Category: Positive - Coach to Expect Success

Our To-Do List Everyday Needs Some Positivity

8/3/2018

Another reminder that we all need to have a few positive thoughts, positive adjustments to add to our daily list of activities. I found a few fantastic quotes to share with you today along with reminding you about the importance that we have these things to focus in on each and every day. Check out my podcast HERE. One of the quotes from Og Mandino - "Today will never happen again. Don't waste it with a false start or no start at all." So powerful, yet so simple too. We all understand that we only have today and today ends at 12 midnight. However, for the most part most of us seem to not take that fact to heart on most days. Sure we all have the things we all have to do every day - work, take care of kids, pay bills, etc. But what are the other things we spend our days doing? Focusing on things that really matter, things that are really important, those are the things that we need to keep an eye on. Having some positive guidelines are things we need to have everyday! Go out and look for them.

Remember, they are like adjustments that must be made to our course that we are on every day. It's also cool to see examples of good things being done to help others out. It's been an awesome PGA Tour event - the RBC Canadian Open was played this past weekend and I saw some great & fun connections that the tour players made with tons of fans. Some good lessons here for us too. Never turn your attention away from events that you can learn about success lessons. Thanks for listening. Please take a few moments to subscribe & share this with someone, also leave a 5 Star rating on ITunes or other services where you find this show. Find me on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/coachtoexpectsuccess/ on Twitter: @coachtosuccess and on Instagram at: @coachjohndaly

The World Needs More Light

2/13/2018

“Hatred paralyzes life; Love releases it. Hatred confuses life; Love harmonizes it. Hatred darkens life; Love illuminates it." — Martin Luther King Jr.

I'm wondering if there is any one out there that actually does not believe in this quote. Anyone out there want to argue against this?? Fortunately and unfortunately there are plenty of examples all around us for both sides of this statement. This is one thing that I am working on guarding against the negative /dark side of this and working very hard on creating more of the positive outlooks - bright light type of things that the world needs more of.

There are always news stories about hate, anger, etc. There needs to be more of the examples of love and positivity. Even if the media doesn't pick up on it - it's still worth doing. You see, when we do good things - especially for others - people do notice and with them noticing they are also learning the lessons that you are sharing with your positive actions. You will find more opportunities coming your way, more connections with people you know and don't know.

Imagine all the great things that could happen if more people too this quote to heart and tried to improve themselves by adding more positivity??

Helping Yourself - And Others - To Be Successful

7/15/2017

Helping Yourself (and Others) Be Successful

There are so many great sources available that can help us in our lives. With the Internet – and especially your Smart Phone – there is no real reason not to constantly be on a path towards improvement!

I’ve been making it a point to do more reading. I’m working on 2 books now and I need to finish one of them (for a couple of reasons) before I start a new one. Reading 2 books at a time is something that I need to do and I know I can. I’ve also been finding some great articles that are making a huge difference with me too. One recent one is titled “7 Ways to Help Yourself (and Others) Be Successful” found at Success Magazine. Click HERE for the article - a great read!

Here are the 7 points with a few thoughts about each:

Give Back: If everyone asked “How can I help” instead of “What can I get?” – we would all see a much different world around us. Has there ever been a time throughout the time of our lives where this concept has been needed more than now? I love the point in the article that we stand on each other’s shoulders to elevate us to our ultimate accomplishments. We can’t be successful on our own.
Surround yourself with people smarter than you: BIG POINT here – Success is largely a factor of the people you make a part of the journey. Guess what? It’s our choice who we let into our lives. There has to come a time where we look to distance ourselves from those that don’t add value to our lives, those that cause us distractions, heartache, problems, etc. We also need to look for those that are good for us, they do make a difference, they do add value to our lives, they look to help and encourage us.
Find a mentor: Mentorship is a service and it is one that we need to find for ourselves and look to provide to others too. It’s a great idea to never stop seeking help from those who are where you want to be. A great by product of serving and helping others is that it helps you become a mentor yourself. Don’t ever let a goal become more important than helping others. Always do more than others expect from you. Under promise and over deliver, blow them away with what you bring to the table. Always try to look to get them excited to work with you.
Be an influencer: The main point about being an influencer is that they look to help others without expecting anything in return. They always look to have win-win situations with others that they are working with.
Celebrate others’ success: It really comes down to attitude as to how we can be happy for the success of others – especially those that we care deeply for. When that happens and we get to embrace the success of others, we get the benefit of greater satisfaction. We feel fulfilled instead of bitter. Our excitement, energy, motivation and drive to do better ourselves is multiplied due to us celebrating the success of others. A very powerful tool that not too many people use. Here was a HUGE point I found: “Beyond seizing an available opportunity where possible, our sense of embracing others’ achievements helps to expand our own willpower.”
Spread positivity: A very interesting observation about our subconscious is really motivated by emotion, not by reason. A strong point made was that positive emotion trumps negative emotion every time! Positive things are much easier to transfer to others than negative ones because they create lasting change. Positive realities, ideas, thoughts, attitudes, etc. = lasting change, movement forward, going after things, growth, etc. Negative realities, ideas, thoughts, attitudes, etc. = NO change, stagnation, going backwards, getting worse instead of better. There are plenty of studies out there that that positivity is not only better for the person carrying around those thoughts & ideas, but also for the other people that they encounter.
Find your motivation: Many times people see successful people and they think, wouldn’t it be great to be like them. They have no clue. Successful people see each day as another opportunity to improve, to get better, to move closer to accomplishing their goals. They will tell you that more you accomplish, the more you will want to keep working hard to make things happen. Motivation comes in many forms. We need to find those forms that connect to us and know that we will need it every day, just like taking a shower.

Any thoughts? Questions? Ideas to use these points in your life? Would love any discussions & comments you want to have. Let me know.

Fighting Against Something vs. Fighting For Something - There Is A HUGE Difference

11/4/2016

"Fight against something and we focus on the thing we hate. Fight for something and we focus on the thing we love." - Simon Sinek

Let this thought sink in for just a few moments. I think Simon is right on target. I’ve thought about this and I remember plenty of times that I would fight against something and I still remember those feelings that I had during those moments, and they weren’t good. I can still feel the cloudy feeling in my head, feeling the anger & negativity inside of me during these moments. You know what? Most of the time during these moments, things would not work out too well in the end.

Now, flip it around. There have been plenty of moments (not enough of them, now that I think about it), where I remember fighting for something and those thoughts and feelings were totally opposite of when I was fighting against something. I had more power, more of a feeling of not wanting to quit, felt more inspired and many times the results would be a lot better in these moments. When it’s for the people in my life that I care about, now that is where some power is found for sure.

Just imagine this simple change in how we go after things in life. I think about how when I make the conscious choice to fight for (get worked up about, have it on my mind, etc.) something that means something to me; compared to those things that I don’t really care about. Those things at least I won’t let them affect me, getting me all upset. (that is easier said than done). I’ll still deal with or work on things that are necessary to do, but I’ll have a much better attitude about it when I won’t let it affect me. I’m choosier now about things and how they take up my time, how they affect me, my family, and how I spend time on them which takes me away from other things.

Focusing on something and how much I hate it, doesn’t really equal much positive success. The thing might get done, but at what cost? That cost could be to my health, other things not getting my thoughts or my time, the people that I can’t connect with or help, etc.

When you take a deeper look at this quote, what comes up for you? It might start making a difference in your life in how you deal with things. It did for me. Now remember, I don't have it all figured out. That's proven every day. But I am working on it. We all should.

We Have Greatness Inside Of Ourselves - It's About Time We Recognize That!

2/21/2016

"Buried deep within each of us is a spark of greatness, a spark than can be fanned into flames of passion and achievement. That spark is not outside of you it is born deep within you." — James A. Ray

Getting caught up here after many distractions (some of them good ones) have gotten in the way.

This statement by James A. Ray is probably easier to see for some of us as we get older. For others it is probably more difficult. One of the keys I try and get my students to see that whatever the thoughts that are like this one, it's better to have them earlier in life than later. The earlier people can get started on getting this spark to light up and catch fire inside of themselves, the better their lives will be. Not only their lives, but those that they come in contact with too.

This is a constant item to focus on in our lives. We need to first connect with these seeds of greatness inside of us. Of course that is far more difficult to do as there are so many battles to be fought throughout life with things that will tell us the opposite - that we don't have any greatness inside of ourselves. The battles will be fought against other people, the world view of things, social media, etc., but mainly it will be fought with ourselves. I've always told my students, my basketball players, heck... anyone that will listen that we can do far more damage to ourselves with our self-talk than any other person can do due to us. It is a battle worth fighting though, that's for sure.

We also need to focus in and find those things that are inside of us that we need to and want to do in our lives. Finding those things we have passion for can help lead us to what our true purpose is here in our lives. Focusing on the things that can help us is one of the many things we need to get going on. One of the other things, is to get rid of those things that get in the way of finding out what the greatness is inside of ourselves.

It can start today for you and me. What are some of the things in our lives that we are spending our precious time on? Are they things that are important to us? Are they things that are helping us go in a positive direction in our lives? Are they things that help us connect with great people that will add positive value to our lives? Or, are they things that go against those things? So, get started today. Read more things that get you thinking in a more positive direction of your life and what are you doing with it. Find the people that have what you want in life. Learn from those people that can add value to your life instead of taking value away from you and what you want to do. One other key - is to be that person for others too. Always look to add value to others and watch the great things that can happen to you in your life.

As always, share with me some ideas that are working for you. I'm always looking for ways to improve and get better along with helping others to do the same too.

Feels good to be back... I need to keep on this trail for sure. :-)

Light vs. Darkness - Love vs. Hate

1/25/2016

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.

Having celebrated Martin Luther King, Jr. Day here is the USA last week, that celebration got me thinking about a few things. There were many quotes I found from him but this one connected to me right away.

When there is darkness, only light can drive it away, not more darkness. So this could be the darkness of a room, or the darkness and negativity that are present everyday of our lives. The same connection can be said about hate and love. Only love can drive away hate, not more hate, anger and negativity. It’s become clear to me that I also need to have less negativity, hate, anger, and all around general BS in my life too. It’s a conscious choice of mine to continue working on making that happen.

It’s also been said that with the choices we have in our lives, we can choose to work with light or positivity in life. We can also choose to be the source of it or even to be the mirror that reflects it. Remember that the mirror helps the light get to places that normally maybe wouldn’t see it. It’s the same in life with love and positivity. It’s a conscious choice that we have the opportunity to make every day in our lives. We don’t have to be the source of the light, but we certainly can reflect or pass on the light and positivity that we find.

In today’s world it certainly seems that we need more lights along with more mirrors. No matter where we are and what we do for a living, this is always one of those important tasks to take on to not only help ourselves, but also to help others that are around us too. There are so many messages that Dr. King shared with us that are still being shared today. More importantly, they are still relevant today and are still needed too.

What can you do to help with this message in your life? Maybe more importantly, what can you do to help those around you with this message? You can either be the light source or be the mirror that the light will reflect. A good choice either way.

Distance Yourself From Negativity And Watch What Happens!

8/4/2015

“Beautiful things happen when you distance yourself from negativity” – Zig Ziglar

I got caught. I was listening to Zig Ziglar’s podcasts the other day and something connected with me about the importance of being positive. Then Zig caught me checking out Facebook and there was this quote of his that popped up. It connected right away with me.

I think this is one of the most important things we can spend our time focusing on in our lives. I’ve tried hard over the years to have myself stay away from negative things and thinking. There have been times I’ve been successful and other times quite the opposite. Negativity takes away from so many things in our lives. I’ve seen it happen over and over again. From our health, to our relationships, to our thinking, to everything – negativity affects it all. The same can be said for being positive. It all starts with us taking the time to think, plan and put positive things into action in our lives.

I’m finding that not only is it totally worth it to be positive in life, but also the results or the beautiful things that can happen are simply amazing! Another huge point is that others will notice this too and some very cool things will start to happen to you. It can all point back to having positivity in your life compared to negativity.

I’ve noticed this a lot lately as I’m listening to my podcasts while working out. Besides Zig Ziglar’s podcast, I’m also listening to Sam Crowley’s “Every Day Is Saturday” and Scott Smith and “The Daily Boost” and Andy Stanley’s “Leadership podcast”. The guys who put these out are all different, but their different messages connect with me my heart, my thoughts and ideas on not only what I want to do in my life, but also with the guy I am working on becoming too.

So what is it in your life that is full of negativity and how is it affecting you? Remember, what affects you affects others. Spend a few minutes this week figuring that out and then start to make plans to distance yourself from that negativity and start to see what happens. Don’t be shy, let me know your thoughts, progress or ideas on this. Make it a GREAT day and an even better week!

Time To Get Rid Of The Negative And Make Room For The Positive Stuff In Life!

4/27/2015

"Delete the negative; accentuate the positive." – Donna Karan

A very simple statement to start out the week with and I think we all can take a quick moment right now to think about what is one thing I can do to make this true!

Mondays are always a good day to start new things, especially at work with a new attitude or outlook. There are a few of us out there that actually look forward to Mondays. Those that are lucky and blessed like I am (very thankfully), enjoy what we do and Mondays are a day to get back at it after a well-deserved couple of days off.

Part of what could make this difficult is the job that people are going to. If they are dreading it and don’t enjoy going there, then this quote might just be reversed. It certainly helps to have a place that is enjoyable and exciting, since we do spend so much time there during our lifetime. So I believe it’s never too late to think about what type of career you want to have if you are not currently happy with the one you have. Life goes by too fast to be spending most of our time miserable. Those miserable feelings stick with us wherever we go. When we go home, when we are out with friends, etc., if we are miserable and hate our job it will affect everything we do.

Now that I think about it this probably holds true for many things in our life. The people we hang out with, the television we watch, the things we read, the things we eat, etc. There is a whole bunch of items that it would be good to look at and see which ones we’d be better off without. It’s always a good idea to take an inventory of all those items in our lives and see which ones are helping us get closer to where we want to, the person we want to become, our career wants, our relationships that we want, etc.

Remember, it just doesn’t happen right away as there has to be some thought put into separating the positive & negative things in our lives. But I think it’s worth doing and the sooner the better. I know I’m working on it right now and I know it’s an everyday kind of thing that I must stay focused with. Keep checking back as I will probably get into some specifics soon, maybe here in blog but more probable in one of my podcasts. I’m always open to thoughts and ideas, just share them with me and maybe we can come up with some good ideas together.

Three Ways To Raise Your Happiness Instantly - Quote Of The Week!

2/8/2015

“Three Ways To Raise Your Happiness Instantly:
1. Look at pictures of your loved ones.
2. Start your day with positive statements.
3. Compliment 3 people.”

- Dr. Jonathan Fader

Great way to not only start out a week, but how about every day! Just try this – see how many people you can help change their day by doing this. I know it won’t help everyone you come into contact with, but it will for sure help you!

Since I’ve been home recovering from back surgery, there hasn’t been one day where I haven’t looked at pictures of my family and friends. We have them all over the house, on our fridge and yes, I’ve obviously looked at those pictures online too that are out there. For me, what a great focus on the important fact that I want to continue to try and do things to help them. It also hammers home the point for me not to let them down with my choices that I make in life. There is also plenty of inspiration from these pictures too. Always great to connect with pictures of our loved ones, lot’s of lessons there.

Starting my day with positive thoughts, ideas and statements is something I try to focus on every single day; that and my first cup of coffee. There are plenty of examples out there for us to focus on. Since I usually work on my Blackboard sites for my classes every morning, I see first thing my quote of the week! This helps me so much, you don’t think I do these quotes just for you?? These positive statements help get my day going in a direction that I want it to start out in. Since I know I will encounter plenty of negative during my day, this is an instant defense to that.

The complimenting of 3 people – that one I have always tried to do for a long time, but I never really thought of doing at least 3 people. That is something I will be doing more of for sure. It’s amazing to see the look on someone’s face when you say good morning to them, or good to see you this morning, or even that they look nice today. At times, this really works on someone who is mostly negative or even someone that you might not get along with too well; this can work wonders on. Try it sometime, you might like the results.

Dreams And Character Go Together... Quote Of The Week!

2/3/2015

"Dreams are the touchstones of our character." -- Henry David Thoreau

Character in today’s world seems to be taking hits left and right. There seems to be so many examples of people with a lack of character and all the problems that come with it. Not only the problems for that person that makes choices and decisions without character, but for so many others that they know and those that don’t know too.

Dreaming has always been an important part of people doing things and being successful. It seems in today’s world the need for us to dream and think about things that can make our lives better is greater than ever before. The reason Mr. Thoreau is right on with this thought is that our dreams connect directly with our character.

It’s really 2-way mind set that connects these two important pieces to our life-success puzzle. Dreams definitely connect with our character in that our character gives us the fuel to go after our dreams. If our character is in check and going in the right direction, our dreams are just a little bit easier to go after. Another key is to indeed have some dreams to go after in the first place.

The side of the street on this is that our character, if it’s in order and going in the right direction, can overwhelmingly help our dreams come to reality. It gives us the foundation, the basis of going after not only our dreams but to have our live go in a very good direction. You also have to remember – as much as bad character choices and decisions hurt ourselves along with hurting others; when we have our character in order, things are a lot better for ourselves and for others that have contact with us.

So we all need to do what we can to zero in on making our dreams big, bold, positive and from our hearts; along with focusing in our character too. These are big puzzle pieces to our path towards success in our lives. I know this is a great reminder for me and I will be working hard every day to focus in on these and other pieces of the puzzle I need to put together.