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Roger Federer, with his Wimbledon win yesterday, has now surpassed Pete Sampras' achievement of winning 14 Grand Slam titles. By claiming his sixth Wimblon championship he has also equalled the number of times Pete Sampras won the men's singles title, reclaimed his No 1 World Ranking and is now being hailed as the world's greatest tennis player of all time.
That's no small achievement and it hasn't always been easy. When interviewed after his epic match with Andy Roddick, which lasted 4 hours and 16 minutes and consisted of a total of 77 games, he admitted how painful it was to lose to Rafael Nadal last year. The latter was another epic battle lasting 4 hours and 48 minutes and consisting of 62 games.
Afterwards Federer said:
"The rain didn't make it easier but you have to expect the worst and he's the worst opponent on the best court. It's a pity I couldn't win it but I'll be back next year."
And, while it hasn't been all smooth sailing for Federer this year when he arrived at Wimbledon you could see he was ready for battle. It wasn't just the gold trimmed military-styled apparel. His body was more chiselled and he appeared relaxed and confident. He looked like a man who had re-built himself from the inside out.
The experts will agree that Federer didn't play his best tennis yesterday and Andy Roddick certainly diddn't make it easy for him. The match swayed back and forth but Federer held on. Defeat is never easy but so often our greatest achievements follow our greatest defeats. When Federer lost to Nadal last year the defeat also ended his winning streak on grass - a total of 65 matches.
You have to have the courage to stare defeat in the face and persevere striving towards your dreams and your goals. You have to be prepared to fight long and hard for your what you desire. To be successful in doing this you have to have enormous self-belief and you also have to have a deep-seated passion or love for what you do. It is this passion that will help carry you through the rough times.
Serena Williams, the most successful women's tennis player of her era can certainly attest to this. She defeated her sister Venus Williams 24 hours before Federer to win her third Wimbledon title (7-6 (7-3) 6-2).
Although there have been reports of the sisters moving on to pursue other interests they both insist they have a deep love for the tennis and will not be quitting the sport any time soon.
And John McEnroe made a very interesting and telling observation about Serena Williams and her own epic battle to win the semi-final match against Elena Dementieva. The Russian certainly pushed Serena to her limits and he said that even when on paper it looked as though she was losing the match Serena Williams had an air of confidence about her.
He said she radiated self-belief as though she knew not that she could but that she would bounce back and be victorious. And what was more telling he said it appeared as though the Russian believed it. She finally succumbed 6-7, 7-5, 8-6. Self-belief is powerful.
Serena has the attitude of a champion:
"I've got to fight. If I'm going to go down, I'm going to go down screaming and kicking."
Serena Williams has 22 Grand Slam titles to her name - awesome! The difference however, between her accomplishments and that of Federer - is that Serena Williams Grand Slam title consist of singles and doubles titles (11 singles, 9 doubles and 2 mixed doubles); Federer has won all his Grand Slams as a singles player.
Despite his achievements Roger Federer remains incredibly humble and very gracious and these qualities endear him to fans across the world. However, despite his awesome achievement what shines through is his sheer love for the game and this is essentially why he plays tennis and this is what has enabled him to become great. Love 15.
Image compliments Business Wire
Michael Jackson aka "The King of Pop" was an incredibly gifted pop star and will forever remain an icon in the eyes of his fans who so revere him. However, there's no doubt he was also a rather troubled individual.
He made millions of dollars with his music but it was also clear that he was not adept at money management. In fact, he has been described as "a millionaire who lived like a billionaire".
Jackson may have had lots of riches but he also accumulated massive debts and, as for wealth, there were many areas in his life where he lacked wealth. And, one of the reasons Jackson agreed to the comeback "This Is It" tour was he needed to raise cash.
But Michael Jackson was not healthy. He was frail both mentally and physically and many people, for whatever reason, seemed to ignore the signs that his well-being was in serious decline.
When you hear reports that he was underweight and taking a variety of drugs on a regular basis it makes you question what kind of medical examination could declare him fit period, far less fit for such a strenuous undertaking as this proposed tour.
You need to be in tip-top physical shape to be able to withstand the rigours of the entertainment business. And it was not like he was going to sitting on a stool to serenade his audiences. No this was meant to be a high voltage comeback tour. This level of performing will find your Achilles heel and take you out if you're not properly prepared.
And while Michael Jackson obviously loved to perform, he had no need to ever perform again. He created such a body of work - a wonderful legacy that will live on, thrill, awe and inspire entertainers and other people for generations to come.
So, getting back to the lessons about money and wealth that can be learnt from this saga. Basically, at age 50, Michael Jackson decided to go back to work. Now don't get me wrong, I love entertainment and if artists want to go on performing well into their later years I applaud them but not if they're obviously not cut out for the physical and mental rigours required for this level of performing.
So here's the thing we all need money in order to survive in this world but if you don't learn how to rule money, money will rule you. Money cannot buy you happiness but the lack of money can cause a great deal of pain. As Ayn Rand said:
"Money is only a tool. It will take you wherever you wish, but it will not replace you as the driver."
And it's not even about the amount of money you make - it's the amount of money that you keep that counts. Throughout our lives a great deal of money will pass through our fingers and those of us who learn and practice money management skills and who are disciplined with regards to money will get to keep a larger proportion of that money.
Now while it's important to accept responsibility for the management of your money you don't have to do it all yourself. You can hire individuals to help you manage various aspects of your finances.
So decide the age that you wish to 'retire', set goals for your retirement and work diligently towards achieving your goals. And ensure that when you reach your 'retirement' age you can simply live your life as you choose.
Ideally, you'll already be following your passion and so it's unlikely that you'll just live out the rest of your days chilling out on some beach or whatever else takes your fancy. Instead, as you reach your designated retirement age your life will evolve into a new and even more exciting phase.
For a contemporary example of this just take a look at Bill Gates who is now able to focus his efforts on the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. And while even donating money has its challenges there's no doubt that Bill Gates is enjoying these new challenges as well as working together with his wife in a new and exciting way.
Michael Jackson also donated generously to many charities but this is not about philanthropy. It's simply about having the financial freedom to live life on your own terms and to be able to dance to the beat of your own music.
A few years ago Dr Topher Morrison who is, among other things, a renowned public speaker and a best-selling author, launched a new seminar called "The Mental Game of Money".
News about this seminar spread like wild fire and the numbers of people registering for this event grew so large that the venue had to be changed twice to accommodate the swelling numbers.
At the event itself, the atmosphere was truly amazing. "The Mental Game of Money" was a major catalyst of change in the lives of many people. Yes, some people actually went on to massively increase the amount of money they were earning. For instance, one individual built a million dollar portfolio in 30 days but for others the change wasn't directly related to making money. Many people reported significant changes in their health, their relationships and other areas of their lives.
The seminar was held in London a few more times and was very successful. And each time similar results were produced. Some achieved greater financial success while others achieved breakthroughs in other areas of their lives. And yes, there were some who were initially enthused about what they heard at the event and the prospect of turning their lives around but, at the end of day, for whatever reason, they failed to take action. And of course, I don't need to tell you where their story ended.
These were some of the primary reasons Dr Topher Morrison felt he needed to change the seminar to "The Mental Game of Life". Now to be fair, "The Mental Game of Money" was a very holistic seminar. As the name suggests, it looks at your inner game regarding earning money and touched upon a number of topics that you would not normally associate with a seminar about money, such as forgiveness.
However, its creator recognised that consistently making more money and creating more wealth - not to be confused as being one and the same - are more of a psychological game requiring a whole life approach. We often use the words money and wealth interchangeably but in reality they are very different. One way of describing money is as a currency - it what you use to buy stuff. Wealth, on the other hand can encompass wealth but much more besides and wealth is also more about your mindset.
Another interesting fact emerged from "The Mental Game of Money" seminars. Those who went on to make significantly more money after attending the event were those who were either already on their purpose path or those who subsequently discovered and followed their purpose path.
So this was the backdrop to the development of "The Mental Game of Life" seminar. Now the initial seminar was advertised on a relatively small budget and with minimal resources. However, buoyed by the success of its precursor, the promoters of "The Mental Game of Life" set aside a larger budget and more resources to promote and advertise the event.
Despite this, the numbers attending "The Mental Game of Life" were a fraction of those attending "The Mental Game of Money". In hindsight, this perhaps wasn't so surprising after all but it is a sad reflection on our society where so much emphasis is placed on material things and the acquisition of money. Don't get me wrong there's nothing wrong with acquiring things and possessing lots of money can help to make life more enjoyable.
What the stats were indicating is that people were generally more interested in making more money than improving the overall quality of their lives which ironically would enable them to make more money. But as Dr Topher Morrison points out:
"Until you can value the totality of life more powerfully than you do money, true wealth will always elude you."
The dynamics between money and wealth are being played out over and over again in our society. A very public and dramatic example of this is the sad saga of the late Michael Jackson. It is my belief that the so prophetically named "This Is It" tour was devised primarily as a means to make money. And I believe that the mounting pressure of this comeback tour ultimately lead to the demise of the strange yet gifted performer.
As Mae West said:
"I've been rich and I've been poor. Believe me, rich is better."
And I agree with this wholeheartedly. However, you need to understand the psychology of wealth and the mental game of life if you are to be victorious and win the game of money.
Your Chance to WIN!
For a chance to win the 5-DVD set of "The Mental Game of Money" - simply send an email to:
winningthegameofmoney@getresponse.com
Many people abandon their dreams and their goals at the first hurdle. Worse still, many don't even attempt to pursue them because of something called failure. Yet the irony is that the more we try to run away from what we perceive to be failure the more failure stares us in the face.
One of the reasons why people let failure get in the way of their achieving their goals is because they forget the real objective of goal achievement. Achieving your goals is great but the real success lies in what you become as a result of pursuing your goals.
Albert Einstein said that you cannot solve a problem at the level at which it was created. Similarly, for you to achieve your goals - something greater that you have previously achieved, you have to grow bigger than you were before. And so, even if you don't achieve your ultimate goal you may actually achieve something better even though you may not realise it at the time.
Internet Marketer Russell Brunson is an example of someone who had a dream and felt the agony of his dream slip through his fingers. For a while he felt like a failure but he soon realised that although he didn't achieve his ultimate wrestling goal his years of dedicated training even while on family vacations and years of competing had strengthened him not just physically but also mentally.
So after losing a critical wrestling match he turned his mental toughness, energy and focus to business. He was still in college but that year he generated $250,000 in sales. The year following his graduation he did even better. In fact, he quadrupled his sales generating over $1 million dollars. And his business has gone from strength to strength ever since and he now operates a multi-million dollar business.
But his passion for wrestling still burned in his soul and so he recently made a bold decision to train for the 2012 Olympics. Two key individuals inspired him to make this decision and it's no surprise that they both come from wrestling backgrounds.
The first was Matt Hoover, the winner of Season 2 of the NBC's Biggest Loser. Matt Hoover is also a former wrestler but, following an injury which forced him to stop competing, he experienced eating disorders which resulted in his weight ballooning to over 300 lbs. When he started the Biggest Loser series he weighed in at 339 lbs. He won that series by losing 157 lbs over a period of 9 months.
Matt Hoover is currently training for the 2009 Ford Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii - an event certainly not for the faint-hearted. And he too has decided to return to wrestling and make a bid for Olympic glory. Matt Hoover willl be fighting for his dream.
The second person is World Bronze Medalist Justin Ruiz who had hoped to compete in the 2008 Olympics. When he lost his qualifying match during the Olympic Trials he was devastated.
He took some time out but one night when he happened to view a video of that fateful match on Youtube he knew that he had to try at least one more time. He decided that he would fight for his dream.
It took an adjustment of Russell's mindset to see that he could still pursue his childhood dream of becoming a world-class wrestler. Matt Hoover is several years older than Russell and if he was prepared to go after the ultimate dream of any athlete what was standing in his way?
Ironically, the manner in which he has structured his business and the success of his business is giving him the freedom to fight for his dream and to do so in a manner that would not have been possible when he was still in college. So when Russell lost that match that put a stop to his wrestling career, rather than being a failure it could have been the best thing to happen to Russell.
In Steve Jobs 2005 to the graduates of Stanford University he talks about "connecting the dots" and the fact that we cannot see how our lives will unfold. Therefore, once we truly commit ourselves to achieving our goals we have to trust that whatever happens is the best outcome even though it may not appear so at the time.
If you're courageous and persistent enough to fight for your dreams then you will meet failure many times along the way. And, as Barack Obama said:
"Making your mark on the world is hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. But it's not. It takes patience, it takes commitment, and it comes with plenty of failure along the way. The real test is not whether you avoid this failure, because you won't. It's whether you let it harden or shame you into inaction, or whether you learn from it; whether you choose to persevere."
To find out more about the big way in which Russell Brunson is pursuing his Olympic Dream visit the URL below. I was inspired when I simply heard that he was going to train for the 2012 Olympics but I was blown away when I saw how he was doing it and the lives he is changing even now at the start of his epic journey:
Fighting for Your Dreams
What dream will you fight for?
International speaker and best-selling author Dr Topher Morrison will be hosting FREE 2-hour presentations all this week on "Winning the Game of Money".
You can register for your FREE ticket(s) at:
www.WinningTheGameOfMoney.com
Dr Topher Morrison has over 17 years experience as a Doctor and Master Trainer of Clinical Hypnotherapy. He also belongs to a very elite group of individuals, who number less than 50 people worldwide, entrusted with the title Master Trainer of Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP).
He is a highly sought-after hypnotherapist and NLP Master Trainer who assists clients including multi-national executives and Olympic athletes to achieve higher results. He is also in great demand as a speaker and his presentations are renowned not only for their rich and practical content but also their entertainment value.
He believes that life should be lived as an epic adventure and that individuals should play hard as well as work hard. So it comes as no surprise that he is of the view that earning money should be fun.
It makes sense when you think about it for if having lots of money makes life more enjoyable shouldn't making money be enjoyable too? However, the truth is that many people are not only struggling to earn money they are also miserable earning money as well.
Why is this? Dr Topher Morrison is of the view that:
"You can't win the game of money if you don’t know what drives you to succeed financially. When you have that driver and you know your path, you will start winning the game and it will be fun again."
Again, this makes complete sense and so whether you're currently facing financial challenges or simply wish to sharpen your wealth mindset then "Winning the Game of Money" is a great event for you to attend.
However, even with games rules have to be strictly adhered to otherwise chaos ensues. And if you don't know the rules of the money game you're in a losing position before you even start playing.
So attend this event if you want to:
~ Learn 2 rules of the game of money.
~ Learn how to develop strategies for playing the money game.
~ Discover how to unlock the secret to your winning formula.
~ Learn how to consistently increase your income.
~ Discover the criteria that determine whether or not you'll become wealthy.
~ Learn strategies to keep the wealth you acquire.
~ Discover leading psychological advances that will help you to master generating different levels of wealth.
~ Learn the fundamental difference between those losing the game of money and those winning the game of money.
~ Learn how you can hang up with some of the wealthiest people in the world.
And more.
You can listen to a special message from Dr Topher Morrison and register your tickets for this event at the URL below.
www.WinningTheGameOfMoney.com
Extra dates have been added because of the demand but it's anticipated that the limited number of seats available will not last long. So take action and secure your FREE tickets right now. Tickets cost £29 on the door.
Special Prize Draw
I have a Special Prize Draw for you. This is independent of whether or not you can make "Winning the Game Of Money". To win a 5-disc DVD set of Dr Topher Morrison's Home Study Program "The Mental Game of Money" simply send an email to:
winningthegameofmoney@getresponse.com
The lucky winner will be announced on 30th June.
Being in flow means that you're in a state of non-resistance. When you're in this state things happen almost effortlessly and life feels tranquil. Bruce Lee once said:
"Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless - like water. Now you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup, you put water into a bottle, it becomes the bottle, you put it in a teapot, it becomes the teapot. Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend."
Now, while I wouldn't say that my life is completely in flow, some recent events really helped to put my life into perspective. In particular, I was working on a project where, among other things, there was a lack of organisation, clarity and direction.
I felt myself becoming very frustrated and instead of flowing I was literally crashing. But, before I go into those details, let me tell you a story about something that happened to me when I was a little girl - things that go bump in the night.
We had just moved house and my sister and I were temporarily sharing a bed. I was sleeping on the outside and one night I fell out of bed not once but three times! The first time I fell the sound awoke my mother who came into the bedroom but I was already back in bed.
Puzzled my mum went back to her bed and then I fell the second time. Again my mum came into our room to investigate but everything was as it should be. Then I fell the third time. Now either I was slow this time or my mother was fast but this time she caught me climbing back into bed. She quickly assessed the situation and took remedial action. She made my sister and I swap places. Finally, everyone could get a good night's sleep.
So going back to my crashing - over the past couple of weeks I've fallen twice. It's been years since I've fallen and then twice in two weeks. On the first occasion I almost bounced back up and was off and running again. It was alomst funny. I'm pretty fit, strong and agile and so when I do hit the deck I don't need an 8-second count.
The second time I felt a sharp pain as my right knee hit the pavement first then my hands instinctively came down to break my fall (funny expression that). I could literally hear the air rush out of me.
I don't know if such an event has happened to you but time seems to slow down. I did a quick mental check kinda like in the sci-fi movies when you see cyborg checking its systems to assess damage. Yes, I was hurt but it didn't seem to be serious.
I pushed myself off the pavement and moved off again. I wasn't running this time though. I was hobbling. I changed route, veering off the main street and went down some back streets to give myself a chance to recover my gait.
I'm still recovering from that injury although it's not as bad as I first feared. However, movements that I used to do without even thinking about them I now have to adapt or not do at all. Fortunately, I can still teach my classes.
I didn't need to be told a third time - two falls was enough.
And you know the Universe has a way of giving you just what you need when you need it. So I'm no longer working on the project where I felt out of sync and I'm in the process of making some other changes to my life. I'm now in the process of getting back onto the main street of my life.
I like the analogy of being like water but I prefer being in flow to crashing.
The level of success you achieve in life and or in business is in direct proportion to the quality and quantity of your decision-making.
Motivational Speaker Alex Mandossian summed up the whole issue of decision-making beautifully and succinctly when he said:
"Doing isn't difficult. Deciding to do is."
For you see nothing happens until a decision is made. You've probably heard that nothing happens until a sale is made but think about it. When you make a decision you've effectively sold yourself on an idea.
The problem is that people sometimes struggle to make even the simplest of decisions and because of this they remain stuck. They're almost in a state of paralysis.
One reason for this is that people not only have the freedom to choose their own way; often they also have a multitude of choices. And while, on the one hand, the latter can be a blessing, it can also be a curse as when confronted with too many options the mind becomes confused and its decision-making capacity is diminished.
Unfortunately, indecisiveness can derail your chances of achieving success. As Napoleon Hill discovered:
"Men who succeed reach decisions promptly, and change them, if at all, very slowly. Men who fail, reach decisions, if at all, very slowly, and change them frequently, and quickly."
Napoleon Hill also goes on to say that indecisiveness and procrastination are twin brothers. People procrastinate on making decisions because then they don't have to take action. However, they are shooting themselves in the foot because they cannot make progress towards their goals if they don't make a decision.
People often worry about making the wrong decision and yes, it is possible to make a mistake, but most mistakes can be corrected. Often the route to your goal is not direct and you have to keep adjusting the direction of your course until you reach your destination. And the more you improve your decision-making skills the fewer mistakes you'll make.
So just how do you go about improving your decision-making skills? Well, you start with the very next decision you have to make. T Harv Eker said that:
"The way you do anything is the way you do everything."
In other words, if you have poor decision-making skills it's not going to only show up when you have to make a big decision. It's going to show up in every facet of your life. You probably hesitate in deciding what shoes to wear, which restaurant to have lunch at or whether to drive or use public transport to get to your meeting.
So get into the habit of making the simple decisions swiftly. Also, notice and congratulate yourself when you do this. Practice this relentlessly for at least 30 days. You will then find that it becomes easier to make more challenging decisions because you will have installed a new habit.
In addition, notice the positive consequences of each of your decisions because you can be certain that just as every decision you fail to make has a cost every decision you do make has a benefit. In other words, regularly perform cost-benefit analysis of the key decisions that you make. You see, at the moment you may be indecisive but you may not be fully taking into account what your decisiveness is truly costing you.
For instance, how much did you lose when you hesitated on making that deal? How much did you potentially lose when you didn't apply for that job even though it was perfect for you?
However, it's also important to do the opposite as well and acknowledge what you gained by being decisive. Take note of both the tangible and the intangible benefits. When you do this you'll be quick to recognise the full benefits of being decisive and you'll find that your decisiveness as well as the level of success you achieve in life will come on by leaps and bounds.
Decision-making is an important leadership skill. People do not have confidence in someone who is indecisive. However, the most important person to successfully lead in this life is you for as as Robert F. Bennett said:
"Your life is the sum result of all the choices you make, both consciously and unconsciously. If you can control the process of choosing, you can take control of all aspects of your life. You can find the freedom that comes from being in charge of yourself."
Roger Federer, with his Wimbledon win yesterday, has now surpassed Pete Sampras' achievement of winning 14 Grand Slam titles. By claiming his sixth Wimblon championship he has also equalled the number of times Pete Sampras won the men's singles title, reclaimed his No 1 World Ranking and is now being hailed as the world's greatest tennis player of all time.
