Keeping score is sweating the small stuff. When you keep score, you spend a lot of time focusing on minor things that don’t really matter. Who cares that I gave my friends fruit snacks on any given day? By thinking about these insignificant details, you distract yourself from all the good things about your relationships. 

In sports, no one can argue with the scoreboard. The scoreboard tells us who is winning. The scoreboard tells us the story. The scoreboard tells us the truth. The scoreboard doesn’t lie.

Just as we keep score in sports, we should also keep score in business and in life.

Why is it important to keep score? So that when this lying voice tries to deceive and discourage us, we can look at our ‘scoreboard’ and remind ourselves of the truth. We can tell that voice to shut up and get lost, because we know the real story. We can stay encouraged, motivated, and focused, because we know that we’re on the right path and making progress.

But what now? Join Mark & Isaiah as they discuss how they keep score on a daily basis to ensure their goals are met.

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

“Don’t be an Ostrich.”

When faced with a danger of any sort, it is said that ostriches instinctively bury their heads in the sand, hoping that the trouble will pass them by. But, of course, the truth is that Ostriches don’t bury their heads in the sand to avoid danger. Still, somehow, the Ostrich has become a metaphor to describe a typical human predicament. When we see an issue in front of us, or our fears face us, we choose to bury our heads in the sand and ignore the problem.

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

Honesty is more than simple truthfulness. Honesty is the virtue of seeking and exemplifying the truth in all things. This means that we must speak the truth, but we must also do as we say we will, admit when we are wrong, and continuously question our assumptions.

When we speak to practice honesty, we must be careful with our words. Taking time to express ourselves clearly so as to not deceive through carelessness or imprecise language. Also, our actions must be aligned with our words. If we say something and do another, we are not being honest. Instead, we should take care to examine our words and actions to ensure that they align with each other and the values we profess.

Securities and advisory services are offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

As a professional, you are constantly learning. Whether you're learning informally through reading an article or conducting research, or in an educational setting like a seminar or online classroom, so many experiences can provide new and important information that enhance your skills and overall knowledge.

However, there's a big difference between absorbing information and putting what you've learned into practice. Without doing the latter, the training you've received will go to waste, so it's important to have a strategy for implementing your learning.

1. Identify Your Top Strengths

2. Enlist A Feedback Partner To Make The Learning Stick

3. Figure Out Your 'Why'

4. Create Metrics For Learning

5. Supplement Your Learning With Continuity Training

6. Do Some Honest Self Reflection

7. Establish An Action Plan And Review Your Goals

8. Seek Out Experiential Learning Opportunities

9. Write About It

10. Put Yourself In The Right Mindset To Start Taking Action

11. Find A Mentor

12. Get Out In The World And Make Some Mistakes

13. Set Long And Short-Term Goals

14. Pay Attention To Changes In Your Behavior

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

Is it better to have Luck or Skill? Generally skill prevails over luck, that's why having skill will make you a winning player, but only lucky, luck will run out eventually. 

Mark and Isaiah break down what they think Luck is and if it is sustainable.

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

"But I thought perfect was good," I hear you say. Not always. The dictionary definition of excellence is "to surpass", it is "the quality of being outstanding or extremely good". So, when you strive for excellence, you are always looking at where you are and how you get a little bit better. On the other hand, when you strive for perfection, you are aiming at something that is so good that it cannot get any better and the risk is that you will never get there.

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

Highly Effective Ways to Stay Motivated. Everyone is motivated by different things. Understanding what motivates you can make the difference between success and failure. But what happens when you can't find your motivation or you can't stay motivated long enough to finish a project or even keep up with daily tasks? You need find your motivation--but where?

Securities and advisory services offered through Commonwealth Financial Network, Member FINRA/SIPC, a Registered Investment Adviser.

You might be wondering how writing in a journal can have a significant impact on your mental health. After all, it’s just putting some words on a page—how much can that really do for you?

It turns out that this simple practice can do a lot, especially for those struggling with mental illness or striving towards more positive mental health.

Journaling requires the application of the analytical, rational left side of the brain; while your left hemisphere is occupied, your right hemisphere (the creative, touchy-feely side) is given the freedom to wander and play (Grothaus, 2015)! Allowing your creativity to flourish and expand can be cathartic and make a big difference in your daily well-being.

Overall, journaling/expressive writing has been found to:

Taking this stance of ownership, we are accountable to others but most deeply accountable to ourselves. The values at stake are intrinsic ones: our belief in this way of working and our identification with the deepest goals of others.