CHAMPIONS OF THE WORLD THE NEW ORLEANS SAINTS

Todays blog is courtesy of my Champion buddy from New Orleans Mr Kerry Daigle. Thanks Kerry, You’re the Champ!

“They weren’t supposed to win. After all, the New Orleans Saints were a 5 point underdog (or more…depending on who you spoke to). The media had latched on to what they claimed was the greatest quarterback of all time in Peyton Manning, a New Orleans native playing for the Indianapolis Colts. The problem was the media forgot that ‘Super Bowls’ are won by teams and not by one person. New Orleans had the better team.

“Oh, wait a minute, you might say, the better team was the Colts.” Or at least that’s what the media said. So, you bought the story. A lesson to learn is that teams win championships, not just one person.

“Build for your team a feeling of oneness, of dependence upon one another, and of strength to be derived from unity.” Vince Lombardi

Someone once said that winning is not as important as ‘playing the game’ and having fun. Sure, having fun is one thing but winning is everything. Especially in this case.

Vince Lombardi wrote, “Winning is not a sometime thing. It’s an all time thing. You don’t win once in a while. You don’t do things right once in a while. You do them right all the time. Winning is a habit. Unfortunately, so is losing.”

Lombardi continues, “There is no room for second place. Everytime a football player goes out to play to ply his trade he’s got to play form the ground up…from the soles of his feet right up to his head. That’s ok. You’ve got to be smart to be number one in any business.. But more importantly, you’ve got to play with your HEART …with every fibre of your body. If you are lucky enough to find a guy with alot of head and a lot of heart, he’s never going to come off the field second.”

I think Vince Lombardi was watching ‘Cool’ Brees (Drew is his first name) from above. After all, have you ever seen a “player” play with his heart more than Drew Brees? The difference in the game is the Colts used the playbook and they did play with their head. New Orleans coach Sean Peyton and his team played with their hearts. Enough said.

Ironically, Lombardi’s grandson is now the quarterback coach. Interesting, isn’t it?
Put it all together. It was destiny. Or maybe it was a plan. Ask Sean Peyton. He would know. After all, nothing was going to stop the New Orleans Saints.

“A great leader never sets himself above his followers except in carrying responsibilities.” JULES ORMONT

What I’ve learned over the years is the heart controls the mind and the muscles in the body. At this point is where you will find champions. The champions fight and play hard and with a positive mental mindset. They play like champions. They think like champions.

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “press on” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” CALVIN COOLIDGE

I’ve also learned another lesson. I’ve also learned from the New Orleans Saints that the humblest of all men are the strongest. 75% of everything we heard from the media for the last two weeks was about the Colts and their ‘greatness’ while New Orleans sat back being humble but strong in their courage and believing in themselves.

The Saints played with their hearts and didn’t mind the ‘blood, sweat, and tears’ they experienced along the way to become the World Champion Football Team in Super Bowl XLIV. They enjoyed the discipline and hard work they engaged in to become winners. They were a team of ‘left-overs’…….players that other coaches forgot about.

No, I don’t believe they will be called “America’s Team”. The Dallas Cowboys own that title. This is the ‘DREAM TEAM’. A team of players and coaches who believed in their dream. A group of ‘WHO DAT’ fans that continued to believe in this football team for 43 years. Sure, some attended games with bags on their heads years ago but they still came to the games hoping one day they could remove those bags. Now, they can forever throw them away.

The DREAM TEAM has arrived.

The Colts had to not only play the Saints……they had to play the whole state of Louisiana. A state of 4.5 million WHO DAT fans full of emotion. The Colts knew that coming in. Especially, Peyton Manning. That was too much to overcome.

If you could take a ‘silent voting poll’ among NFL players I can almost guarantee you that 80% were pulling for New Orleans in their hearts. Call it ‘gris gris’……or ‘voodoo’….or just call it destiny. It was New Orleans’ time. It was meant to be. They were unbeatable and proved it by dismantling all the ‘great’ quarterbacks in the NFL this season, especially in the playoffs.

31 to 17. World Champs.

Who dat, who dat say dey gonna beat dem Saints? Who dat? Who dat?”

Thanks again Kerry for this amazing article.
Cheers one and all
Shelley Taylor-Smith

Kerry Daigle is a contributing writer for THE ACADIAN, a public speaker, an author and life coach specialising in mental fitness. Kerry is also a professional boxing agent and works in all 50 states in the United States and 22 countries. More of his articles with THE ACADIAN can be found on www.keeppunching.com Kerry lives in Lafayette, Louisiana with his wife, Mickey, and his daughter Angela.

The Bleedingly Obvious New Years Resolution!

I don’t know about you but I feel like New Year Resolutions have been done to death the past week and I wanted to put a different twist on 2010 (paradigm shift) and ask you for your one word or phrase that describes your “intention” for 2010!

So here is a “Champion Tip”, which comes to you from Dan Robey of Positive Habits.

By reading today’s blog you’ll discover how to decide your best INTENTION for 2010 or New Years Resolution Ever! Dan Robey highlights the bleedingly obvious but like most things in our hectic, chaotic, everyday life where we are living it jam-packed to the max….I am not surprised that you may have overlooked the bleedingly obvious.

So enjoy this read!!!

“Here is the best New Years Resolution ever!! Count Your Blessings

That’s right…I said count your blessings.

Make it a habit this new year to take inventory of the good things you have been blessed with on a regular basis.

What do I mean by that? Here is an example. Quite often I get emails from people who are depressed. For health reasons, or relationship reasons, financial reasons, or something else, they feel miserable and very unhappy.

But, when they take stock of what they actually have they quickly realize that they are fortunate
and blessed in many ways.

There are several assumptions that I can immediately make when I receive an email from such a person as described above.

* The ability to send an email means that it is very likely that they either own a computer or have access to one. Count that as one blessing. You see, there are millions, upon millions of people in
this world that do not have computers, nor access to them.

They are blessed by having access to the largest source of information ever available to mankind …the internet. They can now find information to help solve their problems, be it health, financial, or otherwise.

The millions of people who do not have access to this vast knowledge pool called the internet cannot do what they can do….they are fortunate….very fortunate.

* It is also very likely that the person sending the email message has a roof over their head. You see, computers do not hold up well in the rain. Again, there are millions of people living in huts, or temporary shelters.

There is a great quote from Eddie Rickenbacker, a fighter pilot in WWII who had to ditch his plane in the ocean. Eddie and his crew floated on a raft for 3 weeks in the ocean without food, or fresh water. When they were finally rescued, Eddie said, “for the rest of my life, if I have a roof over my head and food, I will never complain about anything.”

* The person that is sending the email is obviously literate….they know how to read, write and type. Do you know how many people there are in this world who do not know how to read? Again, another blessing added to their list.

It is amazing what we can learn about a person just by receiving one email from them.

Your Champion Action Today (…tomorrow and for the future):
Here is an exercise you should do on a regular basis, make it a new Champion habit. This is a kind of personal inventory of your blessings…keep it private and close for reference.

Make a list on a notepad, call it your “blessings list.” Place a “Yes” next to each question about your life that is good and a “No” next to an area of your life you feel is bad right now.

>> Do you have a spouse? Is your spouse supportive?
>> Do you have a family? Is your family supportive?
>> Do you have children? Are your children supportive?
>> Do you have a home? Do you have a job? Do you like your job?
>> Can you read and write?
>> Do you have access to a computer?
>> Do you go to a church? Is your church supportive? Do you have faith in God?
>> Do you live in a country where it is possible to increase your education and get a good job?
>> Do you have a positive attitude?
>> Do you have access to books that can teach you how to improve your attitude?
>> Are you motivated?
>> Do you have access to books that can teach you how to be more motivated?
>> Is your health good?
>> Do you have access to books that can help you maintain your health?

Do you see now how this is going? Even for the areas where you indicated “No” there is probably a “Yes” next to the question asking you if there is a knowledge source or support group that can help you change that “No” to a “Yes.”

It is amazing how often we take for granted the blessings that we have. This exercise can help anyone who is down and depressed about life. Pass it on to others who you think may need it.”

And today remember how to think of yourself as you go about your day, your week, your month, your year: Hello, my name is GRATITUDE!

Go for your gold in 2010!
Cheers Shelley Taylor-Smith

PS: Still stuck on what your intention is for 2010. Call Shelley on 0414 594 and 245 and book in for your complimentary PICK SHELLEY’S BRAIN session. First 10 people today who call by 5pm Sydney EST qualify. Call now to avoid disappointment. Or better still purchase the Power of Success 7 week e-course where Shelley coaches you each week via email. Beauty is you receive the weekly unit coure and complete it at your leisure in the luxury of your home, office or on the bus, train or plane. You choose. It is so simple and easy to complete. Get ready now to count your blessings! More info…

The “Secret” has a scientific basis… and the proof is as pervasive as it is undeniable. There is a guaranteed no-nonsense way to get the results you want…

I say confidently: I personally do not teach positive thinking. To me, by the time you think positive…. it is too late. It is important to understand that is not our thinking that creates our circumstances, but the emotion that is attached to our thoughts.

In pursing your dreams and achieving your goals you will discover there is a a scientific system to getting, obtaining, and creating precisely what you want… whether it be more money, better relationships, the job or career you have always dreamed of, or getting into shape…

My journey in becoming World Marathon Swimming Champion led to the discovery that “the secret” works with Swiss-clockwork precision, precisely because it is and always has been based upon the laws of physics as undeniable as the law of gravity…

Have you ever noticed…

* Whatever you hold in your mind with energy and focus becomes your reality … whether it be negative or positive, if you focus on it and give it emotional energy, it manifests itself in your life…

* If you have good thoughts or do good deeds towards others, it sets in motion a chain reaction delivering good back to you … maybe not from the same person or at the same time, but probably when you need it the most…

* If there is something you struggle against… it just seems to come back to you in droves (rather than leaving)… In fact, the more you resist, the more you attract that which you don’t want…

These are all based upon the Law of Attraction… an immutable law as impersonal and indifferent to your “wishes” as the Law of Gravity…

Here is something else you may not realise, which is a fact based on universal Law of Cause and Effect which applies to everything in the universe including your actions:

For every cause there is an effect... not only that, but the effect is always multiplied. So not only will you experience what you cause yourself, or others, to experience, but it will come back to you, multiplied and increased.

In other words, if you help others to experience riches and happiness, it will come back to you and you will experience a multiplying of what you cause others to experience…

In a nutshell…whatever you give out….. you get back!

It’s not by accident that the following people all share one thing in common — they all understood the secret of all secrets…and all used it to achieve greatness in the field they were most passionate about: …. Bill Gates, Tiger Woods, Michael Jordan, Elvis Presley, John Lennon & Paul McCartney, Albert Einstein, Henry David Thoreau, Aristotle and Socrates, Gandhi.

The Law of Attraction states that whatever you focus on… you will get. Notice I said what you focus on. I did not say what you want or need or desire. If you are focused on the fact that you do not have enough money, if you are constantly worrying about it and thinking about it… then that is your dominant thought and focus.

The Law of Attraction … whatever you focus most of the time you get. There is good news and bad news in this… The bad news is if you don’t have what you want or are fearful about your future – your mind created this outcome using the Law of Attraction. It did it over time… The good news is that you have already PROVEN to yourself that these laws work and you can reverse your fate.

You focused on what you didn’t want and now you have it. Proof positive that the Law of Attraction works 100% of the time… The key is to take the immutable, unchangeable laws of Cause and Effect and put them purposely to work for you… instead of them by default working against you.

Today’s Champion Action:
Applying this Chinese Proverb: In the end what matters most is: How well did you live? How well did you love? How well did you learn to let go?

Ask yourself:
1. How well do I live focused on what I want? Give yourself a score out of 100. ________________
If you are above 50% good you are heading in the right direction towards creating what you want. If you are under 50% we need to help you erase those limiting thoughts that are blocking moving toward what you want.

2. If you have focused on not what you want and not getting what you want… do you say:
I will always be overweight, I cannot save money, I am a procrastinator through and through, I can never finish what I start, I always start motivated but quit before halfway, I am a shopaholic, I will never be able to reduce my credit card debt, Why return to the work force who is going to hire me, I am over the hill, I lack confidence, I could never stand up and speak in public, I would rather die than be a public speaker, I will never be able to lose weight and keep it off, I am such a loser, I do not believe in myself, I hate myself, I lack brains, I am not smart enough, I am just a Mum.

So if you relate to any one of the above….. What do you want to feel and believe instead? (hint:….the opposite of this feeling or limiting belief of yourself.)

3. To help you understand the power of your mind and the laws of attraction and cause & effect Champion Mindset is pleased to extend to you the 7 week Power of Success online e-course for a special price for today only! Click here to purchase now normally $177 today only $155

Getting What You Want TODAY as easy as 1,2,3…
1. Call right now on 0414 594 245 and place your order with ME personally!
2. Order online through our safe gateway payment system
3. Offer available only through purchases online or phone orders.

These prices are inclusive of GST, but exclude postage and handling. This special is limited to the first 47 people. And 10% of all sales profits goes to The Esther Foundation! Sign up now and your 7 week e-course will begin.

If you have any questions call me today on 0414 594 245 to enquire about the Power of Success e-course and how it can help you focus on what you want, help you become more profitable and increase your productivity. This program is guaranteed to eliminate stress, frustration and overwhelm from your life!

I look forward to Powering You in Achieving Your GOLD in 2010!
Cheers Shelley Taylor-Smith

How exciting, this is the 1st Monday of the New Year!

The best way to a great 2010 is to prepare yourself for an exciting month. January is a very important month for many reasons…it is the first day of the first 90 days of the 2nd decade of the new millenium.

Any of you that have worked with me knows that I am big believer in setting a single 90 day goal. That is right, ONE clear goal for the next 90 days. This exercise will make your prioritise what you are focusing on.

If you are not currently working with a clear 90 day goal then this is the day to set ONE. It may help to take a moment and review what you accomplished in 2009. Write down what you have accomplished on the way to your last goal. Whether you achieved the specific goal or not doesn’t matter.

NB: Before you set yourself up for the next 90 days, I highly recommend if you have not already done so, to do a clean sweep out and declutter so you start 2010 with a clean slate!

Focus on what did you achieve in the last 90 days? Write down the positives that matter to you. Be alert for increased energy and passion.When your energy is up then set your next 90 day goal!!!

Your 90 day goal is your own. Pay attention to this fact. If you own your business then you are on the way to achieving the lifestyle of your dreams and you will have always achieved something else in the process. Some sort of recognition or acknowledgement.

Once you have your 90 day goal defined, look at it and ask yourself,
“What do I have to accomplish this month to achieve this goal?”

From here you set your monthly targets. And then ask yourself,
“What do I have to do TODAY to move towards my monthly targets”

Write down your daily goal, and take action. Now is a fantastic time to set a 90 day goal and set you up for achieving your goals in 2010.

The best way to achieve your Resolutions and goals in 2010 is to keep it simple.

How do you keep it simple you may well ask? Directions: Plan your way to success with these six Who, What, Where, When, How and Why questions. They will help you to clarify your goal, deadlines, and corresponding action items.

1. What is the specific goal that you want to achieve?
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2. Why do you want to achieve this goal?
__________________________________________________________________________

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3. Where are you currently starting from as it relates to this goal?
__________________________________________________________________________

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4. How will you achieve this goal? List each individual action step and deadline.
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5. Who will be involved in helping you achieve this goal? Identify their specific role.
__________________________________________________________________________

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6. When will you achieve this goal? Identify a specific date.
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“Life will not go according to plan, if you do not have a plan!”

Cheers Shelley Taylor-Smith

PS: Need help planning your 2010 strategy and goals. Call Shelley on 1300 78 41 70 today to Pick Shelley’s Brain for 15mins for fre.E! Or check out the Champion Mindset Motivation & Mental Toughness Coaching Program. Begins Monday 4th January 2010.

Getting ready for the New Year? Let these 12 New Year’s quotes help you make your resolution stick.

2009 is almost at an end. What are you resolving to do this year? Whether you desire to change or stop a bad habit, or you resolve to change a part of your personality… let these New Year’s quotes inspire you into 2010.

1. “Youth is when you’re allowed to stay up late on New Year’s Eve. Middle age is when you’re forced to. ” ~Bill Vaughn

2. “New Year’s Resolution: To tolerate fools more gladly, provided this does not encourage them to take up more of my time” ~James Agate

3. “New Year’s eve is like every other night; there is no pause in the march of the universe, no breathless moment of silence among created things that the passage of another twelve months may be noted; and yet no man has quite the same thoughts this evening that come with the coming of darkness on other nights” ~Hamilton Wright Mabie

4. “Drop the last year into the silent limbo of the past. Let it go, for it was imperfect, and thank God that it can go. ” ~Brooks Atkinson

5. “New Year’s Day… now is the accepted time to make your regular annual good resolutions. Next week you can begin paving hell with them as usual” ~Mark Twain

6. “Good resolutions are simply checks that men draw on a bank where they have no account” ~ Oscar Wilde

7. “We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year’s Day” ~Edith Lovejoy Pierce

8. “People are so worried about what they eat between Christmas and the New Year, but they really should be worried about what they eat between the New Year and Christmas” ~Anonymous

9. “Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each New Year find you a better man” ~Benjamin Franklin

10. “Year’s end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us” ~Hal Borland

11. “But can one still make resolutions when one is over forty? I live according to twenty-year-old habits” ~Andre Gide

12. One resolution I have made, and try always to keep, is this: To rise above the little things” ~John Burroughs

Celebrate 2010 in style and remember these New Year quotes as you dance your way into another year. Happy New Year!

Cheers Shelley Taylor-Smith

There is only 2 days left until the end of 2009. And I’m about to share with you how the next 2 days can literally change your life.

For the next 2 days, I want you to think about your life. Make a list of the good, the bad, and the ugly. The things you’re thankful for, and the things you’d like to improve. Good things that happened this year, and not-so-good things. And once you know where you stand, it’s time to decide where to go next.

Most people get bogged down by resolutions because they lose motivation…Because they listen to those voices in their head that say, “Why bother?” You have to keep going in order to get results.

So today, I want you to choose ONE goal for 2010. I can hear you say “What only one goal Shelley?”
But you’re not going to wait until January 1st to get started. Nope–you’re going to start TODAY.

Once you decide on your goal, I want you to make a list of 7 “baby steps” you can take toward reaching your goal.

For example, if your goal is to lose weight, here are some baby steps you can take:
1. Cut out one alcoholic or sugary drink today.
2. Replace an unhealthy snack with a healthy one, like a piece of fruit, nuts, or a vegetable.
3. Take a 20 minute walk around your neighbourhood or work building.

Once you create your 7-day plan, stick to it. And when New Year’s comes around you can give yourself a pat on the back for sticking to your goals.

But you’re not going to stop there. Now make a plan for every month of 2010. And take bigger steps toward achieving your goal.

Sticking to this plan might be a little bit harder. So the best thing you can do to ensure your success is to eliminate all those obstacles along the way.

Fortunately, there’s a simple technique that lets you get rid of the negative thoughts that are holding you back– And put a big happy check mark next to ALL your New Year’s Resolutions!

This year CAN be the year you make those dreams a reality.

Go for your Gold
And remember: If you don’t quit, you will make it!

Cheers Shelley Taylor-Smith

If NEW YEAR’S resolutions are kept beyond January, people will be getting healthier, quitting smoking and becoming more community-minded.

With less than 3 days in 2009, people are now turning their attention to setting goals and what they want to achieve in 2010 and New Year’s Resolutions.

The Top Ten Resolutions include:
•1. Stop smoking
•2. Get Fit
•3. Lose Weight
•4. Enjoy Life More
•5. Quit Drinking
•6. Get Organised
•7. Learn Something New
•8. Get Out of Debt
•9. Spend more time with the Family
•10. Help Others

Losing weight, giving up bad habits and donating to charity are top of the list for people resolving to improve themselves, and after a year of belt tightening, the business information analyst IBISWorld predicts certain industries will be counting on people’s cash as they fulfil their promises.

Increased awareness of healthy lifestyles and guilt from festive over-indulgence will see the weight-loss industry take $111.8 million in January as gyms and health clubs with at least 12 per cent growth in new members for the month.

The national fitness manager at Fitness First, Dominic dos Remedios, said January brought in influx of people.

”Unfortunately, a lot of people drop off because they set massive expectations,” he said. ”I would suggest taking their goal and breaking it into bite-size, achievable chunks.”

Holidaying from Auckland, Rebecca Mentor said her experience of losing weight had inspired her to help others do the same. ”I’d like to set up my own fat fighters movement,” she said.

Mark Long said that in his Erskineville household there was lots of yelling around the house when family members wanted to talk to one another. ”My resolution is you walk to the person you want to talk to,” he said.

January 1 is traditionally a busy day for Quitline, with smokers resolving to start the year by kicking the habit, the Cancer Institute NSW’s cancer prevention program manager, Anita Dessaix, said. ”New Year’s Day is typically one of those milestones that smokers set for quitting,” she said. ”If the motive is there, quit immediately.”

IBISWorld predicts charitable donations in January will be those that require only a small investment but still help a community, such as sponsoring a child.

The marketing and communications director of Plan Australia, Aimee Suchard-Lowe, said donating was not about feeling guilty. ”It should be about someone saying: ‘This year I want to make a difference to my life and other people’s lives’,” she said. ”It should be that positive impact.”

A study by the University of Hertfordshire, in Britain, found less than one-quarter of those who set themselves a goal for 2010 would be likely to succeed, and the remainder would feel despondent at having broken their resolutions.

Of those who fail, many would focus on the downside of not achieving the goals, suppress cravings, fantasise about being successful and rely on willpower alone.

Those who set smaller goals had an average success rate of 35 per cent, while those with strategies like keeping a diary and telling friends about their goal had a 50 per cent chance.

The best way to achieve your Resolutions and goals in 2010 is to keep it simple.

How do you keep it simple you may well ask?

Statistic: 95% of New Year’s Resolutions are never achieved.
Only 5% have the intestinal fortitude to follow through with their commitment! If you are committed, if you want it bad enough, if you are prepared to do whatever it takes and if you don’t quit….you will achieve your goal. There are no excuses only all the reasons in the world why you did not achieve your goal.

1. Identify your goals – in the 5 key areas of career, finance, health & fitness, family/relationships and personal growth

2. What benefits will I achieve reaching this goal? Eg. Losing 5kgs – increase in energy, able to keep up with the kids, able to fit into my favourite pair of jeans or that special dress
3. What are the major obstacles to overcome to reach your goal? – Eg. Cut back on junk food – 1. check your fridge & cupboards for junk food 2. go shopping on a full stomach as opposed to when you are hungry (you will be amazed at the difference of your food in your trolley and the money saved in your pocket.)
4. What skills or knowledge is required to achieve your goal? Eg. Health & Fitness – reading up on personal trainers, costs, program types, gym memberships
5. What are the individuals, groups or companies and organisations to work with to achieve your goal? Eg. Finance – clear credit card debt. Tell a friend, find a buddy who will hold you accountable and will support you with your goal. Join Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig etc.
6. Completion Date – when do wish for your goal to be achieved
7. Celebrate Success – how are you going to celebrate achieving your goal!

And remember: if you don’t quit…you will make it!