Jim Rohn's Secrets to Goal Setting Mastery

Jim Rohn was one of America's foremost business philosophers and a master personal development coach. One of the greatest contributions Jim Rohn shared with the world is his SMART system; a proven method on how to effectively set and achieve goals.
 
SMART is an acronym that means Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, and Time-sensitive. The secret key to success in the new millennium is how you set and pursue goals and the application of the SMART system will not fail to deliver an abundant and fulfilling future

Here's a closer look at each of components of SMART:

Specific: A SMART goal is specific. Your goals should be specific and clear. Vagueness is a goal destroyer. Ambiguous goals produce ambiguous results. When you are specific, you harness the power of your dreams and set forces into action that compel and empower you to achieve your goals. There is no question about what you want to achieve. As you establish your priorities and manage your time, you are able to concentrate on your specific goal to achieve the results you expect.

Measurable:  A SMART goal is measurable. Jim Rohn suggests that you always set goals that provide you with a means of measuring your progress. They should be such that you know not only when you are progressing forward, but also how far you are progressing.  Measuring your progress keeps you on track. You cant arrive at a destination if your not able to determine where you were going.  Measurable goals also gives you a feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment by giving you a instant feedback of your forward progress.

Attainable:  A SMART goal is attainable. One of the biggest goal setting faux pas is to set goals that are so high they are unattainable. While I do believe that it is important for you to set big goals that cause your heart to soar with excitement, I also believe that it is imperative to make sure that you can attain those goals. So what does it mean to set a goal that is attainable?  An attainable goal is one that is both realistic but also attainable in a shorter period of time than what you have to work with. We will talk about realistic goals in the next component. Setting attainable goals doesn’t mean setting easy goals. Your goals should be set so they are just out of your reach; so they will challenge you to grow and stretch as you reach forward to achieve them.

Realistic: A SMART goal is realistic.  Your goals have to be something that you can reasonably make "real" or become a "reality" in your life. There are some goals that simply are not realistic. How then do you know your goals are realistic or not?  This to some degree up to each individual. To gauge if  your goal is realistic or not you need to extremely honest with yourself as you evaluate what you want to achieve and engage in your planning.  Here are some examples of unrealistic goals: trying to earn a billion dollars in one day, lose two hundred pounds in two days, get a law degree in one year, etc. 

Time:  A SMART goal has a time deadline. Each of your goals should have a time deadline attached to it.  Having a time deadline cuts off the thief of procrastination. Effective goals have an specific end time, a time in which you have set in order to achieve what it is that you want. Goal deadlines are great motivators because they move you into taking consistent and constructive action.

SMART: specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, time.

Get going.  Use the SMART system today.  Implementing Jim Rohn's SMART system in your goal setting routine will not only put you on the fast track toward achieving your success, but it will also help you to be encouraged and inspired as you achieve your heartfelt dreams and desires.



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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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5 Amazingly Simple Goal Setting Techniques

Goal setting techniques needn’t be a chore.  If you are passionate about changing the circumstances in your life and carving out a compelling an fulfilling lifestyle that you  have previously only dreamed about then its crucial to find the fastest and most direct route to get there.

Some years back as a newbie goal setter I came upon a goal setting system offered by personal development guru that was cumbersome, confusing, and in the end brought me to tears.  What I wanted was a few simple steps that I could apply in my life in an instant so that I can begin to to achieve immediate results.

What I discovered is that I didn’t need a fancy system or method for setting and achieving my heartfelt goals.  If you want a fast, simple, and more importantly effective goal setting method, all you need is a piece of paper and a written response to the five following goal setting steps:

1. Know exactly what you want.  Knowing what you want is like the key that starts the engine of your success mobile. Knowing what you want gives you clarity, direction and a purpose.
2. Write it down.  Writing your goal down on paper does several things but in a nutshell it lets your conscious and subconscious mind know that your serious. “Hey guys,” it says, “take a look at this! The boss wrote it down! This is important.”
3. Attach a reasonable deadline to your goal.  A goal set without a deadline is a dream.  Here is an example of how I attach deadlines to my goals that you may find helpful to you.  Before my written goal I write the following: “On or before date/month/year . . .”
4. Break your goal down into doable steps.  Personal development great Anthony Robbins calls this “chunking it down.”  I call this the “pizza pie” technique.  You cant (well at least I cant) sit down and eat a large, gooey, cheesy, pizza all in one bite.  You take it slice by slice.  Break your goal down into smaller steps.
5. Take effective action everyday.  This is where you take your broken down goal steps and go for it.  If you want to succeed in life you must take action and do what you need to do to get from where you are to where you want to be. 

Effective goal setting is an easy process and achievement of your goals begins when you follow the five simple techniques of goal setting presented above.  So go for it! Get your piece of paper out today, write down what you want, give it a deadline, break it up into steps, and go out there and make it happen!

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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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The Only Day That Matters

"Now is the only time. How we relate to it creates the future. In other words, if we’re going to be more cheerful in the future, it’s because of our aspiration and exertion to be cheerful in the present. What we do accumulates; the future is the result of what we do right now." ~ Pema Chodran

"Do not carry the burden of the past; do not live in the future. The only important thing is that one lives in the present authentically and fully. Whatever your current life is, be the most you can be by living in the moment." ~ Chan Chih

There are two days in every week, about which we should not worry, two days which should be kept free from fear and apprehension. One of these days is Yesterday with all its mistakes and cares, its faults and blunders, its aches and pains.

Yesterday has passed forever beyond our control. All the money in the world cannot bring back Yesterday. We cannot undo a single act we performed; we cannot erase a single word we said. Yesterday is gone forever.

The other day we should not worry about is Tomorrow with all its possible adversities, its burdens, its large promise and its poor performance; Tomorrow is also beyond our immediate control.

Tomorrow's sun will rise, either in splendor or behind a mask of clouds, but it will rise. Until it does, we have no stake in Tomorrow, for it is yet to be born.

This leaves only one day, Today. Any person can fight the battle of just one day. It is when you and I add the burdens of those two awful eternities Yesterday and Tomorrow that we break down.

It is not the experience of Today that drives a person mad, it is the remorse or bitterness of something which happened Yesterday and the dread of what Tomorrow may bring. Let us, therefore, live but one day at a time.

Author: Unknown

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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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The Incredible Power of a Smile

This morning I had the opportunity to recognize the incredible power of a smile. As I stood in line at the supermarket I had the opportunity to admire a rosy cheeked baby who seemed fixated on my face. I couldn’t help myself - I smiled at him, and he instantly smiled back causing me to feel those familiar, warm, fuzzies in my heart.

Smiles are powerful things, and very contagious. As the other people around me noticed the child smiling his incredible, toothless grin, they began to smile as well, setting off a chain reaction of smiles by passerby’s. The sad truth however is that few people become aware of this simple mood lifter, and even fewer; ever take the time to smile on purpose.

In my own life I believe that I have gleaned a lot of valuable wisdom from being in the trenches of life. I feel privileged and honored as it seems that my life has been enriched with loads of great and memorable experiences even though there were a few difficult circumstances to deal with along the way. As a Transformational Spirituality teacher I have the honor of getting to know and of associating with a lot of really fun and interesting people, and I have been able to enjoy numerous hours of pleasure engaging with them and making fun memories with each of them in the process. I am happily married, I love my children, and I am vibrant and healthy.

Yet, perhaps like you, there are days in my life when I allow myself to become bombarded with negatives and all I want to do is to hide myself away somewhere and have a good cry. It’s on those rare days that I gratefully recollect the wisdom that my dad always gave me as a child. When I was having an off day he would say to me, 'Dar, remember, whatever happens today, don't forget to smile, because nothing is ever as bad as it seems.'

I've found my dad's advice extremely helpful on countless occasions as I encountered some of life's curve balls. I remember one Friday morning when I was ten. I ditched elementary school because I felt as if my life was about to end. My pet rat Rosie died the night before and I felt like I couldn’t face the world.　The pain was so great that my ten year old heart thought that I was going to die.

However, I felt better about Rosie's death later that evening after my girlfriend Barbie invited me to spend the night at her house for a pajama party. We watched cartoons, played games, and smiled and laughed as we read elephant jokes to one another. The smiles and laughter eased my broken heart.

I also remember a time when I was in high school and feeling as if my life ceased to have meaning. I was interested in student government, ran for class secretary, and I lost. I felt like a complete failure, and the feeling of rejection literally crushed me inside. Dad told me to keep my head up and to remember to smile, and he assured me that my life would turn out just fine even though I was not nominated.

Smiles are incredibly powerful. Here are some ways you can use the power of a smile in your own life:

• Practice smiling at yourself. In my present life, having gleaned the secret power behind a smile, I honor myself and my father by facing every day with a smile. No matter what I may be going through, the minute I greet my face in the bathroom mirror I smile at myself. Practicing smiling at yourself will also do wonders for your self-esteem.
• Look for the humor in life. One of the biggest things that have allowed me to face each day with a giant smile on my face is my pet children. My "kids" help me to keep my sense of humor and my internal laughter meter at 110 percent smiles.　 Especially my curious cat, T-Bone. My pet kids are always doing hilarious things that keep me laughing throughout the day, causing me to keep a smile on my face no matter how harried my day may be. Look for the humor in your life on a daily basis. Throughout the years I have trained myself to look for what is funny in various situations in my life, and I have found that there are a variety of ways that you can look for the humor in life. As an example, watch funny television shows and movies, go to comedy clubs, or read funny anecdotes and jokes.
• Smile for no reason at all, and more importantly, smile often. A smile can change your emotional state in an instant! Remember the warm fuzzies I told you about when the baby smiled at me in the market?　 Medical science has found that smiling activates certain neurotransmitters and hormones such as serotonin, which is often referred to as the "feel good" hormone.

Find reasons to activate the power of a smile in your own life starting today, and remember those words a very wise man shared with me so many years ago -　 'whatever happens today, don't forget to smile. Nothing is ever as bad as it seems.'

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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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Highly Effective Strategies for Overcoming Procrastination

In this day and age we are so inundated with choice and opportunity that you might even say that we are spoiled for choice. There is just so much that we could do that we often end up not doing anything at all. Procrastination is one of the biggest dream killers. In a world where there is so much demand on your attention it is becoming ever more difficult to stay focused and act on the things that would truly give you an extraordinary quality of life. Time is, was and will always be your most valuable asset and the way you use it will determine what you create or fail to create with and for your life. Having an effective strategy for overcoming procrastination is critical if you truly want to push past short term obstacles to create a life of fulfillment.

The abundance that modern life offers us tends to overwhelm us which leads to an emotional overload that will distract you and scatter your effort and concentration. There simply isn't enough time to do everything, but there is always enough time for the most important things in your life. Success at anything in life, whether it be your finances, your relationships or your body, requires an investment of time and effort from you. You need to focus and concentrate your physical and emotional resources on creating a desired result.

The first step in overcoming procrastination it to get really clear on exactly what you want from every area of your life. This clarity will give you the power to look past distractions that may throw you off course. It gives you a direction and a target and will help to build a mental picture for your life. One of the most destructive effects of procrastination is that it makes you feel out of control; like the events of your life is controlling you. If you don't know what you want it is all too easy to jump from the one task to the next. Apart from knowing what you want you should also develop some strong reasons why you want it. This will give you a sense of purpose and motivation that is critical for staying focused long term.

The truth is that most people know what they need to do to create their life the way they want it. The challenge is not with knowing what to do, but in doing what you know. The only way you will create any result in your life is by taking action and procrastination is what prevents you from acting on the very things you know would give you a greater quality of life. The reason why people procrastinate is primarily because of fear, especially fear of failure. By not taking action and postponing important actions you avoid the potential for failing. The only reason why you procrastinate about anything is because at some level you link more pain to taking action than to not taking action. The ridiculous truth is that these "links" are mostly conjured up (by you) in your mind and they are not even real. When you make a task too big in your mind it will overwhelm you and it would seem too difficult and too big and you will end up procrastinating.

One of the most powerful strategies for overcoming procrastination is to learn how to break your tasks up into bite size pieces. Any task, no matter how big can be broken down into small manageable tasks that is easy to do. If you focus on climbing Mount Everest it will probably put you off immediately, but if you focus on climbing seven small mountain sections it becomes more believable. The power of chunking down your "big" tasks empowers you to take back control of any overwhelming situation – you cut it down to size. Your size.

One of the quickest ways to overcoming procrastination is to learn and utilize the power of immediacy. What can you do immediately? What action can you take right now that will move you closer to your goal? Doing something, no matter how small, will immediately break your mental pattern of procrastination and put you back in control. Taking the first step, even if it is small will create momentum and you will almost automatically be driven to take another step. Don't wait for everything to be perfect before you take the first step. Just do it. Just get it going. Often you will only know what to do next after taking that first step.

There are many strategies and skills you can use for overcoming procrastination. You don not have to be stuck or spinning your wheels. Like any skill you need to learn and practice it until you get good at it. Eventually it will become an automatic response and you will develop the habit of taking action despite your fears and apparent limitations.


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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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Earl Nightingale’s Fool Proof Daily Action Plan

Earl Nightingale was one of American’s most revered pioneers of personal development, and a true self-help legend. Since Earl’s passing March 25th, 1989, Nightingale-Conant continues to be among the elite companies in the world offering personal development and self-development courses and workshops.  One of the greatest contributions of Mr. Nightingale shared with the world in terms of power packed productivity are his tips on how to maximize your day to day productivity through a daily action plan. 

“We are at our very best, and we are happiest, when we are fully engaged in work we enjoy on the journey toward the goal we've established for ourselves. It gives meaning to our time off and comfort to our sleep. It makes everything else in life so wonderful, so worthwhile,” says Earl Nightingale.

Earl Nightingale’s ideas about setting and achieving goals are simple, practical, and of course effective.  Per Earl, the number one rule in terms of creating a fool proof daily action plan was always  ‘first things first’.  He passionately modeled the sage wisdom of St. Francis of Assisi with abundant and lasting results, “Start by doing what’s necessary; then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”

Earl Nightingale’s Fool Proof Action Plan consists of the following four steps:

1.  Before you go to bed at night, make a written list of those things you need to do the next day in order of importance. 
2.  The next day focus on item number one of your list until it is done, mark it off, and then go to the next item.
3.  Learn to minimize distractions.
4.  Whatever you don’t get done – put at the top of your list tomorrow.

In the words of Earl Nightingale, “All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination.”   Get into the success habit of not only creating a daily action plan but also dedicating yourself to complete each task on that plan to create not only compounding momentum towards achieving what it is that you want to achieve in life, but also lasting and compelling change in your life.
 

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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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Meditation: A Surefire Method to Find Inner Peace

How to find inner peace seems to be one of the biggest trends of the 21st century. Learning to seek out enlightenment and inner peace seems to be the buzz trend. People are buying up books everywhere and running from guru to teacher to try to find that inner peace they so desperately crave. So then, who really has inner peace and how did they find it? I dont know about you, but when I first began my quest for inner peace I felt a bit lost when it came to uncovering the Truth.

One surefire method for determining if you are on the right path on your way to discovering inner peace is to simply ask yourself the question, "Am I more at peace than I was a year ago or six months ago?" If you feel that you are finding more peacefulness as you progress on your path, then you know it must be working.

If you aren't sure if you have been more peaceful, or if you think that maybe it isn't working then I suggest that you learn to to sit still a little more each day. Sitting still each day, and closing your eyes as you sit, can be a great way to calm your mind and emotions so that peacefulness eventually becomes more normal for you. Here is a bit of wisdom for you to ponder on your path to peacefulness -inner peace only comes from one place and that's the inner part of you! If you find that you aren't feeling peaceful, it's time to look deeper within yourself.

Many times, when people decide to start a daily meditation program, they discover that their thoughts and emotions are running wild inside of them and they feel almost instantly discouraged. Common statements from beginners are "Am I doing it right?", "How should I sit?" and "Should I concentrate on my breathing?"

If you find yourself thinking the same thoughts, relax. There is no "right" way to sit still or "correct" thing to concentrate on when you meditate. You're goal is to simply sit still with your eyes closed and relax. Don't fall asleep but don't worry so much about whether it is "right" or "wrong". If you are sitting there with your eyes closed then it is right! That's all there is to it.

I think that, especially for beginning meditators, that the hard part comes when you start judging and analyzing all of the thoughs and emotions which arise. You then feel that this causes alot of frustration with what you are trying to do. But what are you trying to do? Nothing! So why then did you get so frustrated about nothing?

The main issue for novice meditators is that they think there is a special formula for meditation and a way of doing it that will make them an "expert". The truth is that there is no correct way of doing it and there is no set formula. Everything you do will be correct. Just sit there and, by doing it each day for a certain amount of time, this will eventually result in more calmness of your mental processes and an equilibrium of your emotions. The beginning, however, as you are teaching your mind and emotions to to not run rampant, can sometimes be the toughest time.

I like to think of it this way - did you ever try to teach a dog to sit still? You can usually teach him to sit but getting him to 'stay' is a bit tougher. This is oftent the same problem for people. People know how to sit but they never learn how to stay. If you can teach yourself to both sit and stay you will be among the very few people in the world who have learned a very valuable trick. For dogs, it takes some extra 'Scooby snacks' to get them to do it.

For human beings it sometimes requires a timer, a calendar and the fun game of checking off the days of the week as they complete their task of staying for 30 minutes or more. Some humans get to be experts at this trick and can sit still for over an hour and for several different times a day. These humans are sort of like the dogs you have seen on television who can perform in front of a panel of judges and can sit and stay for long periods of time. Their masters always love them a lot and they always win the contests they enter.

As funny as this comparison may seem, it actually applies quite well. If you learn to sit for longer periods of time without having to move around in your chair and without your mind doing cartwheels every moment, you will eventually start to win more things in life. The Master behind your thoughts and emotions will eventually come forward and reward you with a lot of great 'Scooby snacks'. Finding inner peace can be as easy as training a dog but you have to be a good dog who really wants to please his master. Now get out there and "sit" and, next time you do it, make sure and "stay" too!

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Copyright 2012, by Dardarji. All rights reserved. If you would like some additional information on self improvement, meditation, and spirituality go to http://www.transformationalspirituality.com/ to down load free ebooks, mp3's, and other resources. Like us on Facebook!

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