How to Persevere in the New Yearstring(32) "How to Persevere in the New Year"

January 5, 2015
, , , , , , , Focus, Goals, Growth, Purpose, Self Development, Strategy, Success 5

My good friend Julien Sharp is a brilliant editor who has worked on a countless number of writing projects for me and done a top-notch job. She is also founder of Funnybone Toys® and Funnybone MuseTM, a fantastic networker and businesswoman, and an exceptional author who contributed a great article entitled “From Mickey Mouse to Cruise Ships” to my 2007 bestseller, Masters of Sales.

Julien Sharp

Julien Sharp

The article talks about her early childhood dream to be a musical performer on The New Mickey Mouse Club, how that transitioned into a desperate longing to become a cruise ship entertainer, and how she went from a kid growing up in rural Indiana to a successful cruise ship entertainer performing in exotic locations like the southern Caribbean.

Although Julien’s story is certainly an interesting one, the reason I bring up her article is not to detail her journey from Mickey Mouse to Cruise Ships, but to focus on the main points in her article, which explain how she achieved success.

Julien says that even today, she’s never forgotten a quote she read as a young girl from Lee Iacocca: “You’ve got to say, ‘I think that if I keep working at this and want it badly enough, I can have it.’ It’s called perseverance.”

This idea became the mantra that guided Julien to success. She says, “I had to have the perseverance to finish what it took to achieve my goal, and I had to realize that perseverance virtually never comes into play without the first two words in the quote: ‘I think . . .”

As a result of making Iacocca’s quote her mantra, at an early age Julien learned:

  1. To convert her dream to a specific goal
  2. How to research her target market
  3. To create an impassioned sales presentation, and
  4. To sell with passion.

Julien’s all-encompassing goal was to sing on a cruise ship, so she researched her client (cruise ship companies), rehearsed her presentation (created a demo cassette, packaged with the most professional photo she could afford, and included an introductory letter detailing her experience, education and the absolute passion she had for achieving her goal), used her enthusiasm as her best selling tool (all her money and every ounce of emotional desire went into 12 demo packages destined for various cruise lines in Miami), and persisted in chasing her goal. It’s no surprise that she achieved that goal, and now she continues to achieve even greater goals with each new year.

So, what’s your goal this week? This month? This year? Please share your answers in the comment forum below and if you really want to achieve your goals, remember the Iacocca quote, take a lesson from Julien, and learn to persevere.

How to Set Goals for the Year Aheadstring(35) "How to Set Goals for the Year Ahead"

December 18, 2014
, , , , Business, Goals, personal story, Self Development, Strategic Planning, Strategy, Success, Video Blog 3

As 2014 draws to a close, many people are beginning to think about what goals they would like to accomplish in the coming year. In light of this, I’d like to take this opportunity to share with you how I personally go about setting and achieving my own goals.

Watch the video now to get my top three tips on how to plan your goals and what actions to consistently take in order to achieve success when it comes to reaching your goals.  Also, I’d love to hear what tactics have worked for you in regard to goal accomplishment so please share your thoughts and ideas in the comment forum below.  Thanks!

How to Find Balance in Your Lifestring(32) "How to Find Balance in Your Life"

October 18, 2012
, , , , , , , Business, Ivan Misner, Relationships, Self Development, Video Blog 6

In this short video, presented by Applied Transformation, Inc., I talk with Roger Green about how to achieve balance in life. 

If you often find yourself focusing on business during family outings or thinking about your kid’s soccer game while you’re in an important meeting, I highly encourage you to watch this video.  You’ll get tips on  how to prioritize, be present, and achieve ultimate harmony.

Do you have any helpful tips on promoting harmony in business and life?  If so, please share them in the comment forum below.  Please don’t be shy–let’s get the comments rolling in!

Where You Come from Does Not Determine Where You Gostring(51) "Where You Come from Does Not Determine Where You Go"

July 28, 2011
, , , Ivan Misner, Success, Uncategorized, Video Blog 1

Just last month, I had the honor of being given the Citrus College Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award, along with another fellow alumni recipient, Daniel Parks.

In this video of my acceptance speech, I talk about a concept that means a lot to me . . . where you come from does not determine where you go; what you do determines where you go. I am living proof of that this concept is true.

Do you have a personal story of triumph which demonstrates that success can be attained regardless of one’s starting point?  If so, I would really love to hear it!  Please leave a comment and tell me about it . . .

A True Givers Gain Achievementstring(30) "A True Givers Gain Achievement"

September 2, 2010
, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , Announcement, BNI, Ivan Misner, Philanthropy, Success 3

In 1998, my wife Elisabeth and I co-founded the BNI-Misner Foundation, a nonprofit program supporting charitable causes. We created the foundation because we truly believe in the philosophy of Givers Gain, on which we founded BNI, our worldwide business networking organization. Simply put, Givers Gain means that if you help others, others will want to help you in return (think “what goes around comes around”).

Now, thanks largely to the generosity and kindness of BNI members and directors around the world who also believe firmly in the Givers Gain philosophy, as of May 2010, the BNI Foundation has contributed more than $1 million to charities around the world since its inception 12 years ago.

The foundation has a focus on children’s educational programs but allows donor-directed contributions as well. Looking back on the significant contributions the foundation has been able to make, I am continually inspired by the willingness of BNI members worldwide to give of themselves to help others. They made it possible to donate more than $100,000 to the 9/11 relief effort, $72,000 to tsunami relief, more than $25,000 for Haiti earthquake relief and tens of thousands of dollars for Hurricane Katrina relief. The foundation has built preschools in India, built preschools and a library and put tin roofs on schools in Indonesia, bought school uniforms for students in Kenya and stocked a library in South Africa with books.

Why am I telling you all of this?  I’m sharing these things with you because I truly believe that the more people genuinely give to others, the more successful they will be themselves. I fully attribute the worldwide success of BNI and its members (read some of their stories here) to this very concept. When you give to someone else because you want them to succeed, everybody wins, and you’re setting yourself up for success because the more good you do for others, the more good others want to do for you.

Starting this week, make a continuous effort to conduct your networking efforts, your business and your life with the philosophy that Givers Gain. Help people because you can and because you want to, and you’ll be amazed by the things you can achieve for yourself as a result.

To find out more about the BNI-Misner Charitable Foundation, click here.

Become a fan of the BNI-Misner Charitable Foundation on Facebook by clicking here.