Archive for the ‘Success’ Category

By Seamus Anthony

Yesterday, walking down our driveway, I came face to face to with a fox!

The fuzzy-tailed fellow paused for but a moment, shocked at my sudden appearance, before bolting across the road and through the garden of my neighbour. Thankfully there was no car coming, and he got away clean.

I got a good look at him, although not for long. I’d have liked to assure him I meant no harm so I could have checked him out for a minute and taken a photo for my daughter who would have been thrilled, but I guess it’s not in a fox’s nature to dilly-dally when it sees “a farmer”!

Unusual to see a fox in broad daylight; I had to wonder why he was up and about (I say “he” because he looked pretty big for a fox).

Partially inclined as I am to the woo-woo, I of course later looked up some keywords like “fox energy” and “fox power animal” to see what an appearance from one of our foxy brothers might be interpreted as.

By Seamus Anthony

Yes, it’s a cliche, but regardless, it is very important to realise that Life is all a game: if you play by the rules and play well, you score points and win prizes.

The other day I was emailing my partner to tell her I had deposited some money into our shared account. Being a freelancer the money income is irregular, and some weeks are better than others. As I sent the email this week I felt a little flush of triumph because it had been a good week and I’d paid us more than usual. Inwardly at least, I punched the air and did a little victory dance.

Then, suddenly I got a very strong “outsiders impression” (think “alien who has never been to earth or seen our way of life before”) as to how odd this whole money palaver is. Basically it is like a game in that we just need to score points to win prizes (things we can buy). If I don’t win enough points we can’t buy food. If we win enough points we can eat like Kings. If we really win enough points we can buy more than we can ever use, or *gasp* help other people who do not have enough points to get “ahead of the game”, as the saying goes.

Book review by Seamus Anthony

Recently an “Internet Acquaintance” of mine, Shann Vander Leek sent me her book, Life On Your Terms, and as I knew very little about her or her book, it was a pleasant surprise to discover that I really enjoyed it.

Actually, I didn’t just “really enjoy it” …

I flippin’ loved it!

Here’s the email I sent to Shann before I had even finished reading it:

Hi Shann,

I am dipping in and out of your book and each time it’s like an inspiration espresso!

Accordingly, the following is pretty turbo-charged but I assure you, written by one stone-cold sober musician.

Reading this book, both your words and your interviewees, I have made quantum leaps – especially in the areas of legacy, clarity and courage – and (very rare) was on the verge of tears just a moment ago due to several impactful moments in a short space of time as I flipped randomly through knockout chapter after knockout chapter, too buzzed to read for long without acting on my passion – right now.

… to find out go and watch Seamus.TV – episode 5

(it is about marketing music (or anything really) in the kooky new Internet world so don’t click if this doesn’t inherently interest you, and it is a video blog post too I should point out)

By Seamus Anthony

“Business is a good game, lots of competition and a minimum of rules. You keep score with money.” Bill Gates

The above quote moved me when I first read it because as a wanna-be entrepreneur of many years, I always struggled with bringing my ideas out and into the marketplace successfully – purely (I now know) because my definition of success was fuzzy.

You see, for me, money is not a great motivator. It is abstract and boring. You want to know what I think when I look at my bank account balance?

“Oh … some numbers … “

There are other currencies that I find way more exciting. For example – applause.

Sad, I know, but once you have stood on stage in front a crowd that’s wildly applauding and cheering what you just did – well, sorry to say, “some numbers” just doesn’t compare.

This is why I have always rolled my eyes when people say (about an aging, wealthy performer) “Oh he’s only in it for the money these days”. I bet that’s not the reason at all. Once you have a lot of money, it is pretty easy to stay rich by investing your money sensibly.

By Seamus Anthony

Do you suffer from a lack of self-confidence? Is so you should know that learning to meditate effectively can really help you to build your self-confidence levels up.

I recently started doing stand-up comedy as a hobby. Many people I know commented that I must have such strong levels of self-confidence to even consider such folly!

They are correct.

Despite my dubious comedic material, the reason I can go through with it (even though I still get very nervous before getting up on stage) is because I do actually have a lot of self-confidence and yes, a major reason I have this personality trait is due to meditation.

Allow me to explain.

How Meditation Helps You Become More Self-Confident

It is a sad fact of life that as we grow from childhood to adulthood, we invariably go through various degrees of emotional trauma. This is true even for those of us with relatively stable upbringings; think about how horrible kids at school were to you sometimes. This stuff all takes it toll on our developing minds and to protect ourselves from unwanted emotional pain, we build up defensive emotional walls.

By Seamus Anthony

Do you find yourself confused as to what your main direction in life is? Do you find yourself exploring This and then That and then berating yourself because you reckon you should have spent that time working on One Major Purpose instead of allowing yourself to get distracted?

Well, if so, RELAX!

Maybe you aren’t wasting time at all!

Maybe – just maybe – you are in the process of creating something amazing and highly original by combining different concepts and fields into One New Thing – a new category even!

READ

Can’t see how this applies to you and your disparate interests? Well, then maybe you need to explore this concept a bit more. Some good books to read are “Purple Cow” by Seth Godin, “Blue Ocean Strategy” by W. Kim and R. Mauborgne and “The Medici Effect” by Frans Johansson. All great books about the importance and methods of creating extraordinarily original offerings.

DRAW

Reading multiple “how to” blogs and books is a complete waste of time and here’s why…

The secret to success in life is simple. It goes like this:

1. Decide what the One Thing you really want to do is.
2. Work relentlessly at being great at doing it.
3. After you’ve been working at it for a while honestly appraise whether you are talented enough in this area to succeed (believe me, I have seen enough live music to know that sometimes hard work just ain’t enough to cover for complete lack of talent).
4. Keep working at it.
5. Get it out there (don’t hide under a bushel).
6. Don’t get distracted.
7. Keep working at it until you succeed.

This is the conclusion I have come to after years and years of digesting just about all the self-help and “how to” literature that one man should ever read.

Of course everybody’s journey is different and I am generalizing, but my point is that at the end of any self-help journey this is where you end up if you are actually going to go on and succeed.

“If you’ve got really smart people who are all focused on the same mission, then usually you can get some things done.”

Barack Obama

Have you read Think and Grow Rich and felt infuriated by Napoleon Hill’s “hidden secret” to success that he claims is in the book? I know I have. Well, look no further because here I am going to offer you two solutions to the problem, it’s just up to you to decide which you feel is correct.

For the uninitiated, Think and Grow Rich is pretty much the definitive work on applying your self to get what you want out of life (you can substitute “Rich” for any goal you want, be it “Lose Weight” or *ahem* “Get Laid”). And yes, with a title like that, it does sound like the kind of shit that any sane person would avoid at all costs, but then I am not sane and neither are most successful people.

First – Get Your Freebie

This book was researched and written over a period of twenty odd years and was first published waaaaay back in 1937, but don’t let the antique nature of the book put you off, it is easy to read and as punchy as the latest “thang” to hit the shelves. AND it’s in the public domain which means it is really easy to get it for free as an eBook and legally too … so whatever you do NEVER pay for an electronic copy of Think and Grow Rich.