The following is an excerpt from a speech by Jim Rohn. After listening to it three times, I typed out the notes to put in the front of my journal as a daily reminder to employ these five steps. They were so powerful I wanted to share them with you.
1. The ability to absorb. This means taking in the atmosphere, the color, the scenario, the sounds, the smells. Most people are just trying to get through the day. Change that around and get FROM the day. “Join the University of Life!” Wherever you are, be there to absorb it, picture, capture it and take it in like a sponge. “Casualness leads to casualties.”
2. Learn to respond. Let life touch you. Let the feelings strike you. Our emotions need to be educated as well as our intellect. The Blind Side, a poignant movie about reaching out, making an enormous difference in someone else’s life, made me laugh and made me cry. (If you haven’t seen it, please put it at the top of your Netflix Queue. You won’t be disappointed).
3. Learn to Reflect. Go back over your day. Take a few minutes to reflect so you capture that day. “A day is a piece of the mosaic of your life.” Take some hours at the end of the week to reflect. Capture that chunk of time. At the end of each month repeat the process. Take a weekend at the end of the year to establish that year firmly in your consciousness bank. Remember the emotions, the complexity, the highs, the lows. Lock in the day, week, month and year. Review what worked well and what didn’t. “Make the past more powerful to serve you in the future.” Become more valuable in your marriage, as a parent, or as a business partner. In addition to having some solitude for reflecting, take an opportunity to reflect with someone else by stating: “I’ll take care of me for you if you will please take care of you for me.” Work harder on yourself than you do on your job. Become better than you are!
4. The ability to Act. Act when the idea is hot and the emotion is strong. Action has to be as soon as possible. The law of diminishing intent applies here. If you don’t translate that idea into action very soon, a month from now it is cold and a year from now it can’t be found. Good health? Is that your goal? Get the process started immediately. Capture the disciplined activity now! “All disciplines affect each other.” If you say this is the only place I let down, that’s not true. Everything you do has a cumulative effect. “Every new discipline affects the rest.” The first little action will inspire you to go forward. The greatest value of discipline is self worth. “Neglect starts as infection. If you don’t take care of it, it becomes a disease.” How many people have a library card? 3%! “A guy specializes in happy hour, but doesn’t have a [library] card.” Why be part of the 97%? Do the BEST you can do. “The objective of life is to ACT.”
5. Sharing. When you pick up a good idea, pass it on. If you share a good idea with ten different people, you probably learn more than they do by repeating the concept. “Sharing makes you bigger than you are.” Can a full glass of water hold any more water? Yes, but for it to hold more, you have to pour it out. Then more will be poured in. Humans have an unlimited capacity to grow. A child will learn as many languages as you will teach them. Expand your capacities by sharing with others. “Pour out so your capacity grows.” Then you can hold more of the next experience. If you are too small in your thinking, you’ll not have the ability to share. Some people have their cup turned upside down, so they can’t receive anything.
When asked about his personal actions, Jim Rohn said to follow his teachings, not his example. Nevertheless, he inspired me to move forward EACH day and be a better, stronger servant than I was the day before.
To Our Continuing Growth,
Dar
June 21st, 2010 at 10:25 pm
Dar~
This is a full post! Anything that Jim Rohn teaches is awesome! I love the fact that he said to follow his teachings and not his example~ And yet, teaching like he did, I’m sure his example would be worthy of a follow!
I think you did a nice job condensing his speech!!
Thanks~
Linda
Linda G. Cox´s last [type] ..The Bag of Gold
June 22nd, 2010 at 1:58 am
Hi Darlene
Thank you for sharing this awesome information with us – they are all excellent points!
I’ve just done a cut and paste to print this out for myself!
~ Kylie ~
Kylie Doak´s last [type] ..Are You Focusing on What You Can’t Do, Rather Than What You Can?
June 22nd, 2010 at 8:15 am
Hi Darlene,
Jim Rohn was one of my favorites too & this is some of his best info ~ you’ve done a great job of putting it together in easy, concise points! A great share!
Christine Casey´s last [type] ..“3,317 Counter Points, Was It Worth Loosing My Family?”
June 23rd, 2010 at 8:09 am
Hi Dar,
Such a wonderful post and very timely information for me. The point that spoke the most to me was the one about taking action. That’s exactly what I’ve been doing for the past couple of days and I can’t tell you what a difference it has made even in my mindset.
Thanks so much for sharing. I agree with Kylie, this one is a keeper.
June 23rd, 2010 at 9:10 am
This is a great post that touches on a lot of great points for those looking to get more out of life experiences. After reading this post I realized that I do all of these steps instinctually. I believe all are equally important to the growth process. Jim Rohn is the man!
June 24th, 2010 at 2:23 am
Hey Dar, I thoroughly enjoyed your post, as usual. It’s so true, if we don’t act while the intention is fresh, sometimes it just gets shelved, only to sit there and gather dust.Thanks for those inspiring words of wisdom.
To Action & Achievement
Toni King
Toni Kings last blog.. http://tonisuggests.com/promote-yourself/
July 3rd, 2010 at 9:39 am
Thanks for taking the time to share your notes from Jim Rohn, so we can all enjoy some of his “words of wisdom” Looking forward to getting back to your website, and reading more of your articles!
July 14th, 2010 at 9:31 am
Great article Darlene! I look forward to reading more of your blog posts and networking with you
Howie Perks´s last [type] ..Jonathan Budd The Real Deal or Hype
July 14th, 2010 at 10:59 am
Thanks, Howie. It’ll be fun networking with you, too.
July 15th, 2010 at 1:01 am
Hi Darlene,
I am also a big fan of Jim Rohn. Have you
listened to all his tapes? This one on abilities is one of my all time favourites! I love meeting like minded people and look forward to connecting with you in the future!
Awesome post…
Cheers,
~Kebabope Morapedi
kebabope´s last [type] ..This Free Video Reveals How You Can Personally Attract Prospects To You!
July 15th, 2010 at 7:24 am
Thanks Keba! Yes, I have listened to all of Jim Rohn’s tapes and this one is one of my favorites also. I look forward to connecting with you, too.