What about the obvious?

Have you tried the most obvious option? Have you looked under your nose? Perhaps you were too daunted to take the most obvious option so you didn’t even consider it. It’s probably still there, waiting for you to open your eyes and realise that it is the path you should take. Sometimes the best answer…

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Pushing our limits

We like to think we are aware of our abilities. We like to think we know our limits. We know what we can do and we know what we can’t do. We see something difficult and say “I could never do that”. But no matter how well we know ourselves, we don’t know what we…

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Is the world a better or worse place for having had you in it?

Is the world a better or worse place for having had you in it? It’s a simple question but one we should all think about. We’ve all done stupid things in our lives, we’ve all hurt others in some way. But hopefully we’ve also helped people in some way too. If you put the negative…

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It would put your problems into perspective…

…if you watched a video like this every morning before going to work.

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You can’t predict the future, or can you?

You can’t predict the lottery numbers. You can’t even predict the weather these days. So how can you predict the future? Answer: By creating it for yourself. If you work hard and study before the test then you will get a good result. If you work hard you won’t just predict the future – you’ll…

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Mountains and molehills

Know people that make a fuss over small details? We all do. They will fight tooth and nail over whether to use size 11 or 12 font for the company newsletter. They will argue all day about whether the toilet roll should be put on with the paper coming down at the back or down…

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Trust those who’ve proved themselves

Would you take financial advice from the guy who owns this car? Yeah right. You’d take financial advice from someone who has their finances in order and clearly knows what they are talking about. If you want to know how to make a success of your life it makes sense to model people who are…

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You can’t always get what you want

Wow, those lyrics never resonated with me until now. I just got back from LA you see. The weather was great, the people were beautiful and I discovered how much I love burritos. So now I’m back at work in Auckland and the thing is that I’d rather be still on holiday in the good…

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The benefits of a positive attitude cannot be overstated

A positive attitude is actually a protective thing. It will stop the world getting you down. It will shelter you from the small minded comments of others. It will keep you from getting depressed. It will carry you through the difficult times. It will help keep your friends and family close. It will make bad…

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Don’t take this the wrong way but…

We’ve all heard that line before. How you take what comes after it is up to you. If it’s criticism you could let it pull the rug out from underneath you. You could allow it to completely deflate you and leave you feeling helpless, useless and depressed. You could let it ruin your life and…

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Oneness

There is only one. Not two. Not more than that. Just one. You and I are both a part of this great big oneness. We are all small parts of a greater whole. We are interconnected with each other and with everyone, and everything, else. If you help another person, then in some small way…

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You could make your life a gift to the world

You don’t have to become Mother Teresa, although that would be fantastic. You can make your life a gift to the world in any number of ways. You can donate money to an organisation that is helping the world. These organisations can’t operate without donations so you are helping the world even if you aren’t…

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Don’t let people freak you out about your dreams

I was recently excitedly telling some people about a new project I was working on. It’s one I’m very enthusiastic about and have high hopes for. I was very surprised by their response. They talked about hurdles I would have to jump through. They raised issues, issues that were pure ‘red tape’ bureaucracy. They really…

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Success Breeds Success

What’s the best way to prepare for success in the future? Success now. Sounds like horse before the cart? If success in your big goals is impossible now, then look for smaller ways that you can be successful. There are tons of ways to do this, to give yourself a platform to build future successes…

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Good Things Come To Those Who Wait

For every proverb, there is normally another one saying the opposite. Normally both are still true and valid, but under different circumstances. Good things come to those who wait – if you’re in the business of making wine. But if you’re looking for a rise, a change in your job, a new home, a partner,…

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You Never Know What’s Round The Corner

You just never do. No matter how hard you think about it you just never know for sure. You hear about people who are fit as a fiddle one moment and on their deathbed in hospital the next. No one knows when disease will strike, when their fortune will change, when their karma will catch…

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You Can’t Do That

If you listened every time someone said “you can’t do that” there would be a lot of things you wouldn’t do. You would have a big list of missed opportunities. The number of successes you managed to avoid would be impressive. You would be a spectacular failure. In fact you would be the envy of…

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The Secret To Success

The secret to success is pretty obvious in many ways. But it’s often overlooked. Perhaps that’s because it’s not sexy, glamorous or cool. You don’t often see it talked about on the covers of magazines. It isn’t very exciting. In fact, it’s often difficult, inconvenient… even unpleasant. But it works. It’s undeniably the most effective…

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It’s all how you look at it

Perspective, that’s what it comes down to. Bad day at work? Hey you have a job, some people would think that’s awesome. In fact millions would think that. Nothing to watch on TV? Wow, you have a TV! Millions probably billions of people would love to be you! Whether your life is good or bad…

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Need encouragement? Here’s some…

When was the last time someone really encouraged you? Probably not recently enough I’d guess. Encourage is oxygen to the soul someone once said, so here’s some encouragement for you: You are capable of more than you could ever imagine – literally. You are capable of things that would seem impossible to you now. These…

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There Will Be Consequences!

Sometimes what’s holding you back is a fear of the consequences of your actions. The unknown. What might happen. If I do abc, then xyz could happen. Gasp! So-and-so won’t like it! GASP! I could fail! Really big GASP!!! Why not just do it anyway? If you wait until the whole thing is perfectly planned…

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5 Things To Do Today

Talk to someone (at work) you haven’t really talked to before, Say sorry to someone for something you’ve done, Chuck out some stuff you don’t need, Do something you’ve been meaning to do for several months, Help someone. If you do all of these you’ll pretty much guarantee your day will be awesome. Image: Wolfgang…

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Smile

Image: mboogiedown Small things can make a big difference – even the most fleeting of events can have far reaching consequences. You just never know the effect that your actions will have on others, even the little things that you do. I just read a tweet by someone who likes my blog. They might not…

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See the good in others

Be Nice To People

It’s easy to find see the faults of others. Too easy. They’re just so glaringly obvious sometimes. Especially when you’re feeling cranky. But what about the good points? What if you looked for the good instead of the bad in people at all times? Sounds like a good way to see the world.

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I Just Failed

It was at something that I’ve been trying to do for a while. Success in this endeavour is important to me so I’m quite disappointed in myself. Especially because the way I failed was stupid. It was easily avoidable. So what now then? Option 1 – I could wallow in my disappointment. Really savour it.…

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Excuses

We excuse our sloth under the pretext of difficulty. – Marcus Fabius Quintilian Everyone makes excuses. Sometimes they’re so good we almost believe them ourselves. Sometimes they may even be true. But they’re still just excuses. He that is good for making excuses is seldom good for anything else. – Benjamin Franklin

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A Poor Tradesman Blames His Tools

Image: Denise Carbonell That saying is as old as the hills, and so is the wisdom it contains. If you’ve messed up then accept that and take responsibility for it. Make amends and then figure out how to avoid doing it again. By blaming your tools you’re actually holding yourself back. You are lying to…

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7 Questions

Image: walknboston What have you done for someone else recently? What have you done for the world as a whole recently? What would you like people to say about you at your funeral? What do you think they’ll actually say? What could you do to change this? If your life was going to end at…

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If Effort Was A Commodity

It would be worth more than gold. Wars would be fought over it. Lives would be dedicated in it’s pursuit. Those willing to expend it would find it easier to get more of it. But it’s not a commodity. It is something you already have within yourself. You can tap into it at any time.…

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Happiness Is Activity

Image: nattu Nuff said.

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