Q: What one thing can you do to enjoy success in all aspects of your life?

A: Hold yourself personally responsible for your success.

Personal responsibility is one debilitating obstacle that gets in the way for many of us. We recognize that unwanted pounds don’t melt away on their own, the love of our life isn’t delivered to our front door and our dream career doesn’t materialize overnight. Yet while we act responsibly to promote our employer’s success and our family’s well being, we often don’t maintain the same standards in pushing forth our own desires and dreams.

Consider these reasons to hold yourself responsible for your success:

· Control: You shift from a mindset of “I want greater success” to “My actions will create more success.”

· Opportunities: You recognize that it is your role to initiate your opportunities. You are not passively waiting for opportunities or good luck to land in your lap.

· Accountability: You see that the only thing standing in your way of creating success is yourself. You recognize that external challenges can be overcome with your focus and dedication to doing what it takes.

Steps to take this week to take responsibility for your success:

1. Consider your desires and dreams at the same priority level as your family responsibilities and job. Just like you wouldn’t ignore requests from your boss or fail to provide your child with health or school needs, don’t allow yourself to slack off on the steps you need to take to create your success.

2. Schedule time for the building of your success. You are in control of how you spend your time; don’t let it be your excuse. Put your necessary steps on your calendar and commit to them. Think of time as being the most important asset you have and invest it wisely. Always ask yourself if what you are doing is leading you to where you want to go.

www.innerarchitect.com

A reduction in your income may impact many things, including how you perceive yourself, whether you are conscious of it or not. If you have prided yourself on financial success, your ability to feel good about yourself may be impacted as you battle a tough economy.

How to manage this challenge:

1. Remember that a successful life is not all about the money. Look for other non-monetary ways to define success.

• Are you helping people?

• Are you growing as an individual?

• What are you contributing to your community or to the world that does not involve money?

2. Look back on your life to periods when you weren’t making as much money as you are now. Believe that you have the capability to increase your income level once again.

• Is this an opportunity to start something new that could lead you to a better place?

www.innerarchitect.com

What is an Obstacle?

The underpinnings and support you build for yourself when you begin to implement change in your life are first challenged and often thwarted by what you perceive as obstacles that get in the way of your transition. If you can become aware of these obstacles, you give yourself the permission to change the meaning of the very obstacle(s) that stand in your way. Begin by redefining the word “obstacle”:

“The brick walls are there for a reason. The brick walls are not there to keep us out; the brick walls are there to give us a chance to show how badly we want something. . . the brick walls are there to stop the people who don’t want it badly enough. . . they’re there to stop the ‘other’ people.”

–Randy Pausch, Carnegie Mellon Professor and author of The Last Lecture

In Susan Hanshaw’s Inner Architect: How To Build The Life You Were Designed To Live, Phase 3 “Breaking Through Fear” contains a very important tool when considering your obstacles: Step 8 “Define What Lies Between You And Change.”

3 Common Types of Obstacles:

1. Fears: Your thoughts about your ability to successfully create change

2. Limited Beliefs: What you think you are capable of acheiveing or becoming

3. Lack of Commitment: Not being completely dedicated to the work involved with the necessary steps

Ultimate Responsibility:

Accountability for your actions and efforts is the ultimate responsibility we all have to ourselves.

“We can commit to becoming accountable and responsible to our jobs-careers, to our family and friends, yet we often don’t make that same commitment to ourselves.”

–Susan Hanshaw, Founder/CEO and author,Inner Architect