Choosing Success

The Retailers' Annual Mistake

2010-10-21T10:07:00.000+11:00

It happens every year with predictable certainty that would be the envy of every punter, investor and weather forecaster. The Annual Retailers' Mistake.
Christmas time for many retailers is their busiest time of the year. In fact, I know some retailers who make 10 to 15 times the amount of turnover in the few weeks leading up to Christmas than they do in the rest of the year. So what's the problem and why am I writing about a mistake?

Well, firstly, I don't want to generalise since I know there are some retailers who have the seasonal business model under control.

The mistake is simply this. For those businesses who take on temporary/casual labour for the Christmas rush, many do not provide adequate training to those inexperienced people to enable them to maximise the sales result. There have been countless occasions when I have entered a store only to find a disinterested or poorly informed or unenthusiastic sales assistant that has succeeded only at making me want to be anywhere but in that store.

For most temp staff, anything that makes them feel less than competent at what they are there to do often reflects in the quality of the relationship with potential customers. And since most customers genuinely seek a pleasant shopping experience, anything that fails to deliver simply sends them out the door and looking for the next store that can offer what they seek.
And retailers, that means they have gone to your competitor who makes the sale, increases their turnover and boosts profits... all thanks to the staff member that you are paying!

So what should retailers do about this perennial problem?

Plan the hiring of your temporary/casual staff with great care.
Don't view extra staff as a burdensome expense but see them as a valuable part of the team that will deliver results during a critical business period.
Hire for positive attitude. People with great attitudes are willing learners and will serve well.
Start their employment period before they are needed to allow adequate time for thorough training in making sales.
Ensure your training program is organised, well structured and focused on the correct steps to achieve the required outcomes for the business.
Praise and reward desirable behaviour.
Provide relevant and appropriate incentive for making sales and hitting targets.

And here's the biggest tip of all... Next year, start this process in July!
Some of your customers who may only consider ever entering your store at Christmas time may just receive the kind of treatment that makes them want to visit and buy from you more often. And it might just be that seasonal team member who makes all the difference... so it's worth getting it right.

Choose Success!

Tony

For more on how to develop your business visit http://performanceimpact.ws

How to Make Money Just Like the Banks

2010-04-23T15:10:00.000+10:00

It's not often that I post in this blog about some of the practical ways of earning an income, but this one is way too good to pass up.

Here's something we all know...

BANKS MAKE MONEY! Lots of it.

And some of what they make comes from passive investments known as Automatic Teller Machines... and they make money from them every day of the year with very little effort on their part.

But not all ATMs are owned by banks.

Smart business people also know how to make money... and owning ATMs is one of them.

This is your opportunity to make money just like the banks do with your own portfolio of ATMs from myATM.

Here are the basics:

Very modest investment.
Guaranteed minimum return on investment of 20% p.a.
Each ATM operates as its own business unit with full accounting to you.
No day-to-day involvement required.

It doesn't get much simpler than that.

So who should consider owning and making money from ATMs?

Business owners.
Investors.
Self Managed Superannuation Funds.
Retirees.
Mums and Dads.
In fact, anyone who wants to earn passive income.

And not just a passive income, but a guaranteed minimum 20% p.a. return on investment.

Follow this link http://bit.ly/dfmSNr to register your interest and you'll be transferred to the myATM website for more details.

Choose success!
Tony

It's Always a Good Idea To Plan Ahead

2010-04-16T18:18:00.001+10:00

As a business consultant with a quarter of century of experience, I have frequently advised people to ensure they plan ahead to get the jump on whatever opportunities come their way. So you can imagine my excitement when I was introduced to a business in pre-launch mode that enables everyone to do just that... plan ahead.

Watch the video and see why over 30,000 people have made the smart decision to be ready on day one of this business that will change the way people earn online.

CLICK HERE to lock your spot NOW!

Cheers,
Tony

Imagine if Facebook Paid You To Be a Member

2010-04-09T13:36:00.000+10:00

OK... I'll keep this one very short and sweet...

Just click!

Cheers,
Tony

Why Does An Orchestra Need A Conductor?

2010-04-01T08:37:00.000+11:00

Evening has come and you are seated in a packed concert hall and your gaze falls on the twenty or so accomplished musicians on stage, instruments in hand, ready to perform for an audience; hushed with anticipation.

Each one of those musicians is capable of delivering a stirring performance. Each has their music in front of them, arrangements crafted to perfection. They are ready. They play.

And they deliver a technically perfect rendition, notes read and played, beats and rests interpreted, timed with metronomic precision.

The audience appreciates the performance and yet applauds in a manner that suggests they have not been moved by the music.

You see, the Conductor wasn't there on that evening and even though the music was well played, the guidance and inspiration that the Conductor brings to the performance was absent. And so was the element that turns great music into something that strikes a chord with the audience and allows them the freedom to lose themselves in the moment.

Without the leadership the Conductor provides, the musicians must rely on procedure and routine to deliver their performance. The Conductor creates and guides the flow that makes the performance soar to great heights.

And yet a Conductor without an Orchestra is as lifeless as a graveyard. Both are needed to create that something special that makes a performance enduringly memorable.

And so it is in business.

There are leaders and followers. Each with their own vital contribution that delivers exceptional performance.

A leader who works with the surrounding talent and helps bring out the best in each of them is one who achieves great things. Strong and inspirational leadership is they key to success in any team.

And so my advice to leaders and those who aspire to leadership is for you to study the Orchestra and the Conductor and the almost seamless nature of the relationship between them. In doing so, I believe you will truly be inspired to create moving and memorable performances, time after time.

To your exceptional leadership success!
Tony

30 Ways to Build Your E-mail Address List

2010-03-18T19:01:00.004+11:00

It's truly amazing how many ways there are to build your e-mail address list. No matter what type of business you have, some of these are bound to work for you.

ONLINE METHODS

On Facebook and other similar social media sites...

Host your own group and invite people to it, then post new links often. Ensure your group has a theme in keeping with your target audience. From time to time, post a link to sign up for your newsletter.
Post the hosted link from your newsletter into Linked Items to spread the word.
Include an opt-in form on your Facebook Page or Fan page.

On Twitter...

Use Twitter - Twitter the hosted link of your email campaign every time you launch.

E-mail...

Include an opt-in form inside your emails for those people who get your email forwarded to them.
Include a newsletter sign-up link in your signature of all of your emails.
Send an opt-in email to your address book asking them to join your list.
Include a forward-to-a-friend link in your emails just in case your recipient wants to forward your content to someone they think will find it interesting.
Offer "Email only" special offers and don't use those offers anywhere but email.

Website

Include opt-in forms on every page on your site.
Popup windows - When someone attempts to leave your site, pop up a window and ask for their email address.
Include a forward-to-a-friend button on every page of your site.
Offer a community - Use Ning as your easy-to-set-up community and have your visitors interact and sign up for your newsletter.
Give something for free like an online book in PDF format. Have visitors sign up to your opt-in form before you allow the download.

OFFLINE METHODS

Put an offer on the back of your business cards to get people to sign up for your newsletter.
Tradeshows - Bring a clipboard or sign-up book with you to tradeshows and ask for permission to send email to those who sign up.
Join your local chamber of commerce, email the member list (if it's opt-in) about your services with a link to sign up to your newsletter.
Host your own event - Art galleries, software companies, retail shops, consultants can all host an event and request attendees to sign up.
Offer a birthday club where you give something special to people who sign up.
Reward your employees - Give them cash or some other incentive for collecting VALID email addresses.
Referrals - Ask you customers to refer you, and in exchange you'll give them a discount.
Bouncebacks – Get them back! - Send a postcard or call them asking for their updated email address.
Trade newsletter space with a neighboring business, include a link for their opt-in form and ask them to include yours in their newsletter.
SEO - Make sure you optimize your site for your keywords. You need to be at the top of the natural search when people are looking for your products or services.
Giveaways - Send people a gift and ask for their email address as well as their postal address.
Do you have a postal list without emails? Send them a direct mail offer they can only get if they sign up to your email list.
Telemarketing - If you've got people on the phone, don't hang up until you ask if you can add them to your newsletter.
Put a fishbowl on your counter and do a weekly prize giveaway of your product - then announce it to your newsletter. Add everyone who put their card in on to your newsletter list.
Trade Shows - Collect business cards and record them in your database. Make sure you ask permission to send email to them.

And the simplest and easiest way... ASK!

Remember... choose success!

Cheers,

Tony

P.S. Here's the bonus I mentioned on the squeeze page... http://bit.ly/arrZK9. Enjoy!

Is the Social Media Experiment Getting Out of Control?

2010-03-10T20:44:00.000+11:00

AOL, Ask, Blinklist, Blogline, Bluedot, Del.icio.us, Diigo, DZone, Facebook, Fark, Google, Linkedin, Live, Mixx, Multiply, MySpace, Netscape, Netvibes, News Vine, Propellor, Plaxo Pulse, Reddit, Slashdot, Squidoo, Stumbleupon, Technorati, Twitter and Yahoo... ... ...

...and that's just scratching the surface.

Some would say that social networking is out of control, others would say that it is the tool that is bringing the world together.

But whatever your viewpoint on social media and its value, you would have to agree that it is almost impossible to belong to just one social media space. Your friends and colleagues are just not that well organised so as to make your life that easy. Right!

So you resign yourself to being in several social media sites and the challenge of keeping them all up to date becomes more onerous with each passing week.

Enter the meCard.

This free tool enables you to manage and control all your social media from one site and helps you build your personal brand. Those of you who have attended my webinars will know that I am big on personal branding and the meCard makes that easier than ever before.

Tools like these help you build what I refer to as your Online Social Currency(TM) and assist you to have a greater depth of social influence. But best of all, you save time... and better managing your time gives you peace of mind.

The meCard is in beta testing phase at the moment and this is the best time to get involved (since those who do so over the next few days will get enhanced training in the best use of the tools).

So... register for your meCard here... http://bit.ly/bggXG2 and take full advantage of every opportunity to become a more successful social media participant.

Cheers,
Tony

Is Lack of Duplication Killing Your Business?

2010-01-20T17:03:00.001+11:00

Hello my friends,

It's not often that I use this forum to point people specifically in a money-making direction, however, this is a game changer and worth acting on...

I wanted to be among the first to introduce you to the most POWERFUL marketing system that is getting ready to ROCK this online industry!

Did you know that the main reason over 98% of the people in our industry fail in their first 3 months of starting is because they lack duplication and mentoring?

LACK of duplication is killing our industry, my friends, and it's about TIME someone did something about it!

Introducing...TheGet2System!

We always tell people "it's as easy as getting 2 who get 2" right?

Well now that's NEVER been more true!

NO MATTER what business you are currently working, you can put this system to work for you 24/7 and guess what? It doesn't just focus on helping you sponsor and recruit... It's the FIRST EVER system in our industry that goes beyond
just "marketing" and "recruiting".

Lock in your pre-launch position right now at no cost! But hurry...before your downline beats you to it!

Click here now... http://bit.ly/8XPWMq

Prosperity FOR ALL..."Not just the 2%".

And now you have a way that you can Choose Success!

Cheers,

Tony

Has Your Business Gone Viral Yet? by Kiaran Finn

2010-01-18T19:50:00.001+11:00

This post is republished with the author's permission.

Saturday, January 16, 2010

Has Your Business Gone Viral Yet?
by Kiaran Finn

I sheepishly admit to failing one module at Uni-Economics 101! That’s pretty embarrassing, because Economics 101 is really just a module on common sense!

Re visiting the topic of my angst, it occurred to me that basic economics is simply the study of how economies operate. Ultimately successful economies are built on debt. Hence the success of lending institutions. Debt creates an outlet for entrepreneurial initiative. Businesses are created, people are employed, and products are manufactured, transported and ultimately sold.

So what you ask? Well within this economic activity you and I need to find our place. Depending on where we situate ourselves in this complex machine will determine our financial destiny, job satisfaction, security and life balance.

If you want to be the conductor of your own life and aspire to uncommon goals and successes, you will need to be very careful how you position yourself.
Ideally you need to find a position within this economic machinery where you can impart the most leverage.
This is absolutely imperative. It is almost impossible to set and achieve ever-bigger goals if you are on a fixed salary. $50k per year or even $150k per year is a label for the ceiling and limit to which you reach.

The miracle word in economics is ‘compound’

Earn $100k per year and pay your taxes, interest and your loans and spend the rest, and that equates to your lifestyle. The day your income stops is the day your lifestyle falls apart.
Imagine for a minute the following.

If I give you a dollar and I ask you to invest your efforts in finding a way to doubling its value every month, do you think you could turn a dollar in to 2 dollars in a month? Almost certainly.
If you could maintain this ratio of compounding return you’ll find the figures become pretty crazy. After 6 months you are earning just $64. Not enough I’m guessing to inspire you to bother ‘wasting’ your time.

However if you can maintain this result for just 18 months your original dollar is now accumulating at the rate of $262,144 per month!

The maths doesn’t lie. The part of the equation therefore is the return on investment puzzle. How do you create a return of investment of 100% per month?

Once you get your head around the figures and adapt your mindset. The natural instinct is to shout out loud ‘that’s nonsense, in the real world that will never work” Maybe you're right, maybe not but the principle remains. Just adjust the figures to your business.

This brings me belatedly to the point of this article.

Change the above example to Online Page Views for your Blog, website or You Tube video. Is it now perhaps a little more digestible?

With respect to Susan Boyle whom I’m guessing you’ve heard of, a rather unglamorous middle aged contestant in UK Idol, who didn’t even win, went from virtual non entity to You tube phenomenon in a matter of weeks. A video of her performance on the TV show was uploaded to You Tube and subsequently went on to be downloaded over a 100 million times within 3 months! Now that’s what I call viral!

This is more profound than you might imagine. If you are, again with respect, a non-entity offline, bear with me here. You have no online connections. You have no business. No social networks. No web building skills. Perhaps the only thing you have going for you is a fire in your belly. Then I have news for you. You have the ability to transform your whole world in a matter of literally months.
Find away to tap into this viral phenomenon and marvel at the results.

Look at those figures again and really ponder the implications of applying this principle to your business. If you don’t have a business then I’d welcome you to hook up with someone in Obe Pro. Obe Pro is like a kindling fire that is on the verge of going completely viral, and at the risk of over doing the metaphor becoming a raging fire in the very near future.

You can either hook up with me via my You Tube Channel or Blog directly or through the person who introduced you and pop back any time for updates to help you build leverage into your venture and start compounding your results, literally from today

I wish you well - Kiaran Finn

To find out more about why Kiaran is so upbeat about Obe Pro, CLICK HERE

Cheers,

Tony

Change of Mind or Change of Heart

2010-01-11T09:11:00.000+11:00

This on Facebook from the man who used to go to great lengths to convince people that the only way to fail is to quit:

Tony Rush: There is a difference between "persistence" and "being too blind to quit". Sometimes success comes from stopping what's not working.

Today at 13:18 via Twitter

Perhaps he's had a change of mind or heart. Or could it be that this is now the self-serving message that will help lure people away from his former business to his new ventures.

Naturally, I agree with the statement. Stopping what's not working is just plain smart. And I never agreed with the nonsense about failure and quitting.

So my friends, you are faced with choices every day. Weigh up all the factors and make your determination.

But whatever you do, choose success!

Another Leadership Lesson

2010-01-06T19:41:00.002+11:00

In his book, How to Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie gives us many pearls of wisdom. He said, "If you are wrong, admit it quickly and emphatically."

What a powerful lesson that should be the hallmark of leaders everywhere.

Why is it then, that when confronted with the truth about something that is wrong, people go into cover up mode, taking a defensive stance and attempting to shift the blame elsewhere.

It reminds me of the old story of the manager talking to a staffer about a problem using the words, "I didn't say it was your fault, I said I was going to blame you!"

It happens too often.

When you are wrong and someone else knows it, no amount of protesting innocence will improve the situation. It only serves to alienate you from others and cause more friction.

But imagine what the outcome could be if the opposite occurs.

You're wrong and you know it... and so does the other person. But instead of protesting innocence, you admit guilt and ask for forgiveness. The result... less animosity, less frustration... more goodwill... and even the possibility of a harmonious reconciliation.

This is what great leaders do. When they are wrong, they follow Dale Carnegie's advice and "admit it quickly and emphatically."

But remember this. Once you go down the path of inappropriately protesting innocence, the damage is done and it is almost impossible to recover.

So... choose wisely!

Christmas Isn't Over

2009-12-28T09:57:00.000+11:00

I don't know about you, but I don't like it when important messages get lost in the rush, crush and clutter of thousands of other messages. So this year I decided to wait until after Christmas to send my annual Christmas message to my friends. And as it turns out, it is quite appropriate given the content I have chosen to share.

For most people, Christmas is either a season or an event... one that starts when the stores put out their decorations and ends a day or two after presents have been exchanged and the wrapping paper sent to the recycling bin.

To me, there is so much more to Christmas and that is because of my Christian beliefs. I was born a Catholic, raised a Catholic and today, I choose to be a Catholic and to remember the reason why we celebrate Christmas. It is simply this... that two millenia ago, a child was born into this world to bring hope and peace and goodwill to all. The child Jesus who grew to maturity and took his place in the world as Saviour taught us then and still teaches us today exactly how to have hope and peace and spread goodwill.

His message is the zenith of inspiration and there is something for each of us to enable us to lead fulfilled lives.

And my Christmas message to my friends is that we must refrain from thinking of Christmas as a season or an event and most certainly to lower the commercialism of Christmas to it's proper place. The message of Christmas, that of hope, is one that we should reflect on every day or our lives... it should not be reserved for a few days in December!

So I wish each of you a safe and peaceful Christmas and a new year in which you might spend at least a few moments each day remembering that a child born in poverty all those years ago lives today in the hearts of those who call him Lord and his teachings are for all of us to live by every day.

I know many of the readers of this blog do so because it is about choosing success and today I will ask you to also choose fulfillment.

With Warmest Regards,
Tony

This is Alyse Williams' Perspective on On Business Success

2009-12-07T06:56:00.002+11:00

Hi everyone...

I'll keep this blog post fairly short because Alyse Williams tells the story in her video so well.

Click here to see what she has to say about Obe Pro.

I hope the choices you make today are successful ones.

Cheers,

Tony

An Open Letter To Polaris Media Group Distributors

2009-12-02T16:14:00.003+11:00

Benjamin Franklin said, "Nothing is certain but death and taxes."

Please allow me to add to this and include "change".

And at PMG this week, everyone would agree that this has been a time of change. In fact it has been a couple of months of change with many EMC members and other leaders (Tony Rush, John Lavenia, Shannon Lavenia, Gene Braxton, Wendy Stevens, Elena Fraga, Michael Justice, Jack & Robyn Firestone, Ellery Bennett to name a few) leaving the business to pursue other interests - all for different reasons and all leaving some confusion behind. And it has left many people wondering what's happened and what the future will bring.

This post is not here to disparage PMG or cast any doubt on that business. My purpose is simple: to help people create a way forward irrespective of whether or not they see a future for themselves with PMG.

PMG's claimed expertise is in the area of personal development, not online or offline marketing or business development. There can be no doubt that one of the areas that has been given less than adequate attention by that business is that pertaining to how to successfully run a network marketing business.

The various marketing conference calls are fairly generic in nature, yet the demand for information by distributors is often more specific. And being an online entrepreneur takes more than just doing what you think suits you and seeing what happens.

What you need to succeed in any online or network marketing business (including PMG) is a Business Plan that covers the following:

specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time-bound goals;
an assessment of your target market and what they need;
strong emphasis on Personal Branding;
a clear marketing plan;
a very strong understanding of how to use and link social media to connect with prospects (frequent and repetitive sales pitches don't work);
knowledge on how to minimise your time on social media so that you can spend more time with prospects (automation is essential);
a concise lead generation strategy;
a method of personal connection with leads;
a planned follow-up method; and
a conversion to sale strategy.

Once you have clearly defined your plan, then you work that plan and make adjustments based on outcomes.

If you are thinking there is more to achieving success than you have been led to believe, you're right. So how do you gain the knowledge, understanding and expertise to become proficient at what most companies never teach. You have to find it yourself.

Here's what I did.

I researched the market to find a source of expertise that would help me master the skills I need to thrive in online business. Much of what I found addressed some of the areas but it was difficult to find something comprehensive... until I found Obe Pro - a complete mentoring system for Online Business Entrepreneurs.

With all the tools in one location and people with the expertise to help make them work for me, the research succeeded.

I joined Obe Pro and discovered certainty. Yes... the results will always be in my hands, but the guesswork has been eliminated.

Now when I have my self-thoughts of manifestation, and focus my desire on what I want to achieve and all the other applications of the Law of Attraction, I also have the tools to make it happen. In the parlance of BE - DO - HAVE, Obe Pro provides the tools to succeed at the DOING part of the equation. And I believe that is what everyone seeks.

So here's my invitation...

Look at what Obe Pro has to offer and decide for yourself if you can improve your results. I will personally invest time with you if you have any questions or want to clarify how to get best benefit from Obe Pro. All you have to do is ask.

I personally guarantee it will be time well spent.

And to say thanks for investing the time in the future of your business, my PERSONAL FREE GIFT to you when you look at Obe Pro is "Auto-Pilot Marketing with Facebook. Click Here

My best wishes to each of you for the success you seek.

Tony

Click Here

Even My 9 Year Old Knows How to Promote a Business

2009-11-22T23:28:00.000+11:00

My 9 year old son Tom, watched me interact today with people promoting their online business from a display booth in our local shopping centre. A few minutes later we were in a coffee shop having a drink and here's the conversation he and I had:

Tom: "Dad. I don't think those people you just talked to are going to do very well."
Me: "What makes you say that?"
Tom: "Well they didn't answer your questions and they didn't ask anything about you and what you wanted. They just gave you that DVD and said everything you want to know is on there."

Me: "And why do you think that's not a good."
Tom: Because they weren't interested in you."

Me (with a beaming smile on my face): "You got it!"

Tom's going to do very well... my budding entrepreneur makes me very proud.

Expect Success!

2009-10-19T18:26:00.004+11:00

Why do so many people persist in explaining away failure as a prerequisite for success? You might have some speed-bumps and setbacks along the way to achieve your goals but it is not a given that you will.

I read post after post from people suggesting (and unfortunately believing) that failure is a part of the journey to success. It is not! Let me say that again... it is not! Even the great Thomas Edison didn't consider over 10,000 unsuccessful attempts to create the incandescent light bulb a failure... he simply eliminated ways that did not work. He recognised each step as a successful step.

John C. Maxwell, the author of 'Failing Forward' believes "the difference between average people and achieving people is their perception of and response to failure."

You do not have to expect failure to successfully handle it. You simply need to be prepared for its possibility.

My father taught me that it is better to learn from the mistakes of others that to make them yourself. It's less costly and keeps you more focused on success. That does not mean you will not make mistakes or meet with failure along the way... but to believe that you cannot have success without failure is just plain wrong!

So, the governing factor here is your personal attitude to success.

The only prerequisites for success are a burning desire to achieve your goals and the necessary action to make it happen. Do not expect to fail along the way... simply expect success!

To your success!

Tony

Discover success strategies here: http://bit.ly/s8q7e

Optimism and Reality Are Not Mutually Exclusive

2009-10-17T21:37:00.003+11:00

You should never lose optimism. But you must be optimistic about a burning desire that you provide all the necessary focus to accomplish. Reality is your measuring stick for that journey. If you are moving steadily towards that goal, then stick to it. If you are moving away from the goal, then review it. If that review suggests the goal should be changed, then change it. There is no shame in changing a goal... and for some, that will be the healthiest choice.

I use some excellent goal setting tools that you can get for free from here: http://bit.ly/s8q7e

Cheers,

Tony

Leadership Must be Learned - Not Conferred

2009-10-13T19:49:00.004+11:00

I heard a sad story today. One that compelled me to write this post.

A friend of mine in a network marketing business approached one of the "leaders" in that business and asked for some advice about marketing. The question was specifically about where the leader would recommend my friend advertise for leads. The response... wait for it...

"You don't have the right to ask me that question." The leader walked away.

I'm not going to go into a long discourse on what the right response should have been. I think we can all work that one out. My comments are more about how the network marketing industry confers "leadership" on people.

Let's step away from that industry for a moment and look at traditional business models.

In my many years consulting to corporations, I have often counselled against the promotion of a top sales person into the role of sales manager. Why? Simply because the skills involved in selling are very different from the skills involved in managing a salesperson or a team of sales people. In other words, selling skills and people management skills are different disciplines.

The result of such a move quite often is to lose your best sales person and gain a poor sales manager. If a business genuinely wants to promote its top sales person into a sales management role, training and succession planning are the two key ingredients required to make it work.

Now, coming back to the network marketing industry. Leadership is often conferred upon the successful network marketer who has worked out how to sell product or perhaps even recruit new distributors, without consideration for whether or not that person has the qualities and abilities of genuine leadership. New recruits are made to look up to that "leader" as the shining example of success... but alas, no skill transfer takes place and disillusionment fills the void.

I am not saying that network marketing companies should not recognise great performance by distributors, but to confer the status of leadership on someone without ensuring they are properly equipped to lead is negligent.

And before you decide to shoot me down in flames and tell me it's all about "duplication" and say that all a new distributor has to do is copy their "leader" and success follows, remember how this post started. My friend was asking exactly how to duplicate and was rudely ignored.

Whilst I am not generalising (there are some great genuine leaders in the network marketing industry), it is my humble opinion that this travesty happens more often than not and the fallout is considerable.

So, let me throw down a challenge. If you aspire to be a leader in your field, learn how to lead, get some leadership training and develop the mindset and the skills of servitude. In many of his books on leadership, John Maxwell refers to leaders as servants; and I believe he gets it right. The attitude of selfless giving creates more success than most would imagine.

If you want leadership training or you are a distributor feeling less than loved by your leadership, you can get some support here. Reply to this post or visit my portal at http://bit.ly/a6C42B and connect with me there. I will show you how you can get free mentoring and coaching for a month... and I'm sure that will make a genuine difference for you.

I sincerely hope I never hear that sad story again!

May success be yours!

Tony

Are You Going To Be The Next Overnight Success?

2009-10-12T06:53:00.002+11:00

Ask any athlete who has been hailed as an overnight success how they did it and they will laugh uncontrollably at the notion and tell you plainly that it was anything but "overnight".

All athletes and professionals who reach the top of their game have one thing in common... they have trained long and hard to perfect their skills to be the best they can be. And that's what propels them to the top.

In internet marketing, you no doubt hear the regular calls to be one of the 3% top earners. Phrases like "follow this proven system", "do it on autopilot" and "no selling involved" all suggest that it is easy to be one of the 3%. But if it was easy it would be more than 3% earning the big dollars would it not? But that's not the case and we all know it.

Back to our athletes. Top athletes and top internet marketers have something in common... training!

Neither reaches the top without the following these key ingredients:
1. Serious desire and self motivation to reach the top.
2. A SMART major goal, supported by a series of intermediate goals. (SMART = Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Time Based)
3. All the training they can muster to ensure they possess and execute all the right skills to attain their major goal.
4. A coach that supports them and drives them onto to greater achievement.

The truth is... you have what it takes to reach the top as long as you have the desire to do so. But you will never reach it with out the other 3 key ingredients in points 2, 3 and 4 above.

And the even harsher truth is that almost all network marketing companies focus on point number 1, desire. How many times have you heard, "It will be all yours if you just have the desire." Tell that to Tiger Woods, Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps or Libby Trickett. They and their fellow athletes know the true meaning of "no pain, no gain". There are no shortcuts.

So why would anyone in internet marketing believe in the shortcut mentality that proliferates today? I truly don't know. But of this I am certain: Success for internet marketers comes in the same form as success for athletes... by paying its price!

I am not talking about about time frames here. Success can come quickly, but not without the desire, the clear objectives, the execution of solid skills and the necessary support systems.

So, are you going to be the next overnight success? If so, now would be a good time to start!

Cheers,
Tony

P.S. Do you want to know how to succeed in internet marketing? 30 days free training and mentoring is available here: http://bit.ly/s8q7e This is the same training that I have participated in (now there's a novel thought... a business coach and mentor actually receiving some training) and can personally vouch for its effectiveness. Go to http://bit.ly/s8q7e today!

To Tweet or To Retweet - That is the Question

2009-09-24T08:02:00.003+10:00

It seems to day that everyone has an opinion on how to best use Twitter. And this raises many questions.

Do you grow your follower base organically? Or use follower generators? Or reciprocal strategies?

What should you tweet and when should you tweet it?

And should you retweet?

And so on.

Before you attempt to answer any of these questions (and there are many more), here's the first question to resolve. Why are you on Twitter?

Is it to make friends, gain social influence, build a network of contacts, create a list of potential customers, promote your business/products/services? The reasons are endless.

But YOUR reason is YOUR reason and you need to have it clearly defined so that you can create the right Twitter strategy to align with your goals.

So I'm going to add a little to your thinking pot to consider - after you have identified your reason. And that is to help you know more about what the masses are responding to on Twiiter... or more correctly, the styles of twittering to which people respond.

Here's a report by @danzarrella entitled "Nine Scientifically Proven Ways to Get Retweeted on Twitter".

It shows the results of his research into tweeting and retweeting and I know you will get great guidance from his work.

Please follow Dan at http://twitter.com/danzarrella to keep abreast of his research. And if you need help with your Twitter strategy, connect with me at http://twitter.com/thinktogrowrich and send me a DM.

Have a great day and choose success.

Lead, follow or get the hell out of the way!

2009-08-11T12:46:00.004+10:00

Are you over all the so-called experts telling everyone that times are tough?

Here's my response... "compared to what?'

If times are so tough, how do you explain the huge number of businesses that are performing better now than they were when times were not tough?

The answer is that times are different... and it is your response to what is different that determines the outcome. Your mindset will deliver exactly what you ask of it... and hopefully you ask the right questions. For some insight into this, please refer to earlier posts of harnessing the power of the subconscious mind.

So here are some tips for business owners that go against what you may be hearing from the so-called experts at the moment:

1. Do NOT approach your suppliers in an attempt to screw down their pricing. Instead go to them with a proposal that allows them to maintain their price but deliver you a better service or result. In that way you will strengthen the relationship with your supplier and create a stronger position against your competitors that will enable you do do better for your clients and win more business.

2. Be an innovator. Find other applications for products or services that you sell. You will be able to open up new markets for relatively low development cost.

3. Do NOT discount your price. Every dollar you give away comes straight off the bottom line. Instead, learn to sell consultatively and on the value to your client/customer of you solving the problem that your product or service can remedy.

4. If your sales people have never sold in economic conditions similar to what we are currently experiencing... GET THEM TRAINED!!! And take the opportunity to get longer standing sales people RETRAINED!. There's nothing worse that a poorly prepared sales person and it is a recipe for failure.

5. Spend time every day developing your leadership skills and those of your managers. Staff mimic what you do and if your leadership is weak, so too will be their performance. These are times that require focus and commitment. Lead, follow or get the hell out of the way. If you genuinely believe you don't have the leadership skills to survive these different times , you may be better off employing a manager who can and will lead well.

So... get your mindset right and take your business on the right journey. It will take effort on your part and you must be prepared to balance business basics with required innovation.

Time for you to choose your path... and I hope you will choose success!

http://bit.ly/nKRe8

Two Free Tickets to the Next Australian Think and Grow Rich Cashflow Conference

2009-07-31T14:27:00.009+10:00

Dear Friends,

Some of you will remember how I raved about the last Ultimate Think and Grow Rich Cashflow Conference that I attended a few months ago. It made such an awesome difference to my thinking - and that's really saying something as I have been a personal and business coach for 23 years.

The event inspired me so much that I was moved to resurrect a project that I first started working on about six and a half years ago... some of the information I learned at the conference helped me crystallise exactly what I need to do to deliver success and I am now only a few days away from implementation.

The good news is that it is on again and I genuinely believe you can experience the same mindshift that happened to me.

Seats are very limited but I have access to two free tickets for you, just because you're my friend and I happen to know the organiser.

To book your tickets now, you simply need to visit:

http://bit.ly/tgr-bonanno

So, here's the deal:

My friend Stuart Zadel - publisher of the bestselling wealth-creation book Think and Grow Rich - is taking his phenomenal events to a major city near you.

It usually costs $497 to attend his event but I'm already holding two tickets I can give you right now, absolutely FREE!

The Ultimate Think and Grow Rich Cashflow Conference is a MUST-SEE event, for one very good reason...

...Stuart has brought together some of the best minds in Australia, which means that if you want to do more that just survive the economic strife - if you want to thrive instead - you can't afford to miss it.

All you need do to claim your FREE seats right now is click on this link and book your place:

http://bit.ly/tgr-bonanno

Have a great day!

Tony Bonanno

P.S. Sorry, I had so much to tell you I forgot one of the best parts: Stuart has promised that because you're my friend, you'll receive your very own free
copy of the best-seller Think and Grow Rich, at the event!

Trust me when I say this is something you don't want to miss. Check it out now at:

http://bit.ly/tgr-bonanno

Connecting With Visitors to Your Website

2009-07-28T15:32:00.005+10:00

Have you ever wondered who it is that has visited your business website even if they chose not to request more information?

Intriguing, isn't it?

Let's do some stats:

Suppose you have 100 visitors to your website that generate 10 requests for more information that results in one sale/recruit or whatever you are looking for. I know the 100:10:1 seems a little artificial and you should use your own statistics in following this example but you'll see what I mean in a moment.

(As an aside, if you do not know your HITS:REQUESTS:SALES ratio, you have another problem that needs solving. Ask me about it and I'll point you in the right direction.)

For this exercise it is safe to say you know the identity of the 10 people who requested more information... but what about the 90 that didn't? Wouldn't it be great if you knew who they were and were able to maintain some passive contact with them? Of course it would. After all, when most people are on the hunt for business opportunities or products or whatever, the tendency is to do business with the last one you visit... even if there is a delay between research and decision.

So, maintaining passive contact with the other 90 visitors is a way to keep YOU at the top of their mind and perhaps they will return for another look etc. And if you have multiple opportunities, maintaining contact is a way to ensure they get to see everything you're offering. And that good for business.

The tool to achieve this bit of magic is not new... it is called a Lead Capture Page (LCP). And up until recently, creating them has been somewhat cumbersome, especially if you need multiple pages for various needs.

The purpose of an LCP is to capture the identity (name and e-mail address) of a visitor even before they land at your "real" page. In that way, no matter what their views about what you are selling, YOU know who they are and YOU control the relationship.

Your LCP should be simple and give people a reason to leave their details, e.g. a free offer or a subscription to free information or whatever works for you. Then when people leave their information, fulfill your offer and retain their information.

Now, a word of caution here. You want people to stay on your mailing list, so don't go bombarding them too freqently or with useless information. The idea is not to pummel them into submission... it is to build up your profile, reputation and personal brand so that they will look forward to your updates and perhaps then choose to reconsider you as a potential business associate.

Think about your approach. Create the right strategy and then implement it well and you will grow a strong base of willing listeners who will hang on your every word. With the right approach you will convert invisible visitors into friends, customers and associates. And that's what you want.

OK... so here's the sales pitch. Creating Lead Capture Pages doesn't have to be a chore any more... in fact it is easier than creating this blog post.

My friend Jeff has developed a solution for creating an LCP that takes less than a minute. And you can create as many as you want or need. One for each page, multiple LCPs for each different campaign or whatever your strategy dictates. This is so cutting edge that your jaw will drop and you'll have to lift your chin off the ground when you see how easy and effective it is.

And it is amazingly inexpensive (Jeff is not a greedy guy) so you will want to take advantage of this system and start creating your own Lead Capture Pages today. Visit http://bit.ly/10XpPV for all the details.

Believe me when I tell you it will make a difference to your marketing efforts.

Enjoy your success. You deserve it.

Cheers,

Tony

Workshop Opens Minds

2009-07-22T09:40:00.005+10:00

Hey gang... the Sales Workshop in Bankstown (Sydney) on the 21st July was a resounding success and the next one is planned for the 4th August, 2009.

The magic ingredient was the willingness of the participants to open their minds and let in the concepts, strategies and methods that will propel them to great heights in their sales career.

Congratulations to Leah and Mark, both of whom won a full day of business coaching worth over $2,500. I am looking forward to taking you further on the journey.

Read more... http://bit.ly/1GGJF

How to Increase Sales in a Recession Without Sacrificing Profit

2009-07-09T11:19:00.011+10:00

TONY'S NEXT WORKSHOP...

How to Increase Sales in a Recession Without Sacrificing Profit

This is not a talk-fest or one of those workshops that provides "teaser" content. This is fully loaded with the who, what, why, when, where, which and how of making a positive difference to your sales results. I promise you will be exhausted at the end of the day and ready to face the next one with boundless enthusiasm.

Date & Time:
Tuesday 21st July, 2009. 8:30am to 5:00pm

Venue:
Bankstown Sports Club, 8 Greenfield Parade Bankstown NSW 2200

Investment:
$595.00 pp inc GST (includes all materials, lunch and tea/coffee)

Who should attend:
Salespeople, Sales Managers & Business Owners wanting to increase sales, commissions and profits.

About The Workshop:
During this highly interactive one day workshop you will learn:
1. The secret to dominating your market space.
2. How to win business from competitors holding long-standing accounts.
3. Why discounting doesn't work and how to avoid it.
4. The exact sales process that will make your prospects want to buy from you.
5. The killer closing techniques that put all buyer objections to rest.

About Your Facilitator:
In his 23 years as a personal coach, business advisor, marketing guru and online mentor, Tony Bonanno has had the privilege of working with some of Australia's leading businesses and has trained thousands of sales people to enjoy awesome success.

Something Special:
All participants will have the opportunity to win one day of one-to-one coaching with Tony valued at over $2,500.

BOOK NOW to avoid disappointment.

bookings@performanceimpact.ws
02 8064 3364

If you have received a Special Invitation, please advise the name of the person who invited you when booking.

Plugin to Supercharge Your Business

2009-06-21T08:57:00.017+10:00

I know everybody wants to choose success and that's why this blog was born and continues to grow. And this is amongst the best tips I have the pleasure to share with my readers.

Just about everybody is familiar with the concept of having something and then enhancing it. For example:

Internet Explorer has Add-Ons
Firefox has Plugins
iPhone has Apps
Twitter has... well.. hundreds of 3rd party sites
Your car has accessories
Your home has improvements
Even people enhance their appearance

So you will understand my delight in having reviewed a system for enhancing your business. I am so impressed with what my friend Jason has achieved that I am dubbing this as the way to SUPERCHARGE your business.

It doesn't matter what your model, if you are in

an internet-based business
a home-based business
any form of network marketing
multi-level marketing
leveraged direct sales
affiliate marketing
or even some traditional businesses

...this is the way to supercharge your business and send your results in the direction in which you have always wanted them to go... UP!!!

Check out what Jason has done... I know you will be as excited as I am. Click here for Jason's overview video.

Is Your Worklife Making Your Lose a Sense of Who You Are?

2009-06-04T07:57:00.012+10:00

Results just out in Australia in June 2009 show the average working Australian has accumulated 5 full weeks of unused annual leave. And given the global economic environment, it is believed that this situation will only worsen.

To quote Peter Wilson from the Australian Human Resources Institute, "Annual leave creeps up on you." He says that not taking it when it is due is a bad habit to have.

The negative impacts of overwork include:

more workplace accidents;
more stress in the workplace and in the home;
higher risk of burnout;
decreased productivity;
lower morale;
less than satisfactory family life.

So, why do we accept longer working hours/weeks/months and less free time?

Most people I have interviewed tell me they cannot afford to take time off because of:

the fear of putting their job in jeopardy;
not wanting workload to back up in their absence;
monetary pressures;
the fear of asking their boss for some consideration.

But as we can see, the cost of these decisions are high in the personal and family sense.

It is my belief that the highest cost of giving so much priority to one's work life is to lose a sense of who you really are. You can put this to the test. Next time you ask someone "What do you do?", listen carefully to their answer. I would bet that almost everyone would say something like, "I'm an electrical engineer," or "I'm an accounts clerk," or similar.

Ask me the question and you'll get a resounding "I'm a husband, father, friend, mentor, coach and business owner!" Why, because I believe in getting priorities right... and work-life balance is about adjusting priorities - but life is about knowing who you are!

So what can you do about the situation you are in:

Your decision to put things right must come from within (although the stimulus for the decision might initially be external).
You must develop a sense of who you are in broader terms than just the definition of your job.
Listen to the needs of those close to you in more than monetary terms to be clear on what they need from you as a person.
You need to develop a burning besire to be the person that you really want to be.
Put in place a plan of action to become that person.
Work on spending quality time with family and friends.
Discuss work-life balance options with your boss.

And here's the clincher...

If your boss is not prepared to entertain change, you must be prepared to fire your boss!

By that I mean... have a plan in place to change your circumstances irrespective of whatever you believe the response might be. Only then will you develop the courage needed to change your circumstances.

These steps worked for me... I fired my boss in favour of a home-based business that now allows me to work from home (or anywhere in the world I choose) whilst not sacrificing the income needed to live a full and complete life. I now mentor people who are looking for lifestyle change into their own home-based business and help them enjoy the same personal and lifestyle freedoms that I and my family do.

You can find out how to qualify for my free mentoring services by visiting http://be-financially-free-now.com.

And whatever you do... always keep a sense of who you are.

Best regards,
Tony

So They Say You're Not Good Enough

2009-05-07T10:48:00.008+10:00

If there are ever any good reasons to NOT listen to the advice and opinions of others, what you are about to read will ring true.

Have you ever been told that you can't do something or that you will never amount to anything? Here are some of the more famous people in the world who have suffered the same:

The Vice President of Columbia told this actor that he was never going to make it in the business. The actor: Harrison Ford.
His first book was rejected by 12 publishing houses and sixteen agents: John Grisham.
Turned down by a recording company saying "We don't like their sound and guitar music is on the way out": They were talking about the Beatles.
Was told by his father that he would amount to nothing and be a disgrace to himself and his family: Charles Darwin.
Told by a music teacher "as a composer he is hopeless": Beethoven.
Was told that "he couldn't sing at all": Enrico Caruso.
Fired from a newspaper because he "lacked imagination and had no original ideas": Walt Disney.
Told by a teacher he was "too stupid to learn anything": Thomas Edison.
Failed the sixth grade: Winston Churchill.
Wasn't able to speak until almost 4 years old and his teachers said he would "never amount to much": Albert Einstein.
Did poorly in school and failed at running the family farm: Isaac Newton.
Was not allowed to wait on customers in the store he worked in because "he didn't have enough sense": F. W. Woolworth.
Was cut from the high school basketball team, went home, locked himself in his room and cried: Michael Jordan.
Producer told her she was "unattractive" and could not act: Marilyn Monroe.
This book Jonathan Livingston Seagull was rejected 18 times before it was published. It then sold over one million copies the first year. The author: Richard Bach.
Auditioned for All My Children and got rejected: Julia Roberts.
Received 30 rejections and the author threw it in the trash. Luckily his wife fished it out again and encouraged him to resubmit it. The book was Carrie. The author: Stephen King.

And I would be prepared to wager that all of these people learned to conquer their limiting beliefs.

Don't let people steal your dreams. Cultivate in your own mind a burning desire to succeed at what you choose and you will succeed.

To your success,
Tony

Are You Attitudinally Challenged?

2009-04-16T07:35:00.007+10:00

Hi there! I don't think anyone will be surprised when I say that the world is full of people with less than positive attitudes. Every day we interact with people who are in "can't" or "don't" mode and too often we let this destructiveness influence us.

So here are some of the more common attitudes that can drag you down and get in the way of success.

Defeatist... accepting, expecting or being resigned to defeat.
Cynical... contemptuously distrustful of human nature and motives.
Vindictive... seeking revenge.
Blame... finding someone else to whom to attribute fault.
Self pity... a self-indulgent dwelling on one's own sorrows or misfortunes.
Worrisome... an inclination to fret.
Jealousy... hostility toward a rival or one believed to enjoy an advantage.
Procrastinatory... to put off intentionally the doing of something that should be done.

OK... OK... enough of the negative already, you're saying.

So, what do we do about it? How do we turn such destructive attitudes into positive ones. Most experts will tell you it is as simple as having a positive mindset. But it's not that simple because our conditioning over the years may be what gets in the way. Our limiting beliefs are the real enemy.

So to change a negative attitude into a positive one, the real secret is to overcome the limiting beliefs that creates it in the first place. And the way to do that is to replace limiting beliefs with unrestricted ones.

To illustrate, let's examine limiting beliefs and I'm going to use the example of the four-minute-mile.

On 4 September 1942, the record for the four minute mile was set by Gunder Haag at 4:04.6. It was broken the following year by Arne Andersson at 4:02.6 and again by the same athlete the in 1944, shaving another 1 second off his previous record and then reclaimed by Gunder Haag on 17 July 1945 at 4:01.3.

That record stood for another nine years. The expert wisdom at the time was that the four minute mile could not be broken citing various reasons including the "fact" that the human body could not endure the effort required to do so as organs would begin to fail at that threshhold. And so was created in the minds of many, many people - a limiting belief.

But not so in the mind of Roger Bannister. He commenced his running career in 1946 at the age of 17. He had never worn running spikes previously or run on a track. His training was light, even compared to the standards of the day, but he showed promise in running a mile in 1947 in 4:24.6 on only three weekly half-hour training sessions.

His career was quite varied leading up to the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. The 1500m final on 26 July would prove to be one of the more dramatic in Olympic history. The race was not decided until the final meters, Josy Barthel of Luxembourg prevailing in an Olympic-record 3:45.28 (3:45.1 by official hand-timing) with the next seven runners all under the old record. Bannister finished fourth, out of the medals, but set a British record of 3:46.30 (3:46.0) in the process.

After the devastation of his failure at the 1952 Olympics, Bannister spent two months deciding whether to give up running. He decided on a new goal: To be the first man to run a mile in under four minutes. Accordingly, he intensified his training and did hard intervals.

On 6 May, 1954, Bannister achieved his goal with a time of 3 minutes 59.4 seconds. He achieved a feat the experts believed impossible. Thank God Roger Bannister believed the opposite.

And here's the biggest revelation: In the ensuing two years, 8 others runners posted sub four minute times, the first of which was John Landy from Australia, the man Bannister believed would achieve the feat.

What was once though impossible became achievable by many and since then the four-minute-mile has been broken thousands of times.

So let's do some quick analysis. Look back a few paragraphs and you will see a turning point for Roger Bannister. It was after defeat at Helsinki that he needed to make a decision. That decision was whether or not to continue running. He chose to keep going and set himself a goal that would validate his decision. The rest is history.

It is this process of CHOICE that defines who we are and what we accomplish. Bannister always believed the four-minute-mile would be broken... his moment of attitudinal challenge determined if he would be the one to do it. He replaced his thoughts of defeat with beliefs of success and from that point began to envision the outcome exactly the way he wanted it to be.

Bannister attracted success and the result. And even if he did not know or understand that the Law of Attraction was at work, it was!

And so too with each of us. Replacing each negative attitude (one at a time if that's the way it must be done) with a powerful and positive belief of success, accomplishment, abundance and prosperity is one of the essential keys to freedom. When we release that which holds us back, we make room for that which propels us forward. Making room is mandatory because we cannot simultaneously command both negative and positve attitudes towards any one subject.

And now it is commitment time. As an exercise, list all the attitudes that you think are getting in the way of your success. Examine them. Look for what is causing them and then resolve to replace each of them with a positive belief. Set your daily action plan around this commitment and you will achieve what you set out to accomplish.

Lastly, I welcome your posts here on the successes you have in converting negative attiitudes into positive beliefs. I look forward to reading your results.

To your massive success.
Choose success.

Tony

http://be-financially-free-now.com

Gratitude and Blessings

2009-04-07T19:02:00.007+10:00

I will start this post by quoting one of my Facebook friends, Brenni.

She said, "I think you're blessed because you're grateful". And that was in response to me saying that I was grateful for my blessings.

So I got to thinking about this and pondered on what seems to be another chicken & egg question. There is no doubt that I am both blessed and grateful and that will always be the case, but I think Brenni has hit on a very real instance of The Law of Attraction here (if you don't know about the law of attraction send me a message and I'll share more info with you).

The simple fact that my thoughts are dwelling on gratefulness creates that resonating frequency that attracts like things - in this case the blessings that come my way for which I am then grateful which then attracts more blessings and so on.

And in any event it probably doesn't matter which comes first because both depend on one another.

So Brenni, I am grateful for your inspiration and blessed by your friendship.

To your success!

Tony

Imagining Success

2009-03-31T19:07:00.007+11:00

Imagine what you would do if you knew you couldn't fail.

Go on... imagine. Let your thoughts flow towards the feelings of success and accomplishment. Feel your thoughts breaking free from your mind and going beyond your consciousness.

Spend a few minutes dwelling on what it is that you wish to accomplish.

OK. Done!

Now, knowing that you couldn't fail, what did you choose to do? Write it down in your journal or some other prominent place.

Where did your imagination take you that you did not allow it do go yesterday?

Why did you behave differently today?

Lot's of questions, I know. But this is important. Something has been holding you back; something has been preventing you from allowing your imagination to set you free; something has been thwarting your growth and preventing you from achieving the success you desire.

You only need to look in the mirror for the answer... or to put it another way; you whistle and I'll point.

Yes that's right, it's you... or more succinctly, your limiting beliefs.

If you know you could not fail at a task or a goal you would do whatever was necessary to succeed. And the truth is that you are capable of succeeding at whatever you put your mind to... whatever you give energy and focus to.

Think for a moment on whatever it is that you have believed you couldn't do. It may be something physical such as abseiling or something intellectual like closing a difficult sale (or whatever it is for you). The phone rings and you hear a muffled, disguised voice telling you that the person in the world that is most dear to you has been kidnapped and you will not see that person again until you achieve that (impossible) task.

What would you do?

I know that I would do whatever it takes to get my loved one back and nothing would stand in my way... I would conquer whatever fear may have held me back in the past and I would succeed.

And so would you.

Motivation is powerful but even more so is that fact that you would be telling yourself over and over again that "I must succeed, I will succeed, I must succeed, I will succeed... I will get my loved one back".

Such "self talk" is one of the keys to working with your subconscious mind that enables you to succeed... your subconscious mind (your most trusted ally) will deliver the success that you ask of it.

So, knowing that you can overcome obstacles, let me ask you again...

Imagine what you would do if you knew you couldn't fail.

Nothing is stopping you. Go do it !!!!!

Choose success!

Cheers,
Tony

http://be-financially-free-now.com

Raise Your Hand If You Want More Out Of Life

2009-03-23T13:12:00.006+11:00

I was at a business event recently and met many people who were looking for something to improve their lifestyle.

So here is my thought for you today...

Raise your hand if you want more out of life. Go on, raise it. Don't just sit there staring blankly at the screen... if you want more out of life then you have to raise your hand.

OK. Now people are looking at you and wondering why you are at your computer with one hand in the air. Don't let that worry you... because you've just taken the first step to getting what you want out of life.

You see, the famous Albert Einstein said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. And you have just proven that you are not insane because you just broke the mold and did something different.

It doesn't matter what you want. It could be that you desire to quit smoking, lose weight, make more money, spend more time with your family, travel more, dine out at great restaurants and so on. If you are not already on the path to achieving your goal you have to do something different. This is not optional. Change must occur for the outcome to happen. Either that, or Einstein's quote takes on a different meaning for you.

So, here's a simple three step process to ensure you get more out of life:

1. Decide exactly what it is that you want... and be very specific about it (no room for wishy washy thoughts here).

2. Write down what it is that you want and refer to it every day. Keep that goal with you and look at it several times a day. Paste it to your bathroom mirror so that it is the first thing you see in the morning and the last thing you see at night. Start to believe that you already have what it is you desire.

3. Take the steps necessary to achieving what you want. You can sit back and wait for it to find you... but it will happen a whole lot sooner and with more certainty if you expose yourself to the risk of success.

Unwinding Limiting Beliefs

2009-03-10T22:15:00.007+11:00

I remember several years ago when my son was a toddler, I found a t-shirt that I just had to get for him. You see, he had become a talker. And he would talk and talk and talk... and then just to be sure he would talk some more. The slogan on the t-shirt read, "They couldn't wait until I could walk and talk... now all I hear is sit down and shut up." Wow! What a find. And the chuckles from the family made it worthwhile.

But if I had only realised the potential damage that I was causing I would have left the t-shirt on the rack.

You see, when we are born we have no limiting beliefs. Consider infants. Why do they strive to crawl and then walk, even though every time they try to stand they fall down and feel pain? And yet they try again and again until one day, success! They walk.

Buried deep inside the child's psyche, inside their subconscious mind is the image of parents and others walking, talking and engaging in other activities... and the child wants to imitate it's role models and so it wants to walk and talk. The subconscious mind, the powerful tool that it is, and being free of other influences of the child's conscious mind, continues on it's quest for success.

And then we as parents start to impose conditions on the child regarding it's behaviour that starts to imprint some limiting beliefs on the child's subconscious. Don't take this the wrong way. I'm not suggesting that we should let our children run wild but we must imbue them with an abundance of positive thoughts and reinforcement. If we must restrict their behaviour (for their own safety or otherwise) we should supplement that restriction with something that delivers balance.

So, coming back to my original point, we are born with no limiting beliefs. How can we recapture that time in our life when anything was possible and we felt absolutely bulletproof? Not an easy task, but not an impossible one.

The first step is to identify each limiting belief. Then to examine how that belief has impacted on our life. And then replace it with a positive affirmation that counteracts it. Finally, continue to work on applying the positive belief in your life in a practical way that brings the value you intend it to do.

Let's take an example of someone who has been working in a regular job all their life, earning what the job pays (high, medium, low - you choose what you want for the example). As the years go by, you have an image of self-worth that has been determined by someone else (let's say the boss) continually etched in your mind. And so you continue each day to measure your value by someone else's measuring stick. You begin to believe that you can do no better or perhaps improve your circumstances only slightly (let's call that a promotion and it usually comes with more responsibility and hours). The cycle continues and nothing changes.

The impact on your life is one of limited outcomes. Not enough money to do what you really want to do; too much time spent on the job and commuting; not enough time spent with your family, and so on. Accepting that limiting beliefs is the cause of the circumstances is essential to repairing the situation. It is also important not to blame anyone else for the situation as that only delays or even eliminates the healing process. Once acceptance takes place, repair can occur.

To fix the problem you now need to start replacing the images of low self esteem with powerful images of self worth. This can best be achieved through identifying and reciting affirmations that counter the limiting belief... and being persistent in the process. Weeks or even months may be necessary to ensure the new belief takes hold and suppresses the old one forever.

However, the most powerful step is to start acting as if the new belief has already taken hold and is making a positive impact in your life. Decide how you want your life to be and put in place the steps to make those changes happen... and they will happen!

As Glenn Oster puts it, "Decide what you want, then act as if it were impossible to fail". The new belief is the guiding light to make this come true.

And that brings me to one of my favourite affirmations that I believe is fundamental to unwinding limiting beliefs and replacing them with strong and positive ones.

"I think, therefore I can."

And you can too!

My Six Minute Success Journey

2009-01-17T11:18:00.011+11:00

It doesn't take much to be successful... as long as you know what success means to you. Once you do, working out what you want and how to get there is fairly easy.

For me, success is a feeling that I have achieved what I set out to do. And I have numerous successes each day, each week, each month and each year. So, success is a feeling and has very much to do with what you truly desire and passionately believe in. It can be in any area of your life or your endeavours.

Over the years, my success journey has been enhanced by some simple mentoring and disciplines that keep me focused. It is my priviledge to share with you one of the sources of that support and I invite you to take the same six minute journey. I genuinely believe that everyone can and will get the same results that I have.

Visit http://store.sixminutestosuccess.com/?aid=586354 as your first step on an amazing journey.

To your extraordinary success!!!

Tony

This Week's Quickie

2008-12-21T10:27:00.002+11:00

I am most passionate about the power of the subconscious mind and how we condition it to deliver what we believe. If our beliefs are the right ones and our self-talk is focused on the right things, we grow in that direction. Every person on this earth is a product of the nourishment of their subconscious mind and, just like real food, feed it with junk thoughts and it gives us back a junk life... but feed the subconscious with healthy thoughts and it rewards us with well being and prosperity.

“If at first, the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it”. Albert Einstein

2008-12-21T07:55:00.012+11:00

The idea that anyone can earn an executive level income in less than 20 hours per week seems absurd to most people. Why? Because they have been conditioned to believe that their time is worth just so many dollars per hour with that rate determined by their employer or their marketplace. And to make matters worse, that same conditioning tells them that to earn more they have to either work more hours or become more qualified to get an increase in their hourly rate!

So let's take examples from those whose hourly rate is considered to be the highest... doctors, dentists, lawyers etc. Given that their are only 168 hours in week (and that will never change), and that some hours must be reserved for sleep (let's say 6 per day) and travel (let's conservatively say 2 per day) then the maximum number of billable hours is 112. At a top notch lawyers rate of $500 per hour we have a limit on earnings of $2.6M per year (allowing for 1 months holidays).

To a more realistic example, a top clerical worker on $30 per hour (over a 112 hour week) would an annual limit of $160,000.

Sounds like a lot of money but the price is high... and the lifestyle is non-existent. Now that is really absurd.

So, why do people allow their limiting beliefs to get in the way of what is possible? Again, it's historical conditioning.

Over the past four decades the world has seen transformations in almost every area of endeavour, including the key area of business. There are now more home business startups than ever before because people are looking to reclaim what they believe is rightly theirs... time, lifestyle and freedom.

The internet has opened up limitless possibilities from people to earn money in non-traditional ways. But what works, what is real, and most importantly... what is sustainable?

Here's my big tip... businesses that share the profit from each sale amongst dozens or hundreds of people can work well, but if the people in your downline don't play ball that impacts on your income and you have little or no control over when and how that might happen. I know from personal experience when a downline leg in one of my former MLM businesses collapsed just how much damage this can do.

Conversely, a far more effective and sustainable method of internet based business is Leveraged Direct Sales (LDS). Unlike MLMs that leverage the flow of money, LDS leverages the flow of people whilst allowing each participant to put the entire profit from each sale in their own pocket. This is a far more sustainable and profitable business model and is far less susceptible to the dowline collapse to which I referred in the pervious paragraph.

Back to absurdity where this blog started. As a senior executive at my day job my income was limited by the hours and value that I contributed to someone else's profit. Yes, I earned good dollars but the price in terms of my family life was very high. My LDS business delivers very good dollars but with far less effort and time on my part. In fact, the equivalent income is achieved in about one quarter of the time of the traditional job.

So, which is more absurd... hard work with limited income possibilities and high personal price... or good work with with leverage that has limitless income potential?

No doubt you will want to answer this question. A good starting point is http://www.be-financially-free-now.com/. To not answer such an important question might have made Einstein once again think of absurdity.

To your success,
Tony

2008-11-17T20:21:00.004+11:00

Hi there! Welcome to my new blog on living a life of financial freedom.

Most people would believe (or have you believe) that financial freedom is principally about money. But how can anyone be financially free if they don't have freedom in other areas of their life? There is an old saying that all the money in the world can't buy happiness, so why do so many people focus their energy on the accumulation of material wealth?

Perhaps it is because material wealth is easy to measure, easy to compare with one's neighbours and maybe even easy to come by... at least compared to other forms of freedom.

So how does one become truly financially free? My view is that you must first be free in your mind, heart and spirit... free to express who you are and to use your talents for the greater good. It is only then that you can put financial freedom in perspective.

When you have learned to declutter and destress your life, then financial freedom takes on new meaning. When you have learned to control your mind, your innermost conscious and sub-conscious thoughts, then financial freedom becomes possible. What I am saying is that monetary freedom without inner pesonal contentment may simply be life's anti-climax.

So, really! Which comes first? The wisdom or the wealth. Some have said that when you are rich you can afford to be wise but I say that you must first be content with who you are and what your vision is driving you to be... then the wealth will follow.

Here are some of the mental disciplines that need to be mastered to ensure success:
1. Know what can be done.
2. Know your conscious mind.
3. Have purpose.
4. Turn knowledge into action.
5. Stay focused.
6. Have SMART Goals and review them often.
7. Visualise your future the way you want it to be.
8. Use affirmations.
9. Acknowledge your achievements.

These are the building blocks of controlling your conscious mind. Master them and you will create the financial freedom to go with them... only then will you be able to put the financial freedom in perspective.

And now that you have your "inner you" under control you need to plan for the money side of things you need to have plan to develop the wealth. Visit www.be-financially-free-now.com for your first glance into achieving financial balance.

To your success,
Tony

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