3 Big Ideas to Stay Ahead

Would you like to advance your career and life, but maybe you feel like your talents and abilities go unrecognized? Perhaps you feel like you're not applying your full potential?

If you keep reading, in this article, you'll learn three important concepts - three Big Ideas - to help you experience your potential, stay ahead and feel valued by others. This is important because you don’t want another year to go by where you don’t achieve your goals! 

The writer Wallace Wattles said, “Desire is possibility seeking expression.” In other words, if you have the desire - maybe your desire is to be promoted to the next level of leadership at your organization, earn higher compensation or grow your business to the next level. Whatever your desire, the fact that you HAVE that desire means it’s possibility seeking to express itself. Only YOU can make that happen.

These three Big Ideas are right from the coaching process through which I guide my clients. I’m so grateful to have been mentored by some of the finest teachers in the world on personal growth and continue to apply these in my own life. For years, at the beginning of each year my thoughts were something like, “Last year was a tough year, I didn't achieve my goals. This year has got to be better.” Can you relate?

But even though I set goals, each new year played out much like the prior years. And by most outside measures I was considered “successful.” For example, I was a Vice President in the Investment Industry, was earning compensation in the six figures, lived in a beautiful home with my children and had a nice bank account. But looking objectively at my life I wasn’t where I knew I could be.  I often felt stressed, overwhelmed and without a roadmap for my future. And I knew my talent and potential were bigger than what I was living into. 

At the time, I didn't know about mindset and the important role mindset plays in achieving your potential. I also didn't know about success principles. Then, about 10 years ago, I started studying how the mind works. I also began studying time-tested success principles. Since then, I have continued my studies, apply these concepts in my own life and now I teach them to individuals like you because I want to save you the disillusion and stress that I experienced. The three Big Ideas are grounded in mindset and success principles.

 What are the three Big Ideas?

1. Big Idea #1 - Getting clear around your vision and goals

What do you want? What’s the vision for your life in three years? And what are your goals for the next year that will get you on the path you want?

It’s important to go deep here and start with the work of getting really clear around the vision for the life that you want. Allow yourself to dream. Often times, the problem isn’t that people don’t have goals, the problem is that people set the wrong kind of goals. What’s your dream? What’s your vision?  And from this, set goals - ideally something measurable that you can go after in the next twelve months. And your goals should be something that you haven’t yet achieved, something you really really want, and will stretch you to grow.

Big Idea #1 is to get crystal clear around your vision for your life - personal and professional - for the next three years. And, to clarify for yourself specific goals for the twelve months ahead.

2.  Big Idea #2 - Understand Cause and Effect

Cause and effect is a foundational and universal principle in life. In fact, the great American thinker Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “Cause and Effect is the law of laws.” For you to stay ahead and achieve your potential, it’s imperative that you understand this big idea. For every cause, there is an effect. For every effect, there is a cause. For example, let’s say that you haven’t yet received the promotion you really want and expect. This past year came and went, and you weren’t promoted. Not being promoted is an effect. And there are causes that led to that effect.

Stay with me, and I’m going to keep this simple: For you to achieve the promotion, you’ve got to start thinking differently. It all starts in your mind. Your mind is the “cause” in this example of cause and effect. You’ve got to start putting in place the thinking and beliefs, and the strategies - including maybe serving your clients or organization with higher value - that will result in your promotion - that’s the effect. And if it doesn’t happen at your current organization then someone else will recognize your higher value. Being hired by another organization is also an effect.

I encourage you to give some serious thought to cause and effect. Are you putting in place - through mindset - the causes that will result in the effect you want? Because if you don’t consciously do this, whatever momentum is in place by your unconscious patterns is going to sweep you along - and before you know it another year has gone by and you haven’t achieved your goal.

Big Idea #2 to stay ahead is to understand cause and effect. It never fails.

3.  Big Idea #3 - Persistence

Persistence is sustained effort. Most people, including high-achieving individuals, often don’t follow through or give up too soon. Persistence is a habit. And I’m going to share with you some important information about Persistence from Napoleon Hill’s book, “Think and Grow Rich.” This is one of the best-selling personal growth books of all time. He says, “With persistence you will win.”

There are four steps to developing persistence according to Napoleon Hill:

1. You’ve got to have goals that you’re really fired up about (see Big Idea #1, above)
2. You’ve got to create plans, and take action
3. Your mind must be closed tightly against all negativity 
4. You’ve got to have support - others who will encourage you, mentor you, and believe in you

Make the decision to stay ahead starting today and into your future. The three Big Ideas I’ve shared with you can support you in that journey:

1. Be clear around your vision and goals
2. Understand cause and effect
3. Develop the habit of persistence

These ideas will support you in bringing more of your talents and abilities to the surface and live into your full potential. Others will see the changes in you. This leads to higher levels of recognition and validation, including the promotion you want, becoming a more impactful leader, growing your revenues or whatever your specific desires.

“Desire is possibility seeking expression,” wrote Wallace Wattles.  Your desires are seeking expression. YOU can make them happen.