Chadrack
Wow, 2012 is here and all around us is hope and renewed zeal fueled by the new resolutions for the year!
Let me formally say welcome and happy New Year, though it's belated. But as it's always said, it is better late than never! I do hope your holiday was great just as mine was 🙂
I also want to once again appreciate you for the support and camaraderie throughout year 2011. I truly look forward to us doing it again, and of course in a better way, this 2012!
And talking about 2012 I know one of the questions many people are asking right now is, what does the year 2012 hold? With so much happening around the world both in the economic, political and social sphere, asking such a question is understandable.
However, instead of asking, what does the year hold it will be more proper to ask, what are you looking forward to in 2012? What do you see? Do you see more success this year? Do you see increased clientele or improved conversions?
The truth is, no matter what the year holds YOU are the determinant of what you will get out of it. You must understand that. No matter your hopes and high expectations, the year will only deliver to you what you put into it. And that means, you must be ready to do beyond and above what you did the previous year.
Remember the saying, doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome is another definition of insanity, right? The bottom-line is, you must decide to do some things differently this year!
As the year is still fresh it's just the right time to determine the direction you want to follow. Of course, this is the time many make new year resolutions. Others are make plans and setting goals for themselves. However, no matter the route you decide to take, there are actually some elements that will guarantee your success.
To kick off the year therefore, I want to give some insight into some timeless ancient wisdom that will help you greatly if you will incorporate them into your plans or resolutions this year. It doesn’t matter what niche you’re pursuing, if you will commit yourself to these things, the year 2012 will definitely yield to you your heart’s desire!
Timeless Wisdom That Will Increase Your Earnings in 2012!
1. Know Yourself: This is a truth that has been passed on from generation to generation. As the author D. H. Lawrence once wrote, “It is our business to go as we are impelled.” This indeed is a universal truth because no matter the business you have chosen to achieve your dreams of financial independence; your greatest motivators are your passions. You are internally driven. Nothing happening outside of YOU will ever help you except you are motivated internally to take the action necessary.
It is important therefore that you study to better understand who YOU are in order to take advantage of the opportunities that will come your way this 2012. You should be able to know your areas of strength and your areas of weakness. This will help you better focus on your pursuits this year. If you will look within yourself real good you will definitely uncover something unique about you; something that you do so well which customers would be willing to pay for. And if customers are willing to give their money for it, it could just be another vehicle for your financial independence!
2. Grow Yourself: I believe this is an area you mustn’t toy with this year. It was Benjamin Franklin who said, “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest.” And I agree whole heartedly! It is a fact that the most successful people around us are those who make the best decisions because they are best informed. And what more? The good information they have is gotten from no other place but from their being avid learners.
This year 2012, if your desire is to achieve your dreams you must commit yourself to growing yourself. You must understand that today we live and work in a global, information-based economy where knowledge is king. If you will commit yourself to take what you learn and turn it into a marketable product or service then riches will follow as surely as the morning follows the dark night!
Note however, that simply becoming an avid learner will not automatically translate to more earnings this year. The key is to focus on learning the skills that have a practical application in your business. As a , home based online business entrepreneur you must decide on the knowledge you require and then go for it. There are business magazines, entrepreneurial publications, books and periodicals abundantly available. You can download free industry whitepapers from places like the Trade Pub. Grow yourself by investing in any of these publications.
3. Flow Yourself: The Holy Scripture puts it this way, “Give, and it will be given to you; good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over will be put into your bosom. For with the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.” It cannot be clearer than that!
It is true that man by nature is selfish but if you desire to create the type of success that will make you set for life then you must be ready to freely give of yourself. It doesn’t matter the type of business you are running online, you must be prepared to give before you can expect to receive.
The good thing is that there are simple ways you can employ to allow yourself to flow out freely. You can allow your expertise to flow freely simply by writing articles, creating videos, offering free seminars or webinars, creating free ebooks etc. You can also look for other creative ways to give freely to your community. Whether you are giving away your knowledge, product or services the result is that more and more people will come to know of your expertise and of course more business will also flow your way for, givers truly never lack!
On the surface these truths look simple indeed but if you will find a way to implement them in your business dealings this year your heart’s desires will be delivered to you with ease! Over the years they have been tried and tested and have never been found to fail!
Go and may prosperity be your portion this year. Wishing you the very best of 2012!
Happy new year to you too, Chadrack. I agree, personal development is very important, we cannot progress in life if we do not work on personal development. Its just so important to grow from within ourselves. I love reading your posts and I’ll look forward to read more interesting posts this year. Good Luck!
@Jesse,
The truth is success begins with YOU but many people waste their running around looking for solutions outside themselves. This year my resolve is to work more on myself so that I can be the better person I want to be.
Thanks for the comment and best of the year to you!
A very interesting article Chadrack! You give some really great advice, if you want to achieve something, you need to be prepared to work for it, and you need to set yourself goals!
On a side-note, have you seen that you feature in the Technology Bloggers Community Awards for 2011? I did email you, but I am not sure if you got it 😛
As always thanks 🙂
Christopher
@Christopher Roberts,
Oh thanks for the comment. I’ve discovered that why we are most times side tracked by the different attractions online is because we have not first taken the time to set our priorities. Deciding on a plan before we begin is a good way of staying on course.
Btw. Just seen the post. Oh, what a joy to be part of the winners of Technology Bloggers Community Awards for 2011 🙂 Never was looking for that! I truly appreciate.
@Chadrack, you are welcome and deserving 🙂
Really nice article! I am always in trouble with the resolutions for the next year. Some call them goals. I am afraid to plan big things, because I don’t want to feel disappointed. I only want to reach my goals with baby steps, but many of them. My first baby step for 2012 is to clean up:)
@Cindy,
I quite understand your situation. This is just the same reason why many people will not “waste” time to plan at the beginging of the year!
But letting the fear of disappointment to stop you from planning is like saying there is lion is in the streets and therefore you will not do what you should do.
However, the idea of baby steps in achieving your goals will greatly help. That is actually the best way of doing it. Sit down and decide on what you will want to achieve for the year. Then working with that in mind, segment it into smaller units and work to achieve the smaller (baby plans) units within certain time frame!
If you work that way, by the end of the year you will discover you have achieved you over all goal!
Thanks for your comment.
Hello and Happy New Year to you. Very good discussion on the value of goals in achieving success at anything. I have always been one to make New Year’s resolutions. They are usually different each year (except dieting and excercising). This year my goal is to succeed at making my new blog a popular and interesting site.
ellie
@Ellie,
It’s glad to know you already know what you want to go for this year. Frankly making your blog popular is one of the biggest plan a blogger can have. I wish you the best as you do this.
Great post. Very informative. Thanks.
@Srinivasan,
You are welcome, Srinivasan. Look forward to more from you!
Love your goals Chadrack!
Yes indeed, we all do make wishes and resolutions but very few are really able to keep up with them. I guess somewhere down the line things dim or die down a little and leave you in the middle of nothing.
It all starts and ends with you and how you see things. We do need to be determined about what we want and aim for that accordingly, and it always does start with our own personal development.
Yours is the first post that is also related to goals based on our own-selves, and not on our business entirely. I had written a somewhat similar list about my share of resolutions for this year, which was on our own self-growth, unlike so many resolutions I had read about their business. I feel its from our own personal development that our business grows, or that is what takes it to a higher level.
Thanks for sharing and wishing you a happy and prosperous new year 🙂
@Harleena Singh,
Frankly, from experience I’ve discovered that success actually begins and ends with YOU! Your business is only a vehicle to carry you to your destination – your success!
You may plan and make a whole lot of resolutions but if you’re not motivated to work out those plans that success will never come to you. It’s because of this I decided on doing this post. I hope it helps as many as will take it to heart. This is actually my focus for the year. I’m trusting that I will be able to surpass my expectations.
Thanks for your insightful comment.
The beginning of the year is always a great time to take stock of our business and ourselves and make goals for the coming year. It’s very true that goal setting is a necessary tool we need in order to achieve.
I also appreciate the idea that our personal passions and our professional successes are intertwined. To follow your passion will give you more energy. And continually learning, giving and growing is the surest way to end up more who and where you want to be at the end of this year then you are at the beginning.
@Darci,
Passion is really a great determinant when it comes to succeeding in life. Knowing your make up is important. Don’t run your business like an employee, going through the mechanical motions every day. Inject your passion into the business and no matter what is happening you’ll love doing what you’re doing!
Thanks for adding your voice to the conversation.
Hi Chadrack,
I agree that setting out a clear road map to your goal is very important and often overlooked. Thanks for your views on this.
@Aidan Booth,
Yea and thanks for stopping by. I do hope you have set out your plans for the year, right? 🙂
@Chadrack,
Working on it mate, working on it :p
When you’ve achieved a goal, take the time to enjoy the satisfaction of having done so. Absorb the implications of the goal achievement, and observe the progress that you’ve made towards other goals.
@Divine,
Great talk there! Nothing can be more satisfying to bask for sometime on your own success. You’ll not only be rejoicing in achieving that goal but also telling yourself something like, “If I can do this I can also do that!” And that is a great motivator.
Thanks for the comment.
I think that none of us can definitely say what will happen in any of those spheres that you mentioned, the only thing that is left for us is to make predictions and wait)
@BuySellWordpress,
It’s definitely true that in most cases we cannot know what tomorrow will bring. But think about, when you say make predictions and wait, don’t you think simply making predictions and waiting without doing something is leaving your destiny to chance?
Frankly I believe in the law of sowing and reaping. If you want some result you must be ready to work for it. This is the essence of making plans. You simply don’t make predictions and wait to see what will happen. Rather, assess what is on hand, decide on what you want and then work to make it happen.
Will all happen exactly the way you plan it? Maybe not! That is because there are conditions outside your control that may influence the results. But that should never hold you back from making plans. Or don’t you think so?
Well Happy New Year Chadrack…
What a wonderful post and I do believe I did a lot of what you suggested when I made my own goals for the year. As most of my readers know by now I’m definitely an action taker. At the same time building a business online is a learning process so even though you may have certain goals you have set the stages to reach, you may be required to do some things you weren’t prepared for.
Like you mentioned, take consistent action and the fruits of your labor will begin to appear. Stick to the course and your business with blossom. That I do know for sure.
Looking forward to seeing what you’ll be sharing with us this year and if it’s anything like last year, it will be top notch.
Enjoy your week.
~Adrienne
@Adrienne,
Glad to see you again, a great 2012 to you!
I read your post it was clear that you have all these laid out for the year. Frankly, that’s the best way to go. Without doing this there will be no way to monitor your progress through the year.
You’re quite correct about things that may come up without you anticipating them. That is the truth. Making plans does not mean you have everything set on stone. We are human and are limited. We see in part and know in part. Our plans are only a part of the whole picture. I’m sure having this mindset will greatly help as you already know and anticipate these things.
Hi Chadrack,
Wow! These are great tips. Well I think the hardest part in your tips is knowing your self. Most people think that knowing your self is easy but sometimes other people knows us better than we know our self 🙂 Happy new year to you.
@Nancy H. Busch,
I agree with you that knowing ourselves is really a hard thing. But why so? It’s because, most times we are always lying to ourselves! Surprised at this?
But that is really the truth. If you will take the time to listen to your inner self you will soon discover that most times what you really want to do is not what you are doing. In times like that you are simply lying to yourself.
How do you know yourself? The simple way is to listen more to yourself. Spend more time in meditation. And like you said others really know us more than ourselves and so simply asking them to give an honest assessment about us will let us know some hidden things about us.
Nancy, I sincerely believe success begins from that level. Shying away from it will never help.
Thanks for comment and I wish you all the best of the year.
@Chadrack, So true! I totally agree with you!
Such great advise for those who are new to business. Start-up businessmen can be easily overwhelmed by the vast information they will have to digest. If there is no motivation then an ambition is just as good as nothing.
@Farrell,
Motivation is actually the fuel to keeps us going. A little motivation now and then, will get us fired up and rearing to go! 🙂
Thanks for stopping by.
The only way which makes your life much better is to “Grow Yourself” and that’s what I strongly believe. If you stop growing, you are closing your own way of developing ideas and skills.
Without any goal one cannot achieve the desired things. So, I’ve decided nothing but only to grow my self this year wisely.
@bjohn,
That’s actually a good decision to make. Remember you can only get a mango fruit from a mango tree. It is the tree that determines the fruit and not the fruit that determines the tree. To produce the right kind of fruit the tree must therefore be the right type. Make the tree good the fruit will be good.
If you’ll indeed follow through with your decision then you should expect that your fruit will indeed what you desire!
@cane furniture,
Except one or two software I use for daily planing I don’t really use goal setting software. I’m sure if you do a search on Google you will be able to found some useful ones. When you find one simply do another search for reviews. I hope that will help.