5 ways to keep your Comfort Zone from Smothering You

"Opportunities are usually disguised as hard work, so most people don't recognize them." ~ Ann Landers

My family and I were on vacation in California, and it was the time of year right before fall when the vacation crowds are gone and the pool is on the edge of being too cold to swim in and enjoy. The water felt great in the mid afternoon, but once the sun went down it started to feel borderline icy. You know that scared feeling and anticipation you get on the edge of a pool when your anticipating the water might be cold enough to take your breathe away and you are about to jump in?

Well, don't jump in dummy? Right? Easy fix. I agree, except I had an excited 4 year old and 2 year old that had been waiting to go swimming with their Dad all day. This stinks. So, I knew I was going in, and before I could count to "1" my 2 year old was in the pool, it took her breathe away and she started swimming and having a ball. And splash, just like that my 4 year old was in and begging for me. Do you remember your younger days when your comfort zone was big enough to handle a cold pool? I do, vaguely. But, somewhere along the line I only started swimming when it was a perfect 85 degrees. I got so used to the comfort of warm swimming water in AZ, my comfort zone had shrunk in so far that I probably would not even be able to swim, at all, in my old state of New York. It's just too cold.

A funny thing happens if we aren't paying attention, just like a frog will not jump out of a pot of hot water as long as the temperature raises gradually, we get stuck in a forever shrinking comfort zone. We all do it, it's part of being human; to seek the comfortable, to walk the path of least resistance.

It used to be easy to jump in cold water, meet strangers, interview for a new job, run a mile, get involved at great risk to yourself for a leadership role, ask your spouse out, tell your friends they mean the world to you, stand up for yourself or someone else, put yourself out there, take a financial risk, or any risk at all for that matter, and the list goes on.

When did you quit jumping into cold water? What has your shrinking comfort zone stolen from you? Playing with your kids, a chance at a better life, new friends, passion? Whatever it is, it's probably more than you are willing to admit.

Here are a few things you can do to expand the comfort zone:

1. Jump in and quit thinking. We "over think" everything as adults. And often without progress.

2. When all is said and done. Be the one who did more than was said. Quit talking about what you will do someday and start being the one who did it, and then talk.

3. Do one thing every day that pushes you off the edge. You know when your on the edge. So, everyday jump in once for a few minutes - meet the stranger, take a risk, do the unexpected, ask for the raise.

4. Play. You can always find ways to play and have a good time. The older we get, it seems the more intentional we have to be, but you can do it. Have fun with life, even when the environment you're in doesn't seem to be "play friendly."

5. Pick up a new hobby. Even if it doesn't stick, pick it up and look at it anyway. Cooking, art, outdoors, biking, running, games with friends, pogo sticks :), support a cause, volunteer, and you get the idea.

Expanding comfort zones nationally and encouraging you to jump in before you get too comfortable to enjoy life,

Jon Bohm

Cleaning Up

Quick question: You walk into a room and you see that the room is flooded. On the far wall a sink is running on full blast and there is a mop leaning against the wall. What do you do?

This is the same scenario I see at many companies I walk into, and there is one of 3 choices that is actively being pursued:

1. The entire team is mopping like crazy - "this economy!" "run faster and work harder" or we will never get this cleaned up!

2. They walk in the flooded room- look around....and then leave. It's too much of a mess, let's just close the door and go back to sticking our head in the sand.

3. They turn off the faucet. Then they mop like crazy.

The choice is yours as you lead your organization. I recommend turning off the faucet by finding the root cause of negative results, behavior, or culture. To change behavior without changing the root cause is going to require a lot of mopping for a long time... in wet clothes. Nobody likes that.

Is it time to clean up your organization or life? Is it time to turn off the running faucet?

Making wet businesses dry,

Jon Bohm

Reinventing Yourself - What next?

If I were to wish for anything, I should not wish for wealth and power, but for the passionate sense of potential, for the eye which , ever young and ardent, sees the possible.- Soren Kierkegaard

I was hanging out with my 4 year old son the other day and I was impressed with the excitement he finds in all the little things in life like learning a new word, understanding how something works, the adventure of playing in the backyard, and eating a new food. His energy and adventure is contagious. As we get older, and we have lived a full life and tried everything under the sun. We can have the tendency to write off all the things we don't like and embrace what we do enjoy, this causes the excitement and passion for life and new adventure to fade.

For example, I would love to get my pilot's license and then fly the country in my own airplane. This is an adventure and it would be an incredible thrill for me. My Dad, on the other hand, has had his pilot's license - he has been there and done that. The excitement has worn off, so what's next? Maybe for my Dad it's time to get some buddies together and build their own plane, time to take a passion and reinvent it. Re-create it with fresh perspective and new skills.

Once you have traveled the world, fought in 2 world wars, lived, loved and know yourself well. What is left? What excitement, challenge, and fervor for life and adventure is there? Maybe it's time to re-invent yourself?

Is it time for you to get some new energy from an old passion? Is it time to date your spouse again? Renew your vows? Check an item off the bucket list? Build something? Find a new talent? Or maybe the greatest reinvention is to plant seeds off your tree of experience into the life and mind of someone else?

Enjoy this true story:

Anna Mary Moses loved to do needlework. She had been enjoying it since before she was married. But as she began to get older, she started to lose some of the dexterity in her hands through arthritis. By the time she was eighty, she could no longer perform even the simplest stitches. Therefore she decided to try something different—painting. The brushes were easy enough to handle, even with her arthritis, so she took it up full time, mostly painting farm and country scenes.

One day a traveling art collector stopped for a bite to eat in her town and saw her pictures in a drugstore. He decided that he liked them, and in a very short time the name of Grandma Moses was known throughout the art world. Although Grandma Moses didn’t even start painting until she was eighty years old, she was able to create over fifteen hundred works of art in her lifetime. She had an international following, and prominence as a world-class painter.

All this because she was forced to quit her favorite pastime and take up a new one.

Success cannot be measured in time, or what anyone else thinks. It's personal and powerful when you are reaching your own goals. Never stop learning, dreaming, and re-inventing the wonderful life you have been given. The world is a playground, and there is always something new to explore. Sometimes the greatest exploration is done inside your own mind and life.

Dream it, find it, and live it. After all... this is YOUR one shot at life.

Jon Bohm

A Star is Born

"Many an opportunity is lost because a (wo)man is out looking for four-leaf clovers." ~ Anon

I was reading my son is bedtime story and it happened to include an interesting story about how a star is born in space. It requires 3 major elements for the star to be born; gas, gravity, and timing. Read more about the science behind this here.

What a great metaphor for each of us. We all want to be "stars" in our own world, family, industry, or peer group. We want to make a difference to bring the right things together and maybe the biggest motivator - we want to be recognized for it. We want to shine, brightly!

It's easy to think that this is a function of luck.

• If I had their background, looks, luck, than I would be a star too
• If I had bought when they bought I would be rich too
• If my daddy owned "x" company I would be in the right circles
• If my kids were born without that disability

The more I work with people in a behind the scenes capacity with widely successful people the more I realize there is no four leaf clover, there is no lucky situation, and there is no lottery ticket. The magic bullet to success doesn't exist.

What appears to be lucky timing or lucky resources is not luck at all - it's simply preparation, passion to find resources, and the ability to expect opportunity (timing.) 3 ingredients that happen out of purpose and direction. To the skeptical outsider it appears to be lucky. But, it's not.

You want to be a star? 3 simple ingredients must exist to shine brightly -

1. Prepare yourself to become who you want to become. You want to be a star, act like one, now.

2. Find your passion and you will find the resources. Trust me, if you want it badly enough you will find the resources- or they will find you.

3. Look for opportunity with an expectation, a certainty of someone who knows the sun will rise tomorrow.

Stars are born everyday, in every economy, industry, and family. The only question is: will YOU look inside for the opportunity and put the ingredients in place or will continue to look for four leaf clovers and lottery tickets?

Expecting great things for you!

Jon Bohm

Dog Cakes on the Path to Success

"Your sweetest successes always come after some of your most sour mistakes."

Confusing a mistake for a failure is a common thing to do. We often (mentally or emotionally) think and feel that a mistake or a trial and error is a failure to some degree, but really it's just a part of your next success.

You haven't failed until you quit making mistakes, and therefore quit moving forward.

A client of mine told me a great story of Saturday pancake breakfasts at his house growing up. His Dad would be up earlier than everyone else and his Dad would start to make pancakes for the family. The smell would fill the house and by the time they got up, there was coffee brewing and a giant stack of perfectly golden pancakes. The family dog was normally a beggar, but never begged on Saturday mornings. Because, as it turns out, every Saturday before the family was up- Dad would burn the first batch of pancakes, which he gave to the family dog. These were the "Dog Cakes."

The "Dog Cakes" had to be made, they had to burn the oil off the pan before you could ever get to the golden brown beauties that came next. The "Dog Cakes" were a right of passage, an important part of the journey towards a perfect pancake.

When you start a new venture, launch a new product, make your first cold calls, try to connect emotionally, give a speech for the 1st time since high school, or anything else- be ready and willing to have some "dog cakes." But, don't confuse a few "dog cakes" with failure.

"Dog cakes" are not failures, or even mistakes, they are a part of the process to the perfect success. Don't be afraid of them. Don't run from opportunity because of them. Rather embrace them.

Believe me, your greatest successes will come after a short stack of "dog cakes." The faster you burn the oil off the pan the faster you will taste sweet success.

Hungry for Life-

Jon Bohm

The Choice YOU have to Make Today

“Far better is it to dare mighty things, to win glorious triumphs, even though checked by failure...than to rank with those poor spirits who neither enjoy much nor suffer much, because they live in a gray twilight that knows not victory nor defeat.” - Theodore Roosevelt

I went for a hike in some of the mountains near my house the other day and it got me thinking about all the comparisons that can be made between a hike in the mountains and life. One in particular jumped out at me.

When I started my hike, I had to choose which path I would take. The trail map showed a rating for each trail based on:

• Ruggedness of terrain
• Elevation height
• Elevation change

I chose, as I often do in life, to take the most challenging trail. I want the one with the highest peaks and the lowest valleys, I want the one with the hardest trail that can take my breathe out of my lungs and replace it with a burning sensation, the one that makes my legs ache and burn. But, this trail also offers me the greatest breathtaking views, the greatest sense of accomplishment, and the greatest overall rewards.

We have to make this same choice everyday. If you get married you are choosing a path with much higher highs and much lower lows than a single person will have. If you open a business, likewise higher highs and lower lows. If you step out and volunteer to give that speech, to write that book, to handle that challenging situation at work, to commit to a workout program, to ask that person out...you get the idea. Anytime we choose to step into the ring and pick the rugged trail in life with the most elevation change, you are picking a different life than the majority of people who are simply content to go for a stroll on a smooth flat path that will never experience the breath taking views nor the pain of the climb.

Which path have you chosen in your life? Which path will you choose in the future? Which path will you take today?

As for me, call it a curse, but I have to take the rugged trail to the top, the view is just to amazing to pass up on.

See you on the trail, I hope to see at the top!

Enjoy the Climb!

Jon Bohm

New Year + Focus = New YOU!

"I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they do their lives. Perhaps that's because escape is easier than change."

- Jim Rohn

2010 is here! I hope you are as excited as I am!

I don't mean to be over excited, but as a cancer survivor, I take every milestone as a chance to celebrate life. What it means to be here for 2010 is more than words can ever describe. So congratulations...YOU are here for 2010 as well!

If you are anything like me, you are expecting 2010 to be your best year yet. Not just because 2009 seemed to have so many challenges for so many people, but because you are continually BECOMING a better person-who brings more value and good to those around you-every year. That is exciting!

I have a few things planned for this year. I have a new plan to be a better coach, father, and husband. I have Financial, Family, Friends, Fitness, and Fun goals that I will be working toward. All of them require resources and mental shifts from where I am now to where I will be by the year end. What about for you? What do you have planned for 2010?

Whatever it is, I'm sure it's a laundry list to some degree--similar to mine. Do you know the best way to insure hardly any of it happens? I do...DON'T focus on any ONE thing.

I have recently taken up bird hunting which is great fun and great food :) (Sorry bird lovers.) When I walk within 10 feet of the right bush I can see 20 doves come out and fly all over the place. I have about 2 seconds to take a shot. What I have found is that if 20 fly out, I hardly ever walk away with even ONE!!! I see them, I hear them, I get crazy excited and I don't seem to have enough time to pick ONE out of the crowd. So, I take a random shot and nothing happens. BUT...if I walk near a different bush and only ONE flies out...then I'm having dove for breakfast!!

The New Year will be the same for me, and I bet for you, if you have 20 goals all flying out of YOU at the same time. You will be lucky to walk away from 2010 with even one goal completed and in the bag.

We have to FOCUS, focus, and (I will say it again) focus. We will have to pick ONE goal out of the crowd and take a shot, before we ever move on. So, here is a practical and easy guide I recommend for making 2010 be productive and successful in BECOMING a better YOU:

1. Make a list of the top 5 things you would like to change about you, or your circumstances. (For me, I'm starting with getting back in shape)
2. Answer this question; "If you could change one thing in your life that would have the greatest positive impact on your life in 2010, what would it be?" Do not move to step 3 until you have a confident answer for number 2. Many of my clients say something with the five "F's" (Financial, Family, Friends, Fitness or Fun) for number 2 in some way. What is yours? Got it?
3. Ok, now number 3 is to separate that goal from the crowd, and make it specific and put a time frame on it. What will you do and when will you do it?
4. Now, put everything else on the shelf, and set your sights on only that one change.
5. Ask yourself; What do I have to know? What do I have to do? Who do I have to become? for that goal to be in the bag by the date I set?
6. Go get it! Protect it, focus on it, resource it. Do not rest or look at another goal until you achieve it.

Although for me, goal achievement is an art that requires skill, time, commitment and usually some professional help, the take away that I want you to get (which is 90% of the process) is to FOCUS on that one thing.

I am convinced that one of the biggest reasons that so many people live in mediocrity with so much available in our world, is because so much is AVAILABLE that we lose focus.

A new year is here. The pages are blank for 2010. It is time to write the first page. Pick one thing--only one thing--and FOCUS on it until completion. Then move onto the next thing until completion, and so on. Write the greatest story of your life...ONE page at a time...in 2010.

Live a great story!

Jon Bohm

YOUR personal, business, and strategy coach

When You are in a funk... H.A.L.T

Anger is a secondary emotion. You have to kill the root.

On a regular basis I have a client or a friend, kids, or myself that have a day you could put in the funk category. A day when you are not firing on all cylinders so to speak.

Have you ever had a day like that? We all do? The occasional emotional setback. No big deal, right?

Depends, I guess on the day. If you spend your day in a funk instead of landing that new client it could have long term effects. I tell every client I have, if you are going to be an entrepreneur you have to embrace the fact that you don't get the luxury of a crappy attitude, self pitty, or even a funk for very long if at all.

So, how do we avoid the funk? How do we keep the funky day from becoming a funky week, month, year, or your life? I can't cover it all in a little blog post but I will give you this. In almost every situation when you find yourself in a funk it's because 1 of 4 things; you allowed yourself to become too:

H.ungry

A.ngry

L.onely or

T.ired

Next time you feel yourself slipping into the funk, stop (halt) and ask yourself; "Am I too hungry, angry, lonely, or tired?" The answer is yes 98 % of the time. So, stop and fix it, or take regular daily checks to keep the funk at bay.

It turns out my Mom new how to keep the funky days at bay with sleep, the right diet, good friends, and emotional health. And that alone can be a great New Year's resolution.

Happy New Year and Cheers to the good life.

Live a great story in 2010!

Jon Bohm

Are you living a STORY?

Are You Living a Story worth telling?

I am in the middle of a great book by Donald Miller "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years."

Great book, and it's all about "story." What makes a great story? What makes a story worth watching, reading, or even living?

It got me thinking about my life..... am I living a story? Would anyone watch it as a movie? Would anyone read it? Does anyone care? Or, would I have to add a bunch of things to my boring life to make it a real "story?"

I have concluded, I am living a story. I don't know that anyone would watch it, but it is an epic story. What about you?

Are you living a story?

Every great story meets the following criteria:

• It has a character that wants something so bad that they are willing to overcome any obstacle, run through any wall, and conquer any mountain to get it. Without that, you don't have a story. You are the character in your story, are you on an adventure towards something you want? What is it? Are you willing to overcome the obstacles to realize your dreams?

• Every story starts with a look into the character's life and mind. The story shows you that the character is a "good" person, a person making in a difference in some way. Why? Because, nobody cares if the character wins in the end if we don't know they are a "good" person, making a difference. Are you making a significant difference? Does the world see an impact because of you in some big or small way? Do people want you to win in the end? Do people rally around you and your cause? Or, are you standing idly by?

• In every story the character doesn't really and truly make changes towards the life they want until something makes them move. Someone loses a job, loses a spouse, loses an opportunity, loses a life, a friend, or focus and they are finally forced or driven to change. Are you saying you want to do, see, get, or be someone someday? What is it? Why don't you have it yet? Are you waiting for an event to make you move? What has to happen in your life before you are willing to go after the life you want? What can you do to make it happen now?

Just some thoughts. So, are you living a story?

Let me tell you; I want you to win in the end. I want you to make a move now. I want you to want something so bad you begin to really, really live a story.

The pages are blank moving forward, it's time to start writing your own epic. If you need help putting pen to paper and make your move, just give me a shout. After all, you only get one time around on this life? Don't stand idly by.

Live YOUR STORY-

Jon Bohm

What do you WANT?

Living your entire life always doing what you SHOULD can give you a safe predictable life that leaves you completely disappointed in the end because you never answered the honest and simple question of “What do I WANT?”- Jon Bohm

What do YOU want?

I mean really what do you want, not what you SHOULD want, but what do you really WANT?

Sometimes those things are the same. I should go to work today and I WANT to go to work today. Great! That is an important distinction. When you live your life the way you should instead of the way you want your heart, emotions, desires, and mind are sitting on the sideline as you live your dutiful existence moving through the motions without passion.

What are you doing in your life that you SHOULD be doing?

What are you NOT doing that you SHOULD be doing?

I should go to church. I did go to church because I SHOULD.

I should go home and hang with my family. I did go home and hang with the family because I SHOULD.

I should make that sales call. I made the call because I SHOULD.

I SHOULD take my spouse out. ETC. ETC.

What is it that you do without emotional passion and desire because you SHOULD?

Now, don’t take me wrong I’m not saying we all need to ignore whatever we SHOULD be doing. Instead of ignoring, we have to make the mental and attitudinal shift to quit saying I SHOULD and change it to I WANT to do this.

Most of the time it’s as simple as catching your self in the middle of a SHOULD and simply replacing the word SHOULD with WANT. It’s time to get YOUR passions and emotions off the bench and into the game of life.

The bottom line is you have an incredible life to live. Start living it because you WANT to and stop living it because you SHOULD. It’s time for YOU to get emotional involved in YOUR life. If you need help making the switch, please contact me anytime!

May we hit the ground living the life we WANT to live today!

Enjoy Life!

Jon Bohm

The Most Powerful things in Life are SIMPLE BUT NOT EASY

"Everyone needs someone to help them take action on the simple things in life, because simple is not EASY."- Jon Bohm

In high school I wore a baseball cap that had the name brand "SIMPLE" on the front. SIMPLE is a great clothing and shoe manufacturer. I had a boss that would always make fun of me for wearing that hat. His jokes always themed around the idea that to be simple is to be slow... and basically a moron.

As you can imagine, I'm over it now- ok I still have a little resentment :). As a matter of fact, I couldn't disagree with that assumption (that "simple" means you can't even tie your own shoes) more! The mark of a brilliant person is to be able to take complicated ideas and make them simple enough to be useful and practical.

The greatest things in life are simple:

• Love
• Friendship
• Compassion
• Making Money
• Saving Money
• Starting a new healthy habit in the New Year
• Quitting an old unhealthy habit
• Staying active
• Eating Healthy
• Improving your quality of life
• Raising truly great kids
• Developing greatness in others
• Making the world, or at least your world, a better place

Maybe, as you were reading that list you started to disagree with me? What do you think? Simple? Is it simple to love your spouse? Is it simple to raise great kids? Is it simple to make money? To eat healthy, make the world a better place....etc?

Of course. It is SIMPLE. However, it is NOT EASY. Somewhere a long the line I believe just about everything in our culture has confused simple with easy.

For example, if you want to stop smoking it's not complicated. All you have to do is not put another cigarette in your mouth, don't light it, and don't puff on it. This is not rocket science. If you want to eat healthy all you have to do is put healthy food into your mouth, chew, and swallow. Again not rocket science. But NOT easy either.

So, let me ask you. If you could change anything in your life and improve on some things, what would you change?

Take a moment....ok got it?

Now, let's be real honest, is it a simple change?

I would be willing to bet all 3 of those things could realistically change in the next 12 months. Could they? If so, than why haven't you changed them already? What is getting in your way? What simple thing has become complicated or difficult and why?

Let me ask another question? Are you becoming more and more, everyday, the person YOU WANT to be in the future? Are you pulling your future into your present? If you are stuck in a rut, or if you know what simple things you need to change, than change them and don't make it complicated. Or, reach out for help. I help people every single day accomplish SIMPLE but not EASY things that they never thought were possible!

If you need help, reach out.... to family, to friends, to a professional like myself, or all the above and get your life moving. Just because it's simple doesn't mean it's easy, and it doesn't give you an excuse to just keep saying that "someday" I will be different and quit smoking, start a business, love my spouse better, make more money, etc."

Enjoy your life and make changes NOW, because "Someday" never comes without changing things NOW.

Jon Bohm

Be a Stuntman...not a Dare Devil

I am a lucky, lucky person. - Evel Knievel

Are you a lucky person?  Or are you unlucky?  

Have you ever noticed that how much luck someone has is directly proportionate to how much risk they are willing to take?  

Why do some people have the midas touch? 

While the touch of so many others seems to turn things into ashes?  Have you ever noticed that some people just seem to be luckier than others?

Take scenario one:  you become a "dare devil" and jump out of a perfectly good airplane with no plan, without the knowledge, and without the hard work in preparing for your jump. If you survive, well than, you are lucky, maybe even miraculous to some degree. 

However, take scenario 2:  if you plan and bring a parachute, than you learn how to use your parachute, and you work hard to prepare for your jump on the ground or in a wind tunnel than your odds of being lucky  and surviving are dramatically better than the first scenario.

In both situations you jump from the same plane.  In both situations your risk is the same.  But in scenario number 2, your chances of getting lucky are very high.  Because, you planned your risk with meticulous work like a stuntman who strategically thinks his stunt through, not a daredevil who just jumps.

So, what about business and getting lucky?

The entrepreneur that takes a gamble and opens a widely successful business in the worst recession our country has seen since the great depression, lucky?

The investor who fires his financial planner and takes matters into his own hands, and turns a profit of 40 k a week instead of losing it when everyone around him told him to "Buy and hold."  What do you think, lucky?

The stay at home mom who opens her own on-line store, only to get so many orders she can't keep up.  Lucky?

My answer is....Yes, very lucky.  

However, my definition of luck has an equation.  Luck doesn't happen to everyone.  Why do some people seem to be luckier than others?

Over the years of working with many people, in many industries, I have found what I believe to be the equation to how lucky an organization or person may become.  I trust it so much, that I consider it to be a fortune telling equation on how lucky someone will be.

Stop and think.  What is a new adventure or thing you may want to try?  Ok, got one in mind?

Using a scale of 1-10.  1 being poor and 10 being excellent.  Rate your future idea in each of the following categories:

• 1-10 - How much risk is involved?
  
• 1-10 - How strategic have I been?  And how many resources have I put into my plan for success?
  
• 1-10 - How hard have I worked toward my success?
  

After honestly rating your new venture in each of the above categories, you have a possible 30 points available.  Simply add up your total score and divide it by 30 and that is the percentage I give you on getting "lucky" and succeeding.

It is a law of the universe.  The more you risk, the better you plan, and the harder you work... the "luckier" you will be.  Is it possible to get "lucky" with a 10% chance?  You bet.  But, you can increase your odds of getting lucky in every situation with some hard work, high tolerance for risk, and a great strategic mind.

So, how lucky are you?  I guess it depends on how bad you want to be lucky.  And how much effort you put into increasing your odds. 

It seems to me... that the harder I work, the better I plan, and the more risk involved, the luckier I am.

May you become one of the "luckiest" people around, and when all the unlucky people watch your life, they just won't be able to understand why YOU are sooo lucky.

Enjoy Life!

Jon Bohm 

Self Fulfilling Prophecy

Self-Fulfilling prophecy is a tough concept to understand. But if you can tap into your capabilities and then see and understand the potential you have. Then, remember the reasons you have to believe in yourself, you will in fact conquer your biggest fears and accomplish what you say you can.

But the opposite is true all the time. If you say you "Can't" then you most definitely will not.

William Purkey tells a great little allegory concerning the value of feeling good about ourselves:

A mouse ran into the office of the Educational Testing Service and accidentally triggered a delicate point in the apparatus just as the College Entrance Examination Board’s data on one Henry Carson was being scored.
Henry was an average high-school student who was unsure of himself and his abilities. Had it not been for the mouse, Henry’s score would have been average or less, but the mouse changed all that, for the scores that emerged from the computer were amazing—800s in both the verbal and quantitative areas.

When the scores reached Henry’s school, the word of his giftedness spread like wildfire. Teachers began to re-evaluate their gross under-estimation of this fine lad, counselors trembled at the thought of neglecting such talent, and even college admissions officers began to recruit Henry for their schools.
New worlds opened for Henry, and as they opened he started to grow as a person and as a student. Once he became aware of his potentialities and began to be treated differently by the significant people in his life, a form of self-fulfilling prophecy took place. Henry began to put his mind in the way of great things. . . Henry became one of the best men of his generation.

We can apply this concept to our every day life and business in simple ways. When we have a week, a day, an hour, or a conversation that goes bad we will begin to "Self-talk" at an alarming rate and in that moment we have a tendency to say some negative things about ourselves, our abilities, our products, our ideas, or our companies. Of course none of these things are usually true but in that moment that couldn't be more real.

Using a simple tool called "Affirmations" is an easy and simple way to combat the negative self talk that could arise during a work day.

Affirmations are an expression of the person you know you need to be to achieve the results you want.
An affirmation is a self-fulfiling prophecy that should be placed in a place you can read them daily- in the car- in the bathroom- at your desk - on the office wall- etc.

"I am a great sales person"
"I like to eat healthy"
"I make 500 k a year"
"LIfe is Good"
"Today is an awesome day"

Let me encourage you to write 3 and only 3 affirmations on a 3 x 5 card and read it 3 times a day.

Use the following criteria to write a great affirmation:
-Make it 1st person
-Present tense
-Positive
-Within your realm of belief

I know most of us automatically picture the Saturday night Live Skit and think this can sound a little hokus pokus, but it works. And in my world if it works and gets results then it has value.

I dare you to try it and watch your self talk, self image, and results change for the better!

After all life IS Good and it's just getting better!

- Enjoy Life Today!
Jon Bohm

Connecting Emotionally

“Perhaps it is easy for those who have never felt the stinging darts of  segregation to say, “Wait.” But when you have seen vicious mobs lynch  your mothers and fathers at will and drown your sisters and brothers at  whim.... when you are forever fighting a degenerating sense of  “nobodiness” then you will understand why we find it difficult to wait.” - Martin Luther King Jr. 1963 - Letter from a Birmingham Jail

Have you ever been around someone who was really, I mean really, able to walk in your shoes?  Not just say they understand, but really feel what you feel?  That is the secret of compassion.

I once heard a friend say that being heard is so close to be loved that most people can't tell the difference.  How well do you listen to those in your life?  How well do you feel the pain of your prospects?  How good are you at feeling what others feel?

Often, when I am working with a team of sales people they want to know how to "Close" better or "sell" better.  But, the greatest sales secret in the world is to be a great listener, practice compassion, ask great questions, and walk in your prospect's shoes.  When you can feel what they feel then you are connecting emotionally with their issues.

In a sales situation it is tempting to talk a lot and show the prospect how much you know about your product.  And think you are closing the sale, you couldn't be more wrong.  Your prospect doesn't care how much you know about your product, they care how much you understand their problem, pain, or challenge.

You can't learn about someone's pain or walk in their shoes by talking.  So close your mouth and start listening, or better yet, start feeling what they feel.

A good system is to never tell anybody anything (especially about their situation) until you know these 3 things:

• What are they thinking?
• What are they feeling?
• What are they experiencing?

...in this situation.  After you have asked enough questions, clarified enough answers, and felt enough of their pain to understand their situation thoroughly-only then should you venture out on the limb and dare to explain that what you offer is a good fit for them.

The decision to buy something is not logical it is an emotional decision that has to be justified logically.  It wasn't until our country truly felt the pain of segregation that people justified changing the culture.  Thanks to great speeches that allowed a hate filled and hurt society to see, and more importantly feel, the pain it was creating.

May we all learn to get outside ourselves long enough to feel what those around us feel.  Connecting with each other emotionally is the greatest tool to there is to helping people change.

Practice the white magic of listening and see your relationships and profits grow!

Enjoy Life today!

Jon Bohm

Believe YOU can then SEE it happen

Some things have to be believed to be seen. ~Ralph Hodgson, The Skylark and Other Poems 

One of the greatest facts of human behavior I have seen in all the people I work with is that if you think you can...you can.  And if you think you can't...you are right about that too.

Working with athletes ranging from Pro- Golf to Basketball- it is true that if you can't visualize and really believe that you can make that putt, hit the shot, or nail that drive you just won't do it.  Sometimes the greatest hurdle stopping us from achieving the life we say we want is simply our own ability to BELIEVE WE CAN.

What about you?  What is a success you want in your life?  Do you believe you can do it?

Sometimes we have habits of thoughts that stop us.  Maybe from your family, an old coach, a past experience, something we made up out of thin air that stops us from believing we CAN.

Do any of these habits of thought stop you:

• You have to have money to make money
• Being wealthy is not Spiritual
• I don't deserve it
• My family didn't raise me to care about money
• I don't have those talents
• Getting your Masters is a long hard road.
• I'm not smart enough

The list goes on.  They are all lies, all roadblocks to keep you from the critical step of believing you can, should, or will do it.

Sometimes things have to be believed to be seen.  Practice BELIEVING, have a lot of FAITH in God, in you, in your abilities.  But believe it and then you will see it.

May we BELIEVE we can and experience the abundant life you have available even if you can't see it just yet.

Enjoy Life Today!

Jon Bohm

Defeated is Temporary, don't make it Permanent

“Being defeated is often only a temporary condition.  Giving up is what makes it permanent.” – MARILYN VOS SAVANT – Recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records Hall of Fame for the highest recorded IQ.

Do you ever wake up and just feel “defeated?”

 We all have days that are “bad” days; we lose a deal, an employee or friend doesn’t make a crucial phone call, the bid goes to someone else, the news station says we will “never” recover,  your phone is on the fritz, you feel sick, find out bad news, or get chewed out by the boss. Etc. etc.

 This is the crucial moment where we have to make the decision to accept things the way they are at this moment and be “defeated.”  Or we take the other option which is to accept the responsibility to change our circumstances.

 In High School people would always tell me that I would never play in the NBA.  I accepted that as truth and just let that dream die.  As it turned out, 4 of the 5 of my High School starting team went on to play Division 1 college hoops and some went to the NBA.

I learned a valuable lesson, “don’t ever let someone, anyone, tell you what you can’t do.”  Sure the odds can be stacked against you, sure it may not seem possible, and it doesn’t matter.  You decide what you will accept as truth, you decide what you can and can’t do, you decide to accept responsibility for your life and circumstances and let everyone else “accept the way things are.”

You see, life is not made up out of whether bad things will happen or if bad days will come, because they will.  Life is made out of those situations when someone decides to either be temporarily defeated or permanently destroyed.  We kill our own dreams, nobody else can do that for us.  

As for me, I will guard and protect my dreams and own the responsibility for making them happen.  How about you?

-Jon Bohm

Be, Know, and Do your way to Future Success

"What we KNOW, and what we DO, can not be separated from WHO we are."- Jon Bohm

So, do you have your dream list?

Are you clear about what you want in your future?  If not, read the last few posts and build a list of the places, things, people, life you want to experience.

Once you have climbed the hill of building your dream list, then you have a clearer picture of where you want to go.  But dreams, much like sand, have a tendency to slip through our fingers if we don't hold onto them tightly.  

A friend of mine spent years living what he thought was his dream to be a great Trial Lawyer, and indeed he was excellent.  He had great knowledge, and he did everything need to be excellent in his lawyer role.  But, it stressed him out everyday, he didn't like who he was becoming each day.  Instead of becoming more loving, understanding, and emotionally connected to those around him he became colder more distant and focused on the task at hand instead of the people at hand.   It wasn't WHO he wanted to be.   I may even argue it wasn't WHO He really was in the first place, but rather a dream, that somewhere along the line he allowed to separate himself from who he wanted to BECOME.  Not just what he wanted to KNOW and DO.

I am convinced that KNOWING WHO we are is one of the biggest factors to achieving real success towards our dreams.  What about you?  Do you know WHO you are?

Here is a simple exercise to help you find out:  take a dream, don't pick a hazy dream, pick a crystal clear dream you can feel, touch, and almost taste it's so clear.

Ok, got it?

Now ask yourself in order to achieve that Dream:

• Who do I have to BECOME?  
• What do I have to KNOW?
• What do I have to DO?

Do you like what you see?  Do you like who you have to BECOME?  Achieving a dream can never just be about what we know or what we do, it has to be about becoming the person we really want to be.

What about you?  Are you currently living out a path to a dream?  Are you becoming the type of person you want to BE?  If the answer is no, then I highly encourage you to take another look and begin chasing another dream.  Don't lose yourself in chasing dreams.  Use dreams to find who you really are.

And if you need help, I can help you put all the pieces together and find your purpose, chase your dreams, and become who you REALLY want to be- maybe find WHO YOU REALLY are.

-Jon Bohm

Be a Dreamer

We grow great by dreams. All big men are dreamers. They see things in the soft haze of a spring day, or in the red fire on a long winter’s evening. Some of us let these great dreams die, but others nourish and protect them; nourish them through bad days until they bring them to the sunshine and light which comes always to those who sincerely hope that their dreams will come true.
— Woodrow Wilson

Have you ever felt like there was more to this life?  Like you have something big coming but you you can't really describe it?  Do you have a Big Dream?  Could you describe it?  Or, maybe it's deep in your subconscious and you feel it, you know it's there.

After working with many people in a behind the scenes kind of way, I don't think I have yet to meet a person who doesn't have a dream, a big dream.  Maybe you can't describe it, maybe your not even aware enough to know what it's about, but it's there.  Somewhere, but there.

What about you?  What is your dream?  What do you want to see, feel, travel too, touch, have, or experience.  Everyone's dream is different.

One of the most worthwhile things I have done is made a list of at least 100 dreams.  I don't need them anchored in reality, just dream and keep adding to it.  In that list of dreams I begin to see patterns of things that I value.  Family, sunshine, health, the basics.  And then out of nowhere I have tapped into a part of myself that I don't get to see everyday (and some never see.).  The part of me that finds inspiration, a passion for life, a drive to be significant to myself, my family, and the world.

Often we play too small, don't we?  We are conditioned by our present circumstances, the news, things we have heard growing up, to stay inside the safe comfortable place that doesn't dream about becoming President, writing a book, being a world changer.  Our big dream is stifled by "reality."  And somewhere most people let there big dream die.

What about you?  Did your big dreams die?  Could you revive them today?  There is something truly powerful about dreaming about the future, escaping present circumstances, with what could be.  And then driving our life towards those dreams.

I am adding to my dream list today and encourage you to do the same.

• Make a list of at least 100 dreams or give it 30 minutes and add 25 to it every week until you reach 100.
• Then go back and see what really tugs at your soul, your passions, what drives you?
• If you had to narrow it down to your top 5 most important to you, what would they be?

Write those dreams down, could they combine to one?  Does it pull at that passion you have?

Can you turn it into a goal?  Can you put a time table on it?  

Now, the big question, will you be brave enough to in the words of Woodrow Wilson to 

"..nourish and protect it through the good days and bad until you bring them to the sunshine and light which comes ALWAYS to those who sincerely hope that their dreams will come true."

Consider yourself warned, circumstances and people WILL mess with your head, but they can't mess with your heart and your passions.  Nourish that dream, we were not meant to stay comfortable and safe, we were meant to live,  to dream, to make a difference.

The difference between success and failure in most lives is simply the difference between quitting and not giving up.   Don't give up on dreaming, dream BIG today.  And be significant.

- Jon Bohm

Find Your Passion for Productivity

Tom Landry, the coach of the Dallas Cowboys, once said something that may be true of nearly any motivator: “I have a job to do that is not very complicated, but it is difficult: to get a group of men to do what they don’t want to do so they can achieve the one thing they have wanted all of their lives."

Did you know that more points are scored in the last 2 minutes of the 4th quarter of a football game then in the other 3 quarters put together?  This is often used to prove the point that all of us work better with a deadline.  Which is a fact.  

However, I think it is more than that.  Have you ever felt like you had the time to accomplish something, but you didn't have the energy?  You lacked the physical energy, emotional energy, spiritual energy, mental energy, the motivation?

Energy in life is a resource that is often more valuable than time itself.  You see, time is made of not only hours and minutes, but energy.  So, whether you are playing football or working in your office you know you have to last a certain period of time mentally, physically, and emotionally.  

A runner knows that if they only have to run 100 meters they can run 10 times faster than if they have to run 10 miles.  The final 2 minutes of a game represent the last 100 meters.  The time when you leave it all on the field.  When you quit saving energy and let it all go.  When results are all that matters and conserving energy doesn't.

I have found it easier to be more productive, and turn out better quality work from a team by giving them short deadlines followed by a break.  For example, if you are an author, try to write fast and focused for 5 minutes, then stop and break, before coming back for another 5 minute session.

I know a lady friend of mine who consistently runs under a 4 hour marathon by running for 5 minutes and walking for 2 minutes.  I have seen this applied to concrete companies and insurance agents alike.   If you pay people by the hour, it encourages them to work slower and longer.  If you pay people based off productivity, it encourages them to work smarter and faster.  Which is an asset to any team or organization.

I am convinced that hourly employees can work half the time and accomplish the same amount of work.  Often higher quality work, if they are given a shorter deadline with twice the pay.

Still not convinced?  Try this, tell your team one day that they can go home at lunch time and get paid for a full day if they complete the full day's work by noon.  See what happens.  I would love to hear how it works out.

Of course, if you are a retail shop, a fast food restaurant, or any place where you have store hours, then sending them home at noon is not an option.  But, what if they were rewarded with a break after taking so many orders, ringing up a certain number of customers, folding so many boxes or clothing, then would productivity increase?  You bet it would.

It is time for our world to quit thinking hours and start thinking productivity.  After all:

“You don’t get paid for the hour. You get paid for the value you bring to the hour.”– Jim Rohn (American Business Philosopher, Author, and Speaker)

Article by Jon Bohm

Why do we fall?

"Why do we fall Bruce? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."-Bruce Wayne's Father in Batman Begins

I was fortunate today to have a conversation with a friend of mine who competes in the grand daddy of all triathlons the IRON MAN.  The IRON MAN is a grueling race where each competitor swims 2.4 miles (3.9 km), a 112 mile (180 km) bike and 26.2 mile (42.2 km) marathon run.

The Ironman Triathlon, or The Ironman Triathlon World Championships, is both the original triathlon and the annual world championships of the event, held annually since 1978 in Hawai'i. It was made famous by its grueling length, harsh race conditions, and television coverage.

This is my friend's dream to compete in the World Championship.   Why would anyone do this? For many reasons.  Some simple reasons, some complex.  To raise your kids with a picture of the type of Father who knows how to work hard and chase dreams, to inspire others, because someone once told you it was impossible and I had to find out, to an addiction, or simply to stay in shape.  And a million others.

But, I think the most compelling reason is because you want to learn.  How do you know if something is impossible for you until you try it?  Think about it logically, how much do you really know about yourself until you try and fail.  Until you try and succeed.  Until you try and see what inspiration may come of it.  The point is you don't learn anything until you are willing to try and run the risk of failure.

When you were a kid, how many times did you fall before you learned to ride your bike?  How many times did you babble before you learned to talk?  How many times did you fall before you learned to walk?  To ride a skateboard?  To pass a test?  Give a speech?  You get what I'm saying, right?

You fall because you learn to pick yourself up.  And in that moment when you learn to fight, to endure, to never give up, to pick yourself up and try again is the moment inspiration is born- the moment Victory is experienced- the moment you become someone who is changing the world, or your sport, or your family.

This is why stories like that of Lance Armstrong are so amazing and inspiring. 

But why is it that the older we get the more we do everything we can to avoid failure?  We used failure to learn everything we know up until then, and all of sudden we don't want to ever be in a spot where we can fall.  We avoid falling at all costs.

But, may we always remember that Victory can only be experienced when there is a possibility of defeat.  May you and I be World Changers, next time someone tells you something is impossible may we have the courage to try it and find out.  Because sometimes falling is the only way to learn, the only way to inspire, and the only way to taste the sweetest victories.  

And in my experience - impossible is nothing- trying is everything- because trying is learning. You may be surprised at what you can accomplish, but you have to try and never- never- give up to find out.  

The person saying it can't be done is often surpassed by the person doing it.  Which one will you be?

-Jon Bohm