Creating lasting change in your life is not easy. It is a process that requires vision, commitment, and persistence. By employing these Simple Solutions, you can set yourself up for success!!

Ten Tips on Creating Lasting Change

1. Create a compelling vision and write it down: Set goals according to what is meaninful to you. Figure out what ou really want. Then, write your goal down on paper and keep it in a highly visible place.

2. Visualize: Once you know what change you want to make visualize it as already done. Each day, rehearse what accomplishing this goal will look and feel like. Make it real in your mind this will keep you moving forward.

3. Simplify: Because we can become easily overwhelmed with the magnitude of our goal, it is necessary to break down the goal into smaller steps. Accomplish one step at a time.

4. Tell your friends and set parameters: Telling your friends that you are working on a specific goal will naturally attract their support. Set the parameters and teach them how to help you, especially when you begin to experience adversity.

5. Monitor progress-keep a journal: Make entries in a daily journal including acomplishments, opportunities and obstacles. If you encounter an obstacle, write down what you can do differently the next time you encounter this challenge. Furthermore, make sure to read previous entries at least once a week in order to review your own progress!

6. Stick with it-even if you encounter set backs: Remember tomorrow is another day! If you slip or fail one day, know that you have a chance to begin again. With commitment and perseverence, set backs will serve as learning experiences.

7. Allow more time than you need to accomplish your goal: If you believe you can accomplish a goal in 6 weeks, allow yourself 12 weeks. This way, when you encounter difficulties/challenges along the way, you will not feel the stress of time pressure.

8. Postive Self Talk: Very often we sabotage our own efforts by falling into the cylce of negative self talk. Replace negative self talk with positive thoughts. For example transform "I’ll never be able to do this & this is too hard" to "If I take this one step at a time, it will all work out in the end."

9. Remember your successes: During this process of change, remind yourself of your personal strengths. Remember a time when you felt accomplished, competant, and courageous. Apply this feeling to your current process of change. It will help anchor you.

10. Get a coach: A coach brings skills and resources to teach you how to create lasting change. As a result, goal attainment progresses at an accelerated pace due to support, increased awareness, and focused action. Having a coach serves as your personal and professional support system- fully invested in your progress!!!

Copyright 2006 Peggy Tsatsoulis All Rights Reserved

Peggy Tsatsoulis, MA CAGS- is a highly sought after Professional Life Coach and Certified Psychologist with over ten years of experience. She has been dedicated to working with individuals to improve the quality of their lives, and her focus has been on bringing out the best in others. For more information and resources, or to sign up for a free e-course and/or consultation please visit http://www.simplycoaching.net

NOTE: This article is one of the component parts of the 9-step WTA3 program contained in the ebook titled "The Action Path -Your Key to Success!" due out in 2005 at http://www.your-key-to-success.com/index_actionpath.html.

- Do you have a Burning Desire? -

Do you have a burning desire to lose weight and reduce your body fat to 10%?
Do you have a burning desire to get a flat, well-toned midsection?
Do you have a burning desire to increase your net worth to $500,000?
Do you have a burning desire to improve your personal relationships?
Do you have a burning desire to start a business next year?
Do you have a burning desire to reduce your credit card debt?

The key phrase is "Do you have a burning desire to…". We all have hopes, dreams, wants and wishes. Do you have a ‘Burning Desire’ to make the right choices on a daily basis and take positive action steps toward your goals?

Let’s start with a common goal of reducing body fat or losing weight. While losing weight is a more common goal, reducing body fat to your body’s optimum level is the better route to take. For this illustration, imagine you had a personal goal of losing 10 lbs in 30 days. Because you’re smart, you know that losing weight can be accomplished by taking in fewer calories than you burn. This is a law of nature and makes logical sense. Even though we are aware of this basic principle, losing weight continues to be a difficult goal for many people to accomplish. Now the question; do you really have a ‘Burning Desire’ to lose 10 lbs in 30 days? If you’re like many, your answer is "…yes, I have a desire to lose weight…" but in reality you don’t have a ‘Burning Desire’.

Another source for creating your own ‘Burning Desire’ is a program from Tony Robbins titled, Get the Edge! You can see a product review of his program at http://www.your-key-to-success.com/product_gettheedge.html.

To further illustrate our day-to-day choices and the difference between a desire and a ‘Burning Desire’ let’s pretend that you are two days into your diet and you’re at your favorite hamburger restaurant for your usual lunch. What are you going to choose from the menu? What choice are you going to make?

Will it be the usual double cheeseburger, large fries and a soft drink?

Will it be a double cheeseburger, small fries and a small soft drink?
Will it be a single burger, no small fries and a diet soft drink?
Will it be a burger (no bun), small salad (light dressing) and water?
Will you leave your favorite hamburger restaurant and find a different place to eat?

Most will order the usual lunch or might only cut down slightly. You might even justify it by convincing yourself that later in the day you’ll eat less, you’ll exercise more at the gym or you need all this food because you are ’starving’. By choosing to order the usual lunch, you’ve made a choice to take action towards your goal of losing weight. Let me repeat in a slightly different way. By selecting the usual lunch, you have made a (wrong) choice to take (a negative) action towards your goal of losing weight. Every minute of every day you have the power, potential and intellect to make good choices that will help direct you to take positive actions towards meeting your goals. Will you succumb to a need for immediate gratification or can you delay it for a short period with your eye on the prize, of a larger, more gratifying long-term goal.

Was choosing the usual lunch the right choice for you to meet your goal of losing weight? It probably wasn’t the best choice, but only you can make the decision to make the right choice. Your decision to eat a high calorie lunch was probably based on a short-term craving and the need for immediate gratification. After the meal, you’ve met your short-term craving but you’ve moved farther away from your long-term goal of losing 10 lbs. You need to be aware that your day-to-day choices are often based on a superficial need to satisfy your immediate gratification. When short-term wins over long-term, it shows that your immediate gratification cravings have registered more votes in your brain. Your objective it to move the pendulum; make your long-term goals register more votes so you will automatically start taking more consistent and positive action steps. You need to create a ‘Burning Desire’ to make long-term win over short-term.

Don’t forget to check out the other examples, such as increasing your net worth, outlined in other chapters of this book. You can also check out a product review of Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle at http://www.your-key-to-success.com/product_burnthefatfeedthemuscle.html.

Stop reading and take your first positive action step to create a ‘Burning Desire’. You can apply this technique to any goal. To make this exercise easier, use the form in the appendix section of this book.

What if this didn’t work and you’re not emotionally excited - what if you didn’t create a ‘Burning Desire’. Your current goal has reverted back to a wish, a want, a dream or a hope. At this stage you have a few options. First, you should go back to step #1 and try this exercise again. Often during the first attempts, you may not have put enough time or energy into the process. Right now is the time to change for the better - take a positive action step and give it another chance. Second, if you’ve tried this exercise or other techniques and still can’t seem to create a ‘Burning Desire’, than you may need to pick another goal, abandon the goal or change the goal. Changing the goal is not giving up; changing the goal is often one of the best ways to get yourself re-energized, motivated and excited about moving forward.

By taking these 5 steps to create a ‘Burning Desire’ for each one of your goals (large or small), you will make your goals much more attainable, you will start to consistently meet more of your goals and you will have more fun along the path to success. This technique can be used in other areas of your life such as your business (career), your personal finances and your relationships. Other chapters in this book will provide the details on how to use this technique to succeed with more of your personal goals.

Author’s Personal Note: I have successfully used this technique in the area of weight loss and have lost 10 lbs (in 45 days), reduced my body fat by 3% and dropped from a 35-inch waist to a 32-inch waist. What was my ‘Burning Desire’? I had about seven of them, but two created the most passion and drive.

First, was when my youngest son commented about how big my stomach was getting and that I looked out of shape. This comment was my negative reason that drove me to make a change. If I didn’t attain this goal, I would continue to hear these comments . Second, I had a closet full of size 32 pants and was ready to go out a buy more tight-fitting 34 size pants. Since I personally don’t like (despise) spending money on clothes, I created a visualization of all the money I would save by not having to buy another 3-4 pairs of pants. If I did attain this goal, I would have another $150 to do what I love most - invest.

My personal visualization for the first reason was a flat stomach instead of the love handles and no ‘fat’ comments from my son. My visualization for the second reason was seeing $150 invested in 3 shares of a blue chip stock on my portfolio statement, instead of pants hanging in my closet. While my personal visualizations might not get you motivated, these visualizations created enough push, motivation and drive for me to change my dietary habits and eat right (not necessarily less) and exercise more often. Remember, each of you will have your own personal visualizations that will get you to take action.

It was the first time in my 40+ years that I’ve ever wanted to lose weight and while it was difficult to make these dietary and exercise changes; I sacrificed my short-term immediate gratification needs for the benefit and success of my long-term weight loss goal. Not only did I receive gratification from meeting my weight loss goal, but I received even more gratification by knowing that I could make the appropriate day-to-day choices to minimize my short-term immediate gratification needs to meet a long-term, more gratifying goal. It was worth the efforts. Other personal success stories can be found throughout this book.

It’s time for You to take Action!

What are you going to do right now to take one positive action step towards meeting one of your personal goals? To get the momentum moving in your favor, you need to take immediate action. After reading this article, take the next 30 minutes to complete this 5-step process for one of your goals? You don’t have 30 minutes, take 5 minutes to start the process. The key is to take Action. You owe it to yourself to be successful and one key component for making your personal goals attainable, is to create your own personal ‘Burning Desire’. Start it now!

About The Author

For more information about this ebook, "The Action Path - Your Key to Success!", by Mike Matthews, please visit http://www.your-key-to-success.com/index_actionpath.html. Your-Key-to-Success.com provides a resource for articles, products and services to help you get motivated to take action and succeed with your goals in the areas of your personal finance, your business and your physical fitness. Remember - Dreams will determine what you want in life, Actions will determine what you get in life. Sign-up for our free newsletter at http://www.your-key-to-success.com/index_newsletter.html.

feedback@your-key-to-success.com

Every January millions of people make a New Years Resolution only to find a few weeks into the New Year, they are unable to stick to it. Are you a statistic this year or have you made a difference to your life.

Every year at this time of the year you see people who have started their New Year’s Resolutions. People have gone on a diet, started an exercise regime, given up smoking or decided that they will change their life in some way.

They have the motivation to start & have high expectations that this year it will work for them. They get up early & start walking the dog 5 days a week or start the latest diet craze. The first week is so easy. Your motivation is high & you feel great because you have started to follow through on your planned resolution.

Week 2 comes along & you think, I’ve been good for a week, one bad day won’t hurt me & the truth is one bad day won’t hurt you. It is the day after your bad day that will determine whether you will succeed with your New Year’s Resolution. If you overcome your bad day you make it to the next week.

By now you are at week 3, if you have made it this far you are doing great. You would already be feeling the effects of your new regime & will be feeling proud of yourself that you have stuck to your program.

But now you have to keep going. You start to realise that you really need to make a lifestyle change to keep your New Year’s Resolution. Are you prepared to make that change. If you are you will never look back. They say it takes 30 to 60 days to change a habit so stick to your program whatever it may be if you truly want to make this years Resolution Work.

If you have started a New Year’s resolution & are finding it hard to stick to or have already given up, think about giving it another go, you never know if you try hard enough, you may not have to make the same resolution next year & you will feel much better for it.

By next year you can make another resolution & this time you know you can stick with it. You can laugh to yourself when you see all the new people out walking their dogs & going on diets, that was me last year, but I made a difference to my life & I stuck to my plan. I have achieved what I set out to achieve & you should be so proud of yourself for that.

The author Sharon Negus helps people improve their health through nutrition & weight loss. For more information visit: http://healthy-lifestyle-4u.com

In this article you will learn the most powerful knowledge available to man.

It is with this knowledge that Andrew Carnagie, a laborer from Scotland, became one of the world’s first self-made super tycoons.

It is with this knowledge that Thomas A. Edison with only 3 months of schooling, and Alexander Bell with NO schooling at all, became two of the greatest inventors of all time.

It is with this knowledge that Henry Ford, despite many failures and opposition, changed the shape of modern production methods forever and accumulated an incredible fortune in the process.

The knowledge I speak of is the birth right of every human alive and yet remains shrouded in secrecy like a magic formula only for the privileged few.

Are you ready to learn this knowledge, that if properly used is going to change you life forever? I think you are….

"YOU CAN CREATE ANY ACTUAL PHYSICAL REALITY YOU WANT THROUGH THE INTENSE DESIRE, BELIEF AND FOCUS OF YOUR MIND"

Do you believe me?

If you don’t it doesn’t matter, because this knowledge is an undeniable rule of the Universe.

If you disagree and believe you CAN’T create the circumstances of your life then that is exactly how you will experience it. In effect you will have created a life of seemingly no control through your belief in no control …..can you see it is inescapable?

You are using this power every moment of every day, it cannot be turned off. The difference between the Henry Fords and Thomas Edisons of the world and most other people is the former harnessed this power and then took ACTION. Through their intense desire, belief and persistence they created what others said was impossible!

Can you see it is by no accident that you are reading this article right now? Your desire for a better life has caused it to be in front of you. Your desire for wealth and freedom has put this article and its message up for your consideration.

Are ready and aware enough to seize opportunity?

Embrace your power and TAKE ACTION NOW!

I want you to be a success…..do you?

Dream the unbelievable dream. Believe in your success. Create the life of your desires.

Written by Murray Hughes
007WorkFromHome.com

http://www.007workfromhome.com/harnessing-your-power.php

Learn how to easily build your own Internet marketing business from the ground up from a long-time marketer giving away his experience for nothing. A Warehouse of Internet Marketing Knowledge at no cost, EVER! Go here now: Work at Your Home

There over 4,000,000 articles on goal setting on the internet, that’s 4 million. Yet with all this information available, people are still not getting it in their life. There must be something missing.

YOU CANNOT READ ALL 4 MILLION ARTICLES

Time restrains do not permit that. If you could find 3 or 4 with the best parts used to make one good treatise, you might up your odds. That’s kind of like the down and out street person looking for something in the garbage.

What is the missing link?

NUMBER ONE MISSING LINK

You must be totally honest, first to yourself, then to all others. This is the most skipped over need in almost all goal setting articles. No you cannot use little white lies. You cannot scam your way to success, failure is always waiting for you at some turn in the road. All your efforts will be lost. You will be back at ground zero. You cannot build on shifting sand.

NUMBER TWO

Do not be frivolous. Do not start asking for things that you do not really want. It alright to ask for big things, but it is wise to work your way up to bigger things as you begin to taste the fruits of success. Small successes will reinforce your voyage on your way to bigger successes.

FACT NUMBER THREE

Everyone is using goal setting whether they know it, or whether they understand it or not. Your sanity is preserved by the fact that your subconscious will lower your goals to a point where you will try to feel comfortable. Understand it or not, your very soul has this build in to help you survive, and maintain your sanity. I repeat you are using goal setting now whether you know it or not. You just do not understand goal setting at a conscious level.

FACT NUMBER FOUR

A negative attitude will leave you dead in the water. If you are serious about improving, you must continue a trial and error path, and realize failure is but a stepping stone to success.

If you can grasp this concept, you can begin to see the need for going slow until you feel goal setting working in your life.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

You can contact me at dickfoster1@verizon.net, I welcome all requests. I will, as soon as humanly possible respond to any and all request or comments.

Some gurus want to make this out to be a mystery, and put together a lengthy document to justify their price.

The more complicated equals more dollars for you to spend. I’m not saying these programs don’t work, but most don’t work for the average person. All 4,000,000 different sites can’t be right! Some are blatantly misleading and incorrect.

http://www.goalmagicezine.com

Over the years I have experienced some amazing results with people who have been secure enough to view their leadership or personal capacity through the eyes of corporate vision.

In one situation, the general manager stood down in preference to his assistant taking his role. They changed roles and the result was growth and expansion for the organisation, greater synergy and momentum.

Why?

A person’s visionary capacity will determine the outcome!

Leading people or an organisation without a clear Mental vision, is the last place you should be.

Power games, position seeking, and climbing the corporate ladder can never fulfil the requirements of vision. Leading others (whether it be in your own business or in an organisation) will most likely bring frustration and a slowing down of momentum.

An organisation that has not established its core values and vision will unlikely keep visionaries within it.

Visionaries will likely take less pay, work longer hours and suffer extreme circumstances that none-visionaries would quit over.

Why is that? Because the “buy in” factor, goes way beyond natural circumstances and into the realms of values. Value in a natural sense we put a price on, whereas vision is priceless.

The amazing thing about vision is it is not impoverished. It will reward in the end, way beyond our primal anticipation.

What value would you put on vision?

Ask Martin Luther King junior. or maybe Winston Churchill!

I can guarantee they did not look for a vision, the vision looked for them. It arrested them and consumed their life. They lived within the parameters of their vision and died spent, yet fulfilled by it.

Vision is the awakening of our life’s purpose and the force that compels us to exist!

It moves us from country to country in the search for people of similar spirit. It stands for something rather than falling for anything.

Vision will either empower you, or expose your vulnerabilities.

As for me, I would rather live in pursuit of my life purpose, than exist within the restrictive fences of being Mr average.

Personal Empowerment Is Activated Through Vision!

I had a conversation this week with a visionary. During the conversation I recalled how every organisation I have ever led, has drawn people (in the first two years), so full of vision that the nuts and bolts people pulled their hair out. Why?

Vision inspires and brings momentum. Visionaries love such an environment as it allows for creativity, (an essential component to release vision) but it does not guarantee fulfilment. Vision needs practical, systematic, analytical support players. These analytical individuals however, can often frustrate visionaries, as they need clear lines of communication and boundaries.

Visionaries break boundaries and are often so caught up with new ideas, that communication is “wrongly expected” to be generated (through each individual player) that has partnered into the vision. Buying into the enthusiasm that is generated out of sharing the vision does not transfer automatically to fact based people.

I can hear everyone that has ever been a part of one of my teams shouting a loud "AMEN"!

Vision is powerful, but it must be measurable, definable and most of all achieved through multiple strategies. If you have got great ideas, an enthusiastic mandate and a passion to succeed, you need to heed this one statement!

You will never achieve it without the help of others!

I can tell instinctively those that will succeed in their vision, because they are big enough on the inside to recognise their weaknesses, yet strong enough to manage them. That’s why synergy demands momentum and momentum needs a clear strategy.

Tony Mckeown is director of Coaching 4 life NZ and regularly travels the world speaking and motivating groups and conferences. His passion and personal mission statement in Life is "To bring a message of hope to a people of destiny". Tony has authored many "How To" manuals along with regular weekly and monthly newsletters.

His services and free motivational downloads are available from his resource site http://www.coaching4life.net.nz

STEP 1.

The first step in breaking old habits is deciding what new habits you want to create with your life energy. Start asking yourself these questions:

* What do you want your life to look like?

* What habits do you need to eliminate?

* What positive habits do you need to develop to make your life look like you want it to look?

These desires must be realistic and obtainable. What is your intuition telling you about what you should be doing?

Listening to your intuition is one of the most intelligent things you can ever do with your life energy. Your intuition always guides you in the direction that is perfect for you. It is that small voice that is not affected by egos, past failures, or other people?s opinions. It is your inner guiding light.

In your journal, keep notes on what your intuition tells you about the strategies and the resources that might empower you.

STEP 2.

Crystallize your thinking. Determine what specific goals you want to achieve.

What habits are you letting go? What habits are you creating in place of the old ones?

Your goals need to be specific, measurable, and realistic.

To do this you’ll have to avoid nebulous thinking, such as "I want to lose weight." What does that really mean? For your subconscious mind to be able to serve you it must receive very specific directions.

STEP 3.

Develop a sincere desire for the things you want.

Desire is the starting point for all achievement. It’s the greatest motivator of every human action.

Frequently, your mind is more motivated by pictures and visualization than it is with words and written exercises. The right side of your brain is where your creativity comes from, and it thrives on pictures. Many times the right side of your brain takes precedence over the left side, which thrives on words. In the past, you may have just written words down to reach your goals. Add this new dimension to your process.

Draw, cut out pictures, or take photographs of what you want in life. Put pictures up on your refrigerator, your bathroom mirror, or any place that will remind your subconscious mind of your desires to reinforce your goal.

Every thought you have uses electrical energy to imprint a new picture in your subconscious mind. The efforts of your subconscious mind are to match the pictures in your mind with reality.

The more you deliberately plant pictures of what you want, the faster you will attract it into your life. It’s very important that you allow yourself to fantasize about what you want in your life - let your imagination run wild!

To achieve what it is you want in life, you must think about it. There are no limits except those we put on ourselves. This is your life and you will be cheating yourself if you don’t go for what you want! You must feel your success before you can manifest it in reality.

STEP 4.

Develop a plan for achieving your goal, and a deadline for its attainment. The difference between a "wish" and a "goal" is that the goal is written down. Once you have a clear picture of what you want in life, your subconscious and conscious mind can work together to achieve it.

When you prioritize and focus you can literally see what you want; this gives you the power of concentration. Deliberate concentration is like a laser beam - it can cut through any obstacles in your path.

STEP 5.

Distinguish between goals and activities. A goal is the specific end result you want to manifest in your life. Activities are those things you do to achieve your goals.

Use the skill of awareness, and remember the goal. Don’t get stuck in the activities.

STEP 6.

Create deadlines for your goals. Without deadlines your brain doesn’t have a clear picture of what you want created. Deadlines have a magical way of motivating us to produce results.

First write your *one-year* goals on paper, then write down all the activities you will have to do to reach each goal.

Start by asking yourself what is the very first activity I must do to get started on this goal? Then write down each following activity that will take you closer to the one year goal.

STEP 7.

Break down the activities for each goal into 3 month groups

Ask yourself "What are the activities I must do in the first three months to achieve my goal?" Write those down.

Then think about the activities you’ll need to follow up in the following three months. By breaking down the goals into manageable, bite-size pieces, you’ll feel more in control.

The secret is that this divide-and-conquer approach keeps achieving your goals from becoming overwhelmingly complicated.

STEP 8.

Make YOUR goals YOURS.

Time for a reality check. Don’t set a goal for yourself that your spouse (or anyone else for that matter) wants for you.

Please revise your current goals to ensure they REALLY meet YOUR needs, not someone else’s desires for you. You will never be successful achieving goals that are not motivated by your own desires.

Moreover, don’t compare your goals with other people’s goals - you’ll always come up short. The reality is that we usually compare our worst traits with someone else’s best traits and we can never win that way.

Let’s recap these 8 goal setting steps…

* Step 1. Set realistic and obtainable habits you want to create with your life energy.

* Step 2. Crystallize your thinking. Determine what *specific* goals you want to achieve.

* Step 3. Develop a sincere desire for the things you want.

* Step 4. Develop a plan for achieving your goal, and a deadline for its attainment.

* Step 5. Distinguish between goals and activities.

* Step 6. Create deadlines for your goals.

STEP 9.

Write your goals as if they have already occurred.

Try writing, "I now weigh ______" not "I want to weigh ______".

This helps your subconscious mind to see the end result.

STEP 10.

Develop confidence in yourself and your abilities.

Stay "sold on yourself". Here are some techniques you can use…

* Listen to motivational CDs and tapes daily in your car or while commuting.

* Do your declarations daily, and control your self-talk.

* Tackle every activity without giving any recognition to the possibility of defeat.

* Focus on your strengths instead of your weaknesses.

* Recognize and honor your personal point of power found in this moment.

* Develop a determination to follow through on your goals regardless of obstacles, circumstances, or criticism.

STEP 11.

Review your goals monthly.

The first day of the month is the perfect time to set up a ritual goal-reviewing. This should be the time that you can be honest with yourself on what goals you are really committed to and how you can improve your strategies. You must also be honest with yourself on what goals are only paper dreams if you aren’t really going to pay the price to achieve them.

STEP 12.

Have PERSISTENCE.

Persistence is the real key to successful goal achievement. Don’t allow yourself to become distracted with excuses about why things can’t be done. Excuses are the enemies of goal achievement.

Instead of going through years of trial and error, you can have the secrets handed to you on a silver platter.

It’s packed with hundreds of incredible techniques and concepts to bust even the worst habits, and it contains over 179 full minutes of digitally recorded material, plus a 52 page workbook.

If you’d like to take advantage of the time, effort, energy, and money that I’ve invested to get in my hands the rights to show you how to break

your bad habits in less than 21 days, as I do.

I highly recommend that you check out the world class PROVEN Habit Busting System Coaching Program by America ’s most highly-esteemed and sought after human potential speakers, Lee Milteer.

Go and check it out!

About The Author:

John Socratous is an Internet Marketer and Researcher. He strongly believe that the difference between ‘failure’ and ’success’ it depends on our habits. Therefore, our habits have more power than our desires. After long negotiations with Lee Milteer’s team he finally got the legal rights to help others to achieve their goals by promoting her proven system ‘Habit Busting Secrets’.

Lee is one of THE most highly esteemed and sought after human potential speakers and productivity coaches around — in her 21-Day Proven Habit Busting System, she will take you step-by-step and help you lose bad habits for good!

For more info: http://www.overcomebadhabits.com

6.Recognise that all vision has seasonal components within it

· Vision takes on many forms and expressions.

I have watched four of my children grow from being dependent upon my support and advice, to now making their own decisions and plans without so much as a conversation with me. The plans I held for their lives have in part come to pass and in other areas not so. As a parent of vision, we too must recognize that other dynamics play a part within the whole.

Seasons in life have great rewards, but we cannot force a summer in the middle of winter.

"In the depths of winter I finally learned there was in me an invincible summer." -Albert Camus.

I love that thought! We may not be able to change the seasons of our vision but we can look forward to the season that is to come. When there is a winter within your plans or a summer upon your resources, treat them both with the same response. Be thankful for the cleansing power of winter with an eye upon the warmth of summer.

As with our children, when they hit times of winter and we feel they should be living in a time of spring, we must recognize that with all the strategies available to us, we cannot live our plans through the choices of others. “Write your plans in the sand, and your goals in marble”

· What did you really see?

As we have mentioned before in this topic, vision is all about foresight, seeing the invisible, creating a preferable future. Vision creates a finished picture for us, and our responsibility is to work towards it with the understanding, resources and skills at our disposal. One important aspect to keep in focus whilst moving towards that future is what is set before us is nearly always, more inviting to what we presently see.

Re-visit the former days, read the notes and consider the landmarks we have achieved. Take a deep breath and seek those that can support you towards your preferable future.

· Don’t despise small beginnings

Years ago I was walking in my local park in Auckland, when I became aware of the thousands upon thousands of acorns that were spread all over the luscious green turf. I picked one up and It immediately reminded me of the times I spent as a child playing “Conkers”. A game where the chestnut is suspended upon a string and a fellow competitor tries to smash it with theirs. Then my mind raced to my home and all the timber that is within it, both decoratively and structurally. By the end of the day, I had over 100 hundred different statistics that the “mighty Oak” was responsible for. And it all comes from one small acorn.

I placed this outside my office door with a note “what do you see?” The next day one of my colleagues had mischeviously entered my office and poured upon my desk and office furniture, hundreds of acorns and a further note “Now what do you see?”

Perspective is all about how you see it. Attitude is all about how you approach it. Vision is all about how you apply it.

Never despise the acorn, as fully-grown it provides far more than it could as a seed, but the potential was always there. What do you see?

Tony Mckeown is director of Coaching 4 life NZ and regularly travels the world speaking and motivating groups and conferences. His passion and personal mission statement in Life is "To bring a message of hope to a people of destiny". Tony has authored many "How To" manuals along with regular weekly and monthly newsletters.

His services and free motivational downloads are available from his resource site http://www.coaching4life.net.nz

Show of hands, please; How many of you out there cringe when you hear the phrase: New Year’s Resolution? Or even better, do you remember how you felt the last time someone asked you what your 2 year or 5 year plan was? What about "Where do you see yourself in five years from now?"

I don’t know about you, but it always makes me squirm. Seems like no matter who you are, our goals in life, both long and short are something we all have difficulties owning up to. And this is what makes us squirm.

And when we do set goals for ourselves, regardless of our pre- ferred method of mapping it all out, a HUGE determining factor in whether or not we achieve the end result we desire is how we talk to ourself on an internal level.

For example… Let’s say (seeing as how we just started a new year and all) that you made a resolution to quit smoking, or lose weight, or exercise more, whatever. Once you make that goal, do you ever sit down and develop a strategy for how you will attain the end-result you want? Can you close your eyes and visualize what your life would be like once you achieved your goal?

Most importantly, how do you FEEL about that goal? This is really the crux of the matter folks, the first step in moving from goal setting to goal getting is revamping (in some cases eliminating) internal thoughts, and feelings that contradict the goal you’ve set out to achieve.

If I choose to quit smoking, and I close my eyes and try and visualize myself smoke-free, but the first thought that pops into my head while I’m visualizing is "Yeah, but in order to get there I’m going to end up losing half of my friends because I’m so cranky when I don’t smoke!"

What just happened? After telling myself through visualization that I want to quit smoking, I immediately told myself to strike that thought, forget it, because I don’t want people to dislike me.

Whenever you catch yourself having these thoughts, you need to stop yourself, and say aloud "Forget that. I WILL do this." or "Cancel! I WILL do this without putting an emotional strain on my personal relationships."

It’s terribly terribly crucial for you to learn to cut down on negative self talk as much as possible, folks.

You can’t get to your end-result if you keep telling yourself there is a new obstacle every time you daydream about what it will be like to live in your desired outcome!

That’s probably the most difficult aspect of Goal Getting. The second and final step is much easier:

Every morning when you get up, ask yourself one question: "What will I do today to get closer to achieving my goal?" Answer that question. Post the question on your bathroom mirror, or the front of the coffee pot, do whatever you have to do to get that message in front of you each and every morning you wake up. Answer the question, and then do it.

So what have you learned? Hopefully by now you’ve realised:

* Goal Setting and Goal Getting Really Aren’t That Different.

* The way you ‘talk’ to yourself is a determining factor in

whether or not you get what you want out of life…

And finally, you’ve realised that just as the title of this article was fluff - and goal-setting and goal-getting CAN be the same thing - Hopefully you realise in order to get your goals ACTION MUST BE TAKEN… And choosing not to act is an action in and of itself. Choosing to dwell on what-ifs and the worries of how you will get there, is an ACTION, and not a productive one either!

Think, Act, and Be Progressive with your dreams!

Greg is the founder of E-Motivated.com. Head on over to this Goal Setting System Resource Site now, to discover more about some of the truly unusual, and extremely effective methods you can use to get exactly what you want out of life with as little of your valuable time as possible! http://www.e-motivated.com

5.Submit it to good leaders (accountability breeds stability and security)

· Vision is always too much for one man / woman to handle (body

One of the key reasons why a vision is successful is in the attitude of the leader of it to allow others part ownership in it. Our western philosophy of ownership can be quite selfish. I am not talking of negating our responsibility to lead the vision, but would question the way some visionaries are unable to let go areas that would grow better under someone else’s care.

The Japanese have several traditions. One is binding the feet of babies in order to keep them small in later life. Bonsai is a process of miniaturizing the root system of plants and trees so as to allow the characteristics of a full-grown tree but in a stunted form. Vision must fully mature unstunted.

If we consider these principles in the same way we handle vision, we can see that restriction of the natural growth points of vision will result in a dwarf version of what could have been. There are several factors that will stunt vision and none more so than unnecessary restrictions on the root system.

The root system of any vision is similar and without due awareness and care, we result in a stranglehold that will reduce the life flow needed for natural growth.

· Vision is not “for me alone”

In making the switch from leading charitable organization dependent on donations from the public sector, to a small business whose objectives are to make and distribute wealth, has provided some challenges. My core values for living are to provide resources and skills to those who are not in a position to pay for them. I live my life as close as possible to these values.

When I started my practice I made a decision to give away at least ten percent of my teaching resources, finances and skills to benefit others. My site is loaded with tools for coaches to develop their practices without charge. I have another website designed for supporting fellow coaches and I coach at least three individuals without charge at any given month. Saint? No! I have a commitment to the betterment of those around me. My vision is my responsibility, but it must touch others in a way that improves their quality of life and challenges them to do likewise, otherwise I am not seeing the results of the purpose of my vision.

Currently I am designing a website for developing leaders and training coaches.

· If all you see is yourself, you missed the plot

A mirror reflects the image it sees and so does vision. What we put into vision will return to the visionary. Living life self-centered is living life at its poorest form. As you have worked through the different aspects of vision, you will become aware of the sovereignty and power that vision has within it. One learns to understand that the vision owns you, not vice-versa.

This means our future is in part way determined by the momentum that vision generates. This is in no way drudgery or chain around our ankle; on the contrary it brings a synergy and empowerment unlike any other purpose. As we identify the true nature of vision, we will view all other activities through this newfound perspective.

Tony Mckeown is director of Coaching 4 life NZ and regularly travels the world speaking and motivating groups and conferences. His passion and personal mission statement in Life is "To bring a message of hope to a people of destiny". Tony has authored many "How To" manuals along with regular weekly and monthly newsletters.

His services and free motivational downloads are available from his resource site http://www.coaching4life.net.nz