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  • Michael Leonard

    Michael loves to write about self-improvement, motivation, and teach people the habits to create a successful future. Find more of his work on his website.
21 Les Brown Quotes to Achieve More
Motivation

21 Les Brown Quotes to Achieve More

Les Brown is one of the most successful and well-known personal development speakers in the world. His Georgia Dome speech remains one of the most impressive and motivational speeches since Steve Jobs commencement speech. While his success is impressive, his life story makes it seem that achieving greatness would be impossible. Les Brown was born in an abandoned building with his twin brother Wesley in a low-income section of Miami known as Liberty City. His mother gave them both up after birth and was adopted by a 38-year-old woman who was a cafeteria attendant. At five years old he was labeled educable mentally retarded (EMR), held back a grade, and referred to as the "dumb twin" by his teachers. RELATED: Maya Angelou Quotes To Inspire Your LifeAfter a difficult 16 years, Les’ life changed when a high school teacher told him something that would alter the course of his life forever. He told the teacher, “Sorry I can’t do that. I’m educable mentally retarded.” The teacher got up from his desk and said, “Someone’s opinion of you does not have to become your reality.”While this moment changed his life, he still struggled both financially and professionally for years. But, with an unending desire to succeed Les Brown finally broke through when he was given a chance to go on air as a local DJ. Once the world heard his voice and his message his growth was exponential. Les went on to host his own TV show, serve in the Ohio House of Representatives, publish several books, and become a nationally recognized speaker.Having heard him speak live I can say his voice echoes the sound of hope and his story proves that anything is possible when you have passion to achieve your full potential.Here are 21 Les Brown quotes to help you find your inner greatness and live your dreams:It’s necessary that you align yourself with people and attract people into your business that are hungry. People that are unstoppable and unreasonable. It’s necessary to get the losers out of your life if you want to live your dreams.Help others achieve their dreams and you will achieve yours.You have to know within yourself that you can do this. You cannot expect to achieve new goals or move beyond your present circumstances unless you change.Forgive yourself for your faults and your mistakes and move on.As you reach your goals set new ones. That is how you grow and become a more powerful person.Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.When life knocks you down, try to land on your back. Because if you can look up, you can get up. Let your reason get you back up.Too many of us are not living our dreams because we are living our fears.No matter how bad it is or how bad it gets I am going to make it.You will win if you don’t quit.You need to make a commitment and once you make it then life will give you some answers.Review your goals twice every day in order to be focused on achieving them.If you take responsibility for yourself you will develop a hunger to accomplish your dreams.The easiest thing I ever did was earn a million dollars. The hardest thing I ever did, and it took years, was believing I was capable of earning a million dollars.Do what is easy and your life will be hard. Do what is hard and your life will become easy.When your why is big enough you will find your how.You gotta be hungry.The greatest revenge is massive success.You are the only real obstacle in your path to fulfilling it.You have greatness within you. You can do more than you can ever begin to imagine.Feeling inspired? Watch this video for more Les Brown wisdom: KEEP READING:13 Self Worth Quotes to Help Build Your Confidence & Self Esteem

5 Ways Personal Development Completely Changed My Life
Self-Development

5 Ways Personal Development Completely Changed My Life

Prior to 2016 I never read a personal development book, attended a seminar or tried things like meditation. Honestly, I thought it was all kind of hokey and felt like I was more than enough already. Well, I'm happy to say I was 100% wrong. It wasn't until I attended a one-day event in 2016 where I began to see the power of personal development. It hit me when I was a low point in life. I was tired of my routine, tired of my career, and feeling extremely unfulfilled. What's transpired since then has been something I never could have imagined from one single day with a few thousand strangers at a seminar. Here are five ways personal development has positively changed my life. 1. Model Successful People As the legendary Tony Robbins said, “Success leaves clues.” At the beginning of his career, over 40 years ago, Tony Robbins learned to model the habits of successful people. He realized to get a result, he talked to people who had been where he was and where he wanted to go. And it worked in all areas of life - fitness, business, relationships, and spirituality. Until learning this, I'd been doing it all wrong. I was always trying to find a unique way to lose weight or make more money. But after learning this lesson I simply found people doing what I wanted or where I want to be and modeled them. Sure, I made it my own but I took the fundamental from them to speed up my success. There's no need to reinvent the wheel! I started reading their books, hiring them or attending their events. Modeling has helped me speed up results and in turn shave off a lot of the pain and struggles that come with change. 2. Learn Like Your Life Depended on It Personal development content made me realize the most successful people in the world are always learning. Usually, the more successful people are learning the most. Warren Buffett is my favorite example. Despite being worth 80+ billion and being nearly 90 years old, he still reads five or more hours per day. I've taken this approach and made a conscious effort to learn something new every day. Each day I try and read a new book or article, listen to a podcast or watch an educational video on Youtube. It's easy to forget that learning is to the mind what exercise is to the body. 3. The Mornings Make or Break Your Day As Robin Sharma said, "If you win the morning, you win the day." Prior to diving into all this personal development content, I had zero morning routine. While I woke up relatively early compared to most, I instantly started using social media, checking email, and starting the day off reactive. Then I learned this is the worst way to start the day. Instead, I started a set of morning rituals that have changed my life. I adopted things like journaling, meditation, and affirmations to start the day positive and inspired. Instead of consuming I focus on creating and getting centered before heading out in the world. I can honestly say this habit has changed my life more than anything else on this list. Morning routines allow time for reading, exercise, mindfulness and so much more. 4. The Best Investment is Always An Investment In Yourself As Warren Buffett said, “The best investment you can make is in yourself.” My previous background was in finance so I always looked at things based on the return of investment. But if someone as legendary as Warren Buffett was saying the stock market wasn't his greatest investment I started rethinking it. After learning more about Warren, he has said his best investment was a public speaking course from Dale Carnegie early on his career. Warren was terrified of public speaking but knew he needed the skill to sell to his investors. He's said that without this investment in himself he wouldn't have become the incredibly successful investor he is today. So I started doing the same. Instead of pouring money into stock and bonds I pulled back and started investing in myself. From coaches, masterminds, and continued education. While you can't always see instant or a measurable ROI, I'm confident they are paying off and will continue to pay off for a long time! 5. Guard Your Inner Circle Closely Prior to diving into this content, I never heard common sayings like "You are the five people you surround yourself with" or "Your network is your net worth." But it's 100% true. After consuming all this content I realized I was hanging out with some losers and extremely toxic individuals. It wasn't until I was conscious of my choices of surrounding myself with certain people until I realized how much happier I was without them in my life. While it wasn't easy separating from some people, it was necessary. Plus, this gave me more time to find and attract people with like-minded ambitions. These individuals have helped me stay accountable to my goals and level up in every area of my life. Use these four personal development lessons to take your life to the next level. Your goals are closer than you realize. Study successful people and copy their habits to create success in your own life. And always remember, you are the best investment. Don’t skimp on your own development!

5 Toxic Habits to Give up If You Want to Be Successful
Skills

5 Toxic Habits to Give up If You Want to Be Successful

If you want more out of life, you don’t need to wait until next year to start making the necessary changes. I’m confident you can still create your best year yet, even with a few months left. But you’ll have to do the one thing our brains hate — change. Change is a necessary part of life. As best-selling author Robin Sharma said, “Change is hard at first, messy in the middle, and gorgeous at the end.” You must be willing to surrender what you are for what you can become. Change doesn’t always mean adding things to life, sometimes it means dropping things that are limiting your chances of being successful. Quit these five things and I promise your life will change for the better. 1. Quit Dwelling on Your Past Failures While you should always learn from your mistakes, don’t dwell on them and live in the past. Focusing too much on your past will rob you of the present and future. To change your focus, do a quick recap of the year thus far. This way you can learn from it and look ahead to the future. Ask yourself these questions (out loud) and write your answers in a journal: What worked in my life thus far? What could have I changed thus far? Why didn’t I? What held me back from reaching my goals? Once you have clarity in your past, you can learn and move forward. Without clarity, it’s easy to live the same day, week, and month until it's too late to change. 2. Quit Setting The Wrong Goals The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” — Lao Tzu In the same journal, create four goals for the next 90 days. Create an outcome goal for each of these areas: health, wealth, social self, and personal enrichment. As Craig Ballantyne said, “By setting just one goal for these four areas you remain laser-focused on what matters. If you set too many goals, you end up without any priorities at all. Too many ambitious people make that mistake.” Four goals are the perfect amount. It’s enough to reach all areas but not too many so that you can’t focus on achieving them all. These are known as your big picture, outcome goals. To achieve your outcome goals it's important to create smaller steps, known as process goals. This helps chunk your big goals into small, achievable, bite-sized pieces to work toward them on a daily basis. Here's a quick example: Outcome Goal: Lose 10 pounds in the next 90 days Process Goals: Have one green juice per day Run 12 miles per week Workout with weights 4x per week Write your goals down, review them each morning and night, and start working toward them to smash your goals. 3. Quit Being Around the Same People Are your best friends sabotaging your success? Are they challenging you and making you better or making it easy to settle for mediocrity in your life? Instead of being around the same people, doing the same things, mix it up. Start being around new people to create new experiences. You need to surround yourself with people who remind you more of your future — not of your past. If your inner circle is dragging you down, it’s time to audit your friends. If they aren’t helping you, they’re hurting you. It might finally be time to find some new, uplifting, and positive friends. The problem is that it isn’t always easy to find them. Unless you reverse engineer your chance of meeting like-minded people. How? Attending seminars and events on topics, and with people, that you want to be around. I challenge you to attend at least one new seminar or local event in 2018. Buy the ticket now to hold yourself accountable. The most successful people in the world are always growing and developing. 4. Quit Starting The Day Reactive If you still start your day hitting the snooze, rushing to work, and cursing the traffic for being late, that is 100% your fault. Become intentional with your mornings by being proactive, not reactive. Start the morning on your terms by getting up earlier and focusing on the #1 priority in your life -- yourself. Even if it’s waking up 10 minutes earlier, a morning routine can set your day up for success. Do one of these of these rituals for 10 minutes each morning before checking your email, texting or scrolling through social media. Write your goals down in a journal Meditate (Learn the 4-step guide on how to meditate) Read something inspiring Watch motivational videos You’ll start the day refreshed, energized, and ready to win the day. 5. Quit Relying on Willpower As the #1 writer on Medium, Benjamin Hardy, said in Willpower Doesn’t Work, "Willpower is a muscle, like any muscle it can be overworked and fail." Instead of relying on your willpower muscle, change your environment to make it easier to accomplish your goals. You are who you are because of your environment. If you want to change then change your environment, stop the willpower madness already. For example, if you want to start running each morning, lay out your shoes so you literally roll out of bed into them. If you want to quit eating that food that kills your diet, don’t have it in the house. In fact, don’t even bother going down that aisle in the store. Once you're clear on your goals (Step 2) it'll be easy to eliminate willpower. Start Creating a Better Life Today Don’t slog through the rest of the year and decide to wait until next year to start living the life you deserve. Drop these five toxic habits and become the ultimate version of yourself. You don’t need to wait until next week, next month or next year to start changing your life. Remember, improving isn’t always about adding to your life. Sometimes, it’s about dropping the things that are holding you back from success.

How Your Best Friends Can Sabotage Your Success
Friends

How Your Best Friends Can Sabotage Your Success

Be honest… Are your friends helping or hurting your overall success in life? Do they motivate and hold you accountable to achieving your goals or do they laugh and judge you whenever you try to make a new, positive change in your life? Every 5–6 years I seem to attract new groups of people into my life. I didn't realize why until I start investing in myself through endless amounts of personal development content. It seemed like every book, podcast, or seminar I attend said the same thing -- surround yourself with people who support, motivate, challenge and encourage you to achieve greatness. Finally, I realized that I should evaluate my friends to make sure I was constantly surrounding myself with winners. It’s easy to get stuck with where we are in life. One of the reasons we feel stuck is because we aren’t growing. As Tony Robbins said: “The secret to real happiness is progress. Progress equals happiness. And if we can make progress we feel alive inside.” How Your Inner Circle Helps You Progress Think of the last time you felt stuck in something. It could be your job, fitness routine or a relationship. You felt stuck because you weren't making progress. This can lead to settling in one area which can affect other areas of your life without even knowing it. The problem, often times, is that we get stuck in routines that don’t promote growth and development. This includes the people you spend the most time with. People become “set in their ways” as they get older and are less likely to change. RELATED: 5 Ways to Rise Above Negative People That is bad for you because often times it’s the people that are closest to you that are secretly dragging you down. It could be the friend who just can’t seem to get it together, the pessimistic co-worker who is always in a bad mood or the roommate who is always being a negative influence. Think about your own life, do you have friends who you feel are dragging you down? Do you have any that are negative, pessimistic or still doing the same thing year after year? If so, make it a point to start recognizing which friends are helping or hurting your dreams. In the most simple way, ask yourself, “Is this person helping or hurting my future?” Why Does It Matter? “You are the average of the five people you associate with most, so do not underestimate the effects of your pessimistic, unambitious, or disorganized friends. If someone isn’t making you strong they are making you weaker.” — Tim Ferriss As I’ve gotten older I’ve noticed so many friends become very stagnant and lose the ambition they used to have. They make excuses about working too long, having a family or just being too busy to keep striving for more in life. This can be toxic for your own success! Don’t allow yourself to be surrounded by people who are simply going through the motions of life without any real plan or purpose. Even if it's unintentional, as you try to grow and develop they might try to limit your ambition by projecting their own doubts and beliefs about themselves onto you. This is because they are scared that if you change they might not be a part of your life anymore. But if you're clear about what you want in life don't let someone with limiting beliefs hold you back from achieving your ultimate life. Ditch Some Friends to Earn More Money “Your network is your net worth.” — Jim Rohn If you and your friends are making $50,000 a year and want to be at $200,000, do you think it makes sense to ask them how to earn more money? Or would it make more sense to learn from people already at that level? The same goes for any area of your life. Want to be more fit? Hang out with people who have the discipline to wake up early and make health a top priority. Remember, success leaves clues! If you can’t seem to find these new people in real life don’t forget that your network doesn’t necessarily have to be five "real" people. It can be made of up of podcasters, authors, personal development speakers, and other people you want to align with. Listen to audiobooks, read their books, attend their seminars and use their message to help you grow. How to Do It Spend some time, sit down and evaluate the ten people you spend the most time with. Ask yourself, how they are helping or hurting your life goals? Start spending more time with the positive, uplifting friends and less time with others. Only after some time will you begin to notice all the positive changes. Your time is precious. Don’t spend one second with someone who thinks you are too ambitious, motivated or driven. The world is filled with people who want what you want. It’s up to you to seek them out and attract them into your life. Just because you have been hanging with the same person or group for ten years doesn’t mean you have to forever. You will undoubtedly get some backlash but don’t let it phase you. Stay strong, know what you’re trying to achieve, and surround yourself with people who will help you get there. Sometimes it will be hard but often times you will see in the long run how important it is to put yourself in a more uplifting environment.

You’re Probably NOT Doing the No. 1 Thing All Successful People Do
Skills

You’re Probably NOT Doing the No. 1 Thing All Successful People Do

Successful people don’t achieve greatness by accident. They all work tirelessly to accomplish amazing feats in their lives. And they have the habits to back them up. Some swear by meditation. Some love morning routines. And others use journals to help manifest their future. But the number one thing all successful people do isn’t a habit but a principle of success. The principle is echoed by some of the most successful people like Tony Robbins, Tom Bilyeu, and Jack Canfield. And that principle is the first of 67 in the best-seller, The Success Principles: How to Get from Where You Are to Where You Want to Be. The principle is simple: Take 100% responsibility for your life. You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself. -- Jim Rohn Why you have to take 100% responsibility You are 100% responsible for the quality of your life. If you give responsibility away to others, you’ll never be able to make the changes you need. If you don’t use this principle in your life then you are using the opposite one —you think anything that isn’t going right is not your fault. You aren’t rich because of the 2008 stock market collapse. You aren’t fit because it’s too hard to workout four or five times per week. You aren’t happy because your (insert significant other, kids, boss, etc) keep doing stuff you hate. These excuses are just not true. You aren’t rich because you overspend and don't save enough. You aren’t at your ideal weight because you don't prioritize exercise and healthy eating in your life. And you aren’t happy because you give your happiness away to other people in your life. This is a losing formula. You are at the mercy of everyone else around you. But it’s not entirely your fault. As Jack Canfield said in the Success Principles book, “Most of us have been conditioned to blame something outside of ourselves for the parts of our life we don’t like. We blame our parent, our bosses, our friends, our coworker, our spouse, the weather, the economy, the government, our astrological chart, our lack of money — anyone or anything we can pin the blame on.” The reason? We don’t want to look at the biggest problem in our lives — ourselves. Simply put, you have to take 100% responsibility for everything in your life. Not 80, 90 or even 99% — 100% responsibility. Give up excuses Excuses are easy. We all make them, all the time. But if you want to create an amazing life you have to give up excuses. Because with excuses comes the victim mentality. Once you become the victim, you are setting yourself up for failure. Everyone goes through tough times, events, and even periods of their lives. The most successful people in the world usually had the hardest times. Oprah Winfrey was sexually abused as a child. Tony Robbins was verbally, physically, and emotionally abused by his mother. Les Brown was given up for adoption with his twin brother after being born in an abandoned building and held back in school. But they didn’t let their horrendous circumstances shape their life. Instead, Oprah is a billionaire who has inspired millions around the world. Tony Robbins has used his pain to help end suffering for millions because he suffered a ton. Les Brown is a top motivational speaker and coach who has inspired people worldwide. They all could have used these tough times to create a story for their failure. They could have used these horrendous events as fuel to become a victim their entire lives. And no one would have judged them for it. Because as Tom Bilyeu said, “The thing with excuses, is that they’re true.” Start asking questions The next time something bad, depressing or unfortunate happens in your life you need to take 100% responsibility. Ask yourself the following questions: How did I create this event? What was I thinking in the past that got me here? What were my beliefs that set up this happening? How did I create this result? What do I need to do differently? How can I learn from this result? Asking these kinds of questions creates empowering answers which leads to positive results. As Tony Robbins said, “The quality of your life determined by the quality of your questions.” Instead of switching to a victim mentality, position yourself into a place of power. From this position, you can be on the offense by learning, adapting, and moving forward. You will have no more excuses holding you back from creating the life that you want. Start Taking 100% Responsibility “You can only control three things in your life — the thoughts you think, the images you visualize, and the actions you take (your behavior).” — Jack Canfield Start taking control of your life by controlling your thoughts, visualizing success, and taking massive action to achieve your goals. If you want a different result, you simply have to respond differently. You control your behavior. Your success is your personal responsibility. Final thoughts If you want to change your life you need to take responsibility for everything in it. Most people settle, blame others, and never put much pressure on themselves. Hence, they live an average, “normal” life. But not you. You can take action and control your outcomes. Start creating your ideal future by becoming the person who doesn't make excuses. You can only become the creator of your life once you take full responsibility for everything that happens in it.

The Surprisingly Common 'Addiction' That Is Probably Killing Your Ambition
Motivation

The Surprisingly Common 'Addiction' That Is Probably Killing Your Ambition

As you get older do you ever feel that the real world has killed your ambitions and dreams from your younger days? Last year I had a "30-Year-Old Life Crisis," quit my six-figure job, and changed everything in my life. I was tired of trading my dreams away for annual raises and bonuses. One day, bored at work, I had a life-changing epiphany. I had lost my X-factor, my drive. Let me explain… Looking back, I had an entrepreneurial edge from an early age. At 11 years old, I was burning CDs for my friends and selling them for $3-$5 at school (back in the Napster days). Are you proud Gary Vee? By the time I was 14, I was buying Lacoste t-shirts from China in bulk and selling them individually on eBay. By age 16, I was buying and selling golf clubs on eBay from garage sales and people who didn't know how to use the Internet yet. And in college I really hustled. I worked with a friend who was a nightclub promoter to run party bus and nightclub events. I made a few hundred bucks and got to party for free. Then, I graduated college, got a great job, and lost my hustle! How come? Where did my hustle and entrepreneurial skills go? I hadn't even realized I had lost my drive until I stumbled upon a quote from Nassim Nicholas Taleb (author of The Black Swan) who said, The three most harmful addictions are heroin, carbohydrates, and a monthly salary. The Comfort Zone of Death Yes, I had lost my hustle because I was beyond comfortable. I made good money, got raises annually, and forgot to set new goals each year. I was living in the comfort zone. As Neale Donald Walsch said, “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.” Every two weeks I had a good chunk of money direct deposited in my bank account and didn’t have a huge “need” to really hustle anymore. I was content with the money from one single source of income. Sound familiar? But after getting bored at work around the four-year mark and starting a personal finance blog, I realized that being fully dependent on my employer was a risky bet. I thought, "What if something happens to my job or the tech company I work for? How would I continue to live? Then I asked myself a tough question, "Am I settling for a career I never intended to, to a live a life that society told me to live?" The answer: 100% yes. I knew I needed to change so I began working on side projects and started getting my hustle back. If you're feeling too complacent and dependent on your monthly salary use these tips to start building momentum in your life. 1. Quit Settling It’s really hard not to settle once you are making good (or even decent) money at a job you don't hate. While a monthly salary might not be as addictive as heroin, I 100% agree that letting a salary control your life can kill your dreams. A monthly salary can kill your creativity, make you a zombie for eight hours a day, and leave you completely unfulfilled. I know so many people who are “stuck” in life because of their salary. They’ve created a life based around it and can’t leave unless they go somewhere with similar pay. Don't get me wrong, I am not hating on having a job. A job or career provides money, insurance benefits, and a lot of security for most people. But when was the last time you felt really challenged after being at a company for a few years? 2. Do You Work For Money, Passion or a Combination of Both? According to Forbes, 13% of workers are engaged by their jobs, 63% are not engaged, and 24% are actively disengaged (meaning they pretty much hate their jobs) The main point? Most people aren't engaged with the work that takes up 8-10 hours of their day. Which category are you in? In my previous life, it was all about money, money, money. I always thought if I made more money I would be happier, which was true, to a point. But one fear kept popping up over and over again when I pulled in to the office every morning. Luckily, this fear made me wake up and look at life differently. The fear was simple and I bet you've thought the same thing before: What if I ended up sitting at a desk doing something I didn’t care about for the rest of my life? What if I was too big of a coward to not go after my passions and dreams? That fear, or nightmare at times, was the reason I ultimately quit the corporate world for the unknown of professional golf and entrepreneurship. I was on track to make well over $100,000 but for the first time in my professional career but I made a choice to ignore the money. But as Tony Robbins said, Success without fulfillment is the ultimate failure. While my younger self would be appalled at walking away from that kind of money, I knew it was the only way to start creating a life I loved. 3. Explore Your Passions Before Making the Leap If you’re fulfilled, like going to work, enjoy your co-workers and have your finances in order, well, congrats. I am super happy for you. Very few people do what they love or even like what they are doing. While I'm not advocating quitting like I did, if you are feeling the fear, I recommend you start getting out of your comfort zone more frequently. Take advantage of your salary to spend time outside of work trying new ideas and heavily investing in yourself. Whether it’s starting a podcast, building an online store, creating a YouTube channel, or publishing your first book. If you have a consistent salary you can afford to spend money and take some risks. Once you decide what hustle, project, or investment in yourself you want to make I recommend setting a goal to stay consistent. Simply put, don’t let your day job kill your dreams. All of these new ideas will get you closer to finding work you actually love to do and probably increase your happiness dramatically. If you’ve noticed your hustle, entrepreneurial edge or whatever you call it has faded it might be time to evaluate what you are doing. Don’t keep accepting raises to stay at a job you don’t love. Life is too short to be miserable. Get comfortable in your own skin, make a plan, execute it, and make your life happen. Don’t chase the paper, chase your dreams!

4 Lessons from the Inspirational Story of Mega Star Terry Crews
Self-Improvement

4 Lessons from the Inspirational Story of Mega Star Terry Crews

Terry Crews is a massive success in Hollywood, literally and physically. Not only has he starred in top movies and TV shows, at 6'3" he is one of the fittest celebrities. From Brooklyn Nine-Nine to Old Spice, Crews is a huge star. It’s easy to see someone as confident and successful as Crews and think it all came easy for him; that he was born to become a star from the beginning. But that’s far from the truth. Like some of the most inspirational people in the world, Crews had to overcome insane obstacles to become the success he is today. His story echoes the sentiments of other greats like Oprah, Tony Robbins, and others who defied the odds and went on to achieve greatness. The inspirational story of Terry Crews Terry had a horrible childhood, where he suffered from constant mental and physical abuse from his father, who was an abusive alcoholic who terrorized their family. Terry spent his entire youth terrified of his dad and grew up in one of the worst circumstances a child can. But instead of using that story to define him, he used that suffering to focus on his physique and on football. After playing football in high school, he earned a full ride scholarship to play football at Interlochen Center for the Arts in Michigan. Upon graduating college he took his football skills to the next level and was drafted by the Rams in 1991. After five very unmemorable seasons and several teams as a glorified “tackle dummy,” he retired from professional football. With no other career or professional experience, he moved to L.A. to try his hand at an acting career. While he thought it would be an easy transition, he quickly realized his football background didn’t equal instant success in Hollywood. Eventually, things got so bad he found himself broke and sweeping floors just to make ends meet. After struggling for years, he finally got a few breaks. The first was in 2002, when he got cast for Friday After Next after working as security on the original movie. This casting led to more experience and Crews began landing roles in hits like Training Day and Street Kings. His work ethic and determination to succeed lead to even bigger roles in TV and movies. Ultimately, he did not let his past define his future. Here are four lessons you can learn from the mega star to help you succeed in your life. 1. Don’t let your past define you Terry Crews didn’t run from his past. He embraced his tough childhood and went on to become a massive success because of his past experiences. He didn’t let limiting beliefs from his past hold him back from achieving greatness. “How many young people believe the limiting things they’re told? That’s why we’ve got to define our circumstances for ourselves. I’m telling you, our sense of ourselves is all we have in this world," he said. If you’ve had a tough past, don’t let it become your life story. Use the past to help you become the person you were meant to be in life. While you might think it’s easier to keep telling yourself the same story, it's actually holding you back from achieving your life’s purpose. 2. It’s okay to start over Terry had to completely start over once football ended. It was out of desperation and finally realizing that he had to reinvent himself to make it in Hollywood. "The comedy of it is that if we hadn’t been starving, I would never have tried acting at all. That’s why I always say our struggle makes us who we are," he said. If you’re in a similar place in life, don’t be afraid to start over. Change doesn't always have to be a bad thing. Whether it’s moving to a new city, switching companies or starting your own business... Once you realize change isn't easy, you can begin to reinvent yourself. Oftentimes the goals you want to achieve will require you to become something more to make them happen. Don’t be afraid to start over, be afraid to never try. 3. Get out of your comfort zone Terry routinely leaves his comfort zone in acting and his business endeavors. He’s done serious movies, action-comedies like his work on the Expendables trilogy, and played a funny guy on TV in Brooklyn Nine-Nine. Not to mention his hilarious and wildly successful Old Spice commercials. In his business he’s even ventured into creating custom furniture. Yes, Terry Crews has his own furniture line. While Terry has no problem leaving his comfort zone, most people do. If you can learn to fight through fear of uncertainity and the fear of failure, you can do more than you thought possible. Get out of your comfort zone by hanging out with new people, creating new experiences, and challenge yourself to constantly be learning. Don't fear change, fear staying exactly the same. 4. Always take care of your health One of the main reasons Terry got his scholarship and the big break in Hollywood was because of his dedication to his physique. He used his past abuse to fuel his fire to become one of the fittest men in Hollywood. Now, going to the gym isn’t a choice, it’s a way of life. As Terry said, “I always tell people it’s the wrong approach to feel like we need to go to the gym to get in shape. Rather, we should adopt the attitude because we’re in shape, we must go to the gym.” Do you stay proactive to your health or reactive to sickness? Most people wait until something happens instead of being proactive with health. Health is wealth. If you want to become the best version of yourself you have to be in control of your health and wellbeing. Terry Crews continues to inspire people from all walks of life with his incredibly inspirational story. Remember, no matter where you are in your personal journey you have the ability to change your life at any given moment. Use these lessons to create your own Hollywood comeback story for your life.

I Quit My Six-Figure Job - Here Are 12 Lessons I Learned in 12 Months
Career Growth

I Quit My Six-Figure Job - Here Are 12 Lessons I Learned in 12 Months

A little over a year ago, I left the nine-to-five world. I was over it... the pointless meetings, living for the weekends, and spending 40 hours of my week unfulfilled. I knew there had to be more out there instead of just watching life go by year after year. I left a very comfortable $100,000+ "career" and chose to pursue my biggest dreams: building an online business to inspire millions to live their dreams and pursuing professional golf. While I was making money at a cool, young, tech company I was absolutely miserable and unfulfilled. This post isn’t a bash of the corporate world, it’s the story of me not wanting to end up with regrets later in life. It’s been the craziest, most eventful, exciting, and terrifying year ever. I’ve experienced more personal growth and development in the past 12 months than the past 29 years combined. Here are the 12 lessons I learned: 1. Success is NEVER overnight As Mark Cuban said, “It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. You only have to be right one time and then people can call you an overnight success.” I used to think entrepreneurship was like every Instagram ad I saw on my feed— laptop, beach, a briefcase of money, and a lavish life. Sure, all that is possible, but it’s far from happening overnight. Making money from nothing is 100 times more difficult than a nine-to-five job. But, it's also 100 times more rewarding than working on someone else’s dreams. 2. Freedom is better than money I used to base my success on my annual income. Now, I base my success on my freedom, daily happiness, and how much I’m learning on a regular basis. The short-term money sacrifice is WELL worth the freedom of being able to do whatever, whenever, with whoever I choose. I never want to go back to cubicles, meetings, and a repetitive daily schedule. 3. Money doesn’t equal happiness When I was in the nine-to-five, I had great money habits and started my entrepreneurial journey as a financial blogger. I practiced what I preached, saving 15-20%, investing, buying a home, being debt-free, etc. But anytime I had money left over I spent it on Amazon, going out, and other pointless things to fill the void in my life that my job brought. When I went from making $8–10K per month to making $0 I quickly realized I was wasting money. Even though I am made less money in the last year, I am so much happier. It’s true, money doesn’t equal happiness. 4. People probably won’t get your choices When I left my job, friends and family just didn’t understand why I was taking such a risk. They didn’t understand how I would actually make money online. Even if they do understand, they always say, “That seems like a lot of work.” I shake my head, laugh, and reply with “It’s no harder than sitting at a job I hated.” Not everyone will get understand my choices and that's okay as long as I'm living a life true to myself. 5. Busy doesn’t equal work Busy used to be my barometer for success and this turned out to be a huge hurdle to overcome. As Socrates said, “Beware the barrenness of a busy life.” I used to base morning success by clearing my inbox by 9 A.M. Now, I don’t even look at my inbox until after 2 P.M, maybe once or twice per week. The problem is that I went from employee to entrepreneur overnight. But the mindset shift took months to understand I shouldn’t focus on being busy but instead focus on being productive and efficient with my time. Switching from employee to owner made me realize that doing two to three important tasks is way better than 15 meaningless tasks. Here is a lesson from entrepreneur Tim Ferris: “Focus on being productive instead of busy.” 6. The dots won't always connect Steve Jobs said in his epic Stanford commencement speech, “You can’t connect the dots looking forward, only looking backward.” And he was right. I took a leap of faith by betting on myself. I saved money, studied how to make money online, and quit having zero money coming in. While I tried to connect the dots in the future before I quit, nothing is perfect. No plan works 100 percent perfectly when you start an entrepreneurial journey. But, that’s part of the fun. I realized sometimes you have to take the first step, like quitting my job, to understand there are endless opportunities outside a traditional path. 7. Social media is a drug I used to waste SO much time on social media while sitting at my desk. Now, I can barely get myself to log on for my business accounts. I began to understand that social media is dangerously addictive. Most millennials anxiously check their phones 150 times per day! It’s the modern-day version of what smoking was to our parent's generations. But social media also robs humans of personal interactions. Finally, I understand that social media is a colossal waste of time. I now limit myself to 10 minutes a day max. As cliche as it is, the less I use social media, the happier I am. 8. Happiness is a choice As I mentioned, my success and happiness used to be tied to my income. Each year was considered a success if I made more money, even if I hated my job. Sound familiar? After six months of only making a few thousand dollars (or less) each month, I was bummed. I felt stuck. I had no idea what I was doing. I was working harder than ever and making less than ever. Then I listened to a podcast from Quest co-founder Tom Bilyeu about how each person should define happiness. This idea clicked. Instantly, I started choosing to be happy because I associated learning with happiness, not income. Unsurprisingly, I’m learning and earning more than ever. 9. Health is wealth The corporate life crushed my health. My posture became hunched, I ate all the carb-loaded, free food in the kitchen, and blamed work for my lack of exercise. Since leaving, I’ve made health a top priority. After studying the habits of successful people religiously, I figured there is no point working to make tons of money only to feel terrible all the time. Health truly is wealth. 10. Investing in yourself is still the best investment As Warren Buffett said, “The greatest investment you can make is an investment in yourself.” Well, I’ve found out that the 88-year-old billionaire isn’t wrong. Prior to leaving the nine-to-five life, I had only invested in myself once for a one-day seminar that included the top motivational speaker and coach, Tony Robbins. Since then I’ve poured money into myself. Seminars, masterminds, online courses, and coaching has proven to be invaluable in my growth and development. If I could go back, I would have saved less money and used it to invest in myself. Because the more I learn, the more I earn and the more it compounds over time. 11. Meditation makes everything easier In the corporate world, I was constantly stressed. I would overreact to client emails, curse at people on the road, and get flustered over nothing. On my one-year journey of entrepreneurship and personal development, I started practicing meditation. The effects have been profound. Less stress, anxiety, worry, and being more present are just a few of the benefits I've experienced. I think every person can benefit from a daily mindfulness or meditation practice to calm themselves and stay focused in the frantic world of emails, calls, social, and texts. 12. Discipline equals freedom While I’ve always been disciplined, I’ve never been this dedicated to daily planning. Before I go to bed each night, I map out the next day minute by minute. From what time I’m waking up, how long my workouts will take, and how long each task will take for work. While it sounds too structured for many, this discipline creates the freedom in my life. This freedom could mean taking off on a Wednesday to play in a golf tournament or hang out with family when they are in town. I’ve found the more disciplined I become, the more goals I reach and the more productive I am. Remember, as Larry Winget said, “No one ever made a plan to be lazy, fat or stupid. That’s what happens when you don’t have a plan.” This post isn’t meant to tell you to quit your job. It’s meant to help you become aware of the choices you make in life. Don’t be afraid of being different than your friends and co-workers. Get off social media, invest in yourself, your health, and stay patient in the process of your own success. Remember, success isn’t about achieving results but who you can become in the process of pursuing your goals.

5 Ways to Create and Sustain Lasting Change In Your Life
Self-Development

5 Ways to Create and Sustain Lasting Change In Your Life

Have you ever wanted to change something, start to make progress but always find yourself failing to make it last long term?Maybe you want to change something right now -- your diet, income, morning routine -- and make it last but can't seem to make it happen.The problem is that most people give up too quickly. Just look at New Year's resolutions. Nearly 100% fail by February or sooner.But making real and lasting change is possible. Follow these five steps to start creating the life you want.1. Focus on progress, not results As Tony Robbins said, “The secret to real happiness is progress. Progress equals happiness.” Human beings need to grow in order to achieve real and lasting happiness. Even the most successful people in the world are still growing and reaching new heights. Success is a journey, not a destination. Whatever your goals are in your life, focus on making progress more important than actually achieving the goal. Even if it is a big goal that seems impossible, try to get a little better each day. Don’t be afraid to celebrate your mini victories along the way as well. You need to reward yourself for staying consistent and making progress toward your goals. The easiest way to keep making progress on a consistent basis is to stay in a “peak state.”2. Get into a peak state The state you are in determines how you move, feel, think, and react to any situation. For example, do you think you will set better goals if you are energetic, optimistic and motivated or if you’re sitting on the couch watching TV?When you are in a peak state you handle tough situations better, experience gratitude at higher levels, and find answers much faster than normal. Unfortunately, most people aren’t living in a peak state by not sleeping enough, exercising enough, and overworking. This can lead to some bad decisions, responding to situations poorly and overall a lower quality of life. Getting into a peak state is something you have to make a conscious effort to do every day. You need to set yourself up for success each day with an empowering morning routine. Here are some ways to jumpstart your daily rituals so you start each day in a peak state:Wake up earlier to have enough time to focus on yourself Learn how to meditate or practice quiet mindfulness Change your physiology (the way you move your body) by exercising Review your goalsPractice gratitude in a journal Read or watch something positive and inspiring The best part is that it doesn’t take a ton of time to get into a peak state. Even 5-10 minutes doing these activities can help drastically change your state each morning. 3. Review your goals If you want to create lasting change you have to focus on what you want on a regular basis. Goal setting is great but if you don't review your goals consistently it's easy to forget about them and focus on busy work instead of the stuff that moves the needle. As Les Brown said:“If you set goals and go after them with all the determination you can muster, your gifts will take you places that will amaze you.” Make sure to spend at least five minutes each day reviewing your goals. This could be visualizing them, talking about them with friends or writing them in a journal. Create the change in your mind before it actually happens to help make your dream turn into reality. 4. Raise your standards As Tony Robbins said: “Lasting change is different than a goal. You don’t always get your goals, but you always get your standards.” When you raise your standards and turn “should” into “must,” you are making an inner shift to take control over the quality of your life. Your identity and self-image ultimately control your reality.If you're not getting what you want, it's because you haven’t yet raised your standards.5. Create a vision and rituals Do you have a clear vision of what you are trying to achieve in your life?If so, are you working towards achieving that vision every single day?Successful people always have a vision of who they want to become and what they want to do in their lives. Their vision is their blueprint to follow in life. While you need to create a vision you also need the rituals to back it up. As Jordan Belfort said: “You can’t have a champagne vision and beer standards.”Not having rituals is the reason why so many people set resolutions that fail by February. Here's how you can change that: The 4-Step Process to Make Lasting Change Step 1: Find an area you want to change It could be personal, relationship, financial, career or anything else. Write it down and describe to yourself the area you want to improve. Make this statement as specific and clear as possible.Step 2: Write down your past rituals This step will require you to be brutally honest with yourself. It won’t be easy but it’s necessary to identify what hasn't worked so you don't revert back to old rituals. Remember, what's gotten you here won't get you to where you want to go.Step 3: Create an ultra-specific vision for your life What do you want? And why do you want to make this change? Will it help your family, your friends, your children, or yourself? There is no right answer but knowing “why” you are making these changes is essential to making it long-term. Step 4: Write down your new rituals for who you will need to become To see results in any area of life you have to change your small, daily rituals. As Jim Rohn said, “Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day.” Write out, in detail, what you will do each day, week, and month to help you reach your goals and turn your vision into reality. Put reminders around your house to help reinforce positive behaviors and begin to reprogram your new habits. Final thoughtsChange isn’t supposed to be easy. Your brain is meant to hate change as it might bring uncertainty, uncomfortable situations, and new circumstances that it views as a danger. It’s okay to feel these fears but you have to push through. Don’t fear change, learn to love it. Making change means you are growing, developing, and becoming a better, upgraded version of yourself. As Socrates said, “The secret of change is to focus all of your energy not on fighting the old, but on building the new.” Leave the past behind you and start making positive changes today.