Archives for December 2012

12 Big Mistakes You Made This Year

12.19.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 31 Comments

12 Little Mistakes You Made This Year

Mistakes are the growing pains of wisdom.

As long as the world is turning, you’re going to be dizzy and you’re going to make mistakes. And that’s okay. Your past mistakes can teach you what you need to know to create a wonderful future.

Here are twelve big mistakes you (likely) made this year and what you need to know going forward.

You didn’t accept enough risk. – Living is risky business. Every decision, every interaction, every step, every time you get out of bed in the morning, you take a risk. To truly live is to know you’re getting up and taking that risk. To not get out of bed, clutching to illusions of safety, is to die slowly without ever having truly lived. Be a little risky and realize the full potential of your life. Read The Millionaire Fastlane.
You gave in to your fears and negativity. – The reality is we all get afraid. It’s not about being afraid but what you do when you feel that way. When you feel doubt, or fear, or anger, or frustration, know that you [Read more…]

10 Powerful Things to Put on Your To-Do List Today

12.17.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 31 Comments

10 Powerful Things to Put on Your TO-DO List Today

Yesterday is a canceled check, tomorrow is a promissory note, and today is the only cash you have, so spend it wisely.

One of the secrets of getting to where you want to go in life is making a simple TO DO list every day, keeping it visible, and using it as a guide to action as you go through your day.

So here’s one you can use today and every day going forward:

Give yourself some “me time.” – Yes, you had battles to fight, insecurities to overcome, loved ones to contend with, and goals to achieve. But a break from it all is necessary. It’s perfectly healthy to pause and let the world spin without you for awhile. It’s good for you to spend time alone. It gives you an opportunity to discover who you really are, and to figure out why you truly are always alone. Read A New Earth.
Meditate on your own inner voice. – Some people will kill you over time if you let them; and how they’ll kill you is with tiny, harmless phrases like, “be realistic.” When this happens, close your ears and listen to your [Read more…]

9 Things You Need to Chill Out About

12.14.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 28 Comments

9 Things You Need to Chill Out About

The world isn’t just the way it is.
It’s how you understand it to be.

When it comes to the following, you need to chill out, change your thinking, and adjust your approach.

The few things that aren’t going right. – When things go wrong, take a moment to be thankful for all the other things that are still going right. And if you’re struggling to be thankful for what you have, be thankful for what you have escaped. Sometimes the best gifts in life are the troubles you don’t have. Read Stumbling on Happiness.
Trying to label everyone and everything. – Sometimes you’ve just got to take people and situations for what they are, appreciate them, and not try to label them or change them. This unconditional acceptance doesn’t mean you’re giving up your freewill or waving the white flag – that’s quitting. Instead, it means you’re willing to let go of who you think people should be and how you think things are supposed to be, so you can fall in love with who they truly are and how life really is.
Worrying about what everyone else thinks. – The minute you stop overwhelming your mind with caring about what everyone else thinks, and [Read more…]

Be Happier: 10 Things to Start Doing Right Now

12.12.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 31 Comments

10 Smart Ways to Start the Rest of Your Life

Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Today is a blank canvas upon which you have the delightful opportunity to create. At this moment you are standing at the beginning of an impressive adventure, with the very real and present opportunity to shape the upcoming years into the happiest ones ever.

Start now, take the initiative, and…

Foster your own personal growth. – If you want to awaken happiness in the world around you, start by living a life that makes you happy, and then radiate your happiness outward. If you want to eliminate suffering in the world, start by eliminating the dark and negative parts of yourself, and then radiate your positivity outward. Truly, the greatest power you have in this world is the power of your own self-transformation. It starts with the one in the mirror. Read Awaken the Giant Within.
Be present in this moment. – Too often we run ourselves into the ground and sacrifice our happiness and health to make a little money. Then we sacrifice the money we made to recuperate some of our happiness and health. And as we’re stuck in this damaging cycle, we are [Read more…]

12 Things to Stop Doing in the Next 12 Months

12.10.2012 by Marc Chernoff // 44 Comments

12 Things to Stop Doing in the Next 12 Months

Let’s fast forward: You are on your death bed, wondering and imagining what you could have done. You could have pursued that passion, opened that business, or spent more time with your loved ones. But that time has long passed, and the only thing you can do now is think about what is done – what is set in stone. Oh, what you would do to get those moments back and live your life the right way – to repaint the past, take chances, spit in the face of your fears, share your love, and live with no regrets.

Close your eyes and think about it – envision yourself lying there in your final moments feeling like this. Now open your eyes. What do you see? Life and opportunity. You still have a chance. What are you waiting for?

Below you will find twelve bad habits to stop in the next twelve months. Because sometimes the smartest way to get ahead, is to stop doing the things that have been holding you back.

Stop settling for the same old routine. – So many people live daily with unhappy circumstances, and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation. They somehow believe that conforming to their current circumstances will eventually lead to a life of comfort, security, and peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to their spirit. The very basic core of the human spirit is a natural passion for exploration and growth. This growth comes directly from our encounters with new experiences; and hence there is no greater destination in life than to have an endlessly changing horizon – for each day to have a new and different sun. Read A New Earth.
Stop ignoring your education. – Love it or hate it, being in school makes personal growth easy. You learn things that you never would have [Read more…]