January 2011 | Bigg Success

Monthly Archives: January 2011

The High Cost of Instant Success

Written on January 18, 2011 by George Krueger & Mary-Lynn Foster in Success

high cost By now, we all know Ted Williams – the homeless man with the golden voice. His video went viral in hours.

The media jumped all over him. Within days, he was on The Today Show. Within a week, he had appeared on The Early Show, Jimmy Fallon, Dr. Phil and Entertainment Tonight. He had job offers from MSNBC, the Cleveland Cavaliers and Kraft. It was even reported that Jack Nicholson had personally called offering a role in an upcoming movie.

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Hear George & Mary-Lynn the problem with instant fame on the BIGG Success Show! Click the player to hear the podcast [4:40m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Unfortunately, personal issues rose to the surface just as quickly. Ted’s star burned bright. But it fell as quickly as it came to light.

We hope we see him in the spotlight again – when he’s ready for it.

Fame and fortune should be by-products
Many people believe that fame and fortune are the answer. They aren’t. They may be a by-product of BIGG success. However, they won’t – in and of themselves – lead to fulfillment.

They aren’t the end, either. In fact, many studies have shown they’re barely the means for achieving happiness. Fame and fortune are goals that are empty.

What would you do with your fame and fortune? When you know the answer to that question, you’re a step closer to being ready for it.

Natural talent is a small part of the equation
Ted definitely has a talent. He was discovered with a sign that said, “I have a God-given gift of voice.”

But he was only partially right. He received training years ago. It takes hard work. It takes time. It takes hard work over time to become proficient.

But it takes more than that. Ted says drugs and alcohol ruined his career, his life. He’s not alone. Drugs and alcohol keep many people from reaching BIGG success.

Have you discovered your gift? Are you investing time to master it?

BIGG success comes for a price
BIGG success is life on your own terms. There’s a principle of negotiation – you get to set the price or the terms, but not both. That is, unless you’re negotiating with a fool. And BIGG success is no fool!

If you set the terms for your life, BIGG success sets the price. You have to be prepared to pay it or you’ll never reach BIGG success.

As a society, we seem to have bought into the fallacy of instant success. Kids dream of being stars. Adults play the lottery while dreaming of how they would spend the money. Yet most people who win the lottery end up in worse financial shape within years.

We think shows like American Idol demonstrate instant success. But they don’t – do you ever see a contestant who gets deep into the competition without years of training?

The internet does occasionally produce instant stars – like it did with Ted. Unfortunately, as has been demonstrated in this case, BIGG success demands a price even if you are an instant success.

And the price is usually a lot higher when fame and fortune come quickly. So if you’re struggling to reach BIGG success, count yourself lucky!

Cinderella stories usually turn out much better in the movies than they do in real life. Prepare, prepare, prepare … so you’re ready for BIGG success!

Just a note: If your heart goes out to people like Ted, check out Invisible People. Mark Horvath is doing some BIGG things bringing light to the plight of our nation’s homeless people.

Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file | podcast:
http://traffic.libsyn.com/biggsuccess/00606-071210.mp3

(Image in today's post by ljleavell)

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Dream to be Free

Written on January 17, 2011 by George Krueger & Mary-Lynn Foster in Personal Growth

We celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today in the United States. Here’s a man who knew a thing or two about dreaming.

Surveys show that a lot of people think that the American Dream is dead. We don’t think so. We tried to demonstrate that in a recent podcast where we compiled clips from some of the great moments in American history. Of course, Dr. King was featured.

Three things struck us as we did research for that show:

Dreams should be BIGG
Dr. King wanted the promise made in our Constitution to be fulfilled for all people. Obviously, that wasn’t a small dream or it would have been done before.

It also wasn’t a selfish dream – Dr. King was an entrepreneur. He created value for his people and for the entire nation. We’re all better off today because of his dream.

How BIGG are your dreams? How will value be created for your “customers’ and for society at large if your dream becomes a reality?

A dream, not a fantasy
Yes, Dr. King had a dream. But that’s not enough.

He gave a great speech about his dream. Even that wasn’t sufficient.

Dreams require action. Otherwise, they’re just fantasies. Fantasies don’t lead anywhere.

Fortunately, for us, Dr. King knew this. Sure, he was a BIGG dreamer. But he was also a BIGG goal-getter.

We recently read his wonderful book, Why We Can’t Wait. He outlines the actions that he was undertaking, as a leader, to turn his dream into a reality. He makes the case for why these actions had to be done immediately. He provided both the compass and the map.

Do you dream or do you fantasize? Does your dream lead to clear goals? For help with goal-setting, consider subscribing to our newsletter. You’ll get our goal workbook to guide you through the goal-setting process. Just enter your e-mail in the box near the upper right corner of this page.

Inspiration for the struggle
The speech was obviously written with a specific cause in mind. It was a worthy and just cause. Dr. King gave his life for his cause.

We certainly don’t want to diminish his BIGG cause with about we’re about to say. However, as read the text of I Have a Dream, we noticed something interesting.

While he focused on the struggle of his times, much of his speech inspires anyone who is struggling. Here’s one part in particular that we love in light of recent events:

"I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together.

This is our hope. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day.

This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, ‘My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrim's pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

We can hear him saying it without even listening. It still gives us goose bumps.

Yes, we have a dream. Yes, we will come together. Yes, we will transform our nation. Yes, we will be free!

What’s your dream?