Achieving Success: Top 7 Tips For Living A More Meaningful & Fulfilling Life

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A man who dares to waste one hour of time has not discovered the value of life~Charles Darwin

I believe it’s in our nature to want to please everyone we can, make them happy, help them. Make them proud of us. However, when we do this, our life often suffers. Our loved ones suffer. The time we are given suffers. Our work and sometimes our health suffers because of it. We need to stop pleasing everyone and start pleasing ourselves. Start living our own life. A more meaningful, fulfilling life that we can look back on and say, “I did my part for society, but I also lived a fulfilling life”. Often we get wrapped up in things that don’t matter. Time wasters if you will. As I sometimes call it, “time eaters”. Time eaters are people who have one agenda and one agenda only. Themselves. They could care less about your agenda.

There are only so many minutes and hours in a day. Before you know it, a week, a month, a year has past. You will look back and say, “what have I accomplished”, “where has all the time gone”. Before you know it, you’re sitting on a rocker at a ripe old age wondering, did I really live my life to the fullest. We don’t want to say “I didn’t live my life, others lived my life”.

I’m all for helping others and making a huge difference in others lives. Making an impact in other lives is a great feeling. Knowing that you have impacted someone for the better is an awesome feeling. Knowing that you gave back to society is a wonderful feeling. However, we only have one life to live. What’s it going to take for us to realize that we’re only on this beautiful earth for a short time. We don’t want to live with any regrets. When our time comes, we want to ask ourselves, did I make a difference, did I love passionately and did I live a fulfulling life. Our answer should be Yes to all of them.

Here are 7 Tips for living with NO regrets-Living YOUR Life:

1) Don’t Buy Happiness-If you believe money is the secret sauce to happiness, consider this: According to a University of Illinois study, the Forbes 400 (the wealthiest billionaires in America) and the Maasai tribes of East Africa (simple, pastoral herdsmen) exhibit the same levels of happiness, regardless of their monetary differences. In plain English: Money doesn’t buy happiness.

2) Get Together With Friends & Loved Ones Often-Could getting together and having fun save your life? Maybe so, when you consider that loneliness is a life-threatening condition that can raise your risk of heart disease and depression. It helps to have a close group of friends, but it’s also important to interact with people outside that circle. Every kind of positive interaction, from smiling at the waitress to chatting with a stranger can boost your mood.

3) Weekend Get Aways-Spare some time away for a weekend trip. This WILL boost your mood and productivity.

4) Make The Little Things Count-We are often on auto-pilot and don’t appreciate the small things in life. Hey, you woke up in a warm home, you have hot water, you have food in the fridge, you have someone that loves you. Stop for a moment and appreciate how blessed you truly are.

5) Pursue Your Passion-Do WHAT you LOVE. Stop living for others. Life’s too SHORT.

6) Forgive Yourself-Focus on the PRESENT, FUTURE,  NOT the past.

7) Live In The Moment-Be PRESENT in ALL you DO! Look that person in the eyes and pay attention to what they are saying. Stop looking around when someone is talking too you. Treat that person as if they were the only human being alive. Kneel down and kiss your child and tell them you love them more than life. Lay on the floor and play checkers with your best friend. Without being PRESENT you’ll lose out on 90% of your life.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Leading Authority on Peak Performance, Achieving Greater Success, Overcoming Adversity & Finding Your WHY Power, Speaker, Entrepreneur, Retired Cop and Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com for questions and Speaking Engagements.

Achieving Success: Top 6 Steps in Overcoming The Fear of Success

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Fears are nothing more than a state of mind. Napoleon Hill

 

The one quote that resonates with me that has changed my mindset in overcoming fear is, “Do the thing you fear & the death of fear is certain. We all have a fear of something. The majority of the population fears success. Why? I believe people fear success because it not only takes hard work, discipline, dedication and perseverance it also takes courage to overcome the 6 Fears of Success. Below are the 6 Fears that play an intrical part in NOT achieving great things. Follow the solutions, work on them, implement the strategies and encourage failure. You will fail along the way but know that failure is a stepping stone to your success. Once you conquer the 6 Fears of Success, your success is virtually guaranteed.

 

The Six Fears of Success and How to Overcome them.

Determine which Fear is holding you back and resolve to take it back.

1. Fear of Failure. This is the greatest of all fears. Fear of failure keeps people from trying new ventures. The fear that they may fail therefore choosing not to take risk.
Solution: Do your homework, however do not over analyze to where it causes paralyzes. Once you learn more about it, be decisive in your actions. It requires a reframe that failure is a normal stage in achievement.

2. Fear of Embarrassment. People who fear embarrassment have typically experienced a time in their childhood that was humiliating in which they filed the memory and said to themselves, “I will never feel that way again or put myself in that position.” Solution: Practice self-talk, self-affirmations. “I can do this, I can accomplish this, I can achieve this”, are a few examples.

3. Fear of Rejection. People who fear rejection have experienced the feeling therefore resulting in low self-esteem. Solution: Realize that rejection is about the other person. It’s about their own insecurities. Know that you are a great person and that rejection is a part of life. Do not let rejection stop you from achieving your dreams. It takes a healthy ego to know that rejection is a normal part of life.

4. Fear of Hurting Others. There is a saying, “If you fail to plan, your plan will fail.” Solution: People who fear hurting others need to plan so that they can continue to meet the needs of others and still pursue their dreams. Make sure the people in your life know how much your Goal(s) mean to you. Do your homework.

5. Fear of Success. Some people have low self-esteem for whatever reason and may fall into the category that they aren’t worthy of success. They fear how their life will be different if they succeed. They decide to stay in the same old place to avoid their own potential for greatness. Solution: Positive Self-Affirmations, Self-Talk can do wonders in reprogramming your thoughts and mindset.

6. Fear of The Unknown. I call these people the “half empties”. There glass is always half empty as opposed as half full. People who fear the unknown usually catastrophize and fear the worst instead of counting on the best. Solution: I am a true believer of what will be, will be. Things happen for a reason. Place your fears in the hands of a higher power and understand what is meant to be will be.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Real Estate Entrepreneur, Leading Authority on Achieving Greater Success and Overcoming Adversity, Retired Cop and Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com for questions and Speaking Engagements.

 

Achieving Success: The Top 3 Qualities That Are Essential For Your Success

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In order to be successful, these three words are paramount to your success. If you don’t live and breathe by these three words, your success is virtually impossible.

Here they are: Passion, Push, Perseverance

Passion:

Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you ~ Oprah Winfrey

My definition of Passion is the burning desire you have inside you to achieve more, be more and do more.  Whatever you are passionate about should keep you up at night. Whatever you are passionate about should be on your mind 24hrs a day, 7 days a week. Passion is wanting success just as bad as you need the air you breathe. This is Passion.

Push:

I always wanted to be the best I could be at whatever I did. I didn’t want to be the number one golfer in the world. I just wanted to be as good as I could be. I work hard, I push myself hard, and I probably even expect too much of myself ~ Greg Norman

You must push yourself to the breaking point when you want to achieve something. If you want something so bad you must be willing to run through a brick wall to get it, achieve it, accomplish it. Sounds crazy, huh. Well guess what, if you don’t feel this way then you are leaving it all on the table for someone else to grab. If you cheat yourself one time, this will carry over into everything you do in life. For example, if you are in the gym and you have a goal of doing 30 minutes of cardio and you quit after 20 minutes, you just cheated yourself. Cheating in the smallest task will carry over in to all you do in life. To push you need discipline. By cheating yourself, you are failing to create discipline in your life. In order to succeed in anything you do, you must have the discipline to push through the feeling of giving up. It takes 21 days to create or break a habit. Over the next 21 days, push yourself to the limit in everything you do and watch and see what happens in your life.

Perseverance:

Football is like life – it requires perseverance, self-denial, hard work, sacrifice, dedication and respect for authority~ Vince Lombardi

Perseverance is the steady persistence in a course of action, a purpose, a state, etc., especially in spite of difficulties, obstacles, or discouragement. You must possess the mentality that failure is no option. You must encourage failure. You must persist through failure because failure is guaranteed along your journey. Learn from it, embrace it and persist through it. If you lack perseverance you will never be successful. Did you know that Thomas Edison, the worlds greatest inventor failed over 10,000 times. Where would this world be had he quit?

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Businessman, Entrepreneur, Motivational/Transformational Speaker, Real Estate Expert, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post traumatic Stress Disorder) and the World’s Leading Authority on Overcoming Adversity and Achieving Success.

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com

To Your Success,

John

Tips For Achieving Success Faster Than You’ve Ever Thought Possible

What does it mean to you to be successful?

Don’t worry about society’s standards for success. Just consider how you would define success — for yourself. Based on your own definition, are you successful? Are you living up to your own values and ideals? Are you fulfilling your true potential? If you’re truly successful by your own definition, there shouldn’t be any doubt or hesitation. You could answer with an easy and obvious yes. Maybe other people would consider you successful. Maybe you’d like to think of yourself as successful. But do you really believe that about yourself? Do you feel you’re living up to YOUR potential? Are you doing your BEST? Before we can grow beyond this point, we have to admit the truth to ourselves first. It’s okay if it’s an unpleasant truth, but we still need to face it. Denying the truth WILL NOT help us grow. No truth, no growth, right? The truth is that most of us actually end up living pretty mediocre lives. We know we could be doing much better, but we constantly slack off. We distract ourselves. Most of us regret tomorrow before we’ve even lived it.

Barriers to Success

Success can be very rewarding, but it’s not an easy path to take. There are many obstacles and problems to confront along the way. Some of these problems are in fact getting worse.
Do you find it difficult to focus? You’re not alone. You may have noticed a major increase in distractions in your life within the last few years. There are more things clamoring for our attention than ever before. Another challenge is that we have more opportunities than ever before. We live in a time of rapid change, and change brings opportunity. From all of these possibilities, how do we pick something to focus on? How can we possibly feel confident that our decisions are correct? These challenges can be overwhelming at times. So quite often, we check out. We distract ourselves. We spin our wheels and run in circles. Life passes us by. And we wonder where all the time went. With each passing year, you may feel you’re slipping further and further behind, relative to where you’d hoped to be. There’s a gradual feeling of dread that builds over time… a sense of loss and regret — and maybe some guilt as well. If only you’d made better use of your time while you were younger… One year you have a job. The next year you’re trying to start a business. You don’t find the work very fulfilling, but it pays the bills. University students often have this problem as well. They switch majors like they’re changing their clothes. First it’s psychology, then a year later it’s engineering, then philosophy. What’s the point of paying for school if you’re not going to finish what you start?

The 3 Key Challenges of Success

Let’s clarify the 3 critical challenges of success — challenges that everyone must face if they wish to become very successful.
Here they are:
1. You need to figure out what to do with your life.
If you don’t decide what to do with your life, chances are you’ll end up working for someone who does. You can run your own life, or you can have someone run it for you. Most people end up having their lives ran by someone else. They spend most of their lives working to achieve someone else’s goals. Is that you?
2. You need to COMMIT to being successful.
You don’t need to commit yourself to any particular path forever, but you must at least stick with your projects long enough to make serious and meaningful progress.
You can’t keep starting and stopping. You can’t keep quitting. You can’t keep distracting yourself.
3. You need to get yourself to take action repeatedly.
If you want the results of success, you’d better get used to taking a lot of action. No action, no results.
Most people fail the first challenge miserably, so they never even make it to the second and third challenges because they give up. But even those that do have a clear idea of what they want to do rarely get very far with it. Suffice it to say that mediocrity is a LOT more common than success.
Why is that?

Because Success is hard, very hard.

I think you deserve to know the truth. It’s not that easy to succeed. It can be a serious struggle at times. Very successful people know this, and they know it well. At least in the short run, it’s easier to be mediocre. If you want the easy path, you’ll have to settle for mediocrity. Trying to succeed will only frustrate you. You’ll find it too difficult. If you aren’t fully committed to success, you’ll give up too soon. I’m not here to serve the people who are okay with mediocrity. I want achievers. Achievers are people who want to better themselves. They want to grow.
But here’s the good news: It’s definitely possible to improve. Success is both learnable and teachable. You don’t have to settle for a mediocre life. Yes, success is harder than mediocrity, but it’s not impossible. Great success is achievable if you commit yourself to it. You really could be doing better. You could be succeeding much faster than you are now — and in a much bigger way.

Having vs. Being

There’s a difference between having certain results and being an achiever. Try not to get too riled about about the having aspects. That isn’t a good place to root your self-esteem and self-worth. Money and possessions are nice, but they won’t fulfill you by themselves. When it comes to success, the being part is much more important. What does it mean to be successful? Success is a certain feeling you have about yourself. It’s a very positive, energetic, motivating feeling — a feeling of ambition, drive, determination, confidence, and forward momentum. You look in the mirror and feel happy and excited. You feel motivated to get going. You’re inspired to take action… lots of action. For many people, days like this are few and far between. Some people can barely recall a day when they felt inspired and motivated. That’s truly sad and disappointing. Conscious human beings can do better. When you’re at your best, life flows with passion and possibility. Your goals and projects are motivating and energizing. You take lots of action because you’re inspired to act. It wouldn’t feel as good to delay. When you end a successful day, it’s a great feeling. You barely want to go to bed because you’re enjoying such wonderful flow. When you do go to bed, you sleep restfully and peacefully. Real success is a state of being, not a collection of possessions or a number in a bank account. You can tell when you’re in the flow of success or not. If you’re not sure, then you’re not in the flow. Being in the flow is undeniable. When I’m in this successful flow state, the having part largely takes care of itself. When I do my best work, I create value for others. This can create an abundance of income for you, which makes it easy to pay your bills, meet your needs, and enjoy the experiences that make life worth living. Resolve today to commit yourself to be an achiever!

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Entrepreneur, Motivational Speaker, Retired Police Officer and Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com I would love to hear your feedback, thoughts, questions.