I get a lot of questions from clients, students and others about how to do various things. Sometimes these questions are about the technical details of how to do something, but often the question is about how they go about getting permission to publish a book, become a consultant, create a course, etc. They want to know what course they need to complete, what group they need to join or who needs to give them a title before they can do what they want to do. While that is necessary if you want to be a doctor, in the world of entrepreneurs you do not need a license to succeed.

When someone is waiting for permission it is often because they do not have confidence in their ability to do something. The way to get that confidence is not to look to someone else. The way to get confidence in your ability to do something is to do it.

In the corporate world there are people who hand out titles and job duties. As an entrepreneur, you are the one who decides what your title is (if any) and what responsibilities you have. Want to be a published author? Write a book and get it published. Want to be a professional speaker? Get to the front of the room and start talking. Want to be a consultant? Start lining up clients you can help. It’s up to you.

There are people and educational resources to help with the things you do not know how to do or that you do not want to do on your own. However, there is no one who can give you permission. No one but you.

Want to become a professional speaker? The first time I gave a talk I was nervous and not all that good at it. But I gave myself permission to be a speaker. I decided I could get better with practice, so I practiced. I spoke to many local community groups. I taught a class for a local university. I participated in professional associations where I led meetings. Not only did I become a better speaker, I KNEW I was a better speaker because I had the experience to back it up. And how did I get that experience? That’s right, boys and girls, I just did it.

If you are waiting for someone to give you permission to be successful you may be in for a long wait. Stop waiting for others to tell you that you can do something and just do it.

Success does not get handed to you on a platter. It requires hard work and perseverance. You also need a belief system that says not only that it is possible to achieve success beyond the wildest dreams of most people, but that you can achieve that level of success. That means having the mindset of a billionaire.

How do you think like a billionaire?

Learn how it is done: Study the lives of the rich and famous to see what you can learn from them. Read books by and about them, read interviews, learn about how they got started. Their stories are inspiring and you can learn from what worked and didn’t work for them. It is not only their successes that are inspiring. As you learn the whole story, you will discover the failures and missteps along the way. Success is rarely a straight line.

Internalize your goal: Instead of just saying you want to be rich and successful, you have to act the part. Have the confidence of someone who is already successful. You should act like a billionaire, talk like a billionaire, and think like a billionaire. (But you might want to hold off on spending like a billionaire until you actually have the money.)

Take action: Dreaming, planning and ‘acting as if’ are great practice, but to make it happen you need to take action. Forget the idea that “All things come to those who wait.” In fact, things come to those who hustle while they wait. You will never get there with only your dreams, however great they are. You need to make your move. Choose an action and take it. Do all that you have to do, to be able to get there, and do not ever stop pursuing your dream.

A lot of people dream of becoming a billionaire someday. There is nothing wrong with that. But if you want to be a billionaire, ask yourself what you are doing right now in order to realize your dream.

A sign hangs in the Club House of Bill Roper’s Princeton football squad:

“A team that won’t be beaten, can’t be beaten.”

You men who are putting your life behind Purina Checkerboard Chows just won’t be beaten—you can’t be beaten.

Hang up this motto.

One of the most memorable lines from the movie Apollo 13 is when flight director Gene Kranz announces that, “Failure is not an option.” Like many things in the movies, the line was written for the movie and did not come from real life. However, the attitude behind the line was definitely part of the culture of NASA’s Mission Control.

There is a quotation attributed to Henry Ford that goes something like, “Whether you believe you can do a thing or not, you are probably right.”

All three of these quotations have a common theme: Our belief systems play a big part in the results we achieve.

• If we truly believe we can not lose, we will win.
• If we believe failure is not an option, we will find a way to succeed.
• If we believe we can do something, we will approach it with confidence and will keep trying until we do it. If we do not believe we can do it, we probably will not even try.

It is easy to take a negative position–that something is too hard or there is some reason that we can not do it. It is so easy that we may not even realize we are doing it.

Strongly asserting our belief in ourselves and what we can do is harder. But it pays off.

Do you ever say things such as:
“I never do anything right.”
“I don’t know how to do that.”
“Well, I’ll try, but…”

The next time you catch yourself voicing one of these (or other) defeatist thoughts, stop right then and change your attitude. Look for the way to succeed instead of accepting failure as an option.

“Give some men a thousand years in the very center of the most fertile valley in all America and they would come out of this garden spot with a handful of worthless weeds and a spray of poison ivy.”
—The Silent Partner.

Many men buy expensive fishing tackle and appetizing bait, but they catch few fish. Many men carry much ammunition, but they get no birds. A salesman can go into a territory rich in possibilities and get little tonnage.

If you have some specific problem that you must solve this week, write it down on a blank sheet of paper. Then opposite it write down every possible “Know How” that will hasten its solution. Then set yourself the task of mastering each “Know How.”

Do you have the skills you need to reach your goals? Perhaps you could solve your problems and become more successful if you had better computer skills or you were a more effective public speaker or your writing was stronger.

Identify the skills you need, then make a plan to acquire them.

Marketing scares a lot of people. It is scary to pick up the phone and call someone, or approach them and ask for an order. What if they say no? Well, what if they say YES? You won’t know until you ask.

Or maybe you’re afraid to speak in public, attend a networking function, invest in advertising, write an article for your professional association newsletter, volunteer for a committee, or send a press release. Whatever scares you, promise yourself that you will try it if it is something that will benefit you and your business.

If you’re still thinking about starting a business, but scared to take that first step, take it now. Sign up for a class at your local Small Business Development Center, register the name of your business and get cards made, put up a website…whatever it takes to get started.

Then, keep scaring yourself. Take the chances that will lead to success. And let me know about it. Tell me how you took my challenge to scare yourself, and what you accomplished as a result.

Ditch goals and get the life you want

Each year millions of people fail to achieve their dreams. 97 per cent abandon their commitment towards self improvement within 30 days of their New Year’s resolutions and Harvard Business School say goals get in the way of success. All in all it leaves people discouraged, frustrated, unmotivated and feeling like failures.

Why do people continue to set themselves up for disappointment year after year? 

Because goal setting is hyped as the secret to success, yet international research indicates that accomplishment is rare, people seldom feel fulfilled or happier once they’ve achieved their goal and the process creates stress.

I believe goals definitely have their place; but on the whole, they’re not the best formula for success. Goals inhibit you by being too narrow, inflexible and taking the place of expanded thinking.

I have to say, I love validation, especially when it comes from Harvard Business School! A recent white paper supports my views as it states goal setting, “Can degrade employee performance, harm interpersonal relationships, corrode organizational culture, and motivate risky and unethical behaviors.  In many situations, the damaging effects of goal setting outweigh its benefits.”

I’m not surprised by the Harvard findings. I see very few people achieving their personal and business goals. They become discouraged; it erodes their confidence and affects their ability to persist.

So what am I suggesting to replace it? A ‘success without goal setting’ paradigm which overcomes the narrow focus of goals by opening the mind to an array of possibilities and successes. Here are four strategies I use with my clients that have made a positive difference and set them up for continued achievement.

Use your EPS not your GPS – A GPS, like goals, efficiently guides you from A to B, but you may be missing out on spectacular scenery and robbing yourself of excitement and adventure along the way. Alternatively, your EPS (emotional positioning system) offers a sense of direction and suggests you fearlessly follow your emotional guidance and explore the plethora of side streets and panorama.  Your EPS also has the added benefit of steering you towards discovering your life purpose. Don’t live a small life with goals, explore possibilities and live large.

Live for the moment not the morrow – Traditional goal setting focuses on present pain for future gain; “I’ll save money now so I can splurge on my holiday later” or “I’ll diet until Christmas so I can pig out at the parties”. In my new bestselling book Wake Up Live the Life You Love…Living in the Now, I highlight the importance of enjoying the present moment. You can even plan for the future in the present. Unhappiness occurs when you wish your life away by thinking, “I’ll be happy when…”  It’s also important to avoid getting stuck in the past by being overly nostalgic or having regrets.

Live by a ‘theme’ – The specifics in the often used SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, reasonable and time bound) goals can be limiting. Living by a life theme expands your focus to life’s possibilities and opens the mind to a range of opportunities and paths instead of a small, potentially limiting, niche. There’s greater potential in ‘spread my knowledge about quilt making’ (theme) as compared to ‘write a book about quilt making’ (goal). The former can include books, blogs, training, videos etc. and offers more opportunities to achieve.

Embrace the notion of ‘this or something better’ – Goals dictate an end result, the one you think is ‘best’. However, things don’t always go to plan when there’s something better around the corner. I remember desperately wanting a job and discovering I didn’t get it. A week later I got a better job at twice the pay! Failure is success in disguise.

So I encourage you to live courageously and achieve the life you want today.

If you want to discover more tips on Success without Goal Setting then listen to my recent interview on the Be, Do, Have approach by visiting – http://www.madisenharper.com/podcasts&videos.html#SuccessWithoutGoalSetting

Madisen Harper is an international author, inspirational speaker, life enrichment mentor and business consultant who believes life is meant to be fun and easy. Her latest bestselling book, Wake Up…Live the Life You Love – Living in the Now, was co-authored with success expert Brian Tracy, sales champion Tom Hopkins, Millionaire Mentor Gregory Scott Reid and The Secret’s business guru John Assaraf and spiritual leader Dr Michael Beckwith.  Mid-2010 sees the publication of 100% accountABLE™ a companion to her most successful keynote and workshop. Receive 100s of practical tips to create a more fulfilling  life by visiting http://www.MadisenHarper.com and subscribing to her FREE ‘Right Here, Right Now’ VIDEO newsletter.

Carrie said,

“There is no point at which you can say, ‘Well, I’m successful now. I might as well take a nap.’”

Lots of people think that if they can become successful they can simply sit around doing nothing after that. Well, it usually doesn’t work that way. Success may give you more freedom, but it often comes with more responsibility, too.

This quotation points out again how important it is to have work you love, work for which you have a passion. Are you doing what you love? If not, are you taking steps to create a business or career you can love? It is one of the best things you can do for yourself.

Here are five simple ways to remember names:

1. Whenever you hear a name, repeat it once—that helps fix it in your memory. Repeating the name also can confirm that you heard it correctly and that you have the correct pronunciation.
2. Use it two or three times in speaking to the person you were introduced to. People love hearing the sound of their own name, and using their name in conversation will make them feel valued.
3. Whenever you use the name, make a mental picture of the person, which further helps etch the name in your memory. Think of it as taking a mental snapshot of the person, and associate that image with the name.
4. Write down all the new names you have come in contact with during the day. Make note of the way they were dressed and the conversation you had. Visualize again what the person looked like. If you received business cards from the people you met, write the date and where you met on the card, along with any other notes of what you learned about them.
5. Review your list of names or the business cards you collected later, and recall the faces that go with the names. The better you are at visualizing the people you met, the easier it will be to connect a name to a face the next time you meet.

Try this “art of remembering” for one month. Use it for names. Use it for remembering things you want to learn. And you’ll find all names and all things simple and easy to remember.

The same principle applies to other areas of life and business, too. Is it time to clear out your email inbox, uncover your desk, or rethink your to-do list? Here are some steps that will help you to make a fresh start.

Concentrate on one area at a time. Avoid overwhelming yourself by trying to get control of your work, your home, your online life and everything else at once. Decide that today (or this week) you are going to take control of one aspect (e.g., your to-do list) and start there. Then move on to the next area.

Clear out the old. When email gets out of hand, some people simply declare “email bankruptcy,” delete everything in their inboxes, and start with new emails coming in. That seems a bit extreme, but there may be times when that is necessary. Likewise, if you are cleaning off your desk, you might start by sweeping everything into a box so you have a clear surface to work with, then organize into the space in a way that works.

Make a plan. What is most important? Set priorities based on what has the greatest value to you. That can mean monetary value, but it can also include personal satisfaction or other values. Make sure that those high-value priorities will get your attention and not be lost in the clutter.

Get help. If you aren’t sure how to go about it, get help by reading a book, taking a class or hiring an organizer or other professional to help you. The time and money you invest will be repaid with your increased productivity and reduced stress.

Do it. Just attack the problem areas head-on. Be ruthless. Throw out stuff (physical or virtual) that you do not need. Take those no longer relevant, never gonna do ‘em projects off your to-do list.

Stay on top of it. As new things come to you, deal with them right away. Don’t let unread magazines pile up because you are going to read them “later.” Read them or toss them. The rule about only touching things once may not work for everything, but it is an ideal to work toward.

Need some inspiration to get started? Every organizer I have ever spoken to says that they invariably find checks, cash and other valuables buried in piles of paper when they organize someone. Streamlining and de-cluttering will not only help you find things you have lost, they will keep you from missing opportunities in the future.

This week, try challenging yourself to do something uncomfortable. Seek a leadership position in your professional organization. Follow up on a sales lead you uncovered.

The first few times you do something new, it may not feel right to you. It might even be terrifying! Have you ever gone skiing? Your first trip down the Bunny Hill was probably a little scary, and you felt out of control. But when you survived, you did it again. And again. After a while, it was actually fun.

The problem is that too often we don’t try a second or third time (or even a first!) with marketing activities which seem difficult. I was terrified the first time I gave a speech. But I got up and did it anyway. You can, too.

I’ll confess that I chose to give my first speech in front of a roomful of people I was never going to see again, just in case I was really awful. Well, I wasn’t very good, but I wasn’t really awful, either. I lived to speak another day, and I got better. Now, I have given so many speeches, presentations, seminars, etc., that I don’t even get butterflies before getting up to talk to a crowd. Practice makes better, if not perfect.

Take small steps, and reward yourself for the attempt, even if your first attempts aren’t successful. Making ten calls is an accomplishment, even if you haven’t gotten any appointments yet. Reward yourself with a treat, then get back on the phones tomorrow.

Be realistic. Don’t expect that you will get an appointment every time you make a cold call. Don’t expect that your first press release will get you on the cover of Time Magazine. Each marketing activity plants seeds for successes. Some sprout and bear fruit quickly, but others will take time—weeks, months or even years.

Imagine the worst thing that could happen if you do what you fear. Will you be run out of town? Will your family disown you? Will your career or business lie in ruins? Chances are the worst possible result is that you won’t do as well as you’d like, and you might feel a little embarrassed. That’s not fun, but it’s not the end of the world.

Then, think of the good things that can happen. Imagine getting that appointment and making the sale. Imagine people calling, seemingly out of the blue, because they heard about you through the marketing “seeds” you planted. Imagine having the business and success that you’ve always wanted.

Now, go out there and get a little uncomfortable to help it along!