TipsForSuccess: May 2009

TipsForSuccess: "How to Handle Distractions"

How to Handle Distractions

Have you ever been busy all day without accomplishing anything? You were probably distracted.

Ever wonder why you feel frustrated at work? Distractions might be stopping you.

Ever feel stress? Distractions may be the cause.

Distractions are not just irritating, they are destructive forces that ruin your productivity. Examples: Chatty coworkers, personal problems, sunny days, rainy days, holidays, earthquakes, debts, salespeople, money concerns, health problems and more.

How do you handle distractions? Get organized.

"THOSE INDIVIDUALS OR AREAS THAT ARE THE LEAST WELL-ORGANIZED ARE AFFECTED THE MOST BY DISTRACTIONS." -- L. Ron Hubbard

A well-organized business understands distractions and organizes to deal with them. For example, a key worker calls in sick. In a well-organized group, the manager calls in a temporary worker from an agency, gives the worker a written list of instructions and everyone gets their work done. A poorly-organized group discusses the problem for 20 minutes without coming to a solution. This group is then distracted all day because they have to do the missing worker's job.

When a well-organized business owner gets a legal notice, he or she delegates the problem to a lawyer and focuses on making a prosperous day. A poorly-organized business owner drops everything and spends an hour on the telephone and worries about it all day.

Well-organized groups handle emergencies, disasters and sudden increases in production without breathing hard. Poorly-organized groups are overwhelmed by them.

Personal Organization

Organizing your personal life so you are not distracted boosts your productivity and income, as well.

For example, you don't need to talk to everyone who calls you. It's also silly to read every piece of mail or e-mail you receive.

If you are organized, your communications are organized so you only receive information that is relevant to your job. Except for emergencies, you ignore family problems, personal problems and even your health problems. All superior producers do this and are not easily distracted. While working, nothing is more important than the work itself.

If your car won't start, your computer crashes or other small disaster occurs, you have backup plans. You are organized and not distracted by these problems. You get your work done despite everything that gets in your road.

How to Get Better Organized

1. Write down five of your biggest distractions or potential distractions.

2. Next to the first distraction, write down how you can get organized so you are not affected by the distraction.

3. Do the same for the other items on the list.

4. Follow your plans and get organized!

5. Write down permanent rules or policies for yourself or your work so you stay organized.

Personal examples: "I will only take personal calls during my lunch hour." "If I get hungry during the afternoon, I will chew gum and keep working until 5:00." "If Joe tries to upset me, I will pretend he is three years old, not get into an argument and get back to work."

Business examples: "If someone asks me to do their job, I will ask them for their pay." "If you have a suggestion for the company, please e-mail all the details to me." "Each summer, we will do the following program to keep our sales up, despite the vacations."

You make much faster progress toward your goals and ultimate success when you are not distracted because you are well-organized.

Provided by TipsForSuccess.org as a public service to introduce the technology of L. Ron Hubbard to you.

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TipsForSuccess: "The Blame Game"

Who Do You Blame?

No one wins the blame game.

For example, you make a mistake or something goes wrong. So you blame someone or something.

"I crashed the car because you played the radio too loud!"
"It's not my fault the soup is too salty! It's your recipe."
"If we had a newer computer, I would do better in school."

Blame is frequently used to explain poor job performance.

"My boss is such a jerk, I can't get my work done."
"I closed my painting shop and went bankrupt because of the economy."
"You don't pay me enough to be nice to EVERY customer."

Blame is also used for personal problems.

"I'm depressed because of the tragedies in the news."
"I can't be faithful to my wife because I have a chemical imbalance."
"I can't stop smoking because my father used to spank me."

Why You Can't Win the Blame Game

When you blame someone or something else, you actually make yourself weak and ineffective. You make yourself "at effect" instead of being "at cause" of the situation. You give power to the person or thing you blame.

"Blaming something else makes that something else cause; and as that cause takes on power, the individual in the same act loses control and becomes effect." -- L. Ron Hubbard

For example, your business is failing and you blame your assistant. You say, "My assistant messed up my business," which is just another way of saying, "My assistant controls me and the success of my business."

If you take responsibility for your business, you would say, "I need to train my assistant better."

As another example, you might blame your parents for your stress and anxiety. You might say, "My parents ruined my life," which is the same as saying, "My parents are so powerful, they control my mood and my emotions."

Stopping the blame game and accepting responsibility for yourself gives you new hope. "My parents didn't ruin my life. I ruined my life by being lazy and unemployed. I need to improve my opinion about myself and get busy."

While blaming people for your problems is silly, blaming physical objects is even worse. "My house is so ugly, I feel depressed." "Hot weather makes me go crazy!" "My body has a disorder which makes me fat." In these cases, you are actually saying, "My life is controlled by _______."

If you wish to succeed, you have to end the blame game. You only get ahead when you become "cause" over the situation. " I'll stop watching TV and paint my house a nice color." "I'll stay inside so the hot weather doesn't bother me." "I'm only fat because I eat too much and don't exercise."

Five Steps for Ending the Blame Game

1. Make four columns on a sheet of paper.

2. In the first column, list all of the problems or conditions you blame on others or things. Example: "I can't stop smoking because I'm addicted to nicotine."

3. In the next column, write how you are responsible for each problem or condition. Example: "I am the one who decided to become a smoker."

4. Write how you can take more responsibility for each. Example: "I could be more determined to quit smoking."

5. In the last column, write down an action step you can take for each problem or condition. Example: "Each time I want a cigarette this week, I will first take a 15-minute walk."

Five Benefits of Taking More Responsibility

* Other people and things have less control over your destiny.

* Poor conditions in your life start to improve.

* You make better decisions and do the right things.

* No matter how some people try, they cannot stop you.

* You become the most powerful force in your life.

Provided by TipsForSuccess.org as a public service to introduce the technology of L. Ron Hubbard to you.

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TipsForSuccess: "Your Unlimited Potential"

Your Unlimited Potential

Question: What does the word "potentiality" mean?
Answer: The capacity for growth or improvement; a possibility; a power.

For example, if you sit on a box of dynamite, you are sitting on a potentiality. The dynamite isn't exploding . . . but it could.

Fact: You ARE sitting on a box of dynamite, and it's big!

"Your potentialities are a great deal better than anyone ever permitted you to believe." -- L. Ron Hubbard

Right now, you are capable of making improvements in your career, your finances and your life that are more significant and satisfying than anything you have ever done. You can potentially shatter your past achievement records, eliminate your worst problems and feel absolutely great. Everything you have done in the past becomes minor compared to what you can do in the future.

Most people have the wrong idea about success. They believe "you can only do so much," or "you just need to keep on trying" or "success takes time." Such thinking slows you down and limits your lifetime achievements.

Instead, simply take a new view of yourself, your habits and your thinking. And then ACT!

To make a significant, instant improvement in your career and life, you must jump out of your rut. Overcome your addiction to safe, conservative plans. Break out of old patterns and find new attitudes.

Don't settle for small improvements. Do something bold and exciting. Find a destination you passionately want and make it happen!

Your Destination

When you plan a vacation, you don't start by examining the route. You start by choosing a destination. The route becomes obvious when you focus on the goal. And the bigger the destination, the more exciting the trip.

What is the most exciting destination you can imagine for yourself? What objective makes your heart pound? What goal lifts your mood?

These are your potentialities. These are your dreams. These are what you can believe in!

To get there, start by concentrating on the end result. Put yourself in the picture of your dreams. Create a vision of you reaching your goals.

Then act. Take a small step, a large step or a leap. Any progress will lead to more progress, as long as you remember to think of your ultimate success.

The time to start is now. Focus on a goal and light the fuse!

Provided by TipsForSuccess.org as a public service to introduce the technology of L. Ron Hubbard to you.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: "Sugar, Pep and Energy"

Sugar, Pep and Energy

The US Department of Agriculture estimates the average US Citizen consumes 152 pounds of sugar per year -- almost three pounds of sugar each week!

Sugar comes in many forms: soft drinks, candy, desserts, manufactured food and so on. Because sugar is inexpensive, tastes good and is habit-forming, food companies and fast-food restaurants add sugar without restraint.

Sugar, like any addictive substance, makes you crave more sugar. For example, a piece of chocolate gives you a little extra energy for an hour or so. As soon as the effect wears off, you feel tired and maybe a little depressed. So to feel perky again, you want another piece of chocolate. You use sugar to solve problems caused by sugar.

Every diet book, group or system has one thing in common: YOU MUST STOP EATING SUGAR. Hundreds of scientific studies prove that sugar makes your body store fat. Excessive fat increases your chance of heart disease, cancer, diabetes and death.

In 1972, L. Ron Hubbard wrote the following:

"Sugar is a deceptive thing."

"Sugar, that is supposed 'to produce energy' does so only at the expense of physical health for sugar does not build up a body, it only burns it up."

"The result of a heavy intake of sugar and carbohydrates* is to feel tired all the time -- no pep."

"If one is going to run a car, he has to feed it the right fuel and oil. If one is going to run a body it has to be fed the right food and that has to include protein."

"By eating your hamburger and vegetables and leaving alone the candy bars and cokes, you will begin to build up a head of steam." -- L. Ron Hubbard (*carbohydrates: a food group that includes potatoes, rice, bread and sugar)

Benefits of Not Eating Sugar

When you stop eating your three pounds of sugar each week, you lose weight. Other foods smell and taste better. You feel more alive.

Kicking the sugar habit helps you sleep better. The energy boost you get from sugar OR the depression that follows can keep you awake at night. With no sugar in your system, you can relax.

Sugar alters your digestion fluids so the good food cannot digest properly. You can get heartburn, gas or stomach pain. Without sugar, your stomach quickly recovers. You body also needs less food because you digest it better.

Without sugar, you get longer lasting energy. You no longer have brief peaks of energy that require a constant flow of sugar to maintain.

Hyperactive children, who are candidates for Ritalin or Prozac, are often calmer and saner when they no longer eat sugar. After you cut off their sugar supply, they will probably demand sweet snacks for a few days, but they eventually relax. They may also lose their mood swings, tantrums and craziness.

Ten Tips for Breaking the Sugar Habit

Like children, after you stop eating sugar, you might feel irritable and tired for 3-6 days. You may have headaches and feel foggy. You will most certainly crave foods that contain sugar.

However, the cravings and symptoms pass. Kicking a sugar addiction is tough, but not as tough as handling an addiction to cigarettes, drugs or alcohol. You just control your hand so it does not put sugar in your mouth.

So you can do it. These suggestions may help.

1. Recognize that sugar is addicting and therefore, controlling you to a degree. For example, if you cannot work or relax without eating sugar, you are addicted. Do you like being addicted to a substance? Make the decision to break the habit.

You have the power to control your craving for sugar. No temptation is stronger than your personal willpower and self-determinism.

2. Find and eat sugar-free substitutes to satisfy the urge to eat food with sugar. For example, fresh fruits and vegetables can stop the craving for sugar and fruit juice is a great sweetener.

3. Prepare your own food instead of eating prepared foods that contain sugar. These foods usually contain sugar: canned soup, store bread, fast-food restaurant food, salad dressing, sauces, gravy, cough drops, sushi rice, protein bars, flavored yogurt and breakfast cereals.

4. Read the ingredients label on the foods you buy. Sugar comes in many forms and is called many names including corn syrup, honey, maltose, dextrose, fructose, lactose and glucose.

5. Try healthy foods you have never tried to add variety and interest to your diet. For example, a new type of fish, exotic vegetables or tasty cheeses.

6. Exercise. Heat up your muscles, stretch out your skin and fill your lungs with fresh air every day. Strengthen your ability to control your body.

7. Use a gradual approach. If you make too many changes to your diet at once, the shock may force you to give up on your decision. You may get better long-term results if you make one change, get used to the change, make another change, get used to it and so on.

8. Get creative with your food. For example, buy a yogurt maker, ice cream maker or a juicer to prepare your own sugar-free snacks and drinks. Explore a health-food store. Try a natural foods restaurant.

9. Try different combinations of vitamins until they help stop sugar cravings and make you feel healthier. For example, 500 milligrams of vitamin C might calm you down or might pep you up.

10. Work out your own program and to start, change or stop your eating habits with the free TipsForSuccess coaching website: www.tipsforsuccesscoaching.org.

Taking control of your food is satisfying by itself. You are no longer controlled by the need for sugar. You burn off the fat and move closer to your ideal weight.

Even if you just cut your weekly sugar intake from 2-3 pounds to 1-2 ounces, you will enjoy long-lasting energy, fewer mood swings and better health.

Provided by TipsForSuccess.org as a public service to introduce the technology of L. Ron Hubbard to you.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: "The Way to Happiness"

Five Quotes from The Way to Happiness

More than 63 million copies of The Way to Happiness have been distributed around the world. The booklet, written in 1981 by L. Ron Hubbard, is a common sense guide to success and happiness. The booklet outlines 21 recommendations for successful living.

The following quotes are from The Way to Happiness.

1. "One can feel at times like a spinning leaf blown along a dirty street, one can feel like a grain of sand stuck in one place. But nobody has said that life was a calm and orderly thing; it isn't. One isn't a tattered leaf nor a grain of sand: one can, to a greater or lesser degree, draw his road map and follow it."

2. "When one is lucky enough to get to meet and talk to the men and women who are at the top of their professions, one is struck by an observation often made that they are just about the nicest people you ever met. That is one of the reasons they are at the top: they try, most of them, to treat others well."

3. "The test of true competence is the end result."

4. "You are important to other people. You are listened to. You can influence others."

5. "One can feel that things are such now that it is much too late to do anything, that one's past road is so messed up that there is no chance of drawing a future road that will be any different: there is always a point on the road when one can map a new one. There is no person alive who cannot make a new beginning."

You can learn more about The Way to Happiness at www.twth.org and download a free copy of the booklet at www.thewaytohappiness.org/about/resources-and-downloads/e-books.

Provided by TipsForSuccess.org as a public service to introduce the technology of L. Ron Hubbard to you.

To subscribe, buy books, contact us or learn more about TipsForSuccess.org, click here.

TipsForSuccess: "How to Handle Distractions"

TipsForSuccess: "The Blame Game"

TipsForSuccess: "Your Unlimited Potential"

TipsForSuccess: "Sugar, Pep and Energy"

TipsForSuccess: "The Way to Happiness"

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