A boat docked in a tiny Mexican village. An American tourist complimented the Mexican fisherman on the quality of his fish and asked “How long it took him to catch them?”"Not very long," answered the Mexican.

"But then, why didn't you stay out longer and catch more?" asked the American. The Mexican explained that his small catch was sufficient to meet his needs and those of his family.

The American asked, "But what do you do with the rest of your time?"

"I sleep late, fish a little, play with my children, and take a siesta with my wife. In the evenings, I go into the village to see my friends, play the guitar, and sing a few songs... I have a full life."

The American interrupted, "I have an MBA from Harvard, and I can help you! You should start by fishing longer every day. You can then sell the extra fish you catch. With the extra revenue, you can buy a bigger boat."

"And after that?" asked the Mexican. “With the extra money the larger boat will bring, you can buy a second one and a third one and so on until you have an entire fleet of trawlers. Instead of selling your fish to a middle man, you can then negotiate directly with the processing plants and maybe even open your own plant. You can then leave this little village and move to Mexico City, Los Angeles, or even New York City! From there you can direct your huge new enterprise." "How long would that take?" asked the Mexican.

"Twenty, perhaps twenty-five years," replied the American. "And after that?" Well, my friend, that's when it gets really interesting," answered the American, laughing. "When your business gets really big, you can cart Selling stocks and make millions!"

“Millions? Really? And after that?" said the Mexican. "After that you'll be able to retire, live in a tiny village near the coast, sleep late, play with your children, catch a few fish, take a siesta with your wife and spend your evenings doing what you like and enjoying your friends."

"With all due respect sir, but that's exactly what I am doing now. So what’s the point wasting twenty-five years?" asked the Mexican.

And the moral is: Know where you're going in life...you may already be there.

Apply the 80/20 Rule to Everything
By: Brian Tracy

The 80/20 Rule is one of the most helpful of all concepts of time and life management. It is also called the Pareto Principle after its founder, the Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who first wrote about it in 1895. Pareto noticed that people in his society seemed to divide naturally into what he called the "vital few," the top 20% in terms of money and influence, and the "trivial many," the bottom 80%.

The Great Discovery
He later discovered that virtually all economic activity was subject to this Pareto Principle as well.

For example, this rule says that 20% of your activities will account for 80% of your results. 20% of your customers will account for 80% of your sales. 20% of your products or services will account for 80% of your profits. 20% of your tasks will account for 80% of the value of what you do, and so on.

This means that if you have a list of ten items to do, two of those items will turn out to be worth as much or more than the other eight items put together.

The Greatest Payoff
Here is an interesting discovery. Each of these tasks may take the same amount of time to accomplish. But one or two of those tasks will contribute five or ten times the value as any of the others.

Often, one item on a list of ten things that you have to do can be worth more than all the other nine items put together. This task is invariably the one that you should do first.

The Most Valuable Tasks
The most valuable tasks you can do each day are often the hardest and most complex. But the payoff and rewards for completing these tasks efficiently can be tremendous. For this reason, you must adamantly refuse to work on tasks in the bottom 80% while you still have tasks in the top 20% left to be done.

Before you begin work, always ask yourself, "Is this task in the top 20% of my activities or in the bottom 80%?"

Getting Started
The hardest part of any important task is getting started on it in the first place. Once you actually begin work on a valuable task, you seem to be naturally motivated to continue. There is a part of your mind that loves to be busy working on significant tasks that can really make a difference. Your job is to feed this part of your mind continually.

Managing Your Life
Time management is really life management, personal management. It is really taking control over the sequence of events. Time management is control over what you do next. And you are always free to choose the task that you will do next. Your ability to choose between the important and the unimportant is the key determinant of your success in life and work.

Effective, productive people discipline themselves to start on the most important task that is before them. They force themselves to eat that frog, whatever it is. As a result, they accomplish vastly more than the average person and are much happier as a result. This should be your way of working as well.

Action Exercises
Make a list of all the key goals, activities, projects and responsibilities in your life today. Which of them are, or could be, in the top 10% or 20% of tasks that represent, or could represent, 80% or 90% of your results?

Resolve today that you are going to spend more and more of your time working in those few areas that can really make a difference in your life and career, and less and less time on lower value activities.

Compiled by
Shabbar Suterwala
Corporate Soft Skills Trainer

Contact Details:
Shabbar Suterwala's Leaders Workshop
B/303, Mandsaur CHS,
Kokani Pada, Kurar Village,
Malad (East), Mumbai 400 097

What do you want in life?

Now, what do you really want?

Most people answer question number one with physical manifestations of money, cars, houses, etc.

Or, they want qualities that lead to tangible manifestations of stuff by saying they want wealth, health or happiness. Hey, I want all of the above too.

But, there is a greater truth below these outer manifestations. What does having money or a home give you?
Does it give you acceptance by your peers. More respect from your co-workers? Does it stem the loneliness or create inner peace? Alfred Adler, one of the early pioneers of psychotherapy, stated that the basis for human issues is the search for significance. What makes you feel as if you are significance.

Take the car example. A small compact is a car that meets your needs but a big, expensive car might make you feel more important.

So what if we just focused on what we really want vs what we feel makes us feel that way. Getting that car, new promotion or new home may leave you feeling even emptier than you do already.

Emotions and Thoughts Affect Creativity Goals

Emotions and thoughts are not just about the mind. For the past twenty years or so, scientists have developed a vast body of work that proves that our emotions and thoughts influence our physical bodies and health. It is common knowledge that stress, negative emotions, and bad thought patterns lead to many physical ailments. Since companies lose many billions of dollars due to employees who are ill, the physical effects of mental states are a key concern for managers and employers. Quite simply, if negative emotions or thoughts lead to ill health it can affect the way that you feel and the way that you deal with the goals that you have set for yourself.

Studies have repeatedly shown that negative thoughts and negative emotional states (such as anger or resentment) lead to very real physical effects that may well result in serious long-term illnesses. Some conditions, such as ulcers and some cardiac problems are in fact directly linked to poor emotional states. Too much stress, worry, and anxiety can put a strain on the entire system. In fact, research has shown that stress, anxiety, nervousness, anger, and brooding can result in a number of very real physical problems, including insomnia, loss of appetite and subsequent loss of weight, shakiness, dry mouth syndrome, heart palpations, heart pains, chest pains, headaches, sore muscles, cramps, stomach upset, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, respiratory problems, and a host of other ills. Obviously, what goes through your mind is crucial to how you manage the goals in your life

It is not just your emotions and moods, but also your thoughts that can affect your goals. Whether your thoughts are positive or negative in fact influences how your lead your life. Positive thoughts have been linked very strongly to achieving goals. People with a positive attitude strive more often to achieve their goals.

Positive thoughts, especially thoughts such as “I can do this”, are more likely to relax you and give you the personal incentive that you need to be successful and reach your gaols. Affirmations have long been considered a very effective way of generating a positive attitude. The idea is to repeat, in a very positive tone of voice and with a high degree of conviction and positive emotion, statements such as “I am working towards my goals every day”. The idea is to use positive statements that are in the present.

Affirmations work even better when visualization is used. If you picture yourself attaining your affirmation, as well as just saying them, you even further convince your mind of the truth of the statement, and so you produce positive thought and action in your life and in the process of setting your goals.

Using Creativity Coaching to Recognize Goals

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One of the ways that you can recognize your goals and start to strive towards meeting them, is by using coaching techniques. Coaching can be essential part of communicating with yourself and the people in your life. When you enter into the coaching process you learn how to achieve success in your career and in your personal life. A coach will work with you to help you recognize, realize, and achieve your goals, expectations, and dreams.

Coaches know how to get people to open up and talk about their personal lives and work. This is because coaches have been trained to ask the right questions and to push people in the direction that they need to go to find the answers for themselves. This teaches people how to solve problems on their own while at the same time reaching the goals that are important to them. You often need to find alternative solutions to the problems that you face in your personal and professional life. Coaches are simply there to help you communicate, recognize your goals, and steer you in the right direction to find solutions.

There are many benefits to using coaching to recognize and reach your goals. Some of these benefits are:

• Determining what you want from life. A coach will be able to help you to determine what is important in your life. Once you recognize what is important you are better able to focus your energy in this area.
• Communication. You will learn how you can better communicate both in your personal life and at work.
• Goal setting. A coach can help you to determine what your personal goals are so that you can find solutions to achieving these goals.
• Professional and personal growth. Using a coach, you will learn how to work toward the goals that you have identified.
• Productivity. You’ll learn how to follow through on tasks in the best effective manner as you can. When you consistently put your best efforts into reaching your goals you’ll find success comes more easily.
• Wheel of balance. Coaches are able to help you balance your wheel of life so that you function well in all areas of your life. This includes the mental, spiritual, and physical areas of your life.

As more and more people recognize the importance of coaching to recognize goals, and to improve their ambition in reaching these goals, the role of the coach will become more inspirational in reaching goals. In order for the coaching process to be successful you need to understand that the process is simply a means for you to recognize and identify your goals.

This is an ongoing series on setting goals to increase our creativity abilities and energy. What have you done to exercise your muse muscles? Use the speak link at the end of this post to comment and share.

Goals and Motivation

Goals and motivation are closely linked together since without motivation you’ll never achieve those goals. Motivation has become a multi-billion dollar business in this country, with people turning to spiritual leaders, workshops, and even professional motivators in order to find the incentive and energy to achieve their goals. Motivation is the incentive that you need to strive towards those goals that you want to meet in your life.

If you are not motivated to do something then that means that you do not have something that you want to do. If you are not motivated to go back to school, for instance, then that means that you do not want to get more education. Many people gladly spend hundreds or even thousands of dollars persuading themselves to do things they know they should do. Make sure that your goals are clear so that you use your motivation in positive ways.

Once you have figured out the major areas of your life, and your central purpose of what you want, motivation will fall automatically into place. Picture each day the way you would like each section of your life to be. This can help motivate you to take action.

By visualizing each area of your life you push your mind to develop solutions to current problems and you allow your mind to develop the idea that such success is possible. With daily visualization you can find the energy to improve all areas of your life since your mind will begin to accept that change is possible. Many of us remain unmotivated to push for our goals, such as look for a new job, because we believe that doing so is too frightening. We think that no matter how bad things are now at least we are used to our current way of life.

Change, no matter how possibly pleasant, is a risk and is part of goal setting. For many of us, that risk is too scary. So we procrastinate and tell ourselves that change is impossible. We talk ourselves into being unmotivated so that we do not have to face this risk. This leads to goals that are set but never met. Don’t fall into the trap of procrastination since this leads to apathy towards your goals that will hold you back for a long time. You need to be clear about your goals, how to achieve them, and the work that it will take to achieve these goals. Do what it takes to get motivated since this motivation will take you that much closer to your personal and professional goals.

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Goals: The Wheel of Life

One useful tool for goal setting is to imagine the modern wheel of life as it applies to you. The wheel of life lets you know how you are doing in all the areas of your life and helps you build a sense of purpose that rests on balancing your goals. What that means is that the wheel of life can be a useful visualization exercise that can be a powerful tool for achieving purpose and balance in your life. The wheel of life depicted as a pie brings a power of purpose which can lead to motivation and success.

A sense of purpose is a sense of certainty about something or a strong belief that makes us act. When we say that someone has a sense of purpose, we usually mean that person has a drive that propels them to action. It is no accident that those people with the greatest sense of purpose often accomplish the most. A powerful sense of purpose is like a sharp sword; it cuts through lethargy, passivity, and obstacles in your way. If you have a strong sense of purpose then all your life’s resources, such as your talents and education, go towards accomplishing your goals.

Purpose motivates you but it also provides you with a sharp focus that prevents you from becoming distracted and wasting away your time and energy. In many ways your purpose, the center of your wheel of life, is the key to your entire wheel of life but most people take no time to define their purpose and make no effort to coordinate their wheel of life. Many people set their monthly, daily, and weekly goals, and usually achieve them, but their goals are scattered and don’t lead to larger goals or a real sense of satisfaction.

Having a wheel of life with a purpose at its core is like having a well-developed road map with a final destination in view. As you continue along the road all shorter-term goals move you closer to your larger goal. With a strong purpose at the center your wheel of life works together. As you move towards your major purpose, and the goals connected with it, each area of your life grows and is strengthened.

Having a purpose and goals makes your wheel of life complete. It lets you see what you are headed towards and why. It can also let you know whether all areas of your life are proceeding as they should. Goal setting is crucial so that you can combine all of the aspects of your wheel of life and achieve your dreams.

What is your central creative purpose in life? Share it with us...click the speak link below!

Attitudes, Beliefs and Behavior Determine Goals

>> We have been offering you a series on how to use Goals to Build Creativity. Make these tools more effective by "speaking" up and sharing your creative voice on how you are using goals in your life, what you struggle with creatively, where you need to grow or change to be more creative.

>> Think of it as a free creativity consult or online creativity support group!

>> Click the "speak" link at the bottom of this post.

There are three important elements for your personal and professional success: (1) the attitude that you have toward your personal and professional life, (2) the beliefs you model your personal and business life around, and (3) the behavior that you have towards yourself and others. These three elements are tightly connected and interwoven, and can either make or break the personal and professional confidence with which you set, and meet, your goals.

Let’s break these three elements down even further.

• Attitudes: Attitudes are the ways that you react to situations, and to people, based on the assumptions and the beliefs that you have learned.
• Beliefs: Your beliefs are the conjectures that you make about yourself, other people, and situations. Your beliefs are based on what you think and how you think things are. Your beliefs will make you react the way that you do and cause your expectations to remain within a certain framework of thoughts.
• Behaviors: Your behavior is how you implement the attitudes that you have adopted towards situations and people.

When people positively change their attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors they open the doors to new possibilities. Life success depends on the ability to change and be willing to learn new ways of thinking and doing things.

One of the techniques that successful people use to change their behavior is to model their personal and professional beliefs on someone in their field whom they admire and respect. Who is it that they admire and respect? When people find someone who is successful in a way that they themselves define success, they need to take a look at what these successful people are doing and how they are doing it.

Another thing that people should concentrate on is to ask themselves who they’re mixing with. If people find that they’re spending time with other people who wouldn’t be defined as successful then they need to start mixing with those people who do define success and are leading successful professional lives. This doesn’t mean that you leave behind those people in your life who have chosen poor goals. It only means that you start mixing with those people that have an attitude towards their life that is considered to be positive and winning.

What this means for you is that you encourage positive leadership and modeling in your life so that you are able to succeed and achieve the goals that you have set for yourself. Goals are personal to every individual so it’s up to you to set the bar when it comes to your attitude and determination.

Determine Your Core Beliefs Before Setting Goals

..> What are your core beliefs...share with us at the end...

Before you can set any goals for yourself you need to have a base of core beliefs that you live by. And your core beliefs are based on the cause and effect of the things that happen to you in your life. The way you feel will always be determined by an action that created the feeling. When it comes to goal setting you need to have a positive outlook on what is happening around you so that you can make good decisions for yourself.

The basic underlying concept of core beliefs and goals is that if you’re not feeling and seeing the effects that you want to see you need to take a look at the reasons why. Once you make changes to the conditions that are causing you to fail to reach your goals you’ll start to see the results that you want to see. This means making changes to the conditions within yourself, and within your life, which are keeping you from moving forward.

You, as an individual, need to take responsibility for when you feel uninspired and negative. This also means that you have the power to change these conditions of cause and effect. You need to feel that you CAN reach your personal and professional goals. But what does the cause and effect of what happens in your life have to do with being successful and reaching your goals? The answer is simple: When you are aware of the cause and effect of your own personal beliefs and goals you are better able to manage how you lead your life. Understanding and believing that you can be successful on a personal level leads to the belief that you can reach all of the goals that you set for yourself.

One of the most important things that you can do to reach your personal and professional goals is to cultivate and nurture your own personal power. Personal power is one of the most incredible allies that you can have when it comes to achieving success. Personal power is all about believing in yourself, your accomplishments, and your ability to reach your goals. When people have this personal power they become confident and motivated to go after the things they want in life. Just think of the rewards that you will receive when you have a great sense of personal power: there are no limits when it comes to the goals that you can reach.

One of the key aspects of personal power is the inner confidence to know that you can do anything you want to do. You can achieve the goals that you deserve because you have all the skills and techniques that you need to be successful. When you have personal power you have the assertiveness to do what’s best for you and your professional career. It’s this combination of confidence and assertiveness that is going to push you towards your goals and a help you achieve these goals.

..> What are your core beliefs and how do they affect your goals for your creativity? Use the "speak" link below to share.

Set Lifetime Goals

One of the first things that you should think about when you’re setting personal goals is what specific things you want to accomplish in your lifetime. These lifetime goals will give you the perspective that you need to shape many of the decisions that you’ll be making in your life.

There are some specific areas of your life in which you’re going to want to set very determined goals. The following categories will help you to focus on certain aspects of your lifetime goals:

• Mental attitude: Your mental attitude should be positive so that there are no negative thoughts or mindsets holding you back. Take a look at your behavior in certain situations and ask yourself if this was something that prevented you from reaching a specific goal.
• Your career: Depending on what career you want, there will be specific goals that you need to follow to make sure that you have all your credentials at the end of your schooling. Ask yourself what level it is that you want to reach in your career.
• Family: Setting family goals can be a bit more difficult than other goals because your decision will usually affect someone else as well. You’ll first need to decide if you want to be a parent and if you want the responsibilities that come with parenting.
• Financial: Determine how much you want to be making when you reach a certain age.
• Physical: Determine if there are any athletic goals that you want to reach. This can be as simple as staying in good health or as complicated as learning how to mountain climb. What will it take for you to reach this physical goal?
• Pleasure: Make a list of things that make you happy. Then make another list of steps that you can take to incorporate more of these pleasures into your life.

Once you have a list of the above categories clearly written down you’ll need to assign them with a priority number. Start with the number one priority and then start to implement changes in your life so that you can achieve this goal. Work down the list but keep in mind that you can change the priority of a category at any time. Your lifetime goals are the milestones that you want to reach for your own personal achievement.

When you’re setting lifetime goals it’s important that you make decisions for yourself that are going to fit into the person you want to be. Perhaps the most important step when it comes to goal setting is to be firm in the lifetime goals categories that you feel are most important to you.

What are your lifetime goals? Have you acheived them? What is one step you can make toward meeting your life time goals in the next 24 hours?

"Speak" up by clicking the link below...>