WHAT MATTERS MOST IS HOW WELL YOU FINISH.

The gun lap is the last lap of any race in which a pistol is fired as the racer in the first place completes the penultimate lap. This immediately causes a surge in adrenaline, and even though the racer is more pain than most people can imagine, he or she immediately picks up the pace and goes for a strong finish. It is also a signal to all the other runners that if they are to make progress and win a place, they need to move into sprint mode inasmuch as the finish (end) is near, clearly that success in any race, or in any endeavour, at any age or stage, and certainly in life itself, it is all about how one finishes.

The concept of applying the gun lap to life is a simple, logical one. As we approaches new faces in life (e.g., a milestone birthday, retirement, or any dramatic change), we all come to grips with the reality of both the closing of one chapter and the opening of another, and we all must face the challenges of change, even our own mortality. The Gun Lap is a metaphor that there is a an end, whether it's in sight or many miles (years , decades) down the road. It's our wake-up call that reminds us life's only regret are typically related to the things we didn't do or didn't try to do.

Obviously, work on new goals, new ambitions, and new personal goals can be exhausting. When you feel like stopping, think about why you started and revisit your initial goals. Accomplishing even the smallest objectives can be empowering, exciting, exhilarating, and hugely satisfying.

If you accept that too late comes too soon and convince yourself that for some activities there might not be next time nor a second chance, you will stop putting things off and energetically put things on! As the saying goes "It is not the years in your life that counts. It is the life in your years." The gun lap makes us realise again and again minutes are more important that money, and we need to spend them wisely.

You might conclude that racing in the gun lap is likened to a second chance and ask the proverbial question, "What's so important about a second chance?" The answer is simple: Everything! Second chances, trying new activities and seeking ventures and adventures force us to learn new things, to master new skills, to focus on new goals, and to move forward in our life's journey. After all, trying something new or retrying something you've not done in a while, writes a new and exciting chapter in your life's book. 

Don't be distracted by age. Age is truly just a number. Don't let it define you. Be positive. Zig Ziglar said, "It's your attitude not your aptitude that determines your altitude."

Age is an artificial barrier that too many people use to put limitations on their brain. When one considers the massive list of achievements done by individuals who ignore their age and focused on achieving, producing, and creating, you should be motivated and inspired to do the same in your life.

To put it in another way, "Age is an issue of mind over matter. If you don't mind, it doesn't matter."

Whether it's taking up a new hobby, committing to a personal bucket list item, revitalizing a relationship, reinvigorating an old vocation, recalibrating one's life, finally taking that dream vacation, or starting a new career, fulfilling lives are those that keep moving forward, keep dreaming, and intently (and intentionally) focus on an ongoing commitment to productivity, progress and achievement. 

The search for your individual life purpose is vital. The realization, then achievement, of that purpose is called fulfilment. My single favourite saying is "the most important days in your life are the day you were born and the day you found out why." Call it your why or your purpose, it's the very same thing.

As Andre Maurols said, "Growing old is no more than a bad habit which a busy man has no time to form." The real achievers in life understand it's not how old you are but, more importantly, how you are old."

Acknowledging and respecting all the gun lap represent will lead you to be goal-oriented, focused and productive and revitalize your life with yet another new purpose.   

HOW TO THINK BIGGER, AIM HIGHER, GO FURTHER IN 2020

This is the time when successful people define their goals for the year ahead. Millions of people will review their numbers for 2019, evaluate their results and make adjustments for 2020. That's the way organizations, large corporations and even most individuals do it.
And there's nothing wrong with it. Except it always seems so small, so safe, so “normal.” For many of us, "raising the bar" is not what we truly want. It's not enough.
Too many of us set our goals by merely adding 10% to what we've done before. The major exception is our weight, where we promise that we'll finally lose the ten pounds we've been trying to lose all year. Now, there's nothing wrong with that. Institutions do that all the time. But who wants to live like an institution?
This is your LIFE we're talking about! If a few adjustments are all you really need, go for it! If a minor tweak will do, then don’t make a fuss. Adjust your budget, set your goal, and be done with it.
But I challenge you to think bigger and aim higher.
As you look to 2020 and beyond, what do you really WANT for your life? What's the REAL story? What's your DREAM? What are you doing with your life? That's the question I hope you'll consider as you plan the year ahead.
In those areas where a small step is all you need, that's fine. Buy a new car, lose the weight, make a little more and spend a bit less. These are the small adjustments that make life easier and I support them.
But what’s the really BIG picture? What would you love to do if only you knew how, had the courage, the time, the resources or whatever you think you need? In the secret places of your heart, in those quiet moments, what’s the REAL story? I invite you to think carefully and clearly about that. And be daring!
Unfortunately, the small adjustments that are so logical can be the very things that keep us trapped. As we hit our goals and increase our income, these small victories become the "golden handcuffs" that trap us in our routine. They keep us "playing small" so that while we're winning the battles, we end up frustrated or confused because our lives don't have the joy we deserve.
This holiday season, dream bigger. Ask the fundamental questions about who you are, what you want, and how you want to live. Where are you going? What's the point? This year, think bigger, aim higher, insist on going further. You may not get "there" in one year, perhaps not in a lifetime, but make sure you're headed in the right direction. Make sure you're on a path that is worthy of you.

A GUIDE FOR WINNING OVER AUDIENCES

Win over any audience and achieve your personal and professional goals in the process. You ask these thought provoking questions;

1. How do you prepare for a presentation?

2. What techniques do you use when giving a presentation?

You can win over any audience with these tips and techniques for connecting with audiences who demand passion, inspiration, preparation, clarity, brevity and simplicity.

1. GET THEM TO CARE

- How can you convey that you've passionate about a topic you're a presenting?

- Why do you believe in your service, product, company or cause? Why should your listeners care?

- What is your connection to your story and how can you share this with your audience?

- Who do you consider an inspiring speaker? Why?

- Think about a presentation you will be giving:

             - What does your audience need to know?

             - Why should they care?

             - What action do you want them to take?

2. GRAB THEM AND KEEP THEM

- Try crafting a thirty-second lead that you can use when you're pitching? Use these four questions to get started:

             - What is your service, product, company or cause?

             - What problem do you solve?

             - How are you different?

             - Why should your audience care?

- Think about a presentation you will be giving:

             - Where is the wow? (The "Wow" is the one thing that will              make your audience sit up and pay attention.)

             - Is there jargons you can replace with simpler, more                        relatable words?

             - Audience attention drops off after 10 to 18 minutes. Can                you get your message across in that amount of time?

             - If you have 25 words to describe your service, product,                  company or cause, how would you do it?

3. BLOW THEM AWAY BY TALKING, WALKING AND LOOKING LIKE A LEADER

- Have you ever watch a video of yourself presenting to check your tone, pace and enunciation? If so, what did you find? If not, think about ways you can get feedback on these before your next presentation.

- Separate into partners and tell each other a quick story (5 minutes or less). Afterwards comment on each other's:

             - Posture (is it open or closed?)

             - Eye contact (are you maintaining eye contact for too short              or too long?)

             - Hand gestures ( do you use gestures - how much and                      when?)

4. LEAVE THEM WANTING MORE

- How often do you practice before giving a presentation?

- What do you say to yourself when you're presenting? Do you build yourself up, or knock yourself down? How does this affect your presentation?

- After presentation, do you review your performance? If so, what do you do? If not, think about ways you can build this into your presentation process.

YOU GOT TO MAKE SOME NOISE!

Last week I had conversations with two people who have
become experts in marketing. One is a man who has attended
all the "boot camps," read the books and taken seminars
from the best marketing gurus around. The other is a woman
who told me her personal library of marketing and business
books cost over $100,000 in the past ten years.
Unfortunately, neither of them has applied what they know
and their businesses have not grown.
These are classic examples of "analysis paralysis." They
have studied their market and learned the techniques. They
know how to write sales letters and they know the latest in
online marketing techniques. They know about using
endorsements, about using graphics and colors, about
"reversing risk" and identifying their target demographics.
What they don't know is how to make noise.
They've not taken enough action! One business leader
recently told me her greatest fear is "making a mistake!"
Like, get over it already!
If you're going to be in business, you're going to make
mistakes. (I suspect that's true in life; I know it's true
in business.)
The key to building your business is taking action. Of
course it's good to know what you're doing. Sure, it's
good to put the odds in your favor as much as you can. But
in the end, you've got to take a chance and make some
noise!
If you want your business to grow in 2020, think about what
you'll do differently. What will you expand or contract?
How much will you spend on advertising? What new products
or services will you offer? Which ones will you cancel?
In the end, growing a business is about taking action. It's
about making the best judgments you can, and then taking
the plunge.

BEING RICH Vs TRYING TO LOOK RICH

I’ve been reading The Millionaire Mind, and it reveals the differences between what we say and what we do. The book chronicles the spending patterns of genuinely rich people, and the lifestyles they enjoy. There are two groups of people with serious money: the glittering rich (think Donald Trump or Larry Ellison) and the millionaires next door.

The glittering rich are people with so much money that spending really doesn’t matter. They own multiple cars, multiple homes, and they tend to throw very lavish parties. We all know who they are and they set a remarkable standard for living.

Other rich people are remarkable for differing reasons. As The Millionaire Next Door pointed out, they stand out for their modesty and common sense. These millionaires drive normal cars, live in middle-class neighborhoods, and surround themselves with value-oriented merchandise. We know who these neighbors are too, but we probably don’t realize how financially successful they truly are. They set a different kind of standard.

It’s Better To Look Rich Than Be Rich?

Here’s the paradox. The average person who wants to be a millionaire doesn’t want to live like a real millionaire. Most of our society likes to dwell in a culture of false wealth, where looking rich is more important than being rich. It’s the world of luxury goods sold to high-income buyers. But, sadly, that spending pattern yields no real wealth. These are the people with the million dollar mortgages on their mini-mansions. They lease all their luxury automobiles. They send their kids to private schools, and belong to expensive country clubs. They buy Brooks Brothers suits and shop at exclusive department stores. They are glittering rich wannabes, and they spend most of their income on a prestige lifestyle. There’s nothing left for saving.

If you showed women pictures of men with nice cars and Brooks Brothers suits, along with pictures of their nice houses and the upscale stores where they shop, and then showed pictures of the millionaire next door, the house he lives in, the car he drives, the stores he shops in, etc., and asked the women which man was more desirable as a mate, guess who they would choose?

Society at large has bought into the hype of “looking rich” rather than “acting their wage” as Dave Ramsey would say. A lot of high-income earners have no real concept of what it really means to build wealth. A big house, or a luxury car does not mean that a person is rich.

THE SIZE OF YOUR ECONOMIC FUTURE

Almost every day, I read that the World economy is on the verge of a slow-down, or that things are up, or things are going down. The reality is that none of us depends upon any national average! Your economic future, and your bottom line, are primarily up to you!
Many IMPACT reader's are employees, and some of you think your salary is determined by your boss, or by union scale, or by some other measure. I appreciate that perspective.
Over time, however, your personal wealth is more a function of savings and investment than any salary you might earn. Over time, your financial future is determined by your contribution, your skills, your energy, your ability to see and grasp opportunity, and the actions you take. Your company pay scale may play a role, but over the long-haul, you decide where you work, what you do, and how much value you contribute.
Jim Rohn is fond of reminding his audiences to "never make the mistake of thinking you work for anyone but yourself." You are the CEO of your own personal services company, and your economic future is in your hands.
A client recently told me this story: He has worked for his local County government for several years, but felt stuck and unhappy. He decided to invest in real estate part-time, and since he could only do it part-time, decided he would have to be very efficient. He hired a coach, focused his time, and now earns more from his investments than from his full-time job.
Your economic realities will be a reflection of your skills, your efforts, your choices, and your value in the market-place. As you plan for the new year, take time to reflect on your income for this year. If you are satisfied that it adequately reflects your abilities, good for you! If not, give thought and reflect carefully on any changes you would like to make in the coming year.

CLARITY

The world's greatest business communicators are constantly striving for simplicity and clarity. Why? Because if you truly want to transform your audience, you have to craft your message so everyone can grasp its implications. If you want to make your message clear, use these three techniques:

1. Ask yourself "Where's the Wow?" (what will make listeners pay attention?)
2. Cut out the jargon (people cannot be inspired by what they don't understand)
3. Enhance your message with a story (this will connect listeners personally with what you say)

THE CHEAPEST AND EASIEST PATH TO SUCCESS

There are two ways you can learn from mistakes:

1. Learn from your own

2. Learn from the mistakes of others

Obviously, the second method is the cheapest and easiest.

You can greatly accelerate your path to success by studying those who have gone before you.

The top people in every field began by learning from the best in their industry.

This powerful technique is called Modelling, in which you reverse-engineer another's success strategies while avoiding the missteps.

SIX SURE FIRE WAYS TO GROW YOUR TWITTER PROFILE

No one can argue with the importance of social media, especially, popular networks like Facebook, Twitter and Google+. I have decided to create three new lengthier posts which will focus on growing your social profile. Knowing how to grow these profiles will help you promote your content to the right type of people who will engage with it going forward. Many times we all setup social accounts which add no value to our marketing efforts, so our time could have been utilized better some where else. With that said,

If you don’t have a Twitter account, then I recommend for you to set one up so you can apply these strategies I’m going to discuss. We are going to focus on a few ways right now to make sure it’s get’s setup correctly. You can follow through on the steps so by the time you are done reading you’ll have a Twitter account which will build momentum for you going forward. Let’s get started, and your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

Profile Images

First, it’s all about making sure you represent your brand so it’s important to ensure you have your logo, cover, etc added to your account. You want to make sure when people arrive on your Twitter account, they’ll be able to connect your logo to your value going forward. I know so many accounts which have NOT been setup correctly, and this is hurting them in the long run. I asked people why they don’t take the time to add the images when setting up, and they have said the following:

First, they don’t know the sizes and don’t want to take the time right now to customize the logo. Here are two things you can do right now to ensure you get this done properly. Head over to Google search, then type in: twitter profile image sizes. You’ll get a handful of results which provide you with the EXACT size of the images. If you don’t have the tools to resize the images on your own, you can head over to Fiverr.com, and find someone to do them for you. It’ll cost you $5.00, and they’ll customize your logo to fit within the Twitter profile.

Secondly, many others have said they didn’t add the image because they don’t understand how this will add to the value. Let me ask you this question: Would you promote your blog or a product WITHOUT having your logo on your page? If the answer is NO, you should apply the same mentality in making sure you don’t do the same with your Twitter profile. It’s that simple!

Cross-Promotion

Just like when blogging you’ll network with others within your industry, it’s important you do the same thing on social media. By networking with others within your niche, you’ll increase the likelihood of cross-promoting your content. What does this mean? The practice of cross-promotion has been used for years to increase exposure of your brand ultimately building momentum.

When you share or tweet content you’re going to increase conversions by having multiple people share at the same time. If you know you’ll be providing value, then why NOT have other influential people within your niche cross-promote at the same time for you. By doing this, you’ll be doing the following:

First, reaching out to other people’s followers which is huge especially if they have more followers then you. Imagine networking with an account within your niche which has over 10,000+ followers?

Secondly, you’ll be increasing the rate at which you build momentum to your content. For example, if you have a fresh account it might take longer to build exposure then if you have an account with 200,000 followers, right?

Third, you’ll continue to build networks which is very important because it’ll come in handy at a later point. For example, you help people, and they’ll help you with the overall objective of increasing visibility achieved.

Once you have setup your Twitter images, it’s time to go through finding other people within your niche with powerful Twitter profiles. Write them an email so you open the initial doors of communication.

Placing The Right Buttons

If you don’t have social buttons on your site by now, then you’re in the wrong business. You should have learned something by visiting blogs online that everyone has social buttons to help streamline the sharing process. The philosophy is pretty simple:

If you provide readers with an easy way of sharing, then they’ll share your content which is great for you. By them sharing, your content will get in front of people which otherwise would NOT have seen it, right?

I really don’t know why you won’t have social buttons on your blog because you don’t even need a Twitter account to have buttons for others to share. The only reason I can come up with is you find it hard to add buttons so DON’T even bother. With that said, let me go over a few ways you can add social buttons to your website.

First, you should be using WordPress to design your blog because it just makes things easier. For example, any additional features you need can be added with a click of a button through add new plugins. This is especially useful because you can add social share buttons in the same manner. With that said, here are two plugins you can install right now which I have used for years:

• AddThis.com
• ShareThis.com

It’s important to note that new themes when purchasing will include the social share buttons already built into them.

If you have a website NOT using WordPress, then you can head over to the two sites listed above, and create your own buttons. Once your done you’ll get a code to paste into the backend of your website, however you have to make sure it goes in the right place. This can be tedious because you have to paste, then refresh to make sure it shows right where you want it to.

In short, you must focus on adding social buttons to your website because this will help grow your Twitter profile.

Optimize Your Profile

One of the greatest things about Twitter is the flexibility they give you to optimize your profile. For example, they have many tools which you can use to find #hashtags relevant to your content. This means whenever you share content, you can make sure it gets in front of the right channels. Here’s what you can do:

Imagine if you wrote content on making money online, you can head over to hashtagify.me to find other popular tags to add to your tweet. This tool will display you a table of relevant and popular tags which will reach the right channels, especially those which can build enormous momentum going forward. 

The next time you are tweeting content, it will be a good idea to add the right #hashtags so when people search Twitter your content will show up in the results. Here’s what you should do right now:

After you have setup your profile, added images and built a channel, it’s time to do some #hashtag research. I suggest heading over to hashtagify.me and doing a quick search with your target keywords. Make a list of relevant tags which you can use when adding tweets to your profile. It’s a good idea at the same time to make sure they have a solid trend, popularity and are very relevant.

Tap into Your Team

Make use of the resources you have present because this can help accelerate your marketing. I’d ask my entire team to open a Twitter account, and start this entire process above. The more people you have on your team marketing, the better it is for you in meeting your objective. It’s going to be harder when you’re just starting out, however as you grow and get people on your side, it’ll become easier. I would ask everyone on your team to start setting up their Twitter profile then do the following:

First, start adding people relevant to your niche because these people will find your content useful. I would send them a list of content published or even products/services you offer. I would send them a list of popular #hashtags you would like to focus on when tweeting your content. This way you are ensuring they stay focused on specific keywords, and your sharing is optimized.

It’s also a good idea you divide up what you want all of these people to do. However, this is optional because you have a guided plan, but if you have multiple objectives then divide each goal to different people on your team.

Customer Support

Your going to have readers who ask you a lot of questions so it’s important you provide them the support they are looking for. One way, people will communicate their concerns is through the Twitter chat feature. Keep in mind this is as important as when they send an email through your contact form or call your support line. The better support you provide the better experience they have and continue to share your content going forward. Many people have powerful accounts on Twitter so make sure you pay close attentions to their concern. Imagine not doing this, and how a simple message on their account can cause a downward spiral? Imagine is they have over 20,000+ niche relevant followers all who are loyal to them? In the end, providing poor support can cause a shift in your growth so make sure you provide them with the assistance they need when they contact you through Twitter. It’s just as important!

Final Thoughts

Social media can be huge to build momentum to your business however you have to know how to apply the strategies the right way. For example, many people assume all they need to do is setup an account and this will drive enormous people to your blog, they couldn’t be more wrong! It’s important to know what elements drive people to your blog, especially, which ones attract people to your blog. That’s where image, channels, team, customer service, etc all come into play.

It’s time to go through everything which is discussed in this content, and apply the strategies. I would go through each one making sure you apply it when setting up your profile so you can find out which ones have been working, and which have not. This way you can find out which ones build the MOST momentum to your blog. The more engagement, the better for your blog growth, and meeting your bottom line. Next,

It’s important you have a solid way to track your statistics. For example, no point in adding all these elements to your blog if there is NO way to find out which ones have been working, right? The good news is you have two tools which will help you:

Google Analytics –  amazing tool to give you a handful of awesome statistics like: geographical location. Landing pages, referral traffic, search queries. It’s great to find out where people came from when visiting a page. Add a custom tracking so Google Analytics will show you Twitter referrals.

Bit.ly – This is a URL shortener and is very useful because it will show you how many people clicked on a link within your Twitter tweet or share. From the backend, you’ll be able to track CTR, location, and which Twitter share.