Your Mental Dream Board

While researching material for The Power of Consistency, I came across a quote from Steve Jobs, one of the founders of Apple, which has become one of the most successful companies in the history of commerce. A few years before he passed away, a reporter asked Jobs what he attributed his success to, and his answer was surprisingly simple: focus and simplicity.

In a world full of distractions and endless possibilities, it’s important to keep things simple and stay focused. But that’s easier said than done. One way to stay focused is to ask yourself what you really want to accomplish in your business and how that will benefit you. Keep asking yourself what the payoff will be each time you achieve a goal until you get to the core of what’s really driving you. This is important because there will be challenges and obstacles along the way, and knowing what truly motivates you will help you push through.

The Bigger Yes

Dr. Steven Covey, author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, used to say that if you’re going to achieve what you really want in life, you have to be willing to say no to some things in order to say yes to others. To say yes to what you really want, you must have a bigger “yes” inside you.

What’s the core motivation that’s really driving you? It may be a desire to improve aspects of your family, your finances, or your time. Discipline is your friend and distractions are the enemy, because we tend to say yes to the wrong things, the things that are simple and quick but not a part of our biggest goal. And the time and effort spent on those small things really do add up. How often do you ask yourself, “Where did the day go?” If you pay attention closely, you will notice these and become better equipped to say no at the right times.

Money is Rarely the Objective

I recently had a conversation with a young man who said he wanted to make a certain amount of money each year, but when I asked him what he would do with that money, it became clear that his real goal was to start a family. Money was certainly part of the formula, but it was not the destination. Money is mostly just smelly paper, and keeping it as your focus does not send chemicals through the brain the way that the thought of family does. Your lovely spouse, your newborn’s adorable toes, a safe and secure place to live — those are the images that make your hard work worth it. The steps to get your deepest desires are rarely short and easy, but the dream board in your mind will work wonders toward finding the pot at the end of the rainbow.

For me, what drives me more now than it did years ago is the desire for more free time to spend with my family. So, I’m working smarter now to achieve that goal. I have no choice but to work smarter, because getting to this point has taken decades, and I want more time, not more work done the same way. I must rethink and make difficult decisions if I’m to succeed. And I can only pinpoint my path with a Prosperity Plan.

It’s important to get clear on what you really want and to make sure your desired outcome is driving your behavior. Focus is critically important in achieving your goals, and getting clear, clean, and concise on what you want to accomplish in your business can help you stay focused and achieve success.