Change Your Life | Rock the World

with Don Green
Executive Director of the Napoleon Hill Foundation

Don is about as pleasant a person as you could ever speak to in your life. I know, because I just spoke to him. And I recorded it for you to listen to. How about that?

What did we talk about? Why the life and work of Napoleon Hill, of course. You’ve most likely heard of Napoleon Hill, but like most of us, you may not know a lot about him or his work.

Well, luckily, Don is here to educate us about the man’s importance and his influence. Napoleon Hill was one of the most important success and achievement experts in history, and his book “Think and Grow Rich” is pretty much the gold standard for anyone interested in self improvement.

There is a ton to learn from Napoleon Hill about how you too can be successful, and there is also a ton to learn from Don Green, who says rather convincingly that he isn’t in it for the money. He has a passion for what he does (Something to consider, yes?). So give this interview a listen and do some learning. I hope you like it.  Read more...

If you’re human – and I’m pretty sure you are – then at some point in your life you’ve been faced with making a decision that you didn’t want to make.

It could have been something not-too-pressing like what you’re going to have for lunch. Or it could have been something major like what college to go to, or what career to pursue.

Either way, if it was one of those “I’m not sure what to do” moments, then you know what I’m talking about. And you know that this comes up a lot in everyday life.

It’s actually a major source of stress for a lot of people. But believe it or not, what causes the most stress isn’t necessarily making the wrong decision, it’s when we haven’t yet come to any decision.

A lot of people don’t realize that, because not deciding anything seems a lot easier, at least in the short term. Think about it. You can always procrastinate and avoid any kind of immediate responsibility, but how long is that really going to work? You can’t simply wait out your problems expecting them to eventually go away. If you ever want to make some real changes, then at some point you’re going to have to decide to say “yes” to one of your options, and that means that you’re on the hook for your decision and the results that come from it.  Read more...

I guess I’ve been fixated on this here subject of personal responsibility lately, because for some reason, I’m still rollin’. I guess there’s just a lot to say about it. Or at least, a lot of different ways to say the same thing.

If you’re like me, then you probably know a lot of people who are quick to make excuses so they can get out of doing whatever it is they’re supposed to do – or to get out of making any real changes in their lives. Changes that they supposedly want to make.

You know the kind: they complain about their life, and when you offer some ideas about fixing it, they just say that they can’t because of X, Y and Z. And then they keep complaining.

It’s actually pretty easy to come up with a reason why not. If you want to find one, you’ll find one. Maybe it’s just human nature, or maybe we’ve just gotten too lazy, or maybe we just need to believe something so badly that we’ll contort our brains into coming up with whatever is necessary.  Read more...

Every four months or so, my kung fu school conducts tests for students from all of the local branches who are trying to move up to the next level. Last weekend was the time for it once again. So I was there as one of the judges.

During the test, I saw one very young kid who’s technique was actually much better than most of the adults that were there. I mentioned it to his instructor, and he told me that that kid, even though he’s only 7 years old, works very hard, and insists on doing things over and over until he gets it right.

Which, let’s face it, is not the attitude of most kids that age. So here was my brilliant response:

I said, “You can always tell the difference between the people who work hard and the people who don’t.”

I know. I know. Groundbreaking stuff. But you’d be surprised by how often people conveniently forget that very basic principle when it come to their own development.

And what it comes right down to is, if you want to be good at something, then you’re going to have to put in some work, and most likely a lot of hard work. And the more work you put in, surprise surprise, the better you’ll get at it.  Read more...

It was true when I said that you can’t do everything yourself, and that you’re going to need some help once in a while, but at the same time, you can’t expect others to do everything for you. At some point you have to take responsibility for your actions and get to work on making the changes that you want to make.

The key is to be smart about it and honest with yourself so that you can recognize what your strengths are, and what you will need help with. And then to focus on finding a solution to the problem, rather than just saying that you can’t do it, making excuses, and even blaming someone else.

Watch this video for more: