Three Decisions That Shape Your Destiny Every Day

Every day we each make many small and a few large decisions. Every decision we make has an extended shadow. Decisions shape our lives, they cause us to grow or diminish, they cause our life to expand or contract, they cause us to succeed or fail. There are three areas in particular where our decisions have a major impact on our ultimate destiny. They are to do with our beliefs; our attention; our associations. Decisions about beliefs Beliefs are the presuppositions that we hold about the way the world 'is' that either create or deny our personal power. Our beliefs are essentially an on-off switch that impacts our ability to do the things we wish in this world. It's important to identify the beliefs we have that cause us to do what we do. We should also identify any self-limiting or disabling beliefs we may have, beliefs that don't allow us to do what we wish to do. Beliefs are powerful, helping us to have a sense of certainty and direction in an unpredictable world. They are so powerful, in fact, that sometimes we don't remember that they're not necessarily true, just a decision we've made. If you want to change your beliefs, first identify a particular belief that doesn't serve you, one you wish to change, and then craft a new belief that better serves you. Become willing to let go of the old belief, and then embrace the new belief. Accept any sensations of resistance, and then repeat the process until you can state the new belief congruently.   Decisions about attention Life is really a study of attention and focus. Wherever your attention and focus goes, your heart goes, and action flows. Your ability to divert your attention from activities of lower value to activities of higher value is central to everything you accomplish in life. Nothing can add more power to your life than concentrating all your energies on a limited set of targets. Success is about focusing the full power of all you are on what you have a burning desire to achieve. The first requisite of success is the ability to apply your mental and physical energies in a singular focus on your goals without being diverted.   Decisions about associations Focus on high-quality people. Feed those relationships. Surround yourself with high-minded people who think, speak and act positively. Understand that few relationships in life are permanent. Many are functional, formed to achieve a particular purpose by combining certain strengths until a goal is attained, after which they cease to serve the best interests of either party. When goals or circumstances change, the players often change as well. New people enter your life with new roles, and other people leave your life, to be seen no more. How many relationships in your life have reached the point where it's time for you, and the other person, to move on?  People are who they are. They will do what they will do. Each person has their own agenda, and you can't change that. Sometimes the best thing you can do is to accept the situation the way it is, let them go, and get on with your life.   Here's something you may wish to reflect on, a critical thinking point for you to ponder:  Your belief system, your achievement level, and your net worth at this point in life absolutely reflect the average of the beliefs, the achievement level and the net worth of the five people you associate with most frequently. To Your Success, Lloyd Dobson

How To Take Responsibility For The Results In Your Life

Taking responsibility is a state of mind. It occurs when we own our decisions and actions, and become pro-active about the things we must do in order to fulfill our dreams. Self-responsibility isn't for the faint a heart, or for those with low self-esteem. It's not for those whose value, and self-worth is conditional, or whose emotions are always in play. Self-responsibility is vital to a fulfilled life. Because when we stop accusing, blaming, and complaining, we then get on with life. We recognize what we must do, and do it. So how can we create this state of mind? Here are some markers to the self-responsible person. They are proactive. They continuously question and learn. They first identify and then live their values. They take deliberate decisions. They initiate action and enthusiastically pursue their goals in life. They bounce back from disappointments. They're aware of their resources, and strengths. They make bold decisions and follow through. They hold themselves accountable, and also allow others to hold them accountable. They are socially responsible. Self-responsibility can be described as the practice of being responsible for the results we want. Not hoping, or demanding that someone else will 'do' something while we sit on the sidelines and observe. It's through self-responsibility that we attain personal power. And if the key issue is being accountable for the results we want. How then do we do that? How do we develop responsibility for our thoughts, our choices, and our actions? The answer lies in a deep seated belief that we can make a difference. That we can always do something, that there is always some action we can take. And that we can trust our powers of mind, emotion, speech, and behaviour to navigate our way through life. It's a state of mind where we trust in ourselves and our ability to figure it out. Knowing we can acquire the necessary knowledge, we can develop whatever skills we require, and we can make life happen. As we develop and commit ourselves to the results we want, then self-responsibility is simple and profound. It's about manifesting all that we are capable of experiencing, becoming, having, feeling, thinking, choosing, giving, and contributing. When our thoughts are healthy, appropriate, and empowering, we then often have peak experiences. And we all have these from time to time. Those who are able to attain this state, step into a situation where they can completely access their full resources. We recognize these people as the experts, the masters of some art, craft, skill, or science. When we relate meaning and performance to this state it reveals a pathway for unleashing our potential. Whenever we act without reflecting on meaning or connecting with our highest calling, the less motivation we will have and the less effective we will be. We are all responsible for living our own life. No one can do this for us. Believing in entitlement, that the world owes you, the government owes you, your family owes you, and playing your life 'small' will sabotage your success. To unleash our potential each of us has to accept, acknowledge, and act on our own inner powers. Only then can we take the initiative to discover our strengths and weaknesses and take action to discover what makes us most fully ourselves. In this we are seeking how we can best express our unique contributions and through that create a successful life, make a significant difference, and leave a meaningful legacy. Here's your critical thinking exercise for this week. Complete this sentence stem and generate at least ten endings. "If I were to take full responsibility for making my dreams and goals come true, I would...." Don't worry about whether the endings you write are positive or negative, that's not the point of the exercise. The point is to increase awareness. It is to download the responses from your non-conscious mind about self-responsibility. Doing this will then allow you to decide which of the responses best serve you. You can simply keep and reflect on the best and discard the rest. To your success! Lloyd Dobson