The Success Method

THE
SUCCESS
METHOD
!
9 Simple Steps to a
Life that Makes
Sense
by Amy Scott Grant
2005 Amy Scott Grant and Grant Galaxy, LLC

The Success Method: 9 Simple Steps to a Life That Makes Sense
A Grant Galaxy Publication
The Success Method and Leisure Rate are Trademarks of
Grant Galaxy, LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying and recording, or by any information
storage or retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted
by the 1976 Copyright Act or in writing by the author. Requests
for permission should be addressed to the contact email provided at
http://www.GrantGalaxy.com.
The Success Method

2005 !" Grant Galaxy LLC. All rights reserved.
Page 2
CHAPTER INDEX
Page#
5
Acknowledgements
6
Forward
7
13
Chapter 1: An Honest Assessment.

Exercise #1: Commitment
15
Chapter 2: Time: Is It Slipping Through

Your Fingers?
Exercise #2: Time vs. Priorities
Part I: Tracking a Typical Week
Part II: Where Does It All Go?
Chart: Sample Week Breakdown (Pie Chart)
Exercise #3: Fork in the Road
20
20
29
37
43
45
46
50
55
66
76
Chapter 3: Priorities: The Toughest Questions

Youve Never Answered
Exercise #4: You Deserve It
Exercise #5: Prioritizing Life
Chapter 4: Three Things No One Taught You
about Goals
Exercise #6: Defining Purpose
Exercise #7: Goal Setting
79
Chapter 5: Now that You Know Where Youre

Going, How Will You Get There?
90
Exercise #8: Planning for Success
94-95 Worksheet: Blank Action Plan Forms
97
100
102
Chapter 6: The Myth of Time Management

Exercise #9: Cost of Disorganization
Chart: Whats Your Time Worth? (Salary)
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Page#
103
110
122
Chapter 6, contd
Chart: Whats Your Time Worth? (Hourly)
Exercise #10: Determining Your Leisure Rate
Chart: The Worry Wheel
125
127
Chapter 7: Stop Creating Your Own Stress!

Exercise #11: Stress Assessment
142
Chapter 8: Massive Action and Focus,

Followed by More Massive Action and Focus
Exercise #12: No More Excuses
Exercise #13: Massive Action Begins Now
149
151
153
157
159
164
Chapter 9: Making Minor Course

Corrections to Stay on Target
Poem: Dont Quit
Exercise #14: Tracking Your Progress
Exercise #15: Personal Inventory
170
Extra Stuff
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
For my best friend and soul mate Andy, who supports me
far beyond the limits of a reasonable person.
In exchange, I offer all my love, all my life.
For Sally, that she may grow to love, learn and live the
balanced life.
For my sister Susan and my closest friends (you know
who you are) who encourage me to fearlessly think
bigger and BE greater, especially when the stakes are
high and Im scared.
For God, who provides the message in unlimited supply.
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FORWARD
Many people die with their music still in them. Why is
this so? Too often it is because they are always getting
ready to live. Before they know it, time runs out.
Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.
I developed the information in The Success Method
years ago. It is only now that you have the opportunity to
read it, because the words have been suppressed for
yearsnot by publishers, not by editors, not by censors,
but by yours truly. I wasted years of my life, denying the
story inside me, making excuses why it would never
work, why no one would buy it, why it was pointless to
even try. But every so often, it would come to the surface
and calmly demand: WRITE ME.
Do you have a dream like that?
Like a balloon full of air we attempt to submerge
underwater, it takes so much effort to hold it down, to
deny it, to crush it or cover it up. As soon as we let up
just a little, it shoots to the surface of our consciousness,
demanding to be set free. I attempted to deny the
message inside of me for so long that when I finally
stopped resisting and started writing, the words literally
poured from me like a faucet. If used properly, The
Success Method will help you face your own dream
and get moving, instead of squashing its creative
expression. You can experience great release and pure
joy as you stop resisting and start living. Now, are you
ready to get started?
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Chapter 1:
An Honest
Assessment
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Ancient Wisdom:
When the student is ready, the teacher appears.
What exactly are you searching for right now?
Its kind of funny to think that I wrote this manual at a
particular time, and you came looking for this same
information at a particular time. Well, not so much funny
as intriguing.
Think about it, you chose this particular product at this
particular moment for a very specific reason, known only
to you. Though the reason may seem fuzzy now, it will
become crystal clear by the time you complete this entire
Method.
You bought this because you want success.or so you
say. Im sure many people will read the first few pages
and then put the Method down forever when they reach
the first or second exercise; its just human nature. I have
confidence that YOU are here because YOU really want
something better. YOU will do the exercises because
YOU are committed to a better life. The experts say it
takes three weeks of consistent behavior to begin form a
habit. The Method is designed to be completed over a
period of nine weeks, to ensure your habits are fully
cemented by the time you finish. Make the decision right
now commit to read one chapter per week and do
EVERY exercise fully, as often as recommended without
fail. That part is particularly important.
Do you say you want success, but then refuse to commit
to take the necessary action to do so?
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Are you familiar with the 80/20 Rule? It applies to

many people-related events, and The Success Method is
no exception. The 80/20 rule is derived from the Pareto
principle, which demonstrates that in many cases, 80% of
all consequences are a result of 20% of the causes. In
other words, 80% of success stories from The Success
Method will likely stem from only 20% of those who
purchase the product. In fact, its likely that 80% of
people who buy The Success Method will never finish it,
or may never even crack the cover. Does that number
surprise you? Some industry experts claim the actual
percentage may be much higher.
The Method is not written for the 80% who are not
committed to a total life makeover. Its written for you
personally, who is taking a stake right now in your
personal future. No one can help you until you are ready
to commit to your own self-improvement. The Method is
written for the 20% (or less) who will commit, follow
through, and will consequently reap great rewards.
Which category will you choose? The outcome rests
solely on your choice in the matter. Make the decision
right now to be included in the percentage of readers
who succeed.
Why did you buy this? What exactly are you seeking?
Take a moment to jot down your reasons:
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
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The title of this chapter is An Honest Assessment,

because its important to take a look at where you are and
where youre headed before we begin the program. Did
you take the time to find a pen and write down your
answer? If so, were you completely honest with yourself
in your answer? If no, why not?
This manual is for you, and only you. If success and
balance are truly what you seek, it is imperative that you
complete the exercises with the naked truth; otherwise,
you will cheat yourself out of top-notch results. Here is
an opportunity for you to complete the exercise again,
with total honesty this time.
Why did you choose The Success Method?
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
__________________________________________
Are you searching for a way to reduce stress in your life,
improve your health, figure out your next move, save
your marriage, become a better parent, friend, spouse,
child, student, employee, or person? Did you grab hold of
this method because you feel lost and confused and
youre clinging to the glimmer of hope that this Method
could be the answer youve been searching for? Perhaps
you think your life is going along OK and youd just like
to ramp things up a little. Whatever the reason, its
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important to consider what you expect to gain from the

Success Method.
What does success mean to you?
I invite you to spend the next few minutes reflecting on

why youre seeking success. Focus on what you want,
not what you dont want. For example, what you dont
want might sound something like this: When I have
success, I wont be as stressed, I wont feel as tired at the
end of every day, and I wont be depressed any more.
Youll achieve better results by rephrasing it to say,
When I achieve success, my life will improve because
my health will improve, I will gain more energy, and I
can learn to be at peace in my life. I will be doing what
Ive always dreamed of doing.
Take a moment to list three ways in which your life will
improve by achieving success:
1. ____________________________________________
______________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________
______________________________________________
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3. ____________________________________________
______________________________________________
Now close your eyes and imagine what it will be like to
have achieved a sense of success in your life, when the
three improvements you listed become true. Make sure
you repeat this step every day during your first week, and
any time throughout the nine weeks when youre feeling
like you want to quit.
Are you wondering what it will take to be successful with
The Success Method? The Method works, period.
However, the system only works to the extent that you
are willing to work it. To be successful with this ninestep program, you simply must make the decision to:
Study one chapter per week for nine weeks.
Read each chapter at least twice.
Reflect on what youve read and how it applies to
your life.
Perform every exercise fully, as often as
recommended.
Continue until you have completed the final page.
A final key ingredient in this process is to trust in the
system. Some people may feel inclined to rush ahead or
skip steps, without spending an entire week on a single
chapter. Keep in mind that your way of doing things has
brought you too this point in your life, and here you are,
seeking help.
The Success Method works best when followed to the
letter. Its up to you to trust the process and follow the
instructions. When you complete the program, the
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rewards you experience will help you understand and

appreciate the discipline that was required for you to
complete the program.
If you didnt take the time to fill in the blanks to the three
questions above, youll have another chance to do it
tomorrow when you repeat this chapter. Of course, you
can always add new answers that may surface in your
mind.
You will notice that we have included lots of space in
the manual, so feel free to make notes or reminders in the
margin. Its a great idea to highlight any quotes or
insights that you find particularly useful as you work
your way through The Success Method.
Its time to test your commitment now, with your first
official exercise. Lets see how you do.
EXERCISE #1: COMMITMENT
To demonstrate your nine-week commitment to complete
the Success Method, your first exercise is to sign and
date the statement of commitment on the following page.
On each subsequent day during the first week, rewrite the
entire statement in a notebook or journal, sign each copy
and read it out aloud.
This is an important step because writing is far more
powerful than silent reading, and the combination of
writing and reading aloud makes a strong impression on
your mind, because you will use three of your five senses
(sight, sound and touch). Each day, this exercise will
assist you in strengthening your personal commitment
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and resolve to balance your life by following the steps

outlined for you in The Success Method.
Remember to read your answers to the previous
questions before performing the exercise each day. Some
of you may already be wondering why you have to stay
on this one short chapter for a full seven days. You want
to skip ahead to the good stuff. It is essential that you
trust the process and get in touch with your reasons for
completing the program. This will make your end result
far more attainable.
Statement of Commitment:
I hereby commit to read The Success Method all the way
to the end. I will complete each exercise fully and
wholeheartedly as often as recommended. I will complete
one chapter per week for the next nine weeks. I am
committed to making lasting changes in my life, to better
myself and my world.
Signed,
___________________________________________
Date:
Remember, to rewrite the entire statement every day this
week (you can use the back of this page or a separate
sheet of paper). Track your performance by checking the
appropriate box for each day that you complete this
exercise.
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
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Day 7
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Chapter 2:
Time:
Is It Slipping
Through Your
Fingers?
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Like sands through the hourglass,

so are the days of our lives.
The Days of Our Lives
Television Soap Opera
What a depressing way to view life!
Unfortunately, if youre currently going through life at
full-speed without any sense of balance, you probably
feel as though time is slipping through your fingers just
like sand. In this chapter, well discover where the time
goes when it slips out of your grasp.
Think about this: How many people truly know what is
important in their life? You can poll your family and
friends with these two questions:
1. What is the single most important thing in your
life?
2. Is the majority of your time each day devoted
directly to the answer in #1?
In my personal experience, less than five percent (<5%)
of the people surveyed said yes to the second question.
(Interestingly enough, most of those who answered yes to
question #2 were married stay-at-home parents who
listed their children as the answer to question #1.) Life
can get in the way of the very best of intentions, and this
is what leads to a sense of imbalance and stress.
Naturally, if youre not doing what you should be doing-what youre meant to be doing--how can you be
successful? This is such a critical point that I write about
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it frequently in my weblog and I tend to go in-depth

about the topic during seminars and personal coaching
sessions. Just the other day, I was coaching an amazing
woman who was literally almost at her breaking point.
She said she felt trapped in her current situation, because
she was stuck in such a nasty work situation. When I
asked her the second question (about whether she was
spending her time appropriately based on her lifes #1
priority) the answer wasnt just no it was hell no! No
wonder she felt paralyzedwhen your answers to these
two basic questions are incongruent, you can only feel
stressed out, stuck, trapped, disappointed, disillusioned,
frustrated and yes, paralyzed.
The fact is, most people dont spend the majority of their
time on what is truly most important to them they are
too busy worrying about the future, living in the past, or
blaming someone else for their current situation.
The sad truth is that many people are missing out on the
one area where we all have true control:
the HERE and NOW.
Now lets take a look at where your time is spent. The
way you spend your time is either an indication of what
you value, or the result of your daily habits.
Before you complete the next exercise, take a moment to
quickly write down your own answers to the two
questions (dont think about it too long, just write what
jumps to mind first):
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1. What is the single most important thing in your

life?
______________________________________
______________________________________
2. Is the majority of your time each day devoted
directly to what you answered in question #1?
_____ YES
_____ NO
The results of the following exercise may surprise you.

You may think, Wait, thats not important to me at all.
Why do I spend so much time on it? Excellent question!
Well get to the answer in a minute, but first things first
lets do the exercise.
The following seven-day exercise will show you whether
your current time allocation is congruent with what you
believe are your true values and priorities. Do this
exercise for a full seven days, preferably during a typical
week (in other words, dont pick a week when youre on
vacation, or during Christmas week, for example).
Some of you may be feeling a little resistant to doing this
exercise. Perhaps youre wondering why you cant
simply estimate a typical week, or track your time for just
one or two days. Its important to trust the system here
and perform the exercise exactly as its prescribed. Dont
get too caught up in how it works or why it works, just
trust that it does work and follow the instructions to the
letter.
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Have you ever started a diet where you were supposed to

write down everything you ate? At some point, you
probably found yourself sneaking a bite of this or a taste
of that. Naturally, you didnt write those down, because
crumbs dont count, right?
The same effect occurs with money. If a person is asked
to track every single penny as its spent, even the most
meticulous record-keeper will be surprised to observe the
way his or her carrying cash disappears on frivolous
expenses or impulse buys. Time works in much the same
way, as we are about to demonstrate.
Whether youre talking about a diet, a budget or a
timeline, its true that the occasional variation from your
plan will have minimal impact. However, the continued
repetition over time can develop seriously adverse
results. After all, no one gets fat or broke overnight. It is
always a result of the accumulation of seemingly
harmless or insignificant choices.
Our minds play tricks on us, and we have convenient
memories. The best way to obtain an accurate picture of
your current situation and time-habits is to complete this
daily exercise. Future exercises and chapters will build
on this one, so your answers here will be important
during your next steps in The Success Method. So be
sure to take this exercise seriously and do it exactly the
way its recommended.
Now, remember your commitment from chapter one?
Honor that commitment you made and complete this
exercise for a full seven days. Your persistence and
tenacity will pay dividends soon enough. The proof will
be evident in your results.
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EXERCISE #2: TIME vs. PRIORITIES

Part I: Tracking a Typical Week
For the next seven days, use the following time logs to
record everything you do and how long it takes you to do
it. If its not convenient or practical to carry this manual
with you for the next seven days, you can either
photocopy the tracking pages, or print blank logs from
our website. Youll find the URL in the back of this
workbook. Its best to update your logs at least three
times per day, and meal times may serve as an excellent
reminder.
NOTE: Resist the urge to wait until the end of the day to
update the entire log because in doing so, you are sure to
forget or conveniently remember certain aspects of the
day. To simplify the timekeeping process, round up or
round down to the nearest fifteen (15) minute interval. (It
may be far too cumbersome and time-consuming to track
exact minutes.)
Only use the first three columns for this part: Time Start,
Time Stop, and Description of Activity. For now,
ignore the last 2 columns of the form, called Total
Time and Category. Well use those later, in Part II of
the exercise.
As you complete this exercise, simply write down your
time as it is spent, without judgment or justification. At
this point, you are not making changes; you are merely
observing and recording the current situation. It doesnt
matter what day of the week you start on, because youll
keep tracking for an entire week. A completed sample
form is provided for your reference.
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SAMPLE TIME LOG

DAY 3
DAY: Tuesday
DATE: 8/29
Time
Start
10PM
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:40PM
9PM
Time
Stop
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:40PM
9PM
11PM
Total
Time
Description of Activity
Sleep
Shower/dress
Breakfast
Drive to work
meetings - comp plan
Work on Jones Report
Lunch
Returned phone calls
Payroll
Called the kids
Meeting - Jones case
Meeting w/boss
Drive home
Dinner
Played with kids
Watched TV till bedtime
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DAILY TIME LOG: DAY 1

DAY 1
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 2
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 3
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 4
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 5
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 6
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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DAY 7
DAY: _______________
DATE: _____
Time
Start
Time
Stop
Total
Time
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Congratulations! You have just completed the most

tedious exercise in the entire Method, and its all
downhill from here. Take a moment to pat yourself on
the back for keeping your commitment to do all the
exercises. Its important to acknowledge our successes,
and the promises we keep.
EXERCISE #2: TIME vs. PRIORITIES
Part II: Where Does It All Go?
Go back through your completed logs and subtotal the
amount of time spent per activity on each day. Once
again, here is our sample log:
SAMPLE TIME LOG
DAY 3
DAY: TUESDAY
DATE: 8/29
Time
Start
10PM
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:45PM
9PM
Time
Stop
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:45PM
9PM
11PM
Total
Time
8:00
0:45
0:15
1:00
3:00
1:00
1:00
0:30
1:15
0:15
1:30
1:00
1:30
0:45
1:15
2:00
Sleep
Shower/dress
Breakfasts
Drive to work
Lunch
Payroll
Called the kids
Meeting w/boss
Drive home
Dinner
Played with kids
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For the next step, review each days log and use the
following information to categorize each activity in the
final column, appropriately labeled Cat.
Column Five: Category Key
Use the letters A through G to indicate the most
appropriate category (Personal Essentials, Personal
Benefits, Productive Work, Non-Productive Work,
Relaxation, Donations and Escape) for each activity, as
defined by the followings:
A Personal Essentials.
This category includes time during your daily routine
when you meet essential needs like bathing, dressing,
personnel hygiene, eating, sleeping, etc.
B Personal Benefits.
Here, include time spent taking care of yourself, beyond
mere survival needs, such as: exercising, inspirational
reading, meditation, prayer, massage, quality time with
loved ones, etc. Dont be alarmed if this category is
exceptionally low (or non-existent).
C Productive Work.
Productive work is defined as any action that moves you
toward the accomplishment of a specific goal.
Alternatively, for a stay-at-home parent, this category is
defined as any action required for maintaining a happy,
healthy home, such as: laundry, necessary errands,
driving the kids to school or extracurricular activities,
cooking, grocery shopping or paying bills. Students
would include school work and class time in this
category.
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D Non-productive Work.
This category would include commute time, useless
meetings, brown-nosing, coffee breaks, non-business
lunches, re-organizing your desk, shooting the breeze
with co-workers, etc. For a stay-at-home parent, this
could include activities like excessive cleaning,
organizing sock drawers, alphabetizing the pantry,
coupon-clipping, window shopping, sitting in traffic
while running errands, etc.
E Relaxation.
This category is fairly self-explanatory and can include
activities such as leisurely walks, golf, swimming for fun,
playing Frisbee, catnaps, games, reading for pleasure, fun
times with loved ones, hobbies, attending a class for fun,
and any other leisure sport or recreational activity.
F Donations.
Use the Donations category for volunteer work, helping
others in need, PTA, church work, and any other activity
where you are donating your time in some capacity.
G Escapes.
The Escapes category encompasses any action (or
inaction) you use to wind down, by escaping from the
pressures and busy-ness of the day. This category is for
time spent reading the newspaper, watching television,
gossiping, aimlessly surfing the internet, playing video
games, complaining, and any other activity used to
procrastinate or kill time.
Our fully completed sample log is on the following page.
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SAMPLE TIME LOG

DAY 3
DAY: TUESDAY
DATE: 8/30
Time
Start
10PM
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:40PM
9PM
Time
Stop
6AM
6:45AM
7AM
8AM
11AM
12N
1PM
1:30PM
2:45PM
3PM
4:30PM
5:30PM
7:00PM
7:40PM
9PM
11PM
Total
Time
8:00
0:45
0:15
1:00
3:00
1:00
1:00
0:30
1:15
0:15
1:30
1:00
1:30
0:45
1:15
2:00
Description of
Activity
Sleep
Shower/dress
Breakfast
Drive to work
Lunch w/Bernie
Payroll
Called the kids
Meeting w/boss
Drive home
Dinner
Played with kids
Cat
A
A
A
D
C
C
D
C
C
D
D
D
D
A
E
G
Did you have trouble selecting a category for any of your

activities?
Did you notice that certain activities may seem to fit into
more than one category?
If you took a good look at our sample log, you may be
wondering why we counted lunch as Category D: NonProductive Work Time in our sample time log. In our
example, the one-hour lunch with Bernie consisted of
approximately seven (7) minutes of actual eating
(Category A), while the remaining 53 minutes were spent
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complaining about the new accounting guidelines with

Bernie, so we took the liberty of counting the whole hour
as non-productive work time. Similarly, we designated
the afternoon activity called the kids as Category D
because it nearly turned into a shouting match over what
TV program they were going to watch. Context is
everything here.
Its important to use your own judgment when
categorizing your activities. For example, attending
church services may be considered a Personal Benefit to
one individual, yet it may be better suited as a Donation
or Escape to another person.
Because YOU are the person living YOUR life, only
YOU know the best way to categorize each activity. If
you get stuck on any one line, you can either go with the
first category that springs to mind, or just go with your
gut feeling. Either way, just be honest so you can glean
the maximum benefit from the exercise.
Once youve categorized every activity, you can proceed
to the final step. Total your time spent in each category
(add up all the As, all the Bs, all the Cs, etc.) and use the
chart on the next page to enter your totals. Weve used
our sample log to help you see how its done.
NOTE: Your numbers will be much higher than those
reflected in the sample summary because we only
included one day in our sample and your totals are for a
whole week.
HELPFUL HINT:
You may want to convert your time into decimals to
make calculation easier. For example, thirty minutes =
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0:30 = 0.5 hours; fifteen minutes = 0:15 = 0.25 hours;

forty-five minutes = 0:45 = 0.75 hours. Dont worry, this
is the only math youll be required to do in this entire
workbook!
SAMPLE SUMMARY BY CATEGORY
A: Personal Essentials
B: Personal Benefits
C: Productive Work
D: Non-Productive
E: Relaxation
F: Donations
G: Escapes
9:45 = 9.75
0
5:45 = 5.75
6:15 = 6.25
1:15 = 1.25
0
2:00 = 2.00
In the sample, for category A we added 8 hours + 0.75 +

0.25 + 0.75 = 9.75 total hours. We did this for each
category, and only the totals are listed above. Simple,
right? Now lets add up your categories and complete the
summary by category on the next page. This reflects your
typical week, in a nutshell.
Helpful Hint:
The total number of hours in a week is 168 hours.
SEVEN-DAY TIME LOG
SUMMARY BY CATEGORY
A: Personal Essentials:
B: Personal Benefits:
C: Productive Work:
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D: Non-Productive:
E: Relaxation:
F: Donations:
G: Escapes:
TOTAL HOURS:
Are you surprised by your results? Many people report
feeling alarmed or disappointed by the high number of
non productive work hours (Category D), and the low
number of personal benefits hours (Category B).
Is this summary how you expected your typical week to
break down?
YES
NO
If you answered no, why not?
If you answered yes, you probably already knew your

time was not congruent with your values, but you may
not have been aware of the size of the gap.
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Now turn back to page eighteen (18) where you listed the
single most important thing in your life. According to
your time logs, how much time are you spending in that
area during a typical week?
____________________ hours
Now you are able to draw the following conclusion:
Is the way youre spending your time congruent with
your top priority?
YES
NO
If you answered no, dont worry. Continue through The

Success Method to learn how to restructure your time in
order to align your time with your priority. Even if you
answered yes, you will soon learn ways to streamline
your time to get the most out of life.
For your reference, a typical week could be presented
visually like the pie chart on the following page.
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By now it may be becoming clear why your life seems to

lack balance and order, and why your stress levels are so
high. Its no wonder you feel overwhelmedyou are
most likely spending too much time on the wrong
activities!
Doesnt it make sense that a successful life would be one
spent according to your priorities?
Now list below all the reasons why your life is structured
the way it is, including all your justifications that explain
why you must do the things you are doing. List every
reason you can muster as to why youre stuck where you
are and your situation cant be changed:
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You might want to sit down, because what happens next

will probably shock you.
Everything you just wrote is a bunch of baloney.
Thats right Im serious.
You call them reasons but they are really rationalizations.
Your justifications are nothing more than excuses. You
say but I have to do this or that and I say no, you only
have to pay taxes and die. And some would argue that
the tax-thing is negotiable.
YOU HAVE A CHOICE.
Every day when you wake up, you have a choice as to
how you will spend that day. You can choose how you
will spend every minute of every hour of every day.
I know that right now some of you are mentally pleading,
But no, you really dont understand MY situation. See, I
have no choice because (insert excuse here). Granted,
some excuses might seem better than others, but
nevertheless, they are all just excuses.
Many of the people Ive coached have been in your shoes
at some point. (Hey, Ive been there myself, believe me.)
Some of the people Ive coached started out telling me all
the reasons why what I was suggesting wouldnt work.
At first, I used to wonder why people would pay me so
much money to help them when they didnt really want
to hear what I had to say.
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I believe its because change is uncomfortable. If it was,

you wouldnt be reading this right now. You would you
just do what needed to be done, you wouldnt need me to
kick you in the butt to get you to do it (and neither would
the people I coach). But if that were the case, I suppose
Id be out of work.
When I started to recognize this about peoplethat they
dont like to change, that they feel more comfortable
hiding behind their excusesthats when I realized I
could help people who really wanted help. Thats why I
created the Success Method, and thats why I enjoy oneon-one coaching and dynamic seminars.
When I witness someone having a breakthrough and I
know that I helped them to achieve thatthat is
absolutely the best reward I could possibly receive. It
makes all the long nights of writing, the endless phone
conversations, and all the long traveling days seem
completely worthwhile. I have to admit, when the person
I helped is a parent, I feel twice as excited, because I
know Ive not only helped the parent, but the children
too. That is truly an awesome feeling.
Trust me, Ive been where you are right now. I spent
years believing my own excuses why I wasnt good
enough to help people in this way. For starters, I didnt
have enough time, because I was working 60 hours per
week at a job I hated. Plus, I believed I was too young
to be an expert on anything. I also thought I needed a
PhD before anyone would read anything I wrote. I had
more limiting beliefs that you can shake a stick at. Now I
can see that all these excuses amounted to a big pile of
hooey, but at the time I believed these were truly valid
reasons for ignoring my calling.
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Right now, youre able to read this and take steps to

change your life because I was tired of accepting my own
excuses, and I finally mustered enough courage to start
doing what I was called to do. Imagine if I had continued
to hide behind my validations and justifications
how many women and men (and children) might still be
stuck, because I didnt have the courage to help myself in
order to help them. Fortunately, I did have the courage
and I continue to help people achieve amazing results and
create incredible lives for themselves and their families.
You have the ability to do the samein fact, you can do
anything you want to do.
Anyway, thats enough about me. Lets talk about you
and all the excuses you wrote down a couple of pages
back. Are you still buying them, or are you starting to see
that its all junk thinking? Take a look at other
successful people who succeeded against all odds.
Did Lance Armstrong say why bother when he got
cancer? Did Christopher Reeves give up after his
crippling accident? Did Helen Keller say whats the
point because of her physical limitations? Did Anne
Frank hide behind her persecution? OK, so Anne Frank
actually was in hiding. Nevertheless, these are all valid
examples of people who refused to hide behind their
excuses and circumstances.
I talk to a lot of people who hide behind their health
issues. In fact, the other day a woman was telling me that
she couldnt begin an exercise program because she was
too overweight. This may sound ridiculous to some, but it
made perfect sense to her. By using the techniques in The
Success Method, I was able to help her see how this kind
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of thinking was keeping her stuck instead of moving her

forward.
Uh-oh, I can hear it now. Here comes your next excuse:
But they were special and I am just an ordinary person.
Sorry, Im not buying that one either. The only difference
between ordinary people and extraordinary people is
that little something extra the willingness to strive for
more.
We are all capable of being extraordinary.
Yep, even you. Especially you. Lets face it, if your goal
is to remain ordinary, why on earth would you have
bought this Method? Take a look around you and youll
find people who are stressed out, off-balance and (gasp!)
ordinary. Werent you seeking a better lifean
extraordinary lifewhen you decided to purchase this
Success Method? Didnt you have at least a ray of hope
that your life could be more than what you summarized
on page 34-35?
Some peoples excuses are so ingrained that they dont
even see them as excuses. But you must be willing to let
go of your excuses if you want to benefit from the
Success Method. Think about it this way: whats more
important to you: staying comfortable or having success?
Having success (balance, joy, peace, wealth, whatever
success means to you) means giving up your excuses.
Youve tried it your way, and thats gotten you this far in
life (for proof, refer back to your painful truth back on
page 9). Benjamin Franklin defined insanity as doing the
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exact same thing over and over again while expecting

different results. Are you content to remain ordinary and
keep doing it your way, even though the results arent
what you really want? Or are you willing to get
uncomfortable and try something different which may
lead to a better way?
Its time to ask yourself: are you brave enough to keep
reading? Will you have the integrity to keep the
commitment you made to continue on this nine-week
journey? Exactly how important is what you listed as the
single most important thing in your life?
Hopefully it matters enough for you to take a chance and
continue this journey. Either way, its completely your
choice.
EXERCISE #3: FORK IN THE ROAD
Choose only one:
____ Stop here. Go back to your life the way it is.
____ Continue the journey. Keep reading.
If youre reading this now, you chose to continue the
journey. Be sure to pat yourself on the back once again
for a job well-done. It may not get any easier, but your
life definitely gets better from this point forward.
Take a moment to jot down any congratulatory remarks
youd like to tell yourself in honor of keeping this
important (and not always easy) commitment:
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My style in this Method may challenge you to make

some radical changes in your thinking. But if you do, and
you stick with this program, the rewards will amaze you.
With balance, your life will be better than you could have
imagined, you will feel healthier and experience a lot less
stress. However, you must trust this process and continue
the Success Method for the full nine weeks in order to
enjoy the full benefits.
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Chapter 3:
Priorities:
The Toughest
Questions
Youve Never
Answered
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The indispensable first step to getting the things you

want out of life is this: decide what you want.
Ben Stein, Actor and Author
Now would be a good time to stop and pat yourself on
the back for a job well done. Many people will buy The
Success Method yet never bother to do anything with it.
Some will begin reading, only to give up at some point
because its too hard, it takes too much time, its silly, it
doesnt make sense, or any other lame excuse. YOU, on
the other hand, have persevered up to this point, and you
deserve credit for keeping your commitment to yourself.
Congratulations!
EXERCISE #4: YOU DESERVE IT
Speaking of keeping commitments, remember when you
agreed to do ALL the exercises in the Method? That
includes the ones that may make you feel silly or
uncomfortable, like this one might do. Go to the nearest
mirror. Look yourself in the eyes, and say the following
statements out loud:
You deserve a successful life.
Your friends and family deserve to experience the
best of you.
You deserve to be happy.
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For added impact, repeat this exercise using the first and
third persons. In other words, continue to look in the
mirror as you speak in the first person:
I deserve a successful life.
My friends and family deserve to experience the best
of me.
I deserve to be happy.
Finally, repeat the exercise in the third person,
substituting your name in place of each blank:
______________ deserves a successful life.
______________s friends and family deserve to
experience the best of _____________.
______________ deserves to be happy.
By repeating the statements in first, second and third
person, it covers all angles: you saying it from your own
perspective, another person saying it to you, and
someone else saying it about you. This is an effective
technique for any positive affirmation. Especially for
schizophrenics. OK, only joking about that last part!
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At first, you may feel silly doing this. Thats OK, do it

anyway. You committed to do ALL the exercises, so
dont skip this one. Repeat this exercise every day for
one week. You deserve it!
Keep track of your progress with this chart:
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
If you choose not to do the exercise, you might as well

put this whole Method down right now, or give it away to
someone else who is willing to take commitment
seriously. If you wont do this simple exercise, how will
you complete the tougher ones ahead?
Lets continue talking about choices.
If each day is a series of choices, learn to be a picky
eater.
The choices you make throughout each and every day are
invisibly governed by your deep-seated beliefs. If you
believe that people are just supposed to be stressed-out,
you will continuously find yourself in situations where
you are the one who feels stressed out. You are
convinced that is the way things have to be. Thats life!
you might say. The interesting thing is that you put
yourself into those situations because of your beliefs.
The choices youve made up until now were based on
what you felt you must do. By learning to change your
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thinking, you will soon make choices based on your

desired outcomes.
Personal Choices
I used to think I always had to have everything under
control. I was what you might call a control freak. I
thought I had to be all things to all people to get attention
and to be important. I can now tell you from personal
experience that its very hard to control everything at
once. The end result is a lot of stress and heartache. Add
some depression to the mix when you realize youre not
perfect. But remember that no one is perfect all the time.
Ive learned to accept that, and consequently Ive
changed my thinking to focus on what I can do (instead
of trying to do it all, even the stuff that really doesnt
matter.) The result is that now Ive become unstoppable!
Strange as it may sound, Im actually glad I used to be
the way I was. It now offers me a unique perspective
when Im dealing with control freaks. Not only was it
an outstanding learning experience for me to overcome
my control freakishness, but Ive gained insight into
others. Because Ive experienced that lifestyle for myself,
I know where the control freak is coming from, and Im
better able to coach them into a better way of living, and
therefore, a better life. (Assuming thats what they really
want. Some people refuse to sacrifice the stress because
they dont know if they can handle life without chaos.
Well talk more about that later.)
Now lets take a look at your priorities.
For this next exercise, please keep in mind that NO ONE
except you will read what you write (unless you choose
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to share your information, which I dont recommend.).

Its time to be totally honest. The problem with most selfhelp stuff is it only works for people who can be totally
honest about where they are and what they want.
Unfortunately, most people have an inherent sense of
guilt about wanting things for themselves they are
raised to believe it is more honorable to do for others
than to take care of oneself. What a load of bull! How
can you possibly take care of another person when your
own needs arent being met? Think about itpart of the
air travel safety briefing instructs us to put on our own
oxygen mask before assisting another person with their
mask. This valuable advice ensures that your basic
survival needs are met before you attempt to assist
someone else with their needs.
You are taking care of your needs by completing the
Success Method and being honest during your journey.
Didnt you buy this Method so that you could take care
of yourself and therefore be of more service to others?
You are seeking success in your life. The best way to
achieve balance right now is to trust this process and
remember to first take care of your own needs.
It is impossible to share from an empty cup.
Fill your cup first! It is perfectly OK for you to be
selfish when you are reading and completing the
exercises in the Method. Remember, no one will read
your answers except you.
EXERCISE #5: PRIORITIZING LIFE
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In the space provided, list the five most important

priorities in your life. This can include people, passions,
projects, your profession, your stamp collection, anything
thats really important to you.
Here are a couple of important rules to remember as you
complete this exercise:
1. Only one person, place or thing can appear on each
line. If you are married with two kids, you cannot
list family as a single item. You must list each
person individually, assuming they fit into your top
five.
2. Honesty is imperative here. Do not list what you
think you should list, what other people would
want you to list, or what everyone expects you to
list. This list is for your eyes only, so be
completely honest. You may feel guilty if you
leave someone out, and thats OK. With only
five slots to fill, you cant possibly include
everyone and everything thats important to you.
Thats the whole point of the exercise. Just take a
deep breath and do it.
3. You do not need to organize your list by order of
importance. (Whew!)
4. This list should be representative of your five
absolute most important reasons for being alive.
No sample is provided because youd be too
tempted to compare yourself (its like Im in your
head, right?). This is all about you, and should
come from your heart.
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5. Usually, whatever comes to mind first is

representative of your true feelings. Dont be
afraid to go with your gut here.
MY FIVE MOST IMPORTANT

LIFE PRIORITIES ARE:
1. _______________________________________
2. _______________________________________
3. _______________________________________
4. _______________________________________
5. _______________________________________
Take a moment to review the list you just wrote. Does it
feel accurate? (Theres no right or wrong heredont
make yourself wrong for something you did or didnt
include on the list.) Did you follow your heart and were
you completely honest? If not, please make any
necessary adjustments before proceeding any further.
When your top five list is complete, circle the single
most important priority in your life. I can practically hear
you asking questions now and the answers are: No, you
cant circle two, even if they are seemingly related. No,
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you cant change your answers. No, you cant quit here.
Choose only one item from your list of five priorities.
Take your time and make your selection now.
Dont worry if you experienced a certain amount of guilt
while completing this exercise. Of course, dont overanalyze yourself if you didnt experience any guilt during
the exercise. Be careful not to judge yourself or your
answers, because denial leaves no room for change!
Accept where you are right now, and keep this list in
mind as you proceed through the next few chapters.
Now that you know what is most important to you, ask
yourself: is this congruent with how I spend my time?
When time is spent in congruence with priorities, balance
is the natural result.
On the other hand, when our daily activity does not
reflect our true priorities, stress is created because we are
out of balance with our true nature.
Probably the most likely reason that we choose to remain
out of balance is because we deny our top priority. We
are fooled by society and by our family and friends. We
tell ourselves that our first priority has to be our career,
our children, our spouse, our church, or any number of
other noble callings, otherwise, were not a good
person. But all the while were denying our true priority,
which may actually be skydiving or teaching or painting.
Stress and imbalance will always result from this denial.
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Success can only come when your time is spent

congruently with your priorities and when your goals are
aligned with your priorities. Period!
Congratulations! You have finally identified your true
priority, and you can finally begin to accept it and live
your life accordingly, to create your own success. Most
people prioritize their time and existence according to
their activities. The few who possess the courage and
strength to live life according to their priorities are free to
experience truly extraordinary lives.
In other words, you can experience massive success!
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Chapter 4:
Three Things
No One Taught You
About GOALS
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The great majority of people in the world drift through

life, never realizing that their future will be the one they
create for themselves. The minority who achieve great
success are people who know what they want and have a
plan for realizing their objectives. They know what they
want and how they are going to get it.
Napoleon Hill, Author
You gotta have goals. Have you ever heard that from a
parent, teacher or other influence in your life? Many of
us grow up knowing we should set goals, but few of us
are actually taught an effective way to set and achieve
our goals. If only our grade schools and high schools
taught goal achievement, imagine the advantage todays
children would gain as they grow into adulthood! The
future could truly be amazing.
If youve never been taught an effective way to set and
achieve goals, the good news is that its never too late to
learn. There are a number of books available today on the
subject of goal-setting, but this section of The Success
Method will cover everything you need to know about
powerful goal-setting and achievement. Whether youve
never formally outlined your goals or youre a seasoned
goal-getter, this chapter offers you the required nuts and
bolts for successful goal achievement.
Lets get started!
There are three basic principles to setting goals: S.A.M.
Goals should be Specific, Attainable, and Measurable.
What Do You Want? Be Specific
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First and foremost, effective goals are specific. Vague

generalizations may eventually come to pass, but you
will inevitably get better, faster results by specifically
defining and articulating what you want. This also
assures that you get exactly what you want, and not just a
reasonable facsimile.
Do not be specific in how your goal will come to pass,
only in exactly what is your desired result.
For example, lets say your goal is to buy a new car. Not
very specific, is it? Your hearts desire may be a fully
loaded 2006 Corvette Convertible in Daytona Sunset
Orange. If your goal was stated as buy a new car and
you bought a new Dodge Neon for your teenage son,
dont blame the Universe. Technically, you achieved
your stated goal (you bought a new car), but because you
werent specific, you didnt get the result you really
wanted (the 2006 Corvette). To get what you want,
you've got to know what you want and be specific when
asking for it.
When you were little, did you ask your mom for food
if you really wanted a cookie? Heck no! If you wanted a
cookie, you asked for a cookie. Otherwise you might
have gotten broccoli or cabbage instead. If you were
really smart, you asked for a chocolate chip cookie, or a
peanut butter cookie, or whatever specific kind of cookie
you wanted.
On the other hand, by the time we get to be adults, some
of us are almost embarrassed to ask for what we want.
For example, have you ever walked into your bosss
office with the full intention to ask for a promotion and a
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15% raise yet you walked out of the bosss office feeling
lucky to still have a job? It can happen to the best of us.
Setting goals is about asking for exactly what you want.
You have to identify that first otherwise, fuzzy goals
get fuzzy results, and nobody wants that.
In other words, a better way to state your goal would be
to own a fully loaded 2006 Corvette Convertible in
Daytona Sunset Orange, by January 2006.
Notice my use of the word own as opposed to the word
buy. Owning the car itself is what you care about, not
how you get the car, correct? This is what I mean when I
say not to be to rigid or specific on the how part. In other
words, you dont care how you get the car whether you
win it in a contest, inherit the exact amount of money it
would take to purchase the car, receive a lavish gift from
a friend, or buy it on credit. Dont be too tied to how the
goal becomes reality.
I often talk to people who are afraid to state their goals
because they assume they will never have the time to go
after what they want, or the money to purchase what they
want. Because of this, they dont even bother making it a
goal. By removing the limitations on how the goal will
come to pass, you are free to state your true desire.
To effectively achieve your goal, be specific and do not
concern yourself with the HOW, only the WHAT and the
WHY.
Which brings us to the next point: why do you want what
you want? Because I want it is not going to suffice.
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Why a Corvette? It is because of the way you will feel

when you drive that car? Perhaps youve never owned a
sports car, or a new car, or a Corvette. Perhaps you are
seeking the admiration of others who will see you in the
car. Perhaps your heart races at the thought of going from
0-60 in the blink of an eye. Is it because youve always
loved Corvettes, since you were a child, and the thought
of owning one makes your heart pound and your
adrenaline race?
Whatever the reason, just be aware of your intent and get
in touch with the way you will feel when you have what
you want. This element charges your goal with electrified
energy and can manifest it more quickly.
Ask Yourself: Is It Possible?
The next criterion for an effective goal begs the question:
is it attainable? This is where things can get tricky. Goals
should stretch your imagination, test your limits, and
challenge your beliefs.
Imagine you want something in a jar on a high shelf.
Looking at it from down below, you think you might be
able to reach it without a stepstool, but youre not quite
sure. The stepstool isnt handy, so you go for it on your
own. Imagine you reach up with both arms, and your
fingers almost touch it. You lower your arms, rearrange
your body stance and reach further, with just one arm.
Now your fingers are just brushing it, so you stretch just
a little further until you can touch it, but you cant quite
take it down yet. You find a pen, a stick or some other
object and you use that to maneuver it off the shelf,
feeling at least a little bit proud that you did it all by
yourself, without a stepladder.
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Setting your goal is a lot like that.

Your goal should be just a little bit higher than the jar on
the shelf. You should look at it and think, Hmmm, Im
not sure if I can get that, but I really, really want it, so
Im going for it. Your goal should not seem impossible
but it should seem just barely unreachable. And if its
something youre passionate about achieving, you will
always find a way to reach it. If we set goals so high that
they seem impossible, we are likely to give up when the
first obstacle appears. After all, we didnt really think we
could achieve that goal in the first place. We can get
down on ourselves and destroy our confidence by setting
goals that are too high.
On the other hand, if we set our goals too low, we do not
challenge ourselves, and we can become complacent.
Dont settle for weak goals because youll also settle for
weak results! I was conducting a teleseminar the other
day about goal-setting. For these particular calls, I
typically start out with some general goal-setting
instructions, followed by personal coaching for anyone
on the call who volunteers.
On this particular call, when I arrived at the coaching
part, one woman told me she realized her goals were
pathetic (her word, not mine). She had just started a
business which she knew had the potential to make her
very wealthy, and her goal was to pay her bills. Cmon,
I asked her, who can get passionate about paying their
bills? Any responsible person is going to do whatever it
takes to pay their bills. Thats just something youre
going to do anyway, so its not a good goal to set. Would
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you make brushing your teeth a goal? Would you make

taking a shower a goal? Lets hope not.
In talking with her, I was able to help her apply the
Success Method techniques to realize what she was truly
passionate about and set goals based on her dreams. After
the call, I got emails from other participants who
(although they were too shy to speak up on the call)
appreciated the coaching I offered that woman and they
were able to set powerful, meaningful goals by using the
same Success Method technique.
Unfortunately, our society does not teach us to think big.
We fail to strive for what we really want, and instead we
play it safe. Alternatively, we can get caught up in pie in
the sky dreaming which deep down inside ourselves we
dont really believe is possible, so we end up sabotaging
our own best efforts. Therefore, this attainable step
requires a delicate balance to set powerful yet believable
goals that we truly can attain (even if we dont yet know
how).
Your goal should be attainable in your mind, but appear
just slightly out of reach. Your desire for the goal should
be strong enough that you will persevere until you are
victorious.
How Will You Measure Your Progress?
Finally, effective goals are measurable; otherwise, how
will you know if youve truly accomplished your goal?
Our Corvette example is easy to measure; when time is
up, you either own a Corvette, or you dont. Not all goals
are material in nature; for example, what if your goal is
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to get in shape? Or to build a better relationship? Or to be

successful? How would you measure any of those? The
specific and measurable criteria go hand in hand.
Measurable goals have a clear benchmark for
achievement or improvement.
Measurements can be determined in many ways,
including weights, times, frequency, volumes, financial
measures, yes/no evaluations, surveys, polls, etc. Some
goals may seem to be immeasurable, but that just means
its time to get creative. For example, you might measure
an improvement in your relationship with someone by a
decrease in the frequency of arguments, an increase in
the amount of quality time spent together, an increase in
the number of intimate acts, meaningful conversations, or
whatever else you desire. Just think about what you want
more of, or what you want less of, and find a way to
measure that. Remember that anything you measure will
improve.
Here is an example of a specific, measurable goal for a
woman (or man):
By December 15th, I will fit into a size 6 dress (or a 30
waist pants).
This goal is definitely specific and measurable. You can
walk into a store and try on a dress or pants on December
15th, and the garment either fits or it doesnt fit. Of
course, if youre currently a size 18 and today is
December 1st, your goal may not be attainable. Thats
why specific, measurable and attainable work hand-inhand.
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By the way, if your goal is related to weight loss, its a

good idea to choose a clothing size or body
measurements instead of a specific weight. Some people
tend to cling to a specific number they weighed in the
past and think I want to get back to my high school
weight but that may be totally unrealistic at this point.
One reason is because your body shape and weight
distribution shift over time as gravity takes over,
particularly for women whove borne children. However,
you could fit into the same size you wore in high school
and look great, but to wear that same size now, your
actual weight could be several pounds more than it was
in your youth.
If your goal is to get in shape be sure to define actual
fitness goals. In truth, you could weigh less than you do
now and still not be physically fit. Get specific on what
fitness means to you, make sure its attainable, and define
a way to measure it. Because muscle weighs more than
fat, measuring and tracking Body Mass Index (BMI) and
body fat percentage are both excellent ways to define
specific and measurable fitness goals. Being in shape
to you might mean looking good in a tank top or a bikini.
To someone else, it might mean climbing a flight of stairs
without getting winded. To yet another person, being in
shape could mean wearing a size twelve dress. Every
individual is unique and deserves to have personal,
customized goals.
NOTE: couples should have separate goals and joint
goals. I was coaching a married couple the other day and
they were shocked when I asked them what their
individual goals were. The wife actually said, I dont
have any, and youre so right! I cant get passionate
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about his goals, so I need my own goals, too.

Absolutely. Of course, you must also have joint goals too
or you could end up headed in separate directions, which
can be devastating to a relationship. Again, the name of
the game here is balance.
Individual goals should be just that: customized to you
and only you.
Remember SAM when setting your goals: Specific,
Attainable and Measurable.
Here are some additional guidelines for goal-setting and
goal-getting:
1. Set a timeline. Set a specific date by which your
goal will be achieved. Work up until the very last
minute often several factors can fall into place at
the eleventh hour. (Whew!) Keep in mind that
your goals will most likely come to pass in
whatever timeframe you set, because work
expands to fill the time allotted. In other words, if
you give yourself a year, it will probably take that
long, but the same goal may be attained in six
months or less. For a good point of reference, scale
your deadline back to a timeframe thats just tight
enough to make your palms start sweating.
2. Write down your goal. People who complete this
step are ten times more likely to achieve their goal
than someone who doesnt write down their goal.
Isnt that an amazing statistic? If you dont write
down a goal, its really just a wish. I have all my
clients write down their goals on a little card and
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carry them around with them all day, to refer to

frequently and keep their goal fresh in their mind.
3. Post your goal in an obvious place. You may
choose to post your goal on your refrigerator, in
your car, on a dream board, near your computer,
in your palm pilot, written on a card in your
pocket, or anywhere that you can frequently see it
throughout the day. There is truth in the old
expression out of sight, out of mind but there is
also truth in its opposite: in sight, in mind. For
example, if your fitness goals are posted on the
refrigerator, you will be more likely to fix yourself
a healthy snack or meal when you re-read those
goals while youre hungry.
4. Imagine your goal is already accomplished.
Visualize yourself having already achieved the
goal, and feel the feelings that correlate to the
goals accomplishment. Write your goal in the
present tense: Today is December 1st and I am
driving my brand new Daytona Sunset Orange
Corvette convertible. I feel excited and energized
as I drive around town with the top down and the
wind in my hair. I feel grateful to own such a sexy,
sleek automobile.
5. Have faith in your ability to achieve your goal.
No matter what happens, never ever doubt that
your goal will come to pass. Faith is by far the
essential ingredient in the achievement of your
goal. If all else fails, change your goal date, but
never give up on your goal. You deserve it.
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Remember, S.A.M. says:
I WANT YOU
TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS!
Spend some time thinking about your goals. Often, when

we rush to set goals, we are not setting the goals that
reflect our true desires. We often set goals that include
what we think we should have or what others would
expect us to want. Review your priorities from the last
exercise and reflect on what you really want before
completing the next exercise. Take your time with these
questions; the whole exercise should take you a few
hours to complete. Your goals will lay the foundation for
everything that comes next, so you want to make sure
that your goals accurately reflect what it is that you want.
EXERCISE #6: DEFINING PURPOSE
You should complete this exercise in a quiet place, where
you can concentrate and reflect on your answers. Slip out
into the backyard before the kids are awake, or during
their nap. Take a lunch hour by yourself and drive to the
park or near a lake. Be sure to write out your answers, as
you may want to refer back to your thoughts at a later
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time. You may use the blank pages that follow, or record
your answers in a separate journal. Feel free to record as
much (or as little) as you feel guided to write and use
additional pages if necessary.
Goals Questionnaire:
1. What would you do with unlimited resources
(time, money, energy)? Imagine you have an
unlimited source of money, perfect health, and all
the time in the world. How would you spend your
days and your new-found freedom?
2. What are you most passionate about? What really
lights you up and gets you excited? Why?
3. What are you exceptionally good at? This can
either be what you know in your heart to be true,
or what other people frequently tell you.
4. When are you the happiest? The most carefree?
When does your true spirit shine outward? Why do
you think it happens at these times?
5. In your opinion, who is most deserving of your
assistance? Your time? Your talents? Why?
6. Who do you get the most satisfaction from
helping? What about it is so satisfying for you
personally?
7. Who are you? Describe the amazing person
trapped inside of you, yearning to break free.
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8. Complete this sentence: If I really loved myself, I

would ___________________.
9. If you could change anything about yourself, what
would it be and why? What is stopping you from
changing that? Which is more important to you:
holding on to that excuse as to why it cant change,
or experiencing the changes in your life?
10. If you could change anything about your
surrounding environment (your home, your job,
your family life, your circle of friends, etc), what
would it be and why? What is stopping you from
changing that? Which is more important to you:
holding on to that excuse as to why it cant change,
or experiencing the changes for real?
11. Are you really willing to get uncomfortable and
make the necessary sacrifices in order to have the
life that you want? Why or why not?
12. Where will you be 30 days from now if you do not
make the necessary changes to get the life that you
want? How about 90 days from now? A year from
now?
13. What would you do if you were not afraid?
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After youve completed this exercise, what you want

should become pretty clear to you. If not, thats OK;
spend some time reflecting on your answers. When your
goals snap into clarity, continue with the next exercise.
Remember, this entire section should be completed
within approximately one week. (But dont beat yourself
up if it takes a little longer, OK?)
EXERCISE #7: GOAL-SETTING
Youre finally ready to spend time setting your goals and
writing them in the spaces below. Before you write your
official goal statements, be sure to re-read this entire
chapter. This will ensure that you set effective goals that
follow the S.A.M. guidelines. As you complete this
exercise, remember to use the today date to indicate
your deadline date, because youre stating your goal as
though its already been accomplished.
Use your answers to Exercise #6 to assist you in writing
your goals using the following format:
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GOAL #1:
Today is
and I feel
because I now have
GOAL #2:
Today is
and I feel
because I now have
GOAL #3:
Today is
and I feel
because I now have
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Feel free to set more than three goals the above space is
provided to get you started. Remember to post your goals
where you will see them frequently. You may even want
to write your goals on the back of your business card or a
small card and keep it in your pocket, so you can refer to
it throughout the day. If you use this technique, its a
good idea to laminate the card so you dont accidentally
give it to someone. (This is good advice I started giving
all my coaching clients after I accidentally gave away my
goal reminder card, thinking it was my regular business
card. Oops!)
Many people find a certain peace in following this
process and writing their goals. Thats goodit usually
means your goals are congruent with your priorities and
your lifes purpose. Other people may find some
tweaking is required before that peaceful feeling comes.
Either way is perfect, as long as it feels right to you.
During my teleseminars, we do a much more advanced
version of this exercise, which often creates a powerful
sense of peace and clarity. Many people find themselves
feeling strong emotions of relief for finally knowing what
they want and being able to define it clearly. If you
havent experienced that until now, it can be a pretty
powerful encounter, and one that can begin to give you
true peace of mind.
Keep this in mind: Right now, you are exactly where
you are supposed to be. Be proud of yourself for coming
this far in the journey, and be excited about what lies
ahead of you.
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Chapter 5:
Now that You Know
Where Youre
Going, How Will
You Get There?
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You are never given a dream without also being given

the power to make it come true.
Richard Bach, Author
Why do so many people begin with the best intentions,
but make only marginal progress towards their goals?
Procrastination! While its not the only reason for failure,
procrastination can be a major contributor. Some people
find it difficult to begin a large project because it seems
so overwhelming. You may read the goals you just wrote
and think, "How on earth will I accomplish that?" Quite
simply, you must have a plan.
One of the former members of my mastermind group has
a challenge with this. He has such a creative mindhe is
truly gifted and brilliant. I consider myself to be fairly
creative (and Im also pretty hard to impress) but this guy
even comes up with ideas that make me say wow.
The challenge this particular man has is that he gets
ahead of himself. He has the creative spirit and he has the
know-how, but because he wants to take on the world all
at once, he jumps into things without a plan. Besides
being expensive and dangerous, this kind of shoot first,
then aim thinking makes him come across as a little
scatter-brained. Plus, he has been known to make
promises he cant keep and hes dropped the ball on
important stuff now and thenlike attending mastermind
meetings (which explains why he is now a former
member!) What our group attempted to help him
understand is that in order to be truly successful, each of
us must learn to channel creativity and enthusiasm into a
focused plan of action. And a little organizational help
can go a long way, as well.
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On the other hand, some people fail because they attempt

to jump ahead to the planning stage, without developing
a clear purpose or intent. Thats like grocery shopping for
a dinner party when you have no idea how many people
are coming, or what youll serve. You end up feeling lost,
confused and disoriented. Plus it takes you twice as long
to make progress because you lack direction. I tend to
call these people compulsive planners. They like to
create fancy action plans and flowcharts and scripts, but
without a clearly defined purpose or target, their plans
are simply a waste of time.
To achieve results, you must combine clear focus and
goals with a logical plan of action.
Failure to plan is planning to fail.
Still others create the best-laid plans with perfect
intention but fail to follow through and take action. In
many cases, this is due to the big ugly monster known as
procrastination.
There are three sure-fire ways to combat procrastination:
1. Break large tasks into smaller tasks.
2. Focus intently in short, concentrated bursts of
time.
3. Take consistent action every day.
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Steps two and three will be addressed in Chapter 8:

Massive Action and Focus. For now, lets take a look at
#1 on the list: Break large tasks into smaller tasks.
How does an ant eat an elephant?
One bite at a time.
Whenever a task seems overwhelming to you, simply
break it into several smaller tasks, and attack one small
task at a time.
The key to breaking down these huge tasks requires
setting objectives.
Objectives are small pieces of a larger goal. Think of
objectives as stepping stones that lead you from where
you are now to where you want to be. For example, if
your goal is to buy a new home, your objectives might
include the following:
1. Save for a down payment
2. Clean up credit reports
3. Determine requirements (number of bedrooms and
bathrooms, square footage, school district, a pool,
monthly note, etc.)
4. Drive around neighborhoods to find a suitable area
and homes for sale by owner
5. Check the real estate listings in the newspaper
6. Hire a real estate agent
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7. Apply for financing

8. Put current home up for sale
9. Put in a bid on a new home
10. Pack belongings and hire movers
11. Close on the old (current) home
12. Close on new home
13. Move
14. Mail change of address notice
15. Unpack
16. Have a housewarming party
Buying a new home actually includes at least sixteen
smaller steps, which could be broken down into even
smaller steps. (For example, step number ten might
specifically include packing the kitchen, wrapping
breakable items, boxing toiletries and bathroom products,
cleaning out the basement and attic, getting references for
moving companies, calling movers to check rates and
availability of dates, and so forth.) Each of these sixteen
objectives seems much more manageable than the large
goal to buy a new home.
Ideally, a timeline should be connected with your goals
and objectives. Adding a responsible party gives you a
complete action plan. For some of your goals, you may
be the responsible party for the entire project. It just
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depends on the project itself and who youll need to help

you. Of course, if money is no object then your name
may not even appear on your own action plan, except to
supervise!
The best way to create an action plan and timeline is to
set a completion date for your goal and work backwards.
On the following page is a sample action plan for our
home-buying example. Lets assume today is January 1,
2006, and Tom and Marys goal is declared as follows:
By August 1, 2006, we are so happy and blessed to be
living in our beautiful, spacious new home. We feel
comfortable and proud to have such a warm and inviting
home to relax and to entertain our friends and family.
To develop an action plan for Tom and Mary, set the last
item on the list (the housewarming party) as due on the
future goal achievement date (August 1, 2006) and work
backwards from then until now, including all the steps
we listed earlier. Next, set appropriate deadlines for each
step, and determine who will be the responsible party for
each task.
On the following page is a sample action plan for Tom
and Marys home-buying goal:
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Task
save for a down payment
clean up our credit reports
determine our requirements
drive around neighborhoods
check the real estate listings

get a reel estate agent
apply for financing
put current home up for sale

put in a bid on a home
pack our stuff + find movers

close on our old home
close on our new home
move
mail change of address notice

unpack
have a housewarming party
No.
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
8/1/2006
7/30/2006
7/25/2006
7/5/2006
6/30/2006
6/28/2006
6/25/2006
4/1/2006
3/1/2006
2/15/2006
2/15/2006
ongoing
2/10/2006
2/1/2006
2/10/2006
immediate
Mary to plan
shared
Mary
shared
shared
shared
shared
shared
Mary
Tom
Mary
Tom
shared
shared
shared
shared
Deadline Resp. Party

in progress
Status
James offered to help
selected Ace Movers
start w/our bank, ck. online
ask cousin Nancy?
$4800 saved as of 1/1/06
Comments
Whenever applicable, tasks should be listed in the order

required for completion. If you want to get really fancy,
you could add a prerequisite column to denote which
numbers (corresponding to specific tasks) must be
completed prior to a particular task. For example, Tom
and Mary must finish packing before they can move. A
number of project-planning software packages are for
sale for this very purpose.
NOTE: Be careful not to get caught up in getting ready
to get ready, where you may spend several hours
creating a fancy action plan. This is another common
form of procrastination, where you look busy, you seem
busy, you may even feel busy, but nothing worthwhile is
getting accomplished.
Action plans dont work unless you take action.
As you can see by the sample, an action plan is a living
document, constantly tweaked and updated. Its a great
idea to use a spreadsheet application to update your plan
on your computer. An online version for Success Method
customers can be found at the URL provided at the back
of this workbook. For the technologically
disadvantaged, a pencil and paper are just as effective.
COLOSSAL PROJECTS
Buying a new home can be a lengthy process with many
objectives; however, the rewards are great, so its easy to
stay motivated by keeping your eyes on the prize.
Sometimes, we have a desire to accomplish something,
but were not nearly as attached to the end result. This is
where procrastination can kill a project. Passion is they
key that will keep you moving forward.
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Lets say you believe you should clean out the garage.
Odds are, you either start and stop, or you never begin to
clean it because you know it will take many hours and
maybe you get a pit in your stomach just thinking about
it. If you cant relate to the garage example, think of
anything youve postponed cleaning or organizing
because it seemed like a huge undertaking (like the attic,
the basement, the outdoor shed, your teenagers closet, or
the junk room).
I once coached someone who told me they put off
cleaning their garage for ten years or more (hows that
for procrastination?) because they just couldnt bear the
thought of actually doing the work! Sure, it begins
harmlessly enough, but as time goes by, your little
project gets increasingly worse until it becomes so builtup in your mind that you just cant muster the courage to
get started. This is what we call a colossal project.
You will find that as you follow these techniques, most
tasks are not nearly as dreadful as you build them up to
be in your mind. But the built-up yuckiness of thinking
about it prevents you from moving forward. Lets look at
a specific example.
For the sake of this example, lets say you see this garage
of yours as totally overwhelming, just impossible to get
cleaned. In truth, the garage is probably an eight- to
twelve-hour project, which certainly seems daunting.
Who wants to spend a whole day or a whole weekend
cleaning the garage?
But lets look at it another way.
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What would happen if you set aside an hour a day, a few

days a week, for a few weeks? You could have the
garage cleaned almost painlessly in less than a month,
which is probably less time than youve spent agonizing
over it.
The following process is helpful in tackling tedious tasks
like the colossal garage project. Instead of breaking the
goal down using objectives, break it into small,
manageable time increments. For example, your eight- to
twelve-hour garage-cleaning mission can actually be
broken down into eight to twelve increments of one hour
each.
To apply this method practically, set a kitchen timer for
one hour. Block out an hour and commit to working in
the garage (or whatever your colossal project entails)
until the timer buzzes. One hour seems fairly painless,
right? Theres nothing impossible or dreadfully scary
about one measly hour. Once the timer buzzes, you can
leave things exactly where they are, drop everything and
move on to something else (go to the park, watch a
movie, or do anything you like). You experience no guilt
because an hour was all you committed to do, and you
fulfilled your commitment, maintaining your personal
integrity. In a single, uninterrupted, focused hour, youll
be amazed at the progress you can make.
After you see how painless this really is, commit to one
hour per day, a few days a week (not even every day) for
a few weeks. Next thing you know, your garage looks
picture-perfect (or your colossal project is complete) and
youre wondering why you put it off so long in the first
place. This really works!
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You may find that after an hour, you are in the groove.
Youve built some piles, worked out a good system, and
cleared out a lot of trash. The timer goes off in what
seems to be a relatively short time. You begin to think
you wouldnt mind going a little longer. If you
experience this, you have two choices. You can walk
away guilt-free, having met your commitment to
complete one hour, or you can choose to put in a little
bonus time.
If you choose to continue with bonus time, set the timer
for another hour (or a half hour, or 15 minutes,
depending on what youre willing to commit to at the
moment) and continue working until you hear that chime
telling you times up. Imagine what that would do to
your self-confidence: you committed to one hour, and
you actually did more! At that point, you will surely feel
like a million bucks. Plus, you will be pleasantly
surprised to see how much progress you made with two
focused hours of garage cleaning.
Several weeks ago, I shared this technique with a
gentleman and he was extremely skeptical at first. He
really didnt see how one hour was going to make any
difference. I told him he didnt have to believe it, he just
had to try it. I convinced him to give it a go by explaining
that if he tried it and it didnt work (even though I knew
it would work) all he would have lost was a single hour.
At that point, he realized he had already listened to more
than an hours worth of his wifes nagging him to get it
done! So he tried it and I wish you could have seen the
look on his face when he told me about it. He said the
phone started ringing after he was about ten minutes into
it, and it was hard not to answer the phone at first, but he
stuck with it and completed his one focused hour of
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cleaning (he was actually working on organizing his

study, not a garage). When the phone rang the next time,
he didnt even hear it because he was so engrossed in the
task at hand, and at the end of the hour he was so pleased
with his progress he completed a second hour. He
completed his colossal project in less than three days, and
he had been putting it off for over three months! He was
absolutely thrilled with the technique and Im convinced
you will be too when you try it for yourself.
Nearly every goal or project can be broken down into
objective, using either specific steps or time increments.
You will have a chance to put the process into practice
with this next exercise.
EXERCISE #8: PLANNING FOR SUCCESS
Choose one of your goals from Exercise #7 and rewrite it
here:
Today is
and I feel
because I now have
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List all the stepping stones (objectives) that will lead you
to your accomplished goal. Dont worry about the order
right now, just include every step you can imagine.
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Now take your completed list and order the tasks

sequentially. Fill in the action plan on the next page,
including task name, task number, deadline and
responsible party. If youve chosen to attack a colossal
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project, your tasks may all be the same, but youll have
the opportunity to set deadlines for the completion of
each time increment. Depending on your goal, you may
also be able to enlist help from others as responsible
parties.
Two blank action plans are provided here, in case you
have a lot of objectives or want to save a blank copy for
your future action plans. An online copy of the blank
action plan is available on our website (see the URL at
the back of this workbook in the References section).
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Comments
Resp. Party Status
Deadline
Task
No.
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Comments
Resp. Party Status
Deadline
Task
No.
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Completing the last exercise has provided you with a

plan of action including specific milestone dates. By
now, you should see a clear path between you and your
goal. If youre feeling particularly adventurous, complete
an action plan for each of your goals (you can make
copies of the blank action plan form, or create your own
form).
Pause here to admire how far youve progressed during
this Success Method. You are more than halfway
through the Method, and so far youve honored your
commitment, revealed where your time goes, discovered
your top priority in life, set powerful and exciting goals,
and created a plan of action to achieve these goals.
Youve also learned a sure-fire way to combat
procrastination by breaking large goals into smaller,
more manageable tasks. Take a moment to marvel at all
youve achieved so far!
Next youll receive practical advice for handling two
additional obstacles which can pop up during your quest
for success: time and stress.
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Chapter 6:
The Myth of
Time Management
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Things which matter most must never be at the mercy

of things which matter least.
Goethe
Here comes your next potentially shocking revelation:
It is impossible to manage time.
Take a moment to ponder the truth present within that
statement. What is time? Who created time? How does
time work? In fact, time simply is what it is; we cannot
manage time any more than we could manage God or
manage a sunset. No wonder you've been stressing
yourself out you've been creating resistance by trying
to control what can not be controlled.
You might be wondering why the Method includes an
entire chapter on Time Management if it doesnt even
exist. (In case youre wondering: NO, you cant skip this
chapter!) The reality is that while you can't manage time,
you can manage yourself within the perceived boundaries
of time, and that is the purpose of this chapter. Be
advised that throughout this chapter, the term "time
management" is use for the sake of brevity in lieu of the
lengthier, more accurate phrase "managing ourselves
within time."
This topic seems to come up frequently in conversation.
Everyone seems to think they need more time or better
time management. On the contrary, I say what you really
need is simply more awareness and focus. Lets take a
look at why its important to learn to manage ourselves
within the constraints of time.
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Why is Time Management Important?

Personal Stress
Stress management and time management are very
closely related. Therefore, the more adept you become at
managing yourself in time, the lower your overall stress
level will be.
Corporate Downsizing
In this age of corporate downsizing and "rightsizing,"
employees may depart, yet their positions are not refilled.
What happens to all the work they used to do? Does it
disappear? Of course not! Unfortunately, their work gets
absorbed by whoever is left standing. For this very
reason, many professionals who have remained in the
same job for a number of years find themselves
shouldering a lot more responsibility now versus when
they first started. Finding yourself with more tasks to
complete in the same amount of time means you will
either increase your stress level or improve your time
management.
Life Balance
Time management is crucial to those seeking a balance
between their personal and professional lives. A person
who works eighty hours per week at their job will most
likely lack a sense of balance between their work and
home life. At the other end of the spectrum, stay-at-home
moms seek balance among their many roles: mother,
woman, wife, friend, sister, daughter, home manager,
entrepreneur and possibly more.
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Ive coached a number of single moms who are

desperately seeking balance among their many roles and
Ive shared my experience, my techniques and (dare I say
it) my wisdom with hundreds of people during my
seminars and teleseminars. Nearly everyone I meet is
seeking balance in their life, yet many people dont
realize that balance is what they desperately need. Right
now, youre smack in the middle of the same Success
Method techniques Ive used to help many people change
their lives and regain a sense of balance and order. This
is what is meant by allowing true success to permeate
every part of your life.
EXERCISE #9: THE COST OF DISORGANIZATION
Have you ever considered the actual cost associated with
being disorganized? Use the following charts to compute
exactly what your time is worth. If you are a salaried
employee, or a business owner who knows her/his
average annual earnings, use Chart 1: Annual
Earnings. Circle your annual salary in the first column
and follow the row across to see your time increment
breakdown.
If you are paid hourly and you are eligible for overtime
pay OR you bill an hourly rate for services and you have
no unpaid/administrative hours in the average workweek,
use Chart 2: Hourly Pay. Circle your hourly rate in the
first column and follow the row across to see your time
increment breakdown.
If you find yourself with a situation that fits somewhere
in-between, you should be able to calculate what you
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earn with each hour that you work, and use this amount
with Chart 2.
These charts will help you place an actual dollar value on
what each minute, hour, day and week of your time are
truly worth.
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CHART 1: ANNUAL EARNINGS

$K/YR
$/MONTH
$/WEEK
$/DAY
$/HOUR
$/MIN
$25K
$2,083.33
$480.77
$96.15
$12.02
$0.20
30K
2,500.00
576.92
115.38
14.42
0.24
35K
2,916.67
673.08
134.62
16.83
0.28
40K
3,333.33
769.23
153.85
19.23
0.32
45K
3,750.00
865.38
173.08
21.63
0.36
50K
4,166.67
961.54
192.31
24.04
0.40
55K
4,583.33
1,057.69
211.54
26.44
0.44
60K
5,000.00
1,153.85
230.77
28.85
0.48
65K
5,416.67
1,250.00
250.00
31.25
0.52
70K
5,833.33
1,346.15
269.23
33.65
0.56
75K
6,250.00
1,442.31
288.46
36.06
0.60
80K
6,666.67
1,538.46
307.69
38.46
0.64
85K
7,083.33
1,634.62
326.92
40.87
0.68
90K
7,500.00
1,730.77
346.15
43.27
0.72
95K
7,916.67
1,826.92
365.38
45.67
0.76
100K
8,333.33
1,923.08
384.62
48.08
0.80
125K
10,416.67
2,403.85
480.77
60.10
1.00
150K
12,500.00
2,884.62
576.92
72.12
1.20
175K
14,583.33
3,365.38
673.08
84.13
1.40
200K
16,666.67
3,846.15
769.23
96.15
1.60
500K
41,666.67
9,615.38
1,923.08
240.38
4.01
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CHART 2: HOURLY PAY

$/HOUR
$/MONTH
$/WEEK
$/DAY
$/MIN
$6.00
$1,032.00
$240.00
$48.00
$0.10
7.00
1,204.00
280.00
56.00
0.12
8.00
1,376.00
320.00
64.00
0.13
9.00
1,548.00
360.00
72.00
0.15
10.00
1,720.00
400.00
80.00
0.17
12.00
2,064.00
480.00
96.00
0.20
14.00
2,408.00
560.00
112.00
0.23
16.00
2,752.00
640.00
128.00
0.27
18.00
3,096.00
720.00
144.00
0.30
20.00
3,440.00
800.00
160.00
0.33
25.00
4,300.00
1,000.00
200.00
0.42
30.00
5,160.00
1,200.00
240.00
0.50
35.00
6,020.00
1,400.00
280.00
0.58
40.00
6,880.00
1,600.00
320.00
0.67
45.00
7,740.00
1,800.00
360.00
0.75
50.00
8,600.00
2,000.00
400.00
0.83
75.00
12,900.00
3,000.00
600.00
1.25
100.00
17,200.00
4,000.00
800.00
1.67
150.00
25,800.00
6,000.00
1,200.00
2.50
200.00
34,400.00
8,000.00
1,600.00
3.33
300.00
51,600.00
12,000.00
2,400.00
5.00
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If your salary or hourly rate is not listed, use the nearest

number, or get creative (for example, if you bill $400 per
hour, just double the numbers for $200 per hour).
Some Points to Consider:
These charts are based on a forty-hour workweek, but
many people work much longer hours. Which brings us
to the reason for this exercise: what could you eliminate
from your day to shorten the workday and create more
time to be at home with your family?
Carefully evaluate where you spend your time (see
Exercise #2) and determine what tasks can be ditched or
delegated. Think about the actual consequences of each
task and ask: Is this necessary? Does it matter if I do this
or not? Who else could handle this instead of me? What
steps can I eliminate to save time?
The Leisure Rate
What is your free time worth?
If you had to put a dollar amount on one hour of your
free time, what does that look like? For some people, it
might be the same as their hourly wage. For others, it
could be double that or ten times as much.
The fact is we have a finite number of hours in each
week. Therefore, people who spend a lot of hours
working often place a high value on their free time,
simply because there is less time available after working,
eating, sleeping and taking care of the daily routine.
Your Leisure Rate is a specific dollar value which
equates to an hour of your free time.
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This number is very specific and personal to each person,

and over time your dollar amount may change as your
situation changes. Those who have an abundance of free
time would most likely have a lower Leisure Rate.
However, since you came looking for The Success
Method, your Leisure Rate is most likely higher. First
well explain the importance of the concept before we
teach you to calculate your own Leisure Rate.
Option #1: Hire Some Help
Determining your Leisure Rate can assist you in daily
decision-making. If you know that your Leisure Rate is
$50 per hour, it simplifies the decision to pay someone
else any amount less than $50 per hour to perform any
task that you yourself want to personally avoid.
For example, lets say you hate to clean your house. You
absolutely despise dusting, vacuuming, mopping and
scrubbing toilets. You hate it so much that you
procrastinate about doing it. But you love to have a clean
house, which presents an opportunity for you to choose.
If living in a filthy house is not an option (and lets hope
its not), you can either clean the house yourself or pay
someone else to do it. Lets say you calculate your
Leisure Rate to be $40 per hour and it takes two hours to
clean your house. After making some phone calls, you
discover that you can pay a housekeeper $50 ($25 per
hour) to clean your house, so it clearly makes sense to
hire a housekeeper in this case.
It is amazing how many excuses bubble up to the surface
just about now. You may be thinking that you cant hire a
housekeeper because you cant afford it, you dont know
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any housekeepers, you worry about what your friend and

family would think, you live on a farm or in a rural area,
you dont want to give up control because no one cleans
as well as you do, your dog bites strangers, etc. So you
continue to clean your house on your own (after
procrastinating until it simply cant wait another day, like
when houseguests are on the way). Because youre
creating an internal conflict by doing something you
detest doing, you get cranky and irritable and mentally
beat yourself up while scrubbing toilets and mopping
floors. Suddenly your whole family may dread cleaning
days because it turns into one giant negative episode.
(Think about this: if your children start to dislike
cleaning days in your house, guess whats going to
happen when they grow up? Theyll most likely repeat
the same pattern you taught them: procrastinate, then
finally give in and grumble about cleaning the house.
You may have even subconsciously learned this pattern
because it was modeled by your parents. Why not break
the pattern and do something different?)
The real question is not whether you can afford a
housekeeper; the real question is whether you can afford
not to hire a housekeeper. Ask yourself this: is your
personal happiness worth fifty dollars?
To be clear, were not suggesting that money can buy
you happiness, joy or peace. Money is energy, and you
have the power to apply money towards something that
creates more peace and less stress in your life. Got it?
It is important to note that this application of the Leisure
Rate is not necessarily the same advice you would
receive from the average person. Then again, youve
probably been taking advice from average people up until
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now and thats driven you to search for a better way, so

perhaps that in and of itself says something about average
advice. Who wants to be average anyway?
The average person would probably consider a
housekeeping service to be a luxury and would cut it
from the budget immediately. What is the result of such a
decision? You then have to do something you absolutely
hate, which leads to your becoming angry and resentful,
which can cause your self esteem to drop a few notches.
As you angrily scrub your toilets and mop your floors,
you may be silently cursing your rich neighbors for
having their own cleaning service. In this scenario,
youve caused yourself a lot of grief and stress by
refusing to spend a measly fifty bucks. Either way its
your call, and ultimately it is you who must live with the
consequences of your decision. The Leisure Rate should
simplify decisions such as these.
Option #2: Accept More Work
Your Leisure Rate can also assist you in determining
whether to take on additional paid work. For example,
lets say you are offered project work that pays $55 per
hour. If your leisure rate is $35 per hour, you would
clearly accept the job.
Alternatively, if your hourly wage is $22 per hour and
your Leisure Rate is $35, if you are offered overtime pay
at time and a half ($22 + $11 = $33 per hour), you may
have a close call to make. The rates are so close that you
may just accept the overtime. However, special
circumstances can alter your decision.
Perhaps youve had a weekend fishing trip planned for
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months, and an overtime offer pops up at work. Using the

above numbers, you would most likely turn it down if
you were really looking forward to the fishing trip
because that Leisure Rate may be at a premium in your
mind. However, when you wake up on Saturday to go
fishing and discover it pouring rain, you may suddenly
feel the urge to call your boss and squeeze in some
overtime that day.
On the other hand, lets assume youve been saving for
an exotic vacation (which would certainly count as
leisure time). You may accept the overtime now in order
to help cover the cost of your upcoming vacation (leisure
time).
Can you see the benefits of being flexible?
The Leisure Rate is never truly an absolute, but it
certainly provides you with ready information to make
educated decisions about what youre giving up and what
youre choosing in these types of situations.
Remember, you are always free to choose. Always.
Words of Caution
Its advisable to exercise your own good judgment when
setting and applying your Leisure Rate. In other words,
dont get crazy and unreasonable when setting your
leisure rate. If your current wage is $7.50 per hour, and
you set your Leisure Rate at $100 per hour, you may
experience some financial challenges as you attempt to
apply your inflated Leisure Rate. If you strongly believe
the $100 is appropriate for your personal Leisure Rate (in
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other words, each hour of your free time is truly worth

$100), it may be time to find a higher-paying job or start
your own business.
Incidentally, I gave this same piece of advice to a woman
about a year ago. She was completely convinced that her
leisure time was worth $150 per hour, and I told her
shed probably never make that much working for
someone else. She took my advice seriously and decided
to start her own business. I spoke with her just the other
day and she is now making good money doing what she
feels passionate about. She absolutely loves her life and
she admits that she doesnt miss her job at all.
On the other hand, control freaks tend to set their Leisure
Rate too low because they want to do everything
themselves and maintain total control. By setting a low
Leisure Rate, the control freak justifies their controlling
nature by insisting that no one else can perform the tasks
(care for their lawn, clean their house, wash their car,
etc.) for a low enough rate, or they claim no one can do it
as well as they do. When the control freak finally does
succumb to paying someone else to handle such tasks,
they often complain about the way the work was
performed, making nitpicky comments and being overly
critical. After all, no one can do it as well as they can,
right?
If you fear you may be a control freak, its time to reevaluate whether you are truly ready to experience
success in your life. You cannot manage every detail of
your life and maintain true balance; the two are mutually
exclusive. Do you want to maintain control over every
detail of your life or do you want peace, joy and success
in your life? More information on this topic will follow
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in the next chapter. In the meantime, consider taking

baby steps here and hiring some assistance for those tasks
you truly resent.
EXERCISE #10: DETERMINING YOUR LEISURE
RATE
The method for determining your Leisure Rate is fairly
simple. Begin by defining your hourly work rate, either
what you are paid per hour to work, or your calculated
hourly rate based on exercise #9. Write that number here:
WORK RATE: $
Using your completed logs from Exercise #2, determine
how many hours per week (on average) are available for
leisure time. For our purposes here, leisure time is
defined as time during which you are free to use in any
way you choose.
For example, we know there are 168 hours in a week
(twenty-four hours per day times seven days per week).
Using your logs from Part II of Exercise #2, subtract all
your obligated time, including eight hours per night for
sleep, work hours, time spent eating and taking care of
personal hygiene, and time spent performing any other
required duties (taking care of children, taking care of
an elderly parent or relative, time committed to volunteer
activities or church activities, etc.)
The time remaining is your Leisure Time.
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Write that number here:

LEISURE TIME:
hours/week
After reviewing your previous two answers, what is the

lowest amount of money you would accept in exchange
for sacrificing an hour of leisure time? Write that number
here:
LEISURE RATE $
As you can see, this is not necessarily a scientific
formula. If your answer to the last question was It
depends, try looking at it another way. If you have 5
hours per week of leisure time remaining, and someone
offered to pay you in exchange for you to completely
give up one of your leisure hours, what dollar amount
would you realistically insist that they pay you? That
dollar amount is your Leisure Rate.
Here is an example of how the Leisure Rate is calculated.
Lets assume that David earns $17 per hour, which is his
work rate. After reviewing his logs from Exercise #2,
David subtracts all his obligated time (including personal
care such as eating and sleeping) and determines that on
average he has fourteen hours per week remaining.
Therefore, Davids total available leisure time is
fourteen (14) hours per week. David looks at the $17 per
hour that he earns while working, and considers the fact
that he only has fourteen hours per week to do exactly
what he wants, so he decide that someone would have to
give him $35 for each hour of leisure time he was willing
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to sacrifice. Therefore, Davids leisure rate is $35 per

hour. This is Davids personal Leisure Rateanother
person with the same exact statistics could select an
entirely different amount as their Leisure Rate.
Applying Your Leisure Rate
It makes sense to hire someone else to perform any
necessary task that you loathe doing, as long as their bill
rate (your cost) is less than your personal Leisure Rate.
However, your Leisure Rate can also be applied to any
time-consuming activity that youd like to yield in place
of something more pleasant. A working mother of five
children probably spends several hours per week taking
care of the familys laundry. She may not mind doing the
laundry, but if she uses a laundry service instead, this
would free up several hours each week which she can
spend with her children (or she could add to her own
personal benefit time, which may put her in a better
frame of mind whenever she is with the children).
The Leisure Rate can be applied to activities such as
lawn care, cooking, shopping, cleaning, closet
organizing, taxes, Christmas shopping, vacation
planning, bookkeeping, babysitting/nanny work, etc.
Make a list of things you really dread doing; tasks that
make you think evil thoughts when you must do them
yourself. Another way of looking at it would be to
include any activity which must be done, but that you
feel lowers your self-esteem significantly. You can also
include tasks that cause you so much frustration or stress
that you tend to take out your anger on yourself and those
around you. Feel free to also include very timeconsuming tasks that could free up your time for more
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pleasant and meaningful activities.

Consider the value of hiring someone else to perform
these dreadful tasks. Would a part-time nanny help you
maintain your sanity and improve the quality of the time
you spend with the kids?
Life is measured not by the amount of time spent, but by
its quality.
The open access of the Internet has caused us to
personally take on a lot of the tasks we used to pay others
to do. Technological resources enable us to be our own
travel agent, online banker and medical researcher. Do
we really need to manage all the details of our lives? Are
we somehow lesser people by admitting that we could
use a little help from time to time? Think about that.
Take a few minutes to create a list of duties that you
absolutely detest. Feel free to use additional pages.
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Now, go back through your list above and rank your list
in order of importance, putting your least enjoyable task
as number one, your second least desirable task as
number two, and so on. Be sure to indicate the frequency
required for each task (daily, weekly, monthly, yearly,
etc.)
Dont underestimate the value of determining and using
your Leisure Rate. A gentleman once told me this one
exercise was so impactful in his life that it changed the
way he approached many of his responsibilities. He
realized that even though he was still doing some of the
things he didnt like, it seemed different now that he
realized he had a choice. He was no longer stuck
without any options.
Now take the time to investigate each of your highestranking activities to determine the cost of hiring someone
to perform the tasks. Check the yellow pages, ask your
friends for referrals, and search the internet for listings in
your area. Perform some price comparisons and consider
how long it would take you to perform the tasks yourself.
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For each item on the list, compare its cost to your

personal Leisure Rate to determine whether it makes
sense to perform that particular task yourself versus
hiring someone else.
Remember David from the previous example, with a $35
per hour Leisure Rate? Lets continue with that example
and assume Davids top three most hated duties
included the following:
Wash the dog every month
Clean the house every other week
Mow the lawn every week
David then determined how long it takes him to perform
each task, and after some pricing research, he discovered
what each task would cost if he paid someone to do it:
Wash the dog - $26 for 40 minutes
Clean the house - $60 for 3 hours every other week
Mow the lawn - $30 for 1! hours
He converted each task into an hourly rate, so he could
compare it to his $35 per hour Leisure Rate. This helps
David clarify which particular tasks justify the use of
hired help:
Wash the dog - $39 per hour not worthwhile
Clean the house - $20 per hour worthwhile
Mow the lawn - $20 per hour worthwhile
Based on the above comparison, David decides to hire a
housekeeper and a lawn care service, which gives him
three additional hours of leisure time per week (which
equates to more than 150 additional hours of leisure time
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per year!) David feels so good about not having to clean

the house or mow the lawn that he easily finds some fat
to trim from his household budget to offset the additional
monthly cost.
Win-Win Solutions
By shifting your mindset to find for more options (as
opposed to focusing on feeling stuck without any
choices), you are more likely to invent creative solutions
to your challenges. In fact, you can exercise your
creativity to develop win-win answers that benefit
everyone involved, including yourself.
For example, lets stick with our buddy David. By
comparing Davids leisure rate ($35 per hour) to the cost
of professional dog grooming ($39 per hour), it doesnt
make financial sense for David to pay a groomer to wash
his dog. Instead of giving up, David gets creative and
invents an alternative solution.
Davids nine year-old nephew wants to earn some extra
cash, and he happens to love dogs. David decides to pay
his nephew $5 to wash his dog. David has just gained an
extra forty minutes of leisure time, Davids nephew has
fun while earning a little extra cash, and Davids dog is
squeaky clean. David may never have invented this
solution if he had remained stuck in his old way of
thinking, moping about all the things he has to do.
These may sound like simple solutions, but the truth is
that they work. Dont get stuck thinking it will have to be
difficult in order to worksometimes simple steps are
the most powerful. Of course, its up to you to actually
put this information to good use and get your own results.
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Time-Saving Tips
When applied consistently, time-saving tips are like
money in the bank. Most everyone loves tips that are
simple to use, easy to remember and can be shared with
other people. If you have a time-saving tip that you
would like to share, visit the http://GrantGalaxy.com
website or email us and well share it with our ezine
subscribers so others can benefit as well.
By eliminating unnecessary activities, you can actually
add time to your day and increase your available leisure
time. The following activities are time thieves that can
be eliminated from your life to create more space for fun.
Busy-ness Updates
If you can do this one simple thing, you will experience a
multitude of positive changes in your life, and your
friends and family will thank you:
Eliminate the time you take to tell people how busy you
are and how much you have to do.
Feel free to read that statement again and let the truth of
it really sink in. It is pointless and annoying to waste time
talking about all the things you have to do, when youll
be much better off if you stop talking and start taking
action! Don't be so arrogant to think your life is any
better, worse or busier than anyone elses life.
Perhaps you have a friend or co-worker who sprang to
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mind immediately when you read this. Highlight this part

and show them a copy of this workbook. They may not
stop completely, but they will most likely stop doing it
around you. At least you wont be wasting your time
listening to them tell you how busy they are.
Lack of Focus or Purpose
As long as youve written your goals and posted them in
an obvious place, you should find it easier to remain
focused. If you find yourself feeling scattered or lost,
spend some time re-reading your goals and Chapter 4.
Being a Control Freak
The obsessive need to control every detail of your life
can consume an enormous amount of time. Decide right
now whether you want to be happy or in controlyou
must choose only one. Learning to let go can free up
small amounts of time that quickly add up to larger
chunks. If you feel you are an extreme control freak, start
by letting go of small things. For example, dont get mad
at your spouse for buying the wrong brand of cat food.
Resist the urge to look in the mailbox slot after you drop
in the mail. Avoid checking the hotel room for possible
missed item for the fifth time before checking out. Start
small and work your way up to the big stuff. It gets
easier. Trust me; I am a recovering control freak,
remember?
Procrastination
This topic was covered in a previous chapter and will be
covered in further detail in Chapter 8 (hows that for
putting things off?), but here is a quick reminder for now:
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1. Break large tasks into smaller tasks.

time.
Over-communicating
Have you ever known someone who told you what they
were going to tell you, then they told you, then they told
you what they just told you? How about someone who
can take ten minutes answering a simple yes or no
question? If you know someone who prides himself on
his communication and follow-up skills, he probably
drives you crazy. He may call you to tell you he is
sending a fax, tell you what the fax will say, then sends
the fax, then has his secretary call to ensure you got the
fax and see if you have any questions about it. Dont let
this persons mismanagement of time steal your precious
minutes. Remember, only you can decide how your time
will be spent! When you realize that you are always free
to choose, it can be a very empowering experience.
Gossip
Gossip is another form of useless communication, which
can be eliminated from your life immediately. No good
can come of it, so remember that old saying: If you
dont have anything nice to say, dont say anything at
all. You will improve your good relationships and over
time, youll minimize your contact with gossip spreaders.
Once the word gets out that you are not interested in the
juicy scoop, the gossips will be sure to find someone else
who is. Dont play their gameit wastes time and ruins
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relationships. It also zaps your energy and causes you

lose to focus.
Pointless Activity
During Exercise #2, you may have identified certain
pointless activities that suck up your time (aimless
internet surfing, gossip, television, mindless chit-chat,
unnecessary cell phone chatter, etc.) If youve hired a
laundry service and a housekeeper simply so you can
spend more time watching television, youve clearly
missed the point. Remember your number one priority in
life? Youre hiding from that every time you engage in
pointless activities (remember your Escapes from
Exercise 2?) By pausing in the moment to ask yourself
what youre accomplishing, you may find it easier to stop
useless activities and pursue something more interesting
and productive.
If a problem has a solution, there is no need to worry
about it. If there is no answer for the problem, worry will
do no good.
Tibetan proverb
Worry
Did you know that a whopping 92% of what you worry
about will never happen to you? Even if some of these
worries came to pass, you wouldnt be able to do
anything about them. Heres the breakdown:
approximately 40% of the things you worry about will
never happen. (Incidentally, youre worrying about them
had no bearing on the fact that they didnt happen.) A
solid 30% of your worries include events that already
occurred in the past, which you are powerless change.
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Another 12% of the things you worry about are the

opinions of other people, which are also impossible for
you to change. Health issues account for another 10%,
compounded by the cruel fact that most health conditions
tend to get worse from worrying. All that remains is a
measly 8%. This 8% includes real, controllable events
that happen to you. Of course, just because you can
control this 8% doesnt mean that worrying about it helps
at all.
Consider this: how would your life change if you reduced
your worries by 92%?
The graph on the following page provides a visual
representation of what we worry about.
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Take a moment to think about how much time you spend

worrying about things that are inconsequential. Next,
begin to become more aware during times when you are
actually worrying. Whenever you begin to worry, give
yourself a reassuring reminder of the 92% chance that it
will never come to pass, and have faith that in the long
run life always works out for the best. Your anxiety will
subside and eventually, worry will become less of a habit
until it disappears entirely (or maybe just decreases to
8%).
Do you remember the things you were worrying about a
year ago? How did they work out? Didn't you waste a lot
of fruitless energy on account of most of them? Didn't
most of them turn out all right after all?
Dale Carnegie
Simultaneously eliminating all these time thieves from
your life may seem like a daunting task. Commit to focus
on one or two at a time and you will soon see
demonstrable results. Remember the lesson from Chapter
5: break larger tasks into smaller ones. By narrowing
your focus, you will be motivated to gradually eliminate
more time thieves and gain more overall leisure time,
thereby allowing you more time to do what you really
want. You definitely deserve a life of your own design.
Understand that these changes may not happen overnight.
Our society conditions us to expect instant gratification,
but its important to remember that your life did not
instantly fall out of balance. The imbalance in your life is
the result of a series of decisions that you made over
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time, and it will take another series of steps to get back

on the path to success.
As you apply the time management guidance from
Chapter 6 throughout this week, remember that balance is
a process which requires constant readjustment. By
completing the Success Method, you are laying the
groundwork for ongoing success. Take a moment to
congratulate yourself for honoring your commitment, and
recognize that you are now two-thirds of the way through
the Program. Your persistence is admirable and deserves
to be acknowledged.
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Chapter 7:
Stop Creating
Your Own Stress!
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The perfect no-stress environment is the grave. When

we change our perception we gain control. Then stress
becomes a challenge, not a threat. When we commit to
action, to actually doing something rather than feeling
trapped by events, the stress in our life becomes
manageable.
Greg Anderson, Author
Which of the following two choices would bring you less
stress and greater satisfaction: spinning your wheels or
moving toward your goals? Obviously, getting the
important stuff done would create more joy and less
stress in your life.
Searching for the most definitive way to eliminate stress?
Do what really matters.
Through the past six weeks, your active participation in
the Success Method has paved the way for you to
significantly reduce stress in your life. You promised to
do all the exercises (and hopefully you kept that
commitment). Youve set priorities and determined what
is most important to you. Youve set goals and objectives
and developed an action plan. Youve learned to create
more time for what you want in your life.
If youve applied all the principles outlined in the
Method, yet you havent already experienced a marked
reduction in your stress level (or at least foresee a
decrease in stress in the very near future), you may be a
control freak or a drama addict.
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A drama addict is a person who is addicted to chaos.

Drama addicts feel lost or incomplete when life is smooth
and calm, so they tend to create situations that cause
confusion and disarray, without consciously trying to
make this happen.
Please do not be offended by the terms freak and
addict. Merriam-Webster defines freak as one that is
markedly unusual or abnormal and addict is defined as
one who is addicted, with addiction meaning to
surrender oneself to something habitually or
obsessively.
We all have a controlling side of our personality, and a
part of each of us thrives on stress. Obviously, some
control is necessary and a little stress can be motivating.
If you had zero stress in your life, what would motivate
you to get off the couch and get to work? The purpose of
this chapter is to determine whether your controlling
nature and/or drama-addictedness are interfering with
your desire to achieve success.
Whether you are a full-out control freak or drama addict,
or just a tiny bit of one or both, the following assessment
will help you help you determine your stress addiction
level.
EXERCISE #11: STRESS ASSESSMENT
For each of the following questions, circle the answer
that best describes how you would most often react to
each situation. Once again, the best way to benefit from
this exercise is to be totally honest with your answers. If
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none of the answers seem appropriate, choose the one

that comes closest to your typical response. Scoring
instructions are provided at the end of the questionnaire.
1. When youre very busy, and someone from an
organization youre involved with calls to ask you to
take on another responsibility, you typically:
a. dont answer the phone if I know why theyre
calling
b. decline politely and ask them to consider me for
the next one
c. agree to do it but I may regret it later
d. accept because I know they chose me for a
special reason
2. How do you handle difficult family members/coworkers/neighbors when an adverse situation arises?
a. I ignore it or avoid them
b. I talk to them calmly and tactfully and seek
resolution of the matter
c. I get angry but tend to keep into myself
d. I talk to friends or co-workers to ask their
advice on the best way to confront the person
3. How do you react when someone gossips to you about
a co-worker or acquaintance?
a. I listen if someone tells me, but I dont initiate
or participate.
b. I ask the person how they know its true and if
they dont know its true, I tell them Im not
interested in discussing it
c. I mention it to another friend or co-worker and
see what they think
d. I go straight to the boss or to that persons close
friend to get to the truth
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4. How long, on average, does it take you to fall asleep

at night from the moment you close your eyes?
a. Less than 5 minutes
b. Around 10-20 minutes
c. More than 30 minutes
d. Sleep? Whats that?
5. Of the last seven nights, how many would you say
were a good nights sleep?
a. All seven, I generally sleep great
b. Five or six nights were good, I often wake
feeling rested
c. Two or three nights were good, I sleep well on
weekends
d. I havent had a good nights sleep in a long
time
6. Which of the following four options best describes
you?
a. Very laid back; its almost impossible to rattle
my cage
b. Fairly even-keel personality, every once in a
while I go off the deep end
c. Spend all day juggling lots of responsibility and
am generally very busy
d. Want more hours in the day, cant get caught up
no matter how much I do
7. How do feel about your answer to #6?
a. I am fine with it
b. Ive learned to accept it
c. I dont see any way out of it
d. You have no idea what its like to be me
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8. When a dramatic situation is going down at work,

where can you usually be found?
a. Minding my own business, doing my work
b. Headed the other way
c. Nearby to listen and lend support or offer
advice
d. In the thick of it, helping sort out whos right
and whos wrong
9. When a friend or co-worker repeatedly discusses their
stress with you, how do you typically react?
a. I eventually stop hanging around them
b. I end the conversation or change the subject.
Dont they think I have enough stress of my
own without listening to theirs?
c. I listen and agree (thats terrible, Im sorry to
here that, you must feel terrible, you poor
thing) to be sympathetic
d. I tell them about all of my stress so they dont
feel so alone
10. When you get stressed, which of the following best
describes your true feelings?
a. I rarely get stressed
b. I try to release stress before it builds up too
much, otherwise I get irritable
c. Annoyed, irritated, frustrated, cranky
d. Overwhelmed, unappreciated, frazzled,
freaking out
SCORING:
Add up the number of questions where you answered A,
B, C and D and fill in the table below. Multiply each
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number by the appropriate point value, and then total

your points to determine your final score.
Total number of As
Total number of Bs
Total number of Cs
Total number of Ds
x 1 point each =
x 2 point each =
x 3 point each =
x 4 point each =
TOTAL POINTS
(FINAL SCORE)
Final Score of 16 or less: DENIAL
You may be hiding your true feelings, leading to the
worse kind of stress: denial. Remember, denial leaves no
room for change, so begin to accept that life is not perfect
and it can be tough to deal with other people sometimes.
Its OK to get annoyed from time to time, and its much
healthier than keeping everything bottled up inside you.
Final Score of 16-23: HEALTHY
You are most-likely a laid-back person who manages
him/herself well under stress. Your score suggests that
you handle most situations appropriately and with a
healthy amount of tact and consideration. While you may
fly off of the handle now and then again, for the most
part your self-induced stress is minimal.
Final Score of 24-32: MODERATE
Your self-induced stress level is probably higher than a
healthy level, but may not be cause for alarm. You seem
to handle some situations easily, yet others can cause you
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to blow your stack. Some stress management assistance

may help you learn tools and techniques for managing
situations, to ease you back into a healthy state. Be
careful: if left unchecked, you could cross the danger
line.
Final Score of 33-40: DANGEROUS
You could be a ticking time bomb who thrives on stress
and chaos. You may frequently become involved
unnecessarily in volatile situations and make bad
situations worse by bringing others into the mix. Seek
stress management assistance immediately.
Summary
Often when you discover the reason for your controlling
nature, you can recognize its significance and begin to let
go. The next exercise takes you through a series of
questions and answers, to assist you in getting to the root
cause of your desire to maintain control.
No, ThanksIm Fine
Do you have difficulty asking for and accepting help? If
so, why? You may be overcompensating for a lack of
control in a certain area of your life, or perhaps you feel
you have to show youve got it together and you can
handle it all. Asking for help may feel like youre
admitting that youre not perfect.
I have seen this phenomenon with a number of parents,
particularly women. Two of the reasons they are so
stressed out are because:
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1. They cant say no when asked to take on more

responsibilities; and
2. They have trouble asking for help.
The root cause is generally the same: they feel a need to
appear as though they can handle it all. Do you feel that
way? What would happen if you admitted you cant do
everything:
Inherited Beliefs
One day, a woman was preparing a family dinner. Her
daughter and her mother (Grandma) were keeping her
company in the kitchen as she worked. The woman
chopped off either end of the roast before she placed it in
the pan and began to season the raw meat. Her daughter
innocently asked, Mommy, why do you always cut the
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ends off the roast? The woman smiled and said, I dont
know. Thats the way Grandma always did it, so thats
how Mommy learned to make a roast. Grandma began
to laugh hysterically. When the woman asked what was
so funny, Grandma replied, I cut off the ends because
my pan was too small to fit the whole roast!
Look for places where your ingrained beliefs cause you
to act blindly. Just because your mother made pasta from
scratch and your dad washed his car by hand, that doesnt
mean you have do things the same way. What were you
taught to do in such a way that you never questioned
why? What beliefs can you recreate on your own now?
The Curse of Perfectionism

Are you a perfectionist? Perfectionism has its place
after all, everyone would want their surgeon to do a
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perfect procedure. Unfortunately, most people overdo it.

Remember, human beings are not perfect, so choose your
perfectionism battles carefully. Which is a better use of
time: polishing a speech or ironing underwear? Take a
minute to reflect on to reflect on the areas of your life
where you demand perfectionism. Consider whether
youre striving for excellence or imposing expectations
that are impossible to meet. Jot down your thoughts in
the space below (and remember, your answer doesnt
have to be perfect).
Saving for a Rainy Day

Are you too thrifty? Do you insist on doing everything
yourself because you dont want to spend the money on
something you can do on your own? Keep in mind the
fact that your time is valuable and all the money in the
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world wont do you much good if you have no time to

spend it and enjoy yourself. Write down your thoughts
regarding your control issues related to money, and be
sure to include anything youd like to change or improve.
Personal Power
How strong is your self-esteem? Do you feel youre
undeserving of indulgences such as a hired
housekeeper or lawn service, so you punish yourself by
doing the dreaded task yourself? Alternatively, you may
choose to be in charge because it makes you feel
needed and valued. When you truly love yourself
unconditionally, you can place a higher value on your
time and your well-being, and it becomes easier to accept
help from other. Which of your controlling urges may
possibly be related to your self-image?
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Reflect on why you feel the urge to control so many

aspects of your life and enter your own answers here.
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How do you measure stress?

Its a good idea to acknowledge your current stress level
and determine a way to measure it so that, in the future,
you can look back and determine whether your stress
level is increasing, decreasing or staying the same.
Measuring your stress is a way to measure your overall
progress toward success.
Personally, my blood pressure and resting heart rate were
specific benchmarks that helped me determine my stress
level. When I left my job to raise my daughter and run
my own business, my blood pressure dropped from
borderline hypertensive at about 138/90 to a perfect
120/80, and my resting heart rate decreased from about
95 to somewhere in the low 70s. This is certainly non
coincidence.
Close friends and family can assist you in measuring
your stress. When people suddenly start complimenting
you, thats generally a good sign. Comments like you
look different, you look great, you sure seem happy
and have you lost weight? are all good indicators that
your stress level has visibly decreased. You can look
around and see how people respond to you for indications
of how youre changing. You can also look at situations
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and notice if youre handling them differently than you

used to. This can be a great indication of your progress.
Heres an example of how someone uses other people as
a barometer of their own stress level. I met with my
Mastermind Entrepreneurs group on the beach earlier this
year. From time to time, the subject of the stress we used
to experience in our former lives comes up (although
not very often on the beach!)
One of my Mastermind members was telling us that he
can see his own stress-level changes reflected in the way
his kids react to him. In his former business, he was at
home but was working a lot of hours during the day and
evening. What prompted him to change was when one of
his children asked, Dad, will you come play with us?
and before he could answer, his four-year old began
making fun of him saying, We know, Dad. You cant
play with us because you have to go talk on the phone.
Although he didnt feel stressed at the time, he suddenly
saw himself mirrored back to him by his son, and it was a
real eye-opener. This prompted him to find a new
business where he could work less hours. Now he has fun
with his kids and travels when he wants to instead of
when the company needs him to, and his time is now
more aligned with his priorities. He is also more aware of
what his kids say because he now knows he can find
insightful clues in their comments (even when they only
seem to be joking).
As your stress level diminishes, you may begin to notice
changes in those around youespecially since they are
no longer reacting to negative stressful energy from you.
You may be less irritable, which makes it easier for other
people to be around you. You may not see changes in
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yourself right away, but you will find that other people
respond to you in a more positive way.
Other factors may unexpectedly appear that also help you
measure stress. You may lose some weight if you were a
person who ate junk food when you were stressed. Acne
may clear up, skin may look more radiant, and fatigue
can give way to increased energy. Results will vary from
person to person, but you should generally look and feel
better when your stress level is reduced.
Using the indicators mentioned, plus any additional signs
you can think of, make a note about your current stress
level. Use the space provided, so the information is
available for future reference and comparison.
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Take Care
In a nutshell, the best way to reduce stress is to allocate
your time according to your priorities, and to take care of
yourself. Take time out for you: eat well, exercise,
meditate, relax and pamper yourself at least occasionally.
Inside you there exists a well which springs forth with an
unlimited supply of energy, health and vitality. Taking
time for yourself is a way to access your well and
rejuvenate spirit, mind and body.
Do you have a favorite way to unwind and take care of
yourself? If you think other people could benefit from
hearing it, please send us an email and we may share it in
our weblog, publish it our ezine or make it available in
some other way.
By taking care of yourself, you return to the well to
renew yourself. This allows you to share your time,
talents and resources with others. Completing the
Success Method is one way in which youre accessing
that well, and now you are well on your way to the
new, happier, healthier you.
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Chapter 8:
Massive Action
and Focus,
Followed by MORE
Massive Action
and Focus.
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Nothing happens until something moves.

Albert Einstein
In todays society, people are frequently pulled in many
directions at once. While reading this right now, you may
be eating dinner, commuting from work, rocking your
baby or performing any other task. Popular culture hails
multitasking as the critical key to sanity. If that is true,
why are stress levels at an all-time high?
The children of today are watching the way their adult
role models live and act. Kids are absorbing our
busyness, non-stop movement, 24/7 cell phone blabbing,
and the constant background noise of the TV or radio. Is
it any wonder why ADD and ADHD have suddenly
become so prevalent?
Everywhere you go, its easy to find people who
complain about how busy they are, yet how much of their
busyness is truly important when compared to their
number one life priority? Most people are misdirected,
racing toward a mark that appears to keep moving and
shifting.
The average persons life can only be described as
chaotic. Spinning your wheels may not be a lot of fun,
but the rat running in the wheel is too busy to notice that
he isnt going anywhere, and the scenery never changes.
(Arent you glad youve chosen to elevate yourself above
average?)
The concepts presented in this Method are all fairly
simple. The only reason you didnt do them before now
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is because you werent sure what to do, perhaps because

you were too busy feeling stuck. This Method offers a
step-by-step process for creating success, and anyone
with strong desire and focus can prevail with the Success
Method. The big disconnect occurs when people are so
trapped in their old behaviors that they find themselves
lacking the focus necessary to stay on track.
The best laid plans are worthless if they remain only
plans. Focused action is the only step that can ensure
results. The average person takes plenty of action each
day, but without purpose and focus the results are
scattered. This is where you will continue to surpass the
average person.
You are one of the lucky ones! By reading and
participating in the Success Method, you are finding a
way to get off the merry-go-round and make some sense
of your life. Youre no longer stuck on a treadmill; you
are learning to live on purpose. Yours is the path to peace
and joy.
Congratulations for keeping your commitment and
completing seven weeks of the Success Method. This
is not an accomplishment to be taken lightly. All around
you lay fallen comrades, representing the 97% of our
society who dont finish what they start. You have
endured and surpassed these weaker ones, and now its
time to see what happens when the rubber hits the road.
To achieve success, simply figure out whats most
important to you, decide what you want, make a plan for
success, and take steps that consistently move you closer
to your goal.
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So far during this process, youve laid the groundwork by

determining your lifes priority. Youve set goals based
on your priority and developed an action plan. Youve
learned about ways to overcome obstacles that may stand
in your way. The only thing left to do is to take massive
action.
Dont be alarmed by the word massive, because at first
glance it can be deceiving. You may see the word
massive and imagine calling in sick to work so you can
stay home and take eight hours of massive action to
achieve your goal. Rome wasnt built in a day, and your
goals wont be either. Massive refers to consistent, daily
steps which may appear to be infinitesimal but actually
combine to create tremendous results.
Does a person become obese during one meal? During
one day? During one week? Can a person become
physically fit after one workout? How about after a
month of working out? No, it is the aggregate sum of
their moment-to-moment choices that creates the result of
obesity or fitness.
Massive action refers to the cumulative results achieved
by taking consistent daily action toward your goals. For
example, if your goal is to remove ten pounds of fat
within two months, your action plan may involve daily
workouts and carefully planned meals. In a single day,
consider how many times you have the choice to take
action and move closer to (or farther from) the
achievement of your goal. You wake up in the morning
and decide: Should I go to the gym or not? You return
from the gym and decide: Should I eat something healthy
for breakfast or not? You go to work and decide: Should
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I eat a free doughnut or not? It continues all throughout

your waking hours.
Regardless of what your goal is and what your typical
day looks like, you are faced with countless choices in
which you must decide: Do I move towards my goal
now, or away from it?
Incidentally, the decision not to do anything is usually a
choice that moves you away from your goal. All these
seemingly insignificant decisions accumulate each day,
each week, and each month to yield massive results over
time.
Of course for some people, procrastination rears its ugly
head, making even the small decisions seem too tough to
even bother getting started. Remember the three steps to
beat procrastination?
1. Break large tasks into smaller tasks (this was
covered in chapter four).
time.
Focus intently, in short bursts of time.
To focus intently means to concentrate on one thing and
only one thing, either until the task is complete or the
allowable time expires.
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The average adult lacks intense focus. Have you ever

talked to someone at a party and although you attempted
to maintain eye contact, the other person kept looking
away from you, as though theyre looking for someone
else? How did you feel when that happened? That person
was obviously not focused on you or your conversation.
On the other hand, have you ever held a conversation
with someone where you felt like you were the only two
people in the room, even though the room was crowded?
At that time, you were both focused on each other,
blocking out all other distractions. If you answered yes,
you are capable of intense focus.
It is far easier to focus intently for short periods of time
rather than for long periods of time. Long periods of
focus are mentally draining, difficult to maintain and
usually require careful planning in advance to avoid or
eliminate distractions in advance. Additionally, the
results of long periods of focus are not usually as
beneficial as the results of several short bursts of intense
focus. Have you ever crammed all night for a final exam?
You may have passed the test, but you would have scored
higher and retained the information longer if you had
studied intently for short period of time each day during
the several weeks prior to the test.
In chapter five, we used the example of cleaning the
garage (or taking on any major task) in focused one-hour
increments. Intense focus means you only do that one
thing during the time allotted. You do not answer the
phone, get the mail, help the kids, wash your hands, grab
a snack, or anything that is not part of the task at hand. If,
while cleaning the garage, you find your old saxophone,
dont take a break to polish the sax and play a few notes.
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Instead, you focus intently on the task at hand only, in

short bursts of time. You can play the saxophone when
the hour of cleaning is finished.
If you truly find it impossible to focus intently on a
project, try shortening the period of time or breaking
down the task into even smaller tasks. For example, if
you cant focus on the garage for one hour at a time, start
with two half-hour increments in a day. You could clean
for thirty minutes, do something else for thirty minutes
and then clean for another half-hour. This way, youre
still attacking the garage an hour at a time, but you may
find it easier to focus in these shorter sessions.
Alternatively, if the project can be broken into objectives,
you may find it easier to focus by making the steps even
smaller and more manageable. Instead of attacking
prepare and mail party invitations in a single sitting,
break it into four smaller tasks and attack one at a time.
For example: stuff and seal envelopes, affix mailing
labels, affix return address labels, and affix stamps. Or,
suppose you have 200 invitations to mail and you cant
sit still long enough to prepare all 200 to go out at once.
Start by getting fifty invitations ready to mail, then take a
break for awhile and do fifty more. This way, it will only
take four sessions to get them all done. Better yet, elicit
help or offer to pay a young niece, nephew or next-door
neighbor a couple of bucks to do it for you. That way,
you can use your intense focus to accomplish something
else.
Take consistent action every day.
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Consistent action is the sure-fire way to beat

procrastination. You may find it beneficial to do your
least-liked activities in the morning because:
1. It will free up the rest of the day for more pleasant
activities
2. Doing something as soon as you wake up leaves
less time for procrastination
3. You wont spend all day dreading the things you
dont want to do
4. You will gain a sense of pride and accomplishment
from following through on your commitment, and
this can set the tone for the entire day
5. And many more reasons which you will discover
for yourself!
EXERCISE #12: NO MORE EXCUSES
Using every other line in the following space, make a list
of all your reasons not to get started on your action plan:
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Now go back through your list of excuses and using only

the open lines this time, write down ways to get around
each one (after all, they are just excuses). As you write
the new statement, cross out the old excuse. For example,
if one of your reasons says Im not a morning person
you might counter that with I am committed to a
successful life and willing to do whatever it takes. As
you write the counter-statement, cross out the excuse.
If you listed I dont have time, remember that you
dont have time because youre doing the wrong
activities. You might write this instead: I will make time
by (using my lunch hour, creating solutions during my
commute, getting up a half hour earlier, etc.)
There is always an answer if you are willing to give up
your excuse and find a solution.
Ideas without action are worthless.
Helen Keller
EXERCISE #13: MASSIVE ACTION BEGINS NOW
Beginning right now, make a three-week commitment to
take consistent action every day toward this goal (even if
its only one step per day or for only thirty minutes). The
idea is to focus in short bursts of time and take some
form of action daily. This exercise will assist you in
creating a new, powerful habit.
In the space provided, rewrite the goal you will use for
this exercise:
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Today is
and I feel
because I now have
Track your progress. Put a checkmark under each day

during which you honored your commitment and took
massive action towards your goal.
Day 1
Day 2
Day 3
Day 4
Day 5
Day 6
Day 7
Day 8
Day 9
Day 1
Day 2
Day 15 Day 16
Day 10
Day 3
Day 17
Day 11
Day 4
Day 18
Day 12
Day 5
Day 19
Day 13
Day 6
Day 20
Day 14
Day 7
Day 21
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Chapter 9:
Making Minor
Course Corrections
to Stay on Target.
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Successful people make their decisions quickly and

change their minds slowly. Failures make their decisions
slowly and change their minds quickly.
Andy Andrews, The Travelers Gift
Congratulations on completing eight weeks of your nineweek Success Method. As you enter the home stretch,
take a moment to mentally stand back and admire all
youve accomplished. By now, you are most likely
experiencing some positive changes in your life.
Acknowledge these improvements and expect more to
follow.
How do you feel having honored this important
commitment to yourself?
Right now, you are in the midst of a three-week

commitment to take consistent daily action toward at
least one of your goals. Remember to honor that
commitment this week as you complete this final week of
the Success Method.
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As you continue to take daily steps toward your goals,

you may discover new benefits. You may be sleeping
better at night and awakening in the morning feeling
well-rested and excited to begin the day. It makes a
remarkable difference to know your life has purpose and
you are fulfilling that purpose a little more each day.
Over time, you will find your entire attitude improves as
you continue to take consistent, focused, daily action.
Every great work, every great accomplishment, has
been brought into manifestation through holding to the
vision, and often just before the big achievement, comes
apparent failure and discouragement.
Florence Scovel Shinn, Artist and Author
From time to time, obstacles will arise in your path.
Challenges are part of life, and these speed bumps often
happen in ways we can neither control nor predict. When
you are faced with a stumbling block, remember to keep
your eyes on the prize and continue moving towards your
goal. Dont spend time getting down on yourself, and by
all means do not quit! Often the road gets rockiest just
before the finish line, which is why most people wind up
quitting three feet from their goal.
Look at it this way: if you give up when the going gets
tough, youve thrown away all your hard workits all
been for NOTHING. Why would you do that? Its so
critical that you continue to press onward until you
achieve your goal.
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When would you quit if you knew you could not fail?
The answer is simple: never. If you absolutely knew you
could be successful, you wouldnt quit and you wouldnt
whine about when will it happen? Patience is a struggle
for many people, and its one that can cause stress and
heartache. Be patient and persist. Take action.
When the going gets tough, the tough do not go
shopping, they get going. By completing the Success
Method, you have proven your strength and stamina so
dont let yourself down now. Remember, several factors
can fall into place at the last possible minute so dont
give up, even if it seems as though time is running out.
You will prevail!
You may have seen the following poem because its been
around for several decades. I have shared it with many
people throughout my personal and professional life, and
Ive seen many people post it on their bulletin board or
computer as a constant reminder of the power of
persistence. Now I am sharing it with youmay it uplift
you and inspire you to new heights.
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Dont Quit
Author Unknown
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will
When the road youre trudging seems all uphill
When funds are low and the debts are high
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh
When care is pressing you down a bit
Rest, if you must, but dont you quit!
Life is queer with its twists and turns
As every one of us sometimes learns
And many a failure turns about
When he might have won had he stuck it out.
Dont give up though the pace seems slow
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt
And you can never tell how close you are
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when youre hardest hit;
Its when things seem worst that you must not quit.
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In case you missed the message, heres a summary: the

best way to stay on track is with consistent, daily
action towards your goals. Keep in mind your reason
for beginning this journey in the first place. Read your
goal list daily and have faith that persistence, focus and
massive action will lead you to successful completion of
your goal.
Lots of people limit their possibilities by giving up
easily. Never tell yourself This is too much for me. Its
no use. I cant go on. If you do youre licked, and by
your own thinking, too. Keep believing and keep on
keeping on.
Norman Vincent Peale
Pastor, Speaker and Author
Keeping Tabs
A progress log helps keep track of your advancement
and lifts your spirits when the going gets tough. Its
rewarding to acknowledge how much youve already
accomplished and too see yourself getting closer to the
finish line.
The progress log differs from the action plan in a few
ways:
1. The progress log tracks all goals simultaneously,
whereas the action plan is tied to one specific goal.
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2. The progress log is a snapshot of the now status of

all goals, but the action plans show specific tasks
and objectives from start to finish for each goal.
3. The progress log can be created on a dry erase
board or chalkboard because last weeks entry is
irrelevant and will be erased to make room for an
update. On the other hand, the action plan is best
kept on a computer or in a notebook and updated
daily.
An example of a progress log is provided for you. Feel
free to adapt the format to suit your style and consider
writing it on a dry erase board or chalkboard. A progress
update of your goals does not belong in a book or
folderit should be posted as a frequent reminder of
what youre working toward and where you currently are
in the process.
Update your progress log as often as you make progress
that you deem worth mentioning, but at least once per
week. For example, if you complete a major step three
days in a row, youll want to update your progress log
with each step. By updating your log at least weekly,
youll maintain your momentum and be inspired to
continue moving forward.
EXERCISE #14: TRACKING YOUR PROGRESS
Using the sample progress log on the next page as your
guide, create your own progress log. The purpose is to
provide encouragement by reminding you that youre
making progress toward your goals. Remember, the
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progress log should be posted in your home or office and

updated frequently, so no space is provided for it here in
this workbook. Buy a chalkboard or dry erase board and
get crackin!
SAMPLE PROGRESS LOG
Goal #1 Slim down from a size 16 dress size to a size
12 by 6/1.
Update Exercising 3 times/wk; lost 11 lbs + 2 inches
in waist; size 14 almost fits
Goal #2 Clean out garage; make space to park car and
boat inside garage.
Update 25% complete. Boat fits and shelves are
cleared off. Donated six boxes of useable
stuff to charity.
Goal #3 Improve quantity and quality of time spent
with kids.
Update Created weekly family game night; kids love
our new suggestion board for family
activities. Everyone seems happier and the
number of weekly screaming matches has
decreased by 10%.
As you approach the achievement of each goal, its time

to create a new one. Keep the cycle going, and reevaluate your priorities periodically to ensure youre on
track. Now that youre completing the Success
Method, this manual will serve as an ongoing
reference of all the steps, any or all of which can be
repeated as needed. You can even start the entire Success
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Method over from the beginning and start a new nineweek program.
Houston, We Have a Problem
Did you know that the space shuttle is off-course
approximately 98 percent of the time? (And apparently if
you believe everything the weatherman says, hurricanes
apparently share the same statistic.) The space shuttle
crew members frequently make tiny course corrections to
ensure they achieve their goals and successfully complete
their mission. When you consider how many people work
for NASA, how much money goes into the space
program, and how much training the astronauts receive, it
may seem a little surprising that they spend so much time
off-course. Kind of makes you feel like youre not doing
so bad, eh?
Even the most scientifically-minded individual (or team)
can form meticulous plans which still require constant
monitoring and frequent tweaking to stay on track. You
simply cant predict what curve balls life will toss at you.
You already know that it doesnt do any good to worry
about what might happen (see Chapter 6), so you will just
have to deal with challenges as they arise. Dont worry,
you can handle it.
Lost in Space
If you find yourself drifting off-course and youre having
trouble figuring out how to burn back to the desired
trajectory, it may be due to one of three reasons:
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1. Youre spending too much time focusing on your

goal.
2. Youre not spending enough time focusing on your
goal.
3. Your goals dont reflect what you really want.
All Work and No Play
Remember the desired result is always balance, which
means you cant spend all of your time focused on one
thing. If youre spending too much time focusing on you
goal, review Chapter 2 and remember the importance of
taking care of yourself, first and foremost. Practice
balancing your time across all your responsibilities by:
taking care of self with personal essentials, personal
benefits and relaxation
taking care of others by working to earn money for
your household, caring for your familys needs or
donating your time
taking massive action towards your goal.
Busy, Busy, Busy
Maybe youre not spending enough time focusing on
your goal. Sometimes procrastination appears as a thinly
veiled version of busy-ness. Well, Id love to
accomplish that goal, but Im just so darn busy!
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What exactly is sucking up your time and preventing you

from achieving what you claimed is most important to
you? Or is there another, deeper reason why youre not
spending enough time on your goal? Massive action is
the cumulative result of tiny baby steps. Stop in the
moment to evaluate whether what youre doing is
necessary. This will allow you to replace time-wasters
with small, daily steps toward your goal. If necessary,
repeat the Time vs. Priorities Exercise in Chapter 2, and
review Chapter 6: The Myth of Time Management.
A Lackluster Attitude
If youre not excited about your goal, the goal itself may
not accurately reflect what you really want. Granted, you
may not be thrilled about completing some of the tasks
required to realize your goal, but thinking about
achieving the goal itself should stir up feelings of
enthusiasm and put butterflies in your stomach. After a
few weeks, if you are losing steam and your interest
wanes, read your goal statement more frequently and
spend some time concentrating on how you will feel
when your goal has been achieved. If this doesnt get
your blood pumping, repeat the exercises in Chapter 5
and this time, set goals that make you giddy with
excitement.
Still feeling dazed and confused? Are your stress and
frustration levels headed in the in the wrong direction?
The following exercise will pinpoint exactly where your
plan needs tweaking. This next exercise includes my topsecret list of probing questions. I developed these over
time through my coaching and workshops, and these
questions are extremely powerful. Theyve helped me to
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assist many people and I know theyll help you too. I

personally still use these questions to take inventory
whenever I get stuck.
EXERCISE #15: PERSONAL INVENTORY
In a separate notebook or journal (or by adding pages to
your Success Method binder), take some time to answer
the following questions as honestly and thoroughly as
possible. If you are completely honest, the answer will
become crystal clear at some point during your writing.
Any part or all of this exercise can be repeated as often as
necessary.
1. Are you reviewing your priorities regularly? If not,
what is keeping you from doing this?
2. Are you spending your time in accordance with your
priorities? If no, why not?
3. Have your priorities changed? (If yes, repeat chapter
two and re-set priorities. Then create new goals,
objectives and action plans based on your new
priorities.)
4. Are you moving towards your goals, away from your
goals, or just standing still? What feelings are
bubbling up to the surface as you answer this
question?
5. Are you accomplishing the goals youve set? If not,
what obstacles or excuses are standing in your way?
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6. Do you feel passionate enough about your goals to

sustain your determination through rough spots? If
not, repeat the goal-setting exercises in Chapter 4.
7. Have you set new goals after accomplishing old ones?
If not, get started immediately!
8. Are you committed to your new goals? If not, what is
holding you back?
9. Are your goals congruent with your priorities? If not,
review Chapter 3 and repeat the goal-setting exercises
in Chapter 4.
10. Are your goals specific, measurable and achievable?
If not, how can you revamp your goals to make them
S.A.M.?
11. Are you setting and achieving appropriate objectives?
Are you keeping your action plans updated? Are you
taking action daily? If not, what is holding you back
and what steps can you take immediately to get back
on track?
12. Are you measuring your results regularly with a
progress logs? Is your progress log posted where you
can see it every day? Are you updating it at least once
per week? If not, update your progress log
immediately.
13. Are you building and using your personal support
network or are you allowing yourself to be influenced
by negativity?
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14. Are you giving yourself credit and acknowledging the

progress youve made? If not, make a list now of all
your accomplishments to date. Be sure to include your
demonstrable commitment to the Success Method.
15. Are you generally feeling focused or scattered? What
steps can you take to improve and strengthen your
focus?
16. Are you taking focused action daily? If not, what
behaviors can you change to create massive action
through small daily steps?
17. Are you taking care of yourself? Name five specific
things you can do this week to take care of yourself.
Make a commitment to complete at least three of them
this week.
18. Why are you stressed? What specifically is causing
your stress? Is the stress moving you forward
(positive pressure) or backward (unnecessary stress)?
Are you willing to let go of the stress even though it
may be uncomfortable to do so?
19. What one action will you take right now to put
yourself back on track? (Completing this exercise
doesnt count.)
20. What would you do today if you werent afraid?
If you completed the exercise, youve answered some

tough questions, but youve also discovered what
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changes you can implement immediately to put yourself

back on the path to success. Dont allow procrastination
to thwart the progress youve made to date. Its never too
late to get back on track and pick up where you left off.
Congratulations on continuing to demonstrate your
commitment to yourself and your priorities.
Be Flexible and Persistent
If you pride yourself on being decisive, you may not like
to change your mind. This way of thinking can cause you
to discard an entire goal when it doesnt work out exactly
as you planned. Somehow, it seems seemed less painful
to give up entirely rather than to review, revamp and
press onward, and as a result you may create an all-ornothing approach. You must understand that setbacks are
part of the process, and challenges are always an
opportunity to do something different (and better).
Did you know that Colonel Sanders was rejected over
one thousand times before successfully selling his nowfamous Kentucky fried-chicken recipe? Each time he was
rejected, he tweaked his approach a little and gave it
another go. How many people are so passionately
committed to their goals that they would endure over one
thousand rejections while continuing to forge ahead?
Imagine what would have happened if Colonel Sanders
had stopped at rejection number 997. He would have
invested all that work, spent all that time, and
accomplished nothing in return. He had over 1,000
opportunities to quit and walk away empty-handed, but
he refused to give up until he succeeded. His relentless
pursuit of his goal and his sheer willingness to continue,
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surpassing that of a reasonable person, is what

guaranteed his success. He viewed each rejection as a
chance to do something differently and improve himself
and his approach. If you can begin to view setbacks as
opportunities to learn and to do something differently,
youll open all sorts of doors that you once perceived as
dead ends.
In some cases, all that is required is to adjust the
completion date of your goal. In other words, your fried
chicken recipe may be perfect, but you just have to keep
looking for the right buyer. Other unexpected
circumstances such as world disasters, adverse weather
conditions, or illness can require slight adjustments in
timing or logistics.
Change the date, change the details, change your
approach, but dont give up on your goal!
Does an airline pilot surrender when stormy weather
hits? Does he say, Oh well, I tried. Theres nothing I can
do about this storm, so I might as well let the autopilot do
whatever its going to do. No, of course not! He takes
over the controls, he finds a safe place to land or he uses
an alternate route, but he never gives up his goal to safely
deliver his passengers to their earthly destination.
By completing the Success Method, you have already
achieved several accomplishments. You followed
through on a nine-week commitment, which I can assure
you that many of your fellow success-seekers did not
complete. You kept a promise to yourself. Simple as that
may sound, few people are able to do it consistently. You
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strengthened your integrity by remaining true to your

word. You mapped out a plan for attaining your goals
and achieving a life ruled by balance. You are creating a
life that makes sense. Isnt that what you set out to
accomplish?
Congratulations are in order for all youve achieved
during the past nine weeks. You should feel satisfied as
you acknowledge your accomplishments with a sense of
pride. The changes youve made and the improvements
youll continue to make will serve as an inspiration to
everyone around you.
Youve set goals based on your greatest passions in life,
so charge ahead with zest and zeal and dont give up until
you get what you want. Take a lesson from Colonel
Sanders and let nothing stand in your way. With
consistent, focused daily action, you will be triumphant.
WELCOME TO THE BEGINNING
OF YOUR NEW SUCCESSFUL LIFE.
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AFTERWARD
We love to hear success stories. Please share your
testimonials and the results youve experienced from
using the Success Method. You can submit your
testimonial to us at:
success@thesuccessmethod.com
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REFERENCES
Copies of all the worksheets in The Success Method
can be found at:
http://grantgalaxy.com/success/worksheets.html
Due to copyright law, it is illegal to reproduce any part of
The Success Method without written permission from the
author or an authorized agent of Grant Galaxy. More
copies of The Success Method can be obtained by
using the order form on the following page or by visiting
the following link:
http://thesuccessmethod.com
Consider becoming an affiliate (for free!) of the Grant
Galaxy (earn money by sending people to our website to
buy our products) by visiting this URL:
http://grantgalaxy.com/affiliate/
Thank you for purchasing The Success Method! We look
forward to adding YOUR success story to our evergrowing list of satisfied customers with amazing success
stories.
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Page 171
THE FLOW OF THE SUCCESS METHOD
MAKE THE
COMMITMENT
START HERE
EVALUATE WHERE
TIME IS CURRENTLY
SPENT
NO!
TRUTH
HURTS!
STOP! GO BACK TO
YOUR OLD LIFE.
CONTINUE?
YES!
PLAN OF
ACTION
SET POWERFUL
GOALS
DEFINE
PURPOSE
DETERMINE
PRIORITIES
YES!
PROCRASTINATION!
CONTINUE?
FOLLOW
THROUGH
OBSTACLE:
LACK OF
TIME
NO!
NO TIME!
CONTINUE?
NO!
YES!
STOP!
SETTLE FOR LESS.
SUCCESS
!!!
TAKE ACTION!
PERSIST!
MANAGE
TIME
STOP! GIVE UP!

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2005 Amy Scott Grant and Grant Galaxy, LLC