Take the Gold

“Within every obstacle is an opportunity to improve our condition.” – Ryan Holiday

New Year’s Eve 2020 was like that frat party in college where the kegs kicked and the police showed up at the same time.

Everyone wanted out.

And we dashed to the exits at midnight full speed.

Good riddance.

2020 did an amazing job smashing most of our plans.

But we survived.

Now it’s time to turn the page.

Before we drag 2020 out to the curb with our dead Christmas tree, we need to do one thing.

TAKE THE GOLD with us.

There’s a saying from Ben Franklin, who was no stranger to challenging years, “The things which hurt, instruct.”

2020 was a fantastic teacher.

It did an incredible job of showing us our weaknesses.

It tested our mental and physical health.

Punched our daily routines in the throat.

And tried it’s best to cross collar choke our businesses.

It forced us to evolve or become irrelevant.

But OBSTACLES also have a positive side.

They not only obstruct, they instruct.

Obstacles show us what we need to change

In The Obstacle Is the Way, Ryan Holiday writes that obstacles can teach us a better way.

“What impedes us can also empower us.”

When we are forced to find new ways of doing things, progress is not far behind.

Here are 3 GOLD NUGGETS I am bringing into the new year:

LESS COMMITMENTS

We stopped trying to be everywhere.

2020 crushed our superficial relationships.

Which is NOT a bad thing.

No driving an hour each way to that party you did not want to attend on a beautiful Saturday afternoon.

There was less work travel because we found out that not all meetings need to be live.

We got to hang out and spend quality time with our number one customer – our family.

We did less and learned to do it better.

THE GREAT OUTDOORS

Fire pits on a Friday night with your friends.

Long hikes with your family on Christmas Day.

Outdoor bike rides in December.

These are no longer just for people in the OC.

You may need to dress in 6 layers for the Philly winter, but 2020 showed us that the great outdoors is the gym that never closes and never charges a monthly fee.

BUY TIME BACK

Time is our most precious asset.

No one ever has enough of it.

2020 taught us that we can delegate out time drains like market trips and Costco runs.

I never realized how much time was wasted going food shopping.

Now the market gets dropped off at your doorstep with a few taps of your phone.

If we save just an hour per week NOT going to the market, that’s over 2 full days you just bought back to do whatever you please in 2021.

Word.

Years like 2020 show us what we need to change.

They show us a better way.

The new year is in front of us.

Time to turn the page.

Just TAKE THE GOLD with you.

#TakeTheGold

Wish you an amazing 2021!

Joe Ciccarone

www.SalesVibe.Blog

Game Changer

“In the middle of every difficulty lies opportunity.” – Einstein

Change is everywhere.

That’s a good thing.

It means you’re still alive.

And in the game.

No need to FIGHT what’s new.

Embrace it by asking this question:

What’s the opportunity?

This question is a GAME CHANGER.

It will change your MINDSET.

It can change your life.

#GameChanger

-Joe Ciccarone

http://www.SalesVibe.Net

A Beautiful Mind

“Gratitude is the sign of noble souls.” – Aesop

What’s the SECRET TO LIFE?

The best explanation I ever heard is from Tony Robbins.

In his UNSHAKEABLE podcast, Robbins said there are 2 rules people need to follow to live an extraordinary life.

RULE #2

“Surround yourself with quality individuals. You become who you hang out with.”

Who do you spend the most time with?

Who’s In Your 5?

These people influence:

What you DO.
What you EAT.
How you MOVE.
What you READ.
Where you GO.

Think about it.

Is this the life you want to lead?

If not, it may be time to MAKE SOME CHANGES.

Nothing will elevate our lives faster than being surrounded by great people.

RULE #1

“Develop the ability to live in a state of gratitude regardless of your circumstances.”

It’s easy to BE HAPPY when things are going our way.

It takes a strong MINDSET to do so when life gets difficult.

Robbins said, “We have to remember that life happens for us, not to us.”

Each OBSTACLE is there to make us better.

Ryan Holiday wrote, “Obstacles show us who we really are.”

There are seeds of opportunity in every setback.

Gifts are hidden inside each problem.

Our job is to find it.

There is nothing more liberating than…

#ABeutifulMind

-Joe Ciccarone

http://www.SalesVibe.Net

The Sweetest Thing

“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” – Mahatma Gandhi

A woman in India had a son that ate way too much sugar.

No matter what she did or said, her son continued to eat sugar.

The mother was so upset that she decided to take her son on a trip to see his idol, Mahatma Gandhi, to ask for his help.

They traveled to see Gandhi.

They waited a day and half to get an audience with the leader.

When their turn came to speak, the mom walked up to Gandhi with her son at her side.

The women said, “Sir, my son eats too much sugar. It’s affecting his health, his teeth, his mood. Every time he eats sugar I can see the change in him. There is nothing I can do to stop him. I am afraid that sugar will ruin his life. Please tell him to stop eating sugar.”

Gandhi listened to the woman.

He looked at the boy, then paused.

Gandhi told the mother, “Go home and come back to me in two weeks time.”

The woman was perplexed.

She wondered why Gandhi did not tell her son to stop eating sugar.

The mom took the boy and traveled back home.

Two weeks later she returned, boy in hand.

The pair waited hours again for an audience.

When their time came, Gandhi motioned for them to come forward.

Gandhi looked directly at the boy and said, “Boy, stop eating sugar. It is not good for you.”

The boy nodded and promised he would not eat sugar any longer.

The mother was confused.

She turned to Gandhi and asked, “Dear Sir, Why didn’t you tell him that two weeks ago when I first brought him to see you?”

Gandhi smiled, “Mother, two weeks ago I was still eating sugar myself.”

CHANGE STARTS WITH YOU

Want something to CHANGE?

Change yourself first.

LEAD by example.

Live what you preach.

It’s the fastest way to build TRUST.

There is no better way to establish CREDIBILITY.

Andy Warhol said, “They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.”

Start with you.

Earning TRUST and having CREDIBILITY with your colleagues and customers is kind of like winning the SUPER BOWL.

Its…

#TheSweetestThing

-Joe Ciccarone

http://www.SalesVibe.Net

The Clouds & The Dirt

“I spend all my time in the clouds or in the dirt. That’s why I’m successful.” – Gary Vaynerchuk

Fall is here.

Just walk inside a Starbucks.

Holy pumpkin everything…

I find fall the best time of the year to make CHANGES.

No need to wait for the chaos of the holidays to disappear.

We can get a head start by BEGINNING NOW.

When the conversation at Aunt Nelly’s holiday dinner turns to New Year’s resolutions, we’ll have 3 months of progress to show.

How cool is that?

Besides, I have an awful track record with resolutions.

I don’t do them.

From learning to trade stock options to trying to be less sarcastic, I’ve failed at most of them.

Instead, I now focus on DAILY ACTION.

DAILY ACTION is the secret to accomplishing BIG GOALS.

Gary Vee calls this concept – “The Clouds and The Dirt.”

THE CLOUDS

THE CLOUDS are your goals.

They are the places you want to take your life.

What BIG IDEA do you want to achieve?

Create a $1 million customer?
Lose 10 pounds?
Write a blog post every Monday?

We’ll all have different answers to this question.

But THE PROCESS is the same.

The 1st step is DECIDING what we want to accomplish.

For me, I want to be a more consistent writer.

I’d love to be 2 to 3 weeks ahead with blogs posts.

Waking up Monday at 4:30am to finish this week’s post is not a long term strategy.

THE DIRT

THE DIRT is how you get there.

It’s the DAILY GRIND.

The DIRT are the SMALL DAILY ACTIONS we need to take that make the CLOUDS possible.

THE DIRT is the journey.

It’s the gritty path that leads to our GOALS.

DECIDE

Decide on 1 daily action you can do that gets you closer to your GOAL.

For me, I need to write more.

My DAILY ACTION:

Write 200 words each morning before 7am.

BE SPECIFIC

The SECRET is to be specific.

My goal is NOT to “Write every day.”

That’s too vague.

Our ACTIONS need to be:

Simple.
Actionable.
Accountable.

JUST SAY NO

TIME and ENERGY are limited resources.

We have to be intentional where we invest them.

Gary Vee said, “I don’t spend any time on things that don’t matter.”

This means sometimes saying “No” to people.

Saying “No” is tough.

We think we are letting people down.

But when we don’t say “No” to distraction, we are only letting ourselves down.

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

When you look into THE CLOUDS what do you see?

Keep your eyes on the CLOUDS…

But your hands in the DIRT.

Our thoughts are with our friends in TEXAS & FLORIDA this week.

#StayStrong

-Joe Ciccarone

http://www.SalesVibe.net

Own It

“It ain’t the rain, the snow, the boss, the competition, the spouse, the money, the car, the job, or the kids – it’s you! And it always has been.” – Jeffrey Gitomer

The first person we have to lead is ourselves.

We have to own the outcome for all areas of our life.

This is called taking Extreme Ownership.

When we take Extreme Ownership, we change everything.

We no longer have our happiness dictated by circumstances.

We set the tone, not others.

But this mindset requires COURAGE.

Why?

Because when something goes wrong it’s on us.

There is no one else to BLAME.

Taking full responsibility can bruise your ego.

The BIGGEST threat to our own success is not some uncontrollable outside factor.

It’s our decision making process.

Don’t like the way things are going?

Change it.

Not where you want to be?

Adjust.

We may not be able to control what happens to us.

But we have 100% control on how we respond.

Once we figure this out, everything else becomes easier.

#OwnIt

-Joe Ciccarone