Secrets #7 & 8 of the 9 Inner Secrets of Personal Success
Secret #7: Continual Learning
I cannot stress this enough, I spend $30,000, $40,000, $50,000 on my own education every single year. I don’t think that I’m so smart that I have all the answers. I am humble enough to understand that there are lots of other people out there that have tons of answers. And I spend money because I know that keeps me motivated to do what they tell me to do.
If I go spend $10,000 for a seminar (which I have) I am going to pay a whole lot more attention to what’s going on and actually follow what they’re telling me instead of the seminar where it’s only $195.
Same thing if I buy a package for $5,000, I’m going to pay attention to it.
Continual learning is the key. Remember, your brain is like a bucket with a hole in it. So you put all of this stuff in it, and slowly it just kind of seeps out. You’ve got to keep replenishing and putting more stuff in there.
Remember, it doesn’t matter what happens to you. Nobody can take away your knowledge, all the stuff that you get. Look, if somebody came, took away my entire business and if they just left me with my customer list, the knowledge in my head and the people I know, I’d be right back on my feet within a month, two months, three months, tops.
My friend Frank Kern is a perfect example of this. His business was wiped out by the government and he’s right back on his feet because of what he knows. He bounced right back to a great six-figure income all within a couple months of starting over. And now he’s into 7-figures living in the beach in LaJolla.
Knowledge is so important and continual learning. Like I said, if you just study something for one hour a day, for three years, you’d become an expert. If it’s one hour a day for five years, you’d become a world expert.
Personally, I’m always reading, listening to tapes or watching videos. I love to turn ‘down time’ into learning time. I can’t remember who I heard it from, I think Brian Tracy, but they said turn your car into a “university on wheels”. I took that to heart and anytime I’m in the car I always have a CD or tape in teaching me something. I suggest you do the same.
This specialized knowledge you keep feeding yourself is going to help you get to any level you want.
Secret #8: Gratitude
This is one of those woo-woo, kind of fluffy metaphysical things – but it works. 
Every time I check my e-mail and I have orders come in, I actually silently say, “Thank you” for each of those orders that come in. It sounds strange but having gratitude keeps you connected to the source of what’s bringing you what you want. And the more you’re thankful, the more you’re going to get that.
Think about your own life. If you are grateful for something don’t you get more of it? On the other hand if you neglect it or you simply start assuming it should come to you – doesn’t that seem to turn off the “spout”?
Being grateful is one of the most powerful forces you employ for your own benefit. Take a minute or two right now just to sit and think about absolutely everything in your life for which you should be thankful for. C’mon do it! I mean it.
- Do you have a roof over your head?
- Clean sheets?
- A warm house?
- How about your health?
- Do you a family that loves you?
- Have you made your first dollar (or million) online?
- A dog or cat that loves you?
- Money in your retirement account? Etc.
Keep thinking and I know there is a whole slew of things you should be thankful for right now.
If you’ve done this exercise you can’t help but feel incredibly happy and joyful. You can only focus on one thing and most people tend to focus on what they don’t have. That only gives more of what you don’t have and what you don’t want. But by being grateful for the things you already have in your life you’ll get even more.
Alright we’ll finish up with secret #9 in the next post…
July 28th, 2007 at 1:39 pm
Yanik:
I could be perfectly happy as a perpetual student!
I love books, tapes, CD’s, DVD’s … they are the stuff of life! LOL Even if they are not totally something that I agree with, the time has been well spent, because I invariably take something away with me and incorporate it into my life.
I also feel that we need multiple streams of income. When one stream gets to working all “too well”, you can be fairly certain that it will be taxed, or bound in red tape some way.
As you pioint out … we never lose our knowledge, it stays with us, and we can reinvent ourselves in an even bigger and better manner.
As for giving gratitude … this is a very good way to begin and end ones day. It gives us the mindset to succeed without having to display too much effort. We are creating a wave of positive feelings around us that draws the same to us. Things start happening in our life “on their own”, without us having to go looking for them.
Great blog … I find myself looking for it in my e-mail every day!
Blessings,
Bonnie
July 28th, 2007 at 2:34 pm
Yanik:
Me again! Don’t be afraid to include the “Woo Woo” aspects of your work. Not all metaphysics is “fluffy bunny”! Truth be told, very little in the metaphysical world is “fluffy bunny”.
Blessings,
Bonnie
July 28th, 2007 at 2:35 pm
Thanks for pointing out Gratitude as being an essential ingredient to success.
I want to ask you something.
Why is it that two people, with the same knowledge, doing the same thing in business get different results.
One makes alot of money, the other makes very little.
I have always wondered why that is?
Let me know if you have an answer.
Koorosh
July 28th, 2007 at 3:41 pm
Yanik….your messages are like somethings I’ve read before, somewhere…oh yea I know …. The Bible….keep the knowledge coming….Charles
July 28th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Hi Yanik:
Couldn’t agree more learning is forever, there is something new everyday to fascinates us all, and I have always given of my time or help in anyway
I can, volunteered or asked for.
Because I know….how damn lucky I have been.
Byron
July 29th, 2007 at 10:27 am
THANK YOU! Yanik
July 29th, 2007 at 12:06 pm
Yanik,
Your entire series on this subject are fantastic. I think out of all of them, the most over looked would be gratitude.
It’s very easy to get caught up the, “Woo is me…” mind set when troubles arise.
While a better way may be to concentrate on the positive aspects of your life while this is happening.
Also it’s been said that every trouble has an equal and opposite good thing with it, it’s up to us to find the lesson we need to learn.
Especially if it’s a problem that keeps repeating itself.
Here’s to Your Success,
John Clark
http://www.lifetosuccess.com
July 29th, 2007 at 1:42 pm
Great Yanik,
You are a true blessing to this entire world. You practice what you preach – giving out exceptional value to your readers and listeners. This blog alone shares the breakthrough wisdom that is needed to improve and enrich anyones’ quality of life, and the good thing is that it is free information. Thanks a million.
Thank you once again for using your giant platform to teach this GRATITUDE factor. May be you could help in reducing the number of people who are increasingly becoming bitter and drug addicts simply because we missed learning this gratitude subject in school. We belittle the 3-figure earnings and classify ourselves as “failures” when we do not make the 6-figure income. We only focus on what we do not have and end up feeling unhappy.
Teach it: I believe that if more people could learn how to count their blessings, then we would have fewer divorces, fewer domestic violence, fewer drug addicts, fewer gangs, and ultimately build more joyful families and communities.
To your utmost success,
Alex Mugume
Family Love Teacher
P.S. Yanik, I see you as Abram in Genesis 12: 1-3. You are a true blessing, God sent, to empower us through the Internet.
July 30th, 2007 at 12:05 am
Thanks for sharing #8 for Gratitude which I think is one of the most important virtues one must have no matter what we have attained.
July 30th, 2007 at 12:22 am
Yay!! Hurrah for continual learning – my hubby and I used to call ourselves “seminar junkies” but after a while we felt it was too derogatory a term for the path we’re on.
So we refer to ourselves as “seminar pros” or “seminar veterans” now!
“Lifelong student” is another good term.
Some of my all-time favorite seminars are Marshall Thurber’s 3.5 day powerful program “Money & You”, T Harv Eker’s “Millionaire Mind Intensive” along with his “Train the Trainer I & II”… in fact *any* program by Harv! He’s a master marketer from the stage, as many people likely know, and must be seen live at least once.
Joel Bauer is another fabulous and knowledgeable presenter – very giving too. And I love anything by Alex Mandossian.
Woo-hoo for the “university on wheels”!! I’m writing this from my new motorhome – moved in six days ago and we’re absolutely LOVING it. Thankfully there is *tons* of storage space ‘cuz we brought on board a heap of educational books, tapes & videos.
Thanks for all the good secrets! Keep ‘em coming.
Cheers,
Mari Smith
Success Coach ~ Specializing in Relationships
July 30th, 2007 at 1:00 pm
Hi there Yanik, Firstly compliments to you for a great website. I believe in my gratefull list to keep motivated. I have a list which I add to on a regular basis on everything I am grateful for big and especially the small things. All I have to do is to read my gratefull list for motivation and ideas.
Regards
TrudyVan
July 30th, 2007 at 9:01 pm
[...] of his “9 Secrets of Personal Success” series, Yanik Silver writes about the power of continual learning, on his blog. This is an excellent and often overlooked point. Often we go about our lives with a poor balance of [...]
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[...] Secret #7: Continual Learning [...]
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[...] Inner Success Secret #7: Continual Learning [...]