The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.”
~Martin Luther King, Jr.~

So where do you stand when the going gets tough? Do you fight through challenges and grow as a result? Or do you shrink and let the challenges before you get the best of you?

Dr. King was a man of conviction who took on the types of challenges that changed the world. He took on these challenges in the face of all kinds of hostility. When things got more difficult he got stronger and figured out ways to effect positive change throughout his life and the lives of those he served. As a result of his work our lives have been forever changed for the better!

So on the Holiday to observe his birthday, lets all take just little time to be grateful to a person who’s measure as a man was simply off the charts! Happy Birthday Dr. King!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach In Search of Excellence

“We must exchange the philosophy of excuse – what I am is beyond my control – for the philosophy of responsibility”
~Barbara Jordan~

“Wake up. The hour has come to be more responsible. Change this world by starting with yourself. The world is not going to change until you change”
~Betty Shabazz~

“You are responsible for your life. You can’t keep blaming somebody else for your dysfunction…Life is really about moving on.”
~Oprah Winfrey~

These 3 very powerful women have all shared the same idea. When they speak I think we should listen! The quality of our lives will depend on the level of Responsibility we take for it. We can have a Terrible Tuesday or a Terrific one. Which do you choose?

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach In Search of Excellence

“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.”
~Albert Schweitzer~

Each and everyone of us has people in our lives who lift us up when we are down. People who give us the energy to not only survive but to thrive in our lives. These people’s energy is infectious and just being around them serves to advance our own lives. Who are these people for you? Who are you grateful for? Who adds value to your life? When is the last time you told them?

One of the best things you can do for someone else is to appreciate them. A simple thank you can travel a long way. These same people who drive us toward our better selves sometime need some help themselves. Making them understand how important they are to us is often just what the doctor ordered! So get in the habit of giving these people a call. Shoot them a quick e-mail. If you want to go old school a hand written letter of a card is so memorable. The act of saying thank-you won’t just lift up the individual you sat it to. The act of saying thank-you also lifts you as well! Give it a try today!

PS: I know I miss days from time to time and for that you have my sincerest apologies and promise to do better! I’d like to express my gratitude to all of you who stick with me through my ups and downs, through my periods of consistency and lack-there-of. Sharing these messages with you all on a day to day basis and the favorable, supportive responses I receive combine to make up one of the parts of my life I enjoy the most. Thank-you so much for being a part of it!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach in Search of Excellence

“For each new morning with its light,
For rest and shelter of the night,
For health and food,
For love and friends,
For everything Thy goodness sends.”
~Ralph Waldo Emerson~

Happy Monday Everyone! Hope you had a fantastic weekend and are ready for an even better week!

Where is the best place to start when you’re going through hard times in life? I’ve been asked this question many times and the best answer I know how to give is simply, Start with Gratitude! Being thankful for the things you do have in life is without a doubt the fastest way to bring more of those things into your life. And if you percieve things to be so bad that you can’t even see the good in your life, then make sure you get thankful for all the bad things in life that you don’t want and that you don’t have.

I know it doesn’t always feel like it but we are truly blessed beings. I can’t speak to your specific life circumstance but I bet you wouldn’t trade your life with the mother who watched her children go to sleep starving last night. I’m sure if you had a choice between you and the guy who woke up this morning in jail for a crime he didn’t even commit, you’d choose you. You see our circumstances are never as bleak as we sometimes make them out to be and Gratitude is the light that brings this level of clarity back into focus. When you begin to look at your life through the lens of Gratitude you start to see that life is filled with things to be Grateful for. Just be on the lookout and show your appreciation throughout the process!

Lets fill this week with things to be Grateful for! GO!!!!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach In Search of Excellence

“Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan ‘Press On’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”
~Calvin Coolidge~

This is probably my favorite quote on the subject of Determination because it speaks to a lot of great qualities that people have that will wind up all but useless without Determination backing them up. Looking around your own life and the most successful individuals you know, don’t you know some of them that seem to have less talent and/or intelligence than others people who are far less accomplished? What is the difference? If life was all about talent wouldn’t we have far more people achieving their goals and dreams? If how smart someone was was the be all end all wouldn’t there be far more individuals in our lives who are at the very top of their games?

The fact of the matter is that while Talent and Intelligence are great they simply are not enough. If you don’t bring with it the ability to keep on going when things get tough you will not stretch yourself enough to make big things happen in your own life or for the world. What if Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t have the Determination to see his vision through. What if the first time he got a death threat he packed it up and said even though I’m passionate about equality in this country, I not willing to die for it? Where would this country be without his willingness to do whatever it takes? Where will your life go without the ability to do whatever it takes?

This is the Determination I’m talking about? WHAT DO YOU WANT? Are you willing to face all obstacles to those desires? When you can look at the obstacles with the unwavering belief that you are bigger and stronger than they are and if you’re not today you will do what it takes to get bigger and stronger than the obstacles tomorrow then you cannot be stopped!!! This level of Determination is inside you!!! Uncover it and take the life that is meant for you!!!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach In Search of Excellence

Determination is the wake-up call to the human will.”
~Tony Robbins~

Happy Monday Ladies & Gents!!! What are you determined to do with this brand new week?

The word Determination has a variety of definitions. My favorite is the quality of being resolute; firmness of purpose. When we are Determined to do something there is no turning back. We act with Boldness and Bravery in a particular direction and we will not be stopped! Energy we didn’t even know we had becomes available to help us meet ours Desired ends. Determination is a prerequisite for success. Is it in you?

Let me answer that question for you with a resounding YES! Each and everyone of us has shown significant determination throughout a variety of points in our lives whether we knew that’s what we were doing or not. From the moment you left your father and started on your way to your mother you were Determined to win your very first contest and you did! You beat out 300 million other possibilities to become you! Never again in life will you come up against those kinds of odds. You were born a winner! You beat the odds then and there are not many odds you can’t beat today if you decide to hone the power of Determination in your life!

I am Determined that this week will be amazing! I’m Determined that I will create the results that matter most to success in my life! I am Determined to share the most compelling quotes and thoughts I know on Determination and I’m Determined that this information will help to make my Arise Ventures Family week’s amazing as well!!! LETS DO IT!!!!

A.R.I.S.E.
All Reach in Search of Excellence

“If you limit your choices only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is compromise.
~Robert Fritz~

I had a conversation recently with some people about the line between positive thinking and being realistic. Its certainly a fine line and a line that has been crossed countless times throughout history to create the greatest accomplishments mankind has known. You see everything is unrealistic until its not. Instant communication with people on the other side of the world, travel to space, flight, TV, cars and so much more were all unrealistic before some positive thinking person made them into reality. How did these people do these things? They simply made a choice not to be held back by the standards of others. They made a choice not only that more is possible but that they are the person to bring about that more that they seek. They made a choice that they would not be stopped and as a result of their choices we live far more interesting lives!

What choices can you make that will make your life and the world at large a better place? There is no question that you too have this kind of power to improve your own circumstances as well as the circumstances of others. The only questions is, will you choose to use it?

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach in Search of Excellence

“To live is to choose. But to choose well, you must know who you are and what you stand for, where you want to go and why you want to get there.”
~Kofi Annan~

I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend! Another week of Excellence is upon us! And in this particular Excellent week our focus will be on our choices.

Each and everyone of us is where we are in life as a result of the choices we have made leading up to this very moment. This information should be exciting to us because it also means that this time next month we will be where we are as a result of the choices we make between now and then. Same applies for a year from now, 3 years from now, 5 years from now on until the day we are not here any more.. Our life is what WE make it! Ready to choose to create your hearts fondest desires?

What do you want? Why do you want it? How will you get it? Whether we’re talking about Habits, Getting Started, Choices or many other of the foundations for successful living you can begin the discussion with these 3 questions. They are powerful and if adopted into your short and long term thought process they will help to guide you towards the life you truly deserve! Adding them to your thought process is a choice. Not doing so is a choice as well. Each choice has very different consequences for your future. Choose Wisely!

What do you stand for in life? What are you willing to accept? Is mediocrity acceptable or must life be Magnificent? Is being good enough for you or is it Greatness that you’re really meant? These questions are very few among the many we will need to ask ourselves while choosing success but they are certainly a good start. Please choose to ask and answer these for yourself. In the process you’ll be choosing to create a life of Excellence lived on your very own terms! What better choice can you make than that? I can’t think of one!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach in Search of Excellence

“Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius and power and magic in it.”
~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe~

What do you dream about that has remained no more than a dream for a long time? Is it an idea for a business? Is it a place you want to go? Is it a new career you rather be in? Whatever it is, you have the ability to make it happen. Every dream we have is a seed of possibility. And just like it takes the right amount of water, sunlight and the right kind of soil for a seed to grow, there are also specific conditions needed for your dreams. In order for dreams to grow and develop into our reality they must have the right amount of vision, purpose, planning, action and perseverance.

If you’re serious about making your dreams happen and I know you are then lets get started. Here’s a little exercise you can use to begin the process: First take 10 minutes to really clarify your vision. If you were living your dream right now, what would life look and feel like? Next take 10 minutes to clarify your purpose. Why do you want this dream? Next take 10 minutes to write out 25 things that you can do to make this dream a reality. These need to be measurable action steps that will move you in the direction of what you want. That’s a 30 minute exercise that can be a blueprint for anything goal you have for yourself.

Once the blueprint is in place you know what to do from there. ACTION!!! Execute your plan with boldness and faith. Know in no uncertain terms that this goal will be yours. PERSEVERANCE!!! Failure is not an option. You can do this, You will do this is the attitude. Why accept less when you can have more?

Bonus:
“Everyone has a success mechanism and a failure mechanism. The failure mechanism goes off by itself. The success mechanism only goes off with a goal. Every time we write down and talk about a goal we push the button to start the success mechanism.”
~Chales ‘Tremendous’ Jones

START YOUR SUCCESS MECHANISM!!!!

A.R.I.S.E
All Reach in Search of Excellence

“The journey of a thousand miles begin with a single step.”
~Lao Tzu~

Morning Ladies and Gents. I hope everyone got through the storm safe and sound! I apologize for not getting anything out yesterday. I was without power and Internet access. I’m now back in business! This week we’re going to focus on getting started. In just about all our worthwhile endeavors The Hardest Part is to Start. And to start simply begins with the very first step!

So what’s your first step? I guess it all depends on where you’re going. So that would make the first step figuring out where you want to go. How clear are you about this? If you are clear and know exactly where you want to go, how detailed is your plan to get to your destination? If you have the detailed plan, have you started the Action Steps that will lead you to your objective?

This kind of process must proceed progress! Nothing in the world happens until someone starts it. Changes in your life included!

“So many fail because they don’t get started-they don’t go. They don’t overcome inertia. They don’t begin.”
~W. Clement Stone~

Don’t let this be you!!!

A.R.I.S.E.
All Reach In Search of Excellence