I usually limit my blogging to 3 days a week, but this morning I was so inspired by what I just finished reading I wanted to share it with you right away.

As I mentioned yesterday, I read between 4 and 6 books a week.  I recently completed a book called “Increasing Your Financial IQ - Get Richer By Getting Smarter” by Robert Kiyosaki.  In my opinion it is a must read for any resposible adult.

The excerpt from the book I read in an article this morning is what inspired me though.  I have adapted it here:

“Learning at an early age that we all have money problems - no matter how rich of how poor we are - is an important lesson.  Many believe that if they had a lot of money, their money problems would be over.  Little do they know, having lots of money just causes even more money problems.

The world is full of people who win millions and then end up deeply in debt just a few years later.

Money alone won’t solve your money problems.  That’s why giving poor peopl does not solve their money problems.

Hard work won’t solve money problems.  The world is fileld with hardworking people who have no money to show for it; hard working people who earn money yet grow deeper in debt needing to work even harder for even more money.

Education won’t solve money problems.  There are plenty fo highly educated poor people.

A job won’t solve money problems.  There are millions who earn just enough to survive but cannot afford to live happy and satisfied.  Many people with jobs can nto afford their own home, adequate healthcare, education, or even set aside enough money for retirement.

What CAN solve money problems is financial intelligence.  The truly financially wealthy take on financial problems and know that solving them will increase their financial IQ.”

I write a great deal about the personal and spiritual growth necessary to experience true and complete success. 

I know from personal experience that having lots of money does not, in and of itself, create the gratification and accomplishment of success.

As I describe in my free reports, “The Secret to Astonishing Entrepreneurial Success“, and “The Secret to an Abundant, Joy-Filled Retirement“, once you find you purpose, you must get into commited action to fulfill it and realize the successful and abundant life you desire.  

I also note in these reports that you will want to do a skills assessment and create an action plan to develop the skills necessary to maximize purposeful accomplishment of whatever you are truly and passionately commited to.

Developing your financial IQ is part of the action process. 

As I wrote about in my article yesterday, there is a champion within you. 

Let me encourage you to take on the Goliath of financial ignorance to accelerate your personal success.

Have an amazing day. 

Gratefully and Sincerely,

 Steve

“Your Success Champion”

PS - Please feel free to comment on this or any article.  I am always open to hearing what you want to know about.

PPS - I will be back on Friday with the next of the 4 Success Saboteurs.

Chris Cade, a frequent visitor to the Champion Success Blog reminded me of a fantastic book I read some time ago called “A Champion Lives Within“.

I rifled back through my library and found the copy that my uncle had given me years ago.  I re-read it and was reinvigorated and inspired to share it with you.

In it, author Boyd C Matheson shares the story of the five ‘principle’ stones that it took for David to slay Goliath.  After defeating Goliath, you may already know that David become a champion of everything he did amassing large sums of wealth and riches.  He was loved by everyone in the kingdom.

It is a wonderful reminder that we all can indeed live the limitless and successful life of a champion.

Matheson writes:

“…the Champion in David didn’t rest with just one victory.  He kept his stones close by and lived the principle that each one conveyed. David was not only a champion of the king’s army, but by using what he had learned, he became a champion teacher, a champion salesman, a champion builder, and more.  He was successful in each thing he did.”

Matheson reminds the young character in the story as I remind you:

“…you have been given all that you need to slay the Goliaths of this life and become a great champion.  Remember to review the message written in this booklet often, and always keep the five stones near you to remind you of the five key phrases that will assure success and happiness.”

The Five Key Phrases (stones) are:

“I Am Different From Everyone: 

I am unique.  No one in the world is like me.  I am proud of who I am and my unique qualities.  The world needs me to be me.  I don’t worry that I don’t have all the talents that others have.  I am different from every other of God’s creations and I am the only one who can perform the mission God sent me to do.  I am valuable because I am me.

I Am A Person Without Limitations:

I have the potential to accomplish anything I really put my mind to.  I am not afraid of failure.  I love a challenge.  I write down specific goals for myself.  I attach a goal line to each of my goals.  I visualize myself reaching each goal.

I Am Satisfied Only With My best Effort

I enjoy the feeling I get when I know I have given my all.  I understand that I do not have to be the victor in order to be a champion.  I always give my very best, that I may avoid the dark valleys of mediocrity and enjoy the bright sunshine on the peaks of success.

I Am Determined To Succeed

Never, never will I give up!  I continue to strive for success even when the road is hard.  I don’t let discouragement pull me off of my designed course.  I constantly hope, dream, struggle, and work with determination to become a champion.  I know that determination is worth far more than natural ability.

I Am A Champion

I believe in me.  I believe in who I am and in what I can become.  I don’t allow others to determine my view of myself.  I am a champion.  I think positvely and know that the champion that lives within me will emerge in greatness and glory.”

With these five stones of wisdom you can slay the giants (limiting beliefs) of mediocrity, discouragement, failure and all the other Goliaths that will attempt to destroy your destined success.

Lastly and perhaps most importantly Matheson reminds us:

“In order for you to succeed and be a champion of life, love must be at the center of all you do.  If you have not love for each of your fellow men, the five stones which you possess are worthless.  Love all and do nothing save it be with love.”

In a future post I will share 5 ways you can incorporate these powerful keys into your daily life.

Thank you for your visit today.

Sincerely and Gratefully,

Steve

www.championsuccess.com

PS - As always I look forward to your comments.

PPS - Visit Chris Cades web site: http://www.spiritual-short-stories.com/index.html.  He has volumes of terrific stuff there, all of which equip you to live a champion’s life.

If you have ever attended persional development seminars hosted by masters like Jim Rohn, Zig Ziglar, or Tony Robbins, there is no doubt you have heard the saying:

“You must work on yourself more than you do your business.”

I can almost hear you nodding your head in recognition.  Bet let me ask you; what does this really mean?

What you actually DO to accomplish this?

This is what I mean:

A knowledge worker is, in brief, someone who works with his mind.  His work environment is either an office or home office.  His work consists of the application of knowledge skills in the production of output that contributes to the growth of a business of some sort.

The average knowledge worker works between 8 and 10 hours a day.  He typically rises at 6, completes a morning routine of some sort, showering, shaving, grabbing a bowl of cereal and/or coffee and gets to work at about 8.  He works throughout the morning on various projects attending meetings and the like, takes a break in the morning, lunch mid day, a break in the afternoon, and quits for the day some time between 5 and 7 in the evening.  He commutes home, greats the wife and kids, has a little dinner, watches a few sitcom reruns and hits the sack between 10 and 12.

Generally speaking this works out ok for the knowledge worker.  He gets his work assignments from his manager, does what needs to be done to keep his job, gets his pay-check and lives happily ever after, or not.

Unlike the seasoned entrepreneurial success, upstart entrepreneurs often model their days from this circa 1960’s model of business.  They may make one exception.  They may work longer hours.  More like 12 to 16 a day instead of 8 to 10.  And they typically do it because they think they have to.

If you fall into either of these catagories and can even remotely identify with this description then let me ask you:

If you accept the adage above about working more on yourself than on your business, and if your schedule is similar to what I described, then where is the time required to work on yourself ?

I mean, how do you work more on yourself if you never take time to do it?

Often times, as I work with new coaching clients and begin to encourage the use of daily personal development disciplines like meditation, visualization, or journaling, I hear, “I don’t have time to do that.”

What would you say if I told you that you should invest a minimum of 4 hours a day developing yourself?

This is what I know to be true.  You do not have time NOT to develop yourself.

If you invest the majority of primary energy in developing yourself, you will automatically live a more abundant and successful life.

You will be healthier.

You will be happier.

You will be well rested and alert.

You will be stress-free.

You will be more productive.

You will be more accomplished

You will be more present.

You will be more accepting and loving of others.

You will live more abundantly.

You will be the person you dream of being.

You do the things that person dreams of doing.

You will have the things that person dreams of having.

It is not an exhageration to say that your success begins  and ends with YOU.

I wish you success beyond measure and peace beyond all understanding.

Steve

www.championsuccess.com

PS - In my next few posts I will expand on this idea of daily disciplines for success.  I would enjoy hearing yours.  Please share them by commenting on this post and then check back on Tuesday for my Monday post.

Many of you know I am a great admirer of Tim Ferris’ book “The 4-Hour Work Week“.  It had a profound impact on my views of living successfully as an entrepreneur.

If you have not read it, you should do so immediately.  “The 4-Hour Work Week”

While browsing about Tim’s blog site this evening I stumbled upon a great interview with Michael Gerber.  Years ago a friend of mine recommended Michael Gerber’s book, “The E-Myth Revisted“. 

It was the first of a long line of books I devoured on the topic of creating entrepreneurial success.  The “insights in this book have given thousands of entrepreneurs new control over their businesses” - Success Magazine

In his most recent book, “Awakening the Entrepreneur Within” Michael Gerber “examines how to recalibrate the scale of objectives and other facets of the core entrepreneurial experience.”  This is the context of the interview with Tim. 

There is really no point in me trying to sumerize the interview here.  You should go read it for yourself.  It is great.

Click here to read: “Escaping the Entrepreneurial Seizure: Interview with Michael Gerber“.

I particularly liked what Tim says is the advice Michael gave him:

“Don’t hedge and don’t think small.  I didn’t hold back material for a sequel, I aimed for the top of the top, and I credit Michael’s advice as, in part, responsible for the subsequent success of the 4HWW.  It was that recalibration of ambition that made it all possible” Tim Ferris.

So why is this on my blog?

Here’s why:

While Tim takes the principles of successful entrepreneurship to entirely new levels, the basic premise of Tim’s outrageous success is really pretty simple.

By following a few simple, yet key entrepreneurial success practices, he gets to do what he loves to do, while allowing others to contribute to his success by doing what they love to do.   He does not “go it alone”.   

He not only finds and engages great avenues to outsource those tasks and activities he does not enjoy doing, but surrounds himself with great coaches and mentors to help him remain clear and focused.

As a result, he enjoys the wildly successful, limitless, and abundant life he wants.

Tim is a beacon for what is possible for you.  He is a true champion of success.  Enjoy!

Steve

www.championsuccess.com

PS - I invite you to comment.

I had a fascinating discussion with a group of retired seniors this weekend.  The average age of the group was 68 and they ranged in age from 63 to 75.  This means some of them are baby boomers and some are not.

All had held high profle positions in very successful companies, had earned a great deal of money, and made a lot of sacrifices along the way in order to achieve the ’success’ they had achieved.

You want to know what the most interesting thing was…..

NOT ONE of them was glad they had.

Yup, thats right.  NOT ONE.

Every single one of them said they wished they knew then what they know now about true success, happiness and joy.

Every single one of them said that if they had it to do over again they would have invested themselves in what they were truly passionate about and NOT in what they THOUGHT they SHOULD do.

Every single one of them said that they are confident they would have everything they need now even with out the high-flying career.

And….here is the kicker….. 

While every one of them is now ecstatically happy to be pursuing the interests and passions they had deferred all those years in their retirement,  they all wished they had done it much, much earlier.

So the question that this begs is….

If these gentlemen had NOT sacrificed and deferred all those years, how is it that they know they would be living in the abundant and joy-filled retirement they have now anyway?

How could this be?

I mean, aren’t we taught that “A successful life is hard work.  You must work hard, make sacrifices, make a lot of money, do without some things, save and invest for your retirement.”

Some of you already know that this is not working.  If you are totally honest about it, you are tired of the grind, but do not believe you have enough stored away and are not sure what you should do about it…so you just keep grinding away.

I took a lesson from these wise old gentlemen some years ago and ‘quit the deferred life plan‘.  I now work less, have more time for my family and the things that matter to me, and have more wealth, more happiness, and more joy than I ever knew possible. 

And I am only 49!

Can you imagine living the retired life of your dreams before the age of 50?

Download my report, “The Secret to an Abundant and Joy-Filled Retirement“.  It’s FREEEE!

We are hosting a Teleseminar with “America’s Retirement Strategist” and author of “Retire in a Weekend“,  Billl Losey on the 19th of March.  You do not want to miss it.

I know what is possible for you and I want to make sure you have it.

With sincere admiration,

Steve

http://www.championsuccess.com 

PS - Check it out and ping me back with your thoughts.

I was in a conversation with mega-millionaire friend of mine who had recently retired.

She had been a highly successful technology entrepreneur and we were discussing her perspectives on the secrets to (her) success.

We talked about all kinds of things.  

I was flattered that she had read and agrees with the Key Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs article I wrote recently.

I was also thrilled that she took the time to brainstorm with me about some of the daily disciplines of success that had helped her experience such amazing success in her life. 

These are going into a new article I am writing now. 

Christine had a professional reputation for making what many thought were radical strategic shifts in direction with several of her companies.  We talked about some of these experiences and how from the outside looking in, they seemed totally crazy.

You might find her reasoning a bit surprising.  I know I did.

She said, “We really had no good reason to do it. It just seemed like a fun thing to do.”

Did you get that?

She did not say, ‘smart’ thing to do.  She did not say ‘right’ thing to do.  She did not even say ‘best’ thing to do.

She said ‘fun‘ thing to do.

I don’t know about you but that surprised me.

Then I got to thinking….there is great wisdom in what she said.

Wisdom for you and I to learn from.

Your business or job is the activity you invest the greatest percentage of your life doing(besides sleeping for some).

It should be something that’s fun to do.

If you’re not having fun, then why are you doing it?

For the money?  I think not.

If you expect to achieve goals and accomplish success in anything it’s just got to be fun and enjoyable.

I can promise you this, whether you are interested in creating astonishing levels of entrepreneurial success, an abundant and joy-filled retirement, or creating miraculous breakthroughs to personal success in other areas of life, you are going to have to be having fun to do it.

Let’s have some fun,

Steve

PS - Check out these great blogs for more useful information about this topic:

3 Ways to Get Better Results in Your Life

14 Step Guide to Finding the Perfect Career

“We are at the beginning of a new era.  A lifestyle revolution is taking place and with it we, as social people, are transforming who we are and what we do.  We are changing the way we live.  The predictable linear, chronological life pathways of past generations - from school, to marriage, to work, to children, to retirement - made sense when the average human life span was shorter….

Longer, healthier lifetimes have changed the way people perceive life’s options.  People are no longer limited to a single career in a lifetime.  Highly educated men and women are pursuing adventure, challenge, and greater sense of purpose than ever before….

People now return to school at age thirty-five, have children at age forty-five, start new careers at fifty, and remarry at seventy.” Maddy Dychtwald - Cycles

The possibilities that exist for you in your retirement years are absolutely endless.  My intention with this report is to communicate as simply and concisely as I can, how you can leverage the almighty power of the universe and miraculously manifest anything you desire, now and in your retirement.

Let me encourage you to accept all that is truly possible for you in this new era. Use what you have learned in this free report to begin creating the long, satisfying, joy-filled abundant life you desire.

Now you know that the secret to an abundant, joy-filled retirement is in what you believe.

“Imagining creates reality.  Therefore the man who is aware of what he is imagining knows what he is creating; realizes more and more that the drama of life is imaginal - not physical.  All activity is at bottom imaginal.  An awakened imagination works with a purpose.  It creates and conserves the desirable, and transforms or destroys the undesirable.”  Neville - The Law and the Promise.

Do you know what the number one fear or concern is for the baby boomers retiring?

Let me tell you.  It’s health.

But not in the way you might think.

Yes there is a lot of work being done in the alternatives to medical care like energy healing, exercise and fitness programs, and relaxation therapies of all sorts.

But, within all of this, there is some really amazing work being done in the area of brain fitness and plasticity.  Scientist have branched out from the world of academinc research to the practical implementation of all the amazing things that are possible.

Online programs and mind development games that can be loaded into our kids pocket-sized Nintendo and GameBoy systems are popping up everywhere.

The science behind all of this is aaaamazing!

I found this fantastic website with loads of great informaton.  Check it out: http://www.sharpbrains.com/blog/

Knowing that there are ways to preserve and maintain life capacity physically and mentally is reassuring isn’t it?

The only remaining question for you to consider is, what are you going to do for 40 + years once you retire?

Find your passion,

Steve

http://www.championsuccess.com/

PS - Visit Sharp Brains and tell me what you think

You probably know that Joe Vitale is a mentor of mine. 

In fact, it was my experience in learning from Joe that inspired me to create Champion Success Coaching and document my Champion Success Principles in my forth coming book, ”A Champion’s Principles”.

I have experienced all kinds of miracles in every area and aspect of my life through out the past 18 months, since meeting Joe and learning more about the simplicity of universal law.

I have experience a miraculous cure of what is commonly understood to be a genetic condition called hemochromatosis.  Through the power of intention and clearing memory with Ho Oponopono, my blood iron levels dropped precipitously to optimal levels without performing any of the prescribed phlebomies (giving blood). 

That I am who I am, doing what I am doing, right now, is a MIRACLE.  You might wonder why I say that.  Well, as is often the case, Joe has a great explanation of mircales and what they are on his blog.

Go take a look:  http://blog.mrfire.com/secret/what-is-a-miracle/

The truth is that miracles are everywhere all the time:

“Miracles:  You do not have to look for them.  They are there, 24-7, beaming like radio waves all around you.  Put up the antenna, turn up the volume - snap…crackle…this just in, every person you talk to is a chance to change the world.”  Hugh Elliott

You can and should Expect Miracles each and every day. 

Want more evidence?

Read this short document “Glory In The Highest“.  It is an excerpt from a book entitled “Pronia Is the Antedote For Paranoia - How the Whole World is Conspiring to Shower You With Blessings.” By Robert Brezsny.

Then, reflect on your day today.  How many miracles can you find?

How many will you look for tomorrow?

Think about it and tell me what you think by commenting.

Steve

www.championsuccess.com

Most of you know that I have several coaches and mentors working with me to help me focus and accomplish what I am up to these days. 

I believe everyone needs at least one.

I have one particularly important new coach and mentor.  Stin Hansan is her name and she is the founder and creator of ‘mythoughtcoach’. 

One thing I have learned over the years is that you need to be ‘clear‘ of negative internal energy and subconscious limiting beliefs to achieve the success you desire; personally or professionally. 

Stin’s meditation audios help me get and stay clear.

I have had fantastic results with a dozen or so of her guided meditations both during my waking hours, but also subliminally while I sleep. 

It is the easiest thing to do.  

I download the audio.

Load it on my iPod,

Plug in my headset and close my eyes.

Stin does the rest…

Imagine waking up totally energized, refreshed and clear.

I have even downloaded some for my daughters Madeline and Emily.  They too report pretty amazing results.

She even offers 4 or 5 free samples.

It is great!

Go to http://www.mythoughtcoach.com/

Wishing you much Peace and Happiness,

Steve

http://www.championsuccess.com/

PS - Once you try them out, stop back and comment on my blog.  I would love to hear your opinion