This is the time of year when folks are talking about their New Year’s Resolutions. Being the poster child for Adult ADHD, it took me many years to accept the fact that I struggle with long-term goal setting, although over the years I muscled through and have been fortunate to accomplish some great long-term goals. A long time ago I decided to focus instead on New Day’s Resolutions. I get up every morning, give thanks to God for another day and resolve to add as much value as possible to whomever crosses my path that day. Of course there are some business and personal goals I also focus on on a daily basis too. Daily basis, not yearly basis. Subtle distinction, huge difference. So while many are resolving to lose 100 pounds and a foot or so around their waist while getting rich in record time, perhaps just focus on …

When you get up in the morning totally jazzed about adding massive value to people, today isn’t just another day. It’s TuesYAY! Yesterday was MonYAY! Tomorrow’s WednesYAY! Yeah baby, you’re getting the hang of it now….

Whatever it is that you want, if you really, really want it sincerely enough, there’s always a way to create it. There are no exceptions to this. And if you’re thinking of posting something in the comment thread below to try and prove me wrong, you’ve actually proven that you’d prefer to put your creativity into being right versus putting your creativity in getting what you really, really sincerely want. Which may mean, just maybe, kinda, sorta, that you don’t really, really sincerely want that particular thing. Which is okay. So the real question is….whattaya really, really sincerely want? Really?

Most people give thanks on Sundays. I also give thanks on Tuesdays, because Tuesday is garbage day. As I walk around my home gathering the garbage from all of the garbage cans in our various rooms, I talk out loud with God. “Thank you God for allowing me to deliver enough value to my clients to allow us to live in such a beautiful home with amazing views of the Rocky Mountains. Thank you for the food wrappers and packaging in the garbage can which means we’ve had enough to eat and stay healthy. Thank you for the messy garbage cans in each of my three childrens’ bedrooms which means each of our kids have space to decorate and have their privacy. Thank you for my three-year old’s diaper pail because you’ve blessed us with a little one and so many others haven’t had that blessing. Thank you for Karin cleaning …

A simple practice that has worked very well for me over the years and may work well for you: There’s lot of bad news out there from shootings, to just about anything else you can imagine. Every time you hear a bad news story, immediately think of something you’re thankful for. And over time, apply this not only to bad news stories but to every time you hear anything even remotely negative in any form. For overachievers, think of two positive things for every negative one you hear. This isn’t denial that bad things happen to good people. It’s training your mind to think correctly on abundance and gratitude. Just a thought.

Enthusiastic people are fun to be around. People enjoy spending time with those who have a child-like excitement about life. Most people lose their child-like enthusiasm over time even for the things they once loved. Investing time on a daily basis thinking about and researching the things you most desire and enjoy is a smart use of your time. The saddest days of our lives are the days in which we can find nothing to be enthusiastic about. Make time to dust off some of your hopes, dreams and desires. Invest some mental power figuring out what you’d like to have, do or become and develop plans for its attainment. This will keep you young and excited about the wonderful adventure that life really is.

One of the surest ways to ensure your success is to always be thinking about how you can serve your clients better. Most people and organizations don’t do this. It’s easy to fall into a status quo type of thinking and not be in continual improvement mode. Don’t do this – it’s a trap. Service can always be improved upon. Always. Successful people do a better job of serving others than do unsuccessful people. Serve. Serve. Serve. Those who serve, deserve.

You can get an indication of the size of a person by whether they want all the glory or whether they shine the light on other people. A low self-image leads to wanting to hog the spotlight. A healthy self-image seeks out opportunities to sincerely praise others. A good habit to develop is to make sure that you’re acknowledging others on a daily basis. Successful people give more recognition unto others than do unsuccessful people.

Yes, you should be technically proficient at your chosen profession. But being good at what you do with a bad or average attitude will never even come close to the levels of performance you’ll attain by being good at what you do with a great attitude. Attitude is the differentiator. Continue to get better and better at whatever it is you do for a living. And at the same time, continue to work on developing a more and more positive attitude. Do this consistently and you’ll never worry about your next job, client, referral or promotion. It all starts with our attitude.

The older I get (BTW – I’m not that old although my children think I’m a fossil) the more I enjoy hanging out with kids and older people because in some ways they’re very similar. Most kids haven’t become cynical and still view the world as an exciting place full of possibilities. And most older people who have attained even a modicum of enlightenment after being on this planet for a long time, dealing with a lot of people and developing some wisdom, realize that most of the things people worry about really don’t matter a lot in the big scheme of things. And therefore they lighten up and enjoy life. So it’s the people in the middle between being young and being old that you have to watch out for. You know the ones. The ones who judge people based on the car they drive, the school they went …

We become like the people we associate with. We know this is true in regards to our kids and there are definitely certain kids we don’t want our kids to hang around with. Adults are just kids with long, hairy legs. Surround yourself with positive, uplifting, encouraging people. Start by being one yourself and you’ll find that others will naturally start to form a community around you. Love everybody. Just love the pessimists from a distance.  

Success leaves clues and so does failure. Any long-term successful person has a winning attitude. And the key here is that the person is a long-term success and not a flash in the pan. The world is full of short-term successes. Anyone can sprint. It’s the long haul that counts. No matter what good comes your way, if you have a losing attitude, you’re eventually going to lose. We reap what we sow. There is no reversing the law of the harvest. Develop a winning attitude. You will suffer defeat. It’s just part of being human. No matter what happens, keep that winning attitude. You’re in it for the long haul. And by long haul I mean your life. You were born to win.

We are surrounded on every side by people’s goals, dreams and ideals. Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal, dream or ideal. The computer or smart phone you’re reading this blog post on was once a goal, dream or ideal. Your ability to read was once a goal, dream or ideal. You get the point. Oftentimes we make things more difficult than they need to be. Let’s keep things simple. K.I.S.S. = Keep It Simple Sweetie. The easiest part of achieving your goal, dream or ideal is the work. Once you clearly define your goal, dream or ideal with a laser-like clarity, then figure out the cost in terms of time, effort and resources, all that’s left is the work. Remember that a man or woman who chases two rabbits catches neither. Clearly define your goal, dream or ideal. Then make it a little clearer. And then a …

Ever notice that folks with a bad attitude tend to get bad results? And folks with a good attitude tend to get good results? This is no accident. It’s the law of the harvest in action. We reap what we sow. If your attitude toward the world is good you’ll obtain good results. If your attitude is excellent, you’ll obtain excellent results. And if your attitude is so so, you’ll obtain so so results. How wonderful that we can choose our results by choosing our attitude.

I recently purchased an SUV and now everywhere I go I see people driving the same SUV. And it’s not even a common SUV. Ever have this happen to you? It happens to all of us. We tend to see what we’re thinking about. Knowing this, let’s choose to look for the best. The best in ourselves and the best in everyone who crosses our path. A funny thing about life is that we tend not to get what we deserve, but what we expect. By focusing on expecting the best, we tend to see more of this show up. And that’s a lot better than focusing on the worst in ourselves and others.

Most of the things which lead to success are very simple. The only problem with things that are simple to do is that they are also simple not to do. In Napoleon Hill’s classic, “Think and Grow Rich”, he talks about the importance of daily creative thinking. In today’s more and more hectic, non-stop information overload world, I would predict that 98% of the world’s population hasn’t developed the habit of sitting quietly for fifteen minutes every morning with a legal pad and a pen. If you will develop the habit of sitting and writing every morning for fifteen minutes you will be amazed at some of the things that flow from your head and pen. Just sit and write pure stream of consciousness. Don’t worry about it making sense or about what others will think. You’re not going to share these thoughts with anyone. Just write. Over the course of …