If you have any siblings then I’m sure you’re very familiar with jealously, right?

Growing up with two brothers meant everyday was pretty much a competition, from the time we woke up until the time we went to bed! If one of us did something cool or great then the others would go all out to beat it.

I’d like to tell you that once I grew up I matured and got past that childish jealously but the truth is it’s always there in one form or another.

The sad thing is that even with some success I still get jealous and I know that it holds me back from my true potential.

So it’s time for a little honesty, do you struggle with jealously?

Look, I already know the answer and it’s yes because jealously is part of our nature but the thing that I want you to understand from this post is how much it holds you back.

As we make changes in our lives and chase dreams it’s natural to want to measure our progress. In our minds the way we measure this progress is to compare where we’re at to where others who are doing the same things we’re doing are at in their progress.

An example

I know that many who read this blog are building their Platform as writers and speakers and other online endeavors. As you’re checking your progress you might check out other people’s blogs, and social media accounts.

You might check how many comments they have or how many social media shares they get. You might check how many social media friends and followers they have. You look at all these numbers and if they’re more than yours………….. You have to finish that sentence.

Naturally we have what I call “Dream Jealously.” You know what I’m talking about, you see their numbers and feel like you’re not making progress on your dream.

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You’re very busy, I get that. This second team is for those of you who are busy but want to help and I need all the help I can get.

The video explains things but if you’re too busy to watch the video…….

This second team is for those who don’t have the time to fully commit. This is how it will work:

• You’ll read the book
• Write a review on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles.
• Share the book the week of the  launch on social media.

See, that’s not to bad, right? So what will you get for your efforts:

• An advanced electronic copy (PDF) of the manuscript that you can read a month before anyone else will get a copy.
• A free copy of the paperback before it releases.
• Exclusive access to a private Facebook group, where we’ll share promotion ideas and you’ll have direct contact with me. This could also be a good place get some idea’s for your own launch team.
• The opportunity to interact with other launch team members and see the behind-the-scenes of a book launch.
• A special mention on my blog with a link to your website.

So here is the form, I hope to see you on this second team:

What?

Yeah, I’ve had a few jobs in my time (12), I talk about them in my first book. I was convinced “this new job was it” and I could finally stop looking.

You’ve probably heard my story a few times so I won’t bore you but it took a while to figure out my true calling in life. It took a while to figure out that I was just existing.

Well, I woke up and determined I wanted to live but what in the world did that mean?

After some soul-searching and much prayer I figured out truly living for me means helping people. More specifically, helping people stop settling so that they can live the life of their dreams.

How could I do this?

I wrote a few books and they eventually did well and as a result I was contacted to speak. The problem is that I was terrified to get up and speak in front of an audience. I thought about traveling to another state to speak and I had to admit it did have some appeal.

It was also my wife and a group of friends that persuaded me to say yes. So it was official that I would be flying to another state to launch my career as a speaker! (more…)

It’s almost a miracle that I’m writing this post. Over the years I have dreamed of many things and never did anything about those dreams. The dreaming was fun and a lot easier than the hard part of taking action on my dreams. Who wants to do all that work anyway?

Two years ago it got to the point where I had to do something because I couldn’t lie to myself anymore. That journey has brought me to today. Today is a very happy and victorious day.

I would like to officially announce a call to join the launch team of my first traditional published book. This book is my dream come true. This book is proof that anyone can live out their dreams despite their current situation.

My goal for this book is to do well but it goes far beyond that. My goal is to start a movement of people who stop settling, stop making excuses so that they can live the life of their dreams.

If you have been settling in your life then my prayer is that this book is your wake up call. I was where you are and I can tell you truly living is so much sweeter!

I have been blessed to have so much amazing support from so many people, it’s overwhelming at times. I want to ask for a little more help launching my dream.

So what will the launch team do?

If you’re picked to be a part of this team, I ask that you agree to a few simple things:

• Read and review the book online (Amazon, Barnes & Noble). I ask that you write at least two posts on your blog: one announcing you’re on the Living or Existing Launch Team and one reviewing the book the week of the release (May 1). I will be available for interviews if that’s easier than writing a post or feel free to do both.
• Spread the word any way you can during the week of May 1 (when the book launches), especially on ALL of your social media networks.
• Interact with the rest of the launch team and participate in the community to help come up with promotion ideas (we’re open to experimenting). There will be a private Facebook group set up for this.

I’m going to be “all in” for this, so I ask that you take it seriously, this is my dream. Please don’t sign up if you don’t have the time or energy to dedicate to helping get the word out in every way you can.

I need people who believe in starting this movement and spreading this message, I need YOU! (more…)

This is a guest post from Drew Tewell who is the author of the book, The Dream Job Program: Get the job you want. You can purchase it on Amazon or get it for free when you subscribe to his blog. You can also connect with Drew on Twitter and Facebook.

As individuals, we are all on a journey. You may have read Kimanzi’s post earlier this week where he told us about finally getting to hold his book in his hands and also give a copy to his 87-year-old grandpa. Kimanzi is living his dream and an inspiration to us all.

Today I want to share a little bit of my journey and hopefully encourage and inspire you to keep chasing your dreams.

Years ago I worked with young people as a youth pastor. Every week I had to prepare a talk that I delivered on a Wednesday night. Over time I felt like I was getting better and better, but I always thought the message that I wrote on paper was better than the message I delivered to the young people.

I eventually got married and ended up moving out-of-state. I had lined up a position again working with young people but it didn’t work out. So I ended up taking whatever work I could get and eventually found myself selling credit cards.

Before getting the job selling credit cards, while I was working at a temp job, I got an idea for a book. I ran the idea by someone I knew who was also an author and who was helping aspiring authors publish their book. He liked my idea and sent me a contract to work with him. But, I never ended up following through and the book was never written. (more…)

I want to thank everyone who emails me or asks me questions on social media; it’s an honor for me to help you in any way that I can. Thank you!

I get two questions over and over again. The first is asking for helping launching and selling ebooks. In case you missed it I wrote a LONG post talking about this subject.

The second question is someone saying that they’re in this situation…………. they describe the situation. Usually these are though situations and my heart goes out because I’ve been there and felt stuck and helpless as well. They ask me what they can do to get out of this situation and chase their dreams.

I find over and over again I give the same answer because it makes sense to so many situations and if you read this blog chances are you’re thinking about this anyway. The answer to most (not all) of the questions is the title of a series that I want to write about in the next few posts: How to start and market a profitable online business.

*Disclaimer*

Before I get into this I want you to know something upfront, this is hard work, very hard. It will also take time and a lot of patience, that’s just how it is. You can do this and you can create an amazing source of income but you’re going to have to be willing to work harder than anybody!

The first part of this series I want to deal with some preliminary things that can be the difference between success and failure so please bear with me. I’ll get to all the good tips and tricks as we move on in the series.

Usually when I tell people this the first thing they ask is “what could I start an online business about”? Good question. (more…)

Note from me: I will be away the rest of this week speaking in Kenya, Africa. My good friend Dan Black will be moderating my comments. Thank you Dan!

It’s just human nature to want to compare what you’re doing to what someone else is doing.

Growing up with three brothers I’m sure you can imagine there was a lot of comparing going on. When my older brother got a B in school, I made sure I got an A. When my younger brother excelled at sports, my older brother would play until he dropped to be better than our younger brother.

You would think that when you grow up we would be over silly things like this but let’s be honest, we’re not!

As I started writing and speaking, the way that I measured my progress was to look at friends that had were on the same level as me. If they booked three events, I wasn’t happy unless I booked four. If someone sold X number of books, I did everything I could to sell Y.

I know it sounds bad but I made a promise to always be honest and the honest truth is no matter how hard I try, I get caught up in comparing myself to others. (more…)

I don’t know about you but I can be easily distracted, it doesn’t take much for me to lose focus. As I wrote my first book it was a battle between the writing and the thousand other things that wanted my attention.

When I would get in the groove, my phone would ring or get an alert from social media. The book was written in a good period of time but a lot more could have been accomplished if I was more intentional about the time.

As you know a lot has happened recently and my schedule has gotten busier, so I’ve been thinking about my dreams and how I use time.

This year I went for every writing and speaking opportunity available, in the month of September alone, I’ll be speaking at a different event in a different part of the country every weekend. I am a contributing writer for a magazine, and another website and sending out guest post for every blog in the world. I forgot to mention, I’m writing my third book!

So do you see my dilemma with my time? How about you, are you being intentional about the time you spend on your dream? (more…)