by Clarence E. Stowers | Feb 12, 2010 | Leadership, Self-Leadership, Success
There are 604,800 seconds in a week, and every one of them matters (how you use them is up to you)!
As I age gracefully, I’m learning to appreciate and use the limited time I have. Twenty years ago, I began to set aside an hour each weekend and ponder this question: What is the purpose of my life? Here’s a book I recommend to get you started. Afterwards, I would take notes & craft sentences that describe my life’s purpose. I encourage you to try this – it really works!
Next, ask yourself how each part of your life (work, friends, family, hobbies) align with or relates to that purpose. Again, write it down. Are you spending your time on things that will help you achieve your purpose? If not, you know you have to make changes. When your actions are at odds with your goals, you need to make the slight, necessary adjustments.
This may seem like a simple exercise, but very few people do it. The truth is you probably already know your purpose and goals. But you may have pushed them off to the side. Or you may not have aligned your daily actions with your long-term goals. Doing this exercise will help you to do so.
A few minutes of quite reflection can give your life the clarity and sense of purpose you may lack. To keep your day-to-day choices in sync with your life’s purpose, take a moment to consider your purpose before you make any major decisions or take on any new responsibilities. It will help you remember the precious importance of every second.
Are you up for the challenge? Do you know your purpose? I’d love to hear about it!
by Clarence E. Stowers | Jan 29, 2010 | Empowerment, Self-Leadership, Success
What makes people like Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and Lance Armstrong so great?
We think we know: Each was a natural who came into the world with a gift for doing exactly what he ended up doing. Guess what, I found the secret to their success and because I want you to succeed, I’m ready to share my discovery with the entire world. I’m about the let you in on a secret that has the potential to revolutionize your life!
Shhhh…Lean Closer….
Here it is:
THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS TO SUCCESS. PERIOD!
Nobody is great without hard work!
Researchers have identified what they call the ten-year rule when it comes to becoming a world-class performer. In 2006, Fortune Magazine published, “What It Takes to be Great” which coined the phrase “Performance Principle.” The Performance Principle says that it takes a long time to be an overnight success. Furthermore, the author goes on to say, “Even the most accomplished people need around ten years of hard work before becoming world-class…” This pattern is so well established researchers call it the ten-year rule. In short, what they and others have discovered: There are not shortcuts!
The best people in any field are those who devote the most hours to what the researchers call “deliberate practice.” It’s activity that’s explicitly intended to improve performance, that reaches for objectives just beyond one’s level of competence, provides feedback on results and involves high levels of repetition.
Fortune magazine gives this example:
Simply hitting a bucket of balls is not deliberate practice, which is why most golfers don’t get better. Hitting an eight-iron 300 times with a goal of leaving the ball within 20 feet of the pin 80 percent of the time, continually observing results and making appropriate adjustments, and doing that for hours every day – that’s deliberate practice.
Have you ever been tempted to take shortcuts? Did you? What were the results?
by Clarence E. Stowers | Jan 20, 2010 | Accountability, Decisions, Empowerment, Goals, Leadership, Mentoring, Networking
Conventional wisdom says you need a mentor to help you get to where you desire to be. This conclusion, however, is based on a faulty assumption. The sources of this wisdom confused coincidence with a cause. No doubt many successful people have had mentors, but, knowing that doesn’t prove the person succeeded because of their mentors. For all we know, they might have succeeded in spite of them.
The reason that many successful people had mentors is that people destined to succeed ATTRACT all kings of people, including mentors. They attract mentors, fans, followers, and even HATERS. So the way to attract a mentor is to display those traits that will lead you to success anyway. Like begets like. Birds of a feather flock together. Will a mentor lead you there? Perhaps. Will one help you in some smaller way? No Doubt.
Here’s my advice: Don’t seek just ONE mentor. Instead, focus on doing the things that might attract people, including mentors. If you do find a mentor, make sure you include others. Remember, mentors are people, people are fallible, and even gifted doctors misdiagnose. Fortunately in many of those cases, the patient sought second and third opinions. YOU SHOULD TOO!
Having just one mentor is overrated;
having several is not.
What do you think? Do you agree or disagree?
FYI: I thinking about starting a mentoring group this Spring. If you are interested and live in the greater Chicago area—please email me (urban.pastor@gmail.com) and I will outline the details for you.
by Clarence E. Stowers | Jan 13, 2010 | Decisions, Empowerment, Goals, Self-Leadership
Here’s a fact: Those who are comfortable with the status quo do not grow!
This is because remaining in a comfort zone encourages people to do the BARE MINIMUM. Thus, their only goal is to keep things the same way they’ve always been. To become successful (according to your predetermined standards of success) you must be willing to push yourself outside your safety zone over and over again. In other words, you must plan to escape from the “Prison of Comfort.”
Realize that your comfort zone is holding you back – then step outside of it!
Pushing your limits is like stretching your body. You will know it’s working when you start to feel uncomfortable. When you feel that twinge, be assured that you are inching your way closer to your ultimate goal. Let this be the year you decide to break free from the “Prison of Comfort.” I know you may be afraid, but, I’m encouraging you to be bold and courageous. I once heard someone say, “Courage is not the absence of fear; It’s moving ahead in spite of your fears.”
What would you do if you knew for sure that you would not fail?
by Clarence E. Stowers | Jan 11, 2010 | Accountability, Empowerment, Goals, Leadership
My late father, Dr. Clarence E. Stowers Sr., would always tell me, “Son, find a story and tell it well.” I didn’t quite understand then, but I do today! To steal one of the ancient slogans in advertising, “your brand is the truth about you, well told.” This year many resolved to make lasting changes and become the best version of themselves. I call it Version 2.0 – The me God wants me to be. In order to upgrade to Version 2.0, I encourage you to spend time pondering the following questions:
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