PREPARING FOR A YEAR OF AWESOMENESS

We all know the saying “If you fail to plan, then you are planning to fail!” I look at the previous couple of years and my planning has left a lot to be desired. I have a diary/planner that I enter our Polaris training calls so I don’t miss any, I tick off my 6 daily steps to success when I do them and I write any times I have arranged to call someone for follow up, but that was about it. The last few months my diary/planner has evolved. It has become more about Action Lists and achieving what I set out to. If I complete a mini-goal for the day then I get a sticker in the diary (you know those ones we had as kids that said ‘well done’ or ‘great effort’ or just a smiley sticker or flower sticker – something that’s a bit silly and a bit fun and helps me celebrate the win.

Well, today I have taken it one step further. Yesterday I made a list of my top goals for 2015. 15 FOR 15! Yeah, I’ve got 15 goals on that list (thought the number was kind of appropriate!). I then examined each goal and planned out the steps I want to take to move towards achieving that goal…one small step at time. I planned which days I would take the action and charted it on a calendar. So now, I’ve got some real strategy involved – something to really work on.

I’ve just mapped out my first 4 days of the new year and what actions I will take on each of those days. That takes me up to Sunday when I’ve allocated an hour to do some ‘Strategic Planning’ and plan for the following week. For me, allocating a specific time to do these doesn’t work for me. Being a carer for my husband Michael I have to be quite flexible. And that’s the beauty of our Polaris Businesses – having the flexibility to work when and how we want to.
What I have done is create a daily Action List. I do love my lists – always have done, and it works for me, so having an Action List to check off each day is perfect. When I looked at all of my goals on the list and then printed off charts and calendars it seems a little overwhelming and thoughts of ‘how on earth am I going to get all that done’ came to mind. But once I wrote it all in the diary it actually looks so achievable that I’m excited to get stuck into it.

So, my goals are not just airy fairy dreams or ideas of what I want, but real concrete actionable items that I have strategies in place to actually achieve. Oh yeah…2015 is going to be AWESOME!

ANCHOR YOURSELF TO AVOID THE DRIFT

One of my favourite Jim Rohn quotes is: The formula for success is “a few simple disciplines practiced every day”. This reinforces how important following the 6 daily steps to success is.

I was standing in front of my bookcase today and picked up Jim Rohn’s book The Five Major Pieces to the Life Puzzle. I was flicking through the pages and found the turned page corner with that very quote. I flicked back a couple of pages and found the formula for failure. I found this really interesting. We hear all the time – you only fail if you give up. But what leads up to that point where someone would give up? This is where the drift comes into play. Are you drifting? Or are you the captain of your own ship, in control, and steering your life where you want to go – towards your goals? Am I? In this book, it makes the point that failure’s most dangerous attribute is it’s subtlety. Little errors – in judgement, lack of action, in thoughts – these thing accumulate every day. We do something (or fail to do something), there does not seem to be any immediate consequence, the sky didn’t fall in, so we repeat that action…over and over and over, and before you know it time has gone by, we have drifted so far off course without even realising it. What we must wake up to is the consequences of not taking corrective action. For example, if our pattern was to eat the wrong foods on a daily basis, if not corrected this would result in health problems in the future. The pain and regret of our errors in judgement has just been delayed for a future time.

How can we turn this around? By following the quote mentioned at the start of this post – practice a few simple disciplines every day! You don’t have to make a grand gesture to renounce your former action and turn your life around. All it takes is small but consistent steps – every single day. It’s all about creating a new pattern or habit for yourself.

One of my current goals is: ‘to be balanced…in work, exercise, nutrition and fun’. So for me, this is a perfect time to assess and course correct those ‘simple disciplines’ in my life. One such discipline that I have been implementing into my life is to ensure that I make time every day to work on myself with our Beyond Freedom Evolution curriculum. It doesn’t have to be this big thing that I spend hours each day on – just 10-20 mins a day can make a huge difference, and it has been making a big difference for me. I have learned so much about how to be the best version of me, how to get what I want in life, and to really live with purpose. I have a lot to work on, but day by day I’m improving, growing into my skin, learning how to do this thing called life, and its giving me so much joy to have that sense of moving onward and upwards – all thanks to Beyond Freedom Evolution.

So how about you? What is one small discipline you can add to your daily method of operation?

Working for Someone Else vs Working from Home

What is the difference between having a job 

and working for yourself from home? 

Here are a few things that come to mind:

Trading Time for $$$

You go off to work - in an office or building or to a location where you do your work and you receive a salary at the end of the week/fortnight or month. Your salary is based on your job, your age, your experience and even on your sex.  (Men are paid more than women in the majority of positions even to this day).

In a home-business you are trading effort for dollars - you receive a profit from whatever you sell or for whatever service you provide. The beautiful thing about that is - there is no salary cap!  You can earn any amount of money based on your business model or fee structure and depending on the amount of time and effort you are willing to put into your business.

Finishing the Job

In a job you often only have to take care of your set of tasks - you may never see the end result.  You do your little part and then someone else takes over and does their bit. In fact I was told that it wasn't my job to do more.  I found over my career in corporate admin positions that this is quite common and very discouraging when you really want to go above and beyond on delivering good customer service.  It really dampened any enthusiasm I had for the 'process'.

As an entrepreneur it falls on your shoulders from start to finish!  It's a huge responsibility, but also a great buzz to finish the job - to see something through and to be the one who gets the results.

Rewarding Work

Are you enthusiastic about your job? Do you do your job well, really focus and get your work done quickly, only to be rewarded with - yeah, you got it - more work!  And then, because you are getting through your work quickly, you are forever more expected to work to that level.  You might find yourself getting burnt out, stressed, sick and not able to keep up with what is expected of you.  I've found myself in just that very situation in the past.  Work can be rewarding, but you need to pace yourself and slow down a little so you can achieve a little bit of balance.  But slowing down to an average level can put you to sleep, can rob you of your enthusiasm and can make you feel like a mindless drone.

For entrepreneurs it is exciting that you can get stuck into your work with as much enthusiasm as you can muster.  You can do all of your work in the morning if that is what you want and then you have the rest of the day to play!

Work/Life Balance

One of the greatest draw-cards for people looking to leave the rat race and work from home is the idea of having a work/life balance.  Working 8:30am to 5:30pm no longer works for most people.  Families have kids to collect after school, new Mum's find it heartbreaking to leave their little ones to go back to work.









Many single people just want more to do what they want and have fun rather than be tied down to working all the time. Then there are the people who love to travel but don't want to sacrifice having a regular income to do it.






The idea that you can work from anywhere with a laptop and a phone is very attractive and very flexible for many wanting a different lifestyle.

So, Job vs Business - which is better?  

Well, I can't answer that - only you can.  Think about what you really want, and if it is different than what you currently are doing, ask yourself "Am I prepared to do what it takes to do it".

Whatever your choice I wish you much happiness in life, love and career!


Susan Dorrington
Lifestyle Mentor
Executive Income Specialist
Leadership Development Business Consultant
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remember, if working for yourself no longer works for you
... hire yourself!   www.hireyourself.com.au

GETTING YOUR SPARK BACK

Have you ever lost your spark? You know…that inner glow, that yearning for more, that desire and motivation to take control and create your life?

Events are great for igniting your spark, but to keep it burning, it needs to come from within. How do you re-kindle that spark when it feels like you have lost it?

We learn so much through Beyond Freedom Evolution about creating our lives, but sometimes, life can throw challenges at you and it’s easy to become overwhelmed by it all. I have had many challenges thrown at me over the past 4 or 5 years, and even though I remained positive to a degree, somewhere along the way I lost my spark, my inner drive. I knew what my WHY was – the reason I wanted to create a successful home business, but it didn’t seem enough to motivate me. Something was missing. I lacked motivation. The drive to succeed was almost non-existent. I had a lot of head knowledge on how this business works and what it takes to succeed, but it wasn’t translating into actions.

Towards the end of my career working in a corporate job, I found myself getting up most days and thinking and saying: “I don’t want to go to work”. In essence what I really meant was that I no longer wanted to work for someone else. I was terribly unhappy in a job where I had been moved into a position that allowed me to work part-time around caring for my disabled husband. I had agreed to the move as I was given no other option, but this was not a position that I had truly chosen and not a position that I enjoyed or that used my skill-set. Every day was a grind. Every day I was unable to meet the targets set for me. Every day was wearing me down. So, I left that job in April this year, and then went on to finish our minor house renovations, put the house on the market, move interstate and then deal with a financial situation we had created for ourselves due to poor decisions we had previously made. It certainly has been a ride.

So what has kept me going?

Making a commitment to my own personal growth, I chose to prioritise my personal development with Beyond Freedom Evolution as part of my daily method of operation (DMO). It has been key to my growth as a human being – learning finer distinctions about this thing we call life and overcoming many obstacles to really living on purpose.

For a while I thought there was some kind of block – that there must have been some limiting belief standing in my way. Through my personal development I worked on many topics hoping to release whatever was holding me back. Examining concepts such as Be, Do, Have, (and thinking about who I was Being), Being your Higher Self and having conversations with my Future Self really helped me to realise that I was burnt out because I was not being true to who I wanted to be. I had not been looking after myself. I had been pushing myself to the limits to get everything done without any thoughts of my physical or mental health. My life was not balanced. I didn’t make time for me. I was burning the candle at both ends before our move – working on the house from early in the morning to late and then packing, caring for hubby and then trying to do a little personal development at the end of the day as I fell into bed – most times falling asleep part way through. Since our move it has been my goal to become more balanced – to take time out to breathe, to go for a walk on the beach, to make time to go sit in my massage chair, or paint my nails. I’m giving myself the space to breathe, to think and to just BE!

And do you know what? I’ve got my spark back! The last couple of weeks I have been waking up excited about my business. I’m calling my prospects with more enthusiasm that I have had in a long time. I am enjoying creating ads and increasing my marketing. I am excited about what I can create in the coming months and years. This is a big deal! This is not false or fake excitement or a spark generated from others….this is my own inner joy and excitement glowing from within. Giving myself the space to just exist has made my soul flourish. Flowery words….but I just mean that I feel more complete, more alive, sparkier and more on purpose…and I’m really grateful for that.

When life is in balance you are so much better equipped for creating the live you truly deserve.

What can you do today to give yourself the space you need to Be, Exist, Grow and Flourish?

DO YOU HAVE A THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE?

Have you ever been really really thirsty? Your tongue is dry, your lips are parched and your throat seems to be sticking to itself. Your skin on your hands might be so dry, with no moisture, fingers hard to bend. Maybe you were slumped over a little in your chair – not quite able to sit up straight. You reach for your water bottle and you gulp down half the bottle. You stop for a second and you find yourself gasping for breath. It’s like taking in that life-saving water also helped you really breathe. You splash some of that water on your hands and rub them on your face. Then you drink the rest of the bottle – savouring every last drop! Ahhhhhh how good does that feel. You really feel alive again.

Lately I’ve been thinking just how our Beyond Freedom Evolution program is like one super long cool drink of water.

Just think for a minute – how dry your mind and heart might have been in whatever situation in life you found yourself. Things were likely not going how you had imagined. Were the pressures of living getting to you – a little hard to move due to lack of financial stability or freedom? Did you feel a little dry…maybe even burnt out? How about your energy and stress levels – did they make you slump a little in your chair?

How did you feel the first day you logged on to your Beyond Freedom Evolution? Did that feel like drinking in fresh cool water?

EITHER / OR vs WIN / WIN

I wrote this in my journal 28/10/2014:

It can be really frustrating when you let yourself down at times. When I just get one part of my life going smoothly, something else seems to fall on a heap. Then when I get that back going, other things suffer. Kind of like juggling balls and I haven’t quite yet mastered it and I keep dropping a ball here and there. It’s like there is an ‘either/or’ situation going on in my life. What I would prefer to have happening is a win/win situation. Shane K. talked about this on one of our calls some time ago about being truly present in each moment of our lives. Do we find ourselves working, but wishing we could be elsewhere or spending time with family, and then when we are with family, we can’t stop thinking about work and what we need to do or get done. This is unproductive and robs us of the joy we could be feeling in the moment. This could be something I could work on – to be more present in each moment instead of letting my mind wander to other things that I feel I ‘should’ be doing. If I devote my ‘whole being’ to a task then I can get that task done more efficiently and then move on to the next task…or better yet…to go spend time doing something fun.

Instead of beating ourselves up when we fall down, if we BE the student and BE the entrepreneur (problem solver) and look at the situation from the perspective of ‘what can I learn to help me be a better me’, then we can keep on an upward spiral of growth.

This is just what’s coming up for me today and I wanted to share it.

Today: 9/11/14 – an update on this: I have recently relocated my home office away from a high-traffic area between lounge and kitchen where I found myself being frequently interrupted during work time. We turned a spare bedroom into my office with a freshly laminated sign saying ‘Do Not Disturb – Work in Progress’ with very strict instructions that this be taken notice of…or else! Being able to disconnect from all other distractions of the house and giving myself the space to fully focus on what I am doing when ‘at work’ has been wonderful. It’s helped me so much to be able to really focus on my work when I am at work and then I make sure I do stop work when it’s time to stop. I choose how long I am going to work for, and when my work is done I can then go and enjoy my life and focus on that time when I’m doing that. I’ve really felt I’ve created a completely different mindset for myself…one that’s more empowering, more productive…and definitely more fun. It’s the most on purpose I’ve felt in a very long time, and I’m starting to enjoy this process once again – a joy that i had lost hold of there for a while. What more can I say, but WIN/WIN!

Rising to the Challenge – Being the Best ME I Can Be!

I’m taking a few moments today to look back over the past few years of my life – It kind of feels like when you’ve been walking up a hill or mountain and turn back to see how far you’ve come. It’s not where I want my focus to be or I won’t move forward. I could also risk losing my footing if I’m always looking behind me. That’s no way to go about taking a journey. But it is good to look at what kind of progress you have made – kind of like counting your wins. The past few years have had so many challenges, many low spots and a number of awesome highlights. Looking back on the challenges now from a different place it’s kind of mind blowing – thinking how on earth did I make it past THAT?! It’s when we rise to a challenge, or even when we are completely knocked over, but we get back up…dust ourselves off…and keep on going – that’s what makes us successful…that’s what makes us a winner!

I’ve faced many challenges in the past 4 or 5 years – my husbands diagnosis of Huntington’s Disease, two interstate moves, a tragic death in the family, financial challenges due to poor decisions, distancing myself from toxic family members, working through personal emotions and limiting beliefs that have been holding me back…..wow…all of that looks like a mountain when I write it all down. But in that time there have been so many wonderful blessings and growth and joyful experiences. We have travelled overseas twice, experienced the supportive Polaris Global Safe Harbour Community, we’ve moved to be close to loving family that it is a joy to be around and be a part of my niece’s newborn twin girl’s lives. We are now living near the ocean – a life long dream of mine. There is so much to be grateful for in my life, and that truly makes me smile from my heart. I know deep down inside that I would not have faced these challenges with such a positive mindset if it hadn’t been for what I have learned in the Beyond Freedom Evolution curriculum. For that I am truly grateful.

Now….time to focus on the mountain ahead of me, and taking small steps every day to move onwards and upwards!

MINDSET OVER MATTER

Recently I’ve been addressing a long-standing issue in my life and that is about health and weight loss. I felt it was holding me back in so many areas of my life – how much energy I had, how I moved, how effective I was in my business.

It was time.

I am really proud to say that I have lost almost 7kg now and lost over 60cm’s of body fat, increased my energy levels and am feeling so much more alert, moving much better and am just loving my life. I have a long way to go to achieve my big goals, but you know, I’m excited because I know I’m on purpose and working hard to get there.

For me, weight loss has been about so much more than nutrition and fitness, although these have been absolutely key elements to my success so far. I am participating in a weight loss program and have an amazing health coach who has become such a good friend and I am blessed to have her in my life.

But I have found that much of my journey has been about the 6 inches between my ears – my mindset!

I have come through many challenges in my life and had many self-beliefs that were holding me back – some of them I was barely aware I was even thinking this way. Several years ago I discovered Polaris Global and our Beyond Freedom Evolution program that I am so proud to now assist others with in my business. It has been a key element to my success and happiness in life. It has absolutely changed who I am, how I approach life and definitely helped lift me out of a rut that would have ultimately led to an early death for me. No to be too dramatic, but yes it has saved my life.

I was a very negative person once, suffering from depression, never achieving anything much, wishing and wanting for more, but never seeming to get ahead. I applied for promotions only to be knocked back time after time. I desperately wanted to find someone to share my life with, but was not being the kind of person that anyone really would want to be around. I was miserable and really didn’t want to live anymore.

Now I am so happy in my life. No, it is not perfect. No, I don’t have everything I want..yet! But, you know what? I’m on the road. BFE has taught me so much about taking back control of my life and living my life on purpose. I’m now actively working on my goals and dreams, not just wishing my life were better. I am now happily married and am excited to be planning our life and what we want to achieve. So, taking care of my health has become even more important to me – to be here for a long long time to enjoy more of life with my husband.

We had an amazing training call this morning discussing a section of our Beyond Freedom Evolution curriculum which discussed compulsive behaviour. It really resonated with me on so many levels, but I could not stop thinking about how this related to how I used to compulsively eat food. When you eat food compulsively you are trying to fill a need, or a desire, but in such a superficial way. With each mouthful you gain a sense of satisfaction or fulfillment…but it ends when you swallow. So, you take another mouthful, and then another, and before you know it you’ve eaten your whole daily calorie intake (or more) in one sitting. And when you’ve finished you are left with a hollow feeling – not in your belly, but in the deepest part of your soul, because you didn’t fill the real need/desire/longing you are searching for.

There is so much to be learned from this – about taking control of our lives and learning to fill the real need we have with something that will satisfy us long-term, not just in the moment and then we are filled with regret. Mindset and living life at cause instead of at effect has been one of the biggest changes to my life from doing personal development and working through our BFE program, and I will be forever grateful for how it has affected me.

So, my journey is not over…it is only just beginning. Stay tuned for my next installment!

Mindset over Matter

Recently I've been addressing a long-standing issue in my life and that is about health and weight loss.  I felt it was holding me back in so many areas of my life - how much energy I had, how I moved, how effective I was in my business.  It was time.

Finishing Run Ballarat 2013

I am really proud to say that I have lost almost 7kg now and lost over 60cm's of body fat, increased my energy levels and am feeling so much more alert, moving much better and am just loving my life.  I have a long way to go to achieve my big goals, but you know, I'm excited because I know I'm on purpose and working hard to get there.


For me, weight loss has been about so much more than nutrition and fitness, although these have been absolutely key elements to my success so far. I am participating in a weight loss program and have an amazing health coach who has become such a good friend and I am blessed to have her in my life.
But I have found that much of my journey has been about the 6 inches between my ears - my mindset!

I have come through many challenges in my life and had many self-beliefs that were holding me back - some of them I was barely aware I was even thinking this way.  Several years ago I discovered the personal empowerment and leadership development program that I am so proud to now assist others with in my business.  It has been a key element to my success and happiness in life.  It has absolutely changed who I am, how I approach life and definitely helped lift me out of a rut that would have ultimately led to an early death for me.  No to be too dramatic, but yes it has saved my life.

I was a very negative person once, suffering from depression, never achieving anything much, wishing and wanting for more, but never seeming to get ahead. I applied for promotions only to be knocked back time after time.  I desperately wanted to find someone to share my life with, but was not being the kind of person that anyone really would want to be around.  I was miserable and really didn't want to live anymore.

Now I am so happy in my life.  No, it is not perfect. No, I don't have everything I want..yet! But, you know what?  I'm on the road.  I'm working on my goals and dreams.  I'm living life with a purpose.  I am now happily married and am excited to be planning our life and what we want to achieve.  So, taking care of my health has become even more important to me - to be here for a long long time to enjoy more of life with my husband.

Recently giving a talk to a group of entrepreneurs

We had an amazing training call this morning discussing a section of our personal empowerment program which discussed compulsive behaviour.  It really resonated with me on so many levels, but I could not stop thinking about how this related to how I used to compulsively eat food.  When you eat food compulsively you are trying to fill a need, or a desire, but in such a superficial way.  With each mouthful you gain a sense of satisfaction or fulfillment...but it ends when you swallow.  So, you take another mouthful, and then another, and before you know it you've eaten your whole daily calorie intake (or more) in one sitting. And when you've finished you are left with a hollow feeling - not in your belly, but in the deepest part of your soul, because you didn't fill the real need/desire/longing you are searching for.


There is so much to be learned from this - about taking control of our lives and learning to fill the real need we have with something that will satisfy us long-term, not just in the moment and then we are filled with regret.  Mindset and living life at cause instead of at effect has been one of the biggest changes to my life from doing personal development and I will be forever grateful for how it has affected me.

So, my journey is not over...it is only just beginning.  Stay tuned for my next installment!

Susan Dorrington
Executive Income Specialist
Personal Empowerment & Leadership Development
No Limits Biz

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If you would like to know more about our Personal Empowerment & Leadership Development 12 month online course and how it can change your life go to www.susandorrington.com and click the Contact Me tab.

Where there’s a WILL, there’s a WAY!

One of the exercises in our Beyond Freedom Evolution Quickstart course this past week was about your Compass Heading – 2 or 3 words you live by. The lesson mentioned about being honest and true and choosing what would be in alignment with your purpose and help you go in the direction of your North Star.  This has been on my mind this week.

Another truth that I often think about is: What you teach is often what you need to learn yourself.  Do you find this true for you too?  I have so often found words coming out of my mouth to help a friend or family member that resonate so much with me and I realize that what I just said is the answer to a problem I’m facing, or a solution to something that is holding me back.

Tonight I was writing a message to a friend and shared a well known saying I have spoken many, many times over the years:  Where there is a will, there is a Way.  The moment I sent the message I realized that this was my new compass heading, Where there is a will – I need to work more on my will, my desire, my WHY.  I know my why for creating success in my life: to provide a great life for my husband and I.  But somehow I need more than just that.  I need to focus on a reason that ignites a fire within me, not just a longing for something more.  It’s time to dig even deeper to find what I’m truly passionate about, what excites and drives me, what makes me want to get out of bed every morning and work on my dreams.  For so many years I laboured under a false belief that somehow it was wrong to put myself first, or that trying to find my own happiness was somehow selfish.

I can see this is going to take some journaling to dig beneath the surface on this one, but it’s an exciting journey!  Time for me to finish this sentence: What I really want is…..

For the first time in my life I can say – I LOVE MY LIFE!

When I embarked on my journey with Polaris Global and Beyond Freedom Evolution I had no idea what this would mean for me and my life.  I didn’t realise just what emotions would come to the surface and what skeletons lurking in my closet would be dragged out and aired for me to view and deal with.  But like any good spring clean, dragging all the junk out of a cupboard gives you a chance to cull, clear out and create space for so much more.

I have come through so much in my life – as a child being abused & bullied, as a teenager being teased, bullied, discouraged from trying to achieve anything and as an adult being overlooked for every position I ever tried to go for when attempting to climb the corporate ladder.  And that is just scratching the surface of how things were for me. As a result I allowed myself to have a victim mentality – that all of this was somehow everyone else’s fault, and I had no control over any of it.  I was a mess!

Looking back on the kind of person I was, I feel sad for her.  I was depressed, I was angry, I was so negative.  No-one wanted to be around me, so I had very few friends and those friends I had attracted to me were not very genuine friends. I seriously craved human interaction and love.  I wanted to be in a loving relationship, but was never able to attract this into my life. I was a door-mat that was more focused on trying to please others than on trying to make myself happy. All of these things were leading me in a downward spiral of self-loathing and depression.  I was a broken human being.

Throughout my 20’s I had been helping my Mum care for my disabled Father, but when Dad passed away I made a huge life-changing decision to move interstate and away from my family, friends and everyone or everything that I knew.  This created enough distance from my past to start working on a different future for myself.  This led to the start of an upward spiral in my life and things started to change.  It was then I met my husband.  Not long after this when I was retrenched I discovered Polaris and my Beyond Freedom Evolution journey, which was about to completely change my life began.

The lessons I have learned about decision making and taking control of being the positive change in my life have been invaluable.  I now know that I have the power of choice. I can choose to be the happy, positive and vibrant person that I am finding myself being these days.  I no longer see a dark gloomy future full of ‘sameness’ but a bright fun future of exciting possibility just waiting for me to go and get it.

I am now attracting positive, on purpose people into my life who have become very good friends of mine.  I have come so far, but I still have many challenges ahead of me.  My journey is only just beginning and I’m excited about where I am heading.  Always the student, I am learning so much every single day – about myself and about how to create exactly what I desire in life.  I am forever grateful for because for the first time in my life I can now say I LOVE MY LIFE!