Dan Waldschmidt's Blog, page 53

Is Greed Good? [EPTV]

“Money can’t buy happiness.”

“You’re just in it for the money.”

“The love of money is the root of all evil.”

There are few factors more limiting in your pursuit of success than money. If you don’t have enough to fuel your dreams, they will sputter out and die. That’s one of the “hard truths” we all have to learn (and sometimes re-learn in life).

You probably don’t have a rich uncle or a trust fund. Maybe you’re working two jobs and living paycheck to paycheck just to put food on the table for your kids. And it’s hard to know where to begin.

It’s okay to want to earn more money — as long as you have the right perspective. Money isn’t magical, elusive pixie dust that only a few accidentally stumble upon like buried treasure.

Money is a tool.

It’s not the “end all, be all”. Life is not a contest to see who can have the shiniest toys.

Stupid financial decisions will leave you broke and hurting (and maybe a little hungry).
Get rich quick schemes will leave you getting broke quick (or thrown in jail).
Spending less will leave you with enough to fuel your passion (and you can always spend less).

Take Kurt Varner. He was so desperate to join Silicon Valley, that he lived out of his car for 4 months on $219 a month before landing a product design job at a startup.

$219.

What expenses can you cut?

These are the conversations we need to have about finances. That you need to have. Alone. With your spouse.

Be willing to do whatever it takes to keep funding your passions.

Let’s have an “EDGY” conversation about money on the 10th episode of The EDGY Perspective.

The post Is Greed Good? [EPTV] appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

Stop Listening To Advice.

Your haters will always shout louder and longer than anyone else with an opinion.

They don’t need facts to tell you what to do. They don’t even need a good reason.

Haters hate.

That’s what they do.

They spew their angry opinions and shortsighted insights at anyone who dares stand up to their bullying ways.

And even though you know you’re being bullied — even though you’re smart enough to understand that the wave of hateful commentary coming your way is based in bias and bigotry — it doesn’t make you feel any better being on the receiving end.

It hurts.

You hurt because you know you’re being treated unfairly. You hurt because the real conversation that could be happening isn’t happening.

You hurt because deep down inside there’s a part of you that starts to believe the hateful messages.

That hurts cripples your ability to be amazing.

You start losing and the losers start winning.

The remedy is to get away from it all.

To block it out of your life. To avoid it whenever possible.

You’re not strong enough to handle it. No one is.

It’s not a fair fight. You will always end up losing.

Stop listening. Stay focused.

The post Stop Listening To Advice. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

You Might Need To Be A Fool To Win.

Nothing you do once really works.

You might get good results from that one time, but you didn’t really change anything.

Success demand progress. And progress comes from momentum. That momentum is carved out of the bedrock of consistent effort.

So while trying is important, it’s probably not going to change much for you right now.

Which is why you might decide that trying isn’t all that important.

Because nothing change right away.

The results you thought you would get from trying something new didn’t end up as glorious as someone else promised you.

That’s because you’re confused about what trying really means.

Trying isn’t about how many different things you attempt, but rather the amount of times you attempt to do the same thing right.

Nothing works if you don’t work.

Finding success — getting the results you want  — demands sweat and tears and blood. It’s not an accident that happens in an intellectual laboratory somewhere.

It’s hard to keep trying the same thing when the only results from your past efforts have been failure.

You feel like a fool.

Those around you misinterpret your focus as stupidity.

Or belligerence. They tell you you’re doing the wrong thing — and you feel like they are every bit right.

But that doesn’t change the fact that getting the results that you want is all about how committed you are to keep trying.

That starts with belief. Belief in yourself. Belief in your mission.

Belief that success is possible.

The greatest breakthroughs in the world have all come about from the same formula of trial and error and trial and error and trial and error.

If you’re not willing to look wrong while you’re fighting to be successful, don’t ever expect to get it right.

You’re probably going to have to look like a fool and a failure on your way to being awesome.

Keep trying. That never fails to work.

The post You Might Need To Be A Fool To Win. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

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The Secret Power You Need To Be A Great Leader.

Great leaders usually have radical views about the world around them.

They don’t just see the world differently from everyone else, they are driven by a set of core beliefs that empower them to take advantage of opportunities that others just bemoan as problems.

Their beliefs and desires determine how they make decisions.

It’s almost subconscious. Automatic.

Since they believe in hard work, dedication, and never giving up,  they don’t see obstacles and failure as final — just as a problem that needs to be solved.

The same is true with coming up with new ideas, evaluating top talent, differentiating themselves from the rest of the industry, or convincing those around them to rally around a great cause.

It’s not about ongoing tactics or counterpunching the competition.

It’s about believing.

Not hoping or wishing. Not following a series of logical steps that someone else has outlined. Not following conventional wisdom.

Great leaders are driven by a sense of mission and purpose. They believe in their calling.

Sometimes that mission flies in the face of what others around them expect them to be doing. Sometimes that sense of purpose can seem misguided or overzealous. Great leaders know that hard work focused with the intensity of a higher calling — based on the belief that it will all be worth it in the end — is a force unstoppable by anything.

You can’t stop a movement.

You can’t stop a winner obsessed by a sense of duty and honor and calling. Great leaders know that. They build that sense of purpose around themselves. They hire talented, driven team members who embrace that calling themselves.

If you aspire to be greater than you are now, believe more than you do now.

Have a sense of mission. Develop the intensity and focus that drives you to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes — until you get to where you want to be.

Don’t back down from what you believe in. And don’t feel embarrassed to share your overwhelming sense of calling with those around you.

Not everyone will agree with you.

In fact, many people will think you’re crazy. That your intentions are selfish. That your actions are dangerous. That you’re just trying to make everyone else look bad by working so hard yourself.

Rise up. Stand up. Look up. Speak up. Show up.

The only thing that can truly stop you is you deciding to quit because of the hurtful things other people say about you.

There are no other fatal blows. There are no final embattlements you can not breach.

But none of it works if you don’t believe. Battle on.

The post The Secret Power You Need To Be A Great Leader. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

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How Winners Play Politics [EPTV]

I took a few weeks off from filming new episodes of The EDGY Perspective because I’ve been non-stop traveling.

But we’re back and coming out swinging.

Politicians get a lot of bad rap for “playing politics”–for saying a lot without saying anything.

But they’re playing a game–a chess game, if you will–trying to figure out where people stand on issues, how to convince them to “cross party lines” or support their bill. Politicians are experts at the “(y)human” factor of success.

Are you?

A few weeks ago, I wrote that only idiots don’t play politics (if you missed it, check it out here). I got a flurry of emails from people who were up in arms defending the notion of refusing to play politics.

So I decided to elaborate.

Find out why you need to constantly be navigating the “(y)human” element of success (along with a few pointers).

And crucially, learn why only dinosaurs need a tough skin–and why you’ll “go extinct” if you insist on having one.

All on the 9th episode of The EDGY Perspective…

 

The post How Winners Play Politics [EPTV] appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

How To Find Your Way Out Of The Pain Cave.

In ultrarunning there’s an ominous phrase you’ll hear bantered around by seasoned pros — the “pain cave”.

It doesn’t matter when or why — but the reality of running long-distances competitively is that you will have to spend time in the pain cave.

It’s a dark place. A place where things get really ugly.

Every part of your body hurts.

Your legs are shredded. Your arms hurt from carrying a water bottle. Your inner thighs are chafed from so many strides. Your neck is sore. Your back is bruised from tripping over roots and stumps along the trail.

Everything hurts. And every part of your body is screaming out that the best possible option for you right now is to quit doing what you are doing.

Despite your training and your will to win, the darkness of the pain cave distorts reality. You feel all alone. You’re not sure there’s actually a way to get out of the pain cave. You just hurt.

And you’ll do whatever it takes to stop hurting.

Spending time in the pain cave isn’t just for running ultramarathons. It’s happens in business and family situations, school, your community, and a lot of other places you happen to be.

Your pain cave is different than everyone else. The intensity of what you feel and the emotions that cascade around you are different — but what isn’t different is that we all get there.

The truth about life and success and doing what is hard is that without pain there is no progress. If you don’t hurt doing what you’re doing right now then you’re not working on something that will end up with extraordinary results.

Pain is the gateway to progress.

So what do you do when you want to keep going but hurt so badly you’re not really sure you can?

Talk to yourself – Don’t let the suffering shout at you without shouting back. Remind yourself of the reason you’re doing this and the reward that is on the other side of the pain you feel.
Keep moving forward – Don’t stop now. You’ll feel better right now — but a lot worse down the road when you realize that you missed out on extraordinary results.
Keep fueling up on inspiration – Don’t forget to stay energized for the journey ahead. Keep moving but keep fueling too. You’ll need all the energy you can get.

The only way to make it through the pain cave is to want to make it.

To be successful, you have to want the rewards of winning more than you want the pain to go away right now.

Don’t run from pain. You don’t have to like it. But you do need it.

Especially if your mission is to do something awesome.

The post How To Find Your Way Out Of The Pain Cave.  appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

The Inconvenient Relevance Of Not Yet.

It doesn’t matter that you’re not a hard worker until you realize that you haven’t developed the right experience and skills — because you haven’t been willing to do what is hard or uncomfortable.

It doesn’t matter that you’re a jerk to those around you until you can’t get promoted or land a new job because no one wants to be within a thousand yards of you, much less give you a testimonial.

It doesn’t matter that you’re wasteful and undisciplined in how you spend your money and time until you’re broke and in debt to the point that it will take you years to get back to a level playing field.

It doesn’t matter that you have bad habits in your life, until it does matter.

That’s the truth of not yet.

It‘s easy to shrug off poor behavior and personal vices with the explanation that “it doesn’t really matter right now”. Usually that means that you haven’t seen enough of the negative results of your poor behavior to realize how much damage you’re actually doing.

But don’t be fooled. What you do today has consequences tomorrow. For good. For bad. For awesome. There are no accidents or lucky breaks.

What you do each day directly leads to the results you get and what you ultimately achieve.

Just because things aren’t the way you think they should be right now doesn’t mean that’s how they’ll continue to be.

That’s the reality of not yet.

Good things eventually happen to people doing good things. Bad things happen to people who do bad things.

Even the worst of things can’t permanently cripple a good person — because they’re busy taking bad things and turning them back into good things.

Sometimes people doing bad things have unexpectedly good results. But they’ll squander those chances to do even better things. Even the brightest opportunities are darkened by their poor behavior.

It doesn’t matter until it does matter. It’s that simple. Don’t lose track of the yet in where you are right now.

That’s the empowerment of not yet.

You might not yet be getting the just rewards of your hard work. That doesn’t mean that it doesn’t matter. It just means you haven’t found your moment of glory yet.

You might be getting away with sloppy, self-destructive behavior. Just because everything still looks put together on the outside doesn’t mean you can get away with that sort of performance forever.

Make sure your moment matter. Make sure your future matters.

Make sure that where you end up is exactly where you intend to be. Because when it does matter, it will be too late to change the behavior that got you to where you are right now.

Now is the time to do the hard things you’ve been avoiding thus far.

That’s the inconvenient relevance of not yet.

The post The Inconvenient Relevance Of Not Yet. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

Set Yourself Free.

Anybody can be average.

In fact, that’s pretty much the definition of ordinary. The status quo. What everybody else is doing.

A job that pays you enough to buy a house, a car, and enough pleasantries to pretend like your future might be awesome.

But average doesn’t ended nicely.

You can’t be average and awesome at the same time.

You can’t work less and make more. The hard truth about achieving greatness is that you have to feel uncomfortable in order to get to where you want to be.

Sometimes that means you have to spend your last penny to gamble on an idea that only you thinks might work. Other times that means you have to look ridiculous by being different, sticking out, and believing in things that other people find fault with.

It’s tough to stop being average.

It’s easy to confuse thinking you’re awesome with just being average in the business world.

You run from meeting to meeting, assuming that because you’re busy you’re doing things that really matter. But you never have the tough conversations. You don’t speak out about the real issues. You just stay busy and hope that your future is wonderful and magical.

And the realization you come to — usually at the worst of times — is that it takes time to stop being average.

You can’t just start being awesome when you need to be.

You’ll have had to ditched being average a long time ago.

Which is a promise of hope if you have been working at this for a while.

The only thing you can’t do is that one thing you’re not willing to do.

You decide if you stay average. You decide if you have a chance to achieve something that other people call awesome. 

Being average doesn’t make you lucky.

Being average doesn’t make you awesome. Being average keeps you feeling stuck.

Held against your will. A slave. Captive.

You’re the one with the key.

Set your self free.

The post Set Yourself Free.  appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

Why You Can’t Get Rich Even Though It’s Easy.

The internet is full of people offering “groundbreaking” courses on how you can get rich.

There are plans and processes and programs for “anyone and everyone” that allow you to work from home, make more money than you can spend, and live the life of your dreams.

You’ve probably been pitched one of these plans by someone that you know, seen a post about it on Twitter or Facebook, and might have even tried to get rich following the steps that you’ve been given.

You want to believe that it’s possible to get rich.

You and everyone else — and there’s nothing wrong with that.

There is nothing wrong with making more money or accumulating wealth.

The truth is that the more money you have, the happier your world can be.

The good that you can do with your wealth is staggering.

Frankly, becoming wealthy isn’t all that much of a mystery.

The same truths that worked several thousand years ago still apply today:

To make more, you have to work a lot harder than everyone else tells you is reasonable, logical, or fair
If you owe money to someone else, you have to do what they tell you do — not what you want to do.
You can’t get rich quick without cheating other people or doing things that will cause you regrets later.
The longer you take to get smart about the financials the even longer it will take you to fix things.
If you don’t plan to save or invest your money first, you’ll spend any wealth you could have built.
You can’t get ahead without dramatic sacrifice to your personal lifestyle and “wants” right now.
It’s easier to lose wealth than it is to make it — so avoid making stupid financial decisions.

Whether you’re struggling to dig yourself out of a hole financially or working to build generational wealth for your family — the same principles apply.

It’s easy to get rich if you’re willing to do the hard things that creating wealth demands.

And it’s impossible if you’re unwilling to change.

Or if you just want to make excuses. Changing your future require massive amounts of energy right now in the present.

This moment right now is when you have to change. Tomorrow too. And the next day.

And if you make the right decisions and do the hard work, you’ll end up with an enriched life. You’ll be wealthy in relationships, experiences, and lives that you’ve been able to change.

That doesn’t happen quickly — so ignore any plan or program that promises that.

You’re probably just making a stupid financial decision.

The post Why You Can’t Get Rich Even Though It’s Easy. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...

You’re Not Angry Enough To Be Awesome.

You can’t be awesome if you don’t have pain and frustration in your life. If you aren’t angry about where you are in life — the obstacles in your way — you won’t ever achieve the success you want for yourself.

Progress comes from pain. Momentum comes from the will to win.

That will to win is strengthened when you have a reason to keep fighting — a rage to push back against whatever is holding you back from where you want to be.

Motion without emotion is just wasted effort.

Going through the motions isn’t going to make you successful at anything. If you find yourself feeling bitter, disappointed, and miserable about the results you are getting so far, maybe that’s a huge warning sign.

Maybe you’re just going through the motions. Maybe you’re not fighting as hard as you think you are. Maybe you need to carry a bigger chip on your shoulder.

The greatest power you have is your resolve to keep trying.

You can’t be awesome if you’re not angry.

You can’t improve if you’re not dissatisfied with your results right now. You can’t just be dissatisfied — you have to be outraged. Insulted. Upset and annoyed.

At yourself. At life. At the people who get inside your head and convince you to quit. At all the times you’ve quit before.

That angry is wasted when you point fingers, whine, mope around, or pretend like you’re as awesome as you should be. The secret to breaking past the obstacles in your way is to use your anger to focus on what matters and work harder than anyone else around you.

Get mad. Take life personally. Fight for a future that you want to live in.

Maybe you’re not angry enough to be awesome.

Maybe today is the day to finally change that.

The post You’re Not Angry Enough To Be Awesome. appeared first on Dan Waldschmidt: Author of EDGY Conversations.

Copyright by Waldschmidt Partners Intl... Not sure that all that legal stuff really matters. If you want to share this material, do so. Just don't charge for it and don't tell people you wrote it. Both of those are uncool.

Other than that, all rights are reserved to you to change your life. If you are ready to be amazing, now is the time to get started. Onward...