Xpansion Code Radio

Persistence

What is persistence: continuance in a course of action in spite of difficulty or opposition.

J.K. Rowling

J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, is currently the second-richest female entertainer on the planet, behind Oprah. However, when Rowling wrote the first Harry Potter book in 1995, it was rejected by twelve different publishers. Even Bloomsbury, the small publishing house that finally purchased Rowling’s manuscript, told the author to “get a day job.”

At the time when Rowling was writing the original Harry Potter book, her life was a self-described mess. She was going through a divorce and living in a tiny flat with her daughter. Rowling was surviving on government subsidies, and her mother had just passed away from multiple sclerosis. J.K. turned these negatives into a positive by devoting most of her free time to the Harry Potter series. She also drew from her bad personal experiences when writing. The result is a brand name currently worth nearly $25 billion.

How to Develop Persistence:

4 Steps that lead to habit of persistence:

1. A definite purpose backed by a burning desire for its fulfillment.
2. A definite plan, expressed in continuous action.
3. A mind closed tightly against all negative and discouraging influences, including negative suggestions of relatives, friends and acquaintances.
4. A friendly alliance with one or more person who will encourage you to follow through with both plan and purpose.

Thomas Edison

 In the period from 1878 to 1880 Thomas Edison and his associates worked on at least three thousand different theories to develop an efficient incandescent lamp.

"The electric light has caused me the greatest amount of study and has required the most elaborate experiments," he wrote. "I was never myself discouraged or inclined to be hopeless of success. I cannot say the same for all my associates."

"Genius is one percent inspiration and ninety-nine percent perspiration."

Definite Causes of Persistence:

1. DEFINITENESS OF PURPOSE. Know what you want is the first and, perhaps, the most important step toward the development of persistence. A strong motive forces you to surmount many difficulties.

2. DESIRE. It is comparatively easy to acquire and maintain persistence in pursuing the object of intense desire.

3. SELF-RELIANCE.Believe in your ability to carry out a plan encourages you to follow the plan through with persistence.

4. DEFINITENESS OF PLANS. Organized plans, even though they may be weak and entirely impractical, encourage persistence.

5. ACCURATE KNOWLEDGE. Knowing that your plans are sound, based upon experience or observation, encourages persistence; “guessing” instead of “knowing” destroys persistence.

6. COOPERATION. Sympathy, understanding and harmonious cooperation with others tend to develop persistence.

7. WILLPOWER. The habit of concentrating your thoughts upon the building of plans for the attainment of a definite purpose leads to persistence.

8. HABIT. Persistence is the direct result of habit. The mind absorbs and becomes part of the daily experiences upon which it feeds. Fear, the worst of all enemies, can be effectively cured by forced repetition of acts of courage. Everyone who has seen active service in war knows this.

Addicted 2 Success

How To Develop Persistence by Napoleon Hill

Carla Schesser

https://addicted2success.com/motivation/how-to-develop-persistence-by-napoleon-hill/

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 15 — CHAPTER 15: The Law of Contribution

Growing Yourself Enables You To Grow Others

LEARN IT

“Other Need To Grow Too”

I. Adding Value To Others

A. You cannot give what you do not have

B. Daily Ask Your Self: What Good Shall I do Today

C. What Good Have I Done Today?

II. Be A River, Not A Reservoir

These questions are excellent for identifying someone who can encourage us to be our best:

A. Who mentors you and offers you a baseline of wisdom?

B. Who mentors you to aspire to be a better person?

C. Who challenges you to think?

D. Who cheers on your dreams?

E. Who cares enough to rebuke you?

F. Who is merciful when you have failed?

G. Who shares the load in pressurized moments without being asked?

H. Who brings fun and laughter into your life?

I. Who gives you perspective when you become dispirited?

J. Who inspires you to seek faithfully after God?

K. Who loves you unconditionally?

Now, turn these questions around on yourself and reflect how YOU can be this person to someone else.

LIVE IT

“Give To Grow, Grow To Give”

III. Making The Right Contribution Choices

A. Be grateful

1. Live in an abundance attitude

B. Put people first

1. Is there anything more important than people?

2. If you are a leader, either people will be first, or you won’t be the leader very long.

C. Don’t let stuff own you

1. Discuss this wisdom from John, “There are only two reasons to have money: To have options and to serve others.”

2. If your life’s work is to have a life’s work, then you are working for the wrong thing.

D. Don’t let people own you

1. Owe no man anything and let not others owe you.

2. Graciously accept gifts, but never as a means to control you.

E. Define Success as sowing, not reaping

1. You may never see the harvest of your labors. Think of those who have plowed the ground for you and never knew how much they influenced you.

2. Commit now to not leave this world without having impacted others for good.

F. Keep growing to keep giving

1. People who stop growing will stop giving.

2. People who stop growing will lose their passion

3. The greatest gift you can give someone is your own personal development

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• What is your underlying desire in life?

Self-fulfillment or self- development?

• Are your best efforts focused on making you feel good, or making someone else successful?

• Consider how “others may own you” through unhealthy relationships, unfair expectations, or undesired attention. Make the needed adjustments for these relationships.

• Are you a “Go-Getter” or a “Go-Giver”?

LEAD IT

“When you live this law, you will show others the way and they empower them to learn it and live it too.”

VI. Applying the Law of Contribution to your Life

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 14 — CHAPTER 14: The Law of Expansion

Growth Always Increases Your Capacity

LEARN IT

“Find The Edges and Move Them Out?”

I. How to Increase Your Thinking Capacity

A. Stop thinking more work and start thinking what works

1. Capacity is not always about “more”. It starts with better.

2. Ask these questions about what works:

a. What am I required to do?

b. What gives me the greatest return?

c. What gives me the greatest reward?

B. Stop thinking, can I? Start thinking how can I?

1. The most common reason people do not overcome the odds is they don’t challenge them enough.

2. Ask this question: “What would you attempt if you knew you could not fail?”

3. Discuss this truth: “Self-limiting statements always work.”

4. Remember, most systems in nature are on a constant readjustment to correct the direction toward the goal.

a. Body temperature is regulated by always correcting

b. A flower grows by always responding to the sun

5. Don’t confuse the need to correct with failure.

C. Stop thinking one door and start thinking many doors

1. There are ALWAYS options

2. There is more than one way to do something successfully

3. The odds of arriving anywhere increase with creativity and adaptability.

4. Movement with intentionality creates possibilities

5. Failures and setbacks can be great tools for learning

6. Knowing the future is difficult; controlling the future is impossible

7. Knowing today is essential; controlling today is possible.

8. Success is a result of continued action filled with continual adjustments.

II. How To increase Your Capacity for Action

A. Stop doing only those things you have done and start doing those things you could and should do.

1. Will you continue to do what you have always done? Or try something new?

2. What we should do can and will shift in importance.

3. Expansion requires leaving your comfort zone

4. Making mistakes is a sign you are actually doing something

B. Stop doing what is expected of you and start doing more than is expected.

1. We live in a culture that gives trophies for just showing up

2. Expanding means we must do more than is expected

C. Stop doing important things occasionally and start doing the important things daily

1. When is the time to not do important things?

2. Remember, success is determined in your daily plans.

“Measure Your Capacity”

III. Expand Your Capacity – Expand Your Impact

A. Your impact is a direct function of your capacity

B. There is nothing in your past that determines your future – Your capacity must grow.

C. Ask yourself where your impact is right now – now ask yourself where you would like your impact to be. That difference is the limits of your capacity.

LEAD IT

“When you live this law, you will show others the way and they empower them to

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• Have you made the transition from “I Can’t!” or “Can I? To “How Can I?”

• Do some dreaming and then ask yourself:

If I knew I could not fail, what would I attempt?

If I had no limitations, what would I like to do?

If money were not an issue, what would I be doing with my life?

• Do these things seem impossible, or possible? If they seem possible, then you are ready to expand.

• Give yourself an effectiveness audit so that you can be sure you are thinking WHAT WORKS instead of MORE WORK.

• Think about your own behavioral patterns. What is working and what do you need to adjust? Use the criteria of “Required, Return, Reward” to help you make the needed adjustments.

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 13 — CHAPTER 13: The Law of Modeling

It’s Hard to Improve When You have No One But Yourself to Follow

LEARN IT

“Lead, Follow Or Just…?”

I. Discuss This Notion: You can only grow as much as YOU can – what now?

Mentor - an experienced and trusted adviser.

What is the role of a mentor?

A mentor may share with a mentee (or protege) information about his or her own career path, as well as provide guidance, motivation, emotional support, and role modeling. A mentor may help with exploring careers, setting goals, developing contacts, and identifying resources.

II. Whom Should I follow?

A. A good mentor is a worthy example

1. Seek a mentor who not only talks the talk but walks the walk.

2. A mentor’s personal life must reflect the highest standards

B. A good mentor is available

1. A mentor must be able to spend time with you to pour into your life

2. You may change mentors as you advance

C. A good mentor has proven experience

1. Seek mentors who have been doing what they do for a long time.

D. A good mentor possesses wisdom

1. Wisdom is knowing what to do with what you know.

2. Never confuse talent with wisdom

3. Wisdom can often be passed on in few words

E. A good mentor provides friendship and support

1. A mentor will let you know they care for you.

2. Don’t confuse someone who wants to give you advice with being a mentor

3. A mentor will lead from both the head and the heart

F. A good mentor is a coach who makes a difference I people’s lives

A coach is someone who gives people special teaching in a particular subject, especially in order to prepare them.

What does a coach do?

A coach is someone who instructs and works with students or with adult clients to prepare them for anything from performing at their peak in recreational or professional sports, to developing skills that will help a person achieve life and career goals.

1. A coach carries someone from where they are to where they want to be.

a. Consider some these names for ‘coach” from other cultures: (all of which mean one who goes before and shows the way.)

i. Sensei – one who has traveled further down the path

ii. Guru – “gu” darkness, “ru” – someone who brings light to darkness

iii. Lama – one with spiritual authority

iv. Maestro – a master of music

v. Tutor – a private teacher

vi. Guide – one who shows the way

vii. Mentor – a wise and trusted counselor

LIVE IT

“To Grow, Get A Coach”

III. Characteristics of a Coach

• Care for people they coach

• Observe their attitudes, behaviors, and performance

• Align them with their strengths for peak performance

• Communicate and give feedback about their performance

• Help them improve their lives and performance

A. The Law of Modeling states that YOU need a coach – everybody needs a coach

1. Michael Jordan has often said that there would be no Michael Jordan without Phil Jackson.

2. Do you have a coach, a mentor, a model to follow?

LEAD IT

“When you live this law, you will show others the way and they empower them to learn it and live it too.”

VI. Applying the Law of Modeling to your Life Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• For real growth to occur in your life, find a next-step mentor.

• Before you meet with your mentor or coach, have at least five thoughtful questions ready for him or her.

• Make a list of specific areas of your life you want to discuss. Remember, this is not counseling, but coaching for the future.

• Find even distant mentors you can follow

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 12 — CHAPTER 12: The Law of Curiosity

Growth Is Stimulated By Asking Why?

LEARN IT

“Many People Will Never Ask Why…Why Is That?”

I. Where Does Curiosity Come From?

II. How To Cultivate Curiosity

A. Believe you can be curious

1. Curiosity comes from a desire to learn – so desire to learn

B. Have a beginner’s mindset

1. Assuming you know is not helpful – ask questions.

2. The must be a fire in the heart for personal growth.

3. Treat information you already know as a confirmation of your understanding, not a waste of learning.

C. Make WHY your favorite word

1. Focused question often start with why

2. Why gets to the core reason, cause, intent, and purpose.

D. Spend time with other curious people

1. Other people’s curiosity will stimulate your curiosity.

2. Other people will ask questions you may not have thought of.

E. Learn something new every day

1. Start the day with an attitude of curiosity.

2. Growing means remaining open to learning.

3. Being open requires reflection on what you may have learned – Experience is not the best teacher, evaluated experience is.

F. Partake in the fruit of failure

1. Even in failure, ask why.

2. Take failed experiences as a teacher – learn, don’t lose.

G. Stop looking for the right answer

1. While there may be better answers, don’t always assume there is ONLY one right direction.

2. Instead of saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, ask these questions:

a. If it ain’t broke, how can you do it better?

b. If it ain’t broke, what is likely to break in the future?

c. If it ain’t broke, how long will it serve as the world changes

3. Steve Jobs, founder of Apple computers started his entire empire by questioning the status quo

4. The growing person is simply not all that comfortable with “single answer” solutions.

H. Get over yourself

1. Trying new things may mean we will look silly

2. Have the child like attitude of “can I try that?”

I. Get out of the box

1. Talk about the impact of Thomas Edison’s quote could have on your organization: “There ain’t no rules around here; we are trying to accomplish something.”

2. The words, “We have never done it that way before” are words of someone not willing to grow.

3. Talk about what having an abundance mindset means.

4. Average people ask, “Can I do this?” Abundance thinking people ask, “How can I do this?”

J. Enjoy your life

1. Just allow the joy of life to become a central part of your whole existence

LIVE IT

“Make Life An adventure!”

III. Curiosity: The Key To Growth

A. While we can be happy with answers and milestones, we must

never stop asking questions

1. Curiosity can make up for many natural weaknesses in our own lives.

B. Put no limits on your curiosity

1. Are you Indiana Jones when it comes to learning new things? Or are you the slow moving and less than fit guy at the end of the movie who was moving the treasure into its storage place?

2. The cure for boredom is curiosity.

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

Ask these questions of yourself:

1. Do you believe you can be curious?

2. Do you have a beginner’s mindset?

3. Have you made WHY your favorite word?

4. Do you spend time with curious people?

5. Do you learn something new every day?

6. Do you partake in the fruit of failure?

7. Have you stopped looking for THE right answer?

8. Have you gotten over yourself?

9. Do you get out of the box?

10. Are you enjoying your life?

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 11 — CHAPTER 11: The Law of Tradeoffs

You Have To Give Up To Go Up

LEARN IT

“The Hardest Part About Stealing Second Base Is Taking Your Foot Off Of First Base”

I. The Next Step

A. What will it take for you to go to the next level in your potential?

1. What are you willing to give up to go up to the next level?

2. What will you have to give up?

3. Not being willing to give up something is a key reason why most people do not ever reach their potential

II. The Truth About Tradeoffs

A. Tradeoffs are available to us throughout our lives

1. Unsuccessful people make bad tradeoffs

2. Average people make few tradeoffs

3. Successful people make good tradeoffs.

B. We must see tradeoffs as opportunities for growth

1. Discuss this quote: “We may not always get what we want; we always get what we choose.”

2. Two questions to ask in evaluating tradeoffs: 

a. What are the pluses and minuses of this tradeoff?

b. Will I go through this change, or grow through this change?

C. Tradeoffs force us to make difficult personal changes

1. Discuss this idea John puts forth, “When you want something you have never had, you have to do something you have never done.”

2. Change is always possible, so remember these truths about change:

a. Change is personal – To change your life, YOU need to change

b. Change is possible – Everyone CAN change

c. Change is profitable – You will be rewarded when you change

3. Consider these three truths about the timing of change:

a. Changing when you have to gives you a win

b. Changing after you have to leads to a loss

c. Refusing change is death to your potential

D. The loss of the tradeoff is usually felt before the gain

1. This is one of the reasons people fear change – it just might hurt a bit

2. It is said, “Nature abhors a vacuum;” the same is true about our own spirits, but the transition time between the change and the fruit of the change can be a powerful formation time toward our maturity.

E. Most tradeoffs can be made at any time

1. Tradeoffs such as better health, better habits, and more education can be done along the way.

2. It is rarely ‘too late” to make the change

F. A few tradeoffs come only once

1. This is critical to developing your own potential

2. Missing a possible one-time tradeoffs may mean you change many great plans

G. The higher you climb, the tougher the tradeoffs

1. Many people stop growing because they have reached a height for which they are no longer willing to work to get higher.

2. The skills that got you to where you are right now are not the skills that will get you to the next level.

3. Consider your own potential – What will it feel like to tradeoff to get to your next level?

H. Tradeoffs never leave us the same

1. The “fear factor” of change is that I may have to be different – yes, you will.

2. Consider if where you are is where you want to remain? That is the change to be different.

I. Some tradeoffs are never worth the price

1. These are the tradeoffs that will damage, harm, or even ruin an entire life.

2. This is why we learn the law of delayed gratification when we are a child

3. This is the value question for all of us.

LIVE IT

“Start Trading Up”

III. Tradeoffs Worth Making

A. Financial security for potential tomorrow

1. There is no future in any job. The future lies in the man who holds it.

2. If you have even lost a job, how secure were you on the day before you were notified?

B. Giving up immediate gratification for personal growth

C. Willing to give up the fast life for the good life

1. Reflect on these suggestions to help focus your life:

a. What can you delegate to others?

b. Do what you do best, and drop the rest

c. Control your calendar, or someone else will

d. Do what you love because it will give you energy

e. Work with people you like so your energy is not depleted.

D. Give up some security for significance

1. No one will ever achieve their potential while remaining is a “safe” place.

2. Being significant means taking chance on others as well to help them find their potential.

E. Willing to give up addition for multiplication

1. Be willing to lead leaders who will lead, not just followers who will follow

2. Seek partnerships and collaboration for doing just about everything

3. Share, not hoard resources and knowledge with others

4. Find ways to make sure the credit for achievement is shared

5. Be a conduit for blessings, not a reservoir of assets.

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• Write your own personal list of tradeoff principles

Use the list in this chapter to begin this list:

1. I am willing to give up financial security today for potential tomorrow

2. I am willing to give up immediate gratification for personal growth

3. I am willing to give up the fast life for the good life

4. I am willing to give up security for significance

5. I am willing to give up addition for multiplication

• As important as tradeoffs, is knowing what you are not willing to tradeoff. List some things for which there will be no compromise.

• As you list the “No Compromise” areas, also develop some safety measures that will ensure you never stray from these priorities.

• What trade do you need to make today? What is your next level, and what will it cost you to get there?

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 10 — CHAPTER 10: The Law of The Rubber Band

Growth Stops When You Lose The Tension Between Where You Are And Where You Could Be

LEARN IT

“Mediocrity Is Not A Worthy Goal”

I. A Series of Stretches

A. What do you think John means by “God’s gift to us: Potential. Our gift to God: Developing it”?

B. John discusses a series of his personal “stretches” along the way of his life. What does he mean by “stretches”?

C. What are some stretches you have experienced in your life? How have they developed you and challenged you?

D. Is there some place in your life right now you need to stretch?

LIVE IT

“It’s Easy To Be Average”

II. Stretching- to be capable of being made longer or wider without tearing or breaking.

A. Few people want to stretch

1. Why do you believe so few people want to stretch?

2. Is “average” really good enough?

3. What does “living by default” mean?

B. Settling for the status quo ultimately leads to destruction

1. How do you view this quote by psychologist Abraham Maslow: “If you plan on being anything less than you are capable of being, you will probably be unhappy the rest of your life.”

2. For all it’s worth, “average” can generally be achieved by merely showing up.

C. Stretching always starts from the inside out

1. Explore this quote by James Allen: “You cannot travel within and stand without.”

2. Could it generally be said that a person who never moves beyond average is not moving within?

3. Talk about this idea: “You are exactly where you should be in life given everything you have done to get here.”

4. How can you evaluate where you are and where you want to be?

D. Stretching always requires change

1. Stretching requires we believe we can start again.

2. Stretching requires we develop the ability to stretch

3. Stretching requires risk

4. Think about this quote: “It’s never too late to be what you might have been.”

E. Stretching sets you apart from others

1. Discuss the limiting nature of this saying: “Good enough”

2. Why does John say, “There is plenty of room at the top?”

3. How many people do you know that truly are seeking to make their life extremely better…not merely more money, but a truly better life?

4. Are you setting yourself apart?

F. Stretching can become a lifestyle

1. Reflect on this quote by Rabbi Nahman: “If you won’t be better tomorrow than today, then what do you need tomorrow for?”

2. Just as exercise can become “addictive” to the athlete, so can stretching to the achiever.

3. Remember, success is not an arrival place to stop stretching.

G. Stretching gives you a shot at significance.

1. Imagine if more people aspired to become more.

2. What is meant by this quote: “A possibility is a hint from God; one must follow it.”?

3. What is meant by the term “Significance?”

4. How does stretching change indifference in to make a difference?

H. Stretching to the end

1. We are again reminded that stretching is a life-long pursuit.

2. Our lives must be in a constant pursuit of growing, learning, improving and giving more.

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• In what areas of your life have you lost your stretch and settled in?

• Have you been able to define your own potential? If not, seeking aid in this are from a coach or mentor may be in order.

• What habits have you developed that have hindered your progress toward your potential?

• Rate your satisfaction in areas of your life. In what areas have you become “average” and may have lost some stretching?

• Create some specific means for stretching in the areas of your life for which you are no longer winning.

• Remember to establish a balance between your potential and your present place so that stretching is both possible and challenging. This tension is critical, but you do not want to get so overwhelmed that you simply give up.

• Your stretching goals should be SMART:

Specific – words like “more, bigger, faster” are not specific

Measurable – without measuring, how do you know if you succeeded?

Attainable – they should be something you WILL actually do

Realistic – they must be something you CAN actually do

Timed – without a timed arrival, you are only creating a wish list

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 9 – CHAPTER 9: The Law of The Ladder 

Character Growth Determine The Height Of Your Personal Growth

LEARN IT

“We Are Human Beings, Not Human Doings”

I. Ambition:

A. What does John Mean, “Ambition without guidance?”

Guidance – is values and principles

II. To Be A Success, Think Like A Success:

A. What does this mean to you?

B. Describe some ways successful people think

C. Review the list of topics on page 141 and ask the participants share the top two they would like to explore in their own lives

III. The Value Of Character

A. Is it any surprise that “Honesty” is the top trait universally valued by people

B. Comment on this quote: “99% of leadership failures are failures of character.”

LIVE IT

“Your Potential Is Found One Rung At A time”

IV. Rungs On The Character Ladder

A. I will focus on being better on the inside than the outside –

Character Matters

1. The Inside influences the outside

a. We really do reap what we sow

b. What we believe makes our character

2. Inside victories precede outside ones

a. Before you can DO, you must BE

3. Our inside development is totally within our control

a. We can’t always determine what happens to us, but we can determine what happens in us.

b. Failing to make the right character choices means we give away some of our ownership of ourselves.

B. I will follow the Golden Rule – People Matter

1. “With one insignificant exception, the world is made up of others.

2. Whether you like people or not, they already know

C. I will only teach what I believe – Passion Matters

1. Borrowed beliefs are not owned beliefs.

2. We must be about the discipline of developing our own core beliefs, then passionately teaching them…people can tell the difference.

D. I will value humility above all virtues – Perspective Matters

1. While many people don’t plan to messing up, even more don’t plan not to.

2. Remember The Big Picture

3. Remember who we really are”

4. Be Teachable

5. Recognize that everyone has weaknesses

a. With only one notable exception, we all are fallible.

6. Having a “beginner’s mindset” keeps one pliable and moldable to new truths

7. Be Willing To Serve Others

a. Putting others first “right-sizes” our ego.

b. Serve someone for whom there is no chance of gaining anything in return

8. Be Grateful

a. Gratitude expresses our dependence on others and our own vulnerability.

b. We all have found our success through the help of others interested in our success.

E. I will strive to finish well – Faithfulness Matters

1. In life, one can never “stop” – the either “finish, or keep going.

2. Our character is being developed until we are finished.

V. The Stronger Your Character, The Greater Your Growth Potential

A. Discuss the quote: “He was born mud, but died marble” How is that lived out?

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

• Assess where you have placed most of your growth energy up until now in your life: Has it been on the inside, or the outside?

• How much time do you spend the things of the outside and how much time on the inside?

• Schedule specific time for developing the inside – humility, character, seeking others first and family importance.

• Discuss this idea: “There are many decisions one must make before they have to, or they will make the wrong one.”

• Explore this truth: “Emergencies don’t develop character, they revel it.”

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 8 — CHAPTER 8: The Law of Pain

Good management Of Bad Experiences Leads To Great Growth

LEARN IT

“It’s Not That Something Went Wrong”

I. Discuss this quote: “Every problem introduces a person to himself”

II. Truths About Bad Experiences:

A. Everyone has them

1. Bad experiences are not unique to anyone.

2. If we expect a fair shake, or a fair like, be ready for a bid disappointment.

B. No one likes them

C. Few Make Bad Experiences Positive Experiences

1. But we can choose how to respond to every experience

III. The Pain File

A. The Pain of Inexperience – “I have never been through that”

B. The Pain of Incompetence – “I should have seen that coming”

C. The Pain of Disappointment – “I wish it had never happened”

D. The Pain of Conflict – “Human encounter doesn’t always feel good”

E. The Pain of Change – “I didn’t want that to happen”

F. The Pain of Bad Health – “I lost what I thought I would always have”

G. The Pain of Hard Decisions – “You can’t make everyone happy”

H. The Pain of Financial Loss – “If I could only get that back”

I. The Pain of Relationship Losses – “Some people will grow in a different direction than I”

J. The Pain of Not Being Number One – “I deserved to be there”

K. The Pain of Traveling – “When I am away, I feel…”

L. The Pain of Responsibility – “They expect so much from me”

LIVE IT

“It’s Your Life – You Choose”

IV. How To Turn Your Pain Into Gain

A. Choose a positive life stance

1. What are your life assumptions and presuppositions about life, people, and experiences?

2. Do you start with an expectation that you can people are good, or that experiences can be dealt with?

3. With a positive life stance, good will become better and bad will not be as bad.

4. While life is not always the way we hope it will be; it is always the way is turns out – how will you view the final result?

5. A positive life stance WILL find positive lessons in every experience.

B. Embrace and Develop Your Creativity

1. Discuss this Quote by Neal Walsh: “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone” How does this help with creativity?

2. When presented with a bad experience, often creativity will show you the way through it.

C. Embrace The Value Of Bad Experiences

1. Discuss this observation by John Maxwell: “In this life, there are winners and there are learners.”

2. We will all face difficulties, but we will not all learn from them.

D. Make Good Changes After Learning From Bad Experiences

1. This is especially true is the bad experience is the result of our bad judgment – LEARN!

2. As fire hardens steel into a usable tool, so too can pain shape us into amazing people for the future.

3. Feelings such as resentment can make a bad experience even worse.

E. Take Responsibility For Your Life

1. Are you a victim or victor?

2. It is only one short step from “Why me”? to “Woe is me”

3. It seems very hard, maybe even cruel or callous, but no matter what happens, our attitude toward a negative experience (Positive and hopeful, or negative and defeated) will put us on a CHOSEN path.

4. Here is a solid truth about being accountable and responsible for one’s life: “Very few are.”

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

Based on your life, which of these statements best describes your response to pain:

• I do anything and everything possible to avoid pain at all.

• I know pain is inevitable, but I try to ignore it or just block it out.

• I know everyone endures pain, so I just endure it when it comes

• I don’t like pain, but I try to remain positive despite it.

• I process the emotion of painful experiences quickly and try to find a lesson in them.

• I process pain, find the lesson, and make changes proactively as a result.

Discuss this process John has used in his life when he has encountered painful experiences:

a. Define the problem

b. Understand your emotion

c. Articulate the lesson

d. Identify a desired change

e. Brainstorm numerous pathways

f. Receive other’s input

g. Implement a course of action.

Remember, personal change require action. Decide now to take action, attitude and altitude when the next painful experience arrives.

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.

LAW 7 — CHAPTER 7: The Law of Design

To Maximize Growth, Develop Strategies

LEARN IT

“You Plan You, Or Someone Else Might”

I. Glancing Backward, Planning Forward

A. Discuss the practice John has of taking specific time each year to evaluate the past year and plan the next.

II. Life Lessons

A. Life is very simple, but keeping it that way is very difficult

1. Life is simple when we make specific plans according to our specific values

2. Keeping plans simple can be found in these questions:

a. Can it be received personally? – Can a person internalize it?

b. Can it be repeated easily?

c. Can it be transferred strategically? – Is it dependent on a specific understanding, or can it be passed on through different cultures?

B. Designing Your Life Is More Important Than Designing Your Career

1. Who you are will most accurately determine what you do.

2. Planning should always be about who you are.

C. Life Is Not A Dress Rehearsal

1. Life comes with neither an instruction manual nor a chance to warm up.

2. It is also true that nothing about your past determines your future.

D. In Planning Your Life, Multiply Everything By Two

1. Be aware that plans look really good on paper, so be ready to expand the resources of time, money, and energy accordingly.

LIVE IT

“Better Design Through Better Strategy”

III. To Develop Strategies, Depend On Systems

A. Personal growth can and will come systematically

B. There is a saying in business: Systems are the solutions – discuss this.

C. Effective Systems Include:

1. Considering the big picture – We must have the end result in mind when building an effective system

2. Make use of our priorities – What is the highest and best use of your time right now?

3. A good measurement of the outcome – Without a metric of our own system, there is no way to know if we are succeeding.

4. Application – A good system answers the question: “What now?”

a. Where can I use this?

b. When can I use this?

c. Who needs to know this?

5. Promote consistency – A good system should predict the outcome reliably. This is a daily practice of doing the right things over and over again.

LEAD IT

“When you live this law, you will show others the way and they empower them to learn it and live it too.”

Facilitation Questions Options

OVERCOME GROWING PAINS

(Specific Steps to Amazing Growth)

Take the time to assess which areas of your life should receive the most strategic planning.

• Career • Hobby

• Faith • Marriage

• Family • Personal Growth

• Health • Free Time

Discuss this axiom: “Luck comes to the prepared.” What does that say about planning and strategy?

For systems to be effective, they must fit into these criteria: Discuss the meaning and application of each of these.

• Simple •_ Scalable

• Reproducible •_ Teachable

Begin developing or refining the systems which will lead to your own growth. As you do, keep the following in your awareness.”

• The Big Picture – Will it help you reach your big-picture goals?

• Your Priorities – Is it consistent with your goals?

• Measurement – Can you have a tangible means of determining your success?

• Application – Does it have a built-in focus toward action?

• Organization – Does it make a better use of your time than what you are doing now?

• Consistency – Can you and will you repeat it on a regular basis?

I am inviting you to check out my resources page. It is completely FREE and has a ton information and some downloads. You can find it at resources.xpansioncode.com.

I will be releasing new episodes every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday!

If you like this podcast, then check out my newsletter called Xpansion Press. Business content delivered to your inbox. Just click here to sign up.