We recently saw the movie, How Do You Know. We give it two BIGG thumbs up.

In case you haven’t seen it, Lisa (played by Reese Witherspoon) is a jock. She’s been a softball star her whole life.

However, now she’s struggling to keep up with the younger players. She doesn’t make the cut for the USA softball team.

In trying to find herself, she decides to see a psychiatrist. After all, she reasons, insurance pays for six sessions.

But she’s not comfortable being there. She leaves within minutes. She comes back.

The first two keys

The psychiatrist (played by Tony Shalhoub, one of our all-time favorites) gives her the two key things to life:

Figure out what you want.
Figure out who to ask for it.

We agree with the first one. But we don’t agree with the second. We think it should be:

Figure out how to get it.

“Who to ask” may be part of it, but it will only be a small part. We suspect this advice comes from the old saying, “It’s not what you know; it’s who you know.”

But that doesn’t work anymore (if it ever did). It may get you in the door. But it isn’t enough to close the deal.

You have to be good. You have to execute. You have to get results.

The third key

Which brings us to our third key to the life of your dreams:

Get it.

All the “figuring” in the world won’t do you much good if you don’t take action. Planning is an essential activity. It’s one which many people never give much thought.

Let’s say that a little differently: it’s an activity that unsuccessful people rarely undertake.

The first two keys help you identify the “what” (your life plan) and the “how” (your strategic plan). But they aren’t enough.

Contrary to popular advice, the life of your dream won’t suddenly be bestowed upon you just because you’ve figured out what you want.

You have to go. You have to get it yourself.

Or settle. Settle for what you have know. Settle for where you are now.

The choice is yours!

The fourth key

But we’re not through yet. There’s a fourth key if you want to live the life of your dreams.

Keep getting it.

You will face obstacles. This is the final filter on the path to BIGG success.

Losers quit. But you’re a winner.

You will live your dream life. You will reach BIGG success!

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Research shows that the majority of all the people in the workforce aren’t happy with their current job.

Of course, there are a number of reasons for this. See if you relate to any of these:

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Yet most people will never pursue their dream.
Unless they get laid off.
Until somebody somewhere sometime forces them to do it.
Until circumstances somehow leave them with no other options.

The riskiest action you can take
Wait a minute, you may argue. You don’t “choose” to do nothing.
You just do it.
It just happens.
It doesn’t require any action.
It’s inanimate.

Here’s what many people don’t understand: you can’t do nothing.

We’re using bad grammar to make the point:

Doing nothing is doing something.

Many people just don’t see it that way.
They think doing nothing is safe.
They feel a false sense of security.

In reality, doing nothing may be the riskiest action you can take.

Your two options
You have two options – you can either be reactive or proactive. And we all know which of those two lead to BIGG success!

It’s the reason we say you should pray to get laid off. Because then you will be forced to take action.

Of course, it’s much better to be proactive before then.

But if you’re not going to be proactive, pray to get laid off. It will shake you out of being complacent.

Take control
BIGG success is life on your own terms. It’s about taking control of your life. You’re in charge. You’re the entrepreneur of your life.

If you’re not happy with your present circumstances, don’t wait. Do something about it NOW!

By doing it now, you get to set the schedule. It’s your timetable – not someone else’s. You’re not forced to do something because of circumstances. You’re in control.

So instead of praying to get laid off, why not be proactive while you still have a job? Start building your dream life while you still have an income.

That’s freedom with security. It leads to BIGG success!

Not sure where to start building the life that fits you perfectly? Maybe we can help.

Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file | podcast:
http://traffic.libsyn.com/biggsuccess/00772-011912.mp3

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BIGG success is life on your own terms. How cool is that? Your life, your terms.

But it isn’t a free lunch.

There’s a basic principle of negotiation – you get to set the price or the terms but not both. Unless you’re lucky enough to be negotiating with someone who doesn’t know better.

When it comes to life, most people choose to set the price. There are limits to what they will do to reach success at any level.

But you’re a BIGG goal-getter. So you set the terms, fully aware that BIGG success will set the price.

That’s why we talk about synergy – the BIGG idea behind BIGG success. You may not be able to have it all, but you can have more.

You can have more of what you want. You don’t have to accept conventional wisdom.

You can find ways to get areas of your life working together instead of at odds.

But there will still be trade-offs. BIGG success is about reaching your full potential.

It’s about feeling fulfilled when each day is done. And on this first Friday of a new year, we felt it was important to visit this subject of trade-offs.

What does life on your own terms mean to you? Think about it. Escape your current reality and dream BIGG.

Then bring yourself back to the real world. What are the trade-offs?

Sometimes we think we want something until we realize what it really means.

For example, how would you feel if you reached the heights of career success while your family felt neglected?

You are the entrepreneur of your life. You design and build the life of your dreams.

Make sure you clearly define what you really want, given the trade-offs, before you start designing and building.

Then you’ll create the life that fits you perfectly. That’s BIGG success!

What aren’t you willing to trade to be a BIGG success?

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It’s a New Year! Time for a fresh start. A new beginning.

Only we have an idea. A startling one.

Most people think about starting over. We suggest startling over instead.

Startling over – surprising yourself and others with a fresh view to create positive change.

Here are five tips for startling over:

F the past

Do you want to really startle people? Then F the past.

Forgive them. But don’t stop there. Forget about it.

Give up any and all grudges. Holding on to them holds you back.

Leave the grudges to the losers. You’re a winner!

Oh, one more thing…

This goes for you too. Forgive yourself. God does. Why can’t you?

Learn from your past mistakes. Then forget about them.

Your future is calling. Get on to it.

Smile

Startle people – smile at them!

Smile at strangers on the street. Smile at the people in your life.

Smile at their mistakes. Smile at their quirks. Smile at their anger.

Smile. You’ll make people wonder what you’re up to!

Switch it up

Startle yourself and the people around you – switch it up! Do the unexpected.

Take a different route to work. Try someplace different for lunch.

Read a book instead of watching TV. Read fiction instead of non-fiction or vice versa.

Routines can easily become ruts. Ruts are for losers.

You’re a winner. So mix it up!

Random acts

Startle the people in your life with random acts of kindness.

Call a friend out of the blue. Tell them how much they mean to you.

Contact a mentor, a teacher, or someone else who has had a significant impact on your life. Let them know it.

Buy lunch for that co-worker you often eat with. Can’t afford it? Then buy them a cup of coffee instead.

Bring home a gift for your significant other, even though you haven’t been in a fight and it’s not a special occasion.

Do the opposite

Startle yourself and others by pulling a George Costanza – do the opposite.

This is a particularly useful observation if you’re not happy with some area of your life. In George’s case, it was every area!

Remember – if you continue to do what you’ve always done, the best you can expect is what you already have.

So don’t walk, run. Don’t sit, stand. Don’t think, do.

Do the opposite to shake things up!

Stretch

Think of one startling thing you could accomplish by the end of this year. Not just anything – something that would really make you stretch.

It may be something you’ve wanted to do for a long time. It could be something that’s just hit your radar.

Go for it! Figure out what it will take to accomplish it.

Then give it your all. You’re a winner. Push yourself to prove to yourself that you can accomplish every thing you dream about. That’s BIGG success!

How will you startle yourself and others this year?

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BIGG success is life on your own terms. It’s about taking control to build the life of your dreams.

It begins with understanding your role. You have 100% ownership of an incredibly important enterprise – your life.

So you are the entrepreneur in charge. Entrepreneuring is a mindset, not an occupation.

You can try standing on your own two feet. But, when you get down to the essence of a great enterprise, you realize it is a three-legged stool.

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This triad is only as good as its weakest link. And unfortunately, one of them is almost always weak.

The magic happens when you get all three working together. It’s the key to BIGG success!

Product

We say product. We really mean service. You may think of it as your talent.

The key is to discover what you can offer to add value in the lives of other people. It’s how you begin creating value for yourself.

Your enterprise is built on this product. But the product alone isn’t enough.

Marketing

Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the most talented person always wins. They most certainly do not.

You can have the best product in the world and fail. The failure is the result of poor marketing.

If know one knows about you and your talent, you will fail. It doesn’t matter how good you are.

You have to get the word out. You have to get noticed.

If you don’t market yourself, your talent will be wasted. You won’t create value for yourself or anyone else.

Delivery

Once you have their attention, you have to deliver. It sounds so simple:

Make a promise. Keep a promise.

It is simple. But it’s not easy.

It requires follow-through and follow-up.

That’s where the difficulty comes in. In the day-to-day rush, promises are made.

The intentions are good. But you need a system to document set up to document those promises and insure they are followed up on.

What’s your weakest leg?

The rewards go to people who get all three legs standing firm. What’s your weakest leg?

Identify the factors contributing to the weakness.
Then brainstorm for solutions to make it more solid.
Develop a plan of action and then…
Make it so!

So you make more money, more dependably. That’s BIGG success!
Direct link to The Bigg Success Show audio file | podcast:
http://traffic.libsyn.com/biggsuccess/00760-120811.mp3
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