Climb Outside Your Cage

birdie

My daughter has a little white Cockatiel named Birdie. He’s a cute little bird. Up until about a year ago he had free range and could go in and out of his cage as he pleased. But that all changed when we brought home a Siberian Husky who would really like to make a meal out of Birdie. And he wouldn’t care if that meal was breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Birdie spends most of the day inside his cage now, even though he’d prefer to be standing on the top peering out the window at all the free birds. But that’s just not safe for him to do that anymore with the dog in the house. Sometimes he climbs down to the bottom and paces hastily back and forth by the gate as if he’s begging for someone to let him out. Even if the dog is outside and we do open Birdie’s gate, he somtimes won’t let you pick him up or move beyond the entrance. Maybe it makes him feel safe to know all he has to do is jump backwards to safety.

It’s obvious that Birdie doesn’t mind his cage because he’s usually pretty content when he’s inside. When he’s had enough gazing out the window he graciously makes his way back inside to one of his perches to sleep, or eat.

But Why Do You Keep Returning To Your Cage?
When you go through life ‘playing it safe,’ life gets boring and mundane pretty fast. There’s just not much excitement in doing the same thing over and over… again and again… the same way. Too many people go through life just settling for what they’re given, and not going after what they truly want for their lives. And it’s usually for one of two reasons.

1. Fear – of failing, the unknown and/or of what other people will think. Everyday you risk failing at something whether you know it or not. And there’s no job security in this world anymore. Corporations are letting people go by the droves today, so you had better have a back up plan. And let me tell you something about your critics, they’re probably not thinking about you much anyway and it really doesn’t matter what they think if they are. If they criticize you for having the guts to go after your dreams it’s because they’re too afraid to go after theirs. It’s their pathetic way of making themselves feel better, even though on the inside they wish they had the courage to do what you’re doing.

2. The other reason people don’t step outside their ‘comfort zones’ is because they don’t believe they can be one of the successful ones. But in reality the ‘comfort zone’ isn’t really that comfortable and success doesn’t choose who’s successful or not… it’s people that choose to be successful or not. Because let’s face it, the CEO of a million dollar company and a homeless man on the streets both put their pants on one leg at a time.

Spread Your Wings… and Fly
The thing that keeps Birdie close to his cage, even when it’s open, is that his wings are clipped. If he could fly, I’m sure he would take the first chance presented to fly out the door and take full advantage or his new found FREEDOM!

You don’t have wings…

…but you can fly because you do have dreams and goals. It doesn’t matter how big they are, there’s something out there you want that you’re not going after. No matter what it is, all the resources are available to you. It may take some searching and some work, but everything is possible. And there’s help out there too.

I’m going to challenge you to reignite the fire. Find something you’re passionate about and go after it. No one is keeping you inside a cage but yourself. You’re free to do whatever you want, now go do it.

Success Is Like A Puzzle

Have you ever put a puzzle together? I know that’s kind of a crazy question because we’ve probably all put one of those little four piece puzzles together as a kid. But I’m talking about one of those 500 or 1000 piece monsters.

Tell me you’re not overwhelmed when you dump that box of pieces out on the table.

There’s definitely a challenge lying in front of you. But, you start taking the steps necessary to put that thing together. If you’re like me, the first thing you do is make sure all the pieces have the image side facing up. Then I try to find the four corners to start with. After that I put the border together and work at filling in the middle until the puzzle is complete.

Now I’m not a big puzzle guy, but I don’t mind the challenge now and then. When you finish one of those bad boys you really do feel a sense of accomplishment. Have you ever noticed how similar it is to creating a successful life? At least with a puzzle all the pieces are in a box and you just have to figure out what piece goes where. The life puzzle requires you to figure out what the next piece is and then find it. And it’s not always laying right there in front of you.

I knew a long time ago that I wanted my own business but I didn’t know what I wanted that business to be. Then I discovered network marketing. I had some mediocre success and then my business flattened out. I just couldn’t do the cold calls and walk the malls anymore because it was taking a lot of time and was very ineffective. So I decided to go into retail(the only reason anyone should ever do this is to learn about people). Six years was enough of that. After that I decided I was going to be a copywriter. I just didn’t realize how much I was going to be involved in marketing.

But it all makes sense now.

In order to be successful I was going to have to be using more than just one piece of the puzzle. Online marketing involves:

• Driving traffic to your site
• Generating leads
• Creating good quality content
• Having a product/service of value to offer your prospect
• Getting your prospects to take action

Needless to say it’s all a bit overwhelming. But don’t get me wrong, it can be done if you can figure it all out. The toughest part is who to trust to teach you because there’s a lot of “guru’s” out there today promising riches overnight for nothing. I suggest you run the other way from those guys.

I soon realized that I didn’t just want to be a freelance copywriter. This marketing stuff was getting interesting and network marketing was always in the back of my mind.

I had never quit taking the products and I knew people like Mike Dillard and Ann Sieg were very successful network marketers AND they built their empires online.

I had to figure out how they did this.

After signing up for their newsletters and doing some research I decided to join Ann’s Renegade team. I have to say it’s the best move I’ve ever made. The only thing I wished I had done differently was to have joined her team sooner. Everything I learned up to this point from multiple people I could’ve learned here. But that’s how life works sometimes.

No regrets.

Now I’m on the Renegade Team and charging forward. I literally have all the ‘pieces of the puzzle’ right in front of me to build a seven figure income.

If you’re like a lot of people I’m guessing you have your puzzle laying there in front of you with the pieces scattered everywhere. You know what you want it to look like when you’re done but you you’re overwhelmed and don’t even know where to start.

Start here by reading The Renegade Blog.

If you’re truly ready to put together a seven figure income producing puzzle this just may be what you’re looking for. I know it was for me.

Success Takes Teamwork

Erik Weihenmayer reached the summit of Mount Everest on May 25, 2001. And on August 8, 2008 he stood atop the summit of Carstensz Pyramid, the tallest peak in Austral-Asia. This is where Weihenmayer completed his quest of conquering and reaching the summit of the Seven Summits – the highest peak on every continent.

Good for Erik is something you might be saying if adventure or mountaineering isn’t your thing. If adventure and mountaineering is your thing though you’re probably a little jealous. This is an incredible feat in and of itself.

But Erik’s Different

The one thing that makes this story truly amazing is that Erik is blind and has been since the age of 13. Most people that set out to summit Mount Everest never make it to the top, and if they do it usually takes more than one attempt. It’s a grueling challenge that will test every ounce of perseverance you have in your body. There will probably be more times you feel like giving up than not. And the odds of dying while attempting to reach the summit are extremely high, even with good vision.

It’s obvious that that Erik isn’t climbing these mountains alone. That would be suicide. So just like everyone else that’s successful, Erik surrounds himself with a team that has the same goals. And that’s getting to the top. His guide has a bell hanging from him that helps Erik keep going in the right direction. Staying on the path and making sure he’s going in the right direction are key to Erik’s success. If he strays, even just a little bit, the consequences could be severe and even deadly.

Find A Good Team

If you’re going to be successful, at anything, the best thing you can do is surround yourself with a good team. You want people that have accomplished what you’re trying to accomplish and are genuinely concerned about your success. You want a team that’s going to do whatever it takes as long as you’re willing to do the work too. A team that’s going to help you stay on course and keep you from “walking off the edge” into the abyss.

Think about it for a minute. Every championship team has a coach and sometimes a super-star player or two. Someone with above average skills and drive. But they can’t win without the rest of the team. They know you have what it takes to help them reach the top, to become a champion. They’re willing to help you and all you have to do is listen and then do the work.

That’s what the Renegade Team is here for. They’re here for you. If you’ve had your ‘eye on the prize’ for awhile but been unclear about how to reach it, this team is for you. They have all the tools you need to be successful and the coaches(mentors) to help get you where it is you want to go.

If you’re ready to make 2012 your year, the year you walk away from your job and stake your claim, then you need to take a look at this right now. Discovery the lies you’ve been told about success in marketing and get on the right path.

The bells ringing, are you going to follow it to the top?

Is That All You Got?

Do you know what happened on October 30, 1974 in the Mai 20 Stadium in Kinshasa, Zaire?

The Heavyweight champion of the world, George Foreman, battled it out against former Heavyweight champion and challenger Muhammad Ali. Ali won by knocking out Foreman in the eighth round.

But that’s not when he really lost the fight.

You see, Ali was one of the few that could ‘walk-the-walk’ and ‘talk-the-talk’. That boy could back up just about everything that came out of his mouth. I say just about because he did lose a couple fights, but only a couple.

It was really over when the bell rang because Ali started calling Foreman out. Telling him to punch harder and tempting Foreman to hit him when he was on the ropes. These blows did very little other than start to wear Foreman down. Ali took great advantage of this and delivered several blows to Foreman’s face causing severe damage.

Then it happened.

In the fourth round Foreman was noticeably getting tired and worn out. But Ali was just getting started and landing a staggering combination. As the fight went on Ali kept saying to him, “they told me you could punch George.” And “they told me you could punch as hard as Joe Louis.” This was fueling the fire within Foreman and he finally landed a crushing body blow. But Ali had an answer, a strategy. When they were locked together right after that he whispered into Foreman’s ear, “is that all you got?” George told him it was and shortly after that Ali knocked him out.

See, at the time, Foreman was known to be the hardest hitting fighter in the ring, in the world for that matter. And after he delivered a bone crushing blow to Ali’s body and Ali asked him if that was all he had, he was demoralized. He didn’t have an answer. All he could think about was he just hit this guy with all he had and the response was taunting. That would be tough to overcome, but maybe it could’ve been done.

What if Foreman’s thinking would’ve gone to ‘I have an arsenal of those blows and they’re about to be unleashed all over you?’ Instead of thinking, ‘I just hit this guy as hard as I can and he’s taunting me… I might as well throw in the towel.’ Maybe it would’ve been a different outcome but we’ll never know.

How do you react to challenges, adversity?

Do you throw in the towel when it gets a little tough or do you dig down deeper and really give it ALL you’ve got. I honestly think we very rarely truly give ALL that we’ve got. But if you’re going to succeed you have to keep looking for answers. You need to truly make sure you’ve tried everything and are completely out of gas before you give in. And you have to learn to ignore the naysayers because once they get in your head it takes away from you focus, your goal.

I was about to give up on network marketing because I had tried everything, or so I thought. But I just couldn’t get it out of my mind. I KNEW if other people could be successful I could too. We both put our pants on one leg at a time. It’s just they were doing something different than I was once they got their pants on. They knew something I didn’t. They were doing something I wasn’t. So I kept looking and that’s when I discovered this.

Let me just tell you, it’s made a world of difference to me. This system will change how you do everything and really shed some light on how to build a business right. We’re working with credible, intelligent, people with character that want nothing more than to help you succeed. You could say they’re the people in your corner, like Ali and Foreman had. Maybe Ali had better people, who knows. I do know the right training makes all the difference.

So before you quit, before you ‘throw in the towel,’ take a look at this. It just might be the key ingredient you’re looking for to make the champion you really are.

Stay In The Hunt

It finally happened. The day he had been waiting for finally came.

For the last couple of years my son Jonathan has been wanting me to take him hunting but he just wasn’t old enough. And with hunting comes a few responsiblities. Safety being at the top of the list of course. Because when something goes wrong with a firearm, it usually goes really wrong.

So after going over the safety rules one last time and gathering all of our gear, we headed out to the country to find ourselves a pheasant. I could see the excitement beaming from him and I was praying inside that we’d get something. I hadn’t been pheasant hunting for quite a few years but I still remember where a couple of good spots were. At least they used to be good spots. Because after walking a few draws that almost always produced a bird or two we saw exactly zero pheasants. We saw exactly zero everything but we weren’t about ready to give up, especially Jonny. My only concern was the temperature was starting to drop and the sun was beginning to disappear.

There was still time to try one more spot so we made our way over to it and started the walk. I was on one side and he was on the other. I was carrying a shotgun too, but just for backup because I really wanted to see him get his first bird. I was probably more excited about it than he was. It’s always fun and rewarding to watch someone else succeed at something. As we were making our way up the draw I was getting nervous because there was nothing flying and it was cold. So the pheasants were going to run before they flew unless we practically stepped on them. Then all of a sudden about 10 feet from the end two of them flew up. I didn’t even take aim but I had a keen eye on Jonathan.

Bam! Bam!

And off into the sunset they went. Both shots were a miss but I looked over at him and his faced was filled with a smile. I could see the excitement from the adrenaline rush spilling out of him. “I almost got them dad”, is the first thing he said. “I know you did, I saw the wad drop right below the one on the left.”

It was too late and dark to keep hunting, but as we made our way back to the car we also made plans for our next hunting excursion. It’s only a matter of time before he gets his first bird and I know he’s not going to give up until he does. And when he gets his first one it’s only going to fill him with more passion to get the second one.

Never Give Up

It would’ve been easy for him to complain. He could’ve complained about all the walking we did, the cold weather outside, the time we wasted – and for nothing. But it wasn’t for nothing. The only thing he talked about was how close he came to getting at least one of those two pheasants we saw. And how excited he was to go hunting again.

Our adventure reminded me of a couple of pursuits I had quit in the past and wish I would’ve stuck with a little longer. But you can’t change the past, you can only learn from it. That’s one of the things I learned when I started studying success and one of the things I’m teaching others.

I was about ready to quit network marketing when I discovered Magnetic Sponsoring. And I’ll never forget exactly where I was when I earned my first affiliate commission from Building On A Budget. I was riding a tour bus through the Black Hills in South Dakota when I opened an e-mail that said, “you just earned a commission.” I was on vacation AND I was earning money online.

What’s not to like?

The only problem was I wasn’t sure how I attracted that prospect to MY sales page and it was quite awhile before I made another sale. But I knew I was on the right track. Then I discovered Ann Sieg. Ann opened up a whole new world to me. An entire new AND effective way to make online and network marketing work. The fire was relit. It was never really out, but it was burning dim because I was struggling trying to figure out this online marketing thing. Now I’m on my way to living my dreams.

When you find something you’re passionate about, finding a way to make it work is a lot easier. The passion turns up the determination dial. You’ll find a way. You’ll try again. If you’re on the hunt for network marketing success, but you’re just not finding prospects, then grab a copy of this, Blogging For Prospects.  Building your business online without it is kind of like hunting for pheasants without a gun.

No Risk, No Reward

Have you ever made yourself sick fretting about something? Did the anticipation almost make you blow chunks?

Is The Reward Worth The Risk?

A few weeks ago I found myself suspended 180 feet above the ground. I was just hanging there from two, what appeared to be very small cables, with my daughter on one side of me and her friend on the other. The crazy thing is I put myself in this position on purpose and I paid good, hard earned, cold cash to do so.

Why?

Because I wanted the adrenaline rush that comes from free falling 180 feet. I knew it would be an adrenalin pumping ride, but initially when my daughter asked me if I would do the rip-cord with her and her friend, I didn’t know if I had the guts to do it. In my younger days I wouldn’t have thought twice about it. If I could do something that involved speed or that would get my adrenaline pumping, I was ‘all in.’ One thing that settled my nerves a little was that the safety record for the rip-cord was 100%… no accidents had ever happened.

Focus On The Prize

Before I knew it our time had arrived. We were standing in the prep area getting fitted for our harnesses they attach the cable to. My nerves had calmed down and I was feeling pretty excited. But ever since we set our time to ‘fly,’ approximately 2 hours previous to this, my stomach was in (small)knots. Simply stated, I was just unsure about this whole adventure.

But I wanted to fly.

After we were fitted they took us out to the lift, hooked us up, and it was up… up… and away. In a matter of about 30 seconds we were hanging 180 feet above the ground waiting for the command to ‘pull the cord.’ And that’s when the fun started.
As soon as we pulled it we were diving towards the earth at more than 65 mph and the adrenaline was pumping. It’s a feeling you just can’t explain to the people that are standing there watching you fly by them smiling from ear to ear and letting out screams of fear and excitement.

Step Outside Your Comfort Zone

As you can imagine, there are more people watching than flying. I know not everyone is a thrill seeker, but the sad thing is that’s true with about everything in life.

I bet that most people you know aren’t living the life of their dreams. What’s even more sad is most of those people have forgotten what their dreams were. And if you challenge them to do something outside their ‘comfort zone’ they want nothing to do with it.

Life’s An Adventure

If you really want to experience life you’re going to have to push yourself. You’re going to have to ‘go for it.’ Being an observer and standing on the sidelines is never as fun or rewarding as ‘getting in the game.’

Never.

To live a fulfilling life you’re going to have to do the uncomfortable sometimes. You’re going to have to take some risks. But that’s where the thrill, the reward comes from. It happens even if you don’t succeed because you can look back and say “at least I tried.”

When I was thinking about flying on the rip cord I thought it was crazy. Other people thought I was crazy. Some people still think it was crazy. But guess what, I’m going down to Florida, and when I’m there I’m going to fly from a 300 foot rip cord.

So think about something you’ve been wanting to do, or try, or achieve… and forget about all the fear. Focus on the reward and ‘pull the cord.’ Either way, it’ll be a helluva ride.

Dana

The Easy Button

I was paging through the Sunday paper about a month ago and I came across an article promoting a FREE seminar by Richard St. John. He’s a successful businessman, photographer, marathoner, mountain climber and the author of the book, ‘The 8 Traits Successful People Have In Common; 8 To Be Great‘. This is what he was going to be talking about.

I decided to write it down in my calendar and commit to going and hearing what he had to say. I’ve read a lot of books on success, listened to hours of audio by Jim Rohn, Tony Robbins and many others. And I’ve also watched a number of videos by them and many more. But I still haven’t achieved the success I’m after so I figured their’s probably still something I could learn.

Richard opened the talk with a little humor and a condensed version of his life story. Then he went onto tell us about how this book came about from a simple question a young girl asked him on a flight he was sharing with her, “are you successful, a millionaire?” He answered “yes”, but when she asked how he became so he didn’t have a good answer for her.

The hunt was on

That’s when Richard decided to interview as many successful people as he could that would sit down with him. He interviewed musicians, artists, actors, businessmen, investors and nearly every walk of life you can imagine. After gathering all the information there was 8 traits they all had in common. And I’m going to tell you what the NUMBER ONE thing is that they ALL had in common.

PASSION

They had a passion for what they were doing. If you want to know what the other 7 are you’re going to have to buy the book. Trust me, it’s a great book.

But passion’s what gets you through when the struggles mount. Passion gets you through when the hours start adding up. Passion makes you almost blind to obstacles. Passion makes you try one more time. Of course this is only one of the traits, but without this one you won’t get very far. And with it the other 7 will all come together… eventually.

Success Is Easy

It is when you have passion. I believe passion is the easy button if there is one. Because none, not one of the people Richard interviewed said becoming successful was easy.

But they did say the work was easy because they were so passionate about what they were doing. Or it was easy to bounce back from bankruptcy because they were passionate about building their business. Even athletes that sustained bone crushing injuries were foaming at the mouth to get back in the game because they loved it so much.

But they had struggles just like the rest of us do. Even Richard came close to losing everything because he lost focus of his passion and started chasing the almighty dollar. When you chase your passion, the money comes automatically.

The thing I love about this book and his talk is that it made me realize even more so that successful people have all the struggles we do. They just kept going and didn’t let the struggles and obstacles stop them. They kept pushing their ‘easy button’ and stayed focused on their passion.

Success takes time. Probably more than you planned on it taking. And it takes work. No matter how many e-mails you read or infomercials you watch that promise ‘push-button’ riches, they just don’t exist. You have to find your hot button(your passion) and push it. And you may even have to work that job you hate for awhile while you’re getting your project off the ground. But you’ll find life a lot more fulfilling chasing after something you’re passionate about than you will going to a job you dread day after day… week after week… year after year… knowing it’ll never fulfill your dreams.

It’s up to you.

Find your passion and you’ll have found your button.

Stop Spittin and Sputterin On Your Journey to Success

There’s not too many things I look forward to more than a vacation to the ski slopes in Colorado. As I’m sitting here writing this, that pre-trip feeling of excitement is coming over me. My imagination already has me smelling that fresh, crisp mountain air. I can hear the sounds of my boots snapping into my bindings. And I can see the line I’m going to take from top to bottom as fast as I can. Then I’ll cap off the night with a soak in the hot tub while listening to the crackling of the fire. But there’s one trip we barely made.

It was getting late at night and we were burning up the asphalt in eastern Colorado.

Winter Park or bust.

I decided to give my gauges a glance and I noticed the needle on my fuel gauge was leaning towards the “E.” This wasn’t good. And as soon as I saw a gas station I pulled off the interstate to fill it up.

But they were closed and they didn’t have 24 hour pumps. Most gas stations didn’t.

So I got back on the interstate and pointed the car west again in search of an open gas station. I had a new goal, a short-term goal. But it was long before my car started spitting and sputtering with the fuel gauge buried on “E” now.

I pulled over on the shoulder of the road thinking this was the end of my journey, at least temporarily. But after a few spits here, and a few sputters there, I was back in the fast lane heading west again. This happened at least two more times where I pulled over on the shoulder thinking I was done. I was sure I was out of gas. And I don’t have any other explanation other than ‘The Man’ upstairs was watching out for me that night. Because when I did eventually end up running out of gas it was on the off-ramp and I coasted into a gas station.

After filling the tank up with gas and emptying my tank, I was on the road again. And in a few hours I was tucked in my condo resting up for a few days of downhill adrenaline and fun.

As I thought about this story, I realized it relates to life in many ways. Often times we struggle and spend a lot of time and money searching for what it is we’re looking for. We hunt for that specific thing that’s going to fuel our passion and fill that desire.

I knew what I needed… gas. And if I had been paying closer attention to the time and amount of fuel in my tank, I wouldn’t have found myself in that (close to)dire situation.

And this is how a lot of people go through life. They don’t pay attention to the fuel gauges or any gauges for that matter. You have to keep track and gauge your finances, health and relationships. Otherwise you’ll find yourself stuck in the middle of nowhere, alone, with empty pockets and deteriorating health.

And when you’re not sure what it is you’re looking for, you go in all different directions. You take ‘off-ramps’ that you have no idea where they go or if they have what you’re looking for. Often times people aren’t clear about what it is they’re looking for so they just take any ‘off-ramp’ to see where it does go. And if they follow it too far it can be tough to find your way back. It’s like a detour that never ends.

The good thing about my trip is I did have a couple friends with me and another car following me. I had my ‘team’, so if I did run out of gas it would’ve been more of an inconvenience than anything. But believe me, I’ve paid better attention since then and it hasn’t happened since. Well, maybe once. But that’s because I didn’t want to stop and wake up my family.

As you’re going through life doing anything, big or small, you have to pay attention to the details, to the gauges. You have to stop and refuel from time to time. Maybe even get a tune up.

I know I struggled to find my passion and a I’ve tried numerous ways to find a way to live my dreams. But then I found this and I knew it was all going to work out. If you’re still struggling or just looking for that extra little spark, this could be what you’re looking for. And if it’s not, don’t stop looking, just keep spittin and sputterin down the highway till do find what you’re looking for. Because you know what happens if you stop and give up.