Anchoring & Achievement

-by Jaime Willis

So, this is a story all about how my life got flipped-turned upside down...

(I'll wait while you finish rapping the theme song to Fresh Prince of Bel Air - you're welcome!)

Before I tell you my story, a short psychology lesson. Anchoring is a cognitive bias whereby a specific trigger event or object causes you to have a certain reaction. The most well-known example of anchoring is Pavlov's dog. You ring a bell, then feed the dog. After repeating the 'trigger' - ringing the bell - the dog reacts - begins to salivate - regardless if food is there or not.

Anchoring is also used as a behavioral therapy technique to help induce change or evoke a certain emotional response. Say, for example, you are sad but want to feel happier. Have you ever played a song that reminded you of a happy memory? Or looked at a photo that made you smile? That was anchoring.

Anchoring is really useful tool for achievement. When you are slogging through the day to day, let's face it, WORK, of achieving a goal, you may feel like you are never going to get there. But, if you can remind yourself of a time when you DID achieve a big goal, you can use that memory as an 'anchor' for your current goal.

As you know, I am working on a few pretty big fitness goals this year, the most public of which is my goal to run FIFTY 10k races in 2011. Wednesday, I ran my 13th 10k. Even though each 10k is an accomplishment in itself, it can sometimes be daunting to think that I have done all this work and I'm not even half-way to my goal. In fact, I'm barely 1/4th of the way there. This is the *prime* time for anchoring.

Last night, I needed to anchor myself, so I went back through some old photos to remind myself of how far I've come in the past six years. In 2005, I was enormous! I honestly cannot tell you how much I weighed because my scale at home didn't go past 330, but the arrow on the scale did when I stepped on. I had reached the end of the size line in even plus size clothing stores. My next clothing stop was literally going to be the aptly named Moo-Moo. I couldn't walk without wheezing, my legs and feet were constantly swollen, and I was miserable.

Left Image: 2005 Right Image: 2011

With my 30th birthday looming a year away, I made the decision to stop WISHING I would lose weight and to start MAKING IT HAPPEN. I chose to use gastric bypass surgery and behavioral group therapy as my primary tools to achieve my weight loss. Within 18 months of my surgery, I had lost 160+ pounds.

Left: Caribbean Cruise, 2004; Right: Santorini Greece, 2010

To be honest, I have struggled and continue to struggle to keep my weight off. By 2009, I had gained back about 60 pounds. Last year, after setting a goal of getting back to my 'fighting' weight, I re-lost around 40 pounds and I am not finished yet.

But when I start to get discouraged, or wonder if I will ever be able to put a check mark next to the "Reach my Goal Weight" goal, I anchor. I remind myself of how far I've come and how close I am to the finish line.

Six years ago, I couldn't properly tie my shoes because I had trouble reaching my shoelaces. I used the elevators for everything. I would avoid doing something that required me to run across the room to fetch something as 'too much work.' I would never have considered walking, let alone running 6.2 miles, and I promise you the only exercise I would consider doing 50 times in a row involved lifting a fork into my mouth.

Left: Me and My Brother, 2003; Right: Me and My Brother, 2008

Today, I am fit, healthy, and active. I can run into just about any clothing store and pick out something to wear. I can run. I do run. More than once a week even! Being morbidly obese was one of the hardest things I've ever experienced. If I have come this far, I know I can make it.

Anchor your way to success! See ya at the finish line!

TGIF: Amanda Vega

Good morning, Achievers! It's Friday, which means it's time for another episode of This Goal Is Finished. Today, we are excited to introduce you to Amanda Vega, who is an extremely talented social media maven. Although we could discuss any number of great successes she's had in her professional career, she has graciously opened up about a personal goal she's recently accomplished. Read on and get inspired!

I am Amanda Vega, the CEO of Amanda Vega Consulting, a firm that has been around for 11 years specializing in PR, social media, compliance, and web related services. I began my career over 20 years ago as the 22nd employee of AOL where I was a chat moderator. This is my second company (sold the first one to Ogilvy before the age of 24) and I now have offices in NYC, Phoenix, Dallas, and Shanghai and staff all over the world. I’ve written a book "PR in a Jar" and also contributed to "The Social Media Bible."

Usually I don’t get asked about personal goals, so this is a nice change. I adopted the concept of vision board building about 4 years ago and every New Years actually host a vision board party. In 2010, the main set of goals visually represented were related to becoming healthy. Not to be mistaken for weight-loss (though that was part of it,) the goal was to get my body into as good of shape that my lifestyle and likes would allow in order to hopefully successfully get pregnant with my first child.
I have been working on my career since I was 15. My life has been full of crazy hours and stress, and adventure that is enviable to most. But as I neared 35 I realized that I now had a strong marriage and wanted to explore the next part of my life, which was family: something I had never prioritized before at all.

I felt that if I were going to go down the road of bringing a child into the world, I was going to approach it with the same tactical and focused/informed mind that I do my business projects. And everything I read and saw pointed to the fact that (a) getting pregnant, (b) having a healthy pregnancy, and (c) having the healthiest child possible was all related to a healthier lifestyle (exercise, clean food intake, relaxation, flexibility, limited alcohol and no smoking) than I was living. So the goal was imperative.

The first step was committing my mind to the process without feeling that I was somehow giving something up. I had to focus on the positive rather than the “look what I have to sacrifice” point of view.
It’s the same for everyone I suppose. I attend a lot of parties and host a lot of parties. I truly enjoy decadent food and truly hate doing cardio. I found obstacles on every plane ride and business trip (either bad food choices, or my complete lack of discipline when it comes to fine dining.)

I had to embrace the fact that I have a certain lifestyle and work within it. With the help of my trainer, we set up a pretty standard list of foods that I like and that I pretty much eat 5 days per week. Food goals became make every MEAL count, instead of every DAY count. That way, if you can have 4 of your 6 meals per day be healthy, you are doing much better than the average person.

I found that I really enjoy doing weights, boxing, etc. So I vowed to never miss the weighted workouts with my trainer. But the cardio is where I have peaks and valleys. The goal really became then moving for 30 minutes per day.

Midyear I invested in a BodyBugg and took it totally seriously. Okay, I was obsessive. And it really did work. Having something obnoxious on your arm that hinders your outfit choices and stares at you like a reminder to do the right thing really helped me.

Weighing myself everyday motivated me. New clothes did as well. Feeling better and more energized was good.

Brian Peitz at Fuzion Fitness in Phoenix – a trainer that isn’t a meathead and that listened to MY lifestyle and worked around it. (No wine isn’t a possibility for me.)

The BodyBugg.

My husband getting on board helped as well.

My friends knowing to keep telling me it was working.

Well, we certainly celebrated. When I found out I was pregnant my doctors first reaction was that the original 30 pound weightloss was certainly what made it possible. Then it became a game to keep on track and keep losing while pregnant – something they said was impossible.
My advice is this: you are a different person than everyone else. You have to find what’s right for you and it’s seriously the most simple formula ever: calories in/calories out. Carbs, proteins, times of days to eat, etc. are merely tools to help REFINE weight loss, not requirements to lose. Take it slow -- plan on losing just 1-2 pounds per week. And don’t remove things you enjoy. You can have cake (or wine) – you just have to make sure you offset the intake by moving.
Well, the next goal will be to continue on the journey when the baby comes in February. I still had 20-30 pounds to go toward my goals and have lost another percent of body fat while pregnant. So it will be fun to work with a new set of challenges and also keep going.

Building Your Network

- by Jaime Willis

"Anything that is worth having is worth asking for." - Melba Colgrove

Last December, I decided that one of my goals for 2010 was to lose weight. My goal was SMART - lose 60 pounds by my birthday in August. My goal was aligned with my core values and personal vision. Having lost (and gained) lots of weight over the years, I have a pretty good scientific understanding of what it would take for me to lose the weight (move more, eat less, eat better).

But, I knew I would need accountability to stick with my goal and I wanted a coach to help me learn more about strength training and toning, something I didn't know a lot about. This is the point where a lot of people derail in their goal-getting. They have strong goals, they even have a good idea of what it will take to accomplish it, but they don't properly activate their network.

How can you activate your own network to help you reach your goals?

Tell people your goal.

Really, it is that simple. Tell people what you are trying to accomplish. Tell lots of people. In my case, I started in December, before I had even started my weight loss goal, that I was going to be "frolicking" in 2010. (I say frolic, not diet, because I know that successful weight loss isn't a temporary state of mind, but a "Food Related Lifestyle Choice" - FRLC, pronounced frolic.) I told my co-workers. I told my friends. I told my family. I told people who I knew would be supportive of my goal and would help keep me accountable to starting (and finishing) my goal.

Ask for specific help.

I knew I wanted to get serious about exercise and I chose to use a personal trainer. I set aside some of my income to pay for a trainer ahead of time, I researched online about what sort of things I wanted out of a trainer, and then I asked my network to tell me about their experiences with personal trainers.

Plenty of people have varied and conflicting advice about losing weight. By asking my network for specific advice, I was able to get the exact kind of help I needed to achieve my goal. A friend and co-worker recommended a trainer she knew. I met with the trainer, and he has been working with me ever since. And, I even got a discounted rate because I was referred by a friend!

Asking for specific help ensures a better response. A friend of mine recently asked her entire facebook audience if they wanted to buy her Chicago condo. While it is unlikely that there was a condo-buyer in the audience, I bet there were a lot of people who could have helped in other ways. (Find a successful Chicago real-estate agent. Find someone who can offer advice about staging homes. Find someone who knows how to market the property best. Find someone who knows about becoming a landlord and renting out the condo until the housing market improves). If you aren't getting the result you'd hoped for, try asking a slightly different question.

Don't be afraid to seek assistance.

Here's the thing about networks -- a great network is a diverse network. It's pretty likely that most of your closest friends are similar to you -- they went to similar schools, had similar upbringings, do similar jobs, etc. You want to reach beyond the comfort of your immediate circle and to people who know people you wouldn't otherwise have access to. This is why I made sure to tell my coworkers about my weight loss goal. My office is fairly big, and we are pretty diverse in age, geography, educational experiences, etc. If I had just told my friends about my goal, I would not have the trainer I use today. I had to reach out to a diverse group of people to get my desired result.

Matt and I have been asking some big name folks to do interviews for our TGIF interview series on Fridays. At first, I was a bit scared to ask people way WAY outside of my network to do an interview. But we've had great responses from everyone we've asked so far! These responses have allowed me to feel more comfortable asking others to contribute. (If you want to do an TGIF interview, email me!)

Just do it!

I cannot stress enough how important it is to reach out to others when trying to achieve a goal. You will be flabbergasted at how "lucky" you are when you do so. Whenever I ask, people seem to have just the right connection I need to make, even when it seems like the people I told would have no experience or expertise in the area I am seeking help.

For example, when Matt recently threw down the goal gauntlet and decided to begin learning Korean, he had no idea that I have free access to Rosetta Stone that he can use to aid him in his goal. Another friend of mine began teaching a college course on communications and did not know that I had recently written a chapter of a curriculum on non-verbal communication that I was able to share with him.

The New Year is just a few days away--start networking now!

TGIF: Hanna Taddese

Good morning achievers! Matt and I recently met this week's interviewee at a Seth Godin Linchpin event. What Hanna doesn't say in her interview below is that she is the self-proclaimed "biggest fan" of Seth and his work. We have to say, she's doing some pretty cool things herself! Read on to learn more about her & have a great Friday!

My name is Hanna Tadesse, I am a marketing professional in the DMV. I work for BLEN Corp, a tech company that specializes in application/web development & Visual Communications. I handle the client relations at BLEN, most of the work I do relates to marketing and client outreach. You can learn more about BLEN by visiting our blog at www.blencorp.com/blog and following us on twitter at www.twitter.com/blencorp.

In my free time, I volunteer at a local non-profit organization called Artists for Charity. We host a Benefit annually during AIDS week. Every year I feel overwhelmed and end up stressing out on the logistics of our Holiday Benefit. This year, my goal was to delegate and not stress as much.

This goal was important because I needed to learn not to try and take on too many things at once. Delegating not only reduces my stress, but also helps empower our volunteers. The more our volunteers are involved, the more likely they will be to continue helping us in the future. Retaining volunteers is an organizational challenge at AFC, so the more involved volunteers, the better!
First step was reaching out to friends, family, and folks in my network and asking for help. Working with the founder and other AFC members also helped me, because it solidified the problem or the issue I was trying to address. I no longer felt that I was alone in accomplishing my goal.
Waiting for results was frustrating and could have really hindered me from succeeding. I would wait around for volunteers to organize and mobilize, hoping for a surge of emails. But that didn’t happen. Instead I got incremental success, I kept at it and so did my network.

Consistently taking action and knowing that things won’t happen overnight kept me going.
Everyone in the organization helped as we knew we wouldn’t have a successful Benefit without the help of volunteers. There were no ifs or buts about it.
When we saw how many volunteers turned up we were ecstatic! This served our entire organization and especially myself as a lesson learned--asking for help and continually working towards your goal can really make it happen!
Don’t give up! Also, don’t waste time by trying out too many different methods or tactics. Stick to a few tactics that you think work best, trust them to work out and you will succeed.
Next for AFC is to continue growing our volunteer base and expanding the way we advocate, and educate the public about HIV/AIDS. Two minds are better than one, so we embrace our volunteers & supporters, the more the merrier. You can learn more about volunteering at AFC here.

Impossible is Nothing

- by Jaime Willis

“Listen to the Mustn’ts, child, listen to the Don’ts.

Listen to the Shouldn’ts, the Impossibles, the Won’ts.

Listen to the Never Haves, then listen close to me.

Anything can happen, child, Anything can be.”

-Shel Silverstein

We spend an awful lot of time listening to the Mustn'ts and the Don'ts, the Shouldn'ts and the Impossibles. Whether they come from others or from a scared voice inside ourselves, the only Can't you should listen to is the voice that says, "You Can't Stop! You Can't Fail!"

A very talented friend of mine sold a screenplay a few years ago. Not well-versed in the ways of Hollywood, I didn't realize that selling your screenplay, which is a huge accomplishment in and of itself, is actually just one small step on the path to getting your movie made. Three years, several options, two directors, and a couple of agents later, the movie still hasn't been made.

In an emotional discussion with his screenwriting partner, my friend wondered why they had been waiting so long for "someone to give them permission to make their movie." They simply needed to raise $50,000 - $150,000 to fund an independent production of the movie themselves.

His colleague balked. Oh, we "just" need raise $150,000, he said. Ha! If that were so easy, everyone would be making a movie. My friend hung up with his partner, but not before asking him again to rethink his Mustn'ts and Impossibles.

A half hour later, his colleague called my friend back. Sheepishly, quietly, the colleague began talking. Um, he said, we've got the funding.

"What?!?" My friend shouted.

Yea, we have $150,000. We're funded.

The guy who just 30 minutes before couldn't believe that fundraising any amount of money for their movie was possible had gotten enough of a spark, a glimmer, of hope he called a friend of his to talk through the idea. His friend was so enthusiastic, he offered to foot the bill himself. A day later, a family member matched the contribution, so their total production budget is now $300,000.

The guys are now in the enviable position of deciding whether to shoot their movie, a movie that has been sitting on a shelf for THREE years, on an independent film budget or use their existing budget as seed funding to raise the $1.5 million needed for a full-size movie shoot.

And it all began with squashing the Mustn'ts. Squashing the Impossibles. Squashing the Shouldn'ts, Won'ts and Don'ts.

Imagine how much you can get accomplished this week if you give up the your Mustn'ts and even just pretend your goals are possible!

As Jillian Michaels says, "Unless you puke, faint, or die, keep going!"

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ANNOUNCEMENTS

1. Special thanks to everyone who came out to our goal-setting workshop this past weekend and friends of Sam Horn now reading our blog! Matt and I really enjoyed meeting you all and look forward to achieving with you.

2. Have you wanted to come to our class but don't have the money or time to commit right now? Join us this Thursday, December 16th at 6pm at Local 16. Matt and I are hosting a free one-hour happy hour and will answer any and all questions you have about goal setting, our course, and the meaning of life, even! :) Join us!

3. Have you shared Velocity with your friends? Fan us on facebook, follow us on twitter, or sign up for our blog's RSS feed by clicking the "Subscribe Now" button ------> to the right of this post. Matt and I have a goal of hitting 1,000 facebook fans in 2011. We are already 20% there and 2011 hasn't even begun yet! Thanks for helping us achieve our goals.

4. Gentlemen! We are still looking for inspiration for young men. Please email me or comment on this blog post today!

5. Did you see our first TGIF (This Goal Is Finished) interview on Friday? If not, please go check it out! If you would like to be highlighted in an upcoming TGIF interview, contact us for more details.

TGIF Interview with Anthony Fasano

Happy Friday, everyone! Welcome to our new TGIF (This Goal Is Finished) campaign. Each Friday, we will feature a successful achiever and ask them 10 questions about how and why they achieved a goal in their lives. We hope you both enjoy the interview, and learn something new or inspirational to keep you moving toward achieving your own goals. Enjoy!

My name is Anthony Fasano, after 10 yearsin the corporate world as a civil engineer, I realized that I had an ability to inspire professionals and help them and their organizations grow. I decided to follow my dream and use my abilities. I mustered up every ounce of courage that I had and left my job in corporate America this past July and started my own coaching/consulting company, Powerful Purpose Associates. I now coach and speak to professionals around the world on the topics of business and career growth and development. In addition to coaching and speaking, I also write daily inspirational e-mails to professionals worldwide known as a Daily Boost from Your Professional Partner. Feel free to take advantage of the free career resources on our website at http://www.powerfulpurpose.com.

My goal was to start a coaching/consulting company without taking out a loan so I could live my passion on a daily basis.

I chose this goal, because I knew that I had a passion and desire to inspire people and help them grow, and I wanted to use it everyday. I knew that by following my passion, not only would I have the career I always dreamed about, but I would also help other professionals achieve their goals and dreams.

I was sitting on my couch a few years ago, and I looked at my wife and I said, “I want to become a coach.” At that point, I did not know much about executive coaching, nor did she, but she looked back at me and said, if that’s what you want to do, I will support you. I spent the next few days researching different coaching schools and the next weekend I found myself driving up to Massachusetts to start a one year program at the Institute of Professional Excellence in Coaching. The rest is history!

The biggest obstacle I faced was people telling me that I can’t, I can’t, I can’t.

They said I can’t:

• Leave a comfortable job with good benefits,
• Support my family with my own business,
• Find enough companies that would want to hire me,
• Start a business in this economy.

Overcoming these obstacles for me was easy; I just stayed focused on my goal and knew I WOULD ACCOMPLISH IT. The key in achieving a goal is believing you will achieve it, no matter what. I surrounded myself with positive people and read positive books and articles. I also found others that had already achieved a similar goal, asked them a lot of questions, and then followed what they did.

The key to staying motivated was surrounding myself with positive, supportive people that helped me along the way. I also read and listened to positive books and information around personal development and success.

My wife was instrumental in me achieving my goal, because even though she recently lost her job and we have two young kids, she supported me 100% the entire time. Once I had her support, I had no doubt at all that it would happen.

When I accomplished my goal, I celebrated it, I enjoyed it and then started setting new goals. We must continue to grow every day! Although I will say that I still realize the benefits of my goal each and every day as it has allowed me to do what I love to do on a daily basis and I will always remember that journey!

Don’t doubt yourself or put limits on yourself because of what others tell you. You can do anything you want to do, as long as you put your mind to it and stay focused on that goal. ANYTHING!

Currently I am working on growing my business and I have a goal of working towards more inspirational speaking and writing in the future!

Giving is Achieving

- by Jaime Willis

"You get the best out of others when you give the best of yourself." - Harry Firestone

What happens when you reach a 'breaking point' in your goal--when you just can't seem to push through the current challenge or obstacle and figure out how to keep moving forward?

My answer? Stop focusing on yourself!


When I am struggling the most with my own goals, I quickly lose perspective and acquire the Tunnel Vision of Doom. The Tunnel VIsion of Doom (TVoD) sounds a bit like this: "Everything is terrible, and nothing is going right, and nobody likes me...boo-hoo."
When I feel the TVoD starting up in my life, I know it's time to focus on someone (not something, someone) else for a while. Nothing realigns your own perspective on life than being inspired by helping someone else achieve their goals!

A friend of mine is a photographer and videographer in LA. Like many small business owners, he is challenged regularly with having enough customers and revenue to sustain his business. This past week, while his business was light and he could have succumbed to TVoD, he decided to do a pro-bono gig at the Los Angeles Mission for Help Portrait (a great organization--check it out!). When I spoke to him right after the event, and even several days after that, he was so energized and inspired by his service! First, he was able to meet three or four fellow photographers through the Help Portrait project, building his business network. Additionally, the program inspired him to work on building a whole new section of his own business, which will surely help him gain both customers and revenue.

While it may seem counterintuitive, finding a way to help others really will help you achieve your own goals!

Giving is so powerful, that authors Azim Jamal and Harvey McKinnon wrote an entire book on the Power of Giving. They tell us that giving your time, your money, your energy and/or your resources has an abundant effect on your own well-being.

Givers are happier, are in better health, build new relationships, and have better self esteem. Givers thrive.

How can you achieve your goals? Give a little! Let us know how giving has helped you in the comments!

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Announcements!

1. Special shout-out to all our new Linchpin friends -- Matt and I really enjoyed meeting all you last night!

2. Have you signed up for our December 11th Goal Setting Course yet? Why not? It isn't too late! Go to our website and sign up now! Use the coupon code VEL10 for $10 off!

3. Gentlemen! We are still looking for your quotes and wisdom! Email me or respond in the comments of this post.

4. Calling all achievers! Have you achieved one of your goals? Want to share what you did and how you did it with us? We are interviewing achievers now and would love to share your story. Email me for more details.

New Year's Resolutions

- by Matt Leedham

It’s that time of year again. As New Year’s Day approaches, many of us are faced with the challenge of choosing (and hopefully sticking to) a New Year’s resolution.

But why do we do this? Why engage in this annual ritual?

The reason for setting resolutions on the first of the year has certainly evolved over the centuries, but a couple of things seem to be clear. The obvious is that the New Year represents a new start, a clean slate, and a chance to press the reset button. Our current interpretation of resolutions likely got its legs from religious traditions. Christians prefer to sacrifice a vice during Lent (e.g. chocolate, alcohol, TV, etc.) and from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur Jews reflect on wrongdoings and seek to improve themselves. Many other religions and cultures share similar traditions during their New Year and high holidays.

This is all very interesting, but how effective are New Year’s resolutions? I’m fascinated by this topic every year when the gym seems to be packed in early January, but empty again in late February.

Professor Richard Wiseman is behind Quirkology, a collection of many interesting studies into daily living. Three years ago, his team tracked over 3,000 people that set New Year’s resolutions, including the most common ones of losing weight, working out, drinking less, volunteering more, etc.

Alarmingly, while 52% of respondents were confident of success, one year later only 12% actually achieved their goal. Yikes!

What he found in his study (and what we have found coaching people on goal achievement) is that you are much more likely to be successful if you set specific, measurable goals that have a deadline. In fact, Professor Wiseman found that 22% of men were more likely to achieve their resolution if they engage in proper goal setting techniques. He also found that telling others about your resolution and seeking support from friends and family was another important factor toward achievement. Specifically, women were 10% more likely to be successful when reaching out to others.

We want you to succeed this year! Here are three things you can do to dramatically improve your ability to succeed this January and beyond:

1. Set specific, measurable goals, with deadlines and checkpoints.
2. Use your network and resources to achieve your goal.
3. Sign up for our Goal Setting Workshop this Saturday (December 11th) where we'll teach you all of this in greater detail!

When Vulnerable is Good!

- by Jaime Willis

Don't let anyone tell you differently -- being a goal-driven achiever is hard.

How many times have you written out New Year's Resolutions or birthday promises or just went to bed on a Sunday evening promising to be better and do more the following day, week, month or year?

What makes it so hard is taking those dreams and ideals and really allowing yourself to be vulnerable and open to new experiences that take you outside of your comfort zone.

It is hard to walk into the gym's fitness class with a scary name like "Power Lifting" or "Boot Camp Booty" and make it through for the first time.

It is hard to go out on date after date in the hopes of making that one special connection.

It is hard to look for a job that better fits your needs and desires and get rejected time and again.

It is hard. I know--I feel that way about my goals regularly.

But here's the thing--the same vulnerability you feel when you open yourself up to new ideas and new experiences is what allows you to have the amazing success you are wishing for.

You might look silly the first few classes, but Boot Camp Booty isn't going to kill you. But what a sense of accomplishment you'll have when you get through the whole class--I'll bet you feel so powerful!

You might have a lot of bad dates, but if you keep leaving the door open, I bet the right person will eventually come into your life.

You might get rejected for lots of jobs, but what a great feeling when you finally find the job that fits you and are energized and surrounded by folks that make each day better than the next.

Next time you shy away from your goals because you are feeling scared and vulnerable, give yourself an extra push to meet the challenge head on. You don't have to succeed your first (or second, or third...) try, you just have to try. You'll be amazed at how great you feel for making the effort.

For a great discussion about the power of vulnerability, please watch Brene Brown's Tedx Houston talk. She is a great resource on the vulnerability and the power of imperfection.

One song that inspires me to get vulnerable is Garth Brook's "Standing Outside the Fire."

"Life is not tried, it is merely survived if you're standing outside the fire."

Let me know in the comments how you will stand in the fire as you achieve your goal.