“The truth is that most people are more comfortable with old problems than they are with new solutions.”
John Maxwell
Have you been comfortable for too long? Are you ready to make some changes in your life? If you are not where you want to be then you must. And you must do it now. Maybe you have not spent enough time on the phones for prospecting, maybe you have not been giving clients the best service, maybe you have been complaining and negative, maybe you thought you knew it all. Change is tough, but you must learn to fall in love with change.
Change is essential for growth, but change is never comfortable. In order to grow and become the kind of person that will lead a life that others may only dream of, to live a life that has potential to make the world a better place, we must reach deep inside of ourselves and change. We must find out what it is that will drive us and motivate us to become the kind of person that we know we can become. You will have to make decisions about your attitude, your work ethic, your focus, your energy, your integrity and your leadership that will shape the way that others look at you, and the way YOU look at you. How do you want to be perceived, as someone that can be counted on and trusted? Or someone that people should shy away from? What sort of life do you want to live? What sort of mark do you want to make?
When I was 24 years old I was working in a bar earning $2.17 an hour plus tips and I had just gotten my real estate license. I had no college degree, no real work experience, and a checkered past. Fortunately I was able to get connected with a great mentor and I decided that whatever that man said, I would do, because he was successful. It did not matter what it was, if he told me to do it, I did it. My first full year in real estate I sold 67 homes and that became the foundation of what has now been a very successful twelve year career in an industry I love. It was not easy though, and I think that we must understand that to live our best life we are going to have to put in some time. Success does not come cheap.
I wish I had video of that first year I was in real estate because you would see a man that put in lots of hours. In the business of sales if you want to succeed, do not fool yourself, you are going to have work, and work hard. You are going to have to get uncomfortable and change who you are and what you are doing. You are going to have to get on the phones, do open houses, and make connections like never before.
The biggest disconnect I have always seen in people is between what they want and what they are willing to sacrifice to get it. Most people are not willing to pay the price and change who they are to become the person they know they can be. It just simply seems too hard. So many people quit and they never reach their potential because they will simply refuse to CHANGE! Will you?
Here are 3 key areas to look at to help you deal with and accept change:
1. Your past: 3 questions to ask yourself
a. What has shaped you?
b. What drives you?
c. What will push you to persevere?
In order to understand why you will change and why you will want to change, it is important to look at your past, honestly. What is it in your life that has programmed you to be who you are right now? What are the factors that are motivating you and driving you to want to be your best. For me when I did this exercise it seemed very simple, I had watched my father lose everything including his life, and therefore I wanted security for my family and health. I had seen my father successful and I saw him fail and I liked the successful dad better than the one who wasn’t. I do not want to see my children have to deal with the things I had to deal with. I am driven to be the best leader I can be because when I was 18 my varsity football coach took the time after a heartbreaking loss to encourage me. It made a difference
What events in your past can you look at that have made you who you are and how will those past events drive you to deal with and accept change? Who made an impact on you? What in your past will drive you to persevere when things get tough? They will get tough.
2. Your present:
a. Where are you at now compared to where you thought you would be?
b. What are areas of concern that may be holding you back?
c. Why do you want to change?
If you take an honest look and assess where you are at now, it will help you to look at potential areas for growth. Did you think at this point in your life you would be earning more? Did you think you would be in a happier relationship? Did you think that you would be further along? Are you happy with your progress?
Maybe you are wondering why you are not making more money and blaming someone else. Be careful, make sure to turn the mirror back around and ask yourself, am I doing all that I can do? Most likely the answer is no. For us as humans to earn a higher wage, we must become more valuable. People are not going to give you a raise just because you have been around; you have to show that you are willing to go the extra mile. There may be habits in your life that are holding you back that you will need to break. This can be tough, but if you want something bad enough, you will do it. This is very personal but I will share it anyway. My wife and I got to a point once where we seriously considered breaking up, we could not get on the same wavelength and we were ready to call it quits, we had even found an apartment that one of us would go to. We realized though, at that point, we had not given enough effort to change. We wanted our marriage to work bad enough that we decided we would work together and CHANGE! Sometimes it takes a drastic situation to make you realize how badly you need to.
3. Your future:
a. Where do you see your life going?
b. How will you be able to reach your goals and dreams?
c. What can you do right now that will start pointing you in the direction of your vision?
d. Draw strength from your vision and realize it is going to take a lot of hard work.
Now here is the part that is exciting, it is about creating a vision that you are drawn to, and this is the greatest motivator for change. In order to accept change and use it to your advantage you need to have a vision of what you want your life to look like. So many people are so stuck in the day to day that they forget to cast a vision and look at a picture of what the future will be if they work hard for it. Take time out and start looking at your life in detail 5 years out. What does it look like if there are no limits? What are you doing, earning, saying, feeling? Get yourself involved in that vision and think of how it will feel to accomplish it.
Once you have the picture than you can start figuring out how you will reach those goals and dreams. You will start putting together the steps that you can take right now that will cause you to become that vision. You will draw strength and energy from that vision and the feeling of becoming all you can become!
Change, it is not easy, it is not comfortable, but it is necessary. What are you willing to change to live your best life? Being a person of excellence that people look to for inspiration and guidance is a noble task. You will feel better about yourself, you will have more confidence, less fear, less doubt when you start making changes in your life for the better.
You can do it, you will do it, I believe in you!
Have an amazing day!
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