The Power of You - it's your 2012

It seems nearly everyone I speak to lately holds high hopes for 2012. This feeling of optimism, across many business sectors, is a welcome contrast to the doom and gloom portrayed in most media streams currently.
(Where's the headline "Everything is going to be OK!"?)

It got me thinking... is it that collectively we feel we've done the hard yards through the GFC and its time now to reap the rewards? Are we so tired of the negativity and looming threats that we're turning the tide ourselves?

And then, as often happens when you start thinking about something, I had an experience that cemented in my mind the power of humanity to change the universe, to literally stand it on its head and alter the course of the future, one individual at a time.

It started out innocuously enough at a Gen X women networking breakfast at Merewether Surf House. A packed room of women from all walks of life, had assembled over hash brown, bacon and eggs to hear and learn from Heidi Alexander Pollard of Leading Ladies International. Heidi is all about mentoring, coaching, self development and empowerment and is one of those great people, in my opinion, that walks the talk and has a truly generous spirit.
Much of Heidi's presentation was familiar to me - somewhere in the depths of my mind, amongst the shopping lists, french lessons, travel plans and "to do" lists, was the memory of lessons I had read, learned or seen in books or in workshops throughout the course of my career. I'm certain I wasn't alone in that.
Today Heidi brought them back to the forefront of my mind and packed about 1000% more intensity to them and I too became swept up in this desire to reap, demand, extract and enjoy so much more from 2012 than 2011. And if it's to be, it's up to me....

The lessons learned today - those refreshed and those brand new - were all simple enough and that is the classic catch: they're easy to do and easy not to do as well. The outcomes however - of doing or not doing - are literally poles apart.

For example: Jim Rohn's philosophy "you are the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with". Making a choice to spend more time this year with people of positive influence and less time with those who drain us, bring us down and envelop us in their negativity will without a doubt change every aspect of our lives and increase our success significantly.
A simple task of sitting down for 10 minutes and reflecting on those 5 people you spend most your time with... easy to do. Easy not to do. Life changing either way.

Here are some other easy to do (and easy not to do) ideas I picked up from Heidi today that I believe are potentially life changers.
1. Throw away your TV. Or at least cut your viewing down to less than 30 minutes per day.
2. Read/watch/listen to less news. The important stuff will find you anyway.
3. Step off a cliff regularly. Take risks, learn something new, get outside your comfort zone.
4.  Pick a skill to improve over the next 3 months. Read 4 books by experts on it, listen to 3 audio programs on it, go to 2 workshops on it and find a coach or buddy to mentor and support you on it.

It starts right here. With you. There's no magic pill, no fairy godmother, no fast track to success. There's just you - on this earth for an unknown but finite period of time, here for a purpose, making a difference to the planet and the human race regardless of how much thought and effort you put into what you do in your time here.

I believe everyone of us are born to do great things. Every individual has a set of genes, traits and strengths unique to them. Some of us deny our talents and never allow them to surface. Some of us suppress them out of fear. Some of us exploit them which in turn harms others. And some of us - the minority, I believe - harness our talents and become great individuals.

So if you share this intense feeling that 2012 is going to be your year - or that it should be - quite simply all you need to do is get off your butt and go do it. Decide how you want your life to look come Christmas 2012 and work backwards to do what you need to do to get there.

Get educated. Get onboard with lifelong learning.

Get networked. Go meet the people who will help you, minimise time with those who hinder.

Get focussed. Get rid of the noise, the crap, the distractions, the bright shiny objects that are often welcome obstacles.

Get control of your life and harness that power we all have inside of us. Noone is born to fail. Some of us simply choose not to succeed.

Thank you, Heidi, for the wake up call this morning. You changed the world today, or mine at least. And for that I will be forever grateful.

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