WHEN THINGS GO DOWN, THEY ALWAYS GO BACK UP

One of the things that I learned early in my business career  that also applies to your personal life is that things never stay down… as long as you continue to work hard and fight against your challenges, things will get better.  Nothing stays down forever; everything in life is about ebb and tide.  Things go down and then back up and then back down.  Just look at the recent stock market; it was way down back in 2008 and now it is back up again… at the same time you can say the same thing about the real estate market; it has gone down but sooner or later it will be back up again.

There are 2 lessons to Learn:
1) The only way you lose and stay down forever is if you quit.  As long as you keep going, things will get better
2) When things are good, realize that they may never stay good forever and you may experience some tough times.  But when that happens don’t despair since that is the normal ebb and tide.  Just make some minor adjustments and keep going and then things will be ok again.

2012 has been a great year so far only because 2011 was a super tough year.  It was a tough year with new business challenges and also new adjustments that I had to make after Ethan was born.  But it is only because of those rough moments that I’ve been able to have an amazing 2012.

TIME FLEXIBILITY

One of the best things about having a home based business is that you have time flexibility.  I have learned and accepted the fact that I could never just “retire early” and sit at a beach and relax all day.  Gosh, that would be so boring!  I am always looking to expand my business, seek new challenges and start new projects.  Asides from my home business, I’m also working on creating my first video tutorial series and also plan to start writing my book soon.

Things have been great in 2012 because I feel that I have made the adjustments and have a more stable daily routine.  I’ve learned to create a daily schedule that allows me to enjoy life as a father and at the same time accomplish the projects I’m working on.

THINGS I CHERISH EVERYDAY:

- waking up at 3:35 a.m. to work on my creative projects (I love the peace and quiet)
- walking my dog Obi
- taking my son Ethan to the park in the afternoons
- taking Ethan to My Little Gym (baby gym) twice a week
- my daily yoga routine
- my workouts (alternate between lifting, jogging and biking)

Ethan and I are 2 cool dudes! Not only are we cool but we protect our eyes from UV rays!

Let's climb a tree!

Ethan's first time on a swing

Of all these activities, my favorite is taking Ethan to the gym.  I just think it is so cool they have baby gyms and every time I take him, I see him progress and get better and better.  This past week, I helped Ethan kick his first ball and he laughed so hard every time he kicked the ball. (Ok, he did not really kick it himself but this is the closest thing to kicking.  I swing his body and his legs would hit the ball)

Invaluable father son 1 on 1 time.  The best part is when I take him on Tuesday nights because I am the only dad there!    Rest of the people are all moms and I’m the only lucky dad cause I’m not stuck at work!

Getting a head start on learning how to walk

Enhancing eye hand coordination. Grab those rings!

SELF DEVELOPMENT

The best way to speed your development and growth is to invest in self development daily.  For 2012, I was inspired by Chris Brogan’s blog about how the co-author of his book, Trust Agents, Julien Smith had set a goal to read 1 book a week in 2009.  Not only did Julien Smith accomplished the goal but he gained a lot of new ideas that new profitable opportunities.  I started to read one book a week and it definitely has sped my development.  Not only have I read one book a week but I also engage myself in reading blogs and also marketing newsletters and listen to audio programs daily.  The important followup after you have committed the time is to make sure you take action on at least 1 thing that you learned.  Not only do all self made millionaires read a lot but they can pull out any book on their shelf and tell you exactly what action step they took from each book they have read!  That is the simplest formula for success!

I have seen my personal growth leap exponentially and I wish you all can make the same commitment to yourself.

Here is an added bonus to self development; when you read so much, you also magically develop into a faster reader.  I can read and comprehend a page way faster than I did 6 months ago.  A good book that I recommend on speed reading is Breakthrough Rapid Reading by Peter Kump.  It’s been around for over 20 years and if you invest the time to go through the exercises, you will be rewarded well.  I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!

INVITATION TO JOIN SIMON CHAN INSIDER’S CIRCLE

Many of you have contacted me and enjoy the lessons that I have included in my past blogs.  If you are hungry and want to learn more tips on how to increase your productivity, improve your life and become more successful, I would like to invite you to become a member of Simon Chan Insider’s Circle.  For a limited time MEMBERSHIP IS FREE.  The only requirement is that you must have a positive attitude.  No whiners nor losers allowed!

As a member of Simon Chan Insider’s Circle, you will learn:
- What the wealthy do that you are not doing
- How to increase your productivity
- How to create a foundation for success
- How to increase your productivity
- How to be a better communicator and expand your network

And much more!

To claim your FREE MEMBERSHIP, please click here.  I look forward to hearing from you!

Let me know what you are doing for Self Development! Have a great week!

Sincerely,

P.S. Remember, that whatever goes down must go back up.  So if things have been tough for you recently, all you have to do is keep going and fight through the challenges!  Invest in yourself, learn new skills and things will get much better very soon!

I wanted to go to bed early last night but I was so excited about Jeremy Lin that I could not sleep especially after his 38 point superstar performance against the Lakers on Friday, February 10, 2012.

Everyone in America is talking about Jeremy Lin.  I think he is one of the more amazing success stories in the past 10 years.  If you somehow have missed the story about Jeremy Lin; he is the Harvard graduate that came out of nowhere and is taking the NBA by storm.  He is also the first Chinese American to make it in the NBA… and he is making it BIG!

For my readers out in Asia who don’t have much NBA coverage; this is how crazy and special this story is.  This is the closest analogy that I can think of… Imagine a Malaysian or an Indian kid who wanted to play professional soccer but he gets rejected by all the major soccer academies in Europe… so instead he goes another route and goes to Oxford to study and play soccer.  He plays very well at Oxford but NO professional soccer team is interested in him after he graduates.  He plays well in some exhibitions and then a professional team signs him for a year and then after an unspectacular season, he gets cut.  Then another team picks him up and then he gets cut… And then Manchester United signs him and due to injuries an opportunity to play arises and he dominates.  To cap off an amazing week, he plays against Liverpool in a national televised game in Wembeley Stadium and this no-name kid scores 3 goals against Liverpool!

That is how crazy the Jeremy Lin story has been!

JEREMY’S LIN JOURNEY TO BASKETBALL

WHAT JEREMY LIN MEANS TO ME

The Jeremy Lin story has so many great angles to it… but for me personally it is especially emotional because he is Asian American.

Jeremy Lin proves to the world that not only can Asians make it to the NBA, that they can be stars at an athletic position.  We have had a few successful Chinese in the NBA such as Wang Zhizhi, Menk Bateer, Yi Jian Lian and of course, Yao Ming… but those guys were all 7 footers and the perception was that unless you are a giant, you have no chance as an Asian to make it to the NBA.

Jeremy Lin breaks all the stereotypes.  He is only 6’3″ and plays the point guard position that most Asians play.  In other words, he is like one of us.  He is just like every Asian.  One of my best friends, Keith told me last night he wishes his father was still alive to see how Jeremy is making all Asians proud.  Jeremy is making us cry, proud and ecstatic… all at the same time.

When Jeremy Lin is playing I feel like I am playing.  I am living vicariously through him.

RACISM AND STEREOTYPES

Before my life as a businessman, I was a basketball fanatic.  I lived, breathed and played basketball.  Basketball was 24/7 and there was a time I had wanted to play professional overseas in Taiwan.  Basketball was my life.

However, basketball was always an uphill challenge because I grew up around racism and stereotypes.

I grew up in a white neighborhood and because I was Asian American:

- I would always get picked last when people chose teams
- If I was lucky enough to play, no one would pass me the ball
- I’ve been called all types of names from “wonton” to “fried rice” to “ching chang chung”
- I had a hard time playing pickup in the best game in “center court.”  Often, I had to settle to play in the side courts

I had to work so much harder to prove others wrong…

And later on when I would go play against tougher competition in inner city black neighborhoods, the first thing that would happen when I walked into a gym would be stares… people would stare at me and look at me as if I was some alien and I should go home.  Needless to say, no one would wanted me on their team; just because I was Asian.  It was very hard to play in a meaningful game.

I remember when Wang Zhizhi first made it to the NBA in April 2001, I teared up and cried when he came into the game and scored his first point.  I felt that his basket made a statement that I’ve been wanting to tell the entire world that Asians can play basketball too.

With Jeremy Lin, he takes it to another level.  Jeremy is not a giant and he was not highly recruited but he is still able to make it and make it BIG!

Because of Jeremy Lin, Asian basketball players will no longer have to deal with the racism and stereotypes that I had to deal with.  My son, Ethan won’t have to deal with the frustrations that I did.

Jeremy Lin is our hero and our Jackie Robinson.

WHAT WE CAN LEARN FROM JEREMY LIN

Jeremy Lin is a success already.  He is only 23 and has a bright future ahead of him but regardless of what happens, he is a success already and we can all learn from him.

4 Lessons We Can Learn from Jeremy Lin

1) Don’t Let Others Choose Your Life
I grew up with the typical Asian stereotype that Asians should be either doctors, lawyers or engineers.  I admire Jeremy for choosing to pursue what he wanted instead of living the life that others think you should live.

2) Never Give Up On Your Dream
Jeremy Lin’s dream school was to play basketball at Stanford… when Stanford rejected him, he could have easily settled and given up on his dream.  Instead he chose the most unlikeliest places to pursue his dream and attended Harvard.  When no NBA team drafted him after graduation, Jeremy kept working hard to pursue his goal of making it to the NBA.

3) Always Be Ready
Jeremy was “lucky” and got his big break to play when some of his teammates were injured.  Luck is when “hard work meets opportunity.”  You always have to be ready cause you never know when your break will come.  Always be ready means even when there is no opportunity visible, you are constantly practicing and working on your skills.  Whether it is working on your sales skills, networking skills or basketball skills, you always have to be ready!

4) Speaking Up for What You Believe in
Jeremy Lin is Christian and speaks openly about his faith.  We can all learn and speak up for what we believe in!

JEREMY LIN IS A HERO

The ironic thing is as recent as 2 weeks ago, I had been thinking about Jeremy Lin and had asked my mom (who lives in NYC) how he was doing.  My mom said that it had been a tough NBA journey for him so far since he had been cut from 2 NBA teams in 2 weeks… But to me he was still a hero just because he was an Asian American that simply made the NBA… I  was even looking to buy his Golden State Warriors jersey from last season.  Alas, because he was a no-name player, nothing was available…. but I’m sure getting a jersey is no problem now and his jersey will be one of the top sellers this year!

Regardless of what Jeremy Lin is going to do next, he is a success already and someone we can all learn from.  He is someone that I will proudly tell my son Ethan about when he grows up.

Jeremy Lin makes me proud of my heritage and is a hero.  Not only has the path to playing basketball has just become easier for everyone, but we can all pursue our dreams more confidently.

Sincerely,

I have a fascination with fruit trees.  Perhaps it is because I grew up in NYC where it is cold in the winters and you can’t grow any fruit trees… I always thought having a fruit tree and getting to pick fresh fruit in your backyard for free was the coolest thing.  In fact, before I got my house, I had an orange tree on my dreamboard… and as it turns out, I ended up buying a house that has an orange tree that produces oranges in abundance!

Oranges! - This is my orange tree. There are so many oranges that we end up giving them away and making fresh squeezed orange juice almost daily.

My other goal that I have since we moved into our house a few years ago was to have a Haas avocado tree.  Both Kelly and I LOVE avocados (we always order extra servings of guacamole when we eat Mexican food) and I think nothing would be cooler and more convenient to have FREE fresh avocados growing in the backyard!… So I’ve been wanting to grow a tree for quite some time now…But I never actually took the time to do so.

Recently, for some reason, I finally decided to change my daily routine and do something different!  As usual, I had my entire day planned out from the time I wake up to sleep… I had a doctor’s appointment with Kelly and then planned to bike 8 miles to my yoga class… do yoga and then bike another 5 miles… and then do some business stuff…

However, after my doctor’s appointment, I decided to change course and do something “different.”  Normally I am very disciplined to stick to my daily routine and schedule but for some reasons today I felt that I needed a change and do something that was on my “to do” list for a long time… and that was to plant my first tree!  I went out and purchased a small baby avocado tree and then went online to watch some Youtube videos on how to properly plant a tree… an hour later, here was my tree:

My Haas Avocado Tree!

I’ve been wanting to plant my avocado tree but never got around to it.  Initially if you look at it, it was not the most urgent nor important thing… but if you look at it from another perspective, it was VERY important.  For some reason, I like gardening a lot and though I’m not great at it, I do a little here and there.  (maybe only 5 minutes a day)  It is one of those things that is a de-stresser and even after 5 minutes of it, it motivates me and also helps me get back to focus.  Everyone of us needs one of those things… and I’ve come to realize that there are 2 things that really get me going.  What I mean by “get me going” is it de-stresses and is a break… and after the break, I come back STRONGER and MORE FOCUSED than ever.

3 Major Lessons Learned

There are also tremendous lessons you can learn from gardening.  Here are the 3 major lessons:

LESSON 1
Reinforces that everything in life is about PROCESS and nothing happens overnight.  A fruit bearing tree does not happen overnight.  It may take years for the tree to grow from seed to fruit bearing ability; but once it reaches the fruit bearing age, the tree will provide plenty of abundance!  (more fruit that you can personally consume!).  But in order to reach the abundance stage, you need years of focused and daily nurturing such as watering, weeding, fertilizing, protecting it from the wind, mulching, etc.  And then after years of care, you will get the fruits of your reward!

The same applies with life and with success.  If you want to become the millionaire, it will require time and the same “process” of daily nurturing of your mind.  That nurturing could be daily devotion to self improvement, daily actions related to your goals, daily reflection on the mistakes you make… and only after years of consistency and focus will you get your abundance.

LESSON 2
The knowledge to do whatever you want to do is all available on the internet!  The internet has really broken down the barriers of entry.  Years ago, I would have had to consult a gardener, landscaper or purchased books to learn how to properly plant a tree.  Today, it took me less than 30 minutes to watch some Youtube videos online and I learned everything.  Saying “I don’t know how” is no longer a valid excuse!

LESSON 3
Third lesson is… just like my desire for an avocado tree so that I can get plenty of avocados… everything starts with a thought and idea… but NOTHING HAPPENS until I actually take action and planted the tree!  If I had taken action 3 years ago, my tree would be way further along in terms of producing fruit.  Instead, I have wasted 3 years due to procrastination.  Which brings me back to our lives… many of us have things on our minds that we want to do and accomplish, but we end up living unfulfilled lives due to our inaction!  Just taking the first small step towards your goals followed by daily consistent action will lead you to your goals!

What Action Are You Going To Take Today?

So is there anything that YOU want to accomplish that you have not achieved yet?  What is the first “small” step that you need to take?  Whether it is planting the tiny tree or calling someone… or contacting someone… take 5 minutes to think about what you need to do and take action today!

1st stop: Kuala Lumpur!

This is the new group of Indian Malaysian entrepreneurs that I am working with. This group is led by Suren Sabadi and will be growing fast!

Manila: Simon Chan Fan Appreciation Dinner

Thanks to all my fans for their support. We had a special dinner at Conti's in Makati (Greenbelt) in Manila. I gave a preview to my video course, "Laws of Wealth for Generation Y" and got to meet some great people

Ice Casasola at SMX Awards Recognition

I love Ice… he is always… ALWAYS putting on a show!

This is Team Extreme 1-11; a very very impressive team led by Billy Dela Fuente. Most impressive was that everything in their team was very well coordinated.

Back to Malaysia – A Special Chinese New Year Dinner!

This was at Sasi Silvarajoo's parents' house. I was really touched that they cooked a SPECIAL Chinese New Year dinner for me. They specifically cooked the dishes that I liked (steamed fish, kang kong, etc). I was very touched. It was my first time celebrating Chinese New Year with Indians and it was definitely memorable!

This was our Chinese New Year crew:

These are Peruma's kids... I was so impressed. They are Indian but speak FLUENT MANDARIN CHINESE! They can speak 4 languages; English, Mandarin Chinese, Tamil (Indian) and Malaya Bahasa!

TRAVEL CREATES MEMORIES

Like many people, I used to think of travel as a luxury and something that you get to do if you are fortunate and lucky.  However, the more I travel and the more memories are created, my perspective towards travel has started to change.

It all goes back to how you define what a “meaningful” life is and if life is about experiences and memories, then travel is no longer a luxury; instead it should be considered mandatory and a requirement to live a meaningful life.

It is only through travel that you get to see things you can never see at home; to meet new friends that you would never have met; to learn new cultures and to taste new foods.  It also gives you an entirely new perspective on your current situation at home.  In other words, travel not only creates memories but it gives you more wisdom!

Once my son Ethan grows up, I plan to take him on my trips to Asia so that he does not grow up sheltered in the American culture.  I want him to experience as many different things as possible and to learn to keep an open mind.

Travel does not mean you have to fly across the globe, it could simply mean travel locally to another city that you have never been to.  It can be as easy as a 2 hour driving distance as long as it is a place that you have never been to.  If you live in a big city, go visit a small town. If you live in a small town, go visit and spend a few days in the big city. Just go somewhere new!

Even if your budget is tight and you don’t have money, I believe you can find ways to save and come up with the money to travel.

Here is an idea: if you don’t have the funds to travel, go sell your TV.  You will create your lasting memories on your next travel trip than your TV.  Come to think of it, if you ask anyone their top 10 memories in their lives, I’m sure none of the top 10 involve the TV!  The memories that we die with always involve us doing something with our families and loved ones and never involves the TV.

So think of where you want to travel this year and who will you be going with?

Go somewhere new and enrich your life!

When we look at the many successful people out there, it seems like some people get lucky all the time while others are in a never ending struggle.

Why are some people luckier than others?

DEFINITION OF LUCK

I was fortunate to learn the definition of luck early in my business career from Earl Nightingale.  I still remember listening to his audio book, “Lead the Field” and how he defined luck is “when hard work meets opportunity.”

When I first heard it, it had such an impact that I stopped and rewound it and listened to it a few times…

“Luck is when hard work meets opportunity”

The definition makes a lot of sense because life is about the law of averages.  If you do something enough times, sooner or later you will be successful.

If a single guy goes out to meet more people, sooner or later he will find the woman of his dreams.

If a baseball player swings at more pitches, sooner or later he will get lucky and hit the home run.

If a manager takes on more projects at work, sooner or later he will be lucky and working on the big project that everyone else wants to work on.

If a salesperson talks to more people, sooner or later he will get lucky and make a big sale.

If a home business owner talks to more prospects, sooner or later he will get lucky and find the superstar partner he is looking for.

YOU CAN CONTROL LUCK!

Most people think of luck as something they cannot control; they think of luck as simply being in the right place at the right time or they think of luck as when someone beats the odds and wins the lottery.  By the way, almost all lottery winners become poorer than they were BEFORE they win the lottery so would you really consider yourself lucky if you go through that experience of having money and then just having it disappear?

A key to success is to realize that you CAN control luck.  It is true that luck is simply being in the right place at the right time but you can increase the chances of being lucky by going out and being at more places.  Luck definitely won’t happen if you sit on your butt and do nothing.  But the more you go out, you increase the chances that you will be in the right place at the right time.

You can control the frequency that luck happens to you!

If you work hard, put yourself out there and take a proactive approach to new projects, assignments, seeking business ideas… sooner or later your hard work will meet opportunity and luck finds you.

So.. luck is something you CAN control because life is all about the law of averages… if you go the extra mile and do the little extra things that others don’t do, you will get lucky sooner or later.  And trust me, it is MUCH easier and the odds are much better that you will get lucky this way instead of just sitting back and hoping you win the lotto.

MY EXPERIENCES WITH LUCK

I am grateful for the big breaks that I have had in my life so far… and looking back, each break was when I did something extra that I really did NOT want to do but I did it anyway:

I got lucky at the NBA and got hooked up with a famous player because while others were back at their hotel rooms resting or at the bar socializing with colleagues, I was out there networking and seeking out new connections.

I got lucky to meet my beautiful wife Kelly because I went out to this 1 extra BBQ at my friend’s house that I really did not want to go to.  I went to meet new people even though I was tired and wanted to just relax at home

I got lucky and found a great Filipino partner back in 2008 because I did this 1 extra meeting at 11:30pm at night… which required a followup meeting the next day at 2am!!!  How many people would stay up and go out to do these extra meetings?

Luck happens when you do the 1 extra meeting… the 1 extra phone call… the 1 extra project…

What will you do today that will help you become lucky?

Let’s make this your LUCKY WEEK!

So what is a Followup?

For the purpose of this blog, our definition of “followup” means to get in touch with a person for the purpose to see if that person is interested to pursue what you had originally had to offer.

EXAMPLES OF FOLLOWUPS

- If you offered to sell a product to a person and that person decides not to buy, you would want to followup 3 – 6 months later to see if that person would be open to buying it at that future date

- or…  another type of followup would be if you proposed a project or business opportunity and that person needed time to think about it.  The followup call could be a  few days later or the next week.

- or… it could mean you suggest a new idea for your department and your boss needed time to think about it… and then you would followup in the appropriate time to see if your idea is accepted.

- or… you meet an old friend for lunch… and then you followup 3 – 6 months later to catch up with him again

In each of the examples, you are “selling” to the other party.  And that should be no surprise because last week we talked about how whether you like it or not, you are always selling!

Usually you will never make the sale or get what you want in your initial attempt.  Just accept it.  It just does not happen.  But… the good news is that the sale is made on the FOLLOWUP!  And every time you followup, you increase your chance of success.

KEY FACTS TO REMEMBER

Here are some facts for you to consider and really think about:

- 80% of sales are made after the 5th followup
– over 50% of people quit after the 1st followup

So what does that tell you?

Most people fail not because of lack of skill but because of the lack of persistence and discipline to followup.  If you just consistently followup, you will achieve what you want!  It is just a matter of time.

One of my best friends and business partners, John Goerlitz took over 4 months of followup before he decided to work together with me.  Once he became involved, we have built a global business together and have shared many memorable moments together.

I have seen some of my successful partners in Malaysia, Suren Sabadi, also very disciplined with their followups.  One of Suren’s new partners that have has gotten off to a great start in his business took over 2 years of followups before he made the decision to become involved.

These business partners have contributed greatly not only to my business in terms of financial success but MORE importantly they have made my life more fun and rewarding.  We have become great friends along the way.

And all of this happened… because of having the focus to followup!  If the followup did not happen, today I would not be able to enjoy my friendship with them!

HOW TO FOLLOWUP

There are 2 types of Followups:

1) If someone turns you down:
The easiest way to followup is to ask for permission.  Generally if someone turns down my idea or declines to buy what I am selling, I simply tell them I respect their decision and then ask them whether it is okay if I ask them 3 – 6 months from now whether I could ask them to reconsider.

2) If someone needs time to think about it:
This is a common response and you have to make sure you set a SPECIFIC DATE and TIME for the followup.  Whether it will be a  physical meeting or a phone call, you want to set the specific time!  Generally you want to set the followup date not too far in the distant future (in next few days or next week) because you want things to be fresh in the person’s mind.

FINAL ADVICE

Key is to be patient.  Not everyone may buy your product or your idea today… but sooner or later they will buy into it.  There is never a bad prospect… just the wrong time for the right prospect.  The main reason they are not buying is because the timing is not right for them.  So followup with them and you will catch them when the timing is right.  But if you never followup, you will never achieve the success you want.

Remember… 80% of sales is done after the 5th followup… so the Fortune is in the Followup!

So what areas in your life do you need to followup with?  Any potential customers you need to contact?  Any past relationships you need to rekindle?

Let’s make this a great Followup Week!

Sincerely,

And there are 5 facts you have to acknowledge if you want to be successful in life and successful in selling.

5 FACTS ABOUT SELLING

1) Selling is simply communication!

Do you realize that whether you like it or not, you are selling everyday because selling is basically communication!

Think about this…

… last night, Kelly and I went to eat Shabu Shabu (Japanese food hot pot).  I’m not a big fan of hot pots but why did I go?  Cause Kelly “sold me” and convinced me to go.  Now, she was not the nagging, pushy “car salesperson” but instead she communicated very effectively to me and got me to eat what she wanted to eat….

Getting some Shabu Shabu (Japanese hot pot) with Kelly

… the night before, I sold Kelly on the idea that we would go to bed super early on Saturday night instead of staying up late to hang out…

… the day before that, Kelly “sold me” on the idea to spend a few hundred dollars to enroll my baby boy, Ethan to take a weekly “baby gym” class.

Baby Gym Class - Teaching Ethan how to hold onto the parallel bars (builds strength)

If you look at all these situations, there was no “hard selling” or uncomfortable situation involved.  It was merely communicating… and the best type of “selling” is when both parties are comfortable and communicating openly.

And we should all strive to be better communicators!

2) Providing Value to Others

2) Selling is most effective when you provide value to others.  The key to success in sales and in life is when you put others’ interest ahead of yours.  If you can sincerely do that, people will sense your authenticity and appreciate what you have to offer.  They may not buy at that moment but they will buy in the future.  If you lack this desire to help others, they will never buy.

And never forget… a quick sale today does not mean long term success.  You can scam and make a sale today but your success will be short lived because word spreads fast nowadays.

So what do I mean when I say provide “value?”

Providing value is giving away anything that can help someone’s life be better.  Value can be your friendship… your time… your knowledge… a tool that makes someone’s life easier… etc..  If you constantly provide value, you build credibility and people will be open to hear what you communicate (sell) to them.

A good example of value is this blog.  It provides value to you or else you will not be reading it and I constantly challenge myself to come up with value so that you come back to it every week.  I can always come up with gimmicks to get you to read a post, but unless it has value and you get something out of this, you will never read another post of mine again.

So… important rule of selling… always provide value!

3) No money is EVER made until a sale is made

Can you think of anyone ever making any money without a sales transaction?

Nope…

Never….

If you want to be successful and be wealthy, sales must be made because money just does not come out of nowhere.

There are many different types of sales but the bottom line is that a sale MUST BE MADE.

So if you know this fact, it would be foolish to say that I want to be more successful financially but I do not want anything that requires selling.  That just goes against economics and I would be super cautious of anyone that promises you that you can be wealthy without doing any type of selling.  In fact, I would run away from this person before he “sells” you to give him money for something that does not work!

4) If you want to be successful financially, you must learn to sell!

I am not forcing “sales” onto you because you can always just get a job that does not require selling.  But we all know that a job has certain financial limits and chances are it will not allow you to live the life you want… if you want to be your own boss, and start a business or be successful financially, then you must learn to sell!

So the choice is yours… you can choose:
1) not to sell – then just settle for a job and learn to be satisfied with the benefits of a job
2) learn to sell – and enjoy the unlimited income that comes with selling

5) Salespeople are not born, they are made

This is the best news… No salesperson is ever born a salesperson.  When doctors delivers a baby, they don’t say “we got a Sales Baby today!”… nor do nursery school teachers say that we have a “Sales Toddler” here and a “Non Sales Toddler” there!

Sales is a skill that is learned… and the best news is that sales can be learned very easily if you devote time to it each day.

I was always a shy and quiet kid growing up and never good at sales… however, when I started my business back in 2003, I realized that if I wanted to be successful in my business and achieve the financial freedom I wanted, I MUST LEARNED TO SELL.

And I believe that realization was one of the single biggest reasons for my success.

Once I realized that, I took action and got some basic books on selling and that laid the foundation for my success.

Here are my top 5 sales books that helped propel me to success.  I highly recommend them:

1) “Selling 101″ by Zig Ziglar

2) “Secrets to Closing the Sale” by Zig Ziglar

3) “Sales Bible” by Jeffrey Gitomer

4) “The Little Red Book on Selling” by Jeffrey Gitomer

5) “Psychology of Selling” by Brian Tracy

Your Next Step

So what are you going to do?

If you want to learn how to sell and become involved in an excellent business program that teaches you sales skills and provides you some part time income at the same time, you can Contact Me to learn more.  After you fill out the form, you will get an email from me and then we can communicate directly.

My advice is that you look to fulfill your potential and learn the wonderful things that will come to your life once you master the art of selling.

Sales = Better Communication!

Sales = Helping others!

Sales = Money!

If you are not into selling, then no problem… but just don’t complain to me you hate your job and want to be successful!

Let’s learn something new and maximize your potential!

Sincerely,

As I was planning out 2012, I took some time to reflect back on 2011 with a sense of gratitude.

2011 was a tough year for me but at the same time it was one of the best years of my life.  If not, THE BEST.

Here are some events that happened that I am thankful for:

- the birth of my first child, Ethan
- formation of my business partnership
- my condo finally sold and closed on Dec. 22, 2011
- the increased investment in myself (I estimate I must have read over 35 books)
- learning more about time management as an entrepreneur

I am sure there are tons of other little ones but those 5 events stand out.

Getting my condo sold was probably the BEST Christmas gift.  I ended up getting more than the asking price but I lost out on tons of “time” and opportunities while worrying over it. I had it on the market for over 1 year!  Tons of financial pain and stress but the bright side is I learned some very valuable lessons.  The more money and time you lose the bigger and more memorable the lesson.

The 3 things that I learned are:
1) when everyone tells you to buy and hold….you sell!
2) making money in real estate is 10,000 times harder and more financially stressful than having a home based business!
3) real estate ties up your cash and severely limits your earning potential in other areas

Bottom line – I learned real estate is NOT for me.  You never say never but I know for sure, I will not consider real estate investing for at least the next 10 years.  There is much better money to made elsewhere with a lot less financial capital and stress.

HOW TO PROPERLY SET GOOD GOALS

Now that 2012 is here, if you have not done so, we need to plan and set our goals.  Remember, if you fail to plan, you are simply planning to fail!

The sad thing is that most people spend more time planning a vacation than planning their days and years and lives.  That is why most people live an entire life and never realized “what happened to them.”

This is a helpful acronym to follow when you set goals.  Make sure your goals are S.M.A.R.T.

S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Achievable
R – Realistic
T – Timely

S – Be specific when you set your goals.  Our subconscious mind works the best when we are specific.  If you are not specific nor focused, then we tend to wander and achieve nothing.  Don’t just say you want to earn a lot of money.  How much money?
M – Your goal must be measurable (for example, you can measure how much money you earn… you can measure how much weight you lose)
A – It must be something that you can achieve.  For example, if I want to fly and visit the planet, Jupiter, that is something that mankind can NOT achieve right now
R – must be realistic.  If the most you have earned in your home business is $100 in a week, then it would be unrealistic to want to earn $10,000 by next week!
T – you must give it a deadline

HOW TO MAKE SURE YOU REACH YOUR GOALS

Looking back in 2011, I saw that I failed to achieve many of my goals… One of the BIGGEST lessons that I learned was HOW to fail at achieving your goals.  If you learn how you are guaranteed to fail to reach your goals, then all you have to do is make sure you don’t do it, and you will reach your goals.  Fortunately, I learned this valuable lesson in 3rd quarter of 2011 and I was able to make 4th quarter 2011, one of the most rewarding.

A lot of what it takes to make sure you reach your goals is all about setting your priorities and time management.

After you think of a goal you want to achieve, write down 3 things you MUST do each day that will help you achieve your goal.

For example… if you want to lose 30 pounds in 2012… you must come up with 3 daily action steps… for example, say you must do the following each day:
1) exercise 30 minutes a day
2) cut your food portions by 1/2
3) eliminate fast food and desserts from your diet

So… in this example, if you want to achieve your goal of losing 30 pounds in 2012, then you MUST do all 3 things EVERY SINGLE DAY!  There is no shortcut and the way you have to mentally approach it is, if I fail to do all 3 things, then the DAY IS A TOTAL FAILURE!  And if you have enough of these “Failure Days”, then your year becomes a failure and it is a guarantee you will NOT reach your goal by Dec. 2012!

Harsh? … yes… but that is reality and reality is harsh.

We can not escape reality!

Most people, just set a goal and then they are lazy and do not enforce and make themselves do the 3 action steps.  The failure in the action step is what leads to failure in goal setting and failure in life.

I am sorry if I am harsh… but my role here is to help you and give you something to think about… not just to write something to “make you feel good.”

Increasing your Income in a Home Business

If you are in a home business and you have income goals, I highly urge you to break down the 3 things you MUST do.  For example, for most people in a home business, if you want to increase your earnings by a specific amount, the 3 things you must do everyday are:

1) go share your opportunity with people you currently know
2) meet new people and expand your contact list
3) invest 30 – 60 minutes a day in self development (learn and refine your skills and expand your thinking)

If you do NOT do these 3 things, then… the day is a TOTAL BUSINESS FAILURE!… and if you have enough of those days, 1 year from now, you will be in same position as you are now.

MY PERSONAL HEALTH GOAL
I will share with you one of my personal goals for 2012.  I want to be healthier and also get under 10% body fat again.  Many of my friends consider me a health freak and I used to do it so that I could feel good and live long.  But the birth of my son, Ethan has changed me in some ways where my goal to be healthy is not just about me but for my son.  I want to see him grow up, see my grandkids… and more importantly, to have the energy to play with my grandkids!  In order for that to happen, I need to refine and improve on my diet again.  Ever since Ethan was born, I have experienced what every parent experiences in terms of lack of sleep.  And lack of sleep makes me crave sweets, overeat and … basically… just eat junk!

So my goal is to be healthier in 2012 and get under 10% body fat again.  10% body fat gets harder and harder as you get older… and in order to accomplish my goal, I must do the following 3 things EVERYDAY:

1) Decrease my portion size by 50%.  I plan to fill up my plate with food and once I finish my plate, I will stop.  There will no such thing as having “seconds” or “thirds” anymore!

2) Cut out sweets and desserts (I love ice cream and chocolate but those days are done… anyway, those things give me short term satisfaction only.  After I eat them, I always regret and mentally I am never “happy”).  I also realize that I can’t cut it out completely so I will limit myself to having it once a month (instead of having it almost everyday!)

3) Eat my smallest meal during dinner and go to bed hungry.  One of the things I learned is that if you want to get by with less sleep, simply eat a smaller meal!  I have been going to bed hungry the last

or so and it works wonders!  I can sleep WAY less but have MORE energy than I used to!  (the biological reason is because digestion is the most energy zapping thing that our body goes through.  Digestion uses up more energy than exercise, working out, etc!)

SELF DEVELOPMENT GOAL LEADS TO DOUBLING YOUR INCOME

One more thing to share… since I am so passionate about self development and even more passionate about it since I have learned so much in the last 8 – 12 weeks.  I have a new self development goal.  I have learned over the years that if you want to double your income, you simply have to spend an hour a day studying your field and business.  Reading teaches you new skills that you can apply to business and life… and most importantly, reading exposes your mind to new ideas and those new ideas help you generate your OWN million dollar ideas.

So I want to double my income for 2012!

These are my daily actions and how I will double my income through self development:

1) Read 52 books in 2012.  I will read 40 – 50 pages a day and that will allow me to read 250 – 300 pages and finish 1 book a week  (most books are that length)
2) Listen to at least 30 minutes of audio books and seminars a day (I spend 30 minutes a day walking my dog, Obi so I will be listening to audios while I walk him.  I also listen to audios when I jog)
3) Spent 10 minutes reading blogs of the leader business people in my industry

For a quarterly goal, I also plan to attend 1 seminar every 12 weeks.

WHAT ARE YOUR GOALS?

So as you can see, I have put a lot of time to plan and think out my goals for 2012.

To repeat myself… remember… “If you fail to plan, you are simply planning to fail”

Average people (most people) spend more time planning their vacations and weekends than their lives.  Are you most people and want to live an average life or do you want to be better?

Let’s make 2012 a great year!

Sincerely,

This Secret Gift has nothing to do with whether you celebrate Christmas or not… it is not about your spiritual beliefs, nor is it about what materialistic things you want in life.

This Secret Gift is one of the BEST gifts you have!

This secret and great gift that I am talking about… is the Gift of Opportunity!

The Gift of Opportunity

We are now in an age where we all have the opportunity to change our lives.  Things that were not possible just 10 years ago are now possible today because information is everywhere and the internet connects everyone.  The internet has truly changed the world and given us the Gift of Opportunity!

If you want to make your life better, the Opportunity is there!

If you want to learn something, you can can find it online.

If you want to learn another language, you can take any number of home study courses.

If you want to advance in your career, you can access tons of free business resources online that can help you.

If you want to increase your investments, you can learn how to day trade from home.

If you want to meet a new friend and expand your network, you can meet new people through social media.

If you want to change your financial situation, you can start a legitimate home based business that can double your income in 1 – 2 years.

The opportunities are endless!

What will you do?

The opportunities are there… the only question is whether you will take action and seize the opportunity and live the life you deserve… or will you do what everyone else does and just live the “average life.”

Why do some people seize opportunities and become successful while others just sit and do nothing?!

Why would someone not claim his Gift of Opportunity and make a positive change in his life?!

That is the one of the great mysteries that I still have not figured out yet 

Are you ready to claim your Greatest Gift and make a positive change for 2012?!

If you are already taken action to change your life, then congratulations!  The next step would be to share that gift with people you know.  Giving is the the greatest joy!

If you need advice on how to change your life in 2012 and take advantage of the opportunities out there, feel free to contact me and email me directly.

Let’s make 2012 the best year of our lives!

This year has gone by so quickly.  Ethan turned 6 months old on Dec. 6 and it just seemed like yesterday he was born.  He’s got 2 teeth already and 2 more are about to come out!

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, everyone is busy during this holiday season.  Asides from gift shopping, the holidays are also a time of reflection and gratitude.  We should be grateful and thankful for what we have and for what we learned.

Everyday I thank God for what He has blessed me with… I am so grateful for my beautiful and  healthy family and for the gifts and skills that I am blessed with… As I reflect on my life, I remember that there was a time when I was just a shy quiet kid that had none of the things that I currently have today.  I am who I am today ONLY because someone had given me his time and coached me and I am always grateful for that.

My gratitude also reminds me that I have to give more… cause it is only through giving that you find the real joys in life.   I have to give others my time, give others my knowledge and to continue to give the leadership to help people fulfill their potential and live a better life.

Once you start giving, you will realize the joy of giving exceeds the joy of receiving.

As the 2011 ends, if you have not done so already, start thinking about your goals for 2012.  Start thinking about NOT ONLY what you want… but how you can help others; how you can give more and how you can play a positive impact on other people’s lives.

The more you give, the happier you will get and the more you will love and enjoy the simple things in life.

Happy Holidays!