Yes, I’ve actually been held at Gunpoint

When I was 18 years old, my first job right out of high school was working in a small plastics factory in a not so good area of town. I worked a night shift where we started at 6 PM and worked until 6 AM, we would work three days on and then we would have the next three days off, at which point we would start another three day cycle.

One night at about 2 AM a man came in the building and was talking to a fellow employee, the rest of us assumed he was a friend bringing lunch or something. There was only three of us working that night so when our fellow employee called us over to his workstation we thought he was going to introduce us to his friend.

When we arrived at his workstation the intruder pulled out a gun, held us at gunpoint and demanded we hand over our wallets. Once he had our wallets in hand, he had all three of us line up against the wall, and then he had us lay on our bellies with our hands straight out in front of us…

My Life Passed Before My Eyes

I’m sure you’ve heard it said that just before you die, your entire life passes before your eyes. Well, I’m here to tell you, that’s the truth, thousands of freeze-frame moments passed before my eyes in a split second, I literally saw my entire life in slow motion in the blink of an eye.

Obviously  the intruder finally left and we were all still alive, yet in that moment we were frozen while our life passed before us. We were “held up”, but we were not in control. Most of the time in life, when we are “held up” its of our own making.

So what’s your Hold-Up?

What’s holding you up while your life passes by? Is it fear? Is a lack of confidence? Lack of knowledge? Are you too young? Or are you too old?… Whatever it is, now is the time to take action.  Start today by taking one step, every journey starts with the first step, stop waiting for everything to be perfect, start where you’re at today, and activate the gifts and talents you already have by taking that first step and change your world.

Stop waiting…It’s Time to Pull the Trigger

An Extraordinary Legacy doesn’t just happen…We must be Intentional, Start today by taking the first step towards an Intentional Legacy!!!

Blessings,

~Randell

Are You At The End Of Your Rope?

If you are at the end of your rope in your work or your business, a longer rope may help for a while but it is definitely not the answer. A longer rope, such as a promotion, a few days off, a special project, or a raise in pay, may rejuvenate you for a while, but ultimately a longer rope would just serve as a diversion, and soon you will find yourself at the end of it once again.

My Finger Prints Are Embedded At The End Of The Rope!

I have dangled at the end of many ropes myself. I have stretched ropes by creating new ideas, going after new emerging markets, and chasing the next big thing, only to find myself in that familiar place once again, at the end of the rope. Stretching the rope buys you a little more time, but each time you stretch the rope it gets a little thinner and harder to hold onto, eventually something is going to give.

I was climbing the wrong rope!

When I finally found the right rope it made all the difference for me. Don’t get me wrong the climb is still hard, it still takes determination, persistence, personal development, and an investment of time, but it is worth it all because of “one thing”…Vision!

What’s at the other end of the rope?

You see, there must be a worthy goal at the other end of the rope, something that means more to you than almost anything else, it’s the one thing that you must see come to realization in your life. It is a goal that you can put your whole heart behind, it is what you go to bed thinking about and what you wake up thinking about, it’s the smile on your face and at the same time it’s a concerned look in your eye. It is in fact your Vision, and until you identify it, you will find yourself at the end of the rope over and over again.

Vision is fuel for successful living!

The Bible says” without vision the people perish” Proverbs 29:18.

Use these three simple exercises to gain clarity on your Vision.

1. Identify Your Values…What do you care about?,  What do you believe in wholeheartedly ?, What moves you to action?
2. What desires has God placed in your heart? …What accomplishments of others cause you to celebrate?  Make a list of things that make you smile. Who do you admire  for their impact on history?
3. Think about the perfect day… What would your perfect day look like?  Where would you be?  Who would be with you? What would you be celebrating?  What would you be most grateful for?

Pondering these thoughts will go a long way towards helping you identify the Vision you have for your Career, Business, and Life. Defining and drawing your Vision is one of the first steps of being Intentional about your Legacy!!!

Blessings,

Randell Mark

I chose to use the term CEO because it had a nice ring to it,  but I am really talking to anyone who owns and operates their own business. The entrepreneur battling it out every single day, some of us love what we do, some of us hate what we do, and many of us are not really sure at all. Personally I spent years in this third category, it seemed as though I dreaded going to work almost every day, yet there was something inside that forced me to keep going… Maybe it is just that entrepreneur spirit.

I truly had a “Love Hate Relationship” with my business, I loved the process of helping people and I loved the relationship that was built with almost every single customer, but I hated the work. I would pray every morning for help in having a good attitude, I would remind myself that each customer was important and they deserved our best attention and energy. I would also tell myself that our employees are team members and part of the company family, and we couldn’t make it without them. However most days all it took was one or two situations to arise and my attitude would begin to sour quickly, I began to view customers and employees as problems that needed to be dealt with, rather than viewing each of them as the vital essence of our businesses existence.

Maybe I was the problem!

In the beginning I was anxious to develop a company logo and place it on everything, coffee cups, scratch pads, T-shirts, print ads, and signage everywhere. I was proud to see our company trucks in our parking lot, on the road, and in customers driveways. What’s truly interesting is that even when I found myself hating my business, those things still brought me a sense of pride… And I think that is what kept me going. That and Fear…Sometimes fear freezes us in our misery.

But it was killing me!

I was actually dying trying to live my dream. I always wanted to be a successful business owner and it seemed there was just enough success and fulfillment to keep me going,  but the failures, worries, and stresses were draining the life out of me, to the point where it was actually changing who I was as a person, a husband, a dad, a friend, and a business owner. I got to the point were I really didn’t like myself very much most of the time, yet somehow I knew I was created for more than this, and there was far more important things for me to do than just bear it out day after day after day.

I know there are many entrepreneurs hurting just like I have been,  I want to reach out and help as many of you as I possibly can recapture the vision,  get your life back, and begin intentionally living a life of purpose. Yes, regardless of where you’re at in your business, it is possible to wake up every morning enthusiastic about awaits you each day. You can face each day with passion and excitement when you are serving the world doing what you were created and gifted to do.

Let me give you three quick tips to help get you moving from frustration to freedom I call them CPR for the CEO.

Chill-out…Take some time away from the business and focus on what’s really important. Family, Faith, Friends

Pursue…Pursue your God given gifts, talents, skills, abilities, and your unique personality, allow these to compliment the work you do within your own business…if they don’t line up, hire someone to do those things, you need to work in your strengths.

Re-capture the vision…Think about why you started your business, Was the reason bigger than just money? Does your business still serve your dream?  Have your dreams changed? The answer to these questions will help determine the future for you and your business.

If your business is stealing your life, a little CPR will breath new life into your tired Heart, Mind, Body and Soul, and help you Re-Capture the Vision! and put you on a path of being Intentional about your Legacy in your Life and Business!!!

Blessings,

Randell Mark

“Being Moderate Is Boring…Full Effort Is Fun”!!!

I first heard that phrase from a cassette tape in 1982 from leadership expert and keynote speaker Bob Goshen. Although I have not consistently lived by that principle it continues to roll through my mind still 30 years later.

Who really wants to be moderate anyway? Nobody is” turned on” by somebody or something that is just moderate.  Living only a few miles from Lake Michigan, my wife and I often enjoy sitting on the pier watching the boats come in and out of the channel heading out to the big lake.While the boats are in the channel they are in a “no wake zone“, this means they float at an idle speed leaving no wake behind the boat. The real fun begins when they get past the end of the pier, without exception every boat goes full throttle. It’s as though the real ride doesn’t even begin until they are at full throttle.

Our lives are no different than the boats in the channel, if we are living moderate lives it’s as though we are in the “no wake zone“. I don’t know about you, but I want my life to be leaving a wake, a positive wake. I want to make a positive difference in this world and it will never happen being moderate. Being moderate is boring, being moderate is in effective, being moderate is dangerous, and being moderate leaves no wake…FULL EFFORT IS FUN, and FULL EFFORT changes everything.

I was listening to an Andy Andrews Podcast recently where Andy was interviewing Christian comedian Ken Davis. Ken made an awesome statement about how he wants to finish his life here on earth. He said “I want to cross the finish line with my chest pushed out as far as possible“…out of breath…FULL EFFORT!!! I agree with Ken Davis, I don’t want to stroll across the finish line, I want to cross it wide open, completely “Spent”…as Zig Ziglar says, “physically exhausted, but emotionally exhilarated“

It’s time we get out of the channel, leave a WAKE, and have some FUN… Let’s go FULL THROTTLE  being Intentional about our Legacy!!!

Blessings,

~Randell

Believe It Or Not…It Can Happen

I was talking to a friend of mine just the other day and I was telling him about some of the new strategies I was planning on using to market my business. Now this friend also owns his own business as well so what he said next really struck me, he said this. “So you are growing your business to do more of what you hate”

I was blown away, I said to him immediately, no I am growing my business to do more of what I love. I told him, that I can’t wait to be able to share the message I have with more and more people, and help others realize that work doesn’t have to be a chore, work doesn’t need to be something we hate, but rather our work should be a reflection of who we truly are and what we were born to do.

The Sad Reality

The sad truth is, that whether you are an employee or an entrepreneur,  if you hate your work it is impossible to live a full life.   How can a person spend 50 or 60% of their waking hours doing something that they hate and truly be alive. I don’t think it is possible, but the real question is this.  If you are not living fully alive, who then is missing out on the real you? Who is being robbed of your real personality, your passions, your dreams, your values. Who is missing out on your talents, your skills, and your abilities. I think it’s really quite simply everybody. The world is missing out on the real you, and you are missing the joy of living a full and abundant life, the life that you were born to live.

If YOU Hate Your Work

If you’re an employee who hates his job, or if you’re a worn out, beat up, overwhelmed, and overworked entrepreneur, it’s time to Get Your Life Back. It’s time to discover who you are, and why you’re here.  It’s time to once again experience Joy, Confidence, Freedom, and a Great Smile to share with the world.

What Now?

If you want to talk about it, I’d love to chat with you at no charge Click Here and drop me a note…We’ll jump on the phone and chat for a while.

I’ve got the bounce back in my step, and you can too!

Blessings,

Randell

Well, it’s about that time! We’re now approaching the first Speak-it-Forward boot camp of 2012! I cannot express enough the value of this boot camp, so I’m offering an exclusive gift for you to help you understand what this means to me, and how you can really maximize on this opportunity…

This is a special exclusive offer for THE FIRST 6 REGISTRANTS!

My good friend Rob Clinton and I have been to the Speak It Forward Boot Camp and LOVED it! It’s not only good to learn about speaking, it’s an amazing entrepreneur course on how to launch and market your business. That’s why we’re going again and want to encourage you to join us.

The very first thing the frustrated, discouraged, overwhelmed, burned out, and beat up entrepreneur needs to do before moving forward to a place of freedom is Get Your Head Right!!!

You need to realize that “YOU” are more than your business. “YOU” were “YOU” long before you went into business, and that your business doesn’t define who “YOU” are, or what your true value is.

What many struggling entrepreneurs tend to do is let every difficulty, failure, bad decision, and unmet goal in business reflect who they are as a person, I know because I do it myself. This behavior will not only sabotage your business, it will cut the legs right out from underneath your own self image making everyday tougher than the day before.

When we personalize every business mistake it becomes impossible to learn from those mistakes because we take the blame as who we are rather than what we did to cause the mistake, and this is a huge distinction. When we see a mistake as an incorrect action, we can learn from it, make the necessary changes to avoid making the same mistake again and ultimately have greater opportunity for success.

On The Other Hand

On the other hand, if we see the mistake as a reflection of who we are we blow huge holes in our confidence, and create doubt in our ability to make wise decisions in the future. When we can’t make decisions with confidence we become paralyzed, and difficulties in our business only become worse, which compounds the situation even more, and creates a perpetual cycle of lack of confidence, fear, and paralysis…over and over and over, and eventually we come to a point where we believe we’re failures, and we failed because of who we are.

Not True

Photo from ideavist.com

Failing, and being a failure are not the same thing. We need to understand that we sometimes fail because of something we did, not because of who we are…the “Who We Are” is best displayed by how we react to our failures. We can beat ourselves up and feel worthless and stupid, or we can look at the facts, make corrections and move forward with confidence knowing we’ve got something of real value to offer, just because of who we are.

If You’re At Your Wit’s End In Your Business

The first thing you need to do is look in the mirror a say “I Am Valuable, I am here for a reason, and my Creator didn’t make any junk” Realize that you have skills and abilities, a personality suited for success, and passions, values, and dreams that are part of your mission.

Go For It With Confidence!!!

“Randell Mark” Olson

A couple of weeks ago Ivan Bickett asked if I would offer my “One Thing” suggestion for his website.  Ivan asked if there was only  ”One Thing” I could tell someone just starting out in their own new business, what would that “One Thing” be.  This was my response:

FEED THE FARMER B4 THE ANIMALS

If I could only share “one Thing” with someone just going into business, it would be this…”Feed The Farmer B4 The Animals”. Using the metaphor of you as the farmer, and the animals as your business, you need to be “well” in order to grow a healthy business.

Our Family During The Early Business Years

This has not always been my philosophy, but I wish it would have been.  In 1997 I walked away from a job with great pay, great benefits, and tons of flexibility to pursue the dream of self employment.  My wife and I had four kids, our oldest was 13 at the time, and the youngest was 4, yes we were just entering the most expensive years of raising a family…what was I thinking?

The way I had it figured was, if we don’t feed the business first, then it will not be able to provide for us, which makes perfect sense, and carries an element of truth, but is fundamentally way off. If you travel this path long enough you will probably end up frustrated at home, and blaming your business for it…after all it gets everything first.  I made the same mistake that many business owners make, of always paying themselves last.

The business bills always came first, the electric bill, gas bill, advertising bills, job material bills, while bills at home went unpaid, or paid at the last possible minute, including our mortgage.

After battling this for years, I finally realized that I needed to pay myself first.  Just as the farmer cannot properly care for his animals if he is not strong and healthy, we as business owners cannot give our business the attention it needs if our own core needs are not being met. For instance, how can we possibly have the energy to focus on our business if we are worried that our electricity will be turned off at home, if we can’t afford groceries for our family, or if we’re avoiding phone calls from bill collectors.  These distractions steal our energy, rob us of our creativity, cause pain in our relationships, and shoot huge holes in our confidence.

Our Family All These Years Later

To build a strong and healthy business, we as business owners need to be giving our best self…we need to be “whole”.  Here is a quick example of how to prioritize the finances of your new business:

1. Pay your Taxes First…do not pay anything until you pay your taxes. Despite what you may have read, the IRS is not that friendly.  If you don’t pay your taxes, they will visit you, usually without an appointment, and at the worst possible moment.
2. Take care of your Family’s Core Needs.  Pay yourself enough to cover Food, Shelter, Utilities, and Clothing. Once these basic needs are met, it is a lot easier to focus on growing your business.
3. Pay business bills.
4. At this point it comes down to Values. Invest in family fun, and business growth as you see fit.

If you will practice these principles you can avoid much of the stress and pain of starting and growing a business that will leave a Legacy for years to come.

“Randell Mark” Olson,  The Intentional Legacy Group, LLC

This week I am honored to share a guest post from my good friend Cindy Hirch.  I hope you enjoy her insightful perspective on a wonderful personal story.  I’m sure you’ll see things a little differently as I did, and wonder what you may have been missing, as well. To get to know Cindy better, check out “About us” page at Pursuing Your Calling.com. THANKS CINDY!

Lesson Learned from Picking Blueberries

One of my favorite summertime activities is an annual trip to a local blueberry farm each July, to pick many pounds of berries for eating and freezing for winter baking. This has been an activity I’ve engaged in since I was a young girl visiting my Grandma each summer in the coal region of PA. In my youth, picking was more of a chore than pleasure. Back then I never appreciated the peaceful feeling experienced in the midst of that activity, or the opportunity to commune with God. I never saw the sun streaming down in the early morning hours with the dew fresh on the fruit and leaves. At the time I never realized the valuable lesson I would learn much later in life.

Yesterday marked the day for picking and I was excited. This farm has rows and rows of berries and I knew exactly where I wanted to go. Arriving at my spot, I looked at the one bush and quickly assessed that it had been picked over. Moving to  the next one, only a couple of feet away, an amazing discovery was made. A new angle, and small shift allowed me to see all the fruit that was actually on the bush I had just walked away from. Lifting a branch, and moving a leaf allowed me to see what wasn’t obvious earlier.

How often do we, in attempting to discover our calling, miss seeing opportunities because we only have one way of viewing a situation? We spend precious time looking straight ahead when all we have to do is shift a bit, or move something to gain a whole new perspective. The lamp provides the necessary light to take the next step.

What are you missing on the road to discovering your calling  because you are looking for the neon light instead of the lamp that is already at your feet softly lighting the way?

I just sent my registration in for an investment in myself that I know will produce extraordinary results. It’s Kent Julian’s Speak It Forward Boot Camp (affiliate link) for all those aspiring to make a profit from speaking.  This boot camp is about more than just making money, it’s an inside out process to help you clarify your message, identify your audience, sharpen your presentation skills, and tell the world what they’re missing if they don’t book you to speak.  

The reason I can recommend this so confidently, is because I have personally attend this fantastic event the last two years, and I will be attending again this year.  The first year I attended I had never spoken publicly, other than teaching a class at church…all I knew was that I had a message to share, and a desire to speak professionally.

Since attending Kent’s Boot Camp the first time, I have been able to really hone in on a message that I am truly passionate about , identify my best audience, and have been following a step by step process to market myself and my message to the people that need to hear it most.  It’s amazing how much easier it has been to get booked to speak, just by following Kent’s proven steps to begin speaking for profit.

If you feel like you have a message to share, and you have a desire to be a public speaker, make this investment in yourself, your future audience deserves to hear you speak about something you are passionate about.  Put some BIG X’s on October 13, 14, 15 2011, on your calender, make plans to spend those days in beautiful Atlanta, GA. investing in your life, to bring the message God put in your heart to a world that’s waiting to hear it.

I Can’t Wait To See You There!!!

It’s just one more way we can be more Intentional about our Legacy.

Blessings,   Randell Mark