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Blessings seen and unseen…

By Jen Perdew 2 Comments

Blessings - Seen and Unseen…

Just a couple of weeks ago, one of my favorite online business guys posted on Facebook about the terrible relationship he had with his dad.

I felt his pain across the ocean and through time.

He said he was fine without having a relationship with his dad, but he also longed for the pride of a father in his son. 

Of course, I thought about my dad and how blessed I was to have this man in my life. As the oldest of 5 children, I think we had a special relationship. But I think my other siblings felt the same way too.

He passed away almost 3 years ago at 91 after 5 years of progressive dementia, multiple heart conditions, diabetes, and other ailments. 

Two years into the dementia, he didn’t know my name. He knew he should know it - and recognized me with a smile for a couple more years when I came, but just couldn’t find the words to say my name.

But for all of my years until his dementia, he was my go-to guy. I knew I could get encouragement and understanding from him even if it was delivered sometimes in a ham-handed way. 

He was a product of The Great Depression. He was determined that his children would never grow up in the poverty that he experienced, even though his memories of his family occupied most of his stories. With 7 brothers, 5 of whom survived to adulthood, he became the communication hub for the family.

RoycePerdewArmyAirCorp-2

And that’s ironic since, as mom told me this week, dad didn’t know how to use a phone when he left the hills of Kentucky for the Army Air Corps at the age of 17. He sure learned how to use it well later in life keeping in touch with brothers, children, cousins, friends, and distant family.

Dad was very opinionated. Our politics were diametrically opposed. We learned to not talk about that.

But even when he was grumbling, he was looking for a way to help someone. His generosity, kindness, and real caring knew no bounds. He always had enough to share.

He had a ton of sayings that I cherish now because there was so much wisdom and wit in them. 

Shirley15

(Don’t judge me, but being who I am, I’m creating an ecommerce store to honor those sayings. It’s just in the beginning stages on Facebook. Like this page and I’ll let you know when it’s ready to rock and roll.)

During his difficulties, I was lucky enough to support him by traveling to Florida every couple of months for 5 years to help my mom take care of my dad. Having an online business that allowed me to work from anywhere as long as I had decent Internet was another incredible blessing.

This week, Charlsa and I visited my mom. 

With 5 kids, and 4 sisters and brothers, she gets a lot of attention so we don’t have to worry too much about her. And she’s healthy enough emotionally and physically at 87 to play golf with friends, embrace her church friends fully, and play cards with the best neighbors ever.

RoyceAndShirleyCropped

The only way I know that she’s slowed down is that she’s stopped working at the Food Pantry for the homeless (too hard on her back).

Life is pretty good for mom.

Living alone after 69 years of marriage isn’t easy, I’m sure, because there has to be a huge hole in her life where dad was. But I’m also convinced he never left because she keeps his memory in every corner of her life.

They were a great love story. And someday, I’ll tell the whole thing, but not yet.

But here’s an example of their love.

When dad was being wheeled into the operating room 7 years before his death to get a pacemaker, my mom stopped the nurse, bent down, and planted a gentle kiss on dad’s forehead. Then, she looked up at the nurse with steely eyes and said, “This is the love of my life for 62 years. You bring him back safely.”

The nurse heard the unspoken words “...or ELSE!” loud and clear. She said, “Yes, ma’am!”

DadCemetery072022-2

Dad was a veteran. He served in the Army Air Corps and later the newly formed United States Air Force at the end of World War II. One of the benefits he cherished was the honor of being buried with other veterans in a beautiful cemetery.

Mom will be buried there too.

And when Charlsa and I saw how beautifully maintained the cemetery was, we decided to do the same for ourselves since I have that honor too as a Vietnam (era) veteran.

My parents weren’t wealthy, but they had a lot of wealthy friends. They attracted quality people in their lives because they were quality people.

DadCemetery072022-1

Mom likes to tell a special story about Dad’s wealth. 

One of the neighbors came over one day with his investment statement he’d just received in the mail and bragged, “It’s official, Royce. I’m a millionaire.”

“Well, so am I,” my dad said, not to be outdone. “Of course, it’s all invested in my 5 kids, but the dividends are great!”

And he did invest in us.

When I was 15, dad decided I needed to go to Europe on a whirlwind 9-countries-in-21-days school trip because he knew it would be a great experience.

It was $750. And we didn’t have the money, but he found it.

And just like his own experience in Japan after the war, it was a pivotal experience for me that taught me more than any class I’d ever taken or would take. 

RoycePerdewFamilycirca1966

Travel, it turns out, was THE great educational experience.

Money was especially tight then because when I was 9, my mom’s dad killed himself leaving her brothers and sisters without any living parents. My grandmother had died two years previously of lung cancer.

My aunts and uncles (mom’s brothers and sisters) were 12, 15, 18, and 20. I was the oldest of three with two more showing up in the next two years, and soon to be the middle of nine kids..

That could have been an unbelievably difficult time for any family. And frankly, most would have split up the four aunts and uncles to other families.

Dad wouldn’t hear of it.

Of course, they would come live with us. We’d make room. And tighten our belts. And find a way.

We always found a way.

A few weeks ago, we were at dinner with a couple of friends who bowed their heads to say grace. I heard them say, “Dear Lord, thank you for all our blessings. Seen and Unseen. Amen.”

Seen. And Unseen.

If I would go back through this article with a red pen to mark all the things that were unseen blessings, the page would look like a bloody murder had been committed here.

Red ink everywhere.

As I get older, I’m so thankful for the unseen blessings in my life. Unseen blessings are those things I don’t see or think about, but are continuing to work in my favor. If I demanded to know about all my blessings all the time, I’d short-change myself.

Three beautiful kids. Ten grandchildren that I don’t see nearly enough. And the most amazing supportive and loving wife/partner anyone could have.

And if I look at all the “problems” in my life over the past 70 years, I can’t find one. They all look like blessings at this point.  

The unseen blessings are a hundred times more important to me than those I see everyday. They are the blessings that protect me (mostly from myself) and bring me good.

And I want all the good. 

But I have to be careful about good and bad. 

Years ago, I read a translation of the Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu, and one line stuck with me. 

“There is no good or bad, but labeling it makes it so.”

I’ve stopped judging whether something is good or bad. Whatever happens can be comfortable or uncomfortable, peaceful or challenging, rewarding or heartbreaking. 

Those are momentary feelings.

But declaring it good or bad would mean that I can predict the future. I can’t. Good or bad is the result of something happening now. If I try to assign good or bad, I’m not living in the moment, so I’ll miss all the sweet juice of life.

Of course, I can impact the result by doing what I think will lead to a good or bad result, but I have no way of predicting the outcome.

For that, I must rely on the greatest gift of all…Unseen Blessings.

If you have Unseen Blessings that you're grateful for click one of the share buttons on the side of the page and comment below to tell me about your unseen blessings!

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DavidAndCharlsaAtTheBeach.jpg

David Perdew is the CEO and founder of NAMS - the Novice to Advanced Marketing System. He’s a journalist, consultant, and serial entrepreneur who has built one of the most successful and fastest-growing business training systems online today called the MyNAMS Insiders Club.

The Novice to Advanced Marketing System is a step-by-step system focusing on Team, Training and Tools to help novice to advanced business people build a Simple, Scalable and Sustainable business.

He took a year off in 2003 to personally build a 2200 square foot log cabin in north Alabama where he and his wife and two dogs and a cat live on 95 acres of forest with four streams and 60-foot waterfall.

The NAMS team includes his daughter, Jen, who is an email marketing and automation specialist. Jen runs the day to day business and is one of the primary trainers in our MyNAMS Insiders Club. 

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Having a Plan Is Key, but Consistently Executing a Plan Is Even More Important. In 1987, I ran my first Peachtree Road Race 10K in Atlanta, GA. Just divorced, I was only 35 and skinny.  Three weeks prior to the July 4th event, I decided to run the race. Without any training–at all, I thought, […]
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Category: Featured Content, Inspiration, Mindset, Motivation, NAMS Notes

Sticking to a step-by-step plan to achieve a goal

By David Perdew 2 Comments

Having a Plan Is Key, but Consistently Executing a Plan Is Even More Important.

PeachtreeStart2015

In 1987, I ran my first Peachtree Road Race 10K in Atlanta, GA.

Just divorced, I was only 35 and skinny. 

Three weeks prior to the July 4th event, I decided to run the race. Without any training--at all, I thought, “What the hell! I can do this.”

And I did. Just like everything else in my life, I made decisions on whim and tried to hit home runs instead of doing the work to consistently hit singles and doubles. 

“Go big or go home,” they say. And that was me. Everything was doable. All I had to do was jump in and give it a shot. No training, no preparation, no paying my dues. Just do it.

Lining up with the other 50,000 people in the race, I ran the 6.2 miles from start to finish, collected my t-shirt, and went to the movie later that afternoon. 

Piece of cake.

Years later, running and walking would teach me great lessons about business, life, health, and accomplishing any goal. But first, I’d have to go all the way to the bottom.

And when I was completely laid up with a serious back issue, I knew that I could lay there and waste away or come up with a plan to get back to the Peachtree like I'd been doing for more than 30 years.

On my birthday, Oct. 20th, in 2020, I broke my back…

Well…It wasn’t really a fracture. It just wasn’t working any longer.

CripplingBirthdayRun
My route through The Villages that day was very confusing to me as I ventured into neighborhoods I wasn't familiar with.

On mile 6 of a 7-and-a-half mile walk in my mother’s neighborhood in The Villages, Florida, I felt a twinge in my left leg on the front hip joint. 

When the leg started to buckle on me, I stopped, bent over, caught my breath, and looked behind me to see if I’d stepped in a hole or something.

There was a curb, but nothing unusual happened when I stepped off. No twisted ankle, no jolt, no short step.

But there it was. Just a little twinge shooting down my leg to the knee. Hot, tired, and already 2 miles further than I’d wanted to go, I was lost in the winding sameness of the tight neighborhoods.

Onward, I said. Pick it up. Let’s get home.

As I walked into the kitchen, drenched with sweat, I stretched my back as I held on to the countertop. Bending at the waist, I thought maybe I’d overdone it, so I decided to hit the shower. That would make me feel better.

Gingerly stepping in, warm water pelted my back, but it didn’t really help. In fact, I could feel it tightening up.

Mom and Charlsa, my wife, were on the Lanai (Florida-speak for a screened-in veranda). Mom had asked us to cut back a bush. So, I picked up the clippers, walked out to the bush, bent over and started snipping away. 

My back was really getting tight now. Charlsa said, “Let me do this. You look like you’re in pain.” So, I handed her the clippers, went into the house, and almost immediately  hit the floor.

And I couldn’t get up.

My left leg had no strength. My lower back screamed if I moved. I crawled to the bathroom, sweat soaking my shirt. 

For three days, I scooted on the floor to get around. After a very long 11 hour drive home, I crawled in our own house trying to get comfortable.

A friend brought over a walker but even that was too painful. I couldn’t stand in a shower, so we pulled out my deceased mother-in-law’s plastic shower seat. It was the only way I could tolerate the shower.

Luckily, I’d been collecting family canes for a while. And after two weeks, I was able to walk with one of them for short distances. Very short distances.

My new long-term goal was to walk to the mailbox at the end of our driveway about 500 yards away. I didn’t accomplish that goal for three months. But every day, I took a few more steps up the driveway.

But the pain was still intense. 

I was living on a mixture of tylenol and ibuprofen - about 16 pills a day just to keep the pain at bay.

By March, just over four months after the doc had diagnosed me with a ruptured (herniated) L4-L5 disc with an MRI, one hip injection with a big-ass needle, and two out-patient epidural injections, I was able to walk to the mailbox and back home without the cane.

I had only a little limp.

To fast forward, by my next birthday last October, I was walking 3 miles again a few times each month but not consistently. Some months, I logged about 30 miles. Others less. Some zero.

But the back pain was still there, just to remind me who had the real power in this body. 

On a whim, on the last day of March this year, I decided to join the St. Jude’s #100MileChallenge to raise money for families of children with cancer. St. Jude’s is a great cause. They never charge families for any treatment of the kids in their facilities. So, donations were important. I’m happy to say that my friends on Facebook generously put us over $1000.

One hundred miles in one month was three times the most mileage I’d ever done in a month even before the back injury. 

Without help, I’d never complete this.

So, I decided to tackle this like a project.

There were two goals to this project:

Goal #1: Financial

  • The first goal set by St. Jude’s was to hit $200 in donations. 
  • After reaching that in a couple of days, I raised the goal to $500.
  • And hitting that by day six of the challenge, I raised it to $1000.

Goal #2: Walk/Run 100 miles in April

  • That was an average of 3.33 miles per day.

It seemed doable, but consistency was going to be the key. If I missed too many days, I’d have to make them up by doing 5, 6, or 7 mile-days. And if I got too far behind, I’d give up. I know I’m not unusual here. This is the way of all people who don’t accomplish their goals.

Having a plan was key, but sticking to the plan to achieve the goal was even more important.

We all make plans, but without accountability or the measurement of progress against the plan, nothing matters.

Luckily, St. Jude’s had me covered with a fantastic Facebook Messenger app with several really important elements.

  1. A menu with task and support selection
  2. Registration page
  3. Opportunity to create a customized fundraiser and share it seamlessly
  4. Join the Facebook Group to support and celebrate group accomplishments (in other words, be part of a community)
  5. Record mileage every day
  6. Keep track of cumulative progress toward the goal

STJUDESAPP
St. Jude's Messenger app presented everything I needed to be successful

And that was all easily accessible in my mobile messenger. From a business perspective, I hadn’t seen a better use of the messenger communication system. My mind was racing with possibilities for my own business.

But I decided to just focus on the goals at hand, one hundred miles and $1000 for the hospital.

I know this about me…

No goal of mine will EVER be accomplished without community support.

Years ago, one of our nation’s First Ladies got some fame (and additional ridicule) for saying “It takes a village to raise a child.”

That proverb has its origins in African cultures because they believe it’s impossible to achieve a positive child experience without a community. No parent can do it alone.

I believe that’s true in every accomplishment.

That’s why “Team” is the first of three attributes that describe the NAMS Community: Team, Tools, and Training.

Team is essential.

Success is a group effort.

So, when I decided to tackle this major challenge - 100 miles in one month, I needed a community to support and encourage me along the way. St. Jude’s provided that with their Facebook Community.

StJudesCommunity
The St. Jude's 100 Mile Challenge community did a couple of things very well: Support participants and set expectations for a short-term community.

Notice, there were 15.6k members in the community.

And from the beginning, they said the group would be archived immediately after the challenge. That was actually comforting because I wasn’t getting involved in something long-term. With my short attention span, I could handle a short-term commitment.

It fit right in with the approach I needed.

  • Short-term commitment
  • Simple execution plan
  • Step-by-step progress
  • An end in sight

When I think of our business, we try to offer short-term execution plans with step-by-step progress that point to results.

Results! A double-edged sword!

Focusing on results is dangerous. In fact, I’d say it’s disastrous in most circumstances. Achieving the results you’re hoping for by focusing on the results is nearly impossible.

My guess is that 99.9% of the people wanting to build a business online have purchased some program that says they can start making money right now - today - without any effort or minimal work at best. It’s a push button or magic solution.

I get messages every week from at least one person on our list who begs for a way to make $XXXX in X days. My advice is always the same: If you have a car, drive an Uber.

Those push button magic money solutions don’t really exist. Achieving the results you want NEVER happen without putting in the effort. That’s work. 

But a ton of those solutions are sold to people who are looking for results ONLY. 

Anyone who has been in a coaching mastermind is usually taught a few marketing guidelines such as:

  1. Never use the word “work” in your headline. No one wants to buy a product that makes them work.
  2. Never use the word “learn”. That sounds like work too.
  3. When doing webinars, don’t “teach” people too much because they won’t buy.
  4. Shortcuts and secrets are always to be “revealed” to make people know that the seller has access to some special information that you don’t.

Listen, I hate this part of marketing, but you’ll never see me selling a product that says “You have to do a lot of work to create your success” even though you do.

It’s a non-starter. I’d be fighting thousands of years of Human Nature. And I’m never going to win that fight.

But promising a step-by-step pathway to achieve the desired results, just as St. Jude’s provided me, will always work if…

And it’s a BIG IF…

If you do the work consistently every day.

It doesn’t matter what your goal is. Walk 100 miles in a month, raise healthier children, have a better marriage, or create $5,000 extra income every month, always start with a step-by-step plan and a tool to measure your progress while getting support from your community.

Period.

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I'm beginning to feel like a plan is forming and that I might actually make things work.

It's Time to Make Money with Email Marketing Today!

 

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Email Marketing is not dead!  In fact, without email marketing, you won't have a profitable business.

Think about it - it's a vital part of your sales process. Without it, how will your ideal clients and customers know when you are launching a new program or product?

Join us this month for the MyNAMS Insider's Club Challenge called "Email Marketing Mastery".

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DavidAndCharlsaAtTheBeach.jpg

David Perdew is the CEO and founder of NAMS - the Novice to Advanced Marketing System. He’s a journalist, consultant, and serial entrepreneur who has built one of the most successful and fastest-growing business training systems online today called the MyNAMS Insiders Club.

The Novice to Advanced Marketing System is a step-by-step system focusing on Team, Training and Tools to help novice to advanced business people build a Simple, Scalable and Sustainable business.

He took a year off in 2003 to personally build a 2200 square foot log cabin in north Alabama where he and his wife and two dogs and a cat live on 95 acres of forest with four streams and 60-foot waterfall.

The NAMS team includes his daughter, Jen, who is an email marketing and automation specialist. Jen runs the day to day business and is one of the primary trainers in our MyNAMS Insiders Club. 

Thanks For Picking Up Evergreen Listbuilding Secrets Access is headed to your inbox. (Please check spam, promotions and junk folders) If You’re Interested In Becoming An Affiliate Marketing Powerhouse Keep Reading As I Share How A Single Affiliate Promotion Put $12K in My Bank Account in 5 Days Click Below For Your Copy Of “5 […]
Click Here To Read More
Just a couple of weeks ago, one of my favorite online business guys posted on Facebook about the terrible relationship he had with his dad. I felt his pain across the ocean and through time. He said he was fine without having a relationship with his dad, but he also longed for the pride of a father in his son. Of course, I thought about my dad and how blessed
Click Here To Read More
Thanks For Signing Up For The NAMS Business Growth Strategies Summit Access is headed to your inbox. (Please check spam, promotions and junk folders) If You’re Interested In Becoming An Affiliate Marketing Powerhouse Keep Reading As I Share How A Single Affiliate Promotion Put $12K in My Bank Account in 5 Days Click Below For […]
Click Here To Read More
Email Marketing is Not Dead
Is Email Marketing Dead? Or Alive and Thriving? This is the 3rd part of a 5-part series outlining the 5 essential skills to create a successful business online. They are listed below. And if you miss any of the posts, just click the link to open in a new window: 1) The Entrepreneurial Mindset2) List […]
Click Here To Read More
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How to Build an Email List with a Quality Lead Magnet Today, we focus on email list building, basic list management, and list building strategies while focusing on how to build an email list with a quality lead magnet. If you missed the first part of this series, you can see the post about about […]
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Entrepreneurial_Mindset-1200x630px
How to Develop an Entrepreneurial Mindset… We love to teach… And frankly, we’re good at it. When it comes to building an online business, folks we deal with every day have a lot of questions about building their businesses online. Many of those who approach us are just getting started with their businesses. Or they […]
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Category: Featured Content, Inspiration, Mindset

Change Is Inevitable, Growth Is Optional: How to Change Your Mindset

By David Perdew 11 Comments

Change Is Inevitable, Growth Is Optional: How to Change Your Mindset and Create More Success in Your Life

Change is inevitable - How to change your mindset

Have you ever wondered how to change your mindset and why you should? Fear of change blocks our happiness, and most people hate change, but after the year of the pandemic, we all have been forced to change how we deal with change... 

How to change your mindset when you don’t know you need to change?

Charsa at our Log Cabin - How to change your mindset My wife hated our kitchen. It was too small. 

Only one person could work in there comfortably. There were plenty of cabinets, but they were too high because… I’m tall and I built them. They were great for me, but Charlsa (my wife) had to stand on a stool to reach the top shelves.

Built in a U-shape, I thought the kitchen was efficiently designed until she was at the stove and I was at the sink. A step to the left or right by either of us caused momentary chaos. 

But I couldn't see it.

The problem was that I built the house. From cutting the trees to clear the footprint, the working with the digger to put the hole in the ground that became our basement, the laying and stacking of the logs… I built the house.

With a 40-foot drop off the hillside to the 4-acre lake below that I stocked with largemouth bass and bream in the woods on 95 acres of beautiful land, I built the house that sat on the hill.

My identity over the years changed from the guy who flew around the country as a consultant for major corporations to the guy who built his own log home on a unique and secluded piece of paradise isolated from neighbors and the rest of the world.

When people asked me what I did, I responded:

I was a business trainer helping people start or move their businesses online.

I worked from my home, a log home that I built with my own hands in the middle of a 95-acre forest with a lake and a 60-foot waterfall.

The kitchen wasn’t even on my radar. The house was perfect. The land was perfect. The lake was perfect. The location was perfect. And I built the house.

When someone visited, I couldn’t wait to tell them about my house in this beautiful setting. Even when I tried NOT to tell visitors, it eventually exploded out like a volcano holding back years of pent-up pressure: I built the house.

But after 18 years in the woods...we sold it in May of this year. 

By choice. 

No one forced me to give it up. 

The key was making a complete mindset change

Being aware of what you really want, honoring that, and modifying your actions to give it a chance to blossom is both hard and essential.

Becoming aware of your thoughts and feelings, and acting on those is just the beginning.

In my case, I started noticing a slight pressure every time I took a walk in the woods. (Or more like a climb through the jungle!)

There was a level of guilt that both my wife and I felt when we realized we couldn’t get to the back 40 acres because the trail through the woods was so overgrown. 

My first thought was no longer how beautiful the stream was, but that I needed to get back out there with a weed-whacker, or a bulldozer to clear the debris.

But I didn’t have the time and…my back still hurts from the last time I swung an ax.

Instead, Charlsa and I started talking about what we really wanted.

Simplicity kept coming up.

So, we made a tough decision to do something difficult. 

Camp Clarity - How to change your mindset

Instead of planning weekends spraying weeds, clearing brush, and cutting back trees hanging precariously over the roof, or fighting (and constantly losing) the constant battle with the carpenter bees, we decided to let someone else pick up the slack.

We both needed a long nap.

But how could we give up our little piece of paradise? And who would I be if I weren’t the guy with his own lake, forest, and log cabin?

There's an old Chinese saying that goes something like this: Discontent is the first step in the progress of a man or a nation.

Luckily for us, I have studied this a lot. In fact, I created a complete training program around this concept. It's called Camp Clarity. And the purpose of this program is to help people - maybe you - discover what they really want in life and how to get it.

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Change your attitude, change your life

Charlsa is a realist. She’s very pragmatic, frugal, and responsible.

Me? Dreamer. Risk-taker. Spender. Creative. Mostly responsible.

Making a change was foreign to both of us. For 18 years, we never heard anything but birds and coyotes. We didn’t see any neighbors except when we walked on the mostly deserted country roads for a little daily exercise.

But in a few months, I’ll be 69. That’s almost 70. Even though my mind tells me I’m still 18 and in my prime, the creaking sounds I make getting out of bed demonstrate the reality of time.

While 70 may be the new 50 (hopefully), my body is changing.

Change is inevitable, growth is optional.

We can deny it or resist it, but change is constant.

The ancient philosopher Rumi said, “The moment you accept what troubles you’ve been given, the door will open.”

Sticking my head in the sand and ignoring change is a non-starter. Resisting change leads to a bloody forehead from banging my head against a wall.

Accepting change is the path to contentment. 

But when your life goes in a direction that you'd rather not experience, it can be challenging. 

Over the past 3 years, my family has experienced a lot of challenges.

  • My son-in-law was diagnosed with a rare stage 4 cancer that robbed him and my daughter of their best years.
  • My 95-year old dad died after a 5-year decline with dementia.
  • My 97-year old mother-in-law died in the middle of the night from a heart attack.
  • Both my dogs, Luann and Lila, died from complications of old age.
  • And of course, we all shared a full year of lockdown from the pandemic!
David with Dogs - How to change your mindset
David at Dads Grave - How to change your mindset

We’re no different from other families. The experiences we go through make us more compassionate, more resilient, and more forgiving of others.

When events like those come upon us like a storm rolling in at night, we try many different ways to get ourselves back on the right track, but nothing seems to work. 

Our reactions and perceptions drive how we handle change

There’s truth in the saying, "Life is 1 percent what happens to you and 99 percent how you deal with it." How you deal with life's situations ultimately determines your quality of life.

The attitude you display in any circumstance will inevitably impact the outcome of it. But you're probably wondering, "How else am I supposed to react to a negative event than to feel negative about it?" 

A change in attitude can significantly change the outcome of a situation not of your making, or one which you've created all on your own! 

Changing your attitude towards life's challenges helps you feel more positive about the challenge as opposed to feeling conquered by it. 

When you remember that you have the power to choose your reaction, you'll have the power to determine the outcome of a situation!

If your ultimate goal in life is to be truly happy, stop and take a look at how much control you have over most outcomes. Once you have stopped long enough to realize that only you can determine how happy you feel, you'll automatically start making the choices and attitude adjustments that will help you achieve that happiness!

This is how your change your mindset!

David and Charlsa Peachtree- How to change your mindsetCommit to accepting the change. See it as an opportunity.

If it’s a death in the family, grieve. If it’s financial, change your income or expenses. If it’s a career choice, look at your options. If it's your health, make the necessary changes to improve it.

Every little acceptance is a step toward changing your mindset.

Do this consistently and you’ll be on your way to a healthier, more rewarding mindset.

Give yourself enough time. And be realistic.

Choose goals that are achievable.

With a bank account in negative territory, it’s unrealistic to say, “I want to be worth $50 million in five years.” 

Start with a goal of $50,000 in six months. That is manageable but still big enough to feel great.

Over the next six months, do this:

  1. Set four goals. Set a goal in each of the following areas: Financial, Health, Career, and Other. Most of us could use money, health, and a career boost. That leaves one miscellaneous goal.

        ◦ Financial. You might want to set a goal for your bank account balance, earnings, or pay off your debt.

        ◦ Health. Need to lose a few pounds? Want to bench press 250 pounds? Follow a healthy diet for six months?

        ◦ Career. Perhaps you want a promotion, to change companies, or to change fields.

        ◦ Miscellaneous. You could set a goal to travel somewhere, master a song on the piano, get a jump on learning a language, or buy a new car. Whatever you want.

A good goal is something that you believe is possible but would be challenging. It should also be something that makes you excited when you think about accomplishing it.

  1. Measure your current situation. Understand where you’re starting. If you want to increase your savings account to $10,000, you’d best know your current balance. The same goes for your weight if you’re trying to lose weight. If you want to run a 5-minute mile, how fast can you run a mile right now?
  2. Create a plan. Based on where you are, and where you want to go, what is a logical plan to get there? Remember that you have six months and plan accordingly.
  3. Determine the habits you need to ensure success. If you want to lose weight, your exercise and diet habits are important. Savings and spending habits are often important for financial goals. Sending a certain number of resumes might be important for certain career goals.

Your habits have a tremendous impact on the results you achieve in life. Good habits yield good results.

  1. Set short-term goals. It’s hard to stay focused on a goal for six months, and it’s easy to procrastinate. Set short-term goals that lead to your long-term goals. Sixty days is about right for a short-term goal.

Set 60-day and 120-day goals for each of your 6-month goals.

  1. Take action. Even with the best plans in the world, nothing happens until you take action to reach your goals.
  2. Keep a journal. Record your feelings, plans, ideas, results, and observations. You’ll get a kick out of looking back on your journal someday.
  3. Measure your progress. Regularly measure your progress. It’s important to know how you’re doing, so you can make any adjustments. How will you know if your diet and exercise plans are working if you never get on the scale?
  4. Be flexible in your approach. You’re probably not going to create the perfect plan right out of the gate. There will be a lot of fine-tuning along the way. Stick to your goals but be willing to change how you accomplish them.
  5. Cross the finish line. Giving up is the only way to fail. Keep going, even when you feel like quitting.

You can probably accomplish more in the next six months than you have in the last five years.

It’s easy to fall into a routine that does little more than maintain your current life.

Do this for six months and you’ll discover that this is how to change your mindset.

Now, that you have tackled new goals, give your new habits more muscle!

“The secret of your success is found in your daily routine,” according to leadership guru John C. Maxwell.

What is the first thing you do after you wake up in the morning? Check your phone? Stumble to the coffeemaker? Whatever it is, you might not think twice about it.

Habits are learned behaviors that become a part of your routine over time. They can be subconscious. Both good habits and bad habits are built the same way. They become routine.

Yet some of the most successful people attribute their success to their routine. Those people took time to focus on the good habits and build those into their life.

To change your mindset, you can change your habits. Habits do not have to be large changes in order to have an impact. Small, good habits make a difference too building confidence and more success.

These habits might seem small or insignificant, but they can carry into your life in unexpected ways. 

Implement these habits into your routine to change your mindset:

  1. Make your bed. Starting your day by making your bed is one of the simplest habits to integrate into your daily routine. There’s a reason that soldiers, sailors and airmen start every morning by making a tight and tidy bed. This is an easy win.

That simple accomplishment can subconsciously act as a domino effect as you generate other wins throughout your day.

  1. Set an intention. At the beginning of your day, set an intention. You can also set intentions for the week, month or year. Setting intentions regularly guides you with a reminder of how you want to live each day.
  1. Practice gratitude. Studies have shown that when we practice gratitude, our brains release dopamine. Gratitude helps shift your mind to positive thoughts, which can help you feel more positive.

At the end of the day, write down three things you are grateful for to build your gratitude habit.

  1. Exercise. When you exercise, your body releases chemicals that relieve stress and spark euphoria. In addition to being a natural antidepressant, exercise also builds your confidence. To build your confidence and happiness, make it a habit to exercise each day.
  2. Express gratitude to others. When you express gratitude towards others, you strengthen the connection you have with them.

Write a thank you letter to a mentor who has guided you in the past or to someone who made an impact on your life.

After you spend time with someone, send them a message thanking them for their time and include one specific thing you loved about that time.

  1. Read. Just like exercise builds your physical muscles, reading builds your brain’s muscles. Reading consistently builds your ability to focus, concentrate, and remember things.
  2. Switch to positive language. Practice using positive language, from your self-talk to the things you say to others.

Say, “Thank you for your patience,” instead of, “Sorry for the wait.”

Pay attention to the negative things you say to yourself. Would you speak that way to a friend? Speak to yourself more positively too!

  1. Take the stairs. In a digital age where most of us are tied to our computers, choose the option that gets you moving! Take the stairs instead of the elevator. When you need to run an errand, walk or bicycle to the shop.

Follow these tips to successfully implement new habits:

  1. Make each habit timely. For example, “make my bed daily” or “express gratitude to someone else once per week.”
  2. Avoid long breaks when building a new habit. If you have a habit you want to do daily and you miss one day, do your best not to let yourself miss two days.
  3. Be compassionate with yourself. If you forget to exercise one day, avoid beating yourself up! Learn to be compassionate and understanding of yourself.
  4. Find an accountability buddy. You are more likely to stick to your habits if you have someone holding you accountable. Find someone to hold you accountable or support you throughout your journey!
  5. Reward yourself. Rewarding yourself as you hit milestones will help you enjoy the process. 

You don’t have to make drastic changes - like starting a new career - to change your mindset. The small changes habits have in your routine can make a huge impact!

Taking time in the morning to look at my loft window at the deer in the woods, or the ducks chasing each other on the lake, or the hawks flying overhead was a good habit that allowed me to reflect on the changes in my life. It allowed me to make difficult, but responsible decisions that will benefit me later by simplifying my life.

It was the first step to changing my mindset.

Your mindset is everything. Without the right mindset, even taking action can be a waste of time…

So, learning how to change your mindset is the key to becoming a more successful and happy person, no matter what changes come your way.

Remember, change is inevitable, growth is optional.

5AreasOfClarity

This is where we send all of our new clients. Camp Clarity! If you have been struggling to understand exactly how to build a life that is not only fulfilling but rewarding, this is the place to start.

We focus on 5 areas of stress and help you create systems that improve ALL of them including Business, Relationships, Health, Well Being, and Money.

Tell us in the comments below how you're handling change. And how to change your mindset?

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I spent tons of money on affiliate and website building programs but was getting nowhere.

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Need help figuring out how to change your mindset?

Try Camp Clarity and you'll discover how to focus on exactly what you want and love!

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In Camp Clarity, we attack your brain! Break it wide open and spill out all of your pent-up desires and expertise. And after we sort that all out, you have a complete roadmap to your best life. We dig into:

  • Core Values - discover how to make decisions quickly based on your beliefs and goals.
  • Vision and Future State - without a clear vision, you don't have a destination. Without a destination, you have no direction.
  • Only Statement - what is unique about you and your experience that will help you move forward in every area of your life.
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  • Execution Plan - follow this process to create an action plan that is very simple.
  • and much, much more...

Click here to discover how to create your personal decision framework so that you NEVER make poor decisions again in any area of your life with 6 simple, but incredibly effective modules in less than 30 Days!

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David Perdew is the CEO and founder of NAMS - the Novice to Advanced Marketing System. He’s a journalist, consultant, and serial entrepreneur who has built one of the most successful and fastest-growing business training systems online today called the MyNAMS Insiders Club.

The Novice to Advanced Marketing System is a step-by-step system focusing on Team, Training and Tools to help novice to advanced business people build a Simple, Scalable and Sustainable business.

He took a year off in 2003 to personally build a 2200 square foot log cabin in north Alabama where he and his wife and two dogs and a cat live on 95 acres of forest with four streams and 60-foot waterfall.

The NAMS team includes his daughter, Jen, who is an email marketing and automation specialist. Jen runs the day to day business and is one of the primary trainers in our MyNAMS Insiders Club. 

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