The Gauntlet is Thrown

photo by DieselDemon

I walked away from my job. The day after Labor Day, I gave two weeks notice, and yesterday was my last official day on payroll. You can read more details on how it all came about at today's Speak & Deliver post.

In a nutshell - I was in a job I didn't believe in, and I was out of town more often than not, with my kids growing up without me. There were financial implications involved as well, but in the end, it was a decision driven by the fact that I was not creating a life I wanted, but a life that was 'more acceptable' in the world's eyes than working for myself (and occasionally struggling, financially). 

How can I inspire others as The Champion of Choice if I am not true to my ultimate goal of helping people seek their Self-Defined Success? 

I will say that my time with People to People yielded some good results:

A. I moved to Denver, albeit on my own dime.

B. I spent two weeks in Europe

C. I got a tremendous amount of experience speaking on a nightly basis

D. I was part of an interesting form of sales/seminar speaking

E. I was able to test my own limitations, physically and emotionally

I learned a tremendous amount about myself, and what is really important in life. Last post, I discussed our Personal Choice Foundation. For me, family is number one - and nothing that gets in the way of family beyond reason will get in the way again.

------

So now what? Back to speaking, coaching, consulting, writing - and I'll trying my hand at affiliate marketing as well. I am more determined than ever to build the life I want - working for myself, being near my family, and inspiring, educating, and encouraging others in every way possible to take responsibility for their lives, become for effective communicators, and create their Self-Defined Success.

I have some very achievable goals over the next year to track as part of my personal challenge:

A - Monthly Income - from 0 to 3000/mo. by end of year, 5K/mo by next June, and 10K/month by end of next year. These may be high, they may be low, but they are benchmarks for me to go after - and the more people I help, the faster I will achieve them.

B - Speaking - putting together three keynotes over the next three months and delivering them to as many audiences as possible. 

C - Writing - finishing Kristi's book within the next 6 weeks, my own book by end of year. 

D - Building set-it-and-forget-it affiliate marketing sites that will generate a large portion of my income.

E - Coach business professionals to be better communicators both in-person and online

F - build a PR presence that puts me top of mind to my market segments as a speaker, coach and marketer (all different segments, to some degree)

G - Deliver on my promises, past, present and future - there are a few of you out there that know exactly what I'm talking about.

H - Change my physical condition by losing another 55 lbs to get to 165 lbs, upgrade my Super Deluxe Robot Leg, and start running.

I - and, of course, keep my Family number one - spending time and setting great examples for each one of my six-pack.

Once again, I'll be chronicling my adventures here, drawing back the curtain. I may be selling things more than I have in the past, but I'll endeavor to do it in a helpful, meaningful way. In the end, I want to help as many people as possible through my own talents and insights, and those I've garnered from others over the years.

-------

Do you have any choices that have been difficult to make lately? Do you have some choices you're afraid to make? Do you have goals you'd like to make public? Do it here, either in the comments, or by writing a guest blog post. Think I'm nuts? Again, feel free to comment, or write a guest blog post. 

I challenge you to keep going after your true successes - even when it seems the most illogical thing in the world to everyone around you. You are the one who has to live with your decisions - and you have the ability to affect your results more powerfully than those in the outside world. 

Consider the gauntlet thrown. You don't have to quit your job - but you do need to vigorously pursue the life you want now, before life passes you by. Become a Champion of Choice!

Who the Champion of Choice Really Is

When this all began back in May, I called myself The Champion of Choice. I have struggled with that 'title' because I've been so concerned with viewing it as a title, when, in fact, it is an action.

I champion choice. I fully believe we have the power to choose every action everyday, and we can deconstruct the present state of our lives based on the choices we have made, or chosen not to make. I know I am where I am right now because of each choice I've made. Continuing this blog is one of those choices.

Even after deleting the posts and videos from the first challenge, which I already regret, there is enough in this blog to let people know I'm not as financially successful as Tony Robbins, Ed Tate, or even OctoMom. Well, maybe OctoMom.

Do I want a meeting planner, corporation, or potential coaching client to read past posts know that I'm not an all-out success yet? That I still have goals I'm pursuing, and the big house, fast car, and massive bank account don't yet exist? That I'm still at the beginning of this journey, as opposed to being inundated with bookings and enjoying the speaker life in full? All it takes is a quick look at this blog, and they can see what struggles I face, without yet acquiring all the victories I aspire to achieve. (Of course, I don't have meeting planners bothering right now, since many of those goals revolve around marketing, but that's beside the point.)

Beyond this blog, the silver screen is lurking. Next year, a movie called SpeakEasy will come out, and it won't be hindered by my fear. It's a documentary about Public Speaking, with the storyline of the 2008 World Championship of Public Speaking as its overriding silver thread. I wasn't doing great during this time of my life financially, and was facing personal and family health challenges (some we knew about, some we didn't) throughout. Anyone who sees that movie will see a very stressed-out version of me in the midst of crisis. Of course, the viewer can also see it as "wow, he made it to the World Championship even through all that crap?"

There's no hiding from reality. I'm a financially strapped speaker/coach who can speak with the best of 'em, and inspire and coach others to transform their thought process and speaking skills in ways they never thought possible. Really. I hear that, or a version of that, every time.

I have allowed my present reality to hold me back, essentially extending my reality. My choice has been fear. Fear of being 'found out'. Fear that my competition will point to me and say "if he were really that good, would he be where he is?"

The reality of my reality, however, has nothing to do with talent or ability. It has to do with fear. Fear of not being credible, fear of investing everything and coming up empty, fear of giving others too much to judge. That means I haven't made the choices to succeed.

I've had enough. Because there isn't an audience out there that wouldn't benefit from what I have to say, there isn't a speaker I couldn't help improve in some way, regardless of my bank balance or stress level. Sound arrogant? I've been afraid of that too. No more.

So read the blog. Watch the movie. But remember to talk to my clients, too. Read Speak & Deliver, and my wife's blog Thriving with Neurofibromatosis. Follow me on Twitter, friend me on Facebook. See who I really am. My life proves my own philosophy - our future is ours to create by choice. I've made the choices to survive. The choice to hold onto my family without losing grip of my dream. The choice to build my wife's dreams even as I pursue my own. But ultimately, the choice to fear failure so intensely I have failed by not charging forward with every ounce of energy. Which brings us to now.

The choice I'm making today, December 1st, 2009, is to stop being afraid of reality, in order to build a new one.

What is your reality? What can you do better than anything else, regardless of any other circumstances in your life? What choices are you making out of fear?

The future belongs to The Champions. The Champions of Choice.

August Wrap Up - Where Are We Now?

(For those looking for some additional news on my daughter, I refer you to my wife's blog: Thriving with Neurofibromatosis.)

I noticed a funny trend when I looked back at my objectives and deadlines posted two weeks ago Monday, for the Champion of Choice Challenge 2.0. I had accomplished nearly every goal NOT directly pertaining to my speaking and coaching career.

The easy ritual stuff? No problem. I'm even doing push-ups and sit-ups to go along with reading 15 pages a night of Atlas Shrugged, doing family meetings and Bible readings, and spending more time with my kids. I'm down to 242 lbs. I reconnected with Toastmasters. I built my wife's website. We've even started another blog about losing weight together: Stumpy & Bumpy Laugh Off The Pounds!

Yet I've created no business cards or flyers. I've not updated websites or made phone calls. Frankly, I haven't even given a speech in 2 months, except to my children.

Why? Why are these my choices? It's not that hard to figure out. I get major props for most of the above from external sources. The rest is firmly within my control. The speaking and coaching? That's risky. And why risk when there are so many supposedly productive and positive things to be doing?

Starting today, I'm putting risk back into the mix. My confidence is bolstered by what I HAVE done the last 15 days. I can do more.



Where are you with your goals? Are you eating frogs first, or, like me, sticking with the sides and desserts?