Sometimes when we’re going after a big dream or goal… we need to try something new.  But that can be tough… can’t it?

Here’s a recent tidbit from my weekly radio spot to inspire you…

Hope it helps.

Keep dreaming big and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

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• Training to be a life coach: Networking (trainingtobealifecoach.com)

I’m speaking at the upcoming REMAX Real Estate Concepts Coaching Series... and you’re invited!

Date:  Tuesday, February 14
Time:  10 to 11 am
Location:  Pappajohn Educational Center
Cost: Free to attend

Here’s the Scoop on The Talk:

ENGAGE: Secrets to loving what you do and doing what you love!

A new challenge is developing.

Although people are choosing to stay in their jobs longer… actual employee engagement is at an all time low!  In fact, a recent Gallup Poll found that 54% of employees across the United States said they were not engaged in their work.  And an additional 17% identified themselves as “knowingly disengaged.”

Do the math… that’s 71% of American workers that are either not engaged or knowingly disengaged!

That’s not a challenge… that’s a PROBLEM!

With “ENGAGE!” I’ll present a FOUR STEP PROCESS that you can utilize to dramatically increase your own level of engagement… as well as help the people around you to do the same!

We will…

• Uncover one key concept that undermines any new training initiative and help you to overcome it!
• Offer specific stories and case studies that will inspire you but also give you specific strategies to use immediately!
• Show how tying an your bigger goals and dreams to your daily work can make a significant impact on your focus, dedication and loyalty!
• Provide a core concept to help you to “control what you can control” which will make the the difference in your own performance as well as help to overcome the grinding stress that can cause disengagement!

These concepts, strategies and stories will help you to engage at new levels!

Think about it.

What could happen if you were performing with a high level of contribution AND a high level of satisfaction at work?

Come find out… On February 14th!

It’s free and it’s open to public!  Can’t wait to see you there!

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My family and I were wildly blessed to have taken a cruise through the Bahamas recently.

While we were there… I was introduced to some interesting marketing strategies. One of which I wanted to share with you!

First the story…

On the second day of our cruise we woke up to sunlight bursting through the window and the sounds of Nassau‘s busy port.

Our boys were the first to make it to the balcony to see all that was going on. I was right behind them. As we stepped out… we could see some of the markets… the resorts… and the other ships (big and small) maneuvering in and out of the port.

Then I saw it.

A lone boat that was coming close to our ship.

A small crew was noticeable on the deck. They were out waving at all of us to welcome us. No fireworks. No fanfare. Just a simple act of saying “hello and welcome.” I watched as they made a circle around us and then made their way back to their dock.

On both sides of their boat… were the words “Glass Bottom Boat” and their phone number.

That’s it. Simple. Short. Sweet.

And… perfectly timed.

Why?

Well, I’ll admit that my wife and I were very busy leading up to our trip.

Plus, in a lot of ways, we had been bombarded with options. So we hadn’t done a lot of planning beforehand. We simply told ourselves… “We’ll figure it out as we go… and let that be part of the adventure.”

I’ll also be the first one to say that a glass-bottomed boat tour wasn’t high on my list of things I wanted to do, but seeing that boat… at that time… put it at the top of list.

All of a sudden… that’s what I wanted to do.

And it didn’t take much convincing of the family either… since they’d seen the same thing I had.

This brilliant glass-bottom-boated marketer had used a simple (and low cost) strategy to plant a seed of possibility. Because of his timing… he broke through the barrage of competition and grabbed our attention for a fraction of the cost of what others had paid in advertising and marketing.

Not only that… he hooked us!

And his timing strategy is one that we can use too… if we just give it some thought.

TIMING MIGHT NOT BE EVERYTHING… BUT IT CAN BE WILDLY IMPORTANT!

Okay… so what can we learn from this?

We had been bombarded with options but one brilliant marketer rose above the rest because of timing.

How are you using timing to better market your big dream or idea?

Listen… if your big dream involves getting the word out about a new product or service… then think about timing when you send out updates.  If you need to grow a team of raving fans to get behind your big idea… then think about timing when you reach out to them.  If you need support to make your big dream… then think about timing as you ask for help!

Let me offer you an example…

SUNDAY NIGHT EMAIL

As many of you know… have a training program for life coaches.

When we take people through this process, we have them think deeply about their AVATAR (their ideal client).

For some… they decide that their AVATAR is someone who wants a career change.

So… since that’s the case… we suggest they think about timing when they are sending out a weekly email.

Specifically… we suggest sending their weekly email on Sunday night.

Sure… a lot of life coaches send weekly emails… but they do it on Tuesday morning or on Wednesdays at noon.

But we ask, “What if their weekly email addressed the issue of their potential client hating the thought of going back to work on Monday?”

And… what if they received it on Sunday night at 5:30?

Sure… some marketers have argued that emails sent during the weekends don’t get opened… but now with smart phones abounding… people are checking their email ALL THE TIME! And what if that coach’s email gave theirr potential ally (our word for client) a strategy that could help them in the exact time that they needed it the most?

That might just help the coach to stand out… and it might just help that ally to know they needed to work with that life life coach!

So there is just one way where you can take the simple but brilliant strategy from my Bahamian friend… and give some extra thought to timing… as you market big dream or idea!

As you do… click on comments and join in the conversation. What are some other ways that you could give a nod to timing as you spread the word about what you do? We’d love to hear from you!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

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• Training to be a life coach: Life Coaching, Branding Strategy and BIG Dreams (trainingtobealifecoach.com)
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Click here to download the PDF

I had so many requests for the BIG Dream Project Sample Signatures… I wanted to offer up a pdf that included some of the sample signatures AND the specifics on how to get your own link set up on at BIGDreamGathering.com!

Click here to download the PDF: BIG DREAM Project Signatures

Plus… as you create your new signature lines… leave a comment and include your new sig!

We can’t wait to see it… and help you to spread the word about your new BIG Dream Project!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch

LOOK FORWARD TO SOMETHING

A study published in the American Physiological Society found that participants who simply thought about watching their favorite movie actually raised their endorphin levels by 27 percent.

That’s right.

Image via Wikipedia

Just by telling participants that they were going to be able to watch their favorite movie… their bodies produced endorphins (which are responsible for increasing a sense of joy and euphoria, increasing retention during learning and helping improve decision making) levels at significantly higher levels than the control group.

This research supports the timeless wisdom that suggests that sometimes the most enjoyable part of any activity can be the anticipation of it.

In fact, some research has said that simply scheduling a vacation for next year (even if you can’t afford it right now) can boost your sense of happiness and light the pleasure centers in your brain, almost as much as taking the actual trip will itself.

Okay… so let’s think about how we could apply this to ourselves?

What are some questions that you could ask yourself… your friends… your co-workers… to help yourself and them to look forward to something?

Here are some simple but powerful examples.

LOOKING FORWARD QUESTIONS:

• Describe something I would love to accomplish in my professional life.
• Describe a few places I would like to visit in the world.
• Tell me about a few things you would like to experience with your family.
• Describe something you would love to do with your friends.
  
• Describe something you are excited about when you think about accomplishing _________.

Here’s the cool thing.  Just by giving yourself (and others) the chance to think about these things… you are releasing endorphins.  How cool is that?

But, we don’t want to just stop there… right?

Granted… that release is good for you because it will help you to feel good. But that release of endorphins is also going to help you to be more creative… and we want to harness that.

So take the next step while the iron is hot.

Use that burst of endorphins to get creative about taking action!

ACTION QUESTIONS:

• What might be a few things a person would need to do in order to achieve _______?
• What might I need to do in order to travel to _________ in the next 2 years?
• What might be some small but significant shifts I would want or need to make to begin to experience ______ with my family on a regular basis?
• What is something specific you want to do today to move towards accomplishing ________?

And since getting things on the calendar is an important part of looking forward, here are some questions to help.

SCHEDULING QUESTIONS:

• When do I want to make time to do one of those things in the next week?
• What would it feel like to go ahead and put that trip on my calendar for 2 years out?
• When do I want to make time for that small but significant shift this next week?
• When do I want to do ________ today?

So… you can use these questions to release a burst of endorphins… and then you can use that burst of the body’s own “good stuff” and harness a higher level of creativity as you make plans and take action!

What are some of your favorite questions to ask to help yourself or others to look foward? Join in the conversation by clicking COMMENTS and let us know!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

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I’m taking a few days off from blogging about dreaming big and achieving more to celebrate this wonderful season with our friends and family.

Know that I’m excited to work along side you in 2012 to launch dreams… change lives and better the world!

I don’t know about you but I believe 2012 is going to be the best year yet!

You’re awesome and we’re glad we’re in this together!

From our family to yours… Merry Christmas!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

Click to download the FREE selections!

Who doesn’t like FREE?  Right?!?

Especially when that cool FREE thang can spark some of your BIG (and little) dreams!

That’s why we’re doing this.

We want to offer up a taste of IGNITE… for free!

Why?

We want to encourage you to dream a little BIGGER!

That’s right.  In this free download, you’ll be able to read how our own big dreams we’re on the ropes.  We were ready to give up.  Instead… we wound up throwing a party.

Weird… right?

But that party changed our life.  And in some ways… it might change yours too!

Click here to get your FREE sections!

We want to challenge you to encourage some of the big dreams in your family!

Seriously… some of my favorite stories from people who have grabbed a copy of IGNITE have come in from people who have dug into the book as a family.  They’ve read it while on road trips.  They’ve read sections for bed time stories.  (I’ve hoped that didn’t mean that the stories were putting them to sleep! hee hee)  They’ve read the book over dinner (which did lead to one tradgic book-gravy pile up that we won’t go into here!).

The coolest thing is to hear parents tell us about their kid’s dreams… and kids (of all ages) tell us about their parent’s dreams.  We’ve heard about that “favorite uncle’s” dream as well as that “crazy aunt’s” dream!

What are some of your family’s big dreams?  What if you used this as an excuse to ask ‘em?

Click here to get your Free sections

We want to support you as you go out and ask some of your friends about their big dreams.

What are some of your friends’ big dreams?  Do you know?

We didn’t know until we started asking.  Then we were blown away by what happened.

One friend’s dream connected with another friend’s dream.  Or another friend’s goal totally meshed with something we wanted to do and we helped each other to go after our shared dreams.

And sometimes… asking just gave us a chance to get to know a friend better… and offer some encouragement in a new way.

So… there was no down side to asking your friends about their dreams.  Only upside.

What if you gave it try?

I bet you’ll dig it.

Click here to download your FREE selections from IGNITE – A little book to spark your big dreams!

Okay… so we hope you enjoy this free download!

Share

Please Share!

If you do… please share it with a friend!

We’d love for these free sections to be spread around and we could use your help to do it! So thanks in advance for that!

IGNITE on Amazon

Lastly… if you’d like to grab a copy of IGNITE from Amazon… you can do that by clicking here!

IGNITE on AMAZON

Okay… that’s it.

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

It’s all about something I call the Intellectual Immune System.

It’s the thing that keeps us from trying new things!  It’s what keeps us from accepting new ideas.  It’s what can keep us from doing the things we want to do.

Yeah… It’s that.

And here’s where I explain how to overcome it… in 12 minutes or less.

Plus, I flippin’ LOVE  to offer actionable insights and strategies to help them achieve those dreams!

But there is one group of people that I’ve become especially excited about helping… and that’s today’s college students!

Seriously… our future hinges on the ability of our college students to dream bigger and achieve those dreams! It’s been important before… but now it’s critical!

Ask yourself…

What is more important than getting our campuses to dream bigger?

PDF Brochure

What’s more critical than inspiring bigger thinking at our universities?

And in this time where fear seems to be trumping creativity… what if we were able to help students get clear about some of their big dreams and goals… and equip them with the tools to actually achieve them?

Can I get an AMEN?

So… if you’re a student wanting to inspire your fellow students to dream bigger…

If you’re Alumni who wants to equip students from your alma mater to achieve more…

If you’re a member of the faculty that is looking for creative ways to connect your students with the ideas and people who can help them achieve more of the things they were created to achieve!

If this is you… let’s connect!

Contact Info:

Call: 800.491.5316 or

Email: ContactUs@MitchMatthews.com.

Click here to download a PDF Brochure about my work on college campuses!

Image by Scott Clark via Flickr

Okay, so by now… you know that we’re all about inspiring you to dream and think bigger.  And that bigger thinking… can apply to your work life and your life outside of work. Right?

So, since this week is the kick off to all things HOLIDAY… I thought I’d throw out a simple but powerful question that can guide you as you navigate these next few weeks.

It’s needed isn’t it?

Maybe it’s the candy… the commercials… or the 82 big dinners… but during this time of year it’s easy to loose our focus. Isn’t it?

It’s easy to get a little bat poo crazy around the holidays.

During this time when we want to love well and be thankful… we can get stressed out. We can freak.  We can get grumpy.  And… as a result… we miss it.

Somehow we can miss it all… can’t we?

We can miss time with family. We can miss those moments with friends. We can miss the true gifts that come with this season.  So… here’s what I suggest.

And again… it’s simple.

It starts with a question.

STEP 1: Ask The Question

Ask yourself…

“What are some things I would I LOVE to EXPERIENCE over the holidays this year?”

That’s it.

Simple… right?

Step 2: Write It Down

Hey… if you’re a journal person go ahead and write out a long response.  Make it pretty.  Dig deep and enjoy the process.

But if you’re not a big writer… that’s okay too!

Simply answer the question by making a list.

Seriously… just come up with a list of things that you’d LOVE to EXPERIENCE.

Now… I don’t want to assume anything… but I’ve gotten to know you pretty well over our time together.

So, I’m going to guess that “getting stressed out” isn’t on the list… is it?  And I’m betting that “over scheduling” isn’t there either.  Oh, and I’m betting that “over spending” is nowhere to be found.

But what might make it on the list for you?

Loving well?  Connecting?  Resting?  Laughing?

I don’t want to make the list for you… but I’m betting that some of these might make your list.  (They made mine.)

Step 3: Put the List Somewhere You Can See It

What might happen if you gave yourself even 5 minutes to think about this question and then you wrote down some of your responses?

What might that do to your focus?

More importantly… what if you put your list somewhere that you could be reminded of what’s most important for you in the coming weeks?

A bathroom mirror?  The fridge?  The sunvisor in the car?

What if that not-so-subtle reminder was there to help you remember what you most want to experience over these specific holidays?

Give it some thought… and see where this simple question takes you.  (Oh… and do me a favor.  Leave a comment with a few things that made it on your list! I’d love to hear some of the things that you came up with!)

BONUS STEP: Ask the Important Peeps in Your Life the Same Question

That’s right.

Consider this the gold star bonus!

But here’s the thought:  Take the next step of asking this question of everyone in your family.  Then… compare notes.  See what they get.

Share this question with your friends.  See what they get.  My guess is that your lists might be somewhat similar.

And… heck… dare I say it… but these lists you create might just help you to get on the same page about how you want to do the holidays this year.

Be ready.

Your lists may confirm some traditions… AND… your lists may rock the boat on others.

• Some gatherings might get smaller and more intimate.
• Other activities might get bigger and louder.
• You might find yourself spending less on gifts and agreeing to spend more time together… instead.
• You might go out less and spend more time around your own kitchen table.
• You might agree to venture out to see people who you haven’t seen forever.

Who knows where your list might take you!

But hey… that’s what this is all about… right?  I mean… sometimes… bigger thinking is all about looking at old things from a new perspective.  And sometimes… it’s all about applying old wisdom to new things.

So ask the question of yourself and remember what you’d love to experience.  Then ask the question of others and compare notes.

Whether you ask your family while you’re around the dinner table or in the car… or whether you ask your friends by forwarding them this post and agreeing to share your lists…

ASK THEM.

And just see what happens.

My hope is that this simple little question will help you to experience a whole lot more of what you love this holiday season!

Keep dreaming BIG and helping others to do the same,

Mitch Matthews

Related articles

• Planning for the Holidays (ohokgreatexpectations.wordpress.com)
• How to Cope with Spending the Holidays Away From Home (bootsnall.com)
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