Is it any wonder that we sometimes have poor self esteem. We are teased by our friends, parents and grandparents as we grow up. More than a few school teachers hide behind their own ineffectiveness by criticizing their students. Many first line supervisors have no idea what leadership is and try to rule by intimidation. It is a wonder any of us survive. We grow up in constant need of self esteem improvement. You would think in a society that has grown up around putting people down there would be ready sources of people trained to help bring them back up again.

As I leave our local grocery store I always pass by a book rack filled with the onward and upward type books. Almost every time there is someone standing there reading them. Our druggist has a section of books all devoted to the same thing and they seem to get a lot of attention. Sometimes I think we get little booked to death and what we really need to do to accomplish self esteem improvement is to actively do something rather than sit at home and read. No, I do not know what it should be but my sense is it should involve other people.

Are you having a hard time getting things done? Are you making no steps toward achieving your goals and dreams? Could you use a little “motivation”?

Here are three easy things that will help you get there one day at a time.

1Review your Goals first thing in the morning.

It is so easy to lose sight of where you want to go. You might have a Great Big Dream or perhaps you just want to get a promotion at work. Maybe you have an elaborate detailed action plan or perhaps only a general idea. Most people do know what they want, and some know exactly how to get it. But, many people get bogged down in the day-to-day business of life that they don’t have time, energy or inclination to “go for it? The biggest obstacle in achieving goals & dreams is often just choosing what you want, clearly defining it, and reminding yourself! Don’t let the day-to-day details keep you from seeing the big picture.

2Decide one, just one action you could take toward your goal.

Just one will get you going. Perhaps you have flow charts or to-do lists already completedjust pick whatever is your next action step and make some progress, no matter how small. If you are having a very busy day, pick a small thing, like checking on pricing for business cards. If you have more time, design the cards. If you have a really busy day and you see no time, take 10 minutes and plan time for the rest of the week for working on your goalsthis will count as your one action, because making time for your dreams is essential, and sometimes it can be a real challenge.

3Reward yourself.

It’s a good idea to have a list of mini-rewards for those days when you can only spend five minutes toward your goal, as well as progressively better rewards. Of course the best reward of all will be achieving your dream, but to spur you along while you are on the journey, have some small rewards when you make progress, and even when you put forth a good effort toward progress.

Rewards can be as simple as allowing yourself to soak in a bubble bath instead of your usual quick shower. Some great ideas for mini rewards: a phone call to your best “cheerleader?who always makes you feel like you can conquer anything; ten extra minutes stretching after your workout; dessert; a manicure; a cuddle on the sofa with your sweetie; a new houseplant.

You get the idealittle pleasures that make it all worthwhile, don’t cost a fortune and make you smile.

Now, don’t you want to get started? Good luck & Happy Dreams!

P.S. Repeat daily for best results!

Deborah Crawford is owner of Smart Marketing Works, and provides smart, affordable marketing solutions for growing your business. Twelve years experience in sales and marketing, plus two years as a teacher give Crawford excellent skills to help you learn to promote and market your business.

Visit http://www.smart-marketing-works.com for more information and ideas.

Most self-help gurus warn us against watching too much TV. Spending time with your much maligned TV set does have advantages, however. You are, for example, able to watch a great film like ‘Unforgiven’. It has lessons which can motivate us and enlighten us.

Near the end of “Unforgiven”, the Schofield Kid (a novice assassin) kills a cowboy who has cut up the face of a prostitute.

The kid shoots the cowboy as he is ‘taking a dump’ in the outside toilet unprotected by his ‘bodyguards.’ He is obviously shaken by the experience of having killed someone so easily and drinks heavily to calm his mind:

“He ain’t gonna to breathe again ever; all on account of pulling a trigger.”

Clint Eastwood, as William Munny, the experienced killer of men, women and children, feels much the same:

“It’s a hell of a thing killing a man. You take away all he’s got and all he’s ever gonna have.”

The Schofield Kid tries to make himself feel better:

“Well I guess he had it coming.”

William Munny replied:

“We all have it coming, kid.”

There are at least three powerful motivational truths in this brief extract from the film.

Firstly, life is valuable and easily taken away by someone pulling a trigger or by a drunk driver or by a disease. All of us need to ’seize the day’and make the most of the time we have left on this planet.

Secondly, we should feel bad about taking someone else’s life away from them. I feel bad if I kill an insect or mouse. A little creature was enjoying its life until I ended it.

Thirdly, we all have it coming to us. We all reap what we sow. We need to make sure we sow the good rather than the bad. Our future will be the result of what we do now.

This is encouraging. We can influence our future to some extent at least. We just need to get busy sowing the seeds of a great future.

Every time we go for a walk we are sowing the seeds of a healthier future.

Everytime we do pushups or squats we are sowing the seeds of a stronger future.

Every time we archive or throw away some clutter we are sowing the seeds of a more organised future.

Every time we study some skill for half an hour we are sowing the seeds of a more skilful future.

Let’s make sure that what we have coming is worth looking forward to.

About the author

John Watson is an award winning teacher and martial arts instructor. He has recently written two books about achieving your goals and dreams.

They can both be found on his website http://www.motivationtoday.com along with a daily motivational message.

The title of the first book is “36 Laws To Ignite Your Inner Power And Realize Your Dreams Now! - Acronyms, Stories, Pictures And Quotes…Easy To Remember And Use Everyday To Grab Your Life And Soar With The Eagles”

The book can be found at this URL: http://www.motivationtoday.com/36_laws.php

The book uses acronyms, stories, pictures and quotations to help readers remember 36 laws that can gradually transform your life if you apply them.

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Working from home can get stressful. With all the distractions
presented to you each day, you need an effective way to stay
focused. When working online, it is difficult to always stay on
task and not get sidetracked.

The difference between those who succeed and those who don’t can
be summed up by one simple word. A.C.T.I.O.N. Use this acronym
to motivate yourself to stay on top of your daily plan.

Automate as many things as possible. You can do this with
autoresponders, mailing list filters, signature emails and other
tools of this type.

Catagorize your daily to-do’s and make sure your highest
priority is always on the top of the list.

Target. Know your target audiience, Also know your target goal
of what you want to accomplish each day and make sure it gets
the most attention it deserves.

Invent and Inspire Every day, jot down notes — ideas on how to
promote your site and ideas for new articles. Keep yourself
motivated and inspired by setting a goal to promote at least one
new article or product each week.

Open and reply to emails at set times and for a limited amount
of time each day. Don’t let this daily task get overwhelming. Go
back to the first step and automate as much as you can.

Negotiate with other online marketers and webmasters. You will
be amazed at how much you can learn and benefit from working
with other people when you both have common goals in mind.

By following this formula you wll be able to stay more on top of
the most important element of business. That would be promoting
your products and thus increasing your earning revenue.

When determining how to eliminate or overcome obstacles that stand in the way of one’s taking action, you must analyze the Motivational Equation and learn how it applies to that particular person. The equation looks like this:

(Want x Reward) + Tools = Degree of Motivation

(Difficulty - Time Frame)

How do you “salt” the motivational quadrants? Look at the first element: want. This is easy to understand. In order to successfully tap into your prospects’ motivation, one of the first things you have to understand is what they want. This also includes what they need, what their goals are, what they are trying to accomplish, what turns their crank, where they want to go, etc.

The second part of the equation is reward. Is it worth it to your prospects to take action? What is their reward for doing so? What are they going to get? What’s in it for them? Is it something they can understand the value of fully? Can they feel it, touch it, taste it - crave it? Let’s look at some of the stages your prospects might be in:

•Passion not yet found - They are going through life using desperation as a motivator or they haven’t yet found anything that really inspires them.

•Poor attitude -They are run down with a negative attitude. Their expectations and beliefs are not congruent with their goals.

•Diminishing intent - They have previously been on the right track but have lost their drive. They have forgotten the real reasons they were motivated in the first place.

•Indifference - They just don’t care anymore. They have lost the ability to express concern or to make a difference in their own life or in the life of others.

•Creature of habit - They have not replaced their previous bad habits and have fallen back into old ones.

•Lack of persistence - They have given up too easily and have gotten stalled at the first obstacle.

•No sense of urgency - They have set no timeframe. The pain of not changing doesn’t hurt badly enough that they’ve got to act now.

•Peer pressure - The people around them are more motivating than you are. They have not found the support they need to resist against the peers whose esteem they value.

•Lack of vision - They have sacrificed long-term success for short-term pleasure.

•Lack of knowledge - They don’t know how to make the necessary changes in their life or they are not doing so correctly.

•Lack of confidence - Confidence comes after action, knowledge, and success.

•No game plan - They are overwhelmed or waiting for everything to be in order. They have no action plan.

•Don’t want to do it - They don’t want to pay the price. Their goal is only a dream and nothing more. They are using external desperation as their motivator or they are living their life the way others want them to.

The third part of the equation is tools. Do your prospects have the tools required to perform the task you are asking of them? Do they have the competence? Do they have the knowledge or intelligence? Do they have the necessary resources, for example, transportation, finances, relationships, or self-confidence?

1. What do you love to do?

2. What would you do with your life if you could do anything?

3. What inspires you?

4. What do you want to achieve in this life?

5. If you had all the money in the world, what would you do with your life?

Now for the bottom half of the equation, and this is where it gets tricky. How difficult is this task going to be to perform? Or, more importantly, how hard do your prospects perceive it to be? Will it be perceived as more difficult than it’s worth? Can they see themselves doing the thing you are asking them to do? Is it worth their effort?

What knowledge and information do your prospects need to take action?

Are they more motivated by inspiration, desperation, or a combination of the two?

What is the cost of staying the same, or what will happen if they don’t change?

What are the benefits your prospects will receive when they make the change?

Do they feel capable and competent enough to make the change?

The last part of the equation is timeframe. Can your prospects fulfill your request in the time you are asking them to do it? Will a long timeframe cause them to lose focus and find more obstacles so as not to have to complete what you are asking them to do? Do they feel your deadline provides them with enough time to complete your request? Do they have the drive to stay on task until it is completed?

Conclusion
Persuasion is the missing puzzle piece that will crack the code to dramatically increase your income, improve your relationships, and help you get what you want, when you want, and win friends for life. Ask yourself how much money and income you have lost because of your inability to persuade and influence. Think about it. Sure you’ve seen some success, but think of the times you couldn’t get it done. Has there ever been a time when you did not get your point across? Were you unable to convince someone to do something? Have you reached your full potential? Are you able to motivate yourself and others to achieve more and accomplish their goals? What about your relationships? Imagine being able to overcome objections before they happen, know what your prospect is thinking and feeling, feel more confident in your ability to persuade. Professional success, personal happiness, leadership potential, and income depend on the ability to persuade, influence, and motivate others.

Kurt Mortensen’s trademark is Magnetic Persuasion; rather than convincing others, he teaches that you should attract them, just like a magnet attracts metal filings. He teaches that sales have changed and the consumer has become exponentially more skeptical and cynical within the last five years. Most persuaders are using only 2 or 3 persuasion techniques when there are actually 120 available! If you are ready to claim your success and learn what only the ultra-prosperous know, begin by going to http://www.PreWealth.com and getting my free report “10 Mistakes That Continue Costing You Thousands.” After reading my free report, go to http://www.PreWealth.com/IQ and take the free Persuasion IQ analysis to determine where you rank and what area of the sales cycle you need to improve in order to close every sale!