At certain times each of us wonder why we are not having the success that we expect. Or incomes, free time, relationships, and family life seem lacking. So what went wrong? No-one has a “one size fits all” answer to this but if we look under the surface we can see a vein of gold to mine and process.

In his book “The Way of the Wizard”, Deepak Chopra quotes the Persian poet Rumi: “You are the unconditioned spirit trapped in conditions, like the sun in eclipse”. Deepak is conveying the message that as human beings we are limited by time and space. This explains our struggle to define and attain success in this world. Our spirit, the true power of our very being, gets pushed into second place by our physical nature. This is the human condition it seems, and when it is recognized, we spend the rest of our lives trying to (re)connect with our soul or spirit.

We are not helped by the early socialization and education that we receive. We are strongly encouraged or forced to conform to the standards of the society in which we live. So we take on community norms with regard to success, money, education, right, wrong, and so on. In this process, the individuality of the human being is lost as we receive rewards or punishments for compliant or rebellious behavior respectively.

The brain’s goal is survival, as so purposefully told in Jack Canfield’s “How to Build High Self-Esteem”. Survival is not congruent with non-conformity, so we join the group and we belong. We are conditioned to conceive, believe, and achieve according to society’s standards without too much creativity. We are an average member of the community, more proficient in some roles and less in other. But average is not exceptional. An average color would be beige or grey, average temperature is neither hot nor cold. When we look at history, great people were often seen as heretics, eccentric, or just plain crazy.

If we want to be exceptional we must change our conditioning. We do this by examining every ingrained idea that we have. What is our belief about money, love, work, family, education, and play for example? How do we define success in each of these areas? Is that working for you (One of Dr. Phil’s favorite questions)? In his book “Spiritual Marketing”, Joe Vitale asks us to identify what is blocking us from our success and then he suggests some great methods to remove the obstruction(s).

Robert Kiyosaki, in his “Rich Dad” series disparages the education system for not preparing us to succeed in the real word. Kiyosaki talks about his poor Dad having traditional education system “avoid failure at all costs” type values whereas his rich Dad educated him about the “real world” value of learning from failure.

Bob Proctor, in his CD “What Would You Do If Your Yearly Income Became Your Monthly Income” tells us that we need to become non-conforming and to think outside of the box. Otherwise we are just repeating something that someone else has taught us. He suggests that we must not be afraid to take action just because our circle of friends and family might not agree with us. We must learn to think for ourselves.

The bottom line then is that if we want to be truly successful and find real happiness, we must allow our spirit to shine through onto the world. We are unique and perfect in our own way and that is a great thing. We must, of course, want to learn but we must choose our teachers wisely. Our teachers will only be able to share what they have themselves, so if someone has the success that you want, learn from them. Study them and apply what works into your life.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com
http://www.BargainDealsMart.com

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Making money with an internet business requires that an exchange take place. This is normally some product or service provided in exchange for money. For that to happen, both parties of the transaction must become aware of each other and then a determination is made as to whether a “sale” occurs. How to become aware of each other and their respective motivations is covered in a multitude of advertising and marketing literature. Underneath what we can see and touch is basic energy, which is even more important according to Bob Proctor and Joe Vitale.

On one of the recordings that he made for the Liberty League and in its accompanying workbook, Bob Proctor talks about how we need to be absolutely clear about the messages that we are sending to our potential customers. If we talk about what is best for the customer but at the same time are thinking about just wanting their money, then we will not be successful. If we have conflicting intentions, then this will be picked up by most of our potential customers and we won’t be able to close the transaction. However, when we are truly sincere, at all levels, in wanting to help out customer succeed then the likelihood of a successful transaction increases immensely. Either way, our customer will pick up on the positive or negative vibrations that we are emitting and will react to them, even if they do not consciously know it. Good sales literature also tells us that we will be successful only when we can provide something that the customer will perceive as being beneficial to them. Bob Proctor defines this as being something that will provide them an increase or avoid a decrease. This increase or decrease may be financial, but it could also be in health, power, prestige, or anything else important to the customer. Our job then is to point out how our product or service can meet the client’s needs.

Joe Vitale, in his book Spiritual Marketing, goes even further than this. He says that when he wrote a sales letter to offer a service that he didn’t believe in, he barely got any replies. When he wrote a sales letter for a software product that he did believe in, he got staggering results. Joe Vitale explains that everything we produce (e.g. cards, letterhead, flyers, sales letters and ads), or hire someone to produce, all carry our energy in them. People who receive the marketing product will sense it. If there is good energy from positive intentions, your prospects are good, but if you are just going through the motions of trying to get money in the door, then the transmitted energy and your prospects are not so good. Joe Vitale quotes Sandra Zimmer, who runs the self-Expression Centre in Houston: “Advertising is important. But it’s the energy you put in the ads that does the work. It’s really the Law of Attraction at work”. So if we do not believe in the product or service that we are selling, we are best to cut your losses now and move on to a product or service that we can believe in. When we do believe in its value and ability to meet customer needs, we should pursue this with vigor.

If we feel good when we are writing and compiling our sales information or talking to people about the value of our products or services then we are on the right track. If we must exaggerate, mislead, or cover-up information, then we are avoiding the truth and no good can come from that. Be honestly proud, not embarrassed of whatever endeavors that you pursue and, in the end, only good results will accrue.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com
http://www.BargainDealsMart.com

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In the movie and book The Secret by Rhonda Byrne, Bob Proctor mentions and praises the essay "The Spirit of Opulence" by Thomas Troward. This essay can be read at http://www.ardue.org.uk/library/book12/es15.html and is well worth the effort. Troward's essay defines that to think opulently is to think largely, generously, and liberally. Have a look at the other essays on this site and you will be amazed at the content.

Applying the spirit of opulence to our life cannot but help us to succeed and grow. It is not a matter of collecting things so that we can live in the style of the rich and famous. It is a way of living, including doing business, that will attract opulence. In other words, what we have in our lives is the result of the actions that we take. Living in the spirit of opulence will allow us to think of abundance rather than lack and when we feel abundant, then we feel generous. If we are generous with our knowledge, time, money and other resources, then we will reap the rewards of this.

In business this means that we want to think of what we can add to the transaction, not what we can take from it. Rather than focusing on making money, we want to focus on how our product or service can benefit others. The question should be: How can we add more value, in our customer's eyes? Only then will we truly be able to find success in our business transactions. Again, if we focus on the money we will get, then the message we are giving out is not congruent with a feeling of abundance from which we will receive abundance. It must instead be too mindful of a lack of money, which will only manifest more of that lack of money. It is important to our success that whatever our businesses offer, that the customer perceives more value in that than what they have to part with (money) to get it. we must take the time to learn what our target market wants and then make the effort to market that to them. Once a sale is made, we should follow-up to ensure that our customer is happy with the purchase and absolutely rectify any problems. A satisfied customer will be a repeat customer, supplying free word of mouth advertising. An unhappy customer can do significant damage to a business' reputation and its potential to maintain or increase sales.

This information is not new to many of us. So many of the business and self-help books tell us all of this information. What begins to become amazing is that this information has been communicated to us in different ways from different people pretty much since the beginning of time. Bob Proctor refers to a Judge Thomas Troward's work in the early 1900s, about the same time that Wallace Wattles was writing his book "The Science of Getting Rich". The Science of Getting Rich is the book that Rhonda Byrne's daughter gave to her resulting in "The Secret" movie, book, website and so on. As legend has it, The Emerald Tablets referred to in The Secret do come from the beginning of time. So we would do well to take heed of all this advice. We are being told this for a reason, and no negative consequence will result. The outcome is amazing to all that practice it on a daily basis.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com
http://www.BargainDealsMart.com

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People will put tremendous effort into making money through their stay at home business. Focusing on revenue is extremely important but it is also important to minimize the outflow of cash. I am always amazed when an accounting client will tell me that they do not know what they can expense through their business or even what they have expensed through their business. Both these items are very important.

Our businesses pay income tax based on its net income. So when we reduce net income then we reduce our income tax payment. Therefore we must make sure that we are taking every tax deduction within the law. If you don't know what you can deduct from your income then you should contact a trusted tax advisor. Alternately, there is much literature out there that will help you learn. The internet and library are great, free resources. If you complete your own tax returns, then your tax software will have lots of useful information. If you are not minimizing your taxes, then you are just giving away your money. In One of Robert Kiyosaki's Rich Dad series of books he mentions that you may be able to give yourself a raise simply by lowering your taxes. If you don't have the time or aptitude to learn all the rules yourself, then look for a great tax advisor for your team. This could pay for itself and more.

I am also surprised when people bring their receipts to us at the end of the year. Many times these receipts are not even organized. Countless people have not been recording their revenue and expenses anywhere throughout the year. Somehow they are managing their business by what is in the bank account and swirling around in their head. This is a very dangerous way to run your business. I have witnessed that the success of our client's businesses is directly correlated to their attention to the financial details of the business. This is not a scientific correlation, but the fact that the organized business has a greater likelihood of success is apparent to me from the examples I have seen.

Some basic things that you should do right away:

1. Set up a separate bank account and credit card for your business. This will help you organize and will help to prove to the taxing authorities that you do, indeed, have a business (especially important when expenses exceed revenue at the start).
2. Get some basic accounting software that will help you to reconcile your bank and credit card accounts. This software will also categorize your revenue and expenses allowing you to review your financial results on a regular basis.
3. Regularly and critically review your financial information. Can you increase revenues or decrease expenses? How much of your revenue are you actually keeping? Are your revenue and expenditures properly balanced?

Only very basic information has been discussed here. Although you may not want to divert your time away from revenue producing work, you will also need to focus on keeping the money that you do make. If your situation allows it, you can hire some help (or enlist family members) to help you monitor your stay at home business' finances. But you must make the effort and you will be glad that you did.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com

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Whether a person is conservative or liberal, young or old, male or female the message is the same. No matter where they live, how much money they have, education, social status, you name it, most people agree. Albeit for different reasons, people are becoming more environmentally aware. "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle" is becoming a common household and business phrase. These three "R"s will help to save the planet but there is an added benefit to your home business.

When we started applying these to our home business we achieve amazing results.

With regard to paper, we print or copy only what is absolutely necessary and then we use both sides of the paper. We provide our customers electronic information and only supply paper copies when requested (and may even charge a fee for this). We reuse paper that we receive that is only printed on one side, for notes or message taking. When we do buy paper, it is 100% recycled for only about one dollar more per ream. We recyle our paper and printer cartridges as well. Because of all these things, we contribute less to landfills and to destruction of forests and very importantly, our costs for paper and printer ink is way down. We have seen no negative consequences by taking all these steps.

To save electricity, we have replaced our light bulbs with florescent ones. They cost more initially, but our electricity costs are reduced and they last six times longer. We have a power bar on all of our electronic equipment and we turn the power bar off at night or when they otherwise won't be used for an extended period of time. This saves electric costs and I personally like the idea of having my internet modem and wireless network unavailable to hackers when I'm not using the equipment.

To save on heating and cooling, we have accepted that the temperature may not be ideal and that we can change what we are wearing (great benefit of a home business!) to become more comfortable. So the temperature range set on our thermostat is set a bit higher or lower than we used to depending on the season.

Our utilities bills continually show that we use less power or natural gas than in the same month of the preceding year and this is our goal. There is more that can be done but these simple steps described here will:
1. Help you save money on paper, ink, electricity and natural gas,
2. Impress your customers if you advertise that you are environmentally friendly,
3. Contribute less to landfills, and
4. Help to preserve the environment for future generations.

Efficient and effective use of resources should be a goal of every business. It does not cost more money to be environmentally friendly, contrary to popular belief. If we focus on efficient and effective use of nature's resources then the result has to be a positive one. One person and one business can make a difference, one person and one business at a time.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com

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Making money from the comfort of your home with a web-based business is an ideal opportunity for some. However, while many will ponder the decision, action comes very slowly. Doubt will surface and a "too good to be true" mentality will creep in. Leaving the comfort and security of their present job situation will create anxiety in those that need absolute security. But it doesn't have to be that way. Starting an online marketing business can be built part-time using one of the duplicable systems out there. That way, the new e-entrepreneur can learn from a mentor - someone who has cleared the path before. There are many opportunities out there. Investigate them and make a decision.

Robert Kiyosaki of Rich Dad fame espouses the philosophy "just do it". Take the risk, but only after doing a due diligence investigation. In one of the Rich Dad courses that I took, we were offered an excellent tool. We were told to ask the question: What is the best thing that can happen? and write down your answer. Then ask yourself: What is the worst that can happen? and write that down too. Now for each of the items under: What is the worst that can happen?, ask yourself if you can handle that. For example if you had put down that you wasted time; write down whether you can handle that. If one of the worst things is that you lose $1,000 then ask yourself if you can handle that and write down that answer too. If you can handle the worst outcome, you may want to proceed but if you cannot handle it, then you should pursue a different opportunity. Basically ask yourself if the potential reward of the best possible outcome is worth the risk of the worst possible outcome.

Building a business does take time and usually some money. You can invest both to various degrees. Some people will put in more time and less money. Others put in more money and less time. Neither is necessarily better than the other. It depends, of course, on where you invest your time and money. Perhaps if you have less money to invest in your new business you need to spend more time deciding the best bang for your buck. This may even be a better strategy than just throwing money at all of the investments that are presented to you as you build your on-line business.

Once you make the decision to start, you must commit yourself to your goal. This will involve planning your time and money strategy wisely to maximize the possibility of the best outcome being realized. Learn and continue top learn from all opportunities presented to you. Many are offered to you by whatever affiliation you make with your web-based business. Others are available by searching the internet or asking people whose success you admire. For example, I chose to learn about the success of Robert Kiyosaki by reading his Rich Dad series, listening to his CDs and completing his courses. Robert Kiyosaki is concerned that people will not have the financial resources to look after themselves in his retirement and has dedicated a big portion of his life to educate people in the financial realm. I liked his altruistic motive and wanted to learn what I could. Find your own interest and pursue it. Take action and learn, reap the result, and repeat the process. It will be your guide to success.

Mark Styranka
http://www.ExcitingDestiny.com

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As A Man Thinketh is a great little book by James Allen that has been rewritten into modern and gender neutral language. But in any language Allen teaches us the way to prosperity in our lives including your home business. So, what do you think? If you are brave and really want to know, look at your current situation. Because your current situation is a manifestation of how you really think. This is as opposed to how you think you think. If you really think prosperity, then you will demonstrate prosperity in your life and business. Are you demonstrating prosperity in your business? If you really think "lack" but thinly cover it up with thoughts of prosperity, then your business will demonstrate lack. If you really think: "I can't afford that!", then that will be your reality even if you try to think prosperity in general. Its the same thing with thinking or saying "I can't do that" or "that won't work". If these are indeed your basic thoughts covered up with some form of positive thinking, the result will be that you really can't do that or it won't work. So, when you look at yourself and your business; are you demonstrating lack or prosperity?

Bottom line then is that you need to "tend to the Garden of Your Mind, weeding out all the wrong, useless and impure thoughts and cultivating towards perfection the flowers and fruits of right, useful and pure thoughts". "Good thoughts bear good fruit and bad thoughts bear bad fruit" (in the book). This will require some work. But which thoughts make you feel bad? Those are the one to eliminate. Which thoughts make you feel good? Those are the ones to have more of. This work will need to be done continually if you want good things in your life including your home business.

At times it will be difficult or impossible to put that "bad feeling" thought out of your mind. You may need to push it out of the way with a "good feeling" thought. For better results, this other thought should be completely different; like thinking about a past or future vacation, or other special event. Think about someone you love and what you can do for them. How can your business better serve more people? Do you get the idea?

Finally, turn the negative thoughts like "I can't afford that!" around and think "How can I afford that?" or "I can't do that" into "How can I do that?" or "that won't work" into "How can I make it work?". Then concentrate and write down your thoughts. If you practice any form of mediation then apply it to this situation. Focus and don't give up. The power of your conscious and subconscious mind will find an answer for you if you try.

So, what do you think? If you are brave and really want to know, look at your current situation. Your current situation is a mirror of how you really think. Your next thought should be a "good feeling" thought. Importantly, don't take yourself too seriously. Recognize your good qualities along with those that you would like to change, and then set about changing them. Try to have some fun with the process.

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