Uncover the Incredible You!

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uncover the incredible you

Do you realize how incredible you are? Perhaps you have forgotten. Just for a few minutes we are going to focus on you. All 75 trillion cells that make up the “incredible you.” Let’s UNCOVER!

When you hold a child for the first time aren’t you astounded at the beauty and possibility in that tiny body? Why is it that when we are children we have no limits on our imaginations of what we can do or who we will be?

As adults, we must acquire those childlike attributes again if we are to ever accomplish our deepest dreams and desires.

Words, such as faith, confidence and vision are all powerful words. They are only words if we don’t put them into action.

How many of you set goals at the beginning of a new year? How many of you have accomplished some of those goals already?

Often times, our past impacts our future steps.

There was a young girl born into poverty to a single mother. This young girl was raped at age nine and became pregnant at age 14 and the baby died in infancy. This woman could have let her past records of being a victim and succumbing to the attitude of “this must be my lot in life.” But she did not. In fact, this woman is worth over 2.7 billion dollars today. This woman, if you haven’t already guessed is Oprah Winfrey.

Oprah could have let her past impact what she could have potentially become. She didn’t just survive life she put it behind her and thrived. She is an incredible example of uncovering her potential.

What is your potential? Have you given up on it? Are you exploring what exactly “it” is?

There is a scripture in the New Testament of the Holy Bible in 2nd Timothy Chapter 1 verse 7 which reads: “For God has not given us the spirit of fear but of power, and of love and of a sound mind.”

We have it within each one of us the potential to do and be an incredible power and force for good. You may have already begun to see that in your life. I truly hope so.

Each of us is born beautiful. We are! Remember when you see and hold a newborn – what it is you feel? As life unwinds for each of us, we may forget about the beauty within.

I have a wonderful friend that I knew many years ago named Susan. One evening we were together with a bunch of other beautiful and incredible women at a book club sleepover in the mountains at one of the member’s cabin in the high mountains of Utah. The conversation turned to how we viewed ourselves individually. I remember Susan declaring that she was not beautiful nor did she think she was and was “ok” with that. One of the other women made the comment about Susan’s daughters and how beautiful they are. She asked Susan “don’t you think your daughters are beautiful?” Susan answered “absolutely” – they look just like her. Even with all the convincing we tried, we could not get Susan to see the beauty that she has.

This experience haunted me. It made me realize that what we think or perceive is very important to our ability to experience joy, happiness and success. We have the power within our mind to change our reality. Our perception is our reality. What do you perceive about you? If you want to change your reality – then change your perception.

Some of you may be happy with the way your lives are going. That is wonderful! Think about why that is. What do you find about your life that gives you joy? Is it your family? How about your health? Could it be your work? Those avenues in your life that create a foundation for you to thrive such as an Oprah Winfrey are those anchors that you can hold on to when waves of disappointment, frustration or trial occur. When you look at others who you think have uncovered their full potential you may believe that they have it made and don’t experience any problems.

One thing that I continue to learn as each year passes is that we all have our own individual set of problems and issues. We have a choice, whether or not to let them define us or to greet them head on.

A very dear friend was telling me about an exercise that he recently went through. He mapped out where and what he wanted to be not in five years from now but started from the potential end of his life. He started at age 100 then worked back to the age he is now. This exercise was powerful because it puts into focus what is most important. Whether or not we achieve what we lay out is not as important as the process itself.

We may have a tendency to let life just happen to us rather than taking life by the steering wheel and driving the journey to where we want to go.

This potential is in each one of us.

You are each incredible individuals. You are destined for greatness. You each have a mission that only you can perform.

Any time you forget about how incredible you are – think about your why, think about your legacy; then go and do the impossible. For your journey is the possible just waiting to happen.

True Joy

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True Joy

Where do you find the most joy? What is joy to you? I am not referring to happiness. Happiness is a piece of joy. True joy typically involves another person besides us. Because of our inherent need to feel accepted, we need to have positive relationships with others.

You have probably heard it said that you have to give in order to get. But what about the principle of just giving, (what I will refer to in this article as charity)? What is charity? Do you know others that possess charity? What makes you drawn to that person? Let’s explore these questions, and through that exploration be able to find the secret to charity.

In Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary charity is described as the following: benevolent goodwill toward or love of humanity. The alternate description is: lenient judgment of others. Supreme charity is not an act but a condition or state of being.

Now that we have defined charity there are probably individuals that come to your mind. This state of being helps you endures all things. It is not easily provoked and it is patient. By exemplifying this trait we will attract goodness and prosperity into our lives. Let me share an example of one of the individuals in my life that continues to be someone that carries this enduring trait.

Her name is Anita. She was raised in a small town out west and grew up in a small family. She probably became a charitable person due, in large part, to the example of her mother. Anita has always given individuals the benefit of the doubt in her dealings with them. She has been patient when those closest to her have disappointed her. She has opened her home to strangers from different lands when it wasn’t convenient for her to do so.

She thrived professionally because she understood that her co-workers were human and that love and patience will make us all successful in the end. Because of her charitable nature, she attracted others to her. We all like to do business with people we like and who we feel truly likes us. Lastly, she has shared her mental, physical, emotional and financial resources to help others through their time of need or to help them achieve their goals.

I have seen Anita forgive others that have used or abused her, and in return she has loved and cared for them in very personal ways. I am grateful to have her as someone I can look to as an example. We all need these individuals in our lives. They give us hope, and teach us that goodness is within all of us.

By being charitable we purge ourselves of selfishness. I believe by ridding ourselves of selfishness, we are able to be more open to what life has to offer us and the opportunities that are there to capitalize and experience joy. If we are closed and don’t give, we limit our potential to achieve our goals and reach the success we dream of. With this trait we are able to expand our network.

It has been stated that successful individuals are “go givers.” They look for opportunities to give of themselves and their resources. They understand that true joy comes in giving. Why do the holidays bring out the best in everyone? Some would argue that they have become so commercialized, but I would argue that in the end people feel good because they are losing themselves in the thoughts and actions of serving others.

Charity is not the trait of someone who lets themselves be walked on or taken advantage of. Some people probably would associate charity as being weak. I disagree. It takes a strong individual who can find the good in every experience in life and the lesson to be learned.

In business, the opportunity to show charity can have long lasting effects and implications. How could you show more charity in your work? First, outline what is acceptable and not acceptable behavior for dealing with all groups such as clients, partners and employees. By developing a code and enforcing it, those who experience your entity will discover that you say what you mean and mean what you say.

By being involved in the community and providing goodwill you will attract more business and true joy in your professional life. Those organizations and individuals that understand the timeless principle that giving is better than receiving are open to change and have the ability to maneuver through trials or upsets.

Giving is one of the ways that we can breathe confidence into our organizational lives. Even as an individual we reap the benefits of giving. I have personally found that when I give, the joys, and often time’s tangible rewards, are tenfold. Being known as a “go giver” will open doors and improve your results in all you attempt to do. True joy is when we lose ourselves in the service of others.

Linda’s Tip of the Week: Listening Builds Confidence

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If you want to have more confidence practice listening! Listening builds confidence. Listening also helps you become a more effective leader.

We want to be around confident individuals. When we are around confident individuals, we feel more at ease.

We all love to connect with individuals in organizations who truly listen to us. We can create a more successful and fulfilling life when we practice active listening.

You can tell when others are not “really” listening. To be an effective listener, the individual needs to feel he/she understands. This lets the one speaking feel validated and important.

Swallowed Pride

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Swallowed Pride

As I dialed the phone number my heart was racing. This was a phone call I never dreamed I would be making. Swallowing my pride I began to tell my parents the latest news; my family had to move because we had financially taken too much on and we would be losing our home.

That phone called happened over 10 years ago. Now we are living in part of the country that we never thought we would and achieving financial goals that we only dreamed about. When adversity hits us it can be a gift. This gift of swallowed pride can teach us and help us grow.

Thomas S. Monson stated “decisions determine our destiny.” I continue to see this day after day, month after month and through the years that march on. Even the smallest decision can impact what our future brings us. What we can learn from this is that having a plan, and being educated about the consequences of the plan, will help guide our journey.

What do you want your destiny to be? What decisions today are putting that destiny in jeopardy?
Disappointments come, that is a part of life. What we do with the disappointments and how we let them affect us is what develops our character and gives us stories to tell.

I would never have thought 10 years ago that I would be living in a warm climate, which my personality and temperament thrives in. I watched as my family grew closer, my marriage was saved and my career exploded all due to something at the time I was judging as a misfortune. The human tendency is to ask, “why me?” but if we can turn that around and pursue “what can I learn from this?” instead, then we grow and are strengthened.

There is a brighter tomorrow and by putting pride aside we will discover more about ourselves and our world then we could ever have imagined.

Straddling the Fence

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Straddling the Fence

I was raised on beautiful farmland in southeastern Idaho, I had many occasions where I found myself straddling a fence. We had a couple of different types of fencing on our large farm and ranch.

We had electric barb-wire fences on our property. It was pretty tricky jumping over them and not getting shocked. I learned pretty fast how not to touch the fence. Then as I got older, my parents invested in these beautiful white wood fences. They were tall enough that the horses couldn’t jump over and low enough that the calves from the cows couldn’t crawl under.

When climbing over that white fence I could straddle or sit on it. This gave me a higher perspective. I could watch what was happening in the corral.

Like the fence, there are moments in our personal and business lives where we are indecisive. We may question whether to “cross” the fence, sit on the fence or go back the way we came. There is a saying that is true, “you’re either sliding or climbing but never standing still.”

Once you have decided to head down a particular path, you have begun the commitment process. If we make a commitment and pursue that course of action we will feel like we are climbing because we took the action. When we stop and take no action then we begin to slide. We can always change course but the beauty of that is we are still climbing because of the action.

In my office hangs a picture with the word commitment on it. The quote, “determination is often the first chapter in the book of excellence” is under the word commitment. The picture is one of a runner in the early hours of the morning and set in a wooded rough terrain.

The reason I selected this picture was that I knew there may be days that are tough or hard. There would be days I would want to quit. But the runner in the picture reminds me of a goal I had and completed several years ago of running in every state of the country. Not only does the picture remind me of that goal I accomplished, it inspires me to stay focused on my new goal.

Sometimes I may try to straddle the fence but when I do I feel like my confidence is diminishing and my power as well. Taking action and striving for improvement has produced positive results.

All you have to do is climb the fence and explore the other side.