Better yet, who are you? Don’t you know? Example: Every once in a while you’ll get a day off and you happen to be walking down the beach. You see a guy sitting there, on the beach, on the phone, telling the person on the other end to wire the $22,000 to his bank account. Naturally, you would automatically think, who is that guy and what does he do that allows him to be on the beach in the middle of the week making that kind of money.

Most likely, the guy making that kind of money is not wondering who the guy is that is wondering who he is. He probably doesn’t even know who he really is, but he sure as heck knows what he wants. He is who he has chosen to be and who he is being is his ideal person.

Knowing the answer to the question, “Who am I,” is by simply doing the things that you love to do and want to do. The choices you make every single day are the only things that dictate who you are, or at least who you are being. If you choose to go to your job everyday, you are choosing to be the employee who works 12 hour days. If that’s what you want, be that person. On the other hand, if you want to be the guy on the beach making $22,000 with a single phone call, then choose to be that guy. There’s nothing difficult about it. It’s just a choice!

People complicate things by thinking they can’t be who they want to be because of “whatever!” Well, they have chosen to not be who they want to be and have allowed such a small obstacle keep them from that. So instead of being the successful person who takes action, he now becomes the Elephant who is scared of a mouse. He becomes the excuse maker instead of the decision maker.

So if you keep making excuses in your life, who are you? You’re not being who you want to be.

How many times have we all done that? How many times have we caught wind of a conversation, and wondered how that person was so successful, or so happy. How many times have we wondered how they did it or what they do to to make it all happen? I can tell you one thing, it doesn’t happen anymore for me. I am that person now because of my decisions to act on what I want.

In the words of Batman Begins, ‘It’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you!’ It’s not what you think about doing, it’s what you actually do. Michael Jordan didn’t become the greatest player in the history of the NBA because of who he thought he was. He had to actually do it. That is who he is because he acted.

Life is real time! It’s happening right now. When you step up to that plate to take the first pitch, are you going to blame your strikeout on an injury or a broken bat…….or are you going to lean in, take a firm grip on the bat, point to the bleachers and hit a homerun? You have the potential to become all that you have ever wanted to be. Don’t be a wuss about making it happen. It takes guts, it takes a knowing and it takes you making bold choices regardless of the obstacles.

This morning after I dropped my oldest daughter off at school I decided to take a jog. It was around 8 am and every morning I listen to a wake-up to success call. It’s a 15 minute call and different people are invited to this call as guests. The topics vary but the guests are always very inspiring, successful people. My wife and I have been guests on this call several times and absolutely have a blast with it.

So I took my phone with me, dialed into the call straight up at 8am and started listening to the call. It was a great call and before I knew it, I was already done with my jog. It was much easier than usual this time and I ran even further than before. Two days before, I felt like I was going to die right there in the middle of my run. It was a ton easier today. Why?

In the military, we would run all the time. For me, 5 to 6 miles every other day is murder, at least it was at first. The military has this all figured out. They use cadence to distract you while you run. While you are concentrating on the beat and the words of the cadence, you all of the sudden find 5 or 6 miles an easy task. It is all about the distraction. It takes your mind off the distance you are having to run and directs it to something simple.

Now, if it’s that easy to take your mind off of a simple thing like running long distances, can we apply that to our lives and how? It is through visualizing!

How and Why do we Visualize?

For me, visualizing is done several different ways and at different times throughout the day. But I always take a few minutes, every day, sitting there in silence, just thinking about my future. What do I want? How do I want it to happen and what is it going to feel like when it does? That is what I visualize and I get so clear on what I want that it feels so real at times.

Visualizing is the very simple technique of taking your mind off of the here and now, the struggles of life, by thinking of what you want your life to be like. It’s a lot more powerful than you may think. Some people may call it daydreaming, but it is so much more. Day dreaming is something that your mind does when you have nothing else to do or are bored. Visualizing takes effort. You are creating an ideal situation and placing yourself right smack in the middle of it. That’s takes effort. It is productive where daydreaming is just burning time. It is an escape, a self mastermind, getting  clear on your purpose, a way to know exactly what your future can hold for you.

Your subconscious mind has no idea what is real and what isn’t. Simply visualizing your goals consistently will cause your subconscious to start to believe it is really happening. When that happens, your actions will start to move you in that direction. Visualizing creates a dream atmosphere for your mind and we all know that if your mind can dream it up, it can happen, and will happen the more you want it.

So my advice is to take time every single day to visualize about what you want in life. It makes the  journey a ton easier, it helps you to become clear on what you want and takes your mind off of anything that may deter you. It really does work!

In the words of one of my all time favorites, “If you can dream it, you can do it.” -Walt Disney

Have you ever sat there just wondering what might have happened if you would have done one thing or another different? Have you ever asked yourself the question, “What if?” What if I would have gone out for football when I was a senior? What if I hadn’t injured my knees my junior year in basketball? What if I had started that business I was thinking about starting a while back? The questions could go on and on and if you are a normal person, you have asked yourself similar questions throughout your life.

Now, in a sense, these questions can also be considered as mild regrets. It’s not that your life would have been completely different with some of the choices you wonder about, but with others, your life would be on a completely different track. So are all choices important? Absolutely they are, and it kills me to see people who are so undecided when faced with a choice to act. Indecision is still a decision not to act. If a person never acts, they become victims to the term, “Whatever happens, happens!” They are not in control of where they end up.

Now for me, I love being in control. In fact, I spend time every day to visualize my life in the near and distant future. I know exactly where I am going to end up. I devote time to knowing where I will be. Then I choose to act on the things that will move me closer to where I already know I am going to be. It’s simple really and just a matter of knowing.

This question can also be used in direct correlation to fear. What if I fail at this new business, what if I make the wrong decision, what if everybody hates the way I sing, what if nobody likes the subjects I blog about. I read a quote yesterday from Dr. Seuss that read, “Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”

My goal is to have the lowest amount of, “What if’s” in my life. If you think about the path you have traveled in your life up to this point, how would it be different if you had made some different decisions? What if you would have married that other girl, what if you had gone out for sports, what if you had chosen a different major, or what if you had started that business when you had wanted to? Your life would be on a different path, a worse path or may even a better path.

Here’s my advice, make your decisions, and make them quickly. Success is all about momentum. Don’t waste away your precious time thinking about things. That will only kill your momentum and thinking will not get you anywhere. Acting on those thoughts is the secret.

Be decided, always. You are either on one side of the fence or the other. There is no middle. Indecision is a decision not to act, thus staying on your current path of being tossed to a fro by the wind of life. Decisions are the rudders on your ship. Use them to chart your course to your predetermined, premeditated destination. Don’t be the one sitting around months or even years from now asking yourself the question, “What if!”

Thinking outside of the box has become a very popular phrase. Corporate America has adopted the phrase in an attempt to increase productivity from employees. Entrepreneurs use it to inspire creativity and uniqueness. It seems to have a pretty nice effect. People actually start to thing larger and bigger than before as if they were automatically given permission to do so. I mean, the results are in the positive, but I can’t help but think, was there ever a box to begin with or did we all just sort of create our own box. Or maybe our so called created “box” was created by other people and we just automatically or gradually assumed it as our own?

First off, let’s define the box. The box is some sort of mental boundary. I mean, picture yourself living in a box. You can only see as far as the box allows you to, right? The box is the block that prevents your method of operation or your vision to expand. So the concept of thinking outside of the box is all about getting outside of your comfort zone. It’s about thinking differently, bigger or better. It’s about getting results that you never thought were possible.

So what’s up with the box? Understanding the box is the first step to progress. The box, was created by our own self belief and contains what we believe is possible to achieve. So, we created this so called box of limitations, or adopted someone elses box or beliefs of what is possible and made them our own. Living in a box would leave no room for growth. Limitations would be and are expected and accepted.

The fact is, there is no box. The box resides within your own mind. If you think about it, fear is the same concept. Fear isn’t some kind of huge monster staring down at you when you are about to go skydiving. It’s a mental condition. It is created by our minds and is a limiting belief. Just the same, it’s obvious that we don’t all walk around in cardboard boxes. It’s all just a mental state we all choose to operate in.

The truth is, we as powerful, spiritual beings are capable of anything. The sky is not the limit, there is no limit. Think of what it is that you want to do. Stretch your belief of what is possible because your understanding of what is possible is your only limit. Increase your understanding and you increase your potential. Understand though, you are capable or becoming anything you desire to become. Millionaire, Billionaire, Astronaut, Pilot, Entrepreneur? Take your pick! All it takes is a belief that it can be done, focused consistent action, and you. There is no box!

Do you really truly enjoy the news? Do you sit there on your couch at 10pm or tune in on the radio on your way to work? Is it important to you?

I sure hope not, and I will tell you why. The news is designed for the masses. If you think about it, what are the masses doing right now? They are in panic over how horrible the economy supposedly is. Why are they that way? It’s all because the news tells it to them over and over again.

Why are people terrified to go out by themselves, to get on a plane or to buy a home? It’s because the media, or the news is telling them that it is dangerous, the market is crashing or there is some crazed maniac in the world. Thus, they acquire a fear. This fear is caused by a constant, consistent watching of or listening to the news.

We all know, if you repeat something over and over again, you get really good at it. Practice your jump shot over and over again, you will become great at shooting. It goes the opposite way just as easy. Practice being negative over and over again and you will become very negative. Practice listening to or watching the news over and over again and you will start to believe everything they tell you. It doesn’t matter if what they are saying is accurate, it just matters that you hear it every day. When you hear about a recession, bankruptcies and foreclosures happening all over the world, what does that do to your mindset. It puts you in a place of fear. Not just you but everyone else in the world that chooses to listen to or watch it.

I’ll tell you what, if you have ever wanted to be just like everyone else, sit there and watch the news. Because your mindset will be the same as theirs, terrified to take any sort of action.

If there is any advice I can give you now, limit your exposure to the news that has nothing to do with you. Unless you are looking for causes to donate to or assist with, you don’t deserve to know. When someone across the globe dies from a car accident, you do not deserve to know. Bad stuff happens. Dwelling on it will never move the world forward in a positive direction. Talking about a recession, a murder, a bankrupt mall owner, or whatever else over and over again, will never improve anything in YOUR life. Separate yourself from it all. Devote your time to causes that truly deserve your attention.

Take a look at Yahoos news titles. Are they always positive in nature? Most of the time they are not. 70% or more of all the titles you read there have to do with something negative about someone or something. I await the day when 90% of all titles are positive, uplifting and inspiring in nature. What will the world be like then?

The fact: the masses love the negativity. People thrive on it, are glued to it and are addicted to it. And it sucks them and they have no idea how they themselves became so negative. It is through small doses of consistent negativity.

So, how do we change this? How to we take a society that has always thrived on negativity, almost since the beginning of time, and teach them to be positive and self productive instead of negative and self destructive?

We do it by small doses of positivity, inspiration and motivation consistently. The same that created the monster will also destroy it. It all starts with you. What will you choose to allow into your mind today? I guess the question to ask yourself is ‘Will it serve you?’

Thoughts are very interesting and very powerful things. If you truly understood the effect they can have on your life’s destination, you would be  extremely conscious of which thoughts you entertain and which ones you quickly discard. Every thought you have either changes the current path you are on or completely makes a new one. I want you all to really understand that, so I will repeat it once again. Every thought you have either changes the current path you are on or completely leaves that path to make a new one.

Those who really understand the power of a thought know that by thinking a certain way, they are choosing a certain path. Thoughts can be recorded and used, in a sense, as a compass. Now this compass will point you in a certain direction, but this compass does not have a true north. It’s more like the compass Jack Sparrow uses in “Pirates of the Caribbean.” It only points the way to what you most desire in this world.

So is it fair to say that the things you think about all day long are the things you desire the most? I don’t think that statement is entirely accurate. Thoughts can be influenced by so many different circumstances, whether interior or exterior. People get into a rut, or can’t seem to break free from struggle because they just haven’t learned to control which thoughts they entertain. Thus, they just entertain nearly every thought that pops into their head, sending them spinning through life out of control, jumping from one path to the next completely at the whim of thoughts that do not serve them.

Here’s an example: Picture yourself standing in front of a thick jungle. There is no way to get through this jungle unless a path is created. Just in front of you you see a path that has been well traveled by. It seems like the easiest path to travel by as many have gone that way before. Sometimes, the easiest is not always the best choice, especially in the middle of a jungle. Predators know this path as well. They wait towards the end to find their prey. Danger lurks on this path. So you decide to change your path by taking out your machete, hacking away at the vines and jungle growth, creating your own path. You are in complete control of your direction. When a vine comes along, you can choose to allow it to deter you or you can just hack your way through, heading in the same direction.

At times is seems that just entertaining every thought that comes into your mind is the easiest way to go. It is the path that is most traveled by. I mean, it won’t effect your destination in the end right? It’s just a thought! Wrong! Entertaining every thought is like having a fruit salad with Salsa, Guacamole, peanut butter and jelly, chocolate, ketchup and and a big cup of mustard. It just doesn’t go together and quite frankly, just ain’t right! Eat that salad and you will likely end up in the hospital. The easiest decision may or may not end up being the easiest decision in the long run, as you usually pay for your decision later.

Learn to take out your machete and hack away at the thoughts that don’t serve you and stand as an obstacle on your chosen path. By learning this one simple discipline, you can literally change your course and ultimately change your world. If a thought does not serve you or move you closer to your most desired destination, replace it or discard it immediately. If you don’t like it, hack it away and move forward without it. It does not own you, it’s just a thought placed there by one of many sources. Sources that are not based within your own heart. Learn to discern between those that are and those that aren’t. It becomes easier with practice. I promise!

I truly hope you understand how simple it can be to veer off course and how simple it also can be to change your course. Just think your way there by controlling or choosing your thoughts. Then the saying, “Change your thoughts, change your world,” is a real thing. You truly do have complete control. You wonder why we only are able to use one third of our brain capacity? If most of the human race can’t even learn to master the third, how will it ever learn to master the other two thirds. Know your potential, and then choose it to be so!