Master The Art of Negotiation

Master The Art of Negotiation

Many people believe that negotiations are "all or nothing", and that there has to be one winner and one loser. Nothing could be farther from the truth. While the goal of negotiation is most certainly getting what you want, the fact is that the best deals (the ones that stick) incorporate terms and ideas from both parties.

In this article, we'll provide some tactics and tips that good negotiators use get what they want. These suggestions may be used in virtually any negotiation process.

Before the Negotiation

Prior to entering any formal negotiation, it is important for an individual to think about what he or she wants to achieve from the process. To that end, it makes sense to put on paper specific goals or desirable outcomes. Be optimistic. Ask yourself what would be a "home run" in your deal? This could be as simple as the other party conceding entirely to your wishes. Next, individuals should identify several fall-back positions that they'd be comfortable with that would still get the deal done. The idea is to have thought out as many scenarios as possible.

 

The next task should be to identify (or try to identify) any potential weaknesses in the opposing party's position. For example, if in a real estate transaction one party knows that the other party has to sell a certain property or face a liquidity crisis, this is valuable information that can be used in negotiation. Identification of weaknesses is important because it may allow the party that has done its homework to capitalize on the other party's weaknesses and turn negotiations in its own favor, or at the very least help both parties to better identify an area of middle ground.

Another pre-negotiation exercise, and it is something that most people don't do but should, is to come up with a list of reasons why their proposal would also be beneficial to the opposing party. The logic is to then bring up the key points of this list in the actual negotiation with the counterparty in the hope that the points will advance the cause and/or help to identify some common ground. Again, using real estate as an example, perhaps one party - in this case a company - could argue that its bid for a particular property is more favorable than others (even though it's lower in terms of dollars) because it is an all-cash offer, as opposed to a riskier financing or a stock swap. By specifically pointing out the advantages to both parties, the negotiator increases the odds of getting the deal done.

The Negotiation

In Person

Ideally, each party should identify its goals and objectives at the outset. This allows each participant in the negotiation to know where the other stands. It also establishes a basis for a give-and-take conversation. At this point, each party may then offer its fall-back proposals and counter proposals in order to hammer out a deal.

That said, beyond the initial volley of proposals, there are also other things that negotiators can do to enhance their chances of turning the deal in their favor. Let's use body language analysis as an example.

Was your proposal well received? Positive signs include nodding of the head and direct eye contact. Negative signs include folding of the arms (across the chest), aversion of the eyes or a subtle head shake as if to say "no". Pay attention next time you ask someone a question. You'll see that more often than not, a person's body language can yield a lot of information regarding his or her underlying feelings.

Double Discount promotion

By Phone

If a negotiation is done by phone, body language can't be determined. This means that the negotiator must do his best to analyze his counterpart's voice. As a general rule, extended pauses usually mean that the opposing party is hesitant or is pondering the offer. However, sudden exclamations or an unusually quick response (in a pleasant voice) may indicate that the opposing party is quite favorable to the proposal and just needs a little nudge to seal the deal. 

By Mail

Negotiations done through the mail (such as residential real estate transactions) are a different animal altogether.

Here are some tips:

Words or phrases that leave ambiguity may signal that a party is open to a given proposal. Look specifically for words such as "can", "possibly", "perhaps", "maybe" or "acceptable". Also, if the party uses a phrase such as "anxiously awaiting your reply" or "looking forward to it", this may be a signal that the party is enthusiastic and/or optimistic that an agreement may soon be reached.

When the opposing party makes an initial offer or a counter proposal, see if you can incorporate some of those ideas with your own and then ink a deal on the spot. If compromise on a particular issue is not possible, propose other alternatives that you think would be favorable to both parties.

Finally, while all agreements should be sealed with a hand shake, a more formal contract memorializing the negotiation is a must. To that end, have an attorney draft a formal contract soon after the negotiation process is completed and make certain that it is signed by all parties in a timely manner.

No Agreement? No Worries

If an agreement cannot be reached in one sitting or one phone call, leave the door open to future negotiations. If possible, schedule further meetings. Don't worry - if worded appropriately, your request won't appear overly anxious. To the contrary, it will come across as though you sincerely believe that a deal can be worked out and that you are willing to work to make that happen.

In between negotiations, try to mentally review what took place during the initial meeting. Did the opposing party reveal any weaknesses? Did he or she imply that other factors may have an impact on the deal? Pondering these questions prior to the next meeting can give the negotiator a leg up on his or her counterpart.

Finally, if an agreement simply can't be reached, agree to part as friends. Never, under any circumstances, burn your bridges. 

If you think you have what it takes to prosper in the business world, check out Is A Career In Financial Planning In Your Future? and Career Shift: Get In The Driver's Seat.

Edited by: Lawyer Asad

20 Amazing Life Lessons We Can All Learn From Steve Jobs

20 Amazing Life Lessons We Can All Learn From Steve Jobs

Source: How To Retire A Millionaire Starting With Just $1,000

Like most of us, Steve Jobs personality had many sides. He could be aloof, super-intense, gross, passionate, creative, driven, unfair, conciliatory and deeply introspective. He lived a rich and unique life. Here are 20 Lessons that we can all glean from Steve Jobs' remarkable life.

Don't Wait

When the young Steve Jobs wanted to build something and needed a piece of equipment, he went straight to the source.

"He began by recalling that he had wanted to build a frequency counter when he was twelve, and he was able to look up Bill Hewlett, the founder of HP, in the phone book and call him to get parts."

Make Your Own Reality

Steve Jobs learned early that when you don't like how things are in your life or in your world, change them, either through action or sheer force of will.

"As Hoffman later lamented, "The reality distortion field can serve as a spur, but then reality itself hits." – Joanna Hoffman, part of Apple's early Macintosh team.

"I didn't want to be a father, so I wasn't," Jobs later said, with only a touch of remorse in his voice.

Control Everything You Can

Steve Jobs was, to a certain degree, a hippie. However, unlike most free spirits of the 1960s-to-1970s love-in era, Jobs was a detail-oriented control freak.

"He wants to control his environment, and he sees the product as an extension of himself."

Own Your Mistakes

Jobs could be harsh and even thoughtless. Perhaps nowhere was that more in evidence than with his first daughter. Still, as Jobs grew older and began to face mortality, he more readily admitted his mistakes.

"I've done a lot of things I'm not proud of, such as getting my girlfriend pregnant when I was twenty-three and the way I handled that," Jobs said.

Know Yourself

While not always aware of how those around him were reacting to his appearance or demeanor, Jobs had no illusions about his own formidable intellectual skills.

"Then a more disconcerting discovery began to dawn on him: He was smarter than his parents."

Leave the Door Open for the Fantastic

Jobs was a seeker, pursuing spiritual enlightenment and body purification throughout his life. He wasn't a particularly religious person, but did not dismiss the existence or something beyond our earth-bound realm.

"I think different religions are different doors to the same house. Sometimes I think the house exists, and sometimes I don't. It's the great mystery." — Steve Jobs

Don't Hold Back

Apple's founder was famous for his outbursts and sometimes over-emotional responses. In product development, things were often amazing or sh_t.

"He was an enlightened being who was cruel," she recalled. "That's a strange combination."– former girlfriend and mother of Jobs' first daughter, Chrisann Brennan

Surround Yourself with Brilliance

Whether he was willing to admit it or not, Steve Jobs could not do everything. Yes, he could have a huge impact on every product and marketing campaign, but he also knew that there were others in the world with skills he did not possess. Jobs' early partnership with Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak perfectly illustrated this fact. His early success with Wozniak provided the template for future collaborations.

"After a couple of months he was ready to test it. 'I typed a few keys on the keyboard and I was shocked! The letters were displayed on the screen.' It was Sunday, June 29, 1975, a milestone for the personal computer. "It was the first time in history," Wozniak later said, "anyone had typed a character on a keyboard and seen it show up on their own computer's screen right in front of them."

Build a Team of A Players

Far too often, companies and managers settle for average employees. Steve Jobs recognized talent and decided that any conflict that might arise from a company full of "A"-level players would be counterbalanced by awesome output. He may have been right.

"For most things in life, the range between best and average is 30% or so. The best airplane flight, the best meal, they may be 30% better than your average one. What I saw with Woz was somebody who was fifty times better than the average engineer. He could have meetings in his head. The Mac team was an attempt to build a whole team like that, A players. People said they wouldn't get along, they'd hate working with each other. But I realized that A players like to work with A players, they just didn't like working with C players."– Steve Jobs

"I've learned over the years that when you have really good people you don't have to baby them," Jobs later explained. "By expecting them to do great things, you can get them to do great things."

Be Yourself

Steve Jobs was often so busy being himself that he had no idea how people saw him, especially in his early, dirty-hippie days.

"At meetings we had to look at his dirty feet." Sometimes, to relieve stress, he would soak his feet in the toilet, a practice that was not as soothing for his colleagues."—Mike Markkula, Apple's first chairman.

Be Persuasive

While it's true that early Steve Jobs was a somewhat smelly and unpleasant person to be around, this same Steve Jobs also trained himself to stare without blinking for long periods of time and found that he could persuade people to do the seemingly impossible.

"If it could save a person's life, would you find a way to shave ten seconds off the boot time?" he asked. Kenyon allowed that he probably could. Jobs went to a whiteboard and showed that if there were five million people using the Mac, and it took ten seconds extra to turn it on every day, that added up to three hundred million or so hours per year that people would save, which was the equivalent of at least one hundred lifetimes saved per year."

Show Others the Way

Jobs wasn't truly a programmer or technologist, certainly not in the way that Microsoft founder Bill Gates is, yet he had an intuitive understanding for technology and design that ended up altering the world's expectations for computers and, more importantly, consumer electronics.

"To be honest, we didn't know what it meant for a computer to be 'friendly' until Steve told us." — Terry Oyama, part of the early Macintosh design team.

Trust Your Instincts

I have, in my own career, navigated by gut on more than one occasion. Steve Jobs, though, had a deep and abiding belief in his own tastes and believed with utter certainty that if he liked something, the public would as well. He was almost invariably right.

"Did Alexander Graham Bell do any market research before he invented the telephone?" — Steve Jobs

Take Risks

Throughout his career, Steve Jobs took chances, first with the launch of Apple, then in walking away from it and then returning in 1997. In an era when most companies were figuring out ways to diversify, Apple — under Job's leadership — shed businesses and products, and focused on relatively few areas. He was also willing to steer the entire Apple ship (or at least some aspects of it) in a single direction if he thought it would generate future success.

"One of Jobs' management philosophies was that it is crucial, every now and then, to roll the dice and 'bet the company' on some new idea or technology."

"I had this crazy idea that we could sell just as many Macs by advertising the iPod. In addition, the iPod would position Apple as evoking innovation and youth. So I moved $75 million of advertising money to the iPod, even though the category didn't justify one hundredth of that. That meant that we completely dominated the market for music players. We outspent everybody by a factor of about a hundred." — Steve Jobs.

Follow Great with Great

In everything from products to movies (under Pixar), Steve Jobs sought to create great follow-ups. He wasn't so successful in the early part of his career (see Lisa), but his third acts to Pixar and Apple proved he had the sequel touch.

"There's a classic thing in business, which is the second-product syndrome," Jobs later said. It comes from not understanding what made your first product so successful. "I lived through that at Apple. My feeling was, if we got through our second film, we'd make it."

Make Tough Decisions

Good managers and leaders are willing to do hard work and, often, make unpopular decisions. Jobs apparently had little concern about being liked and therefore was well-equipped to make tough choices.

"The most visible decision he made was to kill, once and for all, the Newton, the personal digital assistant with the almost-good handwriting-recognition system."

Presentation Can Make a World of Difference

The Apple founder hated PowerPoint presentations, but perhaps somewhat uncharacteristically, believed elegant product presentation was critical.

"Packaging can be theater, it can create a story." — Jony Ive, Apple designer.

Find a Way to Balance Your Intensity

It's unclear if Steve Jobs ever truly mellowed, but he did learn that a buffer between him and the rest of Apple could be useful.

"In a company that was led by a CEO prone to tantrums and withering blasts, Cook commanded situations with a calm demeanour, a soothing Alabama accent, and silent stares."

Live for Today

Even as Steve Jobs struggled with cancer, he rarely slowed down. If anything, the disease helped him focus his efforts and pursue some of his grandest dreams.

"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life." — Steve Jobs

"Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart." — Steve Jobs

Share Your Wisdom

Steve Jobs was not a philanthropic soul. He had a passion for products and success, but it wasn't until he became quite ill that he started reaching out and offering his wisdom to others in the tech community.

"I will continue to do that with people like Mark Zuckerberg too. That's how I'm going to spend part of the time I have left. I can help the next generation remember the lineage of great companies here and how to continue the tradition. The Valley has been very supportive of me. I should do my best to repay." — Steve Jobs

Edited by: Lawyer Asad

7 Easy Ways to be Mindful Every Day

By: Margarita Tartakovsky, M.S / Source: Psyche Central

Mindfulness has a way of sounding complicated. It’s anything but.

“Mindfulness is paying attention in a particular way: on purpose, in the present moment, non-judgementally,” according to Marsha Lucas, Ph.D, psychologist and author of Rewire Your Brain for Love.

There are many simple ways you can be more mindful. Here are seven tips to incorporate into your daily life.

1. Practice mindfulness during routine activities. 

Try bringing awareness to the daily activities you usually do on autopilot, said Ed Halliwell, mindfulness teacher and co-author of the book The Mindful Manifesto.

For instance, pay more attention as you’re brushing your teeth, taking a shower, eating breakfast or walking to work, he said. Zero in on the sight, sound, smell, taste and feel of these activities. “You might find the routine activity is more interesting than you thought,” he said.

2. Practice right when you wake up.

According to Lucas, “Mindfulness practice first thing in the morning helps set the ‘tone’ of your nervous system for the rest of the day, increasing the likelihood of other mindful moments.” If you find yourself dozing off, as Lucas does, just practice after having your coffee or tea. But “…don’t read the paper, turn on the TV, check your phone or email, etc. until afteryou’ve had your ‘sit,’” she said.

3. Let your mind wander.

“Your mind and brain are natural wanderers – much like a crawling toddler or a puppy, Lucas said. And that’s a good thing. Having a “busy brain,” Lucas said, is actually an asset. “The beneficial brain changes seen in the neuroscience research on mindfulness are thought to be promoted in large part by the act of noticing that your mind has wandered, and then non-judgmentally – lovingly [and] gently— bringing it back,” she said.

4. Keep it short. 

Our brains respond better to bursts of mindfulness, Lucas said. So being mindful several times a day is more helpful than a lengthy session or even a weekend retreat. While 20 minutes seems to be the gold standard, starting at a few minutes a day is OK, too.

For instance, you can tune into your body, such as focusing “on how your shoes feel on your feet in that moment, or giving attention to how your jaw is doing [such as, is it] tight, loose or hanging open at the audacity of the person in front of you in the coffee line?” Lucas said.

5. Practice mindfulness while you wait. 

In our fast-paced lives, waiting is a big source of frustration – whether you’re waiting in line or stuck in traffic. But while it might seem like a nuisance, waiting is actually an opportunity for mindfulness, Halliwell said. When you’re waiting, he suggested bringing your attention to your breath. Focus on “the flow of the breath in and out of your body, from moment to moment and allow everything else to just be, even if what’s there is impatience or irritation.”

6. Pick a prompt to remind you to be mindful.

Choose a cue that you encounter on a regular basis to shift your brain into mindful mode, Lucas said. For instance, you might pick a certain doorway or mirror or use drinking coffee or tea as a reminder, she said.

7. Learn to meditate. 

“The best way to cultivate mindfulness in everyday life is to formally train in meditation,” Halliwell said. He compared practicing mindfulness to learning a new language. “You can’t just decide to be fluent in Spanish – unless you already are – you have to learn the language first,” he said. “Practicing meditation is how to learn the language of mindfulness.” Meditation helps us tap into mindfulness with little effort, he said. He suggested finding a local teacher or trying out CDs.

Mindfulness isn’t a luxury, Lucas said, “it’s a practice that trains your brain to be more efficient and better integrated, with less distractibility and improved focus. It minimizes stress and even helps you become your best self.”

Lucas cited Richard Davidson’s research at the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience at the University of Wisconsin, which shows that all of us have an emotional “set point.” “Some of us have more of a tendency toward withdrawal, avoidance, negative thinking and other depressive symptoms, [whereas] others have a greater tendency toward positive moods [such as, being] curious, tending to approach new things and positive thinking,” she said. Davidson has found that through mindfulness, we may be able to train our brains and shift our set points.

“Mindfulness practice now has an abundance of neuroscience research to support that it helps our brains be more integrated, so your everyday activities, thoughts, attitudes [and] perceptions…are more balanced [or] well-rounded,” Lucas said.

Edited by: Lawyer Asad

 

Jesus Christ: Illuminati Grand Master?

By Eli Rook, Author of The Big F*cking Secret

Grand Master Illuminatus Jesus Christ sat fasting by his favorite stream on a hot summer afternoon, pondering how he could help his peasant brothers and sisters discover the glorious rewards of harnessing their own individual conscious power.

He had no sacred texts, no quantum physics research, no YouTube... He was armed only with his own integrated thoughts and a love for all mankind.

"How can I speak... in a way they might understand me? And if I cannot speak in a way they might understand me... how can I  speak in way they might do what is best for themselves... that which they are forbidden to do by the Church? How might I lead them to their benefit, without their resistance, without the use of force?" 

Little did he know, the breakthrough he experienced that day (when he first envisioned how to effectively teach his ideas to the peasants suffering in a zombie-like state of non-consciousness) was the teaching method that would eventually continue on without him, freeing men and women who still suffer in that same zombie state 2000 years later.

Jesus passionately wanted to help those pre-consciouspeasants. He understood that human beings were not subject to the authority of a non-existent God, as the Bible now describes, nor were they living only to reach a make-believe spiritual realm upon death, such as a non-existent Biblical heaven.

He knew instead that "God" (the hallucinated voice of God those ignorant peasants "heard"), was not out there, or up there, but INSIDE. He knew that "Heaven" - the idea of an afterlife those peasants imagined - wasn't to come from sacrifice, subservience to authority, or an eventual death... No - Heaven was a state of being... the experience of enjoying creativity and love DURING life.

Jesus discovered nature's most coveted secret,and he was murdered for trying to teach it.

A few hundred years passed, and by the time of Constantine, the Church elders knew they couldn't stop Jesus' discovery of the secret... So they took the only available action they had left to hold on to their parasitic power and continue ruling over the feeble-minded public.

But they did this only after twisting and manipulating Jesus' words, and the words of his Apostles, in order to suit the Church's criminal authoritarian agenda - to remain in control... to continue carrying out acts of parasitism... and continue feasting upon Jesus' flock.

Humanity was then thrust into the Dark Ages, and although tyranny has been fought off valiantly since the Renaissance, the tradition of mental and physical parasitism still carries on today, in the Churches of nearly all world religions. But no matter how badly the Churchelders twisted and manipulated Jesus' message to suit their pathological goal of controlling the minds of his followers throughout the years -- No matter how badly those manipulations crippled the potential for billions of people over the centuries who took faith in corrupted, fallacious Church-controlled interpretations of Jesus Christ's integrally honest conscious conceptions -- the true message lingerson... Indestructibly... Eternally... Invisibly.

The establishment responsible for murdering Christ is the same establishment that warped, plagiarized, and distorted his message throughout the dark ages and fed lies to his followers for two millenia.

That same establishment holds our peasant brothers and sisters down today, hiding the knowledge that will free humanity from the bondage of mysticism and authoritarian subservience. That establishment is being sabotaged by the New World Order. Its days are numbered. As silly ancient religions began to wither away, becoming nothing more than a collection of elite power structures intended to hold an ignorant populace in mental and sexual bondage, a much greater authoritarian menace grew in sophistication to threaten the natural-given liberty of each global citizen on Earth...

That menace is the State.

Today, the religion of the State is not one of subservience to the invisible man in the sky, but one of sacrifice and suffering to support the politically enabled criminal behavior inside the business world, and to combat the illusionary scarcity of Earth's resources – schemes fully supported by a destructive political agenda of deficit spending and environmental pseudo-science.

The State drains the productive class in order to support the livelihood of the ruling class, while leaving a trail of dead bodies in its destructive wake. The message Jesus brought forth 2000 years ago (the same message that was silenced by Church elders) is successfully bringing about the demise of mystical religions today.

That same message, based on nature's greatest secret, is also bringing about the demise of the State – no matter how big and believable their leviathan Ponzi schemes might grow. Don't be fooled, Jesus was not the son of a mystical God. He was just another person throughout history who discovered nature's greatest secret and sought to share it with the world (as did Da Vinci,Locke, Jefferson, Napoleon Hill, Gandhi, Malcolm X, and John Lennon too...)

Just like you have.

By Eli Rook. Excerpt from the book Confessions of an Invisible Illuminati

Edited by: Lawyer Asad

Developing A Great Character

A person's character is the degree to which they live their life consistent with high, life-enhancing values. A person who lacks character is one who compromises on higher order values in favor of lower order expedience, or who has no values at all.

Your adherence to what you believe to be right and true is the real measure of the person you have become to this moment. Think about it. How would someone describe your character?

Define What "Excellence" Means to You

Let us say that one of your values is "excellence." Your definition of excellence could be, "Excellence means that I set the highest standards for myself in everything I do. I do my very best in every situation and under all circumstances. I constantly strive to be better in my work, and as a person in my relationships. I recognize that excellence is a life-long journey and I work every day to become better and better in everything I do."

Organize Your Actions

With a definition like this, you have a clear organizing principle for your actions. You have set a standard by which you can evaluate your behavior. You have created a framework within which you can make decisions. You have a measuring rod against which you can compare yourself in everything you do. You can continually grade your activities in terms of "more" or "less." You have a clear target to aim at and organize your work around.

Decide What You Want for Your Family

It's the same with each of your other values. If your value is your family, you could define this as, "The needs of my family take precedence over all other concerns. Whenever I have to choose between the happiness, health and well being of a member of my family, and any other interest, my family will always come first."

Keep Focused

From that moment onward, it becomes easier for you to choose. Your family comes first. Until you have fully satisfied the needs of your family, no other time requirement will side track you into a lower value activity.

Shape Your Own Character

The wonderful thing about values clarification is that it enables you to take charge of developing and shaping your own character. When your values and goals, your inner life and your outer life, are in complete alignment, you feel terrific about yourself. You enjoy high self-esteem. Your self-confidence soars.

When you achieve complete congruence between your values and your goals, like a hand in a glove, you feel strong, happy, healthy and fully integrated as a person. You develop a kind of courage that makes you completely unafraid to make decisions and take action. Your whole life improves when you begin living your life by the values that you most admire.

Action Exercises

Here are two things you can do to put this ideas into action immediately.

First, create a clear, written description of your values and what they mean to you. From that point on, resolve to live consistent with your own definition.

Second, discipline yourself to live in complete alignment with the values, virtues and qualities that are most important to you. This is the key to character.

Brian Tracy

Benefits of Waking Up Early

Early to bed and early to rise makes you healthy, wealthy as well as wise. And that is not merely an age-old saying. It works in daily life too. Read on to know how.

1. Time to Exercise

Waking up early gives you the time to exercise. You can easily go for a jog, do a few laps in the pool, practice yoga or hit the gym with plenty of time at hand.

2. Time to Meditate

There is nothing like beginning the day with a dose of meditation. It will help calm your mind and sharpen your reflexes to keep you going through your busy schedule of work.

3. Experience the Charm of Early Morning

Only an early morning person knows the charm and serenity that those hours offer. The silence, the birds chirping, the absence of cars honking, and the sunrise are all advantages only early rising can offer.

4. Increase Productivity and Efficiency

A study conducted at the Texas University in 2008 revealed that early risers are more prone to be productive and efficient at work. In fact, students who wake up early are known to get higher grades than those who wake up late.

5. Eating Breakfast

Breakfast is known to be the most important meal of the day. Often, you may land up skipping it if you are running late for work. An early start to the day ensures that this significant meal is never given the slip.

"A healthy breakfast is the most important meal of the day,” says Dr Jyothi Prasad, chief dietitian, Manipal Hospital, Bangalore.“There’s a nearly ten-hour long gap between dinner and breakfast, during which the body is on fast mode. As the name suggests, breakfast is the meal you eat to break that fast,” explains Dr Prasad, “It refuels your body with essential nutrients to kick-start your day. So don’t skip it.”

Curd and fruits: There’s no denying the goodness of curd. For a smart and filling breakfast option, chop up a bunch of fruits, like bananas and apples and add them to a bowl of curd, top it up with some muesli and chopped walnuts and you’ve got yourself a quick and delicious breakfast that’s also highly nutritious.

6. Less Stress

Giving you ample time to get ready on time, waking up early ensures that you suffer less stress. Beat the traffic and drive to work at ease.

7. Set Routine

Once you get into the habit of rising early, you are able to set a routine and that obviously leads to better productivity not only at work, but also on the home front and as an individual.

8. Brighter Mood

Early risers are known to be happier and more optimistic than night owls. The latter are known to suffer depression, insomnia and pessimism. The bright start with exercise and optimism is bound to keep you feeling energised and optimistic all day.

9. Better Health

Proper routine and exercise are known factors in ensuring better health in the long run. Waking up early ensures you set aside time to work out. Late risers lack the advantage of time for this.

10. Better Finances

Improved health, enhanced productivity and ameliorated energy can only result in one thing – a higher rate of success. And when this happens in your career, can financial triumph be far behind? So, rise early to kickstart a really great way of doing well in the professional sphere as well.

The benefits of waking up early are myriad. It doesn’t take much to change your lifestyle to avail these benefits. After all, personal and professional well-being, and ultimate success are what everyone seeks. So, why not adopt a healthier way of living and reap those benefits?

Brought to you by: Lawyer Asad

Why a dog is a child’s best friend: They bring immune-boosting dirt and allergens into the home

Why a dog is a child's best friend: They bring immune-boosting dirt and allergens into the home

By: Fiona Macrae / Source: Mail Online

They have long been thought of as man's best friend. But it seems dogs could also have benefits for babies.

Having a pet dog helps keep under-ones free from breathing problems and infections, studies suggest.

Researchers found babies who lived with a dog spent fewer weeks with ear infections, coughs or running noses. They were also less likely to need antibiotics.

Living with cats could also be good for babies' health, but to a lesser extent.

The finding knits with the hygiene hypothesis – that a certain amount of exposure to dirt and grime helps the immune system mature. Previous research has credited having a pet as a youngster with a lower risk of allergies.

In the latest study, published in the journal Pediatrics, researchers from Kuopio University Hospital in Finland tracked the health of 397 infants during their first year.

Parents filled out weekly diaries starting when their child was nine weeks old, recording information on the baby's health, and contact with cats and dogs.

Based on those diaries and a year-end questionnaire, researchers determined that 35 per cent of the children spent the majority of their first year with a pet dog and 24 per cent in a home with a cat.

The majority of babies had at least some contact with a dog at their house during the study period and more than one third were exposed to a cat. Infants with no dog contact at home were healthy for 65 per cent of their parents' weekly diary reports. That compared with between 72 and 76 per cent for those who had a dog at home.

Babies in dog-owning families were also 44 per cent less likely to get inner ear infections and 29 per cent less likely to need antibiotics.

Healthiest of all were those with a pet dog that spent no more than six hours inside the house. This, say the researchers, could be because these animals are spending more time outside and so bringing home more grime and bugs.

They added, though, that they could not rule out other explanations for the link, including differences between pet owners and those without animals at home.

15 Powerful Success Secrets from Jim Rohn

15 Powerful Success Secrets from Jim Rohn

Source: Jim Rohn's Secret To A Rich, Wealthy And Purposeful Life!

This was a great presentation given by the late Jim Rohn on the 15 challenges that can help you to go further, climb higher and conquer anything you want in business and in Life.

Below I have listed my own interpretation of the 15 Challenges that he presented.

1. Review Your Performance

How much effort are you putting into your actions today? When you take the time to stop and review your performance, you'll probably realize that you can do better. You can always do better!

Jim Rohn made a good point when he stated to "always do more than you are paid for to make an investment in your future." This is some of the wisest business (or personal) advice that you may ever hear because when you give more, you are gaining a sense of Universal credit which will eventually be deposited to you at some point time.

So no matter how much you currently give, review your performance and start giving more!

2. Face Your Fears

Facing your fears is the only way to totally guarantee that you finally conquer them. A wise man once gave the instructions to "do the thing that you fear and death of that fear is certain".

So stop running from the things that you are afraid of and take a stand and look them dead in the eyes. Once you do this, they won't be that scary any more.

3. Exercise Your Willpower

I've heard some people argue that willpower just doesn't work. I highly disagree with this because willpower is absolutely essentialfor getting the ball rolling when you're changing directions in life. As a matter fact, there really isn't any other method that's going to work in this scenario.

Think about it for a minute; there isn't anyone who is going to physically move you and get you going in the right direction but you. And it's going to take a load of effort too; conscious effort to be exact.

You must consciously think about the change that you want to make in regards to the new direction that you want to go in and then summon up all of the willpower that you can in order to start heading in that direction.

4. Admit Your Mistakes

The first step to making lasting changes in your life is to let go of your ego and admit your faults, defeats and errors. So when you screw up, the first thing you need to do is to take full responsibility for your actions no matter whom or what is involved.

Stop playing the blame game!

You and only you are responsible for everything that happens in your life. So you owe it first to yourself and second to others to admit your mistakes and claim responsibility for them.

Own your mistakes!

After that, you'll find it super easy to move on in the right direction.

5. Refine Your Goals

Nine times out of ten you'll find that you set goals that just aren't high enough and don't force you to stretch to new heights. So sometimes you need to take a step back and set higher goals that force you to get out of your comfort zone and achieve things that you really never thought were possible.

Refine and reset!

Shoot higher and higher and watch as you soar high above the clouds!

6. Believe in Yourself

In order to achieve a level of greatness in any field, you must believe that you can do it though matter what the circumstances.

You must believe 100% in your product.

You must believe 100% in your service.

You must believe 100% in your ability to overcome and conquer.

YOU MUST BELIEVE 100% IN YOURSELF EVEN IF NO ONE ELSE BELIEVES IN YOU!

It doesn't really matter if every single person in the world tells you that you can't; you must believe that you can! Jim Rohn hit the nail on the head when he said that there isn't a skill that you can't learn. So no matter what you need to do to keep reaching for higher levels of achievement, there is a way to acquire the skills and knowledge that will get you there.

Believe and Achieve!

7. Ask for Wisdom

Quit asking for Life to be easier! Instead ask for strength, wisdom, knowledge and everything you need to overcome your adversity.

I love it when Jim Rohn stated "don't wish it was easier, wish you were better". This is true wisdom because asking for life to be easier never made anyone stronger, wise or simply a better person. Instead, ask for the tools, people, guidance, skills and strength to come into your life so you can overcome your obstacles.

You can wish all you want that the mountain in front of you will disappear but it will never happen. Instead gather the tools you need and scale the mountain!

8. Conserve Your Time

One of the most precious valuables in the world is time. It's something that's indispensable because once it's gone you can never get it back… EVER!

This is why you must make the most of every second of every day and never, ever, ever take one second for granted. When you make time to work,WORK! And when you make time to stop and smell the roses, savor every moment!

Productivity is essential for achievement so plan your work and work your plan swiftly and to the absolute best of your ability.

9. Invest Your Profits

Profits truly are better than wages and they will make you a fortune. And the only way you can receive profits is by building a business. This is why I am a firm believer in starting up an online business. Practically anyone can learn the skills if they are willing and disciplined and through your online business you can create profits and then INVEST them in your future.

There are no profits in working a JOB. The only profits that are there to invest are the ones that the company receives that you make for them.

Invest in your business.

Invest in your education.

Invest in your future.

When you invest instead of spend, you will compound your income.

10. Protect Your Family

When I think of the phrase "protect your family" I don't always see it as meaning physically protecting them from harm's way directly. I am a firm believer in protecting your family by instilling knowledge and wisdom which will help them to avoid hardship, heart ache in the true dangers of this world.

Knowledge is Power and it is this same power that will fend off any potential diabolic deeds that lurk in this world.

Remember, give someone a fish and they'll eat for a day; teach them how to fish and they'll have food for a lifetime.

11. Live with Intensity

This is one of my favorites because it is a philosophy that I follow 100%. Everything you do, from brushing your teeth to closing a business deal you must do with 100% intensity. This means you put in every ounce of effort into every single action that you take. It means being aggressive by taking life by the horns and wrestling it to the ground.

Bigger!

Faster!

Stronger!

So no matter what you do, do it with all your heart and soul!

12. Find Your Place

The best way out of a situation is through it. So if you want to get out of the current job that you're in, you have to go through it. This means that you must strive to give everything you've got to that job no matter what the circumstances are.

Even if you hate the job, the way "through it" is to view your current place as a stepping stone that will help to get you to wherever it is you want to be. With this type of attitude you'll find yourself able to tolerate your current place in life because you are absolutely certain that there is a BIGGER and BETTER place for you up ahead in the near future.

Remember, it's all a stepping stone!

13. Demand Integrity from Yourself

As you sow, so shall you reap.

If you expect integrity from other people then you must first live with integrity yourself. This means that you must have integrity in your thoughts, your words and your actions. You must be a leader, always setting the example of what is right and just. Remember, you can't demand something of someone else if you don't in fact give it in the first place.

So be the best example of what you would like in return and that's what you will get.

14. Welcome the Disciplines

Discipline is the act of carrying out your plan of action precisely and elegantly, when it needs to be done and where it needs to be done. Discipline is what keeps you focused and on track when there are distractions in life. Discipline leads to consistency; and consistency ultimately leads to perpetual progression.

If there is one ingredient that cannot be left out of the recipe for success, it would be discipline.

15. Fight for What's Right

What would you do if the whole world was fighting for a cause that you knew 100% in your mind was wrong? This is reality because there are going to be times in your life that feel like this. And you must stand up and fight for what's right even if you're going against what seems like an army.

If you fight for what's right, in the end, you will savor the ultimate victory. Truth, wisdom and integrity will always prevail. And above all, remember to always always, always keep faith and you will see miracles happen in your life!

Jim Rohn was a great motivational speaker and had an amazing ability to grasp opportunities to create wealth. His wealth creation ability was demonstrated when he lost over $2.3 million with the collapsed and subsequently became a multi-millionaire again.

Find happiness with four little known mood boosters

Find happiness with four little known mood boosters

By: Danna Norek / Source: Natural News

(NaturalNews) Happiness is the state in which we were all meant to live. When this state of being eludes you, there are several mood boosting activities you can take part in to ensure low moods are few and far between. Many can even produce identifiable changes in brain chemistry almost instantly.

Get close to the ocean, a waterfall or any moving water

Moving water creates an atmosphere in which it is nearly impossible to feel hopeless and deflated. The 5 great freshwater lakes of the US and the ocean all are bodies of water that are in constant motion. There are two reasons these large bodies of water have a positive impact on our mood.

The first is the power of negative ions that are generated from the movement of the water. Negative ions are very cleansing to the human body. They create a feeling of invigoration by refreshing and oxygenating the cells of the body. They are also antioxidants since they help to counter balance positive ions.

Positive ions are also known as free radicals. In today's world of "dead air" in which we are subjected to buildings with recycled heat and air conditioning, positive ions are much more abundant. Positive ions damage our healthy cells and create the perfect environment for sickness and disease.

Mow the lawn

Studies have recently shown that the simple act of mowing the lawn lifts the spirits. It helps create a feeling of well being and accomplishment. You are also reaping the benefit of aerobic activity, which in itself elevates mood.

The aroma of cut grass has been shown to lower stress levels and calm the mind. The chemical released by the freshly mown grass directly affects two areas of the brain related to emotions and memory. They are the amygdala and the hippo-campus.

These findings may also explain why getting outdoors in general helps to elevate mood and release stress. Studies have also shown that simply inhaling the scent of pine trees and other vegetation has relaxing effects on the brain.

Get a pet if you don't already have one

Whether you fancy dogs or cats there are several studies that have shown the physical and emotional benefits of having a pet. Research has revealed that stress levels and feelings of contentment in the elderly dramatically improved by owning a pet. Dogs and cats are frequently taken to nursing homes as visiting guests due to their therapeutic value.

Studies have also shown that simply petting an animal lowers the levels of stress hormones in the body as well as blood pressure. Stronger human and pet relationships show greater benefit in mood boosting and stress reduction. The more bonded you are to your animal the greater the benefit.

Eat a banana

Bananas are not just a convenient snack to carry around. They are also one of the top foods that will instantly boost your mood. Their combination of tryptophan, vitamin B6 and complex carbohydrates actually converts to serotonin.

Serotonin is one of the primary neurotransmitters that helps sustain an elevated mood and sense of well being. Deficiencies in this important hormone result in depression, insomnia and mood fluctuations.

Bananas also contain filling fiber, which helps stabilize the blood sugar levels. Dips in blood sugar cause mood swings and can lead to over eating. The iron in bananas also plays an important role in energy production which helps enhance mood and create a sense of well being and empowerment.

Edited by: Lawyer Asad

The 48 Laws of Power

The 48 Laws of Power

By Robert Greene and Joost Elffers
Authors of The 48 Laws of Power

The 48 Laws of Power is a 1998 book by Robert Greene and Joost Elffers. The book shares thematic elements with Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince and has been compared to Sun-Tzu's classic treatise The Art of War.

Law 1
Never Outshine the Master
Always make those above you feel comfortably superior.  In your desire to please or impress them, do not go too far in displaying your talents or you might accomplish the opposite - inspire fear and insecurity.  Make your masters appear more brilliant than they are and you will attain the heights of power.

Law 2
Never put too Much Trust in Friends, Learn how to use Enemies
Be wary of friends - they will betray you more quickly, for they are easily aroused to envy.  They also become spoiled and tyrannical. But hire a former enemy and he will be more loyal than a friend, because he has more to prove.  In fact, you have more to fear from friends than from enemies.  If you have no enemies, find a way to make them.

Law 3
Conceal your Intentions
Keep people off-balance and in the dark by never revealing the purpose behind your actions.  If they have no clue what you are up to, they cannot prepare a defense.  Guide them far enough down the wrong path, envelope them in enough smoke, and by the time they realize your intentions, it will be too late.

Law 4
Always Say Less than Necessary
When you are trying to impress people with words, the more you say, the more common you appear, and the less in control.  Even if you are saying something banal, it will seem original if you make it vague, open-ended, and sphinxlike.  Powerful people impress and intimidate by saying less.  The more you say, the more likely you are to say something foolish.

Law 5
So Much Depends on Reputation – Guard it with your Life
Reputation is the cornerstone of power.  Through reputation alone you can intimidate and win; once you slip, however, you are vulnerable, and will be attacked on all sides.  Make your reputation unassailable.  Always be alert to potential attacks and thwart them before they happen.  Meanwhile, learn to destroy your enemies by opening holes in their own reputations.  Then stand aside and let public opinion hang them.

Law 6
Court Attention at all Cost
Everything is judged by its appearance; what is unseen counts for nothing.  Never let yourself get lost in the crowd, then, or buried in oblivion.  Stand out.  Be conspicuous, at all cost.  Make yourself a magnet of attention by appearing larger, more colorful, more mysterious, than the bland and timid masses.

Law 7
Get others to do the Work for you, but Always Take the Credit
Use the wisdom, knowledge, and legwork of other people to further your own cause.  Not only will such assistance save you valuable time and energy, it will give you a godlike aura of efficiency and speed.  In the end your helpers will be forgotten and you will be remembered.  Never do yourself what others can do for you.

Law 8
Make other People come to you – use Bait if Necessary
When you force the other person to act, you are the one in control.  It is always better to make your opponent come to you, abandoning his own plans in the process.  Lure him with fabulous gains – then attack.  You hold the cards.

Law 9
Win through your Actions, Never through Argument
Any momentary triumph you think gained through argument is really a Pyrrhic victory:  The resentment and ill will you stir up is stronger and lasts longer than any momentary change of opinion.  It is much more powerful to get others to agree with you through your actions, without saying a word.  Demonstrate, do not explicate.

Law 10
Infection: Avoid the Unhappy and Unlucky
You can die from someone else's misery – emotional states are as infectious as disease.  You may feel you are helping the drowning man but you are only precipitating your own disaster.  The unfortunate sometimes draw misfortune on themselves; they will also draw it on you.  Associate with the happy and fortunate instead.

Law 11
Learn to Keep People Dependent on You
To maintain your independence you must always be needed and wanted.  The more you are relied on, the more freedom you have.  Make people depend on you for their happiness and prosperity and you have nothing to fear.  Never teach them enough so that they can do without you.

Law 12
Use Selective Honesty and Generosity to Disarm your Victim
One sincere and honest move will cover over dozens of dishonest ones.  Open-hearted gestures of honesty and generosity bring down the guard of even the most suspicious people.  Once your selective honesty opens a hole in their armor, you can deceive and manipulate them at will.  A timely gift – a Trojan horse – will serve the same purpose.

Law 13
When Asking for Help, Appeal to People's Self-Interest, Never to their Mercy or Gratitude
If you need to turn to an ally for help, do not bother to remind him of your past assistance and good deeds.  He will find a way to ignore you.  Instead, uncover something in your request, or in your alliance with him, that will benefit him, and emphasize it out of all proportion.  He will respond enthusiastically when he sees something to be gained for himself.

Law 14
Pose as a Friend, Work as a Spy
Knowing about your rival is critical.  Use spies to gather valuable information that will keep you a step ahead.  Better still: Play the spy yourself.  In polite social encounters, learn to probe.  Ask indirect questions to get people to reveal their weaknesses and intentions.  There is no occasion that is not an opportunity for artful spying.

Law 15
Crush your Enemy Totally
All great leaders since Moses have known that a feared enemy must be crushed completely.  (Sometimes they have learned this the hard way.)  If one ember is left alight, no matter how dimly it smolders, a fire will eventually break out.  More is lost through stopping halfway than through total annihilation:  The enemy will recover, and will seek revenge.  Crush him, not only in body but in spirit.

Law 16
Use Absence to Increase Respect and Honor
Too much circulation makes the price go down:  The more you are seen and heard from, the more common you appear.  If you are already established in a group, temporary withdrawal from it will make you more talked about, even more admired.  You must learn when to leave.  Create value through scarcity.

Law 17
Keep Others in Suspended Terror: Cultivate an Air of Unpredictability
Humans are creatures of habit with an insatiable need to see familiarity in other people's actions.  Your predictability gives them a sense of control.  Turn the tables: Be deliberately unpredictable.  Behavior that seems to have no consistency or purpose will keep them off-balance, and they will wear themselves out trying to explain your moves.  Taken to an extreme, this strategy can intimidate and terrorize.

Law 18
Do Not Build Fortresses to Protect Yourself – Isolation is Dangerous
The world is dangerous and enemies are everywhere – everyone has to protect themselves.  A fortress seems the safest. But isolation exposes you to more dangers than it protects you from – it cuts you off from valuable information, it makes you conspicuous and an easy target.  Better to circulate among people find allies, mingle.  You are shielded from your enemies by the crowd.

Law 19
Know Who You're Dealing with – Do Not Offend the Wrong Person
There are many different kinds of people in the world, and you can never assume that everyone will react to your strategies in the same way.  Deceive or outmaneuver some people and they will spend the rest of their lives seeking revenge.  They are wolves in lambs' clothing.  Choose your victims and opponents carefully, then – never offend or deceive the wrong person.

Law 20
Do Not Commit to Anyone
It is the fool who always rushes to take sides.  Do not commit to any side or cause but yourself.  By maintaining your independence, you become the master of others – playing people against one another, making them pursue you.

Law 21
Play a Sucker to Catch a Sucker – Seem Dumber than your Mark
No one likes feeling stupider than the next persons.  The trick, is to make your victims feel smart – and not just smart, but smarter than you are.  Once convinced of this, they will never suspect that you may have ulterior motives.

Law 22
Use the Surrender Tactic: Transform Weakness into Power
When you are weaker, never fight for honor's sake; choose surrender instead.  Surrender gives you time to recover, time to torment and irritate your conqueror, time to wait for his power to wane.  Do not give him the satisfaction of fighting and defeating you – surrender first.  By turning the other check you infuriate and unsettle him.  Make surrender a tool of power.

Law 23
Concentrate Your Forces
Conserve your forces and energies by keeping them concentrated at their strongest point.  You gain more by finding a rich mine and mining it deeper, than by flitting from one shallow mine to another – intensity defeats extensity every time.  When looking for sources of power to elevate you, find the one key patron, the fat cow who will give you milk for a long time to come.

Law 24
Play the Perfect Courtier
The perfect courtier thrives in a world where everything revolves around power and political dexterity.  He has mastered the art of indirection; he flatters, yields to superiors, and asserts power over others in the mot oblique and graceful manner.  Learn and apply the laws of courtiership and there will be no limit to how far you can rise in the court.

Law 25
Re-Create Yourself
Do not accept the roles that society foists on you.  Re-create yourself by forging a new identity, one that commands attention and never bores the audience.  Be the master of your own image rather than letting others define if for you.  Incorporate dramatic devices into your public gestures and actions – your power will be enhanced and your character will seem larger than life.

Law 26
Keep Your Hands Clean
You must seem a paragon of civility and efficiency: Your hands are never soiled by mistakes and nasty deeds.  Maintain such a spotless appearance by using others as scapegoats and cat's-paws to disguise your involvement.

Law 27
Play on People's Need to Believe to Create a Cultlike Following
People have an overwhelming desire to believe in something.  Become the focal point of such desire by offering them a cause, a new faith to follow.  Keep your words vague but full of promise; emphasize enthusiasm over rationality and clear thinking.  Give your new disciples rituals to perform, ask them to make sacrifices on your behalf.  In the absence of organized religion and grand causes, your new belief system will bring you untold power.

Law 28
Enter Action with Boldness
If you are unsure of a course of action, do not attempt it.  Your doubts and hesitations will infect your execution.  Timidity is dangerous:  Better to enter with boldness.  Any mistakes you commit through audacity are easily corrected with more audacity.  Everyone admires the bold; no one honors the timid.

Law 29
Plan All the Way to the End
The ending is everything.  Plan all the way to it, taking into account all the possible consequences, obstacles, and twists of fortune that might reverse your hard work and give the glory to others.  By planning to the end you will not be overwhelmed by circumstances and you will know when to stop.  Gently guide fortune and help determine the future by thinking far ahead.

Law 30
Make your Accomplishments Seem Effortless
Your actions must seem natural and executed with ease.  All the toil and practice that go into them, and also all the clever tricks, must be concealed.  When you act, act effortlessly, as if you could do much more.  Avoid the temptation of revealing how hard you work – it only raises questions.  Teach no one your tricks or they will be used against you.

Law 31
Control the Options: Get Others to Play with the Cards you Deal
The best deceptions are the ones that seem to give the other person a choice:  Your victims feel they are in control, but are actually your puppets.  Give people options that come out in your favor whichever one they choose.  Force them to make choices between the lesser of two evils, both of which serve your purpose.  Put them on the horns of a dilemma:  They are gored wherever they turn.

Law 32
Play to People's Fantasies
The truth is often avoided because it is ugly and unpleasant.  Never appeal to truth and reality unless you are prepared for the anger that comes for disenchantment.  Life is so harsh and distressing that people who can manufacture romance or conjure up fantasy are like oases in the desert:  Everyone flocks to them. There is great power in tapping into the fantasies of the masses.

Law 33
Discover Each Man's Thumbscrew
Everyone has a weakness, a gap in the castle wall.  That weakness is usually an insecurity, an uncontrollable emotion or need; it can also be a small secret pleasure.  Either way, once found, it is a thumbscrew you can turn to your advantage.

Law 34
Be Royal in your Own Fashion:  Act like a King to be treated like one
The way you carry yourself will often determine how you are treated; In the long run, appearing vulgar or common will make people disrespect you.  For a king respects himself and inspires the same sentiment in others.  By acting regally and confident of your powers, you make yourself seem destined to wear a crown.

Law 35
Master the Art of Timing
Never seem to be in a hurry – hurrying betrays a lack of control over yourself, and over time.  Always seem patient, as if you know that everything will come to you eventually.  Become a detective of the right moment; sniff out the spirit of the times, the trends that will carry you to power.  Learn to stand back when the time is not yet ripe, and to strike fiercely when it has reached fruition.

Law 36
Disdain Things you cannot have:  Ignoring them is the best Revenge
By acknowledging a petty problem you give it existence and credibility.  The more attention you pay an enemy, the stronger you make him; and a small mistake is often made worse and more visible when you try to fix it.  It is sometimes best to leave things alone.  If there is something you want but cannot have, show contempt for it.  The less interest you reveal, the more superior you seem. 

Law 37
Create Compelling Spectacles
Striking imagery and grand symbolic gestures create the aura of power – everyone responds to them.  Stage spectacles for those around you, then full of arresting visuals and radiant symbols that heighten your presence.  Dazzled by appearances, no one will notice what you are really doing.

Law 38
Think as you like but Behave like others
If you make a show of going against the times, flaunting your unconventional ideas and unorthodox ways, people will think that you only want attention and that you look down upon them.  They will find a way to punish you for making them feel inferior.  It is far safer to blend in and nurture the common touch. Share your originality only with tolerant friends and those who are sure to appreciate your uniqueness.

Law 39
Stir up Waters to Catch Fish
Anger and emotion are strategically counterproductive.  You must always stay calm and objective.  But if you can make your enemies angry while staying calm yourself, you gain a decided advantage.  Put your enemies off-balance: Find the chink in their vanity through which you can rattle them and you hold the strings.

Law 40
Despise the Free Lunch
What is offered for free is dangerous – it usually involves either a trick or a hidden obligation.  What has worth is worth paying for.  By paying your own way you stay clear of gratitude, guilt, and deceit.  It is also often wise to pay the full price – there is no cutting corners with excellence.  Be lavish with your money and keep it circulating, for generosity is a sign and a magnet for power.

Law 41
Avoid Stepping into a Great Man's Shoes
What happens first always appears better and more original than what comes after.  If you succeed a great man or have a famous parent, you will have to accomplish double their achievements to outshine them.  Do not get lost in their shadow, or stuck in a past not of your own making:  Establish your own name and identity by changing course.  Slay the overbearing father, disparage his legacy, and gain power by shining in your own way.

Law 42
Strike the Shepherd and the Sheep will Scatter
Trouble can often be traced to a single strong individual – the stirrer, the arrogant underling, the poisoned of goodwill.  If you allow such people room to operate, others will succumb to their influence.  Do not wait for the troubles they cause to multiply, do not try to negotiate with them – they are irredeemable.  Neutralize their influence by isolating or banishing them.  Strike at the source of the trouble and the sheep will scatter.

Law 43
Work on the Hearts and Minds of Others
Coercion creates a reaction that will eventually work against you.  You must seduce others into wanting to move in your direction.  A person you have seduced becomes your loyal pawn.  And the way to seduce others is to operate on their individual psychologies and weaknesses.  Soften up the resistant by working on their emotions, playing on what they hold dear and what they fear.  Ignore the hearts and minds of others and they will grow to hate you.

Law 44
Disarm and Infuriate with the Mirror Effect
The mirror reflects reality, but it is also the perfect tool for deception: When you mirror your enemies, doing exactly as they do, they cannot figure out your strategy.  The Mirror Effect mocks and humiliates them, making them overreact.  By holding up a mirror to their psyches, you seduce them with the illusion that you share their values; by holding up a mirror to their actions, you teach them a lesson.  Few can resist the power of Mirror Effect.

Law 45
Preach the Need for Change, but Never Reform too much at Once
Everyone understands the need for change in the abstract, but on the day-to-day level people are creatures of habit.  Too much innovation is traumatic, and will lead to revolt.  If you are new to a position of power, or an outsider trying to build a power base, make a show of respecting the old way of doing things.  If change is necessary, make it feel like a gentle improvement on the past.

Law 46
Never appear too Perfect
Appearing better than others is always dangerous, but most dangerous of all is to appear to have no faults or weaknesses.  Envy creates silent enemies.  It is smart to occasionally display defects, and admit to harmless vices, in order to deflect envy and appear more human and approachable.  Only gods and the dead can seem perfect with impunity.

Law 47
Do not go Past the Mark you Aimed for; In Victory, Learn when to Stop
The momBrought to youent of victory is often the moment of greatest peril.  In the heat of victory, arrogance and overconfidence can push you past the goal you had aimed for, and by going too far, you make more enemies than you defeat.  Do not allow success to go to your head.  There is no substitute for strategy and careful planning.  Set a goal, and when you reach it, stop.

Law 48
Assume Formlessness
By taking a shape, by having a visible plan, you open yourself to attack.  Instead of taking a form for your enemy to grasp, keep yourself adaptable and on the move.  Accept the fact that nothing is certain and no law is fixed.  The best way to protect yourself is to be as fluid and formless as water; never bet on stability or lasting order.  Everything changes.

Brought to you by: Lawyer Asad

Pick Up Your Oar And Start Rowing

Pick Up Your Oar And Start Rowing

My boss, two co-workers and I stood behind the hard plastic seats. We were in the front section, on the first-base line at Shea Stadium, home of the New York Mets. We were so close to the infield, there was a protective net over our heads. I was new to the New York City area and had never been to Shea Stadium. These were dream seats. My heart pounded with excitement.

We stood with our umbrellas held high. The rain beat down on everything around us. It bounced off the seats and quickly formed deep puddles on the cover protecting the field.

"Steve," I asked my boss, "How did you get such great seats?"

"They came from Ed at the office. His dad is a blind sports writer and has a long- standing relationship with the Mets and Yankees."

The game was called due to rain. We left the stadium disappointed. On the long subway ride back to Jersey City, I wondered about the man behind the seats. How could a man be blind and be a sports writer?

Years have passed since that rainy night. Old friends back in Canada often ask me, "Mike, have you gone to a baseball game in New York yet?"

I say to them, "I've been to a few, but let me tell you about the best seats I ever had but couldn't use."

Whenever this happens, the memory of that night comes flashing back. I wonder about the blind sports writer. What was his story?

It had to be special.

I sat at my computer one night. An email popped into my in-box. I didn't recognize the return address. The subject line said, "Inspirational SI article about my dad, Ed Lucas." I was curious.

I opened the email. It was from a gentleman sending me a clip of a story written by Steve Rushin for Sports Illustrated. It was a wonderful read about a special man. Through the article and the man who sent it to me, I learned the full story. The following is a synopsis:

Twelve-year-old Ed Lucas ran home from his school in Jersey City. It was October 3, 1951. He arrived in time to see Bobby Thomson win the pennant for his favorite team, the New York Giants.

After the game, Ed ran out to play ball with his friends. During the game, Ed was hit between the eyes by a line drive. The force of the blow detached both retinas, leaving Ed permanently blind.

Ed became depressed. His mother, Rosanna, took matters into her own hands and took Ed to a Newark, New Jersey men's store.

There, she introduced him to Phil Rizzuto, a part-time employee of the store and a Yankee star. Phil befriended Ed.

Rosanna wasn't done yet. She wrote the Giants Manager, Leo Durocher, about her son. Leo asked her to bring Ed to, what was then called, the Polo Grounds. On June 14, 1952, young Ed sat in the clubhouse with the members of the Giants. It was the beginning of a special relationship.

Ed enrolled in St. Joseph's School for the Blind in Jersey City. The nuns were demanding. Ed learned to make his bed and match his clothes. If he whined about being blind and not being able to do what other kids could, Sister Anthony Marie was quoted saying, "Isn't that a shame? We're all in the same boat here, Ed. Pick up your oar and start rowing."

Ed enrolled in university to study communication arts. He worked hard. He knew no other way. The nuns had made sure of that.

He graduated in 1962 and became a regular in the Shea and Yankee Stadium press boxes, where he interviewed the players. Years later, a young Mets rookie, Ron Swoboda, took Ed by the hand. Together they walked the warning track around the field. Ed traced his fingers along the outfield wall. His fingers, sensitive to reading Braille, seemed to read the history of the park. Every dent, scratch and chip he touched meant something to him.

Later that year, Ed married. He and his wife had two sons - Eddie and Chris. Sadly, at a very young age, their mother left forever. Ed had to raise his two sons alone. With the strength he learned years ago at St. Joseph's, Ed took on the task. He taught his sons to be strong.

It was not uncommon for the two young boys to see Billy Martin in their home. "Huge stars like Mickey Mantle would tell me my dad was their hero," Chris was quoted as saying.

Years later, a friend came to Ed and told him about a nurse, Allison Pfeifle, whose detached retina left her legally blind and unable to continue her profession. He asked Ed to speak to her.

Ed and Allison talked on the phone for many years before meeting in person. They were baseball fanatics and spent their first date at Shea Stadium.

On March 10, 2006, at Yankee Stadium, Allison walked from the dugout to home plate and became Ed's new bride.

With his two sons at his side, Ed started a new life, at the place he holds so dear, and with the woman who captured his heart.

Ed, now 68, was quoted saying, "Baseball took my sight, but it also gave me my life."

***********************

I sat in shock. Could it be? I mailed Chris back and told him about the seats we couldn't use that rainy night.

He confirmed, his father was the man who provided those unused seats. Chris told me later, "They are the first couple in the 80 year history of the stadium to have the honor of marrying there."

I finally knew the story. It was sure worth waiting for.

Michael T Smith

Michael lives in Caldwell, Idaho with his wonderful wife Ginny. He writes in his spare time and is completing a collection of his stories to be called, "From My Heart to Yours." Michael writes inspirational stories in his spare time. To read more of Michael's stories or to contact him, go to http://ourecho.com/biography-353-Michael-Timothy-Smith.shtml#stories

Courtesy: Bob Proctor

Free book reveals the secrets behind creativity

Today, I'd like to give you a free book that
shows you how to unlock your creativity and
innovation.

It's called "The Secrets Behind Creativity"
and you can download it here:

http://20daypersuasion.com/creativitysecrets.htm

Inside this ebook, you will learn:

- 5 habits to expand your thinking and
amplify your life.

- How to conjure up fresh ideas.

- 4 keys to acquiring the abundance mentality.

- What to do when you blank out or can't
get on a roll.

- How to gain business ideas from competitors.

- Practical ways to keep track of ideas.

- How to defeat laziness.

- And More!

Download it now at:
http://20daypersuasion.com/creativitysecrets.htm

Hope you benefit from this ebook and please
let me know if there's anything I can help
you with.

Kindest Regards,
Michael Lee

Circulated by: Lawyer Asad

Free book helps you attain true control by mastering yourself

Today, I'd like to give you a free book
that shows you how to attain true mastery
of yourself.

It's called "Personal Mastery Methods" and
you can download it here:

http://20daypersuasion.com/personalmastery.htm

If you want to strengthen your belief in
your capabilities, build your confidence
and achieve your goals... then I highly
recommend reading this.

Download it now at:
http://20daypersuasion.com/personalmastery.htm

Hope you benefit from this ebook and please
let me know if there's anything I can help
you with.

Kindest Regards,
Michael Lee


Circulated by: Lawyer Asad

The Strangest Secret

The Strangest Secret

Source: MindBendingVideos.com

Earl Nightingale (1921–1989) was one of the most prominent motivational speakers and authors of all time. He wrote and recorded over 7,000 radio programs, 250 audio programs as well as television programs and videos.

The Strangest Secret was recorded in 1956. During that time, it has sold over a million copies and has become one of the most renowned sources of motivation in the world. Its message is simple, yet powerful, and it became the basis for the Nightingale-Conant Corporation. Many thousands of people have attributed this recording with turning their lives around and helping them make their fortunes in the world.

And the secret is… "We become what we think about."

The Strangest Secret, by Earl Nightingale

Some years ago, the late Nobel prize-winning Dr. Albert Schweitzer was asked by a reporter, "Doctor, what's wrong with men today?" The great doctor was silent a moment, and then he said, "Men simply don't think!"

It's about this that I want to talk with you. We live today in a golden age. This is an era that humanity has looked forward to, dreamed of, and worked toward for thousands of years. We live in the richest era that ever existed on the face of the earth ... a land of abundant opportunity for everyone.

However, if you take 100 individuals who start even at the age of 25, do you have any idea what will happen to those men and women by the time they're 65? These 100 people believe they're going to be successful. They are eager toward life, there is a certain sparkle in their eye, an erectness to their carriage, and life seems like a pretty interesting adventure to them.

But by the time they're 65, only one will be rich, four will be financially independent, five will still be working, and 54 will be broke — depending on others for life's necessities.

Only five out of 100 make the grade! Why do so many fail? What has happened to the sparkle that was there when they were 25? What has become of the dreams, the hopes, the plans ... and why is there such a large disparity between what these people intended to do and what they actually accomplished

 

The Definition of Success

First, we have to define success and here is the best definition I've ever been able to find: "Success is the progressive realization of a worthy ideal."

A success is the school teacher who is teaching because that's what he or she wanted to do. A success is the entrepreneur who start his own company because that was his dream -that's what he wanted to do. A success is the salesperson who wants to become the best salesperson in his or her company and sets forth on the pursuit of that goal.

A success is anyone who is realizing a worthy predetermined ideal, because that's what he or she decided to do ... deliberately. But only one out of 20 does that! The rest are "failures."

Rollo May, the distinguished psychiatrist, wrote a wonderful book called Man's Search for Himself, and in this book he says: "The opposite of courage in our society is not cowardice … it is conformity." And there you have the reason for so many failures. Conformity — people acting like everyone else, without knowing why or where they are going.

We learn to read by the time we're seven. We learn to make a living by the time we're 30. Often by that time we're not only making a living, we're supporting a family. And yet by the time we're 65, we haven't learned how to become financially independent in the richest land that has ever been known. Why? We conform! Most of us are acting like the wrong percentage group — the 95 who don't succeed.

Goals

Have you ever wondered why so many people work so hard and honestly without ever achieving anything in particular, and why others don't seem to work hard, yet seem to get everything? They seem to have the "magic touch." You've heard people say, "Everything he touches turns to gold." Have you ever noticed that a person who becomes successful tends to continue to become more successful? And, on the other hand, have you noticed how someone who's a failure tends to continue to fail?

The difference is goals. People with goals succeed because they know where they're going. It's that simple. Failures, on the other hand, believe that their lives are shaped by circumstances ... by things that happen to them ... by exterior forces.

Think of a ship with the complete voyage mapped out and planned. The captain and crew know exactly where the ship is going and how long it will take — it has a definite goal. And 9,999 times out of 10,000, it will get there.

Now let's take another ship — just like the first — only let's not put a crew on it, or a captain at the helm. Let's give it no aiming point, no goal, and no destination. We just start the engines and let it go. I think you'll agree that if it gets out of the harbor at all, it will either sink or wind up on some deserted beach — a derelict. It can't go anyplace because it has no destination and no guidance.

It's the same with a human being. However, the human race is fixed, not to prevent the strong from winning, but to prevent the weak from losing. Society today can be likened to a convoy in time of war. The entire society is slowed down to protect its weakest link, just as the naval convoy has to go at the speed that will permit its slowest vessel to remain in formation.

That's why it's so easy to make a living today. It takes no particular brains or talent to make a living and support a family today. We have a plateau of so-called "security." So, to succeed, all we must do is decide how high above this plateau we want to aim.

Throughout history, the great wise men and teachers, philosophers, and prophets have disagreed with one another on many different things. It is only on this one point that they are in complete and unanimous agreement — the key to success and the key to failure is this:

We Become What We Think About

This is The Strangest Secret! Now, why do I say it's strange, and why do I call it a secret? Actually, it isn't a secret at all. It was first promulgated by some of the earliest wise men, and it appears again and again throughout the Bible. But very few people have learned it or understand it. That's why it's strange, and why for some equally strange reason it virtually remains a secret.

Marcus Aurelius, the great Roman Emperor, said: "A man's life is what his thoughts make of it."

Disraeli said this: "Everything comes if a man will only wait ... a human being with a settled purpose must accomplish it, and nothing can resist a will that will stake even existence for its fulfillment."

William James said: "We need only in cold blood act as if the thing in question were real, and it will become infallibly real by growing into such a connection with our life that it will become real. It will become so knit with habit and emotion that our interests in it will be those which characterize belief." He continues, " ... only you must, then, really wish these things, and wish them exclusively, and not wish at the same time a hundred other incompatible things just as strongly."

My old friend Dr. Norman Vincent Peale put it this way: "If you think in negative terms, you will get negative results. If you think in positive terms, you will achieve positive results."

George Bernard Shaw said: "People are always blaming their circumstances for what they are. I don't believe in circumstances. The people who get on in this world are the peo-ple who get up and look for the cir-cumstances they want, and if they can't find them, make them."

Well, it's pretty apparent, isn't it?

We become what we think about. A person who is thinking about a concrete and worthwhile goal is going to reach it, because that's what he's thinking about. Conversely, the person who has no goal, who doesn't know where he's going, and whose thoughts must therefore be thoughts of confusion, anxiety, fear, and worry will thereby create a life of frustration, fear, anxiety and worry. And if he thinks about nothing ... he becomes nothing.

 

As Ye Sow, So Shall You Reap

The human mind is much like a farmer's land. The land gives the farmer a choice.

He may plant in that land whatever he chooses. The land doesn't care what is planted. It's up to the farmer to make the decision. The mind, like the land, will return what stances ... people to lives of suc you plant, but it doesn't care what you plant. If the farmer plants two seeds - one a seed of corn, the other nightshade, a deadly poison, waters and takes care of the land, what will happen

Remember, the land doesn't care. It will return poison in just as wonderful abundance as it will corn. So up come the two plants - one corn, one poison as it's written in the Bible, "As ye sow, so shall ye reap."

The human mind is far more fertile, far more incredible and mysterious than the land, but it works the same way. It doesn't care what we plant ... success ... or failure. A concrete, worthwhile goal ... or confusion, misunderstanding, fear, anxiety, and so on. But what we plant it must return to us.

The problem is that our mind comes as standard equipment at birth. It's free. And things that are given to us for nothing, we place little value on. Things that we pay money for, we value.

The paradox is that exactly the reverse is true. Everything that's really worthwhile in life came to us free - our minds, our souls, our bodies, our hopes, our dreams, our ambitions, our intelligence, our love of family and children and friends and country. All these priceless possessions are free.

But the things that cost us money are actually very cheap and can be replaced at any time. A good man can be completely wiped out and make another fortune. He can do that several times. Even if our home burns down, we can rebuild it. But the things we got for nothing, we can never replace. Our mind can do any kind of job we assign to it, but generally speaking, we use it for little jobs instead of big ones. So decide now. What is it you want? Plant your goal in your mind. It's the most important decision you'll ever make in your entire life.

Do you want to excel at your particular job? Do you want to go places in your company ... in your community? Do you want to get rich? All you have got to do is plant that seed in your mind, care for it, work steadily toward your goal, and it will become a reality.

It not only will, there's no way that it cannot. You see, that's a law — like the laws of Sir Isaac Newton, the laws of gravity. If you get on top of a building and jump off, you'll always go down — you'll never go up.

And it's the same with all the other laws of nature. They always work. They're inflexible. Think about your goal in a relaxed, positive way. Picture yourself in your mind's eye as having already achieved this goal. See yourself doing the things you will be doing when you have reached your goal.

Every one of us is the sum total of our own thoughts. We are where we are because that's exactly where we really want or feel we deserve to be — whether we'll admit that or not. Each of us must live off the fruit of our thoughts in the future, because what you think today and tomorrow — next month and next year — will mold your life and determine your future. You're guided by your mind.

I remember one time I was driving through eastern Arizona and I saw one of those giant earth-moving machines -roaring along the road with what looked like 30 tons of dirt in it - a tremenus, incredible machine - and there was a little man perched way up on top with the wheel in his hands, guiding it. As I drove along I was struck by the similarity of that machine to the human mind. Just suppose you're sitting at the controls of such a vast source of energy. Are you going to sit back and fold your arms and let it run itself into a ditch? Or are you going to keep both hands firmly on the wheel and control and direct this power to a specific, worthwhile purpose? It's up to you. You're in the driver's seat.

You see, the very law that gives us success is a double-edged sword. We must control our thinking. The same rule that can lead people to lives of success, wealth, happiness, and all the things they ever dreamed of — that very same law can lead them into the gutter. It's all in how they use it … for good or for bad. That is The Strangest Secret!

Do what the experts since the dawn of recorded history have told us to do: pay the price, by becoming the person you want to become. It's not nearly as difficult as living unsuccessfully.

The moment you decide on a goal to work toward, you're immediately a successful person — you are then in that rare group of people who know where they're going. Out of every hundred people, you belong to the top five. Don't concern yourself too much with how you are going to achieve your goal — leave that completely to a power greater than yourself. All you have to do is know where you're going. The answers will come to you of their own accord, and at the right time.

Start today. You have nothing to lose — but you have your whole life to win.

Edited by: Lawyer Asad