Despite his latest marital misgivings… I think this is a fantastic or (FAHN-Tastique- Arnold speak) VIDEO (content wise — the cinematography could use some work ). Arnold touches on the most elemental and important aspects that have helped to DRIVE HIM and his success. It’s also revealing to see/understand his mental framework/principles responsible for forging his character.

From my vantage point, it’s interesting to see where his “6 Keys” overlap and intersect with “The 3 C’s of Succcess”

Arnold’s 1st Key: Trust Yourself
This is interesting because you’ll notice this message is ALL over this website (see this site’s ABOUT page) and of course the same message resonates throughout the book “The 3 C’s of Succcess. So, which “C” does “Trust Yourself” fall into? Most likely, CHARACTER – that is belief in yourself. There is definitely a little bit of CREATIVITY as well in his first key. That is, in order to trust yourself you must have sparked some unique, creative thoughts!

Arnold’s 2nd Key: Break the Rules
We (you) must think outside the box. Arnold’s point is, don’t break the law but be sure to break the rules. What is the point, he asks of doing everything like everyone else? This obviously falls under Creativity but no doubt contains a little Character. That is, without the confidence to break the rules you won’t likely do it.

Arnold’s 3rd Key: Do not be afraid of failure.
Translated:  Courage which is the foundation of  CHARACTER!

Arnold’s 4th Key: Ignore the Naysayers:
Critically important and is rooted as well in CHARACTER!

Arnold’s 5th Key:
WORK YOUR BUTT OFF!!! There is simply no way around it – he says, “No Shortcuts”. This is (again) both Character and Completion. I love the part about “someone out there RIGHT NOW, is working hard, getting smarter, etc.” No pain – no gain.

Arnold’s 6th key:
GIVE BACK. GIVE BACK. GIVE BACK. NOTHING is more rewarding then giving back. This constitutes Character.

Summary:
His content is spot on. You must believe you CAN do it! You must be unique/think different/break the rules! You can NOT fear failure! There will always be naysayers— ignore them entirely! And, without HARD WORK you will NOT get where you want to be! You must work hard! Finally, nothing is more rewarding than giving back!

Those are his exceptional foundational “rules” for success if you will. Yes, there is a bit of irony there given his current / most recent situation with his wife and that these are “rules” (if you follow). But please know, there is no secret to success and unfortunately there is no 4 hr work week.

So, here is a man (ARNOLD) who’s experienced terrific levels of success. You can hear the knowledge, experience and wisdom in his words. Whether it was Body building, Hollywood, Politics. The TERMINATOR kicked-ass because he was FOCUSED and BUSTED his ass. His record speaks for itself and there are great lessons to learn even from his current (personal) situation with Maria. As a public figure (unfortunately) personal situations do not tend to remain personal.

Always remember, as the great coach John Wooden used to say, “Talent can get you to the TOP but it is CHARACTER that keeps you there.”

Until next time. To your succcess (w/ 3 C’s!)

~mws

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

UPDATE!!!

This post was originally written in early 2008 and was updated after he had his liver transplant in 2009. In light of Mr. Jobs passing, this YouTube video of his commencement address has gone viral – (10Million hits later). We originally shared this video when it was in the low 6 figures. I felt it was important to bring this back to the TOP of the POST pile.

If you haven’t seen this video, it’s extremely worthwhile and the words below are designed to challenge your personal reflection.

Recall Aristotle’s famous quote: “Wisdom is an equal measure of Experience plus Reflection.

E + R = W

ENJOY!

Stanford Commencement Address 2005.
Mr. Steven Jobs; Monster-Entrepreneur, Apple & Pixar CEO, Super-Hero Extraordinaire

“Life can only be understood backward, but it must be lived forward.” ~Kierkegaard

Every time I see this speech I’m awed by the number of gems Steve shares. I find it interesting to overlay these anecdotes against the backdrop of my personal experiences. His tales of opportunity, following his heart, continuous learning, failure, humility, and of course, mortality are both profound and inspiring.

However, I ask you, “How unique are they?” Just how rare are these “coincidences?”

The question I encourage you to ask is, “where are the parallels?” Surely you recognize you don’t have to be CEO of a couple fortune 500 companies to notice that, ultimately, the song remains the same; that these synchronistic events happen daily for everyone. The real question is not, “how rare is this?” But rather, “How aware am I to the events and all the possibilities?”

Think about it. One day Jobs is walking eight miles to eat at a Hare Krishna Temple – the next, he’s revolutionizing the computing industry. A slight exaggeration perhaps. However, the point is not to be lost, those were two very real “stations” in his life separated only by awareness, purity of intent and of course time.

Enter Deepak
The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire by Deepak Chopra, M.D. [excerpt]

We cannot even imagine the complex forces behind every event that occurs in our lives. There’s a conspiracy of coincidences that weaves the web of karma or destiny and creates an individual’s personal life mine, or yours. The only reason we don’t experience synchronicity in our daily lives is that we do not live from the level where it is happening. Usually we see only cause-and-effect relationships. This causes that, which causes this, which causes that — linear trajectories. Yet beneath the surface, something else is happening. Invisible to us is a whole web of connections. As it becomes apparent, we see how our intentions are woven into this web, which is much more context-bound, much more relational, much more holistic, much more nurturing than our surface experience.

Very often we fall into ruts in our lives; we maintain the same routines and act in the same manner predictably day after day after day. We set our minds on a certain course of action, and simply proceed. How can miracles happen if we march mindlessly, unthinking and unaware, through our lives? Coincidences are like road flares, calling our attention to something important in our lives, glimpses of what goes on beyond everyday distractions. We can choose to ignore those flares and hurry on, or we can pay attention to them and live out the miracle that is waiting for us.
(pages 125-126, The Spontaneous Fulfillment of Desire, by Deepak Chopra.

Enter YOU
How can you relate to each of the lessons shared within Job’s speech? Hopefully, these questions challenge you to draw your own conclusions, to connect your own dots and ultimately TRUST what IS.

I found this exercise invaluable in helping me to keep the faith and trust – even during some extremely difficult times with my businesses. His themes; “follow your heart”, “stay hungry-stay foolish” “love what you do” and “trust” remain paramount and I’m hopeful they will continue as guideposts for as long as I live.

So, here for your entertainment, are a handful of questions designed to FREE your mind and to hopefully foster your trust… of what IS. To acknowledge that whether you know it or not, you’ve already connected a few dots

Question #1. How has chance played a role in your very existence?
When you ponder this question you literally become free. I’m sure you recognize you had no responsibility in the matter of your existence. But, how often have you considered it? It was neither your effort nor your ego which placed you “here”.

Question #2: Identify your most favored current relationship. Then ask, “How is it that I know this person?” “What events precipitated this relationship?”
How did that relationship manifest? How did you meet this person? What circumstances and coincidences played a role in the creation of that relationship? How much effort or control did you have in directly creating that relationship?

Question #3: How are you currently following your heart?
Recall, Jobs dropped out of school but not for the sake of dropping out. It was his intent to protect his parents investment and savings and so he could “drop in” on the classes that interested him the most, like calligraphy.

Question #4: How has a recent set back or failure affected your present mindset?
What was Steve’s first impulse when was fired from the very company he created? Then, what was it that kept him around and set him on a course of action and why?

Question #5: Are you able to connect the dots now?
Can you see that be looking back you’ve been the beneficiary of some fantastic, seemingly unrelated events that have brought you to your current career path or introduced you to something you are very passionate about?

Question #6: What question did Steve ask himself every morning?
What question do you ask yourself every morning? What do you choose to focus on?

Question #7: What is life’s greatest invention – it’s greatest change agent?
How much time do you think you have? How much time do you really think you need in order to make your dreams come true? Do you NOT think that SynchroDestiny (as Deepak calls it) must play a part in that vision? Particularly when you consider the meeting of two strangers is statistically incalculable
.

Enjoy.
~MWS

————
P.S: When I envisioned writing about Jobs this wasn’t the piece i had in mind. Far from it. I thought it’d be a post about the most brilliant execution of business strategy I’ve ever witnessed. Recall, his early days after being reinstated at the helm of Apple; his settlement with Microsoft to shore-up some badly needed cash then, secretly developing for the Intel platform and making the Apple OS open source. It was like watching Kasparov’s end-game. Simply brilliant. And, I haven’t even mentioned the iPod, iTunes or iPhone.

Mr. Jobs, Sir… thoughts and prayers to you and your family. We’re pulling for you and your speedy recovery.

btw: Thanks for making the world a far more creative and enjoyable place to live.

Cheers and God Bless.

~MWS

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

Related posts:

1. When there is no “Why?” 9 Lessons in Achievement from a “Crazy” Man

If you’ve read The 3 C’s of Succcess (and i’m sure you have : ) thank you…) you know one of the more controversial statements I make about achieving your goals is to KEEP YOUR GOALS (particularly your BIGGEST, HAIRIEST, SCARIEST, FREAKIEST goal, TO YOURSELF!)

I can’t tell you how many comments I received telling me that was “INCORRECT”. That “common wisdom” (of course) btw: always remember to question “Common Wisdom”, is that you should tell everyone you can — to use the LEVERAGE of a group to scare you / motivate you. My contention in the book AND (based upon MY EXPERIENCE achieving rather large goals) was to KEEP them QUITE. WHY!? Because if everything is ENERGY, you’re wasting a whole lot running around (at least i was) telling everyone what you are going to do. WHO CARES!?? They don’t care. Not because they don’t care. But, because they have their own goals to pursue AND UNTIL you ACTUALLY do anything (actually achieve it) it’s not going to mean much — it’s just the proverbial “hot air”.

Remember, i believe it was Henry Ford who said, “You can’t build a reputation on what you are going to do.” Get it?

The great thing is, the above video shares a SCIENTIFIC study based upon the psychology of what happens when you tell people. WATCH IT! You will become complacent in a sense — as though you’ve somehow achieved it, even slightly by talking about it. Strange but perhaps true. When I reflect all those big goals i only spoke of to people, it actually makes some sense as though i was trying to convince them and myself I could/would do that someday.

So, whether for psychological reasons or cosmic, metaphysical reasons (energy!). My advice remains consistent. Your best bet to achieve your goals is to keep them quite, bust your ass (work really hard), and keep them quite. (BTW: not to confuse you, but sharing your goal with and using a master mind certainly works. but that is very different then just blabbing about the goal to friends and family. ) Perhaps the master-mind will be another post.

Until then…. keep your fricken mouth shut! : )

Big love. i’m expecting that thank you email in a year after you’ve nailed a BIG GOAL!

~mws

Tweet

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

“Show me a good loser and I’ll show you a loser.” ~Vincent Lombardi

“Always turn a negative situation into a positive situation.” ~Michael Jordan

My morning run typically ends at a park. Given that summer has just started more than a few dozen kids can be found running around and playing on any given morning. In between sets, (pushups/pullups) I notice that seemingly everywhere kids are competing; racing on foot, racing on bikes (one tiny kid had a bike that didn’t even have peddles and was racing!) everywhere I looked kids were playing tag, soccer, etc. Then, it spilled out of my mouth; jaw dropped, ipod blaring in my ears, “duh, (i said to me) competition IS natural.”

News flash! It’s human nature to compete. However, somewhere between when I was six years old and my daughter turned six we became “NICE”. You know, no winners and no losers. “Don’t worry Jimmy, just feel good.” Sarah, (who scored 3 goals) looks confused as we explain why she didn’t actually win. “there are no winners Sarah.”

While there are many larger societal challenges at the moment this one is on my radar. When and WHY did we decide we could reverse thousands of years of competitive evolution and teach kids NOT to compete? Does anyone think Sarah really believes there are no winners? Who thinks the Olympic games are going to disappear anytime soon? Guess what, kids know better instinctively.

Our attempts to shelter our kids from this NATURAL and very REAL existence of competition (yes, there are actually winners and losers) is doing them a disservice and I think our collective good intentions are misdirected. First, it’s the wrong message. we shouldn’t be telling them there are no winners or losers. We should be teaching them and coaching them about HOW to compete, HOW to win, and yes, HOW to lose and even WHY competition is healthy and positive.

Breeds excellence

I’m pretty sure we all recognize competition literally breeds excellence. Is there an ugly side to competition? You bet. However, what we may be missing with each great LOSS is the lesson. Somebody once said,”when you lose, don’t lose the lesson.”

BTW: A “good” loser is really the opposite of Lombardi’s quote above. Let me explain. Lombardi is saying show me a loser who is “good” = used to and accepts losing and I’ll show you a “real” loser. That’s is entirely different from what a truly “GOOD” loser is. In fact, a good loser is Michael Jordan for instance. Yes. Pick yourself up off the floor.

“What!?” you declare “Jordan is one of the greatest winners on the planet! He has six championship rings” You retort. Correct. And how do you think he got that way? Via many, (in fact a lifetime) of loses… Never forget the road to Winnersville is paved by painful and bumpy stones and loses.

Why do you think Jordan’s quote is up above as well? A “GOOD” loser as he points out ( again, he’s the best there was) is a tough minded-optimist who does NOT like to lose (can’t stand losing) and is able to take the lessons (learn from the lessons) from any loss to become a winner. He did that pretty well I’d say. Indeed, this is the only way anyone becomes a “winner” via losing. In fact, there is no such thing as a winner – only a good loser who became a winner.

This is why telling our kids there is no loser is, dare i say, pretty stupid. Learn from losing PARENTS! Teach your kids the lessons. Good parenting is Good Coaching. (Can’t wait to see that bumper sticker). Good parenting is good coaching.

Competition is far better for the loser in my estimation than the winner, given the correct mindset. What is the correct mindset? Losing is temporary. Just like winning is and just like life is. In the context of time we can appreciate the ephemeral nature of any lose and find the lesson. See Churchill below. Your life(time) is dynamic and not a static event. How many times has the failed Olympian rallied back after losing in a prior Olympic games? I think we have all heard the story about Jordan’s INABILITY to make his high school basketball team.

A tough minded LOSER ensures a healthy champion. Unless this is the Serengeti and we’re dealing with lions and antelope losing has a transcendent nature and therefore can afford us fantastic benefits.

How are your recent loses affecting you? Are they beating you down or firing you up?

It’s never been about the one with the raw talent that becomes the very best. It’s always about the one with a chip on their shoulder (something to prove, most importantly to themselves) spurred by past loses, failures, humiliations. The one who challenges themselves and positively changes their internal chemistry for ultimate success.

life is a process… winning is a process…. losing is a prerequisite.

THE REAL LESSON
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts. ~Winston Churchill

Tweet

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

for the love of GOD, people, please stop looking for “secrets”… stop looking for shortcuts. I take that back. Go ahead look for shortcuts all you like. But the only secret is that you don’t realize you have the answers within.

watch this video – please. don’t do it for me, do it for you / your loved ones. ten minutes. that’s it. If you take the message to heart i GUARANTEE it will have a lifetime affect on you as it did on my over ten years ago. (of course, i’ve probably listened now a few hundred times since-i’m a slow learner) Then, I gave it to a number of friends (this is when it was on cassette tape!).

if you put in the ten minutes listening to this message you’ll see how timeless it is. You control ONLY ONE thing – your thoughts. How you think habitually and what you think about you ultimately become. Another gem… conformity rules. “the opposite of courage is not cowardice, it’s conformity.” Consider that for a minute, those we admire simply have found/developed the habit of COURAGE. And, like any other habit it’s developed over time.

what do you think about habitually?

what does your ideal future look like? (see The 3 C’s of Succcess)

what habits of (thought and action) have you developed to make your vision a reality?

enjoy. my prescription is to watch this about once a month for the next year.

until next time,

~mws

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” ~T.S. Eliot

It was a beautiful spring day, the sun was out, the birds were singing, squirrels were playing in the yard, and I Brian Webb a recent college graduate was deciding my future. I was at home in Maysville, Kentucky discussing what I should do with my life and what endeavors I should partake. The decisions were made that I should move to Cincinnati and live with my father and work in the IT field with his company as a mentor/internship. With my education, it was believed that I can move up to management. With that decided, I drove back to Lexington content on my decision.

“Life tends to happen when you are making plans.” I arrived at my apartment in Lexington, Kentucky and decided to lay down on the couch to take a nap. However, I couldn’t sleep, I had a strange headache coming on stronger and stronger. Bam! Bam! BAM!!! Felt like a nail was being driven in the back of my skull. The pain was excruciating! So, painful in fact that I got sick and passed out.

My brother came rushing to my side and called 911. The ambulance delivers me to the ER in a coma. End of story.

Now, this is where the adventure really begins…. Twelve years later, I discovered that I suffered an intracranial hemorrhage. A blood vessel in the back of my brain ruptured destroying the life I once knew. Doctors said that I had an Arterio-Venous Malformation or A.V.M for short. I don’t care what the doctor’s call it, but I call it a dream killer.

Tragedies happen every day, just look at the news. Being a traumatic brain injury survivor has given me a new lease on life. What I am going to share are three lessons I believe it takes to succeed.

Vision: You must know where you want to go! You must have a dream. Nothing starts without a dream. I dare you to dream! For example, I heard I should be in California since there are many great programs available to me. With that vision, I saved my money working odd dead-end jobs. At one point I was working three different jobs at once. The vision is very important for success.

Belief in yourself: You must have an innate belief in yourself. Believe in yourself and mountains will move. Always bet on the long shot and if you are the long shot then bet the farm on yourself. It is hard to go it alone, to believe that you are right. But, understand that where it MUST START (yourself). Take pride in yourself and all your successes whether small or great.

Don’t give up don’t ever give up: Babe Ruth once said, “It is hard to beat a person who never gives up.” Keep striving, keep pushing. There was a time when I could not use my legs for three months. I had to force myself out of bed and try to get my legs moving. I vividly remember waking up each morning to get in my wheelchair, wheel myself to the cafeteria for breakfast and wheeling myself back to my room where my therapist were waiting. The therapists got me out of my chair and had me walk the length of the hallway in the hospital and back. I took a step, step, step….BAM! I fell flat on my face. Step, step then BAM! I fell down again. Step, and BAM I fell down a third time. When the world tells you to give up, hope whispers try one more time. I got up and eventually made it down the length of the hallway and back. This led to me walking the perimeter of the hospital and then going back home to walk around the perimeter of the local lake. I am happy to report that I ran my 5th marathon this past spring in San Diego! It has taken twelve years to discover the new me. But never giving up has always been consistent. The idea of never quitting when the going gets tough has helped me accomplish these goals.

I have presented my own three key mindsets to accomplish any goal! The process is vision, belief, and never giving up. This experiment that I call life has been a twelve year process for me and I continue to learn more every day. I successfully moved to San Diego, CA during one of the worst recessions this country has faced. I intend to go to grad school because I have discovered what I want to do with my life which is to serve other individuals like myself by teaching them about rehabilitation and counseling programs.

Choose life, learn to live, the miracle is inside you. Stay strong, don’t quit and never, ever give up. Thank you.

~Brian Webb

—-COMMENT:

Brian, greatly appreciate your submission. Your story is truly inspiring and reminds me that when “we” think we have “problems” stories like this help snap us into a more realistic and responsible perspective! Great job!

~mws

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

“What is a cynic?
A man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing.”

I read a magazine article today about cynicism, and it really got me thinking. The author basically stated that the reason that men fail in their endeavors is an abundance of cynicism. And of course the cynics in us all are automatically skeptical of this statement, but he further goes on to ask us to stop and see if we can think of ONE successful cynic. Just one. It’s damn near impossible.

Incredibly successful people, whether they’re actors, entertainers, athletes or just general moguls, all share one thing: a sincere belief in themselves and in other people. It’s not enough just to be self-confident and self-sufficient. To be successful also requires that you sincerely believe in the good of mankind.
The article features a quiz that helps you to determine your cynicism level; giving statements and asking you to agree or disagree with them. So, for example, “People pretend to care about others more than they really do care,” and then you either get to agree/disagree.

I figure most people would come out at the higher end of the cynic-spectrum because we live in a cynical world and a cynical society. And, why shouldn’t we be, right?

It’s always so  much easier to act like we don’t give a damn. To blame others’ success on luck. To say, “screw the government” because it’s all corrupt. The article lists that in 2009, “only 22 percent of Americans trusted the financial system.” Doesn’t that make sense though, given that we experienced the royal financial screw-up that was the year 2008? A healthy bit of skepticism is definitely warranted but where do we cross the line? Where does it go from, “Hmm, that’s pretty wack but it’ll probably get better,” to “I knew this financial system would screw up some day, the government can’t do anything right. We’ll be stuck here for at least another ten years.”

Mike Zimmerman, the author talks about his interview with Matthew McConaughey and the dude is pretty intelligent. He manages to perfectly describe cynics in that “[they] put their finger on the disease before they put it on health. It’s the easy way to go.” After the interview, Zimmerman goes on to show images of David Beckham, Mark Wahlberg and a few other big names and states that their number one success secret: “a sincere belief in sincere belief.”

So to conclude Zimmerman’s message, in order to be truly successful in any aspect of life, financial, family, educational, you’ve got to let the cynicism go. All of it.

McConaughey concluded his interview by sharing that most people when they get stuck in a tough spot start to think ” ‘I got screwed, that should’ve been mine.’ ” Conversely, his lifelong mantra is “Just keep livin.’” And not only has he done that, he’s made some stacks along the way.
Less Zimmerman, more me. Cynic is just a fancy name for a Hater. And the thing is, a Hater doesn’t mean to “Hate,” per se, but a Hater just remains ever so sarcastic about everything in life. Like when someone tells you about their ideas and plans, and because they seem a little farfetch’d HATER regards them as “stupid” for thinking they could accomplish anything great.

In fact, you may be rolling your eyes and chuckling to yourself right now as some sort of sick, comforting habit. Since it’s actually YOU whose too scared to dream big. Good work! You’ve actually paralyzed yourself via your own continued sarcasm and “haterness”. Damn, I made up a word.

Look who’s talking though, I’m the biggest cynic I know. Irony, can be the best teacher.

This post has opened me up a bit. When I was a psychology student, I wanted to learn what made people tick. What made people do the stupid sh*t that they did, why I felt hurt sometimes for sh*t that I shouldn’t. Why this, why that. But I’ve begun to think that none of that sh*t matters, that it’s best to have a dream, have faith, and be good to people, with sincere hopes and expectations that they will be good to you. What have we got to lose?

So the next time someone comes at you with a project they’re starting — that they’re enthusiastic about, why not share the enthusiasm? Why not get inspired to do some crazy stuff yourself? Christopher Wallace (RIP) once said that in order to change the world we have to change ourselves. I’m working on me, what about you?

Guest Post by: Haris Fazlani

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

Continuous effort – not strength or intelligence – is the key to unlocking our potential.
~Winston Churchill

Guest Post by: Suzanne Grenoble
What might I share with your audience?
Aristotle once said: “Excellence, then, is not a single act, but a habit.”
So, the reverse must hold true: Failure is not a single act, it is a habit.

Who knowingly practices the habit of failure? None of us, I am sure. But tiny things erode our success. It is the small detail that sets us back. For example, the habit of blaming others prevents us from changing ourselves. So this habit might be part of a framework of habits that surround failure.

There is no doubt that neither failure nor success are guaranteed. We control what we put out, and how we deal with feedback. If our efforts come to nothing, we can make improvements in our practice, or we can make excuses to avoid working on weaknesses and liabilities.

The choice is daily, and the choice is ours. Look at the success stories of history. Winston Churchill is credited for saving England from total collapse under Nazi bombardment. Yet he experienced failure, and depression. For Churchill to live through World War II and the Allied Victory, only to be voted out of office when England had arrived safely in the harbor of peace, must have been a blow. Yet he is remembered for his valor and deep belief in England and in freedom, not for petty politics. He endured when others gave up, because he knew those who had little courage or faith needed him, and he came through.

We pick ourselves up and carry on, we set our sights high, and we do not settle for anything less than the best of ourselves.

I think success is the habit of catching the little things, of starting over, and of aiming high, day after day. Success is indeed a habit, the habit of believing.

——
Suzanne, Thanks again! Wonderful post and appreciate you sharing!
BTW: All others, we are accepting guest posts if YOU are interested and brave like Suzanne submit your post to  {Mitchwsteel AT     G m A iL .C Om} oneword. We will review and put in the queue!

peace

~mws

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

Time may be the ultimate illusion but in the final analysis it’s is all we have. Consider that without it there literally is nothing else, not within our perceivable, physical realm. And with it, seemingly all possibilities exist.

Yet how people “manage”  their time is ultimately what separates those who achieve their ideal future – their success, and those who don’t. On the most basic level, “success” becomes a derivative of time management. But, the question is; do high achievers really “manage” their time or do they do something else? Do they regard time differently?

PERCEPTION & RELATIVITY

“Put your hand on a hot stove for a minute, and it seems like an hour. Sit with a pretty girl for an hour, and it seems like a minute. Now THAT’S relativity.” – Einstein

Not only is time relative – it’s illusive. Consider, time IS abundant AND scarce. Fleeting AND stands still. In many ways it represents a very pure form of energy. Simply put, TIME IS A RIVER. A force that flows from the moment we are born into this time-constrained world/existence until we return to whence we came. Between those two moments in time (The Dash) is the subtext for all of creativity and life. It’s the subtext for all science, physical formulas reality and individual achievement.

So, the next question ought to be; if we all have the same 24 hours each day, why do some people achieve 10 and 100 times the results and productivity? Well, besides technique and process (management), I’d humbly suggest to you it’s simply HOW high-achievers regard their time.

THE ONLY RAW MATERIAL WE ALL HAVE

One viewpoint I like a lot is shared by Brian Tracy. He has a brilliant analogy for time and people. He suggests that each person ought to view themselves as a FACTORY.  Yes, each new day we all receive a fresh shipment of 24 hours to run through our factory. An opportunity to produce real value each and every day. What your factory produces – what you give and what you achieve in your lifetime (your value) is determined by how you use these 24 hours each day, everyday.

Another viewpoint is this – TIME IS A RIVER and rather than “managing” it we ought to CHANNEL it. We ought to direct it toward our ambitions, interests and endeavors. We should not fight it, feel stressed by it or resist it. We should welcome its force with non-resistance. Recognizing that time is most powerful – well, over time, we should embrace its longevity and strength by employing persistence and patience.

“He that have patience can have what he will.” – Benjamin Franklin

“If nothing within you stays rigid, outward things will disclose themselves. Moving be like water.” – Bruce Lee

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.

“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four Cs. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionably.” ~ Walt Disney

Walter Elias Disney. Now there was a man who deserved a “Sir” before his name if ever there was one. A legend. Certainly, an incredible SUCCESS by anyone’s definition. You would be hard pressed to find a man who’s vision and inspiration has positively touched more lives. At this very moment, kids are skipping around and smiling the grandest of smiles because of his vision; to create “the happiest place on earth”, Disneyland.

What seemingly everyone forgets is, much like our first HERO President Lincoln, his road to such heights was extremely difficult. He had a multitude of opportunities to quit. I found it hard to believe that Walt was told he had no talent when trying to submit his cartoons to a local paper as a young man. Imagine that, the creator of the iconic Mickey Mouse character! Also, later in his career, as an entrepreneur, he suffered multiple business failures and even a bankruptcy. Bet you didn’t know that.

There are no original ideas. There are only original people.

~Barbara Grizzuti Harrison

For Mr. Disney the road to great achievement and success was paved with many hard lessons. So, while Walt’s life was indeed a challenging one, he epitomized the winning formula for SUCCCESS (The 3 C’s kind). Creativity, Character and Completion.

I think you know where this is going…

Imagine both my surprise and, I guess, honor to come across Mr. Disney’s statement about “the FOUR C’s” which reveal in his words, “the secrets of making dreams come true” for ANY man.

I ran across his quote last week and nearly fell over… here it is again. Worth a second view.

“Somehow I can’t believe that there are any heights that can’t be scaled by a man who knows the secrets of making dreams come true. This special secret, it seems to me, can be summarized in four Cs. They are curiosity, confidence, courage, and constancy, and the greatest of all is confidence. When you believe in a thing, believe in it all the way, implicitly and unquestionably.” – Walt Disney

You see, after I finally completed the manuscript for “The 3 C’s of Succcess” (that’s right, THREE C’s… not FOUR) just last July AND after years of research, study, teaching and writing of this formula/philosophy) I was utterly dumbfounded to have come across his quote.

Frankly, I wasn’t sure how I ought to respond to his quote. Does this suggest there are truly no original thoughts or ideas? Does this somehow make “The 3 C’s” invalid? Or, do Walt’s comments perhaps validate “The 3 C’s of Succcess” and its “blueprint” for success as Melvin Powers called it? Well, the uncanny similarity definitely forced the issue – I had to dig deeper.

TIME TO INVESTIGATE WALT’S FOUR C’s

Disney’s first C is CURIOSITY.
I can ONLY surmise by curiosity he MEANS or at the very least intended to mean CREATIVITY. Perhaps contained within curiosity? How can I be so bold as to presume that? Simple really. Has there EVER been a more creative soul then Walt? And, if Creativity is not in his remaining other 3 C’s (it isn’t) it must be here – in this one. Are you following this? Seriously, we’re comparing “Success Theory” here! If Walt is giving us, as he said, the secret to scale any mountain and realize any dream — he must mean curiosity equals, in some form, creativity since Disneyland is one of the purest forms of inspired CREATIVITY mankind has ever seen!

His second and third C’s; Courage and Confidence.
I ask you, my friend, are those both not CHARACTER traits? So, in the interest of economy and elegance could we not just agree to character as a second C? Simplicity in any formula ought to rein supreme. Perhaps he’s trying to be laser focused on just two specific character traits, you might suggest? Well, the challenge I have with that theory is what of the other REQUIRED character traits to realize true and enduring success? In fact, the very character traits Walt himself represented; tolerance and integrity to name just a couple. Do you think Walt wouldn’t tell you personally that those are also critical to scale any mountain or realize any dream? Can we really pull the other essential character traits out of any equation that equals success? I don’t think so. By identifying and labeling only two specific character traits, Walt is essentially excluding numerous others essential qualities and traits required for success. These are all detailed in “The 3 C’s” and truly can’t be overlooked. Again, I’d humbly suggest to you it’s easier and more eloquent to simplify the equation and, in this case, go broader with Character and therefore exclude none.

Walt’s fourth C, Constancy.
By constancy I believe we can safely surmise he means both the character trait of consistency as well as persistence. Additionally, it must follow that constancy implies a sort of completion and/or finality. In other words, by simply reverse engineering his marvelous creation, Disneyland – it undoubtedly required constancy of character as well as his ability to execute, to complete his vision, to finish the job. Yes, by pulling that ‘constancy’ thread a little further I would humbly suggest to you a perfect alignment with the final C within the 3 C formula – which is Completion! Since any project or job well done requires diligence and constancy to ultimately become complete.

Final thoughts…
In the final analysis I believe Walt’s quote is a fantastic sound bite and a wonderful outline to motivate and inspire any man to realize any dream. My guess is, it already has served that purpose. Having said that, and with all due respect, it is my guess also that he did not put years of effort into refining said outline or success philosophy. That is Just a guess. However, I want to be VERY clear, I am NOT questioning his success or his magnificent impact on humanity. See my legend comment – first paragraph! In fact, I’m not even questioning Walt’s philosophy. The fact is, upon further review, his 4 C’s align very well WITHIN the context of the 3 C’s.

Perhaps, what I am suggesting is that, having now just completed “The 3 C’s of SUCCCESS” I wish Walt and I could go throw a few beers and philosophize over our collective C’s. Of course, in my vision, he’d not only agree with The 3 C philosophy but he’d provide a wonderful testimonial for the book or write even write foreword. DARE TO DREAM.

Go ahead -give it to me! 4 C’s or 3 C’s? No C’s. Two B’s. 7 Z’s.
Talk2me.

Hopefully, I’ve not made you C sick.

All the best. Cheers!

~MWS

Share on Facebook

Tweet This Post

No related posts.