Tapping Your Potential In 2008by Barbara K Giamanco

Not a fan of making resolutions, I am a fan of setting authentic goals in order to achieve personal dreams and desires. It’s a tricky thing though…this business of setting goals. It is talked about a lot and most of us probably go through the process about as well as anyone else. So why aren’t more people achieving their goals and more excited and happy about their lives?

Wake Up From Your Coma Already!

A Gallup poll done about a year or so ago estimates that 70% of people are looking for other jobs. Seventy percent! They go on to say that about 51% of those folks are checked out with the other 19% completely disengaged from their work. Checked out is defined as employees that show up to work to collect the paycheck and don’t do much beyond the basics of what is required. Completely disengaged on the other hand simply means that these folks are so unhappy with where they are in life that they end up poisoning the efforts of those around them. They bring all their baggage and unhappiness into the workplace with them every single day.

If 70% of people on any given day are looking for another job…that’s…well, sad. It also means that you could be one of those people! Work is such a huge component of life and if you are miserable – get out. Frankly, it’s like walking through life in a coma. No matter what you might be telling yourself, you do have a choice, and you can make a change if you want too.

Here’s the success formula written and talked about by all the great success guru’s the world over. Most of these things you’ve either read about or heard about before, but as far as I’m concerned a refresher on several core principles of success is never a waste of time.

#1: It Is 100% Up To You

It starts with taking 100% responsibility for the results you currently see in your life! If you don’t like the results, look in the mirror. You own it. Like it or not, it all starts with you. And as much as some people thrive on blaming circumstances and other people for what’s not working, they alone are responsible. It is not the company, the spouse, the ineffective and mean spirited boss, the crazy driver, dysfunctional parents, your pets, problematic co-workers, lack of money, bad weather, a house that’s too small or anything else that you can conjure up. The responsibility for your life and what you make of it is solely up to you.

It’s a hard message to accept - for anyone! Even those of us who truly believe in law of attraction and the notion that we reap what we sow…it’s still hard to accept the fact that we have created whatever is showing up in our relationships, our career, our business or our home life that we are so unhappy about. Tough as it may be though, if you are really serious about making changes in your life, you cannot bypass this critical first step. Accept responsibility and move ahead!

#2: You’ve Got To Clearly Define What You Want

Once you get it…really embrace that success is an inside job, you’ve got to get clear about what you want! As Jack Canfield says in his book, The Success Principles, “You deserve to have everything in your life exactly the way you want it. If you are going to reown your power and get what you really want out of life, you will have to stop saying, “I don’t know; I don’t care; it doesn’t matter to me”.

It sounds pretty simple, doesn’t it? Clarifying what you want I mean. And in truth, it’s awfully darn hard for a lot of people. We’ve either been taught that we can’t have what we want, because it’s selfish to think we can, we are working off the “should list” of somebody else (like our parents), or we’ve convinced ourselves that our success comes at the expense of someone else achieving theirs. Nothing could be further from the truth. There is an unlimited supply of abundance and there is plenty for everyone. Get over it. Decide what YOU want – then go for it.

#3: Write Your Goals Down

Ok, so you have embraced the notion that you and you alone are responsible for the success of your life, and you’ve done a good job figuring out what you want. So what’s the problem? The main problem is that even after people decide they want, they usually don’t write it down. They figure it’s perfectly ok to carry goals around in their head, but that gives them about as much chance of achieving them as winning the lottery. Research has absolutely shown that to achieve your goals, you MUST write them down. More than that, you’ve got to review them on a daily basis. In this case, more is more. Reviewing your goals over and over again gives you a much greater likelihood of successfully achieving them.

#4: Believe

The Secret took the world by storm earlier this year and many people had changed lives as a result. As I watched the DVD and then subsequently read the book, one phrase stood out for me. You have to believe to receive. Getting clear about our intentions is one thing, but if we don’t believe – I mean really believe – that we can have what we want then we’ve just wasted our time. Setting goals will be irrelevant. Many of us subtly sabotage ourselves without realizing it, and even if we do realize it is happening, we find it difficult to change. Self sabotage is basically our way, on some level, of saying that we don’t believe we are worthy of what we are asking to receive. If you find yourself getting in your own way, it might be time to investigate further. Seek out guidance of someone you trust or perhaps seek out the assistance of a coach who can help you uncover and then discard the blocks that stand between you and success. To receive, you absolutely must believe! If you don’t, who will?

#5: Visualize Success

One of the best ways to truly learn to believe is to visualize having the success you envision for yourself. Research on how our brains work shows that your brain doesn’t really know the difference between you visualizing achieving your goals and it actually happening. It is common knowledge in the sports world that visualizing the play or the killer golf shot is what separates star performance from that of the rest of the pack. Visualizing the achievement of your goals over and over again makes it darn hard not to believe that you will get what you put your mind to.

Dream about what you want several times a day. If that’s tough to manage, at least commit yourself to beginning and ending your day visualizing your goals. If it’s that retreat on the lake you really want, get into the feel of what it is like to be there. Picture yourself starting your day sitting outside on the deck enjoying the quiet, cool morning air with your coffee and your book or whatever you like to relax with. As you look out over the water, watch the ducks glide across the calm, glassy exterior below. Really get into the feeling of living the experience. The key to the process is not just seeing the detailed picture in your mind; it’s also about stepping into the delicious feeling of being there. See it, feel it, receive it!

#6: Work With An Accountability Buddy

Ever wondered why programs like Weight Watchers work so well? It’s all about the support system. Being part of a group makes it so much easier to hold yourself accountable to achieving your weight loss goals. And there is just something about getting on a scale in front of others that makes the difference. Granted, no one sees the number on the scale, but it’s definitely clear if you lost or gained weight or maintained the status quo. The motivation to lose becomes powerful.

The same goes for other goals you set for yourself whether they are personal or professional. Think about what happens when you decide you want to exercise 3 times each week and ask a friend to join you. I don’t know about you, but for the most part I’ll pretty much do whatever I have to do to show up, because I’ve made the commitment to someone else. To achieve your goals, find someone you can trust and ask them to be your accountability buddy. Share your goals, in all of their vivid details, with your buddy. Then make a commitment to check in once a week to talk about what you have accomplished in terms of achieving them. When you get off track, you have someone you can count on to support you AND push you forward in the direction of your goals.

#7: Get Grateful

One of my all time favorite books is the Science of Getting Rich by Wallace Wattles. Written in 1910, it details the step by step process for achieving riches in our life. More than a book about money, it is a book that shows you how to have love, peace, joy and all the abundance you could ever want in your life. A core component of Wattles’ philosophy is that you must be grateful even BEFORE you’ve received the thing you seek. Incorporate gratitude into your visualization process. Be grateful for having what has not yet manifested in your life. The powerful feelings of gratitude are the lynchpin necessary to bring it all together.

And while you’re at it, take a moment to be grateful for everything that is currently in your life today. Even if you feel unfulfilled and miserable at your job, I challenge you to be grateful for something. How about the paycheck you receive? Take it from someone who is an entrepreneur with no guarantee of a paycheck ever…knowing that you have one coming is something to appreciate for sure. Remember no matter what – there is always something worth gratitude!

#8: Be Specific

Nothing kills achieving what we want faster than not being specific about WHEN we will achieve it. Sometimes I wonder if that’s just another sabotage mechanism. Working with clients, it is sometimes like pulling teeth to get them to commit to a goal that is both specific and measurable. It’s easier for most people to create goals that are nebulous and open ended. That way you aren’t really accountable if you miss it, are you? It’s easy to leave a lot of wiggle room.

If you want to lose weight, don’t say I’ll lose 30 lbs by June 30. That’s specific, but who’s to say what the starting point was? Consider instead…I will weigh 140 pounds at 5pm on June 15, 2008. When you step on the scale at 5pm on June 15, 2008 you will either weigh 140 or not. Now that’s specific!

Finally…

The magic of 2008 has now begun! Take time – right now to decide to tap your potential. Dig deep – figure out what you want. Set some time aside to clearly define 1-3 things you really want to see happen in your life. Not later. Now! Don’t worry about getting it perfectly, just get going!

Job sucks? Go after another one. Want a better relationship? Figure out what you need to do to make it work. Dream of owning a business? Do your homework; decide when you’ll take the leap. Whatever you do though, set some big goals for yourself. Stretch beyond what you’ve always done. Remember that it is so important not to concern yourself with the HOW, because all you will do is stop yourself before you ever get started.

Decide, make a choice, and in your heart of hearts commit to going after what you want and deserve to have. How it will all come together doesn’t really matter, and it’s none of your business at the moment anyway, because a funny thing happens when you really set your mind to something. The universe always provides!


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