Chris Widener's Ezine
March 11, 2009
Issue 108

Welcome!

You'll notice a persistent theme in this issue centering around motivation. We are by nature creatures of habit, not creatures of motivation, right? Most of us try to find ways to stay motivated when a more powerful strategy is to find ways to develop habits! Motivation comes and goes and can be difficult even when we are looking for it, but habits are right there, ingrained in our minds and actions, carrying themselves out without our conscious effort even involved. So this is how we can achieve all that we want to: develop those actions into habits!

You Are Made for Success!
Chris Widener

P.S. Today's issue is going out to 111,378 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. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail ...  
5. 12 Lifetime Rewards You'll Gain from Attending the SUCCESS Symposium
6. More Information

1. Charting Your Course to Success Article

Finding Motivation: What to Do When You Don't Feel Like Doing Anything by Chris Widener

"The measure of your success usually comes down to who wins the battle that rages between the two of you.  The 'you' who wants to stop, give up, or take it easy and the 'you' who chooses to beat back that which would stand in the way of your success—complacency."  Chris Widener

In all of my interactions with people, I've never found anyone, regardless of their level of success, who doesn't sometimes find themselves simply not wanting to do the things that they need and want to do. It is a part of human nature that there will be times that, in spite of all that we need to do, and even desire to, we will find ourselves not wanting to do anything. And what separates those who will become successful from those who will maintain the status-quo is the ability at those very crucial moments of time when we are making decisions about what we will do to choose to find the inner motivation that will enable us to conquer our complacency and move on in action.  

I find that I confront this issue in my life on a regular basis, so the following success strategies are not merely “pie in the sky techniques,’ but proven ways to get yourself to go, even when you don't feel like doing anything.  

Honestly evaluate whether or not you need a break. This is the first thing that I usually do when I find that I don't want to get to a specific action. The fact is that oftentimes we will have been working very hard and the lethargy we are feeling is really our body and emotions telling us that we simply need a break. And this is where it takes real intellectual honesty because when we don't need a break our mind is still telling us we need a break! But sometimes we do need a break. I'll give you a good example. I don't particularly like to exercise, but I do almost every day. Sometimes, I find myself before going to the club thinking about how I just didn't feel like going. Most of the time I am just being lazy. However, sometimes I realize that my body needs a break. So from time to time I will take a one- or two-day break from working out. The benefits of this are two-fold: One, my body gets a break to regenerate itself. Two, after a day or two, I begin to miss my workout, and eagerly anticipate returning to the gym.

Other examples: Perhaps you are a salesman who has been phoning clients for a week straight, day and night. You wake up one morning and just don't feel like doing it any more. Well, take a break for the morning. Go to a coffee shop and read the paper. Go to the driving range and hit some golf balls. Take a break and then get back to it!

Start Small.
I'm at a point in my workout schedule now where a typical workout day for me consists of 30 to 45 minutes of aerobic exercise, and about 30 minutes of weight lifting. So when I find myself not wanting to get up and go to the gym, I will sometimes make a commitment to go and just do a smaller workout. Instead of deciding not to go, I'll commit to doing 15 to 20 minutes of aerobic exercise and 15 to 30 minutes of weight lifting. This is also good for two reasons. One, I actually get some exercise that day. And two, it keeps me from getting into a cycle of giving up when I don't feel like moving toward action.

Other examples: Maybe you are a writer who simply doesn't want to write today. Instead of the long day writing you had planned, decide that you will at least outline a couple of new articles. You will at least get these done, and you may have found that you put yourself into the writing mood after all.

Change Your Routine.
I have found that what keeps me in the best shape and burns the most calories for me is to do 30 to 45 minutes on the treadmill every day. Now let me be very blunt. I find running on the treadmill to be extremely boring. Usually I can get myself to do it, but sometimes I need to vary my routine. So instead of 30 to 45 minutes on a treadmill, I will break down my aerobic exercise routine into a number of different areas. I will do 10 to 15 minutes on treadmills, 10 to 15 minutes on the reclining cycle, 5 to 10 minutes on the rowing machine, 5 to 10 minutes on the stair stepper, and then back to the treadmill for 5 to 10 minutes. I still get my exercise, but I'm a lot less bored.

Other examples: Maybe you are in construction and you have been working on the plumbing for a week, and it is getting monotonous. Don't do the plumbing today! Go frame-in the office.

Reward Yourself.
One way that I motivate myself to do something when I don't feel like doing it is to tell myself that if I get through the work that I need to, I will give myself a little reward. For instance, I may tell myself if I get up and go to the club I can take 5 to 10 minutes off my treadmill exercise, which will shorten my workout routine, and I'll allow myself to sit in the hot tub for a few extra minutes. Hey, it works!

Other examples: Maybe you are a mortgage broker who feels like sleeping in. Tell yourself that after the next three mortgages you close you will take your kids to the fair, or your spouse to the movies. Maybe you'll give yourself a night on the town with old friends.

Reconnect the Action with Pleasure Rather than Pain.
Psychologists have long told us that we humans tend to connect every action with either pleasure or pain. Tony Robbins has popularized this even further in the last few years with something he calls Neural Associations. That is, we connect every action with either a pleasure, or pain. When we are finding ourselves lacking motivation, what we are probably finding about ourselves is that we are associating the action that we are thinking about with pain, rather than pleasure. For instance, when I'm considering not going to the health club on any given day, I am usually associating going and working out with having no time, the pain of exercising and weight lifting, or the boringness of running on a treadmill for an extended period of time. What I can do to re-associate is to remind myself that by going in and doing my exercise I will feel better about myself, I will lose weight, and I will live longer. This brings me pleasure. When we begin to run those kinds of tapes through our minds, we find our internal motivating force unleashed and changing our attitude about the action that we are considering.

Other examples: Maybe you are a counselor who really doesn't want to spend the day listening to people. Your association may be that it will be boring, or that you will be inside while it is sunny outside. Instead, re-associate yourself to the truth of the matter: Someone will be better off because of your care and concern. Think of your clients and the progression they have been making recently and how you have been a part of that.

Chris Widener  

The difference between your ordinary life and your extraordinary life could be a day spent among thousands of achievers from all over the globe! Join Chris Widener, John Maxwell, Stedman Graham and a whole host of achievers and personal achievement experts at the SUCCESS Symposium on March 28, 2009. But, hurry! Tickets are going fast and the event is less than 3 weeks away. 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

"The ability to keep your purpose in the forefront of your mind with a high degree of clarity is the sure cure for a lack of motivation." -- Chris Widener

Chris' Commentary:
Do you ever wake up in the morning and think, "I just don't want to get out of bed?" Do you ever feel like quitting in the middle of the afternoon? Of course you do - we all do! The big question is: "how do I keep from actually giving into my lack of motivation?" This is why knowing your purpose is imperative! Knowing your purpose in life and work, and knowing it with a clarity that borders on brilliance, is the one way to restart an unmotivated heart! When you begin to feel like sitting around, go back to your purpose. If it is clear to you, and if it is a powerful purpose in the first place, your engine will start firing fast again!

Action Point: Take some time today to put down on paper what your purpose in life is. Make it just a few sentences so you can remember it the next time you feel like giving up or being lazy. Make it as clear as you can! If you are feeling unmotivated today, take some time to think through the purpose you have in life.

3. The Last Word...

From Motivation to Motive-Action by Denis Waitley

With the current times, each of us needs to understand the magnitude of social and economic change in the world. In the past, change in business and social life was incremental and a set of personal strategies for achieving excellence was not required. Today, in the knowledge-based world, where change is the rule, a set of personal strategies is essential for success, even survival. Never again will you be able to go to your place of business on autopilot, comfortable and secure that the organization, state or government will provide for and look after you. You must look in the mirror when you ask who is responsible for your success or failure. You must become a lifelong learner and leader, for to be a follower is to fall hopelessly behind the pace of progress. The power brokers in the new global arena will be the knowledge facilitators. Ignorance will be even more the tyrant and enslaver than in the past. As you look in the mirror to see the 21st Century you, there will also be another image standing beside you. It is your competition. Your competition, from now on, will be a hungry immigrant with a wireless, hand-held, digital assistant. Hungry for food, hungry for a home, for a new car, for security, for a college education. Hungry for knowledge. Smart, quick thinking, skilled and willing to do anything necessary to be competitive in the world marketplace. Working long hours and Saturdays, staying open later, serving customers better and more cheerfully. To be a player in the 21st Century you have to be willing to give more in service than you receive in payment.

These are the new rules in the game of life. These are the actions you must take to be a leader and a winner in your personal and professional life. By mastering these profoundly simple action steps, you will be positioned to be a change master in the new century.

Action Step Number One - Consider Yourself Self-Employed, But Be a Team Player. What this means is that you are your own Chief Executive Officer of your future. Start thinking of yourself as a service company with a single employee. You're a small company that puts your services to work for a larger company. Tomorrow you may sell those services to a different organization, but that doesn't mean you're any less loyal to your current employer. Taking responsibility for yourself in this way does mean that you never equate your personal long-term interests with your employer's.

The first idea is resolving not to suffer the fate of those who lost their jobs and found their skills were obsolete. The second is to begin immediately the process of protecting yourself against that possibility – by becoming proactive instead of reactive.

Ask yourself these questions:

How vulnerable am I? What trends must I watch? What information must I gain? What knowledge do I lack?

Again, think of yourself as a company. Set up a training department in your mind and make certain your top employee is updating his or her skills. Make sure you have your own private pension plan, knowing that you are responsible for your own financial security.

Entrusting the government or an employer, other than yourself, with your retirement income is like hiring a compulsive gambler as your accountant.

You're the CEO of your daily life who must have the vision to set your goals and allocate your resources. The mindset of being responsible for your own future used to be crucial only to the self-employed, but it has become essential for us all. Today's typical employees are no longer one-career people. Most will have five separate careers in their lifetimes. Remember, your competition is a hungry immigrant with a laptop. Action Step Number One is to consider yourself to be self-employed, but be a team player.

Action Step Number Two - Be Flexible in the Face of Daily Surprises. We live in a time-starved, overstressed, violent society. Much of our over-reaction to what happens to us every day is a result of our self-indulgent value system, where we blame others for our problems, look to organizations or the government for our solutions, thirst for immediate sensual gratification and believe we should have privileges without responsibilities. This condition is manifested in the high crime rate and in the increase in violence in the work place where employees blame their managers for threatening their security.

I have learned how to be flexible in the face of daily surprises, which is one of the most important action traits for a leader. I really haven't been angry for about 17 years. During that time, no one has tried to physically harm me or someone close to me. I've learned to adapt to stress in life and reserve my fear or anger for imminently physically dangerous situations. I rarely, if ever, get upset with what people say, do or don't do, even if it inconveniences me. I do react emotionally when I see someone physically or emotionally abusing or victimizing another. But I've learned not to sweat the small stuff.

The Serenity Prayer, "Grant me the Serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the Courage to change the things I can, and the Wisdom to know the difference,’ is a valuable measuring tool we can apply to our lives. Simple yet profound words to live by.

-- Denis Waitley

4. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail ...

More than a year ago, Chris Widener and Jim Rohn collaborated on an incredible project designed to help you have more, do more and become more!

Did you know that most people are sabotaging their chances for achievement?

The reason is they don't have a plan. You know the saying, "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail."

To learn more, go to http://twelvepillars.jimrohn.com or call 800-929-0434.

5. 12 Lifetime Rewards You'll Gain from Attending the SUCCESS Symposium

SUCCESS magazine publisher Darren Hardy believes the upcoming one-day SUCCESS Symposium can and will provide you the inspiration, motivation, ideas and valuable advice from Chris Widener, John Maxwell, Stedman Graham, Connie Podesta and a host of other incredible personal-achievement experts (not to mention a LIVE call-in from Jim Rohn!) to make remarkable changes in your life. It's exactly what you need in these challenging days of grim economic news and uncertain times ahead.

But, how will your investment of just one day affect the rest of your life? Here's how!

1. You will discover ways to grow as a leader
2. You will be inspired to elevate your life and business to the next level
3. You will have the opportunity to network with other top achievers from all over the U.S. and the world
4. You will learn from great minds committed to your success
5. You will gain insight into creating wealth and attaining financial independence
6. You will rediscover your hidden strengths and talents
7. You will learn how to take responsibility for attaining your life dreams
8. You will refine your personal philosophy to positively affect all aspects of your life
9. You will discover the power of influence
10. You will learn the benefits of helping others to achieve their goals
11. You will gain important advice on how to be a more effective communicator for business and personal success
12. You will experience a defining moment in your life!

All incredible rewards that last a lifetime. And your time investment is just one day!

Don't wait. Make your plans now to join Chris Widener and a powerful lineup of personal-achievement experts at the SUCCESS Symposium. Keep in mind that seating is very limited, tickets are selling fast and the event is less than 3 weeks away. For more information or to secure your seats now, go to www.SUCCESS.com/symposium or call 877.243.8383.

6. More Information

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