The Eight Fundamentals of Wealth and Success

These are the eight essential concepts you will need to engrave into your soul if you are to become successful in your business and goals in life. These are:

1. Vision
2. Knowledge
3. Time
4. Action Plan
5. Self-Discipline
6. Emotional Equanimity
7. Accountability
8. Help and Guidance

Master these eight fundamentals and achieve everything you ever dreamed of. 

BLIMP Your Way To Success and Happiness

I'm not talking about the hot air balloon which flies above the sky advertising big signs such as GOOD YEAR tires. B.L.I.M.P. is an acronym which focuses on five important values and skill concepts that will make you a better person if you choose to practice and develop these traits in yourself. Use this knowledge to obtain happiness and success.

• Balance
• Leadership
• Inspiration
• Motivation
• Persuasion

The first skill and concept to master (balance) will create a foundation for everything else in your life. The second (Leadership) is a skill you should practice everyday in order to make a difference in your life and in those around you. The last three skills (some qualities of a leader) will provide you with the ability to attract others, obtain credibility, be acknowledge and respected, and  provide meaningful influence to the world.

Balance

Finding a balance in your life can make your whole world less stressful.You've heard it before, "All things in moderation". Too much or too little of anything will cause more harm than good. This can be applied to any area of your life.

For example, Too much partying can leave you burnt out and unable to function properly the next day. You won't get any productive work done. On the other hand, working too much takes away time from spending with family, loved ones, and friends.

Or think of it as going to take a shower. When you first get in its too cold. So you turn the knob to make it warmer. If you go too far, it my get too hot. You have to re-adjust until you reach your desired warmth level. Now everyone's "warm zone" may be different. The key is to finding out what the balance is for you.

The old children's story of Goldilocks and The Three Bears when Goldilocks tastes the porridge is an excellent example. She taste's Papa Bear's porridge which is too hot, Then she taste's Mama Bear's porridge which is too cold. Finally, she taste's Baby Bear's porridge and its just right so she finishes it off. Even a child can learn the importance of finding the perfect balance.

Leadership

Being a leader, and being a good one, takes some skills and training. But having the mindset of a leader will take you further in life. Leaders can be role models and mentors for others. All great leaders of the world are successful in one way or another. Leadership is in itself a quality of the successful individual.

Take some time to learn from wealthy successful individuals. Most, if not all, are happy with themselves and their abilities. So make yourself the leader of the pack, not the follower. Be a strong, capable, confident person. Work on your own terms, get things done and at the same time find ways to unite and influence others in positive ways.

Inspiration

An inspiring individual can make people look at themselves and say hey, its time for me to do something about myself too. Inspiring individuals make others believe and say I know it is possible. With the ability to inspire others, you can give people hopes and dreams, and the courage to make it come true. Individuals with great goals and aspirations for more in their life can feel confident in themselves by finding inspirations from a successful source such as yourself.

You can inspire others and at the same time find your own source of inspiration.

Motivation

Having great motivational skills can make you a person of value and worth. You will be acknowledged and respected because you are able to lift people's spirits when they feel down and low. When people are unable to get themselves started on a new project, or is struggling in their work and goals, your ability to motivate others will make you invaluable.

Persuasion

The ability to persuade others is a slightly difficult concept to master but an extremely beneficial skill to have. Persuasive people can get anything they want in life. If you can persuade someone to giving you what you need, no other skills will ever be needed. However, you must practice persuasion ethically and use it to promote goodness in yourself and others. Persuasion grants power. Persuasive people are usually very successful individuals and the leaders of society.



Train yourself in these five things and you will surely come out happy and successful. 

The Five Essentials of Success

This acronym for success is probably one of the most important you'll come across: DFPAC -- meaning Desire, Faith, Plan, Action, and Consistency

Desire

You must have a "burning desire". How bad do you want it? You must truly want and desire it. Strong desires produce strong results. Weak desires produce weak results.

Faith

You must have confidence and believe that you will achieve it. Trust that what you want is on its way. You will never get by with just hoping or wishing for something, you must believe that it will come.

Plan


Have a road map, a course or blueprint to follow. Recognize that plans may be tentative but they will generally provide solid direction and focus.

Action


Execute. Execute. Execute. It cannot be stressed enough. Do it. Do it. Just do it. Nothing will happen if it remains all in your head. Action makes everything tangible. It brings results. Results are what you want to see.

Consistency


Keep it going, STRONG. Continue what you're doing and have patience, persistence, and perseverance. Sometimes results take longer to show. Just keep it up and it will show. Usually in the most unexpected moments. So just keep pushing on. If its working, keep doing what works and find ways to improve it. If its not working, keep going and make minor tweaks and changes. Just be consistent and get in the habit of doing what you need to do.

The Four Ps of Productivity

Prioritization, Patience, Planning, and Preparation. These four concepts are the basis for achieving (or creating) Productivity.

Prioritization

You must prioritize yourself. What is most important at the moment. What must be done NOW? What can be saved for a little later? Often times we have our priorities out of whack. A good way of finding out what is important ( and to determine what should go higher on a list) is to think about Wants vs Needs. What do you want to do today? What do you want to achieve? There's a difference in these questions and What do you need to do today? What do you need to achieve today? Once the needs are met, you can move down the list of priorities to your wants.

Patience

Good things come to those who wait. Its true. Patience is a virtue. Instant gratification vs Delayed gratification, which is more fulfilling? If you always get what you want all the time, the satisfaction is short-lived. Working hard for something allows you to appreciate it so much more. It is important to take action and do what is necessary and not just sit around but sometimes you will just have to wait for things to come, especially the things that are beyond your control. Nothing good comes out of forcing what isn't meant to be or happen at the current moment. Having patience and practicing it can create a sense of calm, relaxed, peace of mind, knowing that you will meet your goals or obtain what you wanted as long as you give it time to manifest.

Planning

 "Failure to plan, and planning to fail."
                           -Benjamin Franklin

 The importance of having a plan is the difference between successful outcomes and failed outcomes. Productivity occurs once you are able to have a plan. A blueprint or map to your goals can keep you focused on your task and guide you towards completion of your goals rather than thoughtlessly jumping back and forth, going off tangent and feeling lost in chaos.

Preparation

Abraham Lincoln once said, "If you give me six hours to chop down a tree, I'll spend the first four sharpening the axe." Preparation is the stage between a plan and an action. You know the importance of having a plan already. Taking action is also crucial in reaching your goals and being productive. Preparation allows you to be more efficient.

 Lets stick to Lincoln's case. The plan is chopping down a tree. You can plan and say well, in order to chop down the tree I will need a tool. I will then use the tool to begin chopping. You would then take action. Here's the importance of  preparation.  A sharpened blade will slice through the tree at a faster, better rate than a dull blade. Not to mention, less effort hacking away would be required. It is an easier task to prepare the blade than to hack at the tree. Energy is saved and can we utilized for more productive tasks to come.

What Motivates Us?

What are the human drives, the systems within us that motivate us to do what we do? There are three things: Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose.

Autonomy (being self directed)

This freedom of choice, the freedom to do what we choose to do without feeling as though it is a task or obligation, but rather, something we enjoy and want to do.

Mastery (getting better at something)

There is the need to improve ourselves, to grow. We need to feel as though we are becoming better at what we choose to do. We often feel unmotivated and discouraged if we are not making progress.

Purpose (why are you doing it?)

There must be a reason for your actions. Something. Someone. For a greater cause maybe? For the improvement of yourself. For money? For power? Maybe for some personal gain? Maybe just because you enjoy it or want to help others. In any case, there is always a purpose for what you do or why you do something. 

The Four Stages of Generosity

Stage 1 – Giving Is A Duty. Something painful happens to an individual during this stage. This is when giving is a chore; it’s something people do because they have to or because they feel guilty if they don’t. This is one of the main reasons people don’t like going to church. When people are not giving and they hear about giving at church, they feel uncomfortable, guilty, beat up or frustrated. The vast majority of human beings never move passed this first stage because it hurts. And since people don’t like pain so they try hard to avoid any reminder that they are in this stage.

Why is this stage painful? Because all of us like generous people and we all dislike stingy people. This stage hurts because it reminds us that we are more akin to the people we dislike than the people we like. The answer to the pain is to push through it, and determine to become the kind of generous person others want to be around.

Stage 2 – Giving Is A Priority. During this stage, something spiritual happens. People who don’t like the idea of remaining in the first stage make the spiritual decision to give. Truly generous giving is not a financial decision; it is a spiritual one. When people give merely for a tax advantage they are still in stage 1. When they give because they’ve determined to become a fully-generous people, they have moved on to stage 2.

This stage is the first step to becoming a generous person. Giving shifts from duty to priority when people decide to make giving the default rather than an option. People do this by making their giving automatic. One of the best ways people automate their giving is by establishing a budget. The first money to leave their account each month is the money they are giving away. They decide immediately how much they’re going to give, when they’re going to give, and then they do it! Another great way people make giving a priority is by setting up ACH bank drafts, or by setting up recurring credit/debit card payments. This removes the possibility of not giving, and when people make the conscious decision to automate their giving, their actions scream, “Generosity is truly a priority in my life!”

Stage 3 – Giving Is A Habit. During stage 3 something subtle happens. Once people consciously decides to make giving a priority, something happens after a while: giving becomes easier, less painful, even normal. Somehow without even recognizing that it’s happening, giving becomes a natural habit. We’ve all seen that person for whom generosity is an easy choice, and we long to be like that person. When we enter stage 3 and giving becomes a habit in our lives, we are then becoming that person.

Stage 4 – Giving Is A Privilege. Something supernatural happens when we move into the fourth stage of generosity. When we give with consistency, we begin to notice God working in ways around us that we never noticed before. We begin to see how our generosity touches other lives and how it changes people. We begin to see the impact of our giving multiply and expand! Then it’s in those moments that we fall to our knees in worship and thank God that we have been given the privilege of contributing to his work! Now giving is no longer a duty, it’s no longer just a priority, it’s no longer even a habit. Now giving is something that we get to do…something we want to do.  In stage 4 giving truly has become a privilege!

May we all strive to reach the fourth stage of giving because…

…God loves a cheerful giver.
~2 Cor 9:7 (NIV)

Four Stage of Generosity

How To Escape The Lies and Deceit [The Internet Marketing LOOP that is costing you all your money]

 In this article you'll first find the typical routine that marketers use to attract you. Then you'll find the steps on how to escape the loop. These include:

• Sticking to free information
• Don't OPT-IN by giving away your email
• Running away when you have to pay
• Not clicking the "CLICK HERE" link
• Trusting Yourself
• Why MORE does not always mean BETTER

The Squeeze (The Tease)

You watch one video after another. Every video says the same thing about how they found a simple secret technique or strategy for making money online fast. They state briefly who they are, find some way to sell their credibility to you. They tell you the tricks that "other fakes, masters, gurus, etc" are using while at the same time they are employing those very tactic while your attention is taken away from what they are doing.

Next, the video gives you free information. Tons of them. All great information. And once you're stuck on the information, wanting more, wanting the rest of it, that is where you are left off. That is where these sly marketers have you sold. You need to pay for the rest of the information. So they continue to build up  the product and hype you up.  They give all these reasons why you want the product (truth is you really dont need it). Then they say they will throw in some free bonus. Seems like you're getting a good deal out of it but that bonus was already intended to be part of the system to begin with.

 Next comes the testimonials. Most of them are made up. Marketers realize that good, honest, people trust someone more when they see someone else taking part in it. So then they give you some ridiculous cost or value of the book which they obviously will not charge you for. You recognize its the same thing every marketer does. You wont pay 97, not even 67, not even 47, JUST 27. What kind of number is 27? What ever happened to 19.99 plus tax shipping and handling fees? Sadly we still fall prey to some of these products. The initial free information, the teaser, the bait was given and you took a bite into it. Now you're hooked.

As for the money back guarantee, most people are too lazy to request their money back and they realize that. Sometimes customer service isn't too great either. The point is to get you to pay. Because once you commit, once you've paid, there's a higher chance of you just keeping it.

What Are Your Other Options?

Look for Free Information

In all honesty, free information is everywhere. The information that is being sold in the product can be found if you search carefully and/or thoroughly. What people are usually paying for is convenience. Supposedly they've done all the research that you dont have to do. Its all there. The problem they dont mention is that the information they give you is only one part of a greater picture. A small piece of the pie. You're paying for the tip of the iceberg. You end up wanting more information which, somehow, they miraculously are there for you to offer another product to satify that. Then the cycle continues once more. They feed you information bit by bit and the prices gradually increase. 

Just stick to real, authentic, genuine people with genuine advice. Most genuine people offer those free and will never try to charge you or find tricks to get you to pay. 

Don't OPT-IN by giving away your email.

The new way of getting you hooked on is by giving you information through your email subscription. You've been fooled before. They tell you to enter your name and email (sometimes just email) then they send you the rest of the information. These marketers then continue to send you "disguised spam" in the form of "new information that you must see. All they wanted was your email to begin with. You are happy with the information and they are happy to have you on their list.

Good thing there's a simple solution for this. If you truly want the information go ahead and OPT-IN. Once you start seeing a recurring email from the same person trying to give you more "new information" just UNSUBSCRIBE IMMEDIATELY.  Otherwise you will be tempted and seduced back into your desires. Or you can stick around to see what these new information is until you see that something is trying to be sold.

Anytime you have to pay, RUN AWAY!

Sometimes they get even trickier. They will offer you all the information for free but then ask you to pay for TOOLS or RESOURCES. Its all the same. They make commissions off of your purchase one way or another. Whether it is through the sale of the product or through the sale of a tool/resource. So anytime you see something that says pay for this or pay for that, you've been duped. 

The truth is, all information has been said and done. Its everywhere, just simply stated in a different way. Its just a matter of you putting in the time, effort, and work. So just do the research yourself.

When You See "CLICK HERE", Stay Clear

Many times while information is being sent to you, either through your opt-in email, or through the free information packet, links are provided. These links are usually something that says "click here" to continue or to find out more, etc. This usually means clicking right into the sales page. Typically when your friends send you links of something, they just give the direct link web address to a video or page. They don't hide its true web address with "click here" to see this amazing cool thing! 

Trust Yourself

You know very well when something sounds fishy or seems too good to be true. That is the golden rule, when something appears too good to be true, it usually is. Don't double guess yourself. Your gut feeling says its not trustworthy. As great as the information is, you dont want to fall prey to another scam or fake. That is likely the case when they present the items in a glorified manner. 

Why More Isn't Always Better

Sometimes when giving you trial period, marketers will send you more information than you can fit into your schedule and finish within the trial period, therefore forcing you to pay the regular price. Unless you have nothing else to do than to spend every single moment from the start of your trial period, most people have other parts of their lives to attend to.

Lots of content isn't always a good thing. Sometimes good strong content can be put into small concise formatting. A truly good set of information can be summarized into the least amount of words possible. The only time details are required is in extremely technical situations where a step by step process is needed. This then can only be shortened so much because every step is crucial. However, when it comes to information. KEEP IT SIMPLE. 

What Should You Really Do?

Hard work. Patience. Persistence. Perseverance. These are the necessary steps you need for any skills or area of expertise you are working on. Some individuals may have more talent than others in different areas but the bottom line is: you are not born a master or an expert. You must shape yourself into one through experience. Internet Marketing, Making Money Online is another form of skill that needs time to master. You don't just pick up a guitar and magically learn how to play a full song right away. It takes  time and practice and guidance. Find genuine authentic people who are willing to coach you. Coaching is a service. Service is something that life revolves around and is more valuable. It is more reasonable to pay for service, someone's time, than to pay for information. If you can find a coach or mentor willing to dedicate their time for free, even better.

Minor Rambling:

My name is Bory Ly. I work as a mentor and leader for an afterschool program through the YMCA. I work with wonderful elementary school kids. Sometimes they are a pain, but overall amazing. Although I don't make much, I am happy to know that I contributed myself and my knowledge to the next generation while maintaining my integrity and authenticity. My goal is to give back to my community, inform and educate the many new generations to come. Education is becoming depreciated and at the same time information is being capitalized for personal gains. 

I believe that the age of mentoring is gradually dying. People are becoming greedy and selfish. We must not decline into an age where people care only for themselves and not their communities. This article was written with the intent to help guide the beginners, the novice, poor souls being manipulated by the sick, selfish, lowest form of beings: lazy greedy marketers who feed off of your desires [and misfortunes]. They are playing the devil's advocate. Don't fall prey to their sneaky tricks and tactics. Don't pay for information. Information is and should always be FREE.

Learn to CLICK with People instead of CLIQUEING with People

“Cliqueing” Characteristics >  Gossip >  Guardedness >  Fake >  Hurt feelings >  Worry >  Don’t know where you stand >  Alienation >  Exclusion >  Resentment

“Clicking” Characteristics >  Honesty >  Transparency >  Authentic >  Love >  Encouragement >  Always know where you stand. >  Friendships >  Inclusion >  Forgiveness

Ways to help your group “Click”

• Welcome all newcomers. This may seem obvious, but it’s easy to neglect new people when you’re catching up with your best friend.
• Alienate the Right People. Of course you don’t really want to alienate anyone, but if you’re not sure who you should sit next to or talk to ask yourself, “who is less likely to be offended if I don’t talk to her?” This means I shouldn’t always sit with my best friend, but intentionally sit by new people or people I know less-well so I can get to know them. When this behavior is demonstrated, it will be imitated by the others in the group.
• Communicate With Everyone. When an email goes out, make sure everyone gets it. Ask group members to “reply to all” with group emails so everyone is in on the conversation. Make sure that all email addresses and phone numbers are up to date. Email is a great way to share prayer requests discussed each week. You might even consider setting up a facebook page for your group where you can share with each other.
• Group outside the group. Encourage the ladies in your group to get together for extra activities like going to dinner, catching a movie, going shopping or meeting for tea. Just be sure spell out that these activities shouldn’t just be for “best friends”. They should be inclusive activities as often as possible so everyone in the group is able to form new bonds.
• Remember birthdays and/or anniversaries. Keeping a calendar with everyone’s birthdays (even kid’s birthdays) and/or anniversaries is a great way to show that you care. Sending a note or a small gift makes people feel loved and remembered. However, make sure to use this information if you are going to ask for it. It’s terrible to ask someone for their birth date and then not remember them on that day!!!
• Ask everyone to help. Try to include everyone in helping with the group with food, drinks, etc. Don’t put people on the spot however. You don’t want to ask someone to bring food only to find out that they are embarrassed by their inability to cook. Instead create a signup sheet that allows people to sign up as they feel comfortable.

Clicking vs Cliqueing

Seth Godin's Facts about How To Make Money Online

How to make money online

1. The first step is to stop Googling things like, "how to make money online." Not because you shouldn't want to make money online, but because the stuff you're going to find by doing that is going to help youlose money online. Sort of like asking a casino owner how to make money in Vegas...
2. Don't pay anyone for simple and proven instructions on how to achieve this goal. In particular, don't pay anyone to teach you how to write or sell manuals or ebooks about how to make money online.
3. Get rich slow.
4. Focus on the scarce resource online: attention. If you try to invent a way to take cheap attention and turn it into cash, you will fail. The attention you want isn't cheap, it's difficult to get via SEO and it rarely scales. Instead, figure out how to earn expensive attention.
5. In addition to attention, focus on trust. Trust is even more scarce than attention.
6. Don't worry so much about the 'online' part. Instead, figure out how to create value. The online part will take care of itself.
7. Don't quit your day job. Start evenings and weekends and figure it out with small failures.
8. Build a public reputation. A good one, and be sure that you deserve it, and that it will hold up to scrutiny.
9. Obsessively specialize. No niche is too small if it's yours.
10. Connect the disconnected.
11. Lead.
12. Build an online legacy that increases in value daily.
13. Make money offline. If you can figure out how to create value face to face, it's a lot easier to figure out how to do the same digitally. The web isn't magic, it's merely efficient.
14. Become the best in the world at something that people value. Easier said than done, worth more than you might think.
15. Hang out with people who aren't looking for shortcuts. Learn from them.
16. Fail. Fail often and fail cheaply. This is the very best gift the web has given to people who want to bootstrap their way into a new business.
17. Make money in the small and then relentlessly scale.
18. Don't chase yesterday's online fad.
19. Think big, act with intention and don't get bogged down in personalities. If it's not on your agenda, why are you wasting time on it?
20. Learn. Ceaselessly. Learn to code, to write persuasively, to understand new technologies, to bring out the best in your team, to find underused resources and to spot patterns.
21. This is not a zero sum game. The more you add to your community, the bigger your piece gets.

A few years ago Seth Godin put his book The Bootstrapper's Bible online for free. You can find it here.

Seth Godin's How To Make Money Online

Leadership Simplified

Leadership is simple. Simple does not mean “easy,” it means “less complex.” Leadership, good leadership, although not easy is simple. In it’s simplest form it is the employment of three core skills:

1. Casting Vision
2. Executing Strategy
3. Fostering Relationships.

When someone in a leadership role performs these three skills, he/she is indeed a leader. When someone in a leadership role neglects one or more of these skills, he/she is NOT a leader.  Leadership is simple, but it is also irreducibly complex.

Irreducible complexity is a term coined by American biochemist, Michael J. Behe.  He defines it this way:

A single system which is composed of several interacting parts that contribute to the basic function, and where the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to effectively cease functioning. (Darwin’s Black Box p39 in the 2006 edition)

Leadership is simple, but irreducibly complex. Don’t believe me? Try this exercise for a moment: consider the most effective leader you’ve ever known. Did that person effectively make you want to strive for something more (cast vision)? Did that person make you and the others he/she led feel valued (foster relationships)? Did that person have a knack for getting the right things done (execute strategy)? I’m willing to bet that you answered “yes” to all three questions.

Now consider someone you’ve known who held a position of leadership, but fell short of being an effective leader. Did that person cast vision? Did that person foster relationships? Did that person execute the strategy? Again, I’m willing to bet I know your answers. You answered “no” to at least one of those questions, didn’t you? Why? Because leadership is simple, but irreducibly complex.

Leadership can not get any simpler than casting vision, fostering relationships and executing strategy. When it get’s simpler (less complex) than this, it ceases to be leadership.

• Take away vision casting and you have a team of happy people with clear tasks to perform but no passion; people feel drained.  True leaders evoke passion in others.
• Take away fostering relationships and you have a team of people who know what to do, why to do it, but they are burning out fast because they don’t feel like anyone cares about them; people feel used.  True leaders make others feel valued.
• Take away executing strategy and you have a team of people who have a lot of excitement, they enjoy one another, but they don’t really know what to do next; people feel bogged down. True leaders point the way and help people get things done.

Without casting vision the environment is stale.  Without fostering relationships the boss drives people rather than leads them. Without executing strategy people are frustrated by inaction. Leadership can not and MUST NOT be less complex than these three skills. Leadership is simple, but irreducibly complex.

That takes us to the hard part of today’s blog post. If you’re in a leadership position you must ask yourself honestly, “Am I exercising all three skills? Am I really a leader?” Because, if you aren’t using all three skills, it doesn’t matter what position of leadership you may hold; in reality you aren’t actually leading. Yeah, you guessed it: leadership is simple, but irreducibly complex.

Learn more about these three indispensable skills and how you can maximize all of them in Alan Danielson's eBook, Triple-Threat Leadership.

Simple Leadership Facts

Why Conflict Exists In Teams

Why Conflict Exists?

• Supporters think that Achievers are too competitive and “hard core”.
• Achievers think Supporters are too soft.
• Energizers think Organizers are too controlling and rigid.
• Organizers think Energizers are non-committal unstructured.
• Theorizers think Connectors are too busy with people to make future plans.
• Connectors think Theorizers are too conceptual and need to get out more.

Leaders often think that conflict is the result of differing opinions about what should be done, but most often conflict is simply the result of different values.  A person’s leadership style is directly tied to what a person values.  Thus, it’s probable that any conflict your team experiences is not really about what each party wants to “do”, but about what each party values.

• Achievers value accomplishing goals
• Supporters value helping people
• Energizers value generating momentum
• Organizers value building systems
• Theorizers value developing ideas
• Connectors value developing people

It’s vital for leaders to understand that people who don’t value what we value are not dumb, mean, or manipulative; they are just different.  When you experience conflict on your team, identify the leadership styles of the people in conflict.  Then have each party talk openly about what they “believe” rather than just what they want to “do”.  Once we are able to see why a person is so passionate about their side of the conflict we are more likely to understand their position and reach an agreeable solution.

More information about these six leadership styles and an assessment for identifying a person’s leadership style are found in Alan Danielson's Triple-Threat Leadership eBook.