How To Get The Slight Edge!
The concept behind the Slight Edge Philosophy is that every day in every way you're either performing simple disciplines or simple errors in judgment. A simple discipline is doing something that will help you move closer to your dreams, goals, and aspirations. A simple error in judgment is doing something that will help you move further away from your dreams, goals, and aspirations. For example, if you were supposed to follow-up with someone today and you didn't, you performed a simple error in judgment; however, if you actually followed up, you performed a simple discipline.
Now here's the catch: At the moment when you perform a simple discipline, it doesn't seem like it made a big difference. But that simple discipline repeated over a period of time and permeated throughout your organization could be the thing that sets you up for success, freedom, and peace of mind.
The same thing applies when you perform a simple error in judgment. At that moment, it doesn't seem like it made a big difference. But that simple error in judgment repeated over a period of time and permeated throughout your organization could be the thing that wipes you out.
That's the basic overview of the Slight Edge concept that I learned from Jim Rohn in the late 1980's. Your assignment now is to develop 12 Daily Disciplines that will help you reach the success you desire. I call them the Daily Dozen, and if you are serious about achieving greatness in this business, then you must perform them for the next 30 days.
Anyone can stretch himself or herself and do almost anything for 30 days. If 30 days seem too long for you, then do the 12 Disciplines every day for the next four weeks. If that's too long, then do them every day for the next month. Look at it any way that's necessary to get yourself to take action.
The following are the 12 Disciplines I recommend you follow. If you do these for the next 30 days, then you will recognize a noticeable positive difference in all areas of your life this year and beyond.
For Mental Development:
Take the negative input out of your life.
1. Read at least 15 minutes per day from an empowering and uplifting book. The key words are empowering and uplifting. The Madonna & Dennis Rodman books don't count, and neither do most of the novels that are out there. Why is this so important? Research shows that 58% of high school graduates never read another book from cover to cover the rest of their adult life. Additionally, approximately 78% of the population has not been in a bookstore in the last five years. Even more astonishing is the fact that 97% of the
2. Unplug your TV. Now wait a second. Before you get too excited let me make a quick point: If your company offers a satellite program that has training and company information on it, of course you can watch that, just stay away from the sitcoms, the movie channels, and especially the news. Don't worry about missing something important. If something really important happens, you don't have to watch the news to find out about it. Someone will call and let you know soon enough.
3. Listen to a tape that educates and empowers. When you're in your car, turn off the radio and turn on the audio. Turn your automobile into a moving university.
4. Don't read the newspaper. The newspaper publishers understand that negativity sells, so that tends to be the first thing you see on the cover and woven throughout the newspapers. Stay away from this.
5. Read your goals and affirmations. Get clear about what you want to create in your life and affirm it daily.
6. Limit or disassociate from negative people. I remember Les Brown saying that there are toxic relationships and there are nourishing relationships. The toxic relationships are poisonous and can drain you of every bit of energy you have. If you want to be massively successful in this business, you are going to need plenty of energy.
For Physical Development:
7. Exercise. Do something. Walk, take the stairs, park a little further away than usual, go to the gym, etc.
8. Drink plenty of distilled water. Strive to drink eight 12oz. glasses per day. You will be surprised of the health benefits you will derive just from drinking plenty of water.
For Business Development:
9. Use your product daily. You want to become your own best customer and you want to personally get the benefits your product offers on a daily basis. Don't expect anyone else in your organization to do it if you're not.
10. Add one new name to your list. Every day you should be talking to people. Forget about them joining your opportunity or buying your products; just think about meeting new friends.
11. Expose the opportunity or conduct a follow up. Apply the same principle as you did in number 10.
12. Give a positive story or word of encouragement to someone in your success team (downline) or support team (upline). Say something that shows respect, appreciation, approval, and so on. It could be with a card, a little note, a fax, an e-mail, or by using a voice communication system you may have set up with your organization.
Heres a bonus to make it a Baker's Dozen:
13. Take time for reflection. For at least 15-30 minutes per day, take the time to just be alone without other disturbances and distractions around, even if you have to go in your closet. Or take a nice hot bath, meditate, seek wisdom, pray, or give thanks and gratitude for already having accomplished what you want. Call it your Quiet Time or your Spiritual Time or whatever you want. The point is just to spend some time connecting with whatever you want to connect with. Focus on the positive, because what you focus on will expand.
I once shared the Daily Dozen with a guy who said he wanted to get his bonus check up. He said, "Jerry, that sounds nice and I think it could even work, but I just don't like to read."
I said, "Where did you hear me say that you have to like to read? I didn't say that. I don't think it says that in your distributor manual, and I'm sure your support team leaders didn't tell you that. You don't have to like to read. That's optional. You just have to read. In fact, you don't have to like any of what I've mentioned. You just have to do it."
Always remember that the requirement is not that you like it, but rather that you do it. If you repeat the simple discipline of the daily dozen for the next 30 days, it will help you develop new habits that will be conducive to you getting what you want from life.
When you make your habits, your habits will make you.
Until next time...
Go, Go, Go!!!
Jerry "DRhino" Clark