7 – Put Love in all that you do and you will create Great results Every Time

Have you ever had someone cook you a meal which they have made perhaps many times before but it tasted different?  How is it that the same meal, cooked with the same ingredients, by the same person, can taste so different to the previous time?  I experience this phenomenon from time to time with my mum’s cooking (I think my mum is the best cook). I always wonder why sometimes it tastes amazingly good (and I get the same comments from my wife and kids) whereas other times it tastes just plain bland?  I have come to a resolution that the difference is whether it is an “act of love and service” or not.  I am convinced that when mum is excited in us coming over, and she has a clear mind,  she puts in lots & lots of effort and all that energy is transferred into the quality of the meal (as opposed to if she is feeling down and has problems on her mind which she cannot shake off).

I find that this is true with everything we do. Whether we are in business, sales, or service, when we put love into every interaction with customers, they will sense it. People do things because it makes them feel good –  then they justify with logic – this is the sales process. We always buy something because it makes us feel a certain way, then we quickly find the logic to convince ourselves that it was a good buy! I have discovered and it goes without say that if you put love into your health/exercise program, love into your relationships and friendships, love into your career, and love into reading & learning that you will get much more out of each activity than if you did it out of  a sense of obligation.

Now we all know the emotion of love for we have felt it – the love of our spouse/partner, the love of a child, the love of a pet, the love of a parent, and even the love of a sports car!  It is an emotion we all enjoy and look for ways to activate it more often.

And here’s the secret…..when you learn to use your mind to activate this emotion anytime, you will have found the secret to lasting happiness. But not only that….when you activate this emotion as you think, write or take action steps toward your key goals, then you will bring into reality all your dreams and aspirations. Most people do not realise that the secret to effective goal setting and manifestation is to continually create positive emotions associated with each dream, goal, plan, step, and daily task! So successful goal setting and achieving is a combination of mindset (knowing how to think and feel great) and strategy (knowing how to follow a proven goal setting process).

We will be teaching this and more at The Goal Achievers Workshop on Saturday 12th September – this seminar program is free to all our Breakfast Members and Real Estate Riches participants, and otherwise only $199.00 if you wish to come along. It will be a fun and informative morning that will change lives. So if you’re free on Saturday morning, come along for a great time with Manuel and myself.

Andrew Carnegie, who is featured in the book “Think & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill”, was the first person I know to have this process of manifestation documented and what an amazing man he was! Going from a factory floor worker to the richest man in the world within 20 years…wow! He created so much wealth that he was giving the equivalent of millions away each day and could not give it all away by the time he passed on…an amazing story.  Mr Carnegie discovered that the secret to getting thoughts and words into one’s subconscious mind was to mix them with positive emotions, such as love. When this occurred, the subconscious mind began to guide all his unconscious behaviour and allowed him to notice (through his RAS – reticular activating system) key steps he needed to take via the law of attraction. And of course his intuition (which is also subconscious) would verify through the “gut feel” (we all have this skill) when his move would be right hence faith + quick action allowed him to escalate his progress rapidly over 2 decades.

It is very exciting when we discover the secrets to achievement and fulfilment and so I hope to see you soon at one of our events. I look forward to further sharing with you and helping you apply these wisdoms to magnify your life and success. Remember, when you make all your goals and aspirations an act of love of life, you will rise to the top of your potential dramatically.

In the interim, live life with passion, purpose, and always be at peace.

Stan Kontos 

As South Australia’s foremost authority on “Peak Life Performance” and “Leadership Psychology”, Stan has a passion for the development of Human Potential through the use of Rapid Change Technologies.
Stan is a prolific reader of books and material on self empowerment and has attended numerous programs around the world on personal development, management, marketing, public speaking, and wealth creation. He is a worldwide accredited NLP Trainer (Neurolinguistic Programming).

His areas of passion include:

  • Coaching: Business, Executive and Personal
  • Mentoring: Leaders, Managers and Management teams
  • Therapy for rapid improvements in stress and personal blocks
  • Leadership Development
  • Life Enhancing Seminar Programs teaching Success Strategies and Personal Empowerment

Stan is an entrepreneur with business interests in various states across Australia.

Stan focuses on continuous and never ending improvement of himself and his teams of partners and associates as well as selfless contribution to others. He is an inspiring and motivating speaker, author, coach, and entrepreneur. He desires to expand people’s lives and to expand his charitable quests.

Stan is considered to be one’s “ultimate” life and business coach.

 

6 – Motivation is EVERYTHING

Over the years, I have either personally experienced or seen others experience the high levels of importance we (Western Society) give to a tertiary education, status of a fine car, brands of clothing, and the amount of money we make. Now whilst all these things are important for us to enjoy our modern life, I have found the there is something that enables us to magnify the benefit of those material things…and that is the ability to feel good. Having the skillset to feel good at any time is, I believe, one of the most valuable skillsets one could ever acquire. When you feel good, you can enjoy the money you make, the clothes you wear feel even better, the car you drive is exciting, and your career or business is fulfilling. This ability to create good feeling is what we refer to as ‘motivation’.

Motivation

You see, motivation is everything. Once you are self motivated, you do not need to drink alcohol to feel good, you drink alcohol because you like the taste (hey I like the occasional good drink myself). When you are self motivated you get to not only enjoy the gift of income & wealth but you also get inspired to make more because all your goals get bigger (my dad who I love heaps still shakes his head when I share a goal!).

However  very few people realise that nothing needs to happen to feel motivated – motivation is something you do – not something you wait for. And because it is something you can do, it is like learning a new skill and therefore, you can do it anytime.  One of the key wisdoms (and there are many I teach) in self motivation is that “motion precedes emotion”. That’s right, we need to do the motion (the activity) to get the emotion (the motivation). In other words, feeling motivated is a reward for doing something motivating. For example, for many years I though to myself each morning “When I feel like going for a run, I will then go for a run” However, it took me the hard way to realise that “when I go for a run I then feel motivated” and not vice versa!  I discovered motivation was an activity rather than something that happens by chance or something that happens because I drink alcohol, eat comfort food (like sweets), wait for a positive statement from someone (like a compliment) or take a mind altering drug (no thanks).

There are many methods you can use to increase your daily motivation levels…here’s one that always works for me – change the way you move your body and/or change your breathing. Yes, if you go for a walk or run, or stand tall and feel powerful, you will create more motivation. Similarly, if you take long deep breaths as you change your body posture, you will notice yourself feeling more motivated. This is because our body is aligned to our emotions – it is the way our Creator designed us all. Everyone is the same, hence the methods that work for one person in self motivation will work for another…it is all a part of nature.  There is a biochemical reaction that also happens (many of us know this stuff) when we change our body movement – for example, when we go for a brisk walk or run, we release extra endorphins in our body (circulating in our blood including our brain) and this causes us to have a ”natural safe high”. That’s right , the body has the ability to create its own “natural drug” which is the predominant reason that once people start exercising each morning and continue for 30 days they make it a habit because it is so enjoyable – they literally cannot stop!

At the last Breakfast at the Next Level  I spoke about motivation before bringing our guest Phil Sims (the Fruchocs guy) on for our “Interviewing the Leaders” program. It was great to see that the audience enjoyed the session very much and we had many people mention how much they enjoyed it. On Tuesday August 18th 6.30pm-8.30pm, we will be presenting a session titled “Motivate Me”. Note that this is complimentary for our Annual Breakfast Members, our Platinum Coaching Clients, and our Real Estate Riches participants who have each been given priority notice – therefore we have had a large number of people already booking seats. However, the invitation is now open to all and so I encourage you to come along. In 2 packed hours you will learn the essentials in motivation which you can use on yourself, teach your family or friends, and take to your work environment.

I look forward to seeing you on the night.

In the interim, live life with passion, purpose, and always be at peace.

Stan Kontos 

Stan Kontos

As South Australia’s foremost authority on “Peak Life Performance” and “Leadership Psychology”, Stan has a passion for the development of Human Potential through the use of Rapid Change Technologies.
Stan is a prolific reader of books and material on self empowerment and has attended numerous programs around the world on personal development, management, marketing, public speaking, and wealth creation. He is a worldwide accredited NLP Trainer (Neurolinguistic Programming).

His areas of passion include:

  • Coaching: Business, Executive and Personal
  • Mentoring: Leaders, Managers and Management teams
  • Therapy for rapid improvements in stress and personal blocks
  • Leadership Development
  • Life Enhancing Seminar Programs teaching Success Strategies and Personal Empowerment

Stan is an entrepreneur with business interests in various states across Australia.

Stan focuses on continuous and never ending improvement of himself and his teams of partners and associates as well as selfless contribution to others. He is an inspiring and motivating speaker, author, coach, and entrepreneur. He desires to expand people’s lives and to expand his charitable quests.

Stan is considered to be one’s “ultimate” life and business coach.

 

5 – The Triad of Thinking – the art of responsiveness

BY STAN KONTOS

Have you ever reacted with a thought in a situation then regretted what you thought or said at the time?  Do you remember scenarios where as time went by you received different thoughts about an event or about a person’s behaviour? Welcome to the club – me too! However it need not be that way – what if we practiced a process of greater wisdom now to prevent regrets in the future? The best way to improve the elicitation of greater levels of wisdom is by developing the habit of having 3 thoughts with every critical situation or event. Einstein was famous for quoting “My goal is to think like God thinks”. Perhaps we can all have a big goal like Albert Einstein.

There is an “old wisdom from antiquity” which says “Ask and ye shall receive”.  Now this can have many meanings – one of those meanings I have discovered is around the use of questions. If you ask a better question , you will get a better answer. There are 3 powerful techniques available to create 3 thoughts and I will share each of them with you – you can then choose which one you feel more comfortable with using (if you need some coaching into how to develop this skillset, please ask our office team to line you up with a coach).

Amazing Technique 1 : Me, You and the Mentor.

Whenever I have a thought about someone or something or an event, I come up with 3 meanings as follows:

How do I see the situation?

How does the other person most likely see the situation (see it from their perspective)?

How would my mentor looking down upon us see the situation?

Once you have 3 meanings, you can then pick the one that resonates best with your intuition (gut feel, heart) as this is most likely the best one.

Simple and amazing Technique 2: What else could this mean?

I could use this technique such that I ask the question “What else could this mean?” three times and hence once again select the best answer that resonates with my intuition (gut feel, heart).

Confirmation Technique 3: Ask two other people whose views you respect

I would come up with my view. I would also ring two other key people in my life who I regard as very wise and explain the situation to them. Then I would carefully listen to their recommendation. From there I select the best viewpoint to move forth with (always the one that resonates with my gut feel/intuition).

I encourage you to practice becoming more responsive and less reactive. It takes much practice to get to a point of having three thoughts with every situation. However here are some of the changes you will develop as you become better at it:

  1. Increased levels of peace
  2. Growing compassion for others
  3. Better decisions

Our mind is much more elastic than we realise. It is also has many characteristics of muscle whereby the more we use it the stronger it becomes.

And one final checkpoint to assist you with accessing your gut feel/intuition with every thought selection – if you find yourself feeling a strong surge of love, compassion, peace or joy toward the other person or toward the event, then you know that you have selected the correct thought.

If you live in the city of Adelaide (including suburbs), I welcome you to come along to Breakfast at the Next Level –  www.nextlevelbreakfasts.com.au – it would be great to see you. I encourage you to spend time with like-minded people to assist you with furthering your personal and leadership development.

Blessings to you – live with passion, purpose and always stay at peace,

4 – Positivity is created from within

BY STAN KONTOS

We all have challenges from time to time in maintaining our “can do” positive attitude – yes that self-empowering enthusiasm that stimulates us to set big goals, handle life’s issues, and to continually have a zest & passion for life.  One of the most positive people I have ever studied is the great St Francis of Assisi. In fact, I admired him so much that only a few years ago  I visited the town of Assisi (in Italy) to  receive a more complete understanding of his essence.

Now the reason Francis was so positive was because he spent a lot of time developing his inner self (inner world) – plenty of time for meditation and prayer every day. He knew that being positive doesn’t just happen – one has to put in the effort of conditioning the inner world and tapping into this inner source of enthusiasm before it is transmitted into what we know as our physical (external) world.

One of the psychological techniques Francis was famous for was the power of forgiveness. He would not hold grudges no matter what because he knew that if he held onto a grudge (this is a form of personal block), then this block would stop the flow of positive energy that radiated to & through him. So, effectively, he knew that by forgiving others, he would free himself from the bondage caused by negative thinking like anger, hatred and discord toward others.

So, if your energy levels are not right, or you are feeling down or anxious, then consider adopting the techniques and strategies that Francis himself used. He wanted to prove so much that his methodology worked that he gave up all his material belongings (he came from a wealth family) and lived as a pauper on the street but proved to his followers that you could be incredibly happy if you know how to condition your inner world. Now, I am not saying that you  or I need to give up any of our creature comforts , but what Francis teaches us is that nothing in this world can make us happy except ourselves. We need to know the strategies used by all happiness experts including forgiveness, gratitude and selfless contribution, just to name a few.

Let’s all adopt Francis’ positive mindset in everything we do – let’s bring this enthusiasm in our careers, in our business(es) and amongst our family and friends. Our results will improve in everything we do, we will attract good things, and we will go to bed each night feeling more content.

I hope to see many of you at Breakfast at the Next Level whereby we will be getting enthused about investing in the property market and learning from those who are incredibly successful in this space so we too can enjoy the abundant life. Take a look at the next event.

I’ll leave you with a few lines from one of Francis’ more famous affirmations (prayers):

Where there is hatred, let me sow love

Where there is discord, let me sow unity

Where there is doubt, let me sow faith

Where there is despair, let me sow hope

Where there is sadness, let me sow joy

For it  is in giving that we receive.

Live with passion, stay on your life’s purpose, and always be at peace.

3 – Creating healthy habits that enrich your soul

BY STAN KONTOS

As a child coming from a lower socioeconomic background, I grew up noticing that the few people my family knew at the time who were what I perceived as “successful” all had one common trait; they were generally more peaceful and they were all “readers” (I noticed they had home libraries and always had books lying around that they were reading).

It was later, while I was a university student, that I realised that studying and reading had an impact on one’s soul. I learnt that education of the mind is one of the many gateways to the soul. Most educators (tutors, lecturers and professors) were generally great thinkers and very peaceful people when compared to other professions that did not involve education… interesting. This was my very first discovery into soul nourishment.

It was in later years that I discovered other ways, and many of them far more effective ways, to nourish one’s soul such as meditation, prayer, travelling, conversation in ideal settings (I enjoy meetings in amazing locations and in fact only buy businesses in locations I find inspiring) and exercise.

Thus, if we want to be peaceful and happy, we must incorporate many of these activities into our lives each day, otherwise we may inadvertently fall into the “stress trap” (also called “the rut”).  Soul nourishment is a habit like anything else that we bring into our lives so we need to know how to create a new habit (it can take up to 30 days to do this).

As we move into the upcoming New Year, consider the new habits through which you will enrich your life.

Then, I encourage you to follow the system that I have found to be the most effective when creating a new habit:

  1. Decide on the habit I want to bring into my daily life and make a commitment to someone (for example;  my wife or my coach);
  1. Take action. I like to write down the habit on my desk so I can see it many times a day; I also like to write it in my diary to remind me (many a time I’ll schedule it in a particular time slot);
  1. Do this every day for at least 21 to 30 days consciously. It is at this stage it becomes unconscious. Whilst doing this, I raise my awareness to the benefits of this new habit, so I attach pleasure to this new activity to reinforce this new behaviour; and
  1. I share with others what I am now doing – this creates further commitment to myself to continue.

So, how about starting one of the below soul enriching habits each month for the next 6 months? Think about where your quality of life would be.

  1. Reading for 30 minutes per day – a book that contains great thinking (motivational author, biography, wealth creation, spiritual);
  1. Meditating  for 10-20 minutes twice a day (especially with a background of relaxing music such as nature sounds);
  1. Pray for 10-20 minutes- perhaps incorporated with your meditation;
  1. Meetings in inspirational locations with interesting people creating stimulating conversations  – overlooking the beach or parklands;
  1. Exercise – creating a daily routine of jogging or walking or sprinting or team sports activities.

Rest assured that we live in amazing times and in a great country where the opportunity for personal and professional development is available to all. Accept the challenge that you can progress in your career, business, and wealth creation and at the same time, enjoy the journey of developing your mind and soul. Remember the famous words of Henry Ford “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, either way you are right”.

On behalf of SOL Results, I wish you a very merry Christmas and an enjoyable and prosperous New Year.

We look forward to seeing you in 2015!

Live with passion, purpose and always be at peace.

Stan Kontos

2 – Now is a good time to reflect, review and consider how 2014 is going.

BY STAN KONTOS

I sincerely hope you are having a great year. If you’re like me, you will be thinking “Wow, this year certainly has gone by quicker than I thought it would!” Now that we are at the last couple of months of our calendar year, it is a good time to look back at how great the year has been… a good time to review our goals and the wonderful things we have brought into our lives… and also to be realistic about the strategy we have used to ensure we are maximising the enjoyment from life.

First let’s reflect….. What’s been great this year – what’s really worked for you?

Go through every area of life and reflect on what has been great (personal development, spiritual development, leisure, career/business, finances/wealth, friendships, health/vitality and family/relationships). And similarly, reflect on all the challenges you have had to rise above and be grateful for all the learnings and all the support from other people you have had during the difficult times.

Let’s now review all our goals and see which ones still need work – it is not too late as the year is not over yet.

Perhaps that income goal isn’t quite there…. maybe those special moments with your loved one fell by the wayside as you were too busy….. Or, could you put in more energy into the personal development goal and create a habit of regular reading?

If you have a personal coach, then I am hoping you have achieved most of your goals and dreams for the year as that is the benefit of being coached – if not, then please do sit down with them and review what’s working and not working so you can quickly re-calibrate your year to finish it on a high.

If you do not have a personal coach and you have not achieved at least 70% of your goals by now, then it may be time to engage one to not only improve the remainder of this year but to also set up 2015 for greater success & happiness.

It‘s also a time to reconsider what’s important to you?  Begin thinking about 2015 and looking at the finer details to ensure your goals will be exciting, meaningful and feel good. Now is the time to keep looking at how you would like 2015 to be so that by the time the new year comes along, you are ready, focused and passionate about the new year. Remember, each year is a gift, each day, and each hour is a gift so let’s ensure it is used wisely.

I look forward to seeing you at the next breakfast where we will be listening to a man who has achieved some truly amazing things in his life… click here to find out more and book.

Live with passion, stay on purpose, and always be at peace.

1 – Life is a journey. Growth is a necessity. Challenges are a part of life.

BY STAN KONTOS

When we set goals and things do not go as planned or they seem to go wrong, it is easy to think, “Why is this happening to me?”

What we all need to realise is that on the journey to achieving our goals, things do not “happen to us” but rather they “happen for us”. Everything that happens is there to serve us at a deeper level – each experience helps us to grow and become more. So when things go wrong, this is an opportunity to outgrow what we need to outgrow and so take ourselves to the next level. We must always aim for a “breakthrough” – to take the challenge on and grow through it. If we do not choose to grow through it, then we “breakdown” and so remain in a suppressed state where there is no growth. We will then most likely experience a similar event again, which will bring another opportunity to grow.

Life is all about personal growth. We all generally desire to do better in everything – we want to progress in our careers,  to have more income to enjoy or to help others, to find more happiness, to have deeper and more fulfilling relationships, to travel and experience more of the world, and so forth. Our life is like a plant in that it is always seeking growth; if it does not get it, then it begins to wilt away. We must always aim to be vibrant and growing – it is vibrant and growing plants that yield the best fruit for all to enjoy.

Knowing this, we must take as much charge of our life as we can and put ourselves in situations to grow. This is where setting exciting goals comes in. If we do not seek personal, professional and/or spiritual growth, life will throw a big problem at us to force us to grow. Which person do you want to be – the person who sets a pathway of growth or the person who waits for life to give them a big problem to solve?

I have always preferred to take charge of my own pathway (as much as possible) and grow through my own self imposed challenges. The challenge to become better, the challenge to do better, and the challenge to have a better experience of life. Of course there will always be challenges that we don’t see coming, however, when this happens, the key is to take the “bull by the horns” (so to speak) and carve a pathway to resolution. Never sit back when a challenge is on – it is the time to step up, plan, take action, and focus on the outcome that will resolve the challenge.

What kind of challenges have you faced so far? Have you had issues with your health? Have you had to go through a divorce? Have you endured a significant financial loss? We often find that with ample time and healing, these challenges can cause us to grow into better, wiser people.

However, here’s a good question. Looking back, and knowing what you know now, could this challenge have been prevented?  If you have had to survive through cancer, could a healthier diet over many years or resolution of emotional blocks (such as with forgiveness) assisted with the function of your immune system?  Had you invested more time into assisting your life partner to grow and feel supported, or had you the knowledge to make a better partner selection in place in the first place – could that divorce/separation have been avoided? And if you had the right mentor and good business or financial advice, could you have avoided the financial hardship?

One of the greatest ways we can avoid future pain is to learn today what we need to know and challenge ourselves to grow now.  One of the best ways to grow is by listening to others experiences and learning from the challenges they have already faced. This is why I am so passionate about Breakfast at the Next Level.  The audience gets to meet amazing people who can impart their life’s wisdom. At our next breakfast, I will be interviewing Darryl Gobbett from Prescott Securities. Darryl has a wealth of experience having served the Prime Minister in the Federal Treasury at the time the Australian dollar was floated in 1983; negotiated through a State crisis in a Senior role at the State Bank, (he joined the bank just before it’s collapse in 1991); conducted the very first seminar informing SA businesspeople of the potential of the internet; and having played a key role in many of the major economic developments in SA.

Once we get through a life challenge, we then enter what I call a “plateau stage” where we can coast for a little while and enjoy this much needed period of rest. However, it is important not to stay there too long or life will bring another wake up call – this is the time to set new goals and personal challenges to once again strengthen those personal growth muscles. If you remember that life is about growth and keep yourself excitedly challenged, then you will enjoy the journey.

At the end of your life, I hope you will be able to look back and answer the question in a positive way “Was my life an example, or was it a warning?”  I hope your life is a masterpiece and masterpieces are created from great challenges. This is the example I wish for you.

Live with passion, stay on your life’s purpose and always be at peace.