Legends are extremely famous or notorious persons, especially in a particular field. They are very well known. So much so that they touch the lives of many. When a legend dies at a young(er) age, we are reminded again of the importance of legends as their death and their lives become trending items on social media. Such is the case today with Prince; a legend in the world of music who passed this week, too young if you think about it. Most of us are fascinated with legends and want to be like them: they are symbols of success, wealth and power. What we don’t see is the other side of their lives: the struggles, hardships and health challenges. What it took for them to be who they are today. I am always curious to know how they cultivated their mindset for success and what they did to sustain this. What were the mantras they used to stay focused and motivated: how did they maintain their drive, passion and creativity? Legends and us: how can we better serve ourselves, our families and our world.

If you would ask me what matter the most, what I have learned from life at this point in my life, I would answer: mindset. The definition of mindset is: the established set of attitudes held by someone. An attitude,disposition, or mood. Why? Because the way we think affects all we want to accomplish. It does not matter who you are, how old you are, or who you are not: what matters is your attitude towards yourself, those around you, the world. Imagine a room painted all white. On one of the walls in this room there is a small black spot; small, yet you can see it from a short distance. Imagine two persons entering that room and describing the room. One person will describe it as a white room, very peaceful, sunny and clean. The other person will walk in and focus on the black spot and complain that this black spot is ugly, its messy, it has to be removed, completely ignoring the beautiful white painted walls. What is the difference here? The mindset of the persons. No matter who you are, I would focus on your mindset and learning all you can to adopt a mindset that is calm, strong, peaceful. You will encounter many black spots in your life: it is how you deal with them that makes the difference.  Wishing you a wonderful week.

Learning something new everyday; how does this make you feel? Its actually funny because as a child and young adult, who thought learning was fun, exciting, cool? The majority of us would rather do something else. Fast forward to today and what has become cool, exciting and one of the best things you can do for yourself? Learning something new everyday. Falling asleep and already thinking about what’s on the learning menu the next day. Learning; key in staying healthy, relevant, happy.

According to the International Coach Federation ( coachfederation.org) the benefits of using a coach are: “Professional coaching brings many wonderful benefits: fresh perspectives on personal challenges, enhanced decision-making skills, greater interpersonal effectiveness, and increased confidence. And, the list does not end there. Those who undertake coaching also can expect appreciable improvement in productivity, satisfaction with life and work, and the attainment of relevant goals”.

Furthermore, coaching improves productivity since you are laser focused and therefore no when to say NO and what to accomplish. I invite you to check out this site and many more to explore the benefits of coaching and see if this is something you or your company can benefit from.

What I like the most about coaching is that coaching is very result oriented, meaning, there is little time spend on hashing out past mistakes and most of the time spend on future action to reach very specific goals. Coaching is about your dreams and goals with a focus on action. I like to say ” there is nothing vague about coaching, it is very goal oriented, period”. Which brings us to the point that results require action and action is based on habits. Boils down to doing those things you need to do consistently to check off the to do’s on your list. Its as simple and challenging as that. What about starting today. What goal have you set for today? What do you need to do? What habit do you need to focus on creating? Habits such as: waking up early; exercising; to do lists; reading new books; you get the point. I challenge you to share one habit you are committed to working on as of today and are willing to share your progress with us all. Make it a good one today.