Business growth tips for SMB from author Eric Gilboord

 
 
Our minds are our most valuable tool. We can impact anything if we adjust our thinking. Here are twelve destructive thoughts many of us need to eliminate right now. And frankly it is much easier than you currently believe.
If there is anything I can do to help you with these challenges please let me know, A2E
  1. “My past is indicative of my future.” – Do not judge failed attempts and mistakes as an indication of your future potential, but as part of the growth process.  Something does not have to end well for it to have been one of the most valuable experiences of a lifetime.  When times get tough, take a deep breath.  Know that most great things come when you least expect it.  Keep working on YOU and it will work itself out.  Being defeated is a temporary condition; giving up is what makes it permanent.
  2. “I care what they think of me.” – Ignore the rude people who talk about you behind your back.  That’s exactly where they belong, behind your back.  Being strong doesn’t mean you always have to fight the battle.  True strength is being wise enough to walk away from the nonsense with your head held high.  Read The Four Agreements.
  3. “I’ll do what makes me happy someday.” – Sometimes in your quest to make everyone else happy, you make yourself miserable.  Remember, today is the oldest you’ve ever been and the youngest you will ever be again.  It’s kind of scary, but it’s true.  If there was ever a perfect moment to follow your values and pursue your own dreams, that moment is now.
  4. “I can’t,” “It’s too late,” “I’m not good enough,” etc. – We never know where we will be at the end of our journey.  We do, however, know where we are today; and from here we can mine our hope and love to set the course forward.  Our attitude shifts our sails and ultimately determines not only our final destination, but more importantly, the voyage and experiences along the way.
  5. “There’s so much that could go wrong.” – Stop being afraid of what could go wrong, and start thinking of what could go right.  Better yet, think of everything that already is right.  Be thankful for nights that turned into mornings, friends that turned into family, and past dreams and goals that turned into realities.  Use these positive points to fuel an even brighter tomorrow.
  6. “I will never forgive you.” – It takes a strong heart to love, but it takes an even stronger heart to continue to love after it’s been hurt.  If someone hurts you, betrays you, or breaks your heart, forgive them, for they have helped you learn about trust and the importance of being cautious when you open your heart.  You are stronger now and better equipped to find the kind of love you deserve.  Read You Can Heal Your Life.
  7. “I don’t like them because they’re broken.” – As you grow you will discover that you were blessed with two great hands – one for helping yourself, and one from helping others.  Be someone who builds and nurtures with an understanding and forgiving heart.  Be someone who looks for the best in people and leaves them a little stronger than you found them.  And always be careful of how you judge people – you can’t sum up a person’s entire existence in one moment.
  8. “I am too unhappy to make anyone else happy.” – Happiness is a boomerang.  When you catch yourself feeling unhappy, doing something small that makes someone else happy, and I guarantee you, when they smile, it will be hard not to smile back.
  9. “I can’t trust anyone.” – We often keep our hearts closed, not because we don’t trust others not to leave us, let us down, or stop loving us, but because we don’t trust ourselves to survive the pain of them leaving, letting us down, or not loving us anymore.  How ironic, considering that only by suffering through these very losses, do we come to realize our true strength.  Remember, like a tiny seed, in order to grow, we need to be dropped in dirt, covered in darkness, rained on, and forced to struggle slowly to reach the light.
  10. “Everyone else is doing it, so it must be right.” – Live YOUR life.  Never hide who you are.  The only shame is to have shame.  Stand up for what you believe in.  Question what other people tell you when it doesn’t feel right.  If you follow the crowd, you will go no further than the crowd.  But if you walk alone, follow your gut, and carve your own path, you will likely find yourself in places no one has ever been before.
  11. “It will never get better.” / “It will never get worse.” – This too shall pass.  When life is rough, remember, it won’t always be this way.  So take one day at a time.  And when life is great, remember, it won’t always be this way.  So appreciate every great moment.  Read The Power of Now.
  12. “I don’t have time to dream.” – The real tragedy in life doesn’t lie in not reaching your dream; it lies in having no dream to reach.  Devote yourself to an idea you believe in.  Follow your gut.  Overcome your fears.  Work on it.  Struggle with it.  Smile about it.  Make it happen.  This is your life and your dream – no one elses.  And remember, you don’t have to see the whole staircase; you just have to take one step at a time.
List conceived by MarcandAngel.com

 
 
If you want to move on to better things, you have to give up the things that are holding you back. Sounds simple, but identifying the 'things' and taking the first step to do something about them is not always as easy as it could be. Getting help is a good place to start. A2E

Starting today, give up…
  1. Letting the opinions of others control your life. – People know your name, not your story.  They’ve heard what you’ve done, but not what you’ve been through.  So take their opinions of you with a grain of salt.  In the end, it’s not what others think, it’s what you think about yourself that counts.  Sometimes you have to do exactly what’s best for you and your life, not what’s best for everyone else.
  2. The shame of past failures. – You will fail sometimes, and that’s okay.  The faster you accept this, the faster you can get on with being brilliant.  Your past does not equal your future.  Just because you failed yesterday; or all day today; or a moment ago; or for the last six months; or for the last sixteen years, doesn’t have any impact on the current moment.  All that matters is what you do right now.  Read Awaken the Giant Within.
  3. Being indecisive about what you want. – You will never leave where you are until you decide where you would rather be.  It’s all about finding and pursuing your passion.  Neglecting passion blocks creative flow.  When you’re passionate, you’re energized.  Likewise, when you lack passion, your energy is low and unproductive.  Energy is everything when it comes to being successful.  Make a decision to figure out what you want, and then pursue it passionately.
  4. Procrastinating on the goals that matter to you. – There are two primary choices in life: to accept conditions as they exist, or accept the responsibility for changing them.  Follow your intuition.  Don’t give up trying to do what you really want to do.  When there is love and inspiration, you can’t go wrong.  And whatever it is you want to do, do it now.  There are only so many tomorrows.  Trust me, in a year from now, you will wish you had started today.
  5. Choosing to do nothing. – You don’t get to choose how you are going to die, or when.  You can only decide how you are going to live, right now.  Every day is a new chance to choose.  Choose to change your perspective.  Choose to flip the switch in your mind from negative to positive.  Choose to turn on the light and stop fretting about with insecurity and doubt.  Choose to do work that you are proud of.  Choose to see the best in others, and to show your best to others.  Choose to truly LIVE, right now.
  6. Your need to be right. – If you keep on saying you’re right, even if you are right now, eventually you will be wrong.  Aim for success, but never give up your right to be wrong.  Because when you do, you will also lose your ability to learn new things and move forward with your life.  Read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
  7. Running from problems that should be fixed. – We make life harder than it has to be.  The difficulties started when… conversations became texting, feelings became subliminal, sex became a game, the word ‘love’ fell out of context, trust faded as honesty waned, insecurities became a way of living, jealously became a habit, being hurt started to feel natural, and running away from it all became our solution.  Stop running!  Face these issues, fix the problems, communicate, appreciate, forgive and LOVE the people in your life who deserve it.
  8. Making excuses rather than decisions. – Life is a continuous exercise in creative problem solving.  A mistake doesn’t become a failure until you refuse to correct it. Thus, most long-term failures are the outcome of people who make excuses instead of decisions.
  9. Overlooking the positive points in your life. – What you see often depends entirely on what you’re looking for.  Do your best and surrender the rest.  When you stay stuck in regret of the life you think you should have had, you end up missing the beauty of what you do have.  You will have a hard time ever being happy if you aren’t thankful for the good things in your life right now.  Read The Happiness Project.
  10. Not appreciating the present moment. – We do not remember days, we remember moments.  Too often we try to accomplish something big without realizing that the greatest part of life is made up of the little things.  Live authentically and cherish each precious moment of your journey.  Because when you finally arrive at your desired destination, I guarantee you, another journey will begin.
List conceived by MarcandAngel.com

 
 
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