“If you want something different in life, then you have to do something different to get it.”

You may have heard me share the quote, “If you want something different in life, then you have to do something different to get it.” I use it as my tag-line and mantra when speaking or training. I’m not sure who said it first, but I give Zig Ziglar credit for the quote. Zig was one of my earliest mentors, and I owe much of my success as an Air National Guard recruiter to Zig’s words of motivation. His book, See You At The Top, inspired me to set and accomplish goals my office-mates did not think or dream.

Today, there are hundreds and hundreds of books, articles, CDs, and videos produced discussing the gazillion steps to success. And while I continue to read, listen, and watch for new ideas, I still believe in the message shared in Zig’s quote.

Another quote I like along the same lines goes like this: “If you keep on doing what you have always done, you will get what you have always gotten.” (Henry Ford). Duh! Like we don’t know that! Yet, we often find ourselves following the same routines and habits day after day. James Allen wrote in his book, As A Man Thinketh, that “People (Men) are anxious to improve their circumstances but are unwilling to improve themselves, and therefore remain bound.” So, I ask you, as well as myself: If we truly have the desire to improve our circumstances, then what are we willing to change or improve to make ourselves better? What are we going to do differently? What routines or habits do we need to stop? And what new methods or practices do we need to start?

Think about it! We are the masters of our fate, the controllers of our minds, and the architects of our desires. We have a choice to remain in our current circumstances, or we can choose to move forward and experience a grander and more productive life, reach our highest potential and grow where no man or woman has ever produced before. So, what’s holding us back fear, comfort, no vision, or dreams? What? Below are three questions to think about and to work on for our next meeting.

1. Do you want to be in the same place as you are today, thirty days from now or a year from now? (you can fill in any word you wish for the bolded word)

2. Do you want the same way you feel today, thirty days from now or a year from now?

The choice is ours! Let’s not be bound by our comfort zones! Let’s do something extraordinarily different and see what happens.

Again, quoting the Zig, “I’ll see you at the top.”