The EIG Newsletter

Volume 1: Number 5: September/October 2001

Welcome to the latest edition of the EIG (Empowerment International Group) personal and professional development newsletter. This newsletter is published every two months and is FREE of charge for recipients. The goal is to give you thought provoking articles, interesting stories and information.

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In This Edition

Be the Best that You Can Be, 12 Lessons for Your Success
The V.J. Singh Story
Recommended Reading
Quotes
New Service Available
Privacy Policy

Be the Best that You Can Be, 12 Lessons for Your Success

In June, I shared with an audience I was speaking to the following principles and lessons. These are universal principles that have helped me overcome many of my own challenges, most notably, overcoming a 30 year severe stuttering disability. It is my hope and intention that you will take one or two ideas that you can relate to and apply them to your own life.

Have a clear vision of where you want to go and what you want to achieve in your life, never let go of that dream.

Find the courage to take action on those burning desires and thoughts you have inside you. Have the courage of your convictions to do what is right for you.

Take responsibility for your actions in life. You alone must take that first step, to make that choice. Nobody else can do it for you. Look yourself in the mirror. Be true to yourself and know that is the right way for you.

Show 100% commitment in everything you do. You can have great intention, desire, and even determination to face your challenges, to want to succeed, but without true commitment, you will struggle to turn those noble intentions into action and positive results.

In addition to these four key principles, I would like to share with you 8 supporting lessons I also shared with the audience.

Always believe in yourself. Be true to your principles and keep faith in your beliefs. Lead a life of integrity, true to your values and principles no matter what.
Take care of yourself. Don’t neglect yourself even in stressful times. Watch your diet, find time to exercise, and find quality time for your family, friends and your passions. Use positive self-talk. Read books or listen to tapes that will motivate and inspire you. Take a break at lunchtime; go for a walk, switch off, even if for only five minutes. Make it your time. You will be glad you did.
Be decisive. Don’t spend your time waiting for the perfect time to do something you want to do. There rarely is a perfect time to do anything, only a right time, and that time is now. There are too many people, dreaming of yesterday or worrying about tomorrow, instead of living for today. Seize every moment; squeeze all the joy and happiness you can from that day.
Take action. If there is anything in your life that you want to change, that is not the way you would like it to be, take responsibility for changing it yourself. Don’t blame other people for things you want to change or expect other people to do it for you. Step up to the plate and take action yourself.
Acknowledge those who contribute to your life. Never forget to acknowledge the people you work with, the people who help you along the way. It is so easy to forget sometimes or take for granted the people we admire, respect. We all have busy lives. But take that time to send that note, to make that call, to make someone in your life feel special and appreciated. You can never say thank you enough to people. Remember recognition is the number one value we look for in the workplace.
Be prepared to fail. Whatever you want to achieve in your personal or professional life, you have to be prepared to fail at first, to sacrifice along the way. There is nothing wrong in failure; failure is feedback, nothing more and nothing less. There can be no success in life without setbacks. Become a risk- taker, step out of your comfort zone. Remember, every failure brings you a step closer to ultimate success. As Henry Ford said “ Failure is just another opportunity to begin again more intelligently”.
Look past fear. Fear is ever present in our lives. There are all types of fear, for example, fear of failure, fear of rejection, fear of the unknown, and even the fear of success for some of us. Fear can ruin your ambitions; even destroy your life if you let it. But, if you try to better understand your fears, if you confront your fears instead of running away from them, you will realize that fear is really a coward, more afraid of you than you are of it. In that moment a whole new world of possibilities and opportunities will open up. Remember on the other side of fear lies freedom, if we are only willing to take that all important first step.
Have confidence in your ability. Sometimes each of us underestimates our abilities. For whatever reason, you may not think you can do whatever is in front of you. You may not think you are clever enough, worthy enough to achieve something. We all sometimes listen to that little voice inside us, telling us we can’t do something. We need to listen more to our positive inner self, the one that is saying we can. Your first victory over self-doubt and negativity, your most important victory, has to happen first within your own heart. That is where your true strength comes from. Listen to your heart more. Trust it. It will not lie to you.

I would like to leave you with one final thought:

Never, never stop believing in yourself. You are meant to be, whatever you dream of becoming.

The V.J. Singh Story

V.J. Singh is world class professional golfer from the beautiful island of Fiji in the South Pacific. He is not as well known as maybe Tiger Woods, but he has the respect and admiration of his fellow professionals for his dignity and his gentemanly sportsmanship.

V.J. Singh grew up on an island where golf was not a common sport, in fact the international golf events were not even shown live on the television. V.J. used to watch taped highlights of the annual U.S. Masters Event, one of the most prestigious golf events in the world, and dream that one day he would be walking up to the 18^th green in Augusta, Georgia on the final day of play, to the applause of the crowd. People thought he was crazy, but he had a dream.

In 1986 he moved to the United States to pursue his dream. He worked his way up the golfing ranks and became a good professional golfer, winning tournaments and carving out a good living for himself and his family, but never winning the big one, the Masters. He somehow always fell short of his goal.

By 1999 V.J.'s dream had become an obsession with him. That year he hired a conditioning coach and changed his diet, he watched taped highlights of every tournament he played in that year and every Masters he had previously played in. He analyzed every shot and every putt he made. Then he visualized himself on every hole at the 2000 Masters and imagined himself on that 18^th hole winning the Masters in style and putting on the famous green jacket that is presented to all the winners. For all of 1999 he basically focused on nothing else.

At the 2000 U.S. Masters V.J. Singh made a good start in the tournament, the first two days of play had gone well. As he left the club house on the third and final day of play his nine year old son taped a note on his fathers clubs saying “ Papa trust your swing”

V.J. listened to the wisdom of a nine-year-old and, with his family at his side and his nation urging him on back home, now watching the event live, he went on to be the 2000 U.S. Masters Champion. Almost 20 years of effort finally paid off.

When asked later what had made the difference in 2000 he simply said “ I wanted it badly this year and was prepared to make the necessary sacrifices and was prepared to pay the price, and how can you not go out there and win when your son has such faith in you!"

How many of us have a dream or a goal which we, and maybe many others, feel may be insurmountable?

My question to you is, are you willing to pay the price that Vijah Singh did to achieve your goal, to live out your dream? Do you have people in your life who believe in you, who trust your swing?

Recommended Reading

Customer Once, Client Forever by Richard Buckingham

I read many great books on Customer Service, but this one stands out from the crowd. Richard Buckingham gives you 12 simple, yet practical tools for building lifetime business relationships. The layout of the book is excellent, it is a very easy read and Richard's use of real-life examples give it that extra touch. You won't want to put this book down.

The Wisdom of James Allen by James Allen

This book contains 5 classic works combined into one volume. Included is "As A Man Thinketh," which is worth the price of the book in its own right. The timeless writings of James Allen are truly inspirational. These have motivated people around the world to lead more successful and effective lives.

Only the Best On Success compiled by Larry Winget

This book features great ideas for improving your life and your business from some of America's top speakers, trainers, consultants, and authors. Larry has come up with a wonderful book containing words of wisdom, indeed.

Quotes

"Always be eager to learn, no matter how successful you might be. In the Millionaires Club, we sometimes invite a billionaire to come and talk to us. He says, 'you're doing okay, but come on, how about if you really poured it on?' " Jim Rohn

"There is real magic in enthusiasm. It spells the difference between mediocrity and accomplishment." Norman Vincent Peale

"It is what you learn after you know it all that counts." John Wooden

New Service Available

Charles is now available for telephone consultations on business, customer service, sales skills, communications skills and all areas of personal development.

For further information, please call Charles personally at 416-490-6744 or email him at charles@cmarcus.com

With kind regards to your success

Charles Marcus

Charles M. Marcus is a professional keynote speaker and trainer. His work takes him across Canada, the United States and Great Britain. For more information on Charles's motivational and inspirational presentations and programs and how he can add value to your corporation, organization, association or not for profit group next event please contact Charles as indicated below.

All programs are customized to suit your organizational needs and objectives. These programs will touch your heart and challenge your mind. Just the right amount of content, motivation and humor is used to inspire your team or group. Charles knows how important it is for you to find the right speaker with the right message for your next organizational event. Charles will work with you to ensure that worry is taken away.

Contact:

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Website: www.cmarcus.com

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