Accomplishing your dreams is a process. Rarely do we find it to be something that happens over night. Often we get discouraged because we don't think we are making ample progress, and the next thing we know we have veered away from our intended goal.

The key is to plan a course for how we want to achieve our goals. And each and every day, take a few steps closer towards our goal...Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds
posted by Josh Hinds at 9/16/2001 11:49:21 PM

One of the easiest ways to succeed is to watch what other successful people are doing, (often referred to as modelling the success of others) and then take it a step further! I enjoy reading the biographies of these folks, not so much for the literary value as what I may learn about the person, and gain strength in seeing all they had to overcome.

History, if studied can reveal many secrets and may ensure that we don't make the same mistakes that those before us did!...Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds
posted by Josh Hinds at 9/10/2001 12:09:49 PM

Listen to your heart - While our heart pumps the blood that keeps us alive it also accomplishes many other tasks. One in particular being the job of giving us passion for things! When we can follow our hearts passion we in turn make it easier on ourselves with regards to achieving things.

Aligning our goals with our passions only makes sense. If you have the wish to move up the corporate ladder for example, you're going to make the task a lot easier on yourself if you can take steps that are aligned with your inner beliefs (i.e. passions).

A simple rule of thumb is to do the things that you'd do if you weren't getting paid for it. Achievement takes effort. Often it means going above and beyond the call of duty. At times your efforts may appear to go unnoticed. I assure you this isn't the case. Others always notice. Following our inner passions allows us to better align ourselves for personal success... Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds :-)
posted by Josh Hinds at 9/7/2001 12:19:16 PM

Following through on goals - Most of us have goals, the question is how many of us actually follow-up and work those goals. What I mean is going a step further then actually recording your goals. With that said the question is how do we effectively work our goals list...

Here are a few techniques that work for me, hopefully you can adapt these to work for you. Add daily, weekly and monthly tasks to your overall goals. Make these tasks achievable yet enough to stretch you at the same time. The objective of achieving our goals is as much as what it makes of us to reach them as it is what we accomplish in reaching them. The main idea is that with each accomplished task, it's taking you closer to your overall goal.

An equally important step is to review your goals at least once a week! It's the old out of mind, out of sight saying. Don't fall victim to it. Keep your goals fresh in your mind. If you can review your goals each day you're all the better.

Like I say all the time, self-improvement is very much a work in progress. Take the ideas you read and adapt them, use what works and discard what doesn't. With that said, I'd love to hear ideas that you incorporate in your life... Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds :-)
posted by Josh Hinds at 8/30/2001 04:12:30 AM

Whether or not we realize it each of us has a special gift inside us just waiting to surface!...

We owe developing these gifts not only to ourselves, but those around us as well. The important thing here is not what your gift is as much as that you develop it so that you can share it with those around you and in the process further your own personal life!

Once we have identified our special talents it doesn't matter whether or not we find immediate success in them, what does matter is that we take a step each day towards our intended goal! ... Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds :-)
posted by Josh Hinds at 8/28/2001 02:03:32 PM

Success is so much more than fame and money - At times we all try to attach a monetary value to the definition of success. We look at those around us (or those in the news) and say, "he or she is successful." The problem is if we're basing success simply on the amount of money or fame that a person has attained, we're missing the big picture.

Surely fame and fortune can go along with a person who has reached success in their lives, but we have to remember that it is only a subset of success (not the total package and not required). Wouldn't you agree that someone who doesn't have the million dollar bank account or a star on Hollywood Boulevard can be just as equally successful?

Think about the teacher, parent or mentor who, because of the time they spent with you, changed your life. If you ask me these are the unsung heroes that deserve the label of "success."

Please don't get me wrong here. I totally agree that Hollywood and the business world can be slap full of people we can look to as examples of what we can achieve with enough effort. I also happen to believe that it's worth realizing that you too in your own way are just as successful!... Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds :-)
posted by Josh Hinds at 8/24/2001 12:40:37 PM

Don't be afraid to swing the bat - This past weekend I was in Louisville, KY to watch the minor league baseball game in town (yes I am baseball nut...lol). I'd like to take a second and say how nice it was to be in Louisville again, you folks are great! Before I stray to far I'll get back to the point of today's commentary :-)

While I was watching the game an interesting idea hit me... That is that our achievements in life are a lot like that of the home run hitter. How on earth do they compare you ask?

While the homerun hitter is a important part of any baseball team, what is not as well known is that in most cases, people that hit a lot of home runs tend to strike out more often. By comparison our own lives are like that, just before the point that we pull off some pretty amazing achievements we tend to get our fair share of "strikes" thrown our way. I tend to think of it as life's way of seeing just how far we're willing to go to make our dreams a reality.

I hope you'll choose to always reach for your dreams, even when it feels like you've had enough... Step back up to the plate. And swing for the fences! ... Your friend in cyberspace, Josh Hinds :-)
posted by Josh Hinds at 8/21/2001 10:26:31 AM