Insights Blog

On July 1st Canadians celebrated Canada Day, and on July 4th the US celebrated Independence Day. Independence is a tricky thing. We need independence to thrive but if we become TOO independent, we risk losing our humanity.

Your meaningful business isn’t just a way to make money—it fuels your passion to make a difference. But, if you’re like many conscious entrepreneurs, you may not be focusing on fundamental steps that are key for growing a business. 

Don't want to spend money on ads? Do you hate selling? As a successful serial entrepreneur, let me show you how to think differently about this challenge. Learn how to authentically generate demand. 

We’ve all heard about The Law of Attraction, and there’s part of us that wants to believe that we can create what we desire. Well, you can! Learn how one Succeed student achieved financial, physical and spiritual well-being.

If the thought of selling and promoting your business strikes fear in you, there is good news! There is a way to grow your business WITHOUT selling. It may be time to consider a more authentic approach to demand generation.

Being entrepreneurial doesn’t necessarily mean you’re meant to be an entrepreneur. Some people with entrepreneurial traits just can’t hack it as entrepreneurs. In fact, many entrepreneurial types find more success and joy working for somebody else.

After a decade of living purposefully and working with countless others in defining their purpose, I’ve found the purpose-quest means different things to different people. The question “what is my purpose?” could be asked for 3 very different reasons.

Being born into a wealthy family does not guarantee that a person can legitimately CREATE wealth later in life, which is not the same as inheriting wealth. What rich people do have is the belief that wealth is attainable. They expect it. 

Are you like most 9-to-5ers, “working for the weekend," only to have the Sunday Night Blues kick in with a vengeance? If you can relate, it may be time to consider new career options. For me, I chose learning how to start a business.

We frequently BLOCK abundance by not trusting our own power, and instead seeking power externally. As a result, we look at where we are and judge it as not enough. Creating abundance can be EASY, even though the ego would like us to think that it’s hard.

Writing and editing was my side hustle and something I had done here and there in past jobs and on the side. I’ve always loved writing, but I never thought I could transform that passion into a business – until the checks started coming in. 

For decades I’ve studied every mindset tool, eagerly trying to make the Law of Attraction work consistently. Face it. Few people can apply the Law of Attraction and get results every time. For some, it works just occasionally or not at all. Why is that?

The soul is what drives us to grow, achieve, search, learn - all in a singular quest to become more. Whether a business or a human, if we squelch this life force, the process of dying ensues. We are either growing or dying and the choice is ours.

So, if you suddenly won $10,000 and all of your basic needs were met, would you save it, head out on luxurious vacation or give it to someone in need? How you answer that question depends on your Personal Currency.

There are a million things you’ll need to learn to run your own business. The good news is if you can get clear on the answers to three foundational questions, you can gain confidence that you are on the right track and moving in the right direction.

A new year is upon us, and it’s full of possibilities! Are you ready to do what’s necessary to get MORE out of life? Are you unsure of how to get there? Wherever you’re starting from, it’s time for a seismic shift to a more joyful and positive mindset.

Is wanting more a bad thing or a good thing? My answer is a flat out: it’s a GREAT THING! The desire for more is not your selfish ego, but rather your soul. That’s right. Your soul communicates to you through desire.

You can create more in your life. More success, more money, more joy and more meaning. Learn how to create more with someone you care about.

We don’t have to be limited by “or.” If the way we view and think about life doesn’t create the results we want, then it’s time to think differently. It’s time to embrace “AND.”

Over the past nine years, the Succeed On Purpose team evolved our programs and tools to world-class status. And, we’ve helped thousands along the way. Now, it’s time for a bigger stage.

The first step to getting real is to embrace your true self. Go beyond what others think and look deep within. The truth is, we are on this earth for a reason, and to understand what that deeper reason is…simply begin with purpose.

Fear manifests in many ways but its misguided goal of “keeping us safe” is an illusion. Fear does not keep us safe; instead it keeps us trapped.

Living your passion is hard work—but you can’t beat the rewards. EarthHero founder and CEO Ryan Lewis believed the pain of not trying to start something that matters would have been greater than any pain endured in launching his dream company.

Relationships make us happy, so how can we improve those relationships, to experience more fulfillment and more joy?

We hide. It’s true, whether we want to admit it or not. We hide from criticism, from judgment, from differences; we even hide from who we really are. Why? What would happen if we broke through our barriers and became who we truly are?

Life is like one big sponge. From the moment we’re born we soak up sights, tastes, and sounds. As we mature, we start to soak up experiences and eventually knowledge.

Driving a car is a perfect metaphor for achieving success—it’s easy to get off course. I learned this lesson viscerally—on a race track. Learn how you too can move past fear and achieve success using the same techniques you use to drive a car.

Some say perfection is an illusion, while others wear themselves out trying to achieve it. I believe perfection is a natural quest that our soul seeks, but one that the human brain misunderstands.

By February, the majority of people have given up on resolutions and returned to their old ways.To move forward and become a happier, healthier, better version of yourself, you have to prioritize personal growth all year long.

Nobody understands passion, dedication and Olympic-size aspirations better than Olympians do! If you crave more success in your life and in your career, then it’s time to get real about your goals – like an Olympian.

Even if you know where you want to go, it’s OK if you don’t know how to get there. What you DO need to do is seek advice from people who can help you develop a plan to reach your goals

Answer truthfully—do you enjoy the work you do? Or are you stuck in the wrong job? Finding the position you are meant to be doing is much easier said than done. Many people simply go with the flow and don’t even attempt to pursue a purposeful career.

I didn’t know what I know today—that I could have served myself better had I taken the time to uncover my true passion and the steps necessary to find meaningful work.

The season of giving doesn’t mean you have to drain your bank account or max out your credit cards. Believe it or not, most people prefer spending time and making memories with loved ones versus receiving a gift that loses usefulness over time.

As we move into the “season of giving” I’d like to introduce a concept my grandfather shared when I was about 10 years old. It was a monumental insight that changed the way I viewed gifts.

Do you ever feel paralyzed by fear to the point where it prevents you from moving forward in a constructive way – personally or professionally?

In a world where art imitates life, it is curious how our society is willing to accept the presence of frightful things. Let’s make a commitment to face the fear epidemic with the only medicine that can cure it -- faith.

The phrase, “Outlive Yourself”, is very powerful and makes you think of what you are doing right now to make a lasting difference in the lives of others.

Have you ever wondered what the Labor Day holiday was, or where it came from? You know there are big sales, BBQ’s and you get a day off from work, but what are we celebrating?

Whether on a new career path or your first job, beginnings are exciting. You are filled with hope and confidence that you will make an impact. Until that is, you don’t.

Chapter Four of my first book, Succeed On Purpose, was the second most difficult chapter to write. The painful memories of that event will be seared in my mind forever.

I enjoy escaping reality on occasion and love all the action-packed superhero movies of late. I adored Wonder Woman, and was thankful to see that DC managed to get it right. But there is more than just character development in this movie.

One thing I know for sure is that the concept of karma is REAL. If you’re not familiar with karma, it’s simple. Karma is the spiritual principle of cause and effect where the intent and actions of a person influence the future of that individual.

I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the economy is not good, and your job is not safe. Despite the current stock market hype, another serious economic crash IS coming. It's time to Get Real and find that thing that gets your heart racing.

Are you sick of it yet? Feeling inadequate, feeling untethered, feeling like there is more, but you can’t figure out where?

To achieve your highest potential, you must learn how to fail forward. For the wide majority of humans, life is not easy and we’re faced with many challenges. How your perceive and respond to these challenges determines your ability to succeed.

When I started my own Succeed On Purpose journey, and built what is now the Share On Purpose portfolio of companies, I willingly took risks in search for inner joy as well as financial success.

I remember THE weekend like it was yesterday. A transformational blow was knocking on my life, and by the end of this particular weekend my world would look dramatically different.

There is a deep part of us that aches for more. More success, more joy, more health and more meaning to our lives. These desires are natural and soulful.

I’ve always been an Amy Grant fan, and one song, “My Grown Up Christmas List,” is a favorite. There are times when the lyrics ring eerily true.

Each election was more contentious than the one before, as politicians fought over the 2-5% of the population that isn't firmly entrenched and divided. So, I've set a goal to create peace in my own little corner of the world through three pacts.

It's time to play at a whole new level. And I invite each of you to join me. It’s time for me to share the lessons I've learned about how to Succeed On Purpose, with the millions of people searching for both meaning AND success.

When I look back at life I can only see the lessons, and then the insight gained from them. When I look ahead to the future I am amazed how everything was leading me to this path.

I suspect we all sense there is a new energy, and a new way of being unfolding, regarding the economy.

Sometimes it takes a crisis—a relationship ending, a major health scare, a car accident—to wake us from the sleepwalk state in which we exist. Regardless of the challenges that are facing us, we rarely regret choosing to live our life on purpose.

There have been many spiritual gurus, but none have touched as many lives as Wayne Dyer. I have learned many critical lessons from Wayne that apply to anyone seeking to transform their life.

I’ve set a goal to make this next year transformational. To be successful in that audacious goal, I must first transform myself. Here are 3 transformational goals I’ve set for next year. Care to join this “Transformation Pact?”

The CEO at Jostens Learning took me under his wing and taught me some invaluable lessons. As a 27-yr old executive (in over my head), I was cocky, arrogant, majorly insecure, and very overly-sensitive, but had unusual gifts that ONLY the CEO recognized.

How I shifted the way I lived in order for time to REVEAL who I was, rather than expose who I had pretended to be. Will time reveal or expose who you are?

12 years ago, I became an entrepreneur, failed miserably and lost everything. Despite the failure, I was hooked on the freedom, creativity and passion of building a business, and NEVER wanted to go back to a job again.

We all know that we get what we focus on, but how can we actually change what we focus on?

To shift your focus to what's working, deal with the difficult, but don’t focus on it. Most Succeed On Purpose followers have heard the story of “You Get What You Focus On”—this post is about how to apply that lesson and make it work.

The more we wonder why we aren’t receiving abundance, the more we’re focused on what we don’t want.

Most Succeed on Purpose followers have heard the story of “You Get What You Focus On” from Chapter 7 of my book. If not, I’ve included Chapter 7 at the end of this blog post as a reference.

The Utopia Food & Fitness program WORKS! Better yet, it’s convenient and the food tastes great. Come join me and let’s get healthy in 2014!

At the end of each year I make a list of lessons and insights to take with me into the next year. It’s become an amazing and powerful ritual. For the first time, I want to share them publicly.

Have you ever noticed that no matter where we are in life, we always seem to want more? The truth is, we were DESIGNED for more. But we get confused about what this desire for more means.

It's easy to set aside our own needs. However, it can weaken boundaries and lessen the value we bring to relationships. For me, the color purple symbolizes the struggle to be your own person, create and respect boundaries, and ask for what you want.

We've said it before, but it’s worth repeating: There is a revolution happening that is creating a new way of work. The jobs “lost” during the recession are not coming back. Jobs are being fractionalized and virtualized.

Learn how to avoid three common pitfalls of business ownership and how to succeed. It’s easy to think that we’re alone in facing the challenges of building a business. The truth is…many have gone before us.

By now you've heard something about the new world of work, and probably have sensed my passion about the topic. But there is something you don't know...that will either strike fear in your heart, or put joy in your step.

I was blessed to participate in two Shark Tank pitches for business owners who have gone through our programs.

The most important question for businesses and professionals attempting to navigate the New World of Work isn’t where we are going, but why it matters in the first place.

Duck Dynasty can teach us a LOT about the New World of Work, particularly the importance of following passion. Yep, I am officially promoting Duck Dynasty as a role model for the New World of Work!

Unless you have been under a rock, you are quite familiar with Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer’s recent ban on working from home. And you are quite familiar with the various opinions on the subject. So it really begs the question – is there a good answer?

We know that jobs are moving from the cube to the cloud, and that anyone capitalizing on these virtual work opportunities will be well-positioned for career growth. And yet most are fearful of making this transition.

You’ve created your personal brand and you’ve gone out and marketed yourself, so what’s next? If you want to continue to build your brand, there is always work to be done.

When most of us started our business, we had big dreams. We had passion for our work but wanted to be free of the drudgery of cube-filled days with bosses we didn’t respect. However, we also had false ideas of what it meant to be an entrepreneur.

Previously we covered creating a personal brand— how important it is in the new world of work. The next step is to generate awareness about your brand. In essence, you must market yourself.

Today’s New World of Work requires everyone to consider their personal brand. Whether you are a C-Suite executive, a mid-level manager or a contractor, the first thing any potential employer will do is search for your name online. What will they find?

There are three CHOICES we make in the moment, all the time when we seek Abundance on Purpose. We make choices all the time…every moment of every day. Having more awareness brings these choices into our consciousness.

I am on this earth to inspire people to reach their potential, by following their purpose and overcoming limitations and fear. In order to teach others how to live their purpose, I had to do it for myself first. What a ride it’s been.

Even though the lesson of “You Get What You Focus On” is one of the many things I am known for, I’ve noticed that people struggle to not only to adjust focus, but also to maintain that change. How can we actually change what we focus on?

My journey from corporate America to solopreneur to CEO was eye opening. I learned to overcome fear and uncovered many insights about the reality facing people in transition. This led me to develop several support systems for professionals in transition.

Keith had a very simple business philosophy, which resulted in incredible financial and professional success. Unlike most self-made men, Keith wasn’t boastful, so it took a long time for me to understand what his secret really was.

Why is it that most women-owned firms are still one-person shops? What is it preventing women business owners from aggressively growing their business so that they achieve financial independence?

Tomorrow’s career options in the social-digital decade will be radically different than anything we’ve experienced in our professional lives to date.

I’d like to introduce a new way of measuring success. Regardless of what you’ve been told, start-up success is not measured in a linear manner. Goal posts set us up to fail. Guide posts, however, accelerate success.

New Years Resolutions can sometimes go Off Track. I always thought, there has to be a better way! Last year, I did something different, and it worked! So, if don't want to have to repeat your New Year's Resolutions next year, read on.