Success Worth To You?

Regarding how you view success, may I ask you a simple question?

"When you consider the PRICE of success, what is it WORTH to you?"

Why do I ask this?

Well, the fact is you will usually have to give up something to get something in life. Success is no different. Either you'll have to give up your steady job to focus on that part-time company, or you'll have to take time from sports, hobbies, or maybe even family in order to do it.

Case in point: back in the 1980's and 1990's a receiver played for the San Francisco 49ers who broke all of the receiving records in the NFL. You probably remember Jerry Rice. I loved Jerry for many reasons. He knew that if they could get the ball in his hands, that he could help them win games. And, win a lot of games is exactly what the 49ers did! What made Jerry different? If you stacked up all the tall, slender, fast receivers in the NFL with "good hands" he probably would have stood out as just one of the many if it weren't for two things:

1. Work ethic.
2. Execution.

Most people fail because they lack either of these two qualities. Jerry succeeded because he began his workout campaign in both strength, endurance, and speed exercises running up hills, bicycling, and running sprints when the others guys were taking time off playing and messing around during the "off-season". To Jerry, he didn't have much of an off-season. As soon as one season finished, he'd take a quick break, then immediately get back to work to prepare for the next year. Jerry also was the best I've seen at running specific patterns and being in the right place at the right time. This increased the chances that he would be in the right spot to make the catch. Then, he used his athleticism to make moves to run after the catch and make more yards than any receiver ever before or after!

If you are not currently *feeling* successful, the odds are likely something is not happening yet in your path to live your dreams. That something is the *release* of what is blocking you from walking (or running) on the path you need to take in order to realize your personal journey. Usually, what is blocking you is your work ethic: the way you spend your time is not conducive to you winning the way you intend. Or, you are not executing on your plan. Either you stop and give up or change directions so often you never master any one thing.

If you take anyone great, the reason they become great is usually because they spend a lot of time, energy, and focus mastering their subject. Their sole intention is to master this area and know it better than anyone else. Usually, this mastery leads to higher pay, more options in career choice, and higher rewards in other ways, too.

Can you dig what I'm talking about?

How does your thinking match your ability to manifest what you want? I recently spoke with someone about a job they'd interviewed for the preview week:

"Did you get the job?" I asked. "I'm not sure yet... but I like the pay!" She replied. "The pay is good, then?" I continued, trying to pry without prying. "Hey - it beats social work!" She finished.

Well, yeah! What doesn't beat social work pay, right? So, I don't think she'd exactly set the bar high for what she considered high pay. But, if she was happy, then she'd factored the value of pay, time, and lifestyle into her choice of employment.

I once asked a group of seminar attendees a question regarding money.

Please write down your answer to this question:

"How much money do you feel you are worth an hour?"


Okay, did you write down your own answer?

Here is an interesting chart that will show you what you think you're worth:



Source: AspireNow.com

Most people will identify with this chart (above) in relation to money and the hours they work. Keep in mind, if you're working 12 hour days to make that same money, you might as well reduce your hourly worth by 1/3 because you're working that much harder to earn your keep.

But what if your goals are to make $1 Million a year? If you want to earn $10 Million a year, then what are you worth per hour?

Well, I don't even have to break out my calculator to tell you that if you make $1 Million a year then you'd better think of your hourly worth as $600 an hour, approximately. If you want to earn 10x that, then your hourly worth is about $6,000 an hour! If your time was worth $6,000 per hour, how would you spend it? What things do you do now that you would hire someone else to do? Can you make any of those changes NOW? (Hey - this is called AspireNOW for a reason!)

Have you ever thought of money like this before? If not, now is the time to start rethinking how you approach money.

If you are going to have a "millionaire" approach to money, then your worth per hour is now, from this day forward, $600 per hour.

When I, personally, made this shift in mindset, I started to say:

"I am now worth $600 per hour."

Does this change how you feel about housework? Playing that game of solitaire during your lunch break? Talking to that friend who just chatters away time meaninglessly every day? I'm not saying to become a jerk and never help out around the house, never have fun playing, or cut out every friend who isn't rich. I'm just suggesting that you consider your time WISELY. Make it count: every second of it! And, make your money count, too! Because the money you make will make you more money if you use it to work for you, rather than against you (accumulate assets rather than debt).

Next, consider the intrinsic value you receive from the activities in your life. For one week, break down how you spend your time. Each day, write down how many hours you spend on each activity. For example:

Eating
Sleeping
Working For Someone Else's Dreams
Working Towards Your Dreams
Getting Kids Ready
Driving/Commute
Travel
Resting
Thinking
Playing/Leisure
Sports/Working Out
Education - In Class
Reading A Magazine
Reading A Book
Personal Care
Sexual Proclivity
Talking On The Phone
Religious Activities - Praying, Meditating, Attending Service
Computer (break down time surfing, social networking, playing, or working)
Watching TV or a Movie
and so forth...

After a week or two of tracking, you'll have an idea what is important to you, based upon how you spend your time. After you've done this exercise, consider: does this way I spend my time match how I see myself in success? If the answer is "no", consider remapping how you spend your time!

The majority of people who do not accomplish their dreams often spend a considerable amount of time doing things like mowing the lawn, shopping, watching television, laundry, or driving to and from work. Obviously, while you're doing these things, you are typically not doing the things that can help you accomplish your dream(s).

When you're considering what is success worth to you, factor in the money, and factor in how you define success in time, people, and lifestyle. Then start to plan for your future with that revised understanding and mentality. Here's to our mutual success!

Bonus Time Management Section:

Interactive Chart: How Americans Spend Their Time

According to the NY Times: "At 9 p.m., nearly two-fifths of people are in front of the television. But at almost any hour of the day, a larger share of unemployed people are watching television or movies."

Bonus tip:
How to be twice as effective as the average person in America?

Stop watching television and spend that time networking, developing a company, or bettering YOU. My comment: Don't be "typical" - be unusual! Cut out the stuff that burns time like television and your productivity will increase. Plus, you'll have more of a social life!

The average American with High School education spends almost as much time watching television as they do working! (Note: The American with an Advanced Degree spends only 1/4 the amount of time working watching television, but this is still over an hour a day, on average.)

Related articles:
Value of Our Time
8 Tips for Healthier Living
Create More Financial Success

Related products:
Keys To Discovering Your Purpose
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Copyright © 2009 AspireNow. Chart by NY Times - see article there for interactive chart - it is interesting to see where people spend time.

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Success Leaves Clues - 20 Questions to Help You Find Success

I just heard this quote while listening to a teleconference about the top five mistakes people make online and how to avoid them:

"Success leaves clues."

I believe the first person I heard say this was Tony Robbins. It's an interesting quote. The point is to look at how people or companies become successful and see if there are techniques used in their line of business that might be used in your line of business.

Some of the best ways to ensure success is to master techniques of those who win.

For example, to succeed online, you don't start and stop. You keep going no matter what. It is not easy to do when the rent is due and the bank account is low. SO, figure out your plan to ensure your success before you ever launch.

If you want to be successful, you've got to DO it. You can't just TRY it, you have to DO it. Remember Yoda (Star Wars) said "there is no try; there is only do or not do."

Commit! Don't start and stop. Get in and stay in.

What are you doing? Are you following the clues of those who blazed a trail before you? Even if you're blazing a new trail (a good idea) are you taking techniques used by people who succeeded in similar businesses?

I'm a sucker for documentaries, but especially documentaries about how great people, bands, companies, and leaders became great. What did they do? What challenges did they face? How did they overcome their struggles to succeed?

So, now, let's apply this right now in our own life.

Pick a mentor, say, Amelia Earhart. Or a leader of a company you admire, such as Steve Jobs and Apple. Now, start looking at what that person did when they succeeded.

Ask these 20 questions to identify the clues to your mentor's success:

1. Challenges: what challenge or need were they trying to fill or meet?
   
2. Commitment: when did they commit to meet the challenge and how did that decision impact their success?
   
3. Obstacles: what obstacles to success stood in their path?
4. Tools: what tools did they use to succeed?
5. Values: what were their values?
6. Differentiators: what made them different? How did they use their uniqueness to their advantage? What did they do that was NEW in their industry?
   
7. Copy/Creation: what did they copy or need to learn in order to create their solution?
   
8. Coaching: who were THEIR mentors?
9. Money: how did they finance their project or pay their bills when times were rough? How did they use money or create systems to fund their operations?
   
10. Value: what value did they give? At what standard did it match - 2x? 5x? 10x?
11. Public Relations: how were they unique in the way they spun their story?
12. Timing: in what ways did they put themselves in position to win?
    
13. Team: what type of team did they build? What made it unique or particularly adept at meeting the challenge? Who coached them?
14. Network: what type of network were they leveraging?
15. Competition: who were their primary competitors? How did competitors impact their ability to succeed?
16. Product (or service): in what ways was their product superior to any other product?
17. Failures: in what ways did they fail?
18. Coping: how did they cope with failure? What did they learn from their failures? How did they remain persistent when things looked bleak?
    
19. Wins: in what ways did they win? How did they capitalize on that success?
    
20. Gratitude: how did they express gratitude? How did they celebrate their wins?

Go back and study your leader and plug in the answers to each of these questions as you find them. See what I mean? These questions will help you succeed by identifying the key aspects of performance exhibited by WINNERS.

Take any great leader, team, group, company, or organization, and you can break down their success by asking these questions. Within the answers to these questions lie the clues for your own success.

Now, you'll be armed with INFORMATION to succeed.

But information is not enough. You must ACT.

When we don't just look for clues but actually use them, we're likely to find new success. So DO. Commit. Be who you want to be.

Bonus tip: look at ANY world class performer, leader, or player. Look at what they do to be successful. Look at who makes the least money. Look at who makes the most money. In almost every case, the person who makes the most money HAS A COACH.

Do you have a coach? I offer coaching, on a very limited basis one to one, but mostly in groups these days. Contact me through scott [at] aspirenow (dot) com to discuss coaching. Find someone who can mentor and coach you. Make sure that coach is someone who has been there and done that successfully. Get that person on board with you and start to use their pearls of wisdom.

P.S. this is NOT the way people should write articles!
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