America's Most Famous Rags-to-Riches Story

Good Morning,

One hundred and fifty years ago, when a 13-year-old boy stepped ashore in New York with his parents and younger brother, he had no idea that he would one day become the richest man in the world.

This is the story of Andrew Carnegie.

He was born in 1835 in Scotland. During the Depression of 1848 in Britain, his father, a weaver, decided it was best to immigrate to America and brought his family to Allegheny, Pennsylvania, now part of Pittsburgh.

Being poor, young Andrew had to give up any hope of schooling when he arrived, and he quickly got a job in a cotton factory for $1.20 a week.

He studied bookkeeping at night and soon took a job in the office as a clerk. He prepared himself for advancement by doing each job to the best of his ability and seizing every opportunity to take on new responsibilities.

Through trial and error, he developed a personal philosophy that led to a simple formula for success that he followed faithfully.

Quite by accident, he had stumbled onto the same formula for success that had been used by all great achievers throughout history.

Guided by this formula, he accelerated rapidly at everything he did.

At 15, he took a job as a messenger boy in the telegraph office in Pittsburgh, and two years later, he was working full-time as a telegraph operator for the railroad.

When he was 20, his father passed away, leaving him with the responsibility of providing for his mother and 12-year-old brother.

He worked even harder. The division superintendent of the Pennsylvania Railroad was so impressed with Carnegie that he hired him as his personal clerk and telegraph operator. When Carnegie was 24, he became the superintendent of the Pittsburgh division.

To supplement his salary, he borrowed $500 to buy stocks in businesses that he understood. First the railroad and later in steel production. He became quite successful at it.

At 33, he had an annual income of $50,000 ($1,040,000 in today's dollars) and was toying with the idea of retiring to a scholarly life. But since he was now one of the largest shareholders of the Pullman Company, and a director of the Union Pacific Railroad, he couldn't.

He saw a growing demand for steel and much room for improvement in the way steel was produced. So he started his own steel company, the Carnegie Steel Co. Using innovative methods, he improved the quality of the steel, made production more efficient, reduced costs, and watched his business expand quickly.

Because of his efforts, the United States took the lead away from Great Britain as the foremost steel producer in the world in 1890.

He was now the richest man in America, and in a few years, he would be the richest in the world.
Then, in 1901, at the age of 66, Carnegie shocked everyone when he announced that he was going to sell his holdings and devote the rest of his life to giving away every penny he had for benevolent purposes.

He sold Carnegie Steel to J. P. Morgan, who used it as the nucleus for U. S. Steel.

Then, with the same enthusiasm and determination that built his fortune, he spent the next 18 years systematically giving it all away.

Had he lost his mind? Not at all.

In 1911 he wrote: "My chief happiness lies in the thought that even after I pass away, the wealth that came to me to administer as a sacred trust for the good of my fellow men, is to continue to benefit humanity for generations untold."

It may sound cliche, but Carnegie sincerely wanted to leave the world a better place. One of his first acts was to create a pension fund for his employees. This quote from his workers expresses the common sentiment toward him:

"The interest which you have always shown in your workmen has won for you an appreciation which cannot be expressed by mere words."

Inspired by the heroic but futile rescue effort in which a former Pittsburgh mine superintendent and others lost their lives in the Harwick Mine Disaster in 1904, he set up the Hero Fund to honor and financially reward acts of non-military heroism.

He gave a lot of money to causes: to establish the first great medical research laboratory in the U.S.A. at Bellevue Hospital in New York, to the Institute for the Blind, and to Madame Curie for her radium research. He also funded Carnegie Hall.

But his two main interests were education and world peace.

Believing that people in the teaching profession were underpaid, he established The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, a pension plan that looked after aging teachers.
Though he was denied an education, he knew the value of learning and was determined that everyone should have access to knowledge. His pet project became his free public libraries.
He made the following offer to communities: He would build a library for free if they agreed to stock it with books and maintain it.

Over the years that followed, he built 2,811 free public libraries. It was estimated that at their completion, 35 million people made use of his public libraries each day.

Most of his money went to build new educational institutions or fund existing ones. He created the Carnegie Institute in Pittsburgh, Carnegie Institute of Washington, and Carnegie-Mellon University, and he assisted more than 500 others, especially the smaller, lesser-known universities and colleges.

World peace was his other passion. He created the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, with headquarters in New York City and Geneva, Switzerland, and the Peace Palace at the Hague in Holland.

Being a full-time philanthropist wasn't as easy as Carnegie thought it would be. Each day, he was flooded with 400 to 500 "begging" letters. After each announcement of some large benefaction, the number would increase to 700 a day.

For instance, when it was reported that Carnegie donated a new organ to the church his father had attended, requests for new organs poured in from all across the country.
When it was over, Carnegie answered each of their requests and donated 7,689 organs.
Contrary to common belief, he did not require or encourage institutions to bear his name.
"I find it difficult to avoid having gifts for new things called after the donors. Carnegie Hall was called by me The Music Hall. Foreign artists refused to appear in 'a music hall.' The Board changed it in my absence in Europe without consulting me."

He said he didn't want to be remembered for what he gave, but for what he persuaded others to give. By building libraries, he inspired communities to fill them with books, asking only that they inscribe the words "Let there be light" above the entrance.

It's true that he was very public with his library project, pursuit of world peace, and the advancement of education for all people. But there was another side to him that few knew. One of his most enjoyable acts of philanthropy was the millions he gave away anonymously.
During his lifetime, he gave away 90 percent of his fortune. To this day, The Carnegie Corporation, the philanthropic foundation he created, still gives away millions of dollars every year.

But there's something else that he gave away that was even more valuable. I'm sure you've heard of the saying ...

"Give a man a fish, and he can eat for a day. Show him how to fish, and he can eat for a lifetime."

He learned that everything we do starts in the mind as a simple thought.
Whatever you think about, you will be drawn to. Taking that a step further, whatever you think about ... will eventually come to pass.

Your thoughts become the blueprint for your life — dictating what you do and expect from life.

For instance, if you think about misfortune, you'll expect misfortune to happen. And it will.

You've probably seen it yourself. A loser will quit at the first obstacle, saying, "See! Things never go my way! Why do I even bother trying?" And if things do go right, the loser says, "It was a fluke. I never win." They lose because they expect to lose.

Winners, on the other hand, think about winning. They are successful because they think of themselves as successful.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape yur destiny!!

Think From A Different Point of View

Here's a story I heard a few years ago that illustrates the point perfectly.

Imagine you’re in London’s Heathrow Airport. While you’re waiting for your flight, you notice a kiosk selling shortbread cookies. You buy a box, put them in your traveling bag and then you patiently search for an available seat so you can sit down and enjoy your cookies.

Finally you find a seat next to a gentleman. You reach down into your traveling bag and pull out your box of shortbread cookies. As you do so, you notice that the gentleman starts watching you intensely. He stares as you open the box and his eyes follow your hand as you pick up the cookie and bring it to your mouth.

Just then he reaches over and takes one of your cookies from the box, and eats it!

You’re more than a little surprised at this. Actually, you’re at a loss for words. Not only does he take one cookie, but he alternates with you. For every one cookie you take, he takes one. Now, what’s your immediate impression of this guy? Crazy? Greedy? He’s got some nerve?! Can you imagine the words you might use to describe this man to your associates back at the office?

Meanwhile, you both continue eating the cookies until there’s just one left. To your surprise, the man reaches over and takes it. But then he does something unexpected.

He breaks it in half, and gives half to you. After he’s finished with his half he gets up, and without a word, he leaves.

You think to yourself, "Did this really happen?" You’re left sitting there dumbfounded and still hungry. So you go back to the kiosk and buy another box of cookies. You then return to your seat and begin opening your new box of cookies when you glance down into your traveling bag.

Sitting there in your bag is your original box of cookies -- still unopened. Only then do you realize that when you reached down earlier, you had reached into the other man’s bag, and grabbed his box of cookies by mistake.

Now what do you think of the man? Generous? Tolerant? You've just experienced a profound paradigm shift. You’re seeing things from a new point of view.

Is it time to change your point of view?

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!!

What You Can Do Right Now !!

Good Morning,

What you choose to do in the next three minutes could change your life forever.

'My life change because of a few measly minutes?

I don't think so.' If you're thinking along these same lines, think again. Every action you take, no matter how large or small, has the potential to change your life; even a choice as simple as using the next three minutes to read the rest of this. Making a decision is like choosing which way to turn when you reach an intersection in your car. No matter which way you choose to go, you will find yourself on a unique road consisting of unique twists and turns. Turn left and you'll encounter different circumstances had you turned right. And those circumstances have the potential to change everything because you never know where that next turn will take you.

Routine runs the majority of people's lives. It's a sad truth, but a truth nonetheless. And when you are following a routine day in and day out, your circumstances will rarely change.

You'll think what you thought the day before. You'll feel the way you felt before. And you'll do what you did before. After years of this cycle you'll find yourself far from the kind of life you always wanted to live. I'm sure you know of many people who have let routine run their entire lives. Wake, work, eat, sleep, repeat. It's difficult to see them waste away while routine runs the show because they can never get that time back. Never.

But there is a solution. Making a new decision. One new choice leads to another choice which leads to another unique choice and on and on the pattern goes. Now is the time to make that new choice and break free from the grip of routine.

First, you have to break free from routine. If you're not getting what you want you have no other choice than to stop doing what you've always been doing. You have to make a conscious choice to break the cycle. Think about what you do during the day instead of taking on a zombie-like stare as you follow an ingrained pattern.Take notice of your time and actions and make sure they are bringing you toward the things you want.

Next, you need to start making new decisions and taking new actions. You have to turn down a new road to encounter new and exciting options. Mix it up! Change what you do in the morning, afternoon, and night. Give your brain new information and experiences. And from these two small steps alone your life will begin to take on a new shape. Breaking free from routine and making new choices will create the momentum you need to ensure the changes you want to make last for years to come. But it can't happen if you let routine run the show. A single decision can change your life forever, but it will never get the chance if you keep doing what you've always been doing.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny !!

Why Having a Goal Isn't Nearly Enough

Good Morning,

If setting a clearly defined goal isn't enough, what's the missing link?

W-H-Y

That's right, the missing link is why you want the goal. Without a strong and persuasive 'why' behind each one of your goals you'll never achieve it.


Take one of your goals in mind and answer the following questions with as much detail and emotion as possible. Remember, the more powerful your reasons for wanting to achieve the goal, the more you'll be motivated to take action and get what you want.

1. What will achieving your goal do for you physically? Mentally? Emotionally? Financially? Spiritually?

2. What will you think of yourself years from now if you achieve your goal?

3. What will failing to achieve your goal cost you physically? Mentally? Emotionally? Financially? Spiritually?

4. How will failing to achieve your goal negatively affect your friends and family? What will it cost them in the long run?

5. What will you think of yourself years from now if you never achieve your goal?

This short list of questions should be enough to get you started on the right path. All of your goals require this type of questioning. Without it, you'll quickly let habit and routine run the show and fall far short of what is possible in your life.

When you answer this line of questioning with your goals you'll finally enjoy the limitless motivation you need to change your life for the better. Every time you encounter an obstacle and you feel like you can't go on, revisit your reasons and you'll have the leverage you need to proceed.

We all deal with moments of indecision and weakness. We know we should do one thing but we have an urge to do another. While the majority of people will give in to their temptations and regret it later, you will have the secret to staying the course day in and day out.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

It Only Takes One To Succeed

“I've missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I've been trusted to take the game-winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” - Michael Jordan

Good Morning,

If you try and try again, you will eventually succeed. It's the Law of numbers. It's a law of the universe. If your committed to something and you consistently go after it, again and again and again, there will be that one time you get it. That's all it takes, one time.

A real life example could be a salesman. The law of numbers will allow him a certain number of sales per calls. So, the more he calls, the more he sells. The same could be true for a door to door salesman, the more he knocks the more he sells. If the salesman on average gets one sale per 10 doors and he wants to increase his sale to 5 a day. Guess what he has to do. You guessed it, knock on fifty doors and he will hit his target most of the time.

So, the moral of all this, is to not give up. Be persistent and keep trying to score in the game of life. Don't get discouraged when you fail, that's all part of the process.

Until next time, be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!!

"Your credit score: Those three little numbers can have a six-digit impact on your life." — Phil X. Tirone

Good Morning,

Many people think that a good credit score simply means you can have more stuff — and a bad credit score means less stuff. But it's far more than that. If your credit score is not as strong as it could be, you're losing money. Every day. Your car payment — more. If you own your home, your mortgage — far more. Or, if you rent your home, you're paying thousands more that could be going toward home equity. It's an endless spiral that affects your wallet as well as your spirit.

You need to take total control of all your finances. If you seem to be struggling with money, you need to sit down and do a budget. Write down all your expenses, every single one. The purpose of this budget is to be able to look, see and identify were your money is going.

If you need to free up some money, while looking at your budget, you might have to do some drastic budget costs to save money. Maybe you need to get rid of cable or at least drop it to the basic plan. Stop making long distance phone calls if you can. Get rid of the cell phone or go to a prepaid plan that will save you money. How about Internet? Get rid of the costly high speed, you can still find dial up providers for $10.00 per month !!

You need to eliminate the waste. Get back to the essentials. What you need, instead of what you want. If you cut the wasted money out of your budget, you can free up a ton of money.With the freed up money, you can start to save or send in more towards those credit card bills, your car, your house. Concentrate on getting things paid off and becoming debt free.

Now, I know all the things you waste your money on will make your life a little less fun. But, if you want to get ahead financially, you have to sacrifice some where. So get out that pad and do your budget and figure out what you can do without. You'll be amazed how much money every month you can free up.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!!

It's Time You Do This !!!

Good Morning,

All things, both good and bad, come to an end. It's a fact of life we all know but work hard to ignore. We spend each day as if we have an eternity to do the things we've always wanted to do. Why rush or confront our fears when we have forever to do so? Why take steps to improve and leave our comfort zone today when we have so many tomorrows? And this delusional thinking ensures the majority of people in the world settle for less than they want. It lures people into putting off their goals and dreams until time runs out. And the end result? People live the whole of their lives far below their potential.

Your job is simple. You need to face this fact of life and use it to your advantage. You need to stop living as if you'll be around forever and let this idea really sink in:You can't live forever. What happens to your body and soul after you've gone isn't up for discussion; that's a personal belief that I have no right to discuss.

But the one thing I can say is that your life as you know it on earth will eventually come to anend. Don't ignore this. Don't overlook it. Don't forget it. Right now, this very moment, I want you to realize that a time will come when you no longer have the chance to do the things you want to do. Just writing the words motivates me to keep moving toward my goals because I know I've got a limited amount of time to do everything I plan on doing.I can't put it off. And neither can you.

Think about it. Not just a quick, 'Yeah, yeah, I know whatyou mean.' You need to give this idea time to sink in. Let it make an impact that changes how you think and feel about your goals. Is your future worth the few minutes it will take to fully realize this truth? I think it is.

All things come to an end. Don't allow yourself to forget this truth. Take your goals in mind and realize that you don't have an eternity to make them happen. All you know for sure is that you have this moment to take the first step toward the things you want.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

"Energy and persistence alter all things." — Benjamin Franklin

Good Morning,

Ben Franklin hit the nail on the head when he said that quote. To accomplish anything in your life, you must have energy to move. If you try doing a task when your groggy and sleepy, your not going to do it with 100 percent focus. Which in turn could result in errors.

Here's a good example, would you like to fly on a plane where you notice that the captain seems tired, groggy and sleepy. I know I would not feel good about that. If the captain does not have energy to fly the plane, that's not a good sign. I would want a pilot that is full of energy, awake and focused on the task.

Here is another example that you might have went through at some time. Have you ever driven your car when your tired? I remember one night, it was kind of late. I left a friends house and was driving home. I was tired and fighting to stay awake. It was kind of chilly that night, so I rolled down the windows to get some fresh, cool air to try and keep me alert. I had a hard time keeping focused and alert. I remember actually nodding off for a second or two while I was driving. That's when I had to pull over on the side of the road and just take a nap. I did not want to keep driving if I didn't have the energy.

So, energy is your fuel to accomplishing any task you put your mind too.

Now, another ingredient you need is persistence. Meaning, don't give up, keep at it. If there is something you really want to accomplish, you must keep moving forward and keep working on accomplishing your goal. Obviously, if you have energy, you can be more persistent.

If you were a basketball player and wanted to be a better free throw shooter, you would have to practice persistently to become better. Persistence would be practicing everyday to become a better shooter.

If you wanted to become a Blackbelt in Karate, you would persistently have to practice and master certain techniques to become a Blackbelt. You would have to be persistent in your practice.

So, to succeed at accomplishing any goal in life you must have the energy to keep persistently trying to accomplish your goal.

FORMULA : SUCCESS = ENERGY + PERSISTENCE

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

True Formula For Success !!!!

"A wise man should have money in his head, but not in his heart." — Jonathan Swift: 17-18th century

Good Morning,

To be truly successful at something, takes more than wanting to make money. You must have a passion, loving what you do.

It's the same way with exercise. If you want to go on an exercise program and you decide to start jogging or lifting weights. You might do it from sure will power for a few times, but, if you don't love doing it or have a passion for it, your not going to stick to the program. Does that make sense?

That's why so many people start doing things and end up shortly after not doing them any longer. Don't start something if you do not have a passion for it.

Another example, people everyday start diets to lose weight. They stick to it for a couple of days or maybe on pure will power they might stick yo it for a couple of weeks. But, if they don't love and have a passion for eating healthy, they will not be on the diet very long. It's as simple as that. The quicker you realize this, the quicker you can start looking for ways to build passion for something you want to accomplish.

This is the greatest success formula for anything in your life that you want to accomplish and be really successful at anything you do. From relationships, finances, business, physically, emotionally, etc. Every aspect of your life.

If you smoke cigarettes, do you want to quit? Yes? No, you really don't. Because you love and have a passion for smoking cigarettes. !! If you try to quit, it won't work! The only way to quit smoking, is to not be passionate about it anymore, you must have a passion, loving not to smoke. Loving the way you feel not to smoke, how much better you can breath, how much better you can taste your food, how much better your overall health will be, how much better you smell, etc.

Do you really want to go on a diet to lose weight? Yes? No, you don't. Because you love to eat, you have a passion to eat unhealthy foods. A diet won't work unless, you find a passion and love to eat a healthy diet. Loving the way a healthy diet will make you feel. Less bloated, more energy, weight loss, less physical problems, looking better, etc.

You can see by just the couple of examples above that you must realize that the only way your going to be successful at anything in your life is to love it and have a great passion for doing it.
If you write down your goals that you have and you do not have a passion or love doing it. You mine as well not even try. You need to love doing it. Otherwise your going to waste your time trying something that will not make you happy and you will not succeed.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

"The best of us must sometimes eat our words."(From Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets) — J. K. Rowling

Good Morning,

Today we are going to discuss your vocabulary. The words you use in your everyday life have meaning and power. Your words can make people feel hurt, sad, happy, mad, scared and much more.

The words you choose can change your state of mind. If your feeling angry about something. You could change your state by substituting a weird sounding word that means the same. Most of would tell the person we are angry with, "I'm angry at you for doing ????". But, to change your state from being very angry to a much lighter anger, you might rephrase what you say too something like this, " I'm HUFFY at you for doing ????". I know if I said this, it would definitely change my state, I might even laugh. It would change the other persons state too.

Can you imagine, if your fighting with your spouse about something and you phrased your anger in that way. You probably would both laugh and be able to communicate more productively. Because responding in anger usually gets a response in anger and just escalates and then you don't talk to each other for hours or maybe even days. And it's usually about something stupid.

When your talking to yourself, you can use different words to put you in different states. You need to realize that the words you use are very powerful. So, my challenge to you is to learn and expand your vocabulary, so you have an extensive list of words. That best way to do this, is to learn a word a day or look up an emotional word each day. Here is an example from a Thesaurus for the word angry:

Main Entry: angry
Definition: mad
Synonyms:
affronted, annoyed, antagonized, bitter, chafed, choleric, convulsed, cross, displeased, enraged, exacerbated, exasperated, ferocious, fierce, fiery, fuming, furious, galled, hateful, heated, hot, huffy, ill-tempered, impassioned, incensed, indignant, inflamed, infuriated, irascible, irate, ireful, irritable, irritated, maddened, nettled, offended, outraged, passionate, piqued, provoked, raging, resentful, riled, sore, splenetic, storming, sulky, sullen, tumultuous, turbulent, uptight, vexed, wrathful

My wife was angry with me the other day, and I said to her, "Honey, I understand your convulsed at me." As soon as I said it, her state changed. She laughed and asked what I was talking about. So choose your words carefully. To change someone from angry to all most laughing, use the weirdest word you can find. If someone is sad, use the funniest word you can find to make them laugh. Example: Instead of, "I know your sad about ?????", use, "I know your
woebegone about ????." Woebegone means sad, but it will surely make you and the other person laugh. And if you can laugh, you cannot be sad. So expand your words and expand your life.

So, until next time, always be aware of your "oracles" (decisions) that shape your ultimate "divine decree" (destiny) !! Ha, Ha, that sounds funny!

"If you believe it, you can make it happen. That’s all you need, is belief — and of course the willingness to follow through on whatever needs to be done on your part." — Barefoot Doctor

Good Morning,

There’s never been a championship team whose players and coach didn’t believe in themselves. There’s never been a corporate president or CEO who didn’t believe in himself or herself. Believing is not a guarantee of achievement. But failing to believe is a sure guarantee of failure. Before you set your goal to make more money next month, lose 10 pounds, or get that promotion you’ve had your eye on, ask yourself if you believe you can do it. If the answer’s yes, then go do it.

Until Next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

"Most great people have attained their greatest success just one step beyond their
greatest failure."
—Napoleon Hill

Good Morning,

Failure is a learning experience. When you fail, you must learn from it and move on. Don't give up. There are many people who have failed time and time again, but never gave up, never quit on there dream. They always will still pursue there dream until they reach it. One of the reasons they continue to pursue there dream even though they might have failed many times, is because they have a very strong belief that they will reach there dream.

They fail, they learn from it and continue going forward, never giving up. The greatest people are not afraid to fail. They just know they have to continue to change how they are doing things to reach there dream.

Take Thomas Edison for example. He was trying to invent the light bulb. He failed hundreds of times, he could have given up. But, his belief that he can do it, kept him changing and adapting to new ideas. Until he finally succeeded.

Most people will try to reach there goal, if it doesn't work the first couple of times, they just give up. I'm here to tell you, DO NOT GIVE UP !!! If your belief is strong enough that you can accomplish something, than keep moving forward and learning from every failure. Don't do the same thing over and over, you must do things differently. Change and adapt.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!

"I don't care how much power, brilliance, or energy you have, if you don't harness it and focus it on a specific target, and hold it there, you're never going to accomplish as much as your ability warrants." — Zig Ziglar

Good Morning,

One of the biggest obstacles you face, that comes to be in the way of you achieve a lot of your goals is, simply PROCRASTANATION !!!

Everyone has the power within yourselves to accomplish some great things. But, procrastination leads us to just being armchair dreamers. It's easy to sit there and think of great things your going to accomplish. But, you have to conquer procrastination to accomplish anything.

Accomplishing anything means to take ACTION !! You must move and move consistently in the direction of your goal. When you procrastinate, it's like sitting in your car on the side of the highway, not going anywhere. Your car might be out of gas. But, if it is just sitting there and you don't give it gas, that's where it's going to stay.

Whatever goal you have in mind that you want to achieve, the greatest steps you can take to achieve that goal is to, simply be committed to doing at least one thing everyday that will bring you closer to your goal. That could mean one day doing research about your goal, the next day, you put your whole plan on paper, the next day, you go out and join something that will help you in reaching your goal. Whatever it is, commit to taking some kind of action every single day, whether it's a small step or big step. If you take some kind of action everyday towards your goal your more likely to achieve it more than if you just sat there and thought about it.

Let me give one of my real life examples. I was a successful manager at a store. My goal was to grow my customer base. That's probably a goal that every store has. I could of just had me and my staff doing all the normal company marketing tactics. But, I wanted my store to be different and grow to be one of the biggest store in the company. I want me and my team to stand out. I brainstormed and came up with a simple formula, but one that know other store was really doing. It was not part of the company marketing plan and doing it, meant that I had to take some extra action to achieve. I simply came up with a plan to go out and knock on doors and introduce myself as the manager and let them know a little bit about my store and how I can help them in the future. I also gave them a coupon, so when they needed me, they could use it anytime.

Now, this was going over and beyond what any other store was doing. But, in the beginning, I was a little nervous about it, because I didn't know how it was going to turn out. I actually procrastinated a couple of weeks. I didn't do anything. One day I decided to take action, kick the procrastination and get out there and do it. I decided my goal everyday, would be to actually talk to 5 potential customer every day, just 5. If I knocked on the door and know one answered, I would leave one of my stores door hangers on the door.

So, I might leave a door hanger on the first three doors, talk to someone, then leave five door hangers, talk to someone and so on, until I talked to at least 5. I noticed when I would be talking to people, some of them would start to ask me questions about certain products. That opened the door towards a purchase. Now, my whole goal of going out there was not to be pushy or sell anything. I just wanted to introduce myself and let them know my store was there to help them if they ever needed anything. I always had order forms, brochures, our full line catalog, just in case someone was interested.

Guess what happened when I started taking this action everyday? You guessed it, my store did grow to be one of the biggest and most successful stores in the company. Talking to just 5 people everyday, on a consistent basis, snowballed into more customers than I could have imagined if I did not take that action. It was so successful and it didn't take me very long to go out and talk to just five people a day, I upped it to ten a day. It took me only about an hour of knocking on doors to talk to ten people. That's it, one hour.

So you must realize, that when your stop procrastinating, and take some kind of action, you get a ripple effect. Taking action will produce some kind of reaction. It has to. It's a law of nature. Take a positive action, get a positive reaction. And, on the other hand, take a negative action, get a negative reaction. So, get out there and take positive action towards your goal and you will produce a reaction.

Until next time, always be aware of your decisions that shape your destiny!