Chris Widener's Ezine
January 28, 2009
Issue 105

Welcome!

It has been said that compound interest is one of the most powerful forces in the world. But back when I was preparing for my CD program based on my keynote speech, Winning with Influence, I took a look at that concept and gave it a new twist that I call "Compounding Influence."

You see, when you learn to influence someone, you aren't just influencing them, you are opening up doors to influence everyone in their network! And if you are a good influencer, that can take on exponential growth!

Think about it. If you try to sell something to someone and you aren't very good at influencing, you won't influence them and you lose the sale. However, if you get better at the art of influence, you make that sale, and the product performs the way you say it does, you now have another influencer on your team! He or she may have ten friends or relatives to tell about your product. And, as the old ad says, "And so on, and so on, and so on... ."

The same is true with children. If you are skillful at influencing your kids, you will be able to influence their friends.

In politics, every four years a president is elected because of his ability to influence people to vote for him. He doesn't know every person that votes for him, but through influencing others, they in turn influence others, who in turn influence others.

So, as you seek out personal development, seek to grow your influence through improving your character and your skills so that others view you as a person to follow.

Learn to harness the power of compounding influence and as you do you will see your influence grow exponentially!

You Are Made for Success!
Chris Widener

P.S. Today's issue is going out to 110,595 subscribers. If you've gained value from what you read in my Ezine, then I would like to thank you in advance for forwarding this issue to friends, family and associates!

In This Issue.......

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article
2. Made for Success Quote and Commentary
3. The Last Word...
4. SUCCESS Symposium - Early Bird pricing set to expire!
5. More Information

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article

The Day Your Life Will Change for Good! by Chris Widener

Many people long for a better life. In fact, I think it is innate to humans to desire a better life. Wherever we are at, we look beyond and dream of a better place. That is good, and that is not so good. It is good because the dream is alive and we can see, even if it is far off, a better situation for us, our families and our businesses and communities. So why is it not good? It is not good because it is not yet a reality! A dream is no good if it is only a dream. Sure a dream can make you feel good, but long-term, if you don't pursue it and make it a reality, it will cause you frustration more than anything. But there is hope!

I'm talking about the day your life really changes. The day that your dream begins to become a reality, and not some pie in the sky wish. This is the day life turns around for you, the day things begin to get better and you begin to fulfill your purpose, mission and destiny! When is this day?

It is the day you make a decision!

The key to changing your life is to make a decision, and then to act upon it. And once acted upon, to follow-through consistently until your dream becomes a reality.

So the decision is the key? Yes it is. Every dream begins as a thought. "I would love to have my own business, to be free to run my life and earn as much money as I want to and take as much vacation time as I want." Good dream, isn't it? Probably a dream that most of us have. But there it is, a little electrical impulse bouncing around inside our head. Does that do us any good? Only if it becomes action! And it only becomes action if we make a decision.

Let's carry this example out. What are the decisions to be made here? Well, there are a few I can think of. One would be to quit your job. You can't go into business for yourself until you quit your job (or your current boss will be quite upset!). Decide to do it and schedule an appointment with him or her. Walk in and quit! Another decision is to go get your business license. Schedule the time, go get the papers, fill them out, pay the money and register with the State. Bingo, you're in business!

You must decide what you must do to make your dream a reality.

Then you must act upon those decisions. If you do not act, your dream becomes a pipe dream, a non-reality.

When you have acted, you must follow through. Continue to follow your plan, day by day, carrying your dream to completion.

Here is a practical exercise to get you moving:

What is your dream? It could be in any area of life: Work, family, finances, health etc.

What is a decision you have to make to get yourself MOVING in the right direction? This should be action oriented not philosophical in nature. For example it should be "I am going to resign on March 1st," not "I've decided that being in business for myself would be more fulfilling." That is an idea, not a decision.

Next, pick a day you are going to do it. Pick a time. Be specific.
Next, do it!
Next, begin the process of continually following-through.
Next, enjoy yourself; you are pursuing your dream! It may be hard but it will also be the most fulfilling and rewarding time of your life!

"The history of free men is not written by chance, but by choice - their choice." Dwight D. Eisenhower

Decide, Act, Follow-through. The day you do will be the day you change your life - for good!

Chris Widener  

Spend a day (perhaps the day that will change your life for good!) with Chris Widener and 3,000+ achievers from around the world at the SUCCESS Symposium on March 28, 2009. But, hurry! Section One seating is almost sold out (just a few seats remain). Early bird ticket pricing will come to an end very soon and prices will be going up. Now's the time to reserve your seats! For complete details, go to www.SUCCESS.com/symposium or call 877-243-8383.

2. Made for Success Quote and Commentary

"Be ready when opportunity comes...Luck is the time when preparation and opportunity meet." -- Roy D. Chapin, Jr.

Chris' Commentary:
Sooner or later, your "break" will come. You will get your chance. The question is not whether or not opportunity will knock or if the door will open, but whether or not you will be thoroughly prepared to knock back and blow through that door! You certainly don't want to have to tell your opportunity to "hold on for a minute while I go get ready!" I hate to tell you this, but opportunity can be an impatient suitor. If you can't or won't dance, he will find someone who will.

Action Point: What would be your "dream opportunity? Write it out. Now write out what you can do to be thoroughly prepared when you get the call. Write out what you can do to quicken the speed by which you will get your opportunity. When the pitch is thrown, you want to hit it out of the park!

3. The Last Word...

Since "influence" and "change" are themes in this week's issue, I'll let my friend John Maxwell, a leading expert on leadership and personal achievement, take the last word.

How to Go from Thinking to Life Change By Dr. John C. Maxwell

Step #1: When you change your thinking, you change your beliefs.
I am going to work you through a six-step process of how to change, and it begins with thinking. It begins with the mind. Beliefs are nothing more than a by-product of what you have thought long enough about that you have bought into--always remember that. What you believe is a collection of continual thoughts that have formed themselves into a conviction.

"Although not all change is the same, there is one common element to change, and that is thinking." That is a great truth. That is not mine, it's out of a book called, The Seven Levels of Change. When you break down the process of thinking into manageable number of steps, you reduce the perceived risk associated with change. Being creative is when you think about your thinking, being innovative is when you act on your ideas.

Step #2: When you change your beliefs, you change your expectations.
Belief is the knowledge that we can do something. It is the inner feeling that what we undertake, we can accomplish. For the most part, all of us have the ability to look at something and know whether we can do it. So, in belief there is power: our eyes are opened; our opportunities become plain; our visions become realities. Our beliefs control everything we do. If we believe we can or we believe we cannot, we are correct. Accomplishment is more than a matter of working harder; it is a matter of believing positively. It's called the "sure enough" factor. If you expect to succeed, "sure enough," you will; if you expect to fail, "sure enough," you will. We become outside what we believe inside.

Step #3: When you change your expectations, you change your attitude.
I love Ben Franklin's quote: "Blessed is the one who expects nothing, for he shall receive it." I heard a story the other day about a man who went to the fortuneteller who looked in the crystal ball and said, "Oh, my. This is not good. I look in this ball and see that you will be poor and unhappy until you're 45 years old." The guy said, "Oh, that's terrible. Well, then what's going to happen?" The fortuneteller said, "You'll get used to it."

Your expectations are going to determine your attitude. Most people get used to average; they get used to second best. Nelson Boswell said, "The first and most important step toward success is the expectation that we can succeed."

Step #4: When you change your attitude, you change your behavior.
William James was right when he said, "That which holds our attention determines our action." When our attitude begins to change, when we become involved with something, our behavior begins to change. The reason that we have to make personal changes is that we cannot take our people on a trip that we have not made. Too many leaders try to be travel agents instead of tour guides--they try to send people where they have never been. We give them a brochure and a "Bon Voyage!" And off they go and we wave to them, and we ask them to tell us how it was when they come back. A tour guide says, "Let me take you where I've been. Let me tell you what I have gone through. Let me tell you what I know. Let me show you what I've experienced in my life."

Step #5: When you change your behavior, you change your performance.
Leroy Eims said, "How can you know what is in your heart? Look at your behavior. There is no better sign of the heart than the life." The truest test of where a person is going is their behavior.
Unfortunately, most people would rather live with old problems than new solutions. We would rather be comfortable than correct; we would rather stay in a routine than make changes. Even when we know that the changes are going to be better for us, we often don't make them because we feel uncomfortable or awkward about making that kind of a change.

Until we can get used to living with something that is not comfortable, we cannot get any better.

Step #6: When you change your performance, you change your life.
Change makes a person feel alone, even if others are going through it. You say, "Oh, man! Goodness! I know the others are changing, but I don't think they're having the difficulty I'm having." There is something about the awkwardness and the time that it takes to make proper changes that just seems to isolate you from everyone else, even when a group is going through it together. You just kind of feel, "But my situation's a little bit different, and I think I'm just not quite as fast as the other ones," and there's a tendency to feel isolated, lonely, and withdrawn when you're going through this change.

It is easier to turn failure into success than an excuse into a possibility. A person can fail and turn around and understand their failure, make it a success; but I want to tell you--a person who makes excuses for everything will never truly succeed. I promise you, when you excuse what you are doing and excuse where you are, and you allow the exceptions, you fail to reach your potential. Don't you know some people who just have an excuse for everything? Why they could not, should not, did not, would not, have not, will not. If "ifs" and "buts" were candies and nuts, we would all have a Merry Christmas. It is impossible to turn excuses into possibilities.

Hope is the foundational principle for all change. People change because they have hope. If people do not have hope, they will not change. You are responsible for the changes that you make in your life, but the good news is, you can make the changes you need to make in your life.

4. SUCCESS Symposium - Early Bird pricing set to expire!

SUCCESS Symposium Section One seating is almost sold out (just a few seats remain). Early bird ticket pricing will come to an end very soon and prices will be going up. So, now's the time to reserve your seats!

Join 3,000+ Successful and Motivated Achievers at the SUCCESS Symposium!

SUCCESS magazine Publisher Darren Hardy will welcome to the stage:
- Leadership and personal achievement expert John Maxwell
- Best-selling author, educator and business leader Stedman Graham
- Humorist, best-selling author and human behavior expert Connie Podesta
- Popular author and dynamic life coach Keith Harrell
- Best-selling author and expert on leadership and influence Chris Widener
- And many others—plus, see a special video tribute to Jim Rohn!*

*Jim Rohn has changed the lives of so many people from all walks of life. Attendees at the next SUCCESS Symposium will be treated to a video tribute from Jim's peers, recapping the impact he has had on them and their careers and lives. Due to Jim's health he is not able to travel so he will not be in attendance, but will be calling in to share with the audience his words of wisdom.

Log on to www.SUCCESS.com/symposium or call 877-243-8383 to take advantage of very limited free Section upgrades, special early bird pricing (set to expire soon!) and additional bonuses. But hurry . . . seats are selling fast and section one is almost sold out!

5. More Information

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