Have you ever met a person who worries about everything? No matter where they are or what they’re doing, they’re always worried, concerned, stressed or mad about something. Yet, there are also people who are just the opposite…people who never worry, get concerned, stress and rarely get mad no matter what the situation is. What is it about the people that stress that causes them to stress so often and so much? How can one person, surrounded by chaos, stay calm, content and optimistic while the another lose all control?

Do you all remember the last time you watched Zorro? The Zorro I am speaking of is “The Mask of Zorro” that came out in 1998 with Antonio Banderas, Antony Hopkins and Catherine Zeta-Jones. As the movie starts out, Alejandro Murrieta (Antonio Banderas) is an out of control, drunken convict who is consumed by his hatred towards his brothers killer, Captain Harrison Love. As the current Zorro (Anthony Hopkins) observes Alejandro, he shows him how obsessed and reckless he truly is. Even though his passion for revenge fueled him, he had not learned control and would never succeed unless he learned how to control his anger and his surroundings.

He was later introduced to the “Training Circle.” In the words of Anthony Hopkins, “This is called a training circle, a master’s wheel. This circle will be your world, your whole life. Until I tell you otherwise, there is nothing outside of it.” Alejandro’s progress depended directly on how well he could learn to master only the things within his circle. At first, it was a large circle with obstacles, ropes and at times, Zorro in it. “As your skill with the sword improves, you will progress to a smaller circle. With each new circle, your world contracts, bringing you ………..that much closer to retribution.”

As Alejandro improved in his skills, that circle began to shrink and one might begin to think, shouldn’t the circle get bigger as his skill increased. The more skill the more he would be able to handle, right? Wrong! If you are thinking that way, you are missing the entire point. The more skill, the smaller the circle. The more you learn to control only that which is in the circle, the more control you truly have. The less you have in your circle, the better, because you know you have absolute control of whatever enters your circle. The larger the circle, the less control you have as you have more in it.

Zorro’s Circle

So you wonder why so many people walk around stressed out, angry and constantly worried?! It’s because they try too much to control things that are outside their circle of control. All we can do is control our little training circle. For some, that circle is still very large because of lack of skill. As their skill increases, they will learn to stick to their circle of control, and thus, increase in control overall.

Can I control how you react to this article? Can I control whether or not you send me spam comments, talk bad about my site or give me complete praise? No. But what I can control is all that is within my circle. I can control if that spam comment is approved and whether it will upset me or not. I can control how I receive things and whether or not I will allow it to enter into my circle. If I allow it, my circle increases in size and as a result, I loose a bit of control.

As we increase in skill, in mindset, we stop worrying about all the things you have no control over. And as we do, we start dominating the things we do have control over and get really good at maintaining the Godly trait of temperance.

Pick your own battles…better yet, pick the ones you know you can control and win. And the ones you can win are the ones within your own Zorro’s circle. This is the entire secret to self-mastery. Can you control everything within a foot of your being. And yes, this includes the space in between your own ears. If you’re looking to lose weight, can you resist that doughnut or soda and can you discipline, instead of just motivate yourself to take that jog? When it all comes down to it, you allow that doughnut to enter or not enter your circle of control. You allow those thoughts of laziness to enter or not enter your mind, which is the center of the circle.

Self mastery! We are all very good about disallowing annoying or stinky people from entering our so called “bubble.” Yet we allow so much more to enter that is even more damaging and more harmful to our progress and happiness. As we learn to control what we know we can control, we master our circle, and in doing so will find the secret to a long, happy and fulfilling life!

Success is repetition. It’s like church. Why do you think people continue to go to church every single week to hear the same things said in a different way, over and over again? It’s because it keeps them on the path they want to be on. It keeps them pointed towards their goals after this life is over. Even the most intelligent men and women in the gospel continue to attend their church meetings. Sure, they may sleep during a good portion of their church meetings and sure they may already know what is being taught, but what would happen if they stopped coming? What would their life change into if they discontinued the repetitious attendance in church? They would begin to forget those things that they once knew so well. Their life would begin to point a different direction and they would have new and different goals.

I know it sounds drastic, but that’s exactly what would happen. Consider the ladies who love to have that nice tan. As long as they are repeatedly exposed to the sun or tanning beds, they can keep that nice tan. But the moment they become less frequent in their time in the sun, their tan starts to go away. They become pale and light-er, exactly opposite of what they wanted to look like.

Success is no different. Either you are constantly and consistently engaged, or you are out of the game completely and headed down a different road. Success is repetition, repetitious and everything to do with repeating the same actions over and over again in a different way…day in and day out. Just as someone who is constantly engaged in their salvation by attending church or tanning by visiting the beach, the same stands true for success in any area of this life….or in this case, afterlife.

Success in basketball requires time invested working on that jump shot or that crossover, over and over again. Success in religion requires repeated study, faith, prayer and church attendance. Success in relationships requires acts of patience, selflessness and love, over and over again. Success in business requires repeated education, research and action.

Nothing of true value ever comes free of effort. If it does, you might have received the “thing,” but the true value comes because of the effort put forth to truly earn the “thing”. That’s the real prize. As the quote says, paraphrased…..I pity the man who inherits millions that has not yet become a millionaire (in his mind). Or as Hannah Montana says, (I’m sorry! I have three daughters! I can’t help it!)“it ain’t about what’s waiting on the other side, it’s the climb!” Those of you who laugh at me for quoting Hannah Montana, or Miley Cyrus…..look at where she is financially and where you are!

So on that note, the successful people do the things that the unsuccessful people chose not to do on a consistent and repeated basis. Evaluate your life. What are you choosing NOT to do that is holding you back from the success you desire? I know that you know the answer to that question. Don’t second guess yourself, just fix it!

Let’s take a look at the normal anatomy of human beings. We all have a head, arms, legs, feet, toes and the list could go on and on. Every part of the body has it’s own purpose and functionality. The legs carry the body from place to place, the hands grip and pick things up with the help of the arms but when it all comes down to it, the head is what controls the body. If something happens to the head, the other parts won’t function right, if at all.

So what happens if the arm wants to take control and do something different than what the head wants it to do? No matter how hard that arm tries to influence the head, it’s still the head operating the arm. Slap the head too many times and the head doesn’t work right, thus, neither does the arm. Beat the head to death and the arm kills itself in the process. Kill the head….the arm dies along with it. A body without the head, the mind, is nothing but a skin covered bag of bones!

What I mean by the analogy, is during certain periods of my Entrepreneur life I thought I was the head. I thought I was the one in control of the arms and legs of my business. The truth was, I was just the arm trying to turn the head the way I wanted it to go. It doesn’t work that way. An arm is just an arm and is controlled by the head.

My point…..is to always be the head of your enterprise. As long as there is a franchise, an owner, a co-owner or something with equal or more authority than you in your enterprise, you will never be the head. You will never have complete control of your financial future. Because…..say it with me….what effects the head, effects the entire body. We all know that a healthy mind equals a healthy body. It filters down…not up.

Make sure you are the one influencing the arms and the legs of your enterprise, not the one being influenced. If you are to ever achieve success and TRUE independence, you must be the head and only the head. Don’t settle for anything less. But that means that you must stop thinking like the arm or the leg, and start thinking like the head. Once you reach that point, you’ll know….and you be much, much happier and all of this will simply be a reminder.

One of the things that prevents individuals from seeing success in business are the road blocks they encounter right from the beginning, point A, to the end, point B. For those of you who have ever started a business or attempted to start a business, you know that in doing so, every step of the way isn’t sure. There is no detailed list of steps to take numbered 1 – 100. Even a detailed business plan doesn’t really give the action steps you’ll need to take to accomplish your goal. Based on your research, it’s just an educated guess at what the end result could be. From there, it’s up to the entrepreneur to create that detailed list, one step at a time.

The important thing to realize is that entrepreneurs don’t know all the steps to take. In order to make it to point B, all they know how to do is to simply take the NEXT step. As an entrepreneur, you don’t have to know all the steps, you just have to be willing to take the first step…and then continue taking steps from there, one at a time. By taking the steps we can see today, those steps then create new steps which we can take tomorrow. It’s like going up a staircase that turns at a 90 degree angle. At some point, you can’t really see the top of the staircase until turn that corner and start up the stairs. Same concept. By taking one simple step at a time, they’ll eventually add up, and you’ll soon reach the top.

You see, entrepreneurship is the ability to create something out of nothing, to take an idea and create a reality with it. Entrepreneurs are the most creative, action taking people on the planet. All growth depends on the mind of the Entrepreneur. They create jobs. They create opportunity for those who have no idea how to create it for themselves or are scared to do so. So their course is always an uncharted one. There’s no road maps or connect the dots. The only thing that exists is an internal GPS unit embedded in the heart of every Entrepreneur….constantly pointing in the right direction.

It’s not the end result that makes success so rewarding….it’s all it took to get there. It’s the journey. Would the celebration at the end of the race be a celebration if someone else had to carry you the entire way?

The reward is the knowledge that you did this. No one else did it, you did. And you did it your way…..and because you did, you deserve success, because you literally created it!

I think I’m going to create my own clothing line and put a logo on it that says, “Entrepreneur for Life.” Not only will it give me a little boost in my step, it will educate people about who I am and help them to understand why I do the things I do. So the next time someone asks what I do for a living, I’ll tell them and possibly share a little of what I see for my future. Maybe, just maybe, if I am wearing my shirt that bears “Entrepreneur for Life,” they’ll get the big picture.

It’s actually pretty funny to see the look I get when I tell someone of an idea I am having. They look at me like I’m crazy and proceed to tell me that it won’t happen.You know, because they are an expert. I think the reasoning behind it is the fact that they just don’t understand why I can’t just be normal. Why can’t I just get a job like everyone else they know. I am so weird to them. To them, it takes too much energy to do what I do.

After the first few times of being lectured about how things can’t be done, I started to make a game out of telling people about my ideas, just to see what kind of a reaction I could get. It’s actually pretty fun. You should try it…often…and where possible, capture it on video. I’d like to watch it because chances are, you’ll get the same reaction I always do. Only a few people in my life actually get excited for me when I share my vision for my future.

I remember specifically, the other day I told someone about my future goals as an entrepreneur…dead silence. Not even an acknowledgment! And lately, whenever that happens, I know I am on the right course. It just motivates me and should do the same for you, knowing that you are definitely “outside the box” they are currently living in.

Now I don’t know about you, but it seems like when I am the most comfortable, the less control I have of my life. As entrepreneurs, we do the things that most people won’t, so that later, we can live a life that most people can’t.

I’m excited to be on this journey with all of you! Entrepreneur for life baby!

“Live today as if it’s already tomorrow!” Lately, this is a motto I have come to know well in my life. Basically, if it’s today, yesterday is already gone. You can’t change it, alter it or get it back. What’s done is done…or on the other hand, what’s not done is just a missed opportunity. It’s gone! So seriously, live today as though you will never have today again…and the crazy thing is, you won’t ever have it again. I know….deep right!?

My point is simple. Yesterday, I listened in on a conversation my wife was having, and it was the most motivating conversation I have ever heard. It brought tears to my eyes to sit there and listen to this man pour out a life of regret. He had spent his life striving to live the dream, business venture after business venture. He started out in the Glass Industry. Instead of running his business, his business ran him. His paperwork kept him at the office into the late hours of the night. He rarely saw his family. Then one day, he decided to build a shop behind his house and his daughter said, “Mommy, I’m so happy that Daddy is building his house so close to our house because we can go visit him now.”

He went on to say that the big house, the nice cars, the huge successful business, the glory and the fame just don’t matter. Looking back on his life now, he realizes that he was never there. The words “I wish I would have” rolled off his tongue as he spoke of his children. He wishes he would have been around more when they were little. That’s all that matters to him now, and now he is full of regret. He can never get that time back.

To me, to hear stories like this, is very, very depressing….yet at the same time, extremely motivating! I don’t ever want to say, “I wish I would have.” Ever! I don’t want to be the guy with 20/20 hindsight. I want to be the guy who lives today as if there is no tomorrow…..and so I do. If I have  and idea or a gumption, I act on it. I don’t wait. Waiting is a waste of time and besides, what are you waiting for? A better time? There will never be a better time in the history of YOU, to act on your dreams.

So just don’t. Don’t be the guy that says “I wish I had!” Don’t live a life of regrets. Don’t put off your dreams for anything. And yes, that includes the lack of knowledge on how to achieve your dreams. That’s no excuse. Live a full and fulfilling life. Every moment counts!