Month: April 2017

Affirmations that Work – 4 Tips to Creating Effective Affirmations

Affirmations that Work!

Do you remember being told that if you want something, really really want something you must affirm and reaffirm those very same things loudly and clearly again and again? That you must say all those things that you want to be true as if they were already true?

And that’s exactly what you did! You sat there or stood there (maybe in front of a mirror) and  enunciated all those hopeful thoughts loudly and clearly, again and again (and hoped that nobody was able to hear you and if they did they did not think you were being silly!)

Even though that was precisely what you thought about yourself! And sometimes you asked if you were just lying to yourself…

It seemed like your words (even when stated loudly, clearly and repeatedly) still did not convince your mind or yourself. It became a process which you eventually agreed only made you feel conflicted, uncomfortable and unwilling to believe! And often plain silly!

So you stopped doing it!

You stopped believing in and practicing your affirmations!

Because you were not aware that it was possible to believe in your affirmations and to make them work!

And the Miracle Morning does just that – makes you aware of a process that will help you believe (again) in your affirmations and make them work!

There are 4 simple steps to this process:

  1. Affirm (again) – what do you really really want and why it is that so important to you. You begin by establishing and affirming what it is that is important to you and why it is important to you.
  2. Commit – what do you promise you are going to do to make sure what you really really want actually happens! What are the activities that you commit to do to make sure  your affirmations come true?
  3. Say it with feeling – you should be able to see what you want, smell it, hear it, almost taste it (and know that you are going to touch it – definitely touch it)
  4. Check in – with what you really really want as often as possible. Review them again and again.

An example of  an affirmation would be where you tell yourself that during this year you plan to double your sales volume in order to be able to afford 3 extremely exciting vacations with your family. And in order to double your sales volume you are going to ensure that you talk to 20 new people every new single day about your product.

I am doubling my sales volume in order to take my family on three vacations this year by talking with 20 prospects every day!

You are stating what you really want (the increased sales volume), why you want it (for that vacation) and what it is you are going to do to make certain that it happens (those 20  people you plan to talk to).

Then imagine, not talking to those 20 people you promised to contact. That should make you uncomfortable. Hopefully so uncomfortable that you actually make the calls.

And while that volume may not have doubled yet, it will be because of your commitment to talking to those 20 new people each day. Otherwise you would be living out of alignment, and that should make you more uncomfortable than not making the calls!

This is a reprogramming of the subconscious mind. You are creating new patterns and telling a new story about yourself. The difference now is that you can actually buy-in to your own words because it isn’t just wishful thinking. You are creating behavior change that will bring the results.

Integrity and without exception – that’s making sure you always do the things you say you are going to do.

If you enjoyed this article and would like more information on this topic, order your copy of The Miracle Morning for Salespeople now on Amazon!

Meditation and Silence Improve Sales

Could Meditation Grow Your Sales?

Meditation is making, or has made in some circles, it’s way out of the land of hippity-dippity into the business realm. Because of meditation’s tremendous benefits, it’s no surprise that meditation has become more and more popular as part of a daily routine of successful people and Fortune 500 Companies alike. The benefits of meditation reach far beyond the basics of simple peace and quiet. Recently I had the opportunity to see Julianna Raye, mindfulness coach and trainer, speak at the Best Year Ever Live Event, and she discussed some of the basic reasons why meditation is such an important part of a daily routine.

Here are just a few of the benefits of Silence and Meditation:

  • Improve Focus, Clarity, and Productivity
  • Lower Stress & Blood Pressure
  • Strengthen Your Immune System
  • Better Sleep Cycle
  • Heighten Creativity, Empathy, Emotional Regulation, and Well-Being
  • Slow Brain Degeneration and Increase Neuroplasticity
  • Improve Sex Drive

Now, I am sure there is not a single one of you reading this post that couldn’t use some improvement in at least one of those areas if not all of them. I am no exception to that rule. That is one of the reasons meditation has become such an important daily practice. For me, meditation has improved my attitude, intensified my clarity and focus, and allowed me to balance my emotions and stress in a healthy fashion.

Zen stones in water for meditation.

Zen stones in water for meditation.

As a salesperson, sales trainer, sales manager, sales leader, author, speaker, father, and husband, there is seldom a time that my mind stops for even a second. While that ADHD, type A, driven salesperson mentality has led me to accomplish a great many of my goals, it is not always the most healthy, efficient, or effective way to take on all challenges.

I have learned the incredible power of clarity and focus that comes from starting my day with a morning routine based in personal development. The first practice of which is Silence.

While I struggled with meditation for the first several attempts, okay, more like for weeks or even months, I have learned some extremely helpful tips in practicing meditation that have improved my practice and increased the benefits.

3 Tips to Improve Your Practice

1.) Focus on your breath. I would explain more, but it really needs little to no explanation. You have been breathing for your entire life. It takes no thought at all to breathe in and out. In fact, that’s likely why we still exist. So, by focusing on the breath, you will allow your body to relax and move away from trying to solve the problems of the world.

2.) Don’t fight the 50 Million thoughts. For a long time I thought I was meditating the wrong way. No matter what I did I couldn’t stop the thoughts from entering my head during meditation. Just recognize the distraction. Even label it based on whether it is something you see, hear, or feel and then let it pass and move on.

3.) Lots of us type A salespeople and entrepreneurs have trouble slowing down. I strongly suggest trying some guided meditations. There are some great apps available like Headspace, Calm, Omvana, and several others. There are also tons of Free guided meditations you can find on YouTube.

If you would like to learn more about my daily morning routine and how to implement silence and meditation into your day, check out two free chapters of my book, The Miracle Morning for Salespeople.

You can read this and several other books for FREE with Amazon Kindle Unlimited.