Episode 524 – The secret to success

• Welcome back QFY friends
• Another episode of QFY
• This year my goal is to grow
• Not grow as a person, or with my ego
• But to reach to more of you out there
• Everyone I meet who has listened to this podcast tells me how much they enjoy it
• so I want to ask you:
• if you enjoy listening as well, then please share it with a friend
• we all can use a little bit of motivation and inspiration
• and I give you food for thought every Monday, Wednesday and Friday
• My goal is to help you make changes in your life
  • Maybe that’s establishing a new routine
  • Or getting rid of a bad habit
  • Going after a long-yearned for goal
  • Or simply finding more joy and fulfillment in your life
• I want to encourage you and help you make that first step
• And we all have something we want to change
• But change can seem hard
• Especially when we feel alone
• And that is why I am here
• To support you
• Because I have gone and am still going through the same
• Some changes I make come easy, but the majority takes a lot of time, effort, and energy
• And I share my experiences and my lessons with you
• They are often very simple lessons, like the ones I just shared with you last week from my mom’s visit
• We don’t need to overcomplicate things
• We don’t need 10 top things to do or buy or read to find out what we need to do
• We just need a little push
• Because inside we all know what we need
• And I am here to help you see that, listen to it, and act on it
• If this resonates with you, please share QFY with a friend today
• And if you enjoy it, please leave me a review on itunes
• Itunes ratings are important because they help with the ranking of my podcast
• The higher the rank, the easier people can find me
• It means the world to me and I thank you

• The title of my episode today is with tounge in cheek
• Meaning, I am joking slightly
• I named this episode The secret to success because I see so many secret headlines out there
• Its meant to grab attention but when you read the article titled that way, you often find yourself wondering
• Really? This is it?
• Sometimes its not even anything new
• I am always suspicious when I read anything that contains the word secret
• In these days, its really hard to keep a secret
• We have access to everything and any information imaginable
• So much has been tried and tested and researched
• I don’t think there are a lot of secrets out there
• And if you find yourself still looking for one
  • Maybe a miracle diet or weight loss strategy
  • Or the perfect job or relationship
• Then I want to let you know today the one secret that will get you there
• And again, I say it with tounge in cheek, because its not a secret at all
• But it can seem like one because it is often not seen
• We quite often look for the magic answer to some of our hardest questions
• Or we resign ourselves to a no-way out kind of resolution, assuming that we cannot find the secret and are therefore doomed
• Well, friends, here is the secret
• I discover it myself anew every time I start something new
• Its called action
• Every major success you ever had didn’t happen while you waited
• It happened because you did something
• Every book you enjoyed reading, film you loved watching, song you like listening to or product you find useful was created by someone who had an idea and then took action
  • Maybe they also worried, like you, that it wont work out
  • Maybe they didn’t have enough money in the beginning to start
  • Maybe they had some kind of other obstacle they had to overcome
• But they took a step
• And maybe their first attempt wasn’t the final result that you now enjoy so much
• Maybe they tried many many times
• Maybe they failed
• Started over
• But they all have one thing in common – they took action
• I love listening to the NPR podcast HOW I BUILT THIS
• Companies like Spanx or Stoniefield yogurt were started by regular people like you and I
• What sets those people apart from us?
• Its not luck or special talent – its action
• They took an incredible amount of action
  • Bold action
  • Courageous action
  • Creative action
• They sacrificed more than many of us are willing to sacrifice
• Their time, their money, the things they loved
• They gave it up in order to pursue something that seemed to matter more at the moment
• They believed in it
• Action is the answer to everything
• Action is the secret to success that’s not a secret
• And this is a reminder I want to give you all today and myself as well
• Because when wonder how I will become a more well-known podcaster, launch my speaking career, get better at climbing, or be more kind to others, I need to remind myself as well that only action will get me closer
  • I need to actually do some work to promote my podcast
    • I have now been publishing for over 3 years and have not done much in terms of promotion
    • I somehow keep waiting that it will take off on its own but this hasn’t happened
    • So – I need to face it and get up and do something
  • My speaking career will not start on its own
    • I need to go out and speak
    • My last event was in December
    • I need to ask myself – Whats the next step?
  • Here we are already in the second week of January
  • Next weekend I am going ice climbing
  • And before I plan my weekends out with this trip and that trip, I need to ask myself:
    • What do I want to do this year?
    • What do I want to accomplish?
    • And are the things I plan on the weekends supporting my objectives?
  • This is why goals are so important
  • They are your compass
  • They are pointing into the direction you want to go to
  • But you have to actually go there
  • Getting better at Climbing is on my list but I cant spend every weekend on that
  • Otherwise my other goals will not get done
  • The secret to success is action
  • And its often the action that is most risky and scary that we try to avoid
  • Going climbing is easy
  • I have friends that invite me all the time
  • Researching speaking opportunities and networking is much harder
    • Its not what I am comfortable doing
    • I don’t even know where to start with that
  • So our tendency is to push it onto the back burner
  • But here is the thing
  • Nothing will happen unless we take action
    • If I don’t get my act together and research speaking gigs soon, the likelihood that I will become a sought-after speaker is slim
  • Its like that with everything
  • We need to start somewhere
  • Finding another job starts by looking for job opportunities, updating the resume and connecting with people in the industry
  • Whatever our objective is, we need to take some form of action
  • If you envision yourself becoming someone, creating something in the future, whatever it may be
  • My advice is – start today
  • Because it will take time
  • There will be failures, setbacks and unexpected detours
  • The longer we wait, the less time we have left
  • So don’t wait any longer
  • Decide what it is you need to do and start now
    • Even if the circumstances aren’t perfect
    • The timing doesn’t seem right
    • The money tight
  • There is always something you can do
  •  
  • Do it today
  • Start
  • Don’t wait
  • One small step today
  • Another tomorrow
  • And soon you will look back and celebrate your success
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End with:

• Don’t forget to share this episode with a friend
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• Talk to you soon

Much love