BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
I’ve worked for some major global brands and I’ve achieved some incredible successes in my career but, I wasn’t happy.
I’ve started my own businesses, grew one to £3m in turnover, bought a nice house, a holiday home abroad, nice cars etc and still I wasn’t happy.
But, it all changed when I changed my priorities.
I shifted my mindset from one of scarcity, where my focus was “What’s in it for me?” to one of abundance, where I now ask, “Who can I help?”
This was a game changer and it has quite literally changed my life.
I am now happy 😉
I believe that having an abundance mindset has enabled me to live my purpose – to help others who are unable to help themselves.
As humans we all share the same six basic needs and contribution is one that gives us fulfilment.
Of course, we all need to pay the bills etc, but finding something that you’re passionate about and achieving a life of abundance gives you the freedom to create abundance for others which ultimately makes the world a better place.
Some achieve this in the corporate world, while others follow a less trodden path.
Whatever it is for you, keep searching for your purpose, your why, because when you start to live a life of abundance you’ll achieve a sense of fulfilment like you’ve never felt before.
So, abundance creates freedom, freedom allows for fulfilment, fulfilment allows you to create impact and that impact creates a legacy that you will be proud of when you take your last breath.
Be fearless, live your purpose and you’ll find true happiness!
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BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
Now that Christmas is over, I wanted to share with you my secret to making 2018 the best year ever.
Now 2017 was amazing and I am grateful for the opportunities my family and I had. In fact, it was my best year so far, but I’m still committed to making 2018 even better.
So how am I going to achieve that?
Sir Isaac Newton wrote: “If I have seen a little further, it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”
So, do you know what I do?
I go out and find some ‘giants’ to learn from. Then I stand on their shoulders.
And how do I do that?
Well, my secret, is I read books.
Lots of books. In fact, I read one per day.
I love Robin Sharma’s quote where he says “Ordinary people have big TV’s. Extraordinary people have big libraries.”
And this is true.
Having been fortunate to have met some very successful people and visited their homes. I found that their living rooms aren’t cluttered with the latest flat screen TV, it’s cluttered with books!
Bill Gates, who I met 10 years ago, once said “I try to read about a book a week on average. Even when my schedule is out of control, I carve out time for reading.“
I believe that reading is one of the best investments that you can make. Barack Obama, even whilst serving as the POTUS, read for an hour every day.
They say that Warren Buffett invested 80% of his time in reading and thinking throughout his career.
If it’s good enough for some of the smartest, busiest and wealthiest people in the world, why isn’t it part of your daily routine?
They say that if you’re not growing, not moving forward, standing still, or simply treading water in your life, then you’re going backwards.
The world is changing at such an alarming rate and if you’re not evolving and not keeping up, then your future is ultimately at risk.
Reading contributes towards development and personal growth and I believe that growth is one of our six fundamental needs.
In fact, growth is so important in our lives that despite any success that we may enjoy, we will still not achieve fulfilment without it.
I’ve already got a stack of books as my priority for Q1. They range from The Book of John to Tim Ferriss’ latest book; from business to biographies, from personal development to classics that I want to re-read.
And remember, you don’t need to read the book from cover to cover. Simply apply the 80:20 rule, or if there’s a specific topic that you want to learn, then just read that bit. Give yourself permission to read whatever you need.
Benjamin Franklin said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.”
So start reading today and watch your life grow!
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BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
Episode 12 was the first of the “Be Your Best In Business” Success Stories and I was interviewed for this Podcast.
In the series, they share inspiring stories of where ambitious individuals have excelled in their businesses and their lives, as well as learning their journeys to where they are today.
In this episode, I shared how important it is to tailor your product according to what the market specifically needs, especially when no one has addressed that need yet.
I also talk about how important it is to offer outstanding customer support, as your customer service may set you apart from your competition.
We also discussed about how (in business) if it looks too good to be true, it usually is!
I also shared some points that I implement when a business is not performing as expected, as such:
- Find out where is the problem.
- Once the problem is found, figure out WHY it is happening.
- Create models and scenario plan, then choose the most viable one. Have a plan, and set targets.
- Execute the plan. Do it right!
And finally, I share my views on work-life balance, and how I deal with it!
Golden Nugget Round
Question 1 – What would you tell your 25 Year Old Self?
“First, try and be the best version of myself that I can be, in everything that I do. Second, never stop learning.”
Question 2 – What would you Lecturer at University today?
“Psychology.”
Question 3 – What was your biggest investment or financial decision?
“Years ago, when I was struggling financially, I had to get a bank loan to buy my shares and it turned out to be one of the best decisions ever.”
Quotes
“A lot of people think that to be happy, you have to be successful. But I say, to be successful, you have to be happy.”
“Do your best; forget the rest.”
“Don’t hesitate, execute!”
Click HERE to listen to the Podcast.
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BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
Work-Life Balance, have you mastered it?
In the Be Your Best In Business podcast series, several successful entrepreneurs, including myself, share our top tips about how we view it and how we manage it in our lives.
Click HERE to listen.
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BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
In light of recent worldwide events such as 9/11 and the terrorist events in London, Paris, Brussels and recently in Las Vegas, more and more people are taking steps to improve the quality of their lives.
One such step is to get away from the corporate world and embark on a new journey as an entrepreneur.
In fact, according to the Pew Research Center, three-in-ten U.S. jobs are held by the self-employed and the workers they hire. That’s 44 million jobs or 30% of the national workforce.
The benefit of this is that you can be your own boss, put your ideas into action, potentially earn more and have control over your time.
Factors such as the lack of job security and economic uncertainty also prompt individuals to take the plunge.
What Does It Take?
So what does it take to be an entrepreneur?
Are you born with it, or can it be taught?
In my opinion the greatest determinant of the success of an entrepreneur is their character and their skills.
To be an entrepreneur you have to be ambitious, you have to want to achieve, and you have to want to be successful. You are going to make a poor start if there is no powerful driving force.
Stating your own business isn’t easy; expect several years of really hard work, it’s extremely challenging and stressful.
It won’t feel it at the time, but when you look back you might even say it was fun.
One word of caution, however difficult you think it will be, expect it to be a lot worse.
The volatility and uncertainty of starting your own business is the buzz and when the point of financial stability is achieved, nothing beats that sense of achievement.
What Is It You Want?
I always consider what I hope to achieve out of every venture I get involved in.
This would cover money or wealth, working hours, risks (if I invest in it), stress, independence, achievement, power and so on.
I then match this to the particular project in hand and decide whether it fits the bill.
Will Your Business Survive?
Did you know that half of all businesses never survive longer than 5 years?
You may just be unlucky; failure can be through no fault of the entrepreneur.
Should this ever happen to you, you need to assess the situation, be honest to yourself about the contributory factors and move on. Learning from your experience is crucial as nobody gets it right first time, or even every time.
Can You Do It? Yes You Can!
A good entrepreneur must contain all the skills possessed by a salesman, an accountant, an inventor – and then some. But none of this even matters if you have this one skill…
This can be encompassed in one word – passion.
Without it, you haven’t got any chance of achieving anything remarkable.
It’s not to say that you can’t make a profit without passion, but extraordinary results comes only through extraordinary drive and determination.
To improve your chances of success there are three elements that you should consider:
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Identify your strengths and weaknesses and try to overcome any shortcomings.
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Ensure that the market has the necessary growth potential for your idea to work.
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There is enough Cash to cover your needs and there is also a secondary source of cash available should growth be slower than expected.
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As with all factors in life, planning is the key, ‘if you fail to plan, you’re planning to fail.’
I wish you all the best of luck in your endeavors, if these steps are followed you stand a great chance of success!
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BY: Andrew / 0 COMMENTS / CATEGORIES: Personal Development
If life were like baseball, would you be sitting in the bleachers (stands) saying to yourself “I don’t think that I could even hit the ball” or, “what if I missed and I’m hurt by a pitch.” Would you be the one finding all the reasons not to try?
Or would you be at the plate swinging as hard as you can at every pitch, trying to knock the ball out of the park and hit a home run only to finally strike out?
Or would you be the one who has bunted the ball, scrambled to first base, stolen second base and are just waiting for your moment to slide into third?
For the past 18 months I have been trying to be this third guy and I am grateful to say that yesterday I launched a training business, where I will donate all my profits to charity and my SEO business is now ranked #1, #2, #3 and #4 on Google.
So what am I saying is this, don’t worry about what you don’t have, just focus on what you need in order to be successful and for me, this is the love and the support of my wife Louise and my daughter Chloe.
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