Personal Motivation

My wife thinks I'm never listening. She says it all the time, "You're not even listening!" or "It doesn't matter because you're not going to hear this anyway." Some times she is definitely correct. I can't do two things at once. If I try to read email and hold a conversation - forget it - you can tell in a heart beat. That's my mea culpa.

But, some times she is wrong. I like to think its more than "some times" but that is a point that she and I can argue later. Some times, I am listening. And most of the time what she is saying makes sense. Last night she said something to the effect of "you don't need all of those motivational books, we [her and my son] she be enough [motivation] for you." Those aren't her exact words, I have a terrible memory for things that I hear vs. what I read.

But it struck a chord. While reading Napoleon Hill et. al is very helpful and inspiring, there is NOTHING more inspiring in the world than coming home at the end of the day to see my wife and my son. It truly is the best feeling in the world. And for that split second everything is perfect. Nothing matters, there are no worries, it is pure, simple joy. That is what I need to constantly remember - I can have that feeling any time I want, simply by walking in my front door. What a powerful thought.

I am going to capture that thought in my head and use it as my reserve from now on. I'm going to continue to read and learn and build from the foundation of the great writers, thinkers, and doers, but I am going to rely more on that "walk through the door" feeling to push me along. It is the best thing this world has to offer.

Definiteness of Purpose

"Definiteness of purpose is the starting point from which one must begin." - Napoleon Hill

Only is it when we truly decide with a definiteness of purpose what we want to achieve can we begin to achieve it. Random ideas, thoughts that swirl through our brain and tease us with our fleeting desires are no better than other fanciful thoughts of imagination not backed by any purpose or desire.

Until you decide to, with definiteness of purpose, pursue that idea you have no starting point for action, and therefore no ability to get moving towards your goal. You are stuck with great ideas and frustration from having no outlet. Put the purpose with the idea and then you have something powerful. A personal example:

For years I had always wanted to start a business. What type of business? One which I could make lots of money, of course. It didn't matter if it was to be a dot-com, a service business, consulting, or any other manner of enterprise; as long as I was making my fortune. And sure enough, with such a vague goal nothing came of these thoughts.

Then, after years of trying to figure out what type of business to start my brother-in-law came to me. His family said he should start a mortgage company; and he thought I would be a great partner. I agreed. Now my desire to start a business had a definite purpose. The purpose was to start a mortgage company. Now that the type of business was clearly in view I could move forward making it happen.

Within a week I had my best friend from college involved in the idea, ready to commit his money, licensing and time to make the business go with my brother-in-law and myself. And within a short three months we had the plans complete, the financing lined up and the business doors open to the world.

All it took was the definiteness of purpose to spur the action. It was not difficult, it was merely committing to the idea with a definiteness of purpose.

When you have an idea or desire, grab on to it, tie a definiteness of purpose to it and watch it go. With out a definite purpose the ideas have no where to put their creative energy to work. They just sail around with no direction. Once you give those thoughts the direction they need - by being totally committed to bringing an actual event to bear (not just any event, but a very specifically identified event) you can harness the immense power of those thoughts and make what you dream happen.

Pick a purpose based in your desire, and put all of your thought and energy in to bringing about that definite event. That is the only way to achieve.