Trouble Strikes When You Get Comfortable.

To be successful in business  — you need to keep this simple phrase front and center: "Never let a person who is more successful than you work harder than you." In other words, trouble tends to strike when people get comfortable. Many people become so comfortable with what they already have that they feel no need to extend effort any further. For example:

• Tom is a big fan of Susan. Susan makes $10,000 a month.

• Tom only makes $1000 per month.

• Tom wishes he could be like Susan and studies her lifestyle but takes things very slowly.

• Susan however, even though she makes $10,000 a month, she still runs her multiple sources of income, grinds her ass off. Works stupidly hard to make sure her money keeps growing.

You should never let a person who is more successful than you work harder than you. If you ever want your position in life to change, you need to work harder than the person who you admire. It's that simple.

BTW - working harder also encompasses working smarter. Dull, high-effort work rarely delivers results — you need to add smarts, insight, and focus to the equation.

Talk to ANY successful businessperson or high-level executive and you usually find someone that consistently knocks it out of the park every day. They come to work early, are prepared for every meeting, they engage high-level contacts, and they tend to hone their focus on high-potential activities. They don't ever goof off.

Once you get comfortable, you take your eye slightly off the prize. You come to work a bit later, you wing meetings, you neglect to connect with key people, and you work on mundane tasks. It's a disaster waiting to happen.

Who will you be today?

How To Eliminate Your Fear Of Hard Work.

I work with a broad spectrum of clients. All the way from the CEO to the college graduate, I help people overcome obstacles and better understand what's holding them back.

One recurring area I encounter is the fear of 'more work'. What do I mean by 'more work'?

It's the belief which holds accomplished executives back from pursuing a promotion or opportunity with another company because they believe that more money or new job equals more work, increased responsibilities, and more headaches/exposure. It might even be a small project offered to them.

It's also the belief where unemployed people are unwilling to interview and go after work because they are afraid of the idea of working 60-70-80 hours a week. It's less painful to stay home and surf the web.

It might be the opportunity to expand your business, take on additional employees/consultants, make a lot more money. But you shy away from these situations frequently.

Fiction is often scarier than reality in this situation.

You might have to work hard your first few weeks/months on the job. That's a fact. You have to get acclimated, develop a reputation, and deliver before you can click into 5th gear and use less gasoline (time and effort).

Here's how to face your fear:

Sit down and clearly lay out what you're actually afraid of. Is it the hours? The hard work? The exposure? Rebuilding your reputation? Fear of failure? Fear of success? Never going to see your family again?

Write it down. Get all of your emotions down on paper. Draw. Sketch. Make that paper a visceral representation of how you feel about change.

Then step back, look at it, and realize your representation is achievable and frankly, not that scary.

It's like a horror movie — we are actually more scared of the monster that we don't see (e.g., like Jaws, Alien) than the one that pops out at the start of the movie.

You need to realize this representation is not a state which will last forever. You will see the light at the end of the tunnel — it's probably going to last 3-4 months TOPS.

Now go get that new position with vim and vigor!

How do you face your fears?

Be Proud Of Yourself.

As a coach, one of my responsibilities is to help my clients acknowledge their accomplishments. Why? Because we don't. We get so caught up in the rat-race, getting things done, moving as fast as possible — and we don't take the time to stop and review where we are and where we've come from.

A big part of my job is acknowledgement — I help my clients fully appreciate where they are in life — all the hard work, all the sweat and tears, all the long nights and early mornings — everything.

Why? It gives us perspective. It allows us to understand what it takes for us to really succeed. It also allows us to understand how hard we are on ourselves and how we forget all the hard work.

So . . . I want you to take a few minutes this morning and fully acknowledge where you are in life today:

• Do you have a roof over your head? A lot of people don't.
• Do you have a full stomach? A lot of people are hungry in this world.
• Do you have a partner in life? Family? Good for you!
• Are you employed? Nice work!
• Do you have a car? Excellent!
• Do you have a savings account? Good planning!

If you say yes to most of these questions — congratulations! If you have most - great job.

Be proud of yourself — who you are, what you do, who you impact, and what you leave behind. If you put yourself in the position of acknowledging your current position and what you've done — you have only one way to go — UP.

HOW DO YOU ACKNOWLEDGE YOUR ACCOMPLISHMENTS? HOW ARE YOU PROUD OF YOURSELF?

LET ME KNOW BELOW . . .