SOME MORNING MIND WORKOUTS FROM THE BOOK, THE GREATEST SALESMAN IN THE WORLD
Leadership is a mindset that shifts from being a victim to creating results. Any one of us can demonstrate leadership in our work and within our lives. — Robin S. Sharma
This morning as I gaze outside, all I can see is fog. It’s dark and gray. One of those morning when your alarm goes off and the covers on your bed seem to grab you and hold you in bed. They don’t want to let you go. So yah, it’s one of those mornings. But instead of sliding back into bed, here’s a few things I read recently that really jump start my mindset.
These are from an insane book titled, “The Greatest Salesman in the World.” An oldie but goodie.
Start by telling yourself, “I will love everything and everyone” each morning when you get up. When you talk to another person, ensure that the words you use are loving, because words infused with love have great power.
You may have read the passage in the Bible where it speaks of “love” being the greatest. What’s funny is how often the parrallel is between self help books and the Bible. That’s why I love mixing them up together. For me, it’s the perfect does of practical and spiritual to kick off my day.
This excerpt from “The Greatest Salesman in the World” is so interesting to me because right from the start of your day — your mindset is set on something higher. When I implement “love” into my morning mindset, it’s as if the world goes into slow motion. I can see things much more clearly and assess with decisive force. It’s a secret weapon I use daily to jump start my day.
Here’s another one from “The Greatest Salesman in the World.
Whether being in the best physical shape, being the most efficient worker or selling the most products, the secret to doing things effectively is in fostering excellent habits.
What habits are you fostering in your morning? Do you meditate, excercise or like the late Kobe, “visualize your day?” I wrote yesterday about what you think about and threw out the quote, “what you think about is what you will become.” Your day is becoming whether you like it or not. Time is ticking with or without your permission. So, what are you going to do about it?
For me, some of my morning habits consist of accomplishing the hardest task in my day before 9am. I follow that up with reflecting on the day before and visualizing the day ahead. I also include writing. Because, as you know, one of my goals is to write a book. So, if I want to write a book, I better get to writing every day. I’ve created these habits and now I achieve them probably 95% of my days. They are part of me and set me up for success.
I love what Zig Ziglar says about goals, “goals enable you to do more for yourself and others, too.” I know you want to do more for others just like me. So, nail down those goals and take daily bites out of it. Soon enough, you’ll be on to bigger and better goals.
Since we touched on goals, here’s something else that really helps me hit my goals and set new ones. In the past I’ve gotten lost in the year as to what I wanted to achieve or even what I’ve achieved. Having goals or guide posts help me keep on track.
Everyday, every week, every month and every year, figure out how you can surpass what you’ve already achieved. Do better today than yesterday, and aim to consistently sell more, making sure that this year is even more productive than the last.
I love cooking and even more than cooking, I love eating. Ha! Cooking well takes a lot of practice. When I cook, I research and scour the internet for the best way to cook something. I compare recipes and notes from the greatest chefs on planet Earth, then I cross my fingers and try to duplicate.
What I noticed recently while cooking was how slow the process actually took. I was making striped bass piccatta. While reading the recipe, I organized prepped everything I was going to need for each stage of the recipe.
In the past, I’ve been horrible about prepping before cooking. I’d try and rush the recipe and more often than not, over cook it or miss some ingredients. However, on this day, I nailed it. And, what I noticed, was how I prepped and slowed down the whole process. I took my time and it made an enormous difference.
I think the same goes for life. When we prep out what our day, week, month and year could look like, we gain the advantage. We are prepared for each step of the way. And, while no one likes to go slow, in the end, the results are exponentially better.
Who’s hungry? Ha!
Ok, one more helpful tip.
The next habit is to set yourself goals that you will meet.
I’ll admit that I’ve failed at this one miserably. When I would set goals, I would go so big and so grand, I’d hardly ever reach them. So, guess what I did? I stopped setting goals because I felt like I was failing all the time. Or, the goals were so far out, I never attained any short term satisfaction.
As many of you know, I cycle. One of the issues I was having recently was how I kept stretching myself to ride longer, further and harder. After awhile, I would finish a ride and feel like I was training for the Tour de France. However, I’m not training for the Tour de France. I’m just a dad trying to stay in shape.
This feeling was causing me to look at my bike and not want to ride it. I felt like if I couldn’t beat my old personal records, I was out of shape. I felt a bit disheartened because I loved cycling. So, what I started doing was taking walks. Giving my body a break.
I was still getting my steps in and didn’t feel like taking a three hour nap after a workout. I realized my goals were WAY out of line. I had to take a hard look at WHAT I wanted to get out of my time exercising.
Here’s what I came to: I work out to stay in shape and I workout to be inspired. That’s basically it. I started to set smaller goals. Goals I could attain. Goals like, “I want to be inspired today, or I want to hit 15,000 steps.” That was it. After I began hitting my goals, I felt better about what I was doing. I didn’t need to compete with any personal records, I was moving toward my goals with ease.
Today is your day to create. It’s yours. You can absolutely conquer and I believe you will. Get out there and go for it. Learn something new. You’ve got this. a.
