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  3. <title>Live Life With Purpose with Adam Smith</title>
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  21. <itunes:summary>Live Life With Purpose is a podcast that teaches you how to live with purpose in every area of life. Living life with more purpose will be beneficial to not only you, but those around you. This podcast will increase focus, better your productivity and strengthen every relationship in your life. Subscribe to receive a new episode of Live Life With Purpose every Tuesday. http://asmithblog.com</itunes:summary>
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  37. <copyright>asmithblog.com - All Rights Reserved</copyright><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords><itunes:category text="Health"><itunes:category text="Self-Help"/></itunes:category><itunes:category text="Business"><itunes:category text="Management &amp; Marketing"/></itunes:category><itunes:category text="Religion &amp; Spirituality"><itunes:category text="Christianity"/></itunes:category><itunes:category text="Society &amp; Culture"/><itunes:category text="Education"/><itunes:owner><itunes:email>adam@asmithblog.com</itunes:email><itunes:name>Adam Kirk Smith</itunes:name></itunes:owner><item>
  38. <title>#130: Wanting to Grow Your Business? Give More than You Take.</title>
  39. <link>https://asmithblog.com/grow-your-business/</link>
  40. <pubDate>Mon, 26 Nov 2018 06:01:30 +0000</pubDate>
  41. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://asmithblog.com/?p=25327</guid>
  42. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="506" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-768x506.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="grow your business give take" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" fetchpriority="high" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-768x506.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-300x198.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-1024x675.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take.png 1420w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;When you have tried everything to grow your business, have you thought about giving more than you are currently taking? &lt;/p&gt;
  43. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/grow-your-business/"&gt;#130: Wanting to Grow Your Business? Give More than You Take.&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  44. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="506" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-768x506.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="grow your business give take" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-768x506.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-300x198.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-1024x675.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/grow-your-business-give-take.png 1420w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  45. <p>Sustained growth happens when you give more than you take over an extended period of time. If you&#8217;re trying to grow a blog, podcast, or social media channel, my best advice is to offer more value in the information you provide than the time it takes for your readers to consume your content. <strong><span id="more-25327"></span></strong></p>
  46. <p>If you&#8217;re trying to grow a business, my best advice is to offer more value in your product or service than the price that you are asking for your product or service. But also remember, offering value is needed far in advance of the actual &#8220;ask&#8221;. Trust is built over time&#8211;years, not in days.</p>
  47. <p>[Sidenote: I built an audience by writing free weekly content on my blog for six years before offering coaching and consulting services, and waited another four years before asking people to buy a book from me. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/overcoming-fear-with-adam-kirk-smith/id955266865?i=1000420571511&amp;mt=2">Listen to this podcast to hear more on that.</a>]</p>
  48. <p>If your business isn&#8217;t growing as fast as you would like, or are seeing a slump in sales, I would start with being honest with yourself in this area. <strong><em>Are you truly giving more than you are taking from your audience?</em></strong> This advantage can be found in perceived value (placebos, etc.) or actual value.</p>
  49. <ul>
  50. <li>With your product, does the price tag honestly represent the features and benefits that consumers will experience? With your service, are there ways that you can have an advantage in the marketplace by giving above and beyond what is expected?</li>
  51. <li>What hidden value(s) does your product or service have that can be marketed to the consumer?</li>
  52. <li>Does the offer you came up with years ago still attract new customers, or should you change things up a bit?</li>
  53. <li>Can you give up anything in short-term gain to gain more over the long-term?</li>
  54. </ul>
  55. <p>This principle may seem backwards, but today&#8217;s economy respects generosity, even if it doesn&#8217;t feel like it some days. When you offer a value proposition that clearly states your priority of keeping the consumer first by giving more than you take, you&#8217;ll eventually find what you are looking for.</p>
  56. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/grow-your-business/">#130: Wanting to Grow Your Business? Give More than You Take.</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  57. ]]></content:encoded>
  58. <enclosure length="8517925" type="audio/mpeg" url="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Wanting-to-Grow-Your-Business-Give-More-than-You-Take.mp3"/>
  59. <itunes:subtitle>When you have tried everything to grow your business, have you thought about giving more than you are currently taking?</itunes:subtitle>
  60. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Sustained growth happens when you give more than you take over an extended period of time. If you&#8217;re trying to grow a blog, podcast, or social media channel, my best advice is to offer more value in the information you provide than the time it takes for your readers to consume your content. <br />
  61. If you&#8217;re trying to grow a business, my best advice is to offer more value in your product or service than the price that you are asking for your product or service. But also remember, offering value is needed far in advance of the actual &#8220;ask&#8221;. Trust is built over time&#8211;years, not in days.<br />
  62. [Sidenote: I built an audience by writing free weekly content on my blog for six years before offering coaching and consulting services, and waited another four years before asking people to buy a book from me. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/overcoming-fear-with-adam-kirk-smith/id955266865?i=1000420571511&amp;mt=2">Listen to this podcast to hear more on that.</a>]<br />
  63. If your business isn&#8217;t growing as fast as you would like, or are seeing a slump in sales, I would start with being honest with yourself in this area. Are you truly giving more than you are taking from your audience? This advantage can be found in perceived value (placebos, etc.) or actual value.<br />
  64. <br />
  65. * With your product, does the price tag honestly represent the features and benefits that consumers will experience? With your service, are there ways that you can have an advantage in the marketplace by giving above and beyond what is expected?<br />
  66. * What hidden value(s) does your product or service have that can be marketed to the consumer?<br />
  67. * Does the offer you came up with years ago still attract new customers, or should you change things up a bit?<br />
  68. * Can you give up anything in short-term gain to gain more over the long-term?<br />
  69. <br />
  70. This principle may seem backwards, but today&#8217;s economy respects generosity, even if it doesn&#8217;t feel like it some days. When you offer a value proposition that clearly states your priority of keeping the consumer first by giving more than you take, you&#8217;ll eventually find what you are looking for.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  71. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  72. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  73. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  74. <itunes:duration>4:26</itunes:duration>
  75. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  76. <item>
  77. <title>#129: Depression Is the Worst, but It Does Happen</title>
  78. <link>https://asmithblog.com/depression/</link>
  79. <pubDate>Mon, 08 Oct 2018 05:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
  80. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://asmithblog.com/?p=25198</guid>
  81. <description>&lt;img width="756" height="1342" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="depression" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression.png 756w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-169x300.png 169w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-577x1024.png 577w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-85x150.png 85w" sizes="(max-width: 756px) 100vw, 756px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;I had a season where I dealt with depression and I have to say that it was the worst thing that I have ever been through.&lt;/p&gt;
  82. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/depression/"&gt;#129: Depression Is the Worst, but It Does Happen&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  83. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="756" height="1342" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="depression" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression.png 756w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-169x300.png 169w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-577x1024.png 577w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/depression-85x150.png 85w" sizes="(max-width: 756px) 100vw, 756px" />
  84. <p>I had a season where I dealt with depression and I have to say that it was the worst thing I have ever been through. It’s dark, it can feel very lonely, and it tries to steal the life out of everything good in the world. The only way that I beat it was to consume everything positive that I could get my hands on and to shut out all negativity. It was the most intentional I have ever been about something in my life, but it was necessary to begin seeing the world as I once knew it. The process took about six months, but was well worth the time and effort.</p>
  85. <p><strong><span id="more-25198"></span></strong></p>
  86. <p>Of course, everyone’s experience and dealing with depression is different, but I did find that there are proven ways to mitigate the pain. And my own findings recently helped me in giving advice to a friend of mine who has been dealing with a deep depression for about four years.</p>
  87. <p>He moved to another country trying to find happiness with no success. Now he is on antidepressants and is seeing a therapist to hopefully ease his internal struggle. I will say that his dealing with depression seems to be more extreme than my own dealings, as he is at the point of not being able to make himself do almost anything, but the common underlying theme for everyone who experiences depression is the same: the life we are experiencing has stopped meeting our expectations.</p>
  88. <p>So what are the top seven fixes that we should attempt in order to rid ourselves from depression symptoms:</p>
  89. <ol>
  90. <li>Pay close attention to your diet. More than likely there’s an imbalance. When we fix our energy levels, the world begins to look brighter, and we can do this through our food intake.</li>
  91. <li>Take supplements that include fish oil, vitamin d3, and b vitamin.</li>
  92. <li>Start exercising if you aren’t already or increase your levels of activity. This one thing helped me, and my friend also said that it has helped him to start feeling better.</li>
  93. <li>I also recommend meditation as it allows you to become more in tune with your body and helps bring a greater understanding of your current state.</li>
  94. <li>Have realistic expectations. Much of depression is rooted in not meeting the unrealistic high expectations we have placed on ourselves. Yes, we should be setting goals—that can get us moving in the right direction—but not meeting too high of expectations only increases the negative voice inside our heads.</li>
  95. <li>Cut out all negativity that you can identify and begin replacing it with positivity. The people around you and the environment that you find yourself in can deeply influence the way you see the world. If you are constantly around fun people, it’s difficult not to eventually crack a smile.</li>
  96. <li>And last, create a list of the things in your life that you are grateful for. Thankfulness is one thing that can instantly change your perspective.</li>
  97. </ol>
  98. <p>Remember, you are the one who is in charge of the way you see the world. It’s not easy to change or to fix depression, but you are the one who freely chooses to see the world in the way you want to see it. It’s up to you to change.</p>
  99. <h6><em>*Disclaimer: Please contact a medical physician if experiencing depression symptoms. Not mentioned in this episode is the possibility of a chemical imbalance or need for medication.</em></h6>
  100. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/depression/">#129: Depression Is the Worst, but It Does Happen</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  101. ]]></content:encoded>
  102. <enclosure length="21975376" type="audio/mpeg" url="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Depression-Is-the-Worst-but-It-Does-Happen.mp3"/>
  103. <itunes:subtitle>I had a season where I dealt with depression and I have to say that it was the worst thing that I have ever been through.</itunes:subtitle>
  104. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[I had a season where I dealt with depression and I have to say that it was the worst thing I have ever been through. It’s dark, it can feel very lonely, and it tries to steal the life out of everything good in the world. The only way that I beat it was to consume everything positive that I could get my hands on and to shut out all negativity. It was the most intentional I have ever been about something in my life, but it was necessary to begin seeing the world as I once knew it. The process took about six months, but was well worth the time and effort.<br />
  105. <br />
  106. Of course, everyone’s experience and dealing with depression is different, but I did find that there are proven ways to mitigate the pain. And my own findings recently helped me in giving advice to a friend of mine who has been dealing with a deep depression for about four years.<br />
  107. He moved to another country trying to find happiness with no success. Now he is on antidepressants and is seeing a therapist to hopefully ease his internal struggle. I will say that his dealing with depression seems to be more extreme than my own dealings, as he is at the point of not being able to make himself do almost anything, but the common underlying theme for everyone who experiences depression is the same: the life we are experiencing has stopped meeting our expectations.<br />
  108. So what are the top seven fixes that we should attempt in order to rid ourselves from depression symptoms:<br />
  109. <br />
  110. * Pay close attention to your diet. More than likely there’s an imbalance. When we fix our energy levels, the world begins to look brighter, and we can do this through our food intake.<br />
  111. * Take supplements that include fish oil, vitamin d3, and b vitamin.<br />
  112. * Start exercising if you aren’t already or increase your levels of activity. This one thing helped me, and my friend also said that it has helped him to start feeling better.<br />
  113. * I also recommend meditation as it allows you to become more in tune with your body and helps bring a greater understanding of your current state.<br />
  114. * Have realistic expectations. Much of depression is rooted in not meeting the unrealistic high expectations we have placed on ourselves. Yes, we should be setting goals—that can get us moving in the right direction—but not meeting too high of expectations only increases the negative voice inside our heads.<br />
  115. * Cut out all negativity that you can identify and begin replacing it with positivity. The people around you and the environment that you find yourself in can deeply influence the way you see the world. If you are constantly around fun people, it’s difficult not to eventually crack a smile.<br />
  116. * And last, create a list of the things in your life that you are grateful for. Thankfulness is one thing that can instantly change your perspective.<br />
  117. <br />
  118. Remember, you are the one who is in charge of the way you see the world. It’s not easy to change or to fix depression, but you are the one who freely chooses to see the world in the way you want to see it. It’s up to you to change.<br />
  119. *Disclaimer: Please contact a medical physician if experiencing depression symptoms. Not mentioned in this episode is the possibility of a chemical imbalance or need for medication.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  120. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  121. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  122. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  123. <itunes:duration>11:27</itunes:duration>
  124. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  125. <item>
  126. <title>#128: Let’s Think About Social Media</title>
  127. <link>https://asmithblog.com/think-about-social-media/</link>
  128. <pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2018 05:01:00 +0000</pubDate>
  129. <guid isPermaLink="false">https://asmithblog.com/?p=25138</guid>
  130. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Let’s Take A Minute to Think About Social Media" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-e1538016444630.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;Social media. It’s something that can consume us if we’re not careful.&lt;/p&gt;
  131. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/think-about-social-media/"&gt;#128: Let’s Think About Social Media&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  132. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Let’s Take A Minute to Think About Social Media" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Let’s-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media-e1538016444630.jpg 1600w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  133. <p>Social media. It’s something that can consume us if we’re not careful. Lately I’ve noticed that many people who I consider successful aren’t on social media as much as I am&#8211;Cal Newport, Seth Godin, Greg McKeown, and many more&#8211;and this has me thinking a lot about how I use it. I think I’ve gotten caught up in the habit of using it merely for promotion of some sort or maybe the idea that “people buy you before they buy the product”, but if the product is good, word of mouth is the marketing that takes over.<br />
  134. <strong><span id="more-25138"></span></strong></p>
  135. <p>Since the first episode of my other podcast, “<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ideas-with-adam-smith/id1137481861?mt=2">Ideas</a>”, I have been thinking about Seth Godin’s question that he raises—“What is it for?”. That’s the question he asks often, and it’s one that will stick with me for the rest of my life. “What is it for?” Or, why do you do what you do? It’s an interesting question, because motives matter. Are you doing what you do because you want some sort of attention or do you want to leave an impact? This idea of “look at me” can only appeal for so long, because it will only leave you empty. At the end of the day, you need a reason to do the things you do—that’s called living life with purpose, and that’s what this podcast is all about. So, my question to you as it pertains to social media is, “What do you use social media for?” Is it to connect? Is it to keep up with other people? Is it to sell? Or, is it to flaunt?</p>
  136. <p>In an episode of “Ideas”, where I talk to Cal Newport, he said he doesn’t use social media because to might equate to 500-1,000 more book sales, and that just isn’t enough for him to sign up for this time waster. When I talked to Seth Godin, he believed that signing up for social media would take him away from producing more important work. And when I recently talked with Greg McKeown, we agreed that in order for me to produce more important work, it would make most sense for me to give up social media.</p>
  137. <p>Now, I’m not saying that you should give up social media, because we all have different goals with our work. What I am saying that you should at least give thought to the work you are producing and if you are using your time in the best possible way to create the things that you truly believe will make the impact that you want to make. And in my experience social media is the easy way out. It’s the easy way to saying that you are putting in the work, when in all actuality, it’s a distraction more than anything else. Maybe I’m wrong, and feel free to email me your thoughts. But let’s think about it. What are your goals?</p>
  138. <p>To write a book? Are you writing your book or are you thinking about writing one while posting on social media?</p>
  139. <p>To build a business? Are you working towards all the many things that it takes to start a business or are you posting about it on social media?</p>
  140. <p>To become a better leader of your household? Are you merely posting photos of your family online or are you spending the necessary time with your kids in order to help mold them into the young adults that they are called to be?</p>
  141. <p>All of these are tough questions, but I believe that it’s answering these types of questions that makes us better human beings. I agree with the document the journey mentality with social media, because at least you are putting in the actual work at the same time of posting on social media. Because without putting in the work, you’re just talking about it, taking the easy way out. And we all know that it takes much more than merely talking about an idea to make an idea happen. I promise that if you begin putting in the work starting today—whatever that means for you—you will see results in a year’s time.</p>
  142. <p><strong>Now go and put in the real work, today. </strong></p>
  143. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/think-about-social-media/">#128: Let’s Think About Social Media</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  144. ]]></content:encoded>
  145. <enclosure length="29869789" type="audio/mpeg" url="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Lets-Take-A-Minute-to-Think-About-Social-Media.mp3"/>
  146. <itunes:subtitle>Social media. It’s something that can consume us if we’re not careful.</itunes:subtitle>
  147. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Social media. It’s something that can consume us if we’re not careful. Lately I’ve noticed that many people who I consider successful aren’t on social media as much as I am&#8211;Cal Newport, Seth Godin, Greg McKeown, and many more&#8211;and this has me thinking a lot about how I use it. I think I’ve gotten caught up in the habit of using it merely for promotion of some sort or maybe the idea that “people buy you before they buy the product”, but if the product is good, word of mouth is the marketing that takes over.<br />
  148. <br />
  149. Since the first episode of my other podcast, “<a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ideas-with-adam-smith/id1137481861?mt=2">Ideas</a>”, I have been thinking about Seth Godin’s question that he raises—“What is it for?”. That’s the question he asks often, and it’s one that will stick with me for the rest of my life. “What is it for?” Or, why do you do what you do? It’s an interesting question, because motives matter. Are you doing what you do because you want some sort of attention or do you want to leave an impact? This idea of “look at me” can only appeal for so long, because it will only leave you empty. At the end of the day, you need a reason to do the things you do—that’s called living life with purpose, and that’s what this podcast is all about. So, my question to you as it pertains to social media is, “What do you use social media for?” Is it to connect? Is it to keep up with other people? Is it to sell? Or, is it to flaunt?<br />
  150. In an episode of “Ideas”, where I talk to Cal Newport, he said he doesn’t use social media because to might equate to 500-1,000 more book sales, and that just isn’t enough for him to sign up for this time waster. When I talked to Seth Godin, he believed that signing up for social media would take him away from producing more important work. And when I recently talked with Greg McKeown, we agreed that in order for me to produce more important work, it would make most sense for me to give up social media.<br />
  151. Now, I’m not saying that you should give up social media, because we all have different goals with our work. What I am saying that you should at least give thought to the work you are producing and if you are using your time in the best possible way to create the things that you truly believe will make the impact that you want to make. And in my experience social media is the easy way out. It’s the easy way to saying that you are putting in the work, when in all actuality, it’s a distraction more than anything else. Maybe I’m wrong, and feel free to email me your thoughts. But let’s think about it. What are your goals?<br />
  152. To write a book? Are you writing your book or are you thinking about writing one while posting on social media?<br />
  153. To build a business? Are you working towards all the many things that it takes to start a business or are you posting about it on social media?<br />
  154. To become a better leader of your household? Are you merely posting photos of your family online or are you spending the necessary time with your kids in order to help mold them into the young adults that they are called to be?<br />
  155. All of these are tough questions, but I believe that it’s answering these types of questions that makes us better human beings. I agree with the document the journey mentality with social media, because at least you are putting in the actual work at the same time of posting on social media. Because without putting in the work, you’re just talking about it, taking the easy way out. And we all know that it takes much more than merely talking about an idea to make an idea happen. I promise that if you begin putting in the work starting today—whatever that means for you—you will see results in a year’s time.<br />
  156. Now go and put in the real work, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  157. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  158. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  159. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  160. <itunes:duration>15:33</itunes:duration>
  161. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  162. <item>
  163. <title>THE BRAVEST YOU Is On Sale Now!</title>
  164. <link>https://asmithblog.com/the-bravest-you-adam-kirk-smith/</link>
  165. <pubDate>Wed, 15 Feb 2017 06:01:36 +0000</pubDate>
  166. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23889</guid>
  167. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="1160" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-768x1160.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="9780143129899 Adam Kirk Smith The Bravest You Penguin Books Tarcher TarcherPerigee Bravery Courage Fear" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-768x1160.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-199x300.jpg 199w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-678x1024.jpg 678w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-99x150.jpg 99w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF.jpg 1688w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;My new book, The Bravest You, releases on May 30th, 2017! I wrote a book about bravery because fear is the biggest obstacle that people need to face.&lt;/p&gt;
  168. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/the-bravest-you-adam-kirk-smith/"&gt;THE BRAVEST YOU Is On Sale Now!&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  169. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="1160" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-768x1160.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="9780143129899 Adam Kirk Smith The Bravest You Penguin Books Tarcher TarcherPerigee Bravery Courage Fear" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-768x1160.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-199x300.jpg 199w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-678x1024.jpg 678w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF-99x150.jpg 99w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/9780143129899_TheBravestYo_JKF.jpg 1688w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899"><img decoding="async" class="alignnone wp-image-24098 size-full" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/The-Bravest-You-Spine-Out-e1504914183869.png" alt="" width="1000" height="1338" /></a></p>
  170. <p>My new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899"><em>The Bravest You</em></a>, is on sale now! I wrote a book about bravery because fear is the number one obstacle that people need to face in order to accomplish more with their lives, and I have a solution that I&#8217;ve repeatedly seen success with. If you are experiencing fear of any kind and need to find success with your ideas, this book is for you.</p>
  171. <p>Here&#8217;s what people are saying about <em>The Bravest You</em>:</p>
  172. <p>“Instead of cringing before challenges, those using Smith’s principles should be able to face any situation not only with confidence but with aplomb.”<b>—<i>SUCCESS</i> magazine</b></p>
  173. <p>&#8220;In a world of online criticism, trolls and constant invitations to create a fake social media version of yourself, <em>The Bravest You</em> dares you to live differently. You&#8217;re the only you we&#8217;ve got, learn how to love that truth with this book.&#8221;<strong>—Jon Acuff, <em>New York Times</em> bestselling author of <em>Do Over</em></strong></p>
  174. <p>&#8220;Too many of us live in the shadow of fear, letting it steal our happiness and human potential. Adam Smith’s book is a welcome antidote—a practical guide to living courageously that anyone can follow.&#8221;—<strong>Marshall Goldsmith, executive coach, business educator, and <em>New York Times</em> bestselling author of <em>Triggers: Creating Behavior That Lasts</em> and <em>What Got You Here Won’t Get You There</em></strong></p>
  175. <p>&#8220;Your greatest fears and challenges will lead to your greatest accomplishments and triumphs if you have the courage to keep moving forward. <em>The Bravest You</em> shows you how! Read it and leap towards your destiny.&#8221;—<strong>Jon Gordon, bestselling author of <em>The Energy Bus</em> and <em>The Carpenter </em></strong></p>
  176. <p>&#8220;Courage is fundamental to human life and accomplishment, yet it is completely learnable. In this book, Smith gives readers specific action steps they can take to fight fear and make bravery a reality in their lives.&#8221;—<strong>Sydney Finkelstein, professor, The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, and bestselling author of <i>Superbosses</i></strong></p>
  177. <p>&#8220;If you&#8217;ve ever held yourself back or played it safe, you know the toll that fear and conformity takes. You owe it to yourself to live a life of meaning and impact. <i>The Bravest You </i>shows you the path forward.&#8221;—<strong>Dorie Clark, author of <i>Reinventing You</i> and <i>Stand Out</i>, and adjunct professor, Duke University&#8217;s Fuqua School of Business</strong></p>
  178. <h3><strong>You can order <em>The Bravest You</em> from your favorite retailer below:</strong></h3>
  179. <p><strong>U.S.: </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=asmithblog-20&amp;linkId=21bb130139cfeb893c66a605cb3098a6">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-bravest-you-adam-smith/1124367997?ean=9780143129899">Barnes &amp; Noble</a> | <a href="http://www.powells.com/book/-9780143129899?utm_source=randomhouse&amp;utm_campaign=randomhouse&amp;utm_content=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899">Powell&#8217;s</a> | <a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9780143129899?AID=10876509&amp;PID=2665379&amp;SID=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899">Books-A-Million</a> | <a href="https://www.hudsonbooksellers.com/book/9780143129899?utm_source=prh&amp;utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_term=301&amp;utm_content=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899&amp;utm_campaign=9780143129899">Hudson</a> | <a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780143129899?aff=penguinrandom">IndieBound</a> | <a href="https://800ceoread.com/products/bravest-you-adam-smith-english?selected=785707">800-CEO-Read</a> | <a href="http://www.target.com/p/bravest-you-five-steps-to-fight-your-biggest-fears-find-your-passion-and-unlock-your-extraordinary/-/A-51623751">Target</a> | <a href="https://www.walmart.com/ip/The-Bravest-You-Five-Steps-to-Fight-Your-Biggest-Fears-Find-Your-Passion-and-Unlock-Your-Extraordinary-Life/55344824?wmlspartner=wlpa&amp;selectedSellerId=0&amp;adid=22222222227000000000&amp;wl0=&amp;wl1=g&amp;wl2=c&amp;wl3=42423897272&amp;wl4=pla-51320962143&amp;wl5=9022603&amp;wl6=&amp;wl7=&amp;wl8=&amp;wl9=pla&amp;wl10=8175035&amp;wl11=online&amp;wl12=55344824&amp;wl13=&amp;veh=sem">Walmart</a> | <a href="https://jet.com/product/detail/c5b8cc40a53d4e55857d86c56eed404e?jcmp=pla:ggl:NJ_dur_Gen_Books_Other_Media_a3:Books_Other_Media_Books_SelfHelp_Personal_Growth_a3:na:PLA_785913264_41172776596_pla-296302038132:na:na:na:2&amp;code=PLA15&amp;pid=kenshoo_int&amp;c=785913264&amp;is_retargeting=true&amp;clickid=48275744-b37f-4129-b88c-83fe60b8de09">Jet.com</a></p>
  180. <p><strong>Canada: </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.ca/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;qid=1485109105&amp;sr=8-1">Amazon</a></p>
  181. <p><strong>U.K.: </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1485108554&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=the+bravest+you">Amazon</a></p>
  182. <p><strong>Australia: </strong><a href="https://www.mightyape.com.au/product/the-bravest-you-hardback/26520521">MightyApe</a></p>
  183. <p><strong>Japan: </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.co.jp/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899">Amazon</a></p>
  184. <p><strong>Brazil: </strong><a href="https://www.amazon.com.br/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899">Amazon</a></p>
  185. <p>(If your country isn&#8217;t listed here, please let me know.)</p>
  186. <h3><strong>Feel free to share this with your friends:</strong></h3>
  187. <h3>[mashshare]</h3>
  188. <p>And as always, thank you for reading. I appreciate your support more than anything.</p>
  189. <p><iframe style="border: none; overflow: hidden;" src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fasmithblog%2Fvideos%2F1272147449501034%2F&amp;show_text=0&amp;width=660" width="660" height="375" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
  190. <div class="scbb-content-box scbb-content-box-gray">THE BRAVEST YOU media appearances:
  191. <p><a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2017/05/18/the-10-biggest-fears-holding-you-back-from-success.html?utm_content=buffer016f7&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=twitter.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer">CNBC</a> | <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/rodgerdeanduncan/2017/06/29/the-bravest-you-dealing-with-fear-at-work-at-home-in-life/#6bef008b7024">Forbes</a> | <a href="https://www.success.com/article/our-favorite-personal-development-books-june-2017">Success Magazine</a> | <a href="http://www.investors.com/news/management/leaders-and-success/7-positive-paths-to-pushing-past-mental-barriers/">Investor&#8217;s Business Daily</a> | <a href="http://www.edgemagazine.net/2017/06/new-books-summer-2017/">Edge Magazine</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/bravery-adam-kirk-smith-on-overcoming-fear-to-do-brave/id554734474?i=1000391111944&amp;mt=2">Beyond the To-Do List</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-be-brave-in-your-work-with-adam-smith/id93424211?i=1000386295345&amp;mt=2">The Accidental Creative</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/five-steps-to-being-brave-unlocking-your-passion-living/id1039562972?i=1000386198661&amp;mt=2">Inspire Nation</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/tap-236-adam-smith-on-the-5-steps-to-fight-your-biggest-fears/id1031117023?i=1000386762654&amp;mt=2">The Anxiety Podcast</a> | <a href="https://startupcamp.com/podcast/overcoming-fear-adam-kirk-smith/">StartupCamp</a> | <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/ep-007-adam-kirk-smith-anticipation-leadership-feeding/id1250421297?i=1000389465107&amp;mt=2">Daily Two Minutes of Greatness</a> | <a href="https://www.voiceamerica.com/episode/100240/the-bravest-you">The Self-Improvement Show</a> | <a href="https://www.thedrpatshow.com/episode/the-dr-pat-show-talk-radio-to-thrive-by-fight-fear-and-find-the-bravest-you-with-author-adam-kirk-smith,24212.html">The Dr. Pat Show</a> | <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7y2qJQFd18">CYACYL</a> | <a href="http://richdadadvisors.com/blog/3-personal-development-books-read-summer/">Rich Dad Advisors</a> | <a href="https://www.leadingwithimperfection.com/10-books-every-hidden-leader-needs-read-summer/">Leading with Imperfection</a> | <a href="http://www.insightsfromauthors.com/2017/06/interview-with-adam-kirk-smith-on-becoming-your-bravest-self/">Insights from Authors</a> | <a href="http://www.independentpublisher.com/article.php?page=2225">Living Now Book Awards</a> | <a href="https://www.inspiringleadershipnow.com/best-leadership-books-to-read/">Inspiring Leadership Now</a> | <a href="https://getcuros.com/5-self-improvement-books-to-add-to-your-summer-reading-list/">Curos</a> | <a href="https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/store/p/the-bravest-you/fgqpf3h0l1gw?cid=msft_web_collection">Microsoft Staff Picks</a> | <a href="https://drdianehamilton.com/fighting-your-biggest-fear-with-adam-smith-and-living-your-life-in-the-front-row-with-marilyn-sherman/">Dr. Diane Hamilton</a> | <a href="https://www.robertplank.com/494-bravest-you-persistence-find-calling-adam-smith/">Marketer of the Day</a> | <a href="http://www.mynewsdesk.com/uk/pressreleases/london-sales-execs-urge-entrepreneurs-to-explore-their-must-read-list-2422067">Top 4 Entrepreneurship Books &#8211; London Sales Execs</a> | <a href="http://www.fireitupwithcj.com/career-change">Fire It Up with CJ</a></p></div>
  192. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/the-bravest-you-adam-kirk-smith/">THE BRAVEST YOU Is On Sale Now!</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  193. ]]></content:encoded>
  194. <enclosure length="6330327" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/02/the-bravest-you-adam-kirk-smith.mp3"/>
  195. <itunes:subtitle>My new book, The Bravest You, releases on May 30th, 2017! I wrote a book about bravery because fear is the biggest obstacle that people need to face.</itunes:subtitle>
  196. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899"></a><br />
  197. My new book, <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899">The Bravest You</a>, is on sale now! I wrote a book about bravery because fear is the number one obstacle that people need to face in order to accomplish more with their lives, and I have a solution that I&#8217;ve repeatedly seen success with. If you are experiencing fear of any kind and need to find success with your ideas, this book is for you.<br />
  198. Here&#8217;s what people are saying about The Bravest You:<br />
  199. “Instead of cringing before challenges, those using Smith’s principles should be able to face any situation not only with confidence but with aplomb.”—SUCCESS magazine<br />
  200. &#8220;In a world of online criticism, trolls and constant invitations to create a fake social media version of yourself, The Bravest You dares you to live differently. You&#8217;re the only you we&#8217;ve got, learn how to love that truth with this book.&#8221;—Jon Acuff, New York Times bestselling author of Do Over<br />
  201. &#8220;Too many of us live in the shadow of fear, letting it steal our happiness and human potential. Adam Smith’s book is a welcome antidote—a practical guide to living courageously that anyone can follow.&#8221;—Marshall Goldsmith, executive coach, business educator, and New York Times bestselling author of Triggers: Creating Behavior That Lasts and What Got You Here Won’t Get You There<br />
  202. &#8220;Your greatest fears and challenges will lead to your greatest accomplishments and triumphs if you have the courage to keep moving forward. The Bravest You shows you how! Read it and leap towards your destiny.&#8221;—Jon Gordon, bestselling author of The Energy Bus and The Carpenter <br />
  203. &#8220;Courage is fundamental to human life and accomplishment, yet it is completely learnable. In this book, Smith gives readers specific action steps they can take to fight fear and make bravery a reality in their lives.&#8221;—Sydney Finkelstein, professor, The Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College, and bestselling author of Superbosses<br />
  204. &#8220;If you&#8217;ve ever held yourself back or played it safe, you know the toll that fear and conformity takes. You owe it to yourself to live a life of meaning and impact. The Bravest You shows you the path forward.&#8221;—Dorie Clark, author of Reinventing You and Stand Out, and adjunct professor, Duke University&#8217;s Fuqua School of Business<br />
  205. You can order The Bravest You from your favorite retailer below:<br />
  206. U.S.: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Bravest-You-Biggest-Passion-Extraordinary/dp/0143129899/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&amp;linkCode=ll1&amp;tag=asmithblog-20&amp;linkId=21bb130139cfeb893c66a605cb3098a6">Amazon</a> | <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-bravest-you-adam-smith/1124367997?ean=9780143129899">Barnes &amp; Noble</a> | <a href="http://www.powells.com/book/-9780143129899?utm_source=randomhouse&amp;utm_campaign=randomhouse&amp;utm_content=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899">Powell&#8217;s</a> | <a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/p/9780143129899?AID=10876509&amp;PID=2665379&amp;SID=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899">Books-A-Million</a> | <a href="https://www.hudsonbooksellers.com/book/9780143129899?utm_source=prh&amp;utm_medium=affiliate&amp;utm_term=301&amp;utm_content=PRHEFFDF5A7F1--9780143129899&amp;utm_campaign=9780143129899">Hudson</a> | <a href="http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780143129899?aff=penguinrandom">IndieBound</a> | <a href="https://800ceoread.com/products/bravest-you-adam-smith-english?selected=785707">800-CEO-Read</a> | <a href="http://www.target.com/p/bravest-you-five-steps-to-fight-your-biggest-fears-find-your-passion-and-unlock-your-extraordinary/-/A-51623751">Target</a> | <a href="https://www.walmart.com/ip/The-Bravest-You-Five-Steps-to-Fight-Your-Biggest-Fears-Find-Your-Passion-and-Unlock-Your-Extraordinary-Life/55344824?]]></itunes:summary>
  207. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  208. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  209. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  210. <itunes:duration>3:18</itunes:duration>
  211. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  212. <item>
  213. <title>#127: Resources, Work, and Reward</title>
  214. <link>https://asmithblog.com/resources-work-reward/</link>
  215. <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2017 06:01:13 +0000</pubDate>
  216. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23761</guid>
  217. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="416" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-768x416.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="resources work reward" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-768x416.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-300x162.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-1024x555.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-150x81.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward.png 1924w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;Although you are working throughout the process, once you have the resources you need at your fingertips, you will know where to put most of the work into.&lt;/p&gt;
  218. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/resources-work-reward/"&gt;#127: Resources, Work, and Reward&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  219. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="416" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-768x416.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="resources work reward" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-768x416.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-300x162.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-1024x555.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward-150x81.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/resources-work-reward.png 1924w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  220. <p>What resources do you need to make your goals happen? What work do you need to put in to make your goals happen? What rewards will you reap from reaching your goals? Knowing the answers to these questions not only lets you know what you already have in your possession, but what is needed in the future to achieve your goals as well. <strong><span id="more-23761"></span></strong><br />
  221. The first question that probably comes to mind is a question about your current and future financial resources. I don&#8217;t talk about money often, but regarding resources, it&#8217;s a very important topic. Your question around this topic may sound something like this: “How am I going to make this happen with the finances I currently have and how can I save more money until the time that I really need it?” The answer could be to keep going to your day job every single day and put some money away in retirement and hopefully have enough to make it in the future, so you can “someday” achieve your goals. But when you settle for that way of life, you put your goals and dreams off for a time later than right now. You need to pursue your heart’s passion sooner rather than later, so it is imperative to find resources before the 10, 20, or 30 years that it could take for you to retire and reap the benefits of your work.</p>
  222. <hr /><p><em>You need to pursue your heart’s passion sooner rather than later.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fresources-work-reward%2F&#038;text=You%20need%20to%20pursue%20your%20heart%E2%80%99s%20passion%20sooner%20rather%20than%20later.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  223. <p>When you find more income, you accelerate your power to impact others. This is the only reason that strong financial resources is important. No matter what you do, you need to find ways within your current career or with second and third jobs that build income. Very rarely do people who make a lot of money only work on one thing. Nine times out of ten, it’s those who have two or three sources of income and are juggling them well who will find financial freedom. Now, you don’t need to go and get four new revenue streams right away, but what you do need is help from people who have experience in your area of focus, a plan to make your goals happen, and to be willing to put in the work.</p>
  224. <p>I will say it until I&#8217;m blue in the face: work is what makes your resources and knowledge come to life. Work is where the magic happens. There is always a reward that comes from the work that you do. But, it is up to you to decide whether or not your pursuit is worth the risks and effort along the way.<b><i> </i></b></p>
  225. <p>And since changing things for the better requires taking action, think for a minute about how you can start building extra income. Can you sell something online? Can you have a huge garage sale? Do you have a service or product idea that other people want and need from you? Could you get by on one vehicle instead of two? However you can produce extra income, put in the work, and start setting money aside. There are so many benefits in doing this: lower stress levels, more options, and freedom, just to name a few. But many times, people remain so focused on their monotonous routines that they forget about everything else that they could be doing.</p>
  226. <p>And in addition to increasing your income, there is also the need to save money. So, I will leave you with three of the best financial tips that I&#8217;ve ever received:</p>
  227. <ol>
  228. <li>Invest as much money as you can.</li>
  229. <li>Just because you make money doesn&#8217;t mean you have to spend it.</li>
  230. <li>Be a good steward.</li>
  231. </ol>
  232. <p><strong>Use these ideas to increase your revenue and save more money, so that you can begin funding your dreams, today. </strong></p>
  233. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/resources-work-reward/">#127: Resources, Work, and Reward</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  234. ]]></content:encoded>
  235. <enclosure length="13748267" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Resources-Work-and-Reward.mp3"/>
  236. <itunes:subtitle>Although you are working throughout the process, once you have the resources you need at your fingertips, you will know where to put most of the work into.</itunes:subtitle>
  237. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[What resources do you need to make your goals happen? What work do you need to put in to make your goals happen? What rewards will you reap from reaching your goals? Knowing the answers to these questions not only lets you know what you already have in your possession, but what is needed in the future to achieve your goals as well. <br />
  238. The first question that probably comes to mind is a question about your current and future financial resources. I don&#8217;t talk about money often, but regarding resources, it&#8217;s a very important topic. Your question around this topic may sound something like this: “How am I going to make this happen with the finances I currently have and how can I save more money until the time that I really need it?” The answer could be to keep going to your day job every single day and put some money away in retirement and hopefully have enough to make it in the future, so you can “someday” achieve your goals. But when you settle for that way of life, you put your goals and dreams off for a time later than right now. You need to pursue your heart’s passion sooner rather than later, so it is imperative to find resources before the 10, 20, or 30 years that it could take for you to retire and reap the benefits of your work.<br />
  239. When you find more income, you accelerate your power to impact others. This is the only reason that strong financial resources is important. No matter what you do, you need to find ways within your current career or with second and third jobs that build income. Very rarely do people who make a lot of money only work on one thing. Nine times out of ten, it’s those who have two or three sources of income and are juggling them well who will find financial freedom. Now, you don’t need to go and get four new revenue streams right away, but what you do need is help from people who have experience in your area of focus, a plan to make your goals happen, and to be willing to put in the work.<br />
  240. I will say it until I&#8217;m blue in the face: work is what makes your resources and knowledge come to life. Work is where the magic happens. There is always a reward that comes from the work that you do. But, it is up to you to decide whether or not your pursuit is worth the risks and effort along the way. <br />
  241. And since changing things for the better requires taking action, think for a minute about how you can start building extra income. Can you sell something online? Can you have a huge garage sale? Do you have a service or product idea that other people want and need from you? Could you get by on one vehicle instead of two? However you can produce extra income, put in the work, and start setting money aside. There are so many benefits in doing this: lower stress levels, more options, and freedom, just to name a few. But many times, people remain so focused on their monotonous routines that they forget about everything else that they could be doing.<br />
  242. And in addition to increasing your income, there is also the need to save money. So, I will leave you with three of the best financial tips that I&#8217;ve ever received:<br />
  243. <br />
  244. * Invest as much money as you can.<br />
  245. * Just because you make money doesn&#8217;t mean you have to spend it.<br />
  246. * Be a good steward.<br />
  247. <br />
  248. Use these ideas to increase your revenue and save more money, so that you can begin funding your dreams, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  249. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  250. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  251. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  252. <itunes:duration>7:10</itunes:duration>
  253. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  254. <item>
  255. <title>#126: Results Are What Matters</title>
  256. <link>https://asmithblog.com/results/</link>
  257. <pubDate>Tue, 24 Jan 2017 06:01:22 +0000</pubDate>
  258. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23699</guid>
  259. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="376" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-768x376.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="results are what matters excuses" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-768x376.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-300x147.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-1024x501.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-150x73.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses.png 1794w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that results are what matters. &lt;/p&gt;
  260. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/results/"&gt;#126: Results Are What Matters&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  261. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="376" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-768x376.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="results are what matters excuses" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-768x376.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-300x147.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-1024x501.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses-150x73.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/results-excuses.png 1794w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  262. <p>The hard truth is that most people don&#8217;t care about what you say you want to do in ten years; they just want you to do it. On the same note, the more work I do, the more I find that people don’t care about excuses; they only care about the results you produce. (This, of course, excludes the people who are closest to you.) This means that besides your current circumstances, and past your feelings, my question to you is, what are you doing? Yes, there is a time to grieve over traumatic events in our lives, because we&#8217;re human. We all have emotions. But at some point, to make a difference, we must bounce back; we must get up when the world tries to knock us down and out. <strong><span id="more-23699"></span></strong></p>
  263. <hr /><p><em>To make a difference, we must bounce back; we must get up when the world tries to knock us down.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fresults%2F&#038;text=To%20make%20a%20difference%2C%20we%20must%20bounce%20back%3B%20we%20must%20get%20up%20when%20the%20world%20tries%20to%20knock%20us%20down.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  264. <p>Life is difficult sometimes. People lose jobs, people lose children, people lose spouses, people lose money, and people lose sight of their potential. But as former US president Theodore Roosevelt said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” He didn’t exclude anyone, because everyone has something beautiful to offer, no matter what. Even with your fears and imperfections, you can start working towards your goals today. How, you ask?</p>
  265. <p><strong>Learn what you need to learn to get where you want to go.</strong></p>
  266. <p><strong>Make a plan that will help you carry out your ideas.</strong></p>
  267. <p><strong>Fight back when things don&#8217;t go your way.</strong></p>
  268. <p><strong>Show up when you say you will show up.</strong></p>
  269. <p><strong>And do what you say you are going to do.</strong></p>
  270. <p>It is never enough to just think about what you want to do, because at some point, you have to put in the work.</p>
  271. <h3><strong>Execution is what brings results and results are what matters. Now go and put in the work, today. </strong></h3>
  272. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/results/">#126: Results Are What Matters</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  273. ]]></content:encoded>
  274. <enclosure length="5430043" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Results-Are-What-Matters.mp3"/>
  275. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that results are what matters.</itunes:subtitle>
  276. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[The hard truth is that most people don&#8217;t care about what you say you want to do in ten years; they just want you to do it. On the same note, the more work I do, the more I find that people don’t care about excuses; they only care about the results you produce. (This, of course, excludes the people who are closest to you.) This means that besides your current circumstances, and past your feelings, my question to you is, what are you doing? Yes, there is a time to grieve over traumatic events in our lives, because we&#8217;re human. We all have emotions. But at some point, to make a difference, we must bounce back; we must get up when the world tries to knock us down and out. <br />
  277. Life is difficult sometimes. People lose jobs, people lose children, people lose spouses, people lose money, and people lose sight of their potential. But as former US president Theodore Roosevelt said, “Do what you can, with what you have, where you are.” He didn’t exclude anyone, because everyone has something beautiful to offer, no matter what. Even with your fears and imperfections, you can start working towards your goals today. How, you ask?<br />
  278. Learn what you need to learn to get where you want to go.<br />
  279. Make a plan that will help you carry out your ideas.<br />
  280. Fight back when things don&#8217;t go your way.<br />
  281. Show up when you say you will show up.<br />
  282. And do what you say you are going to do.<br />
  283. It is never enough to just think about what you want to do, because at some point, you have to put in the work.<br />
  284. Execution is what brings results and results are what matters. Now go and put in the work, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  285. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  286. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  287. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  288. <itunes:duration>2:50</itunes:duration>
  289. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  290. <item>
  291. <title>#125: Lead and Influence More People</title>
  292. <link>https://asmithblog.com/lead/</link>
  293. <pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2017 06:01:58 +0000</pubDate>
  294. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23624</guid>
  295. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="657" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-768x657.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="lead go first" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-768x657.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-300x256.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-1024x875.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-150x128.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first.png 1282w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that in order to lead, they must go first. &lt;/p&gt;
  296. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/lead/"&gt;#125: Lead and Influence More People&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  297. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="657" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-768x657.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="lead go first" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-768x657.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-300x256.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-1024x875.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first-150x128.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/lead-go-first.png 1282w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  298. <p>Want to influence more people through your work? Go first. That is why bravery and creativity are such important subjects of focus. You have to go where no one else will go and create things that others aren&#8217;t creating to stand out in the crowd. You cannot lead without first producing innovative products so that people will follow.</p>
  299. <p>Think of the biggest businesses in the world right now in 2017 &#8212; Apple, Amazon, Facebook &#8212; they all built something first, giving others the option to follow later on. Apple built amazing computers and phones and now the world gets to enjoy them on a daily basis. They even have multiple companies imitating them, but people know who the original is. As long as Apple continues to become better, their results will attract even more people. Same for Amazon and Facebook. They continue to innovate, attracting even more people to use their products.</p>
  300. <p>So how can you begin leading in your area of focus? Here are five steps that anyone can implement in their lives and in their work to lead in work and in life: <strong><span id="more-23624"></span></strong></p>
  301. <p><strong>Know who you are.</strong></p>
  302. <p>I recently wrote an <a href="http://www.success.com/article/6-steps-to-discover-your-true-self">article for Success Magazine</a> on this very subject, and it&#8217;s an important step to not miss. Many times people don&#8217;t stop long enough to pay attention to this before putting in the work, and for an idea to resonate with you (which is what you need for the next step to make sense), it&#8217;s a good idea to focus on this first.</p>
  303. <p><strong>Find an idea that intrigues you.</strong></p>
  304. <p>Someone recently asked my advice for creating a new business, and here&#8217;s what I told them: Find something you love, something you&#8217;re good at, and what the market needs. That&#8217;s the idea that should intrigue you to pursue further.</p>
  305. <p><strong>Design a plan for where you want to go.</strong></p>
  306. <p>Although plans won&#8217;t end up exactly where you think they will, planning is still an important part of the process. A detailed plan gives you direction and clarity. You need a plan to lead well.</p>
  307. <p><strong>Realize that your work isn&#8217;t for everyone. </strong></p>
  308. <p>Just because you receive criticism along the way doesn&#8217;t mean that you&#8217;re doing the wrong thing; you just haven&#8217;t found your audience yet. How do I know this? Because there&#8217;s a market for an incredible amount of bad inventions and ideas. (Not saying yours is bad. Ha!) As you pursue those ideas that you feel impressed to chase, there will be doubt, but that&#8217;s natural. Pursue them anyway.</p>
  309. <p><strong>Pick one thing and start working. </strong></p>
  310. <p>How bad do you want your dreams to happen? If you want things to happen, you&#8217;ll put the work in. This is the most important part of the equation because nothing happens without taking action. Remember that the next time you wonder why your ideas aren&#8217;t taking flight and commit to putting your time and energy where you need to most.</p>
  311. <p><strong>Do these five things and go lead, today. </strong></p>
  312. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/lead/">#125: Lead and Influence More People</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  313. ]]></content:encoded>
  314. <enclosure length="7519003" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Lead-and-Influence-More-People.mp3"/>
  315. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that in order to lead, they must go first.</itunes:subtitle>
  316. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Want to influence more people through your work? Go first. That is why bravery and creativity are such important subjects of focus. You have to go where no one else will go and create things that others aren&#8217;t creating to stand out in the crowd. You cannot lead without first producing innovative products so that people will follow.<br />
  317. Think of the biggest businesses in the world right now in 2017 &#8212; Apple, Amazon, Facebook &#8212; they all built something first, giving others the option to follow later on. Apple built amazing computers and phones and now the world gets to enjoy them on a daily basis. They even have multiple companies imitating them, but people know who the original is. As long as Apple continues to become better, their results will attract even more people. Same for Amazon and Facebook. They continue to innovate, attracting even more people to use their products.<br />
  318. So how can you begin leading in your area of focus? Here are five steps that anyone can implement in their lives and in their work to lead in work and in life: <br />
  319. Know who you are.<br />
  320. I recently wrote an <a href="http://www.success.com/article/6-steps-to-discover-your-true-self">article for Success Magazine</a> on this very subject, and it&#8217;s an important step to not miss. Many times people don&#8217;t stop long enough to pay attention to this before putting in the work, and for an idea to resonate with you (which is what you need for the next step to make sense), it&#8217;s a good idea to focus on this first.<br />
  321. Find an idea that intrigues you.<br />
  322. Someone recently asked my advice for creating a new business, and here&#8217;s what I told them: Find something you love, something you&#8217;re good at, and what the market needs. That&#8217;s the idea that should intrigue you to pursue further.<br />
  323. Design a plan for where you want to go.<br />
  324. Although plans won&#8217;t end up exactly where you think they will, planning is still an important part of the process. A detailed plan gives you direction and clarity. You need a plan to lead well.<br />
  325. Realize that your work isn&#8217;t for everyone. <br />
  326. Just because you receive criticism along the way doesn&#8217;t mean that you&#8217;re doing the wrong thing; you just haven&#8217;t found your audience yet. How do I know this? Because there&#8217;s a market for an incredible amount of bad inventions and ideas. (Not saying yours is bad. Ha!) As you pursue those ideas that you feel impressed to chase, there will be doubt, but that&#8217;s natural. Pursue them anyway.<br />
  327. Pick one thing and start working. <br />
  328. How bad do you want your dreams to happen? If you want things to happen, you&#8217;ll put the work in. This is the most important part of the equation because nothing happens without taking action. Remember that the next time you wonder why your ideas aren&#8217;t taking flight and commit to putting your time and energy where you need to most.<br />
  329. Do these five things and go lead, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  330. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  331. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  332. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  333. <itunes:duration>3:55</itunes:duration>
  334. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  335. <item>
  336. <title>#124: Stop Dealing with the Same Problems Every Year</title>
  337. <link>https://asmithblog.com/same-problems/</link>
  338. <pubDate>Tue, 03 Jan 2017 06:01:01 +0000</pubDate>
  339. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23607</guid>
  340. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="468" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-768x468.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="problems time fix" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-768x468.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-300x183.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-1024x624.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-150x91.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix.png 1862w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can stop dealing with the same problems every year. &lt;/p&gt;
  341. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/same-problems/"&gt;#124: Stop Dealing with the Same Problems Every Year&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  342. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="468" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-768x468.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="problems time fix" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-768x468.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-300x183.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-1024x624.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix-150x91.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/problems-time-fix.png 1862w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  343. <p>January 1st was the day that so many people waited for to try something new in hopes to change their lives. Instead of starting what they should have months ago, they put their hopes and dreams off for this week. But, as much as these people want January 1st to be a clean slate &#8212; a new chapter in a new book &#8212; life doesn&#8217;t work this way. The same problems that you encountered on December 31st, 2016, are the same problems that you dealt with on January 1st, 2017. Just because a calendar flips over to a new year doesn&#8217;t mean that issues go away. In fact, for the months that people put off the necessary, their problems &#8212; and lack of self-discipline &#8212; only grew.</p>
  344. <p>Maybe this resonates with you. Maybe every year the calendar changes over to another year and you have every intention to make things better, yet your life remains the same. But there are a few key reasons that this is a common occurrence, and here they are: <strong><span id="more-23607"></span></strong></p>
  345. <h3><strong>1. You keep holding on to the wrong goals. </strong></h3>
  346. <p>Listen, if you&#8217;ve had the same goals for the past two years, and you still haven&#8217;t put a dent in them, it&#8217;s either time to get serious about these goals or get rid of them to make room for goals that you will actually work towards. There are so many frustrations that lie around having the wrong goals, and the easy fix is to be reminded that you get to choose what you put your time and effort into. Find what you are devoted to, choose your goals accordingly, and stop being disappointed in yourself.</p>
  347. <h3><strong>2. Your expectations are too high. </strong></h3>
  348. <p>Having high expectations is great, but having too high of expectations is unhealthy. You need to be realistic with your timeline, because it is only when you do this that you can be happy with your results. This used to be my biggest weakness, but when I truly came to terms that there are only 24 hours in a day and that my goals will still be there when I come back to them, the workload I placed on myself lessened and my approach became much less stressful. You may have the right goals, but it could take you longer than you think. When you learn to not look at a long timeline as a problem, life becomes much more enjoyable.</p>
  349. <hr /><p><em>Having high expectations is great, but having too high of expectations is unhealthy. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fsame-problems%2F&#038;text=Having%20high%20expectations%20is%20great%2C%20but%20having%20too%20high%20of%20expectations%20is%20unhealthy.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  350. <h3><strong>3. You neglect the necessary habits. </strong></h3>
  351. <p>Of course, results don&#8217;t just fall in your lap. It requires a commitment to good everyday habits to make them happen. The question is, do your habits match up to achieving your biggest goals? (And if this is where your issue lies, I have an eBook to help you with self-discipline when you <a href="http://asmithblog.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=5e65afb95e2b72dadafc597d9&amp;id=f054c05d87">sign up</a> to receive emails from me.) My best advice with this step is to take small steps towards your goals. No, you&#8217;re not going to win your goals in a day, but your daily habits over time will help you accomplish what you really want to.</p>
  352. <h3><strong>4. You don&#8217;t have the right people helping you.</strong></h3>
  353. <p>None of us are self-made people. We&#8217;ve all had people who helped us get us to where we are. And those who we allow closest to us influence us most, and many times, people have the wrong people closest to them. If you need more encouraging friends, find them. And if you need a trainer, coach, or consultant, hire them. You being able to accomplish your biggest dreams is always worth the extra effort in finding them.</p>
  354. <p><strong>Now go and stop dealing with the same problems, today. </strong></p>
  355. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/same-problems/">#124: Stop Dealing with the Same Problems Every Year</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  356. ]]></content:encoded>
  357. <enclosure length="9088022" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Stop-Dealing-with-the-Same-Problems-Every-Year.mp3"/>
  358. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can stop dealing with the same problems every year.</itunes:subtitle>
  359. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[January 1st was the day that so many people waited for to try something new in hopes to change their lives. Instead of starting what they should have months ago, they put their hopes and dreams off for this week. But, as much as these people want January 1st to be a clean slate &#8212; a new chapter in a new book &#8212; life doesn&#8217;t work this way. The same problems that you encountered on December 31st, 2016, are the same problems that you dealt with on January 1st, 2017. Just because a calendar flips over to a new year doesn&#8217;t mean that issues go away. In fact, for the months that people put off the necessary, their problems &#8212; and lack of self-discipline &#8212; only grew.<br />
  360. Maybe this resonates with you. Maybe every year the calendar changes over to another year and you have every intention to make things better, yet your life remains the same. But there are a few key reasons that this is a common occurrence, and here they are: <br />
  361. 1. You keep holding on to the wrong goals. <br />
  362. Listen, if you&#8217;ve had the same goals for the past two years, and you still haven&#8217;t put a dent in them, it&#8217;s either time to get serious about these goals or get rid of them to make room for goals that you will actually work towards. There are so many frustrations that lie around having the wrong goals, and the easy fix is to be reminded that you get to choose what you put your time and effort into. Find what you are devoted to, choose your goals accordingly, and stop being disappointed in yourself.<br />
  363. 2. Your expectations are too high. <br />
  364. Having high expectations is great, but having too high of expectations is unhealthy. You need to be realistic with your timeline, because it is only when you do this that you can be happy with your results. This used to be my biggest weakness, but when I truly came to terms that there are only 24 hours in a day and that my goals will still be there when I come back to them, the workload I placed on myself lessened and my approach became much less stressful. You may have the right goals, but it could take you longer than you think. When you learn to not look at a long timeline as a problem, life becomes much more enjoyable.<br />
  365. 3. You neglect the necessary habits. <br />
  366. Of course, results don&#8217;t just fall in your lap. It requires a commitment to good everyday habits to make them happen. The question is, do your habits match up to achieving your biggest goals? (And if this is where your issue lies, I have an eBook to help you with self-discipline when you <a href="http://asmithblog.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=5e65afb95e2b72dadafc597d9&amp;id=f054c05d87">sign up</a> to receive emails from me.) My best advice with this step is to take small steps towards your goals. No, you&#8217;re not going to win your goals in a day, but your daily habits over time will help you accomplish what you really want to.<br />
  367. 4. You don&#8217;t have the right people helping you.<br />
  368. None of us are self-made people. We&#8217;ve all had people who helped us get us to where we are. And those who we allow closest to us influence us most, and many times, people have the wrong people closest to them. If you need more encouraging friends, find them. And if you need a trainer, coach, or consultant, hire them. You being able to accomplish your biggest dreams is always worth the extra effort in finding them.<br />
  369. Now go and stop dealing with the same problems, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  370. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  371. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  372. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  373. <itunes:duration>4:44</itunes:duration>
  374. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  375. <item>
  376. <title>#123: Decision Making Made Easier</title>
  377. <link>https://asmithblog.com/decision-making/</link>
  378. <pubDate>Tue, 13 Dec 2016 06:01:03 +0000</pubDate>
  379. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23539</guid>
  380. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="449" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-768x449.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Decision Making" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-768x449.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-300x175.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-1024x598.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier.png 1640w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how decision making can be made easier. &lt;/p&gt;
  381. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/decision-making/"&gt;#123: Decision Making Made Easier&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  382. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="449" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-768x449.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Decision Making" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-768x449.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-300x175.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-1024x598.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Decision-Making-made-easier.png 1640w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  383. <p>The number one reason that people make bad decisions is because of fear. And many times, fear comes from a lack of preparation. So, how can individuals prepare to make better decisions? It begins with three things.</p>
  384. <p><strong><span id="more-23539"></span></strong></p>
  385. <h3><b>First, look at the data. </b></h3>
  386. <p>One of the easiest ways to know if you are making a good decision is to look at others who made the same decision in a similar situation, and decide if they experienced an outcome that you want to experience for yourself. The results may not turn out the exact same way, but they will most likely be close. Past decisions are full of data to learn from and shouldn’t be ignored.</p>
  387. <hr /><p><em>Past decisions are full of data to learn from and shouldn’t be ignored.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fdecision-making%2F&#038;text=Past%20decisions%20are%20full%20of%20data%20to%20learn%20from%20and%20shouldn%E2%80%99t%20be%20ignored.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  388. <p>This principle applies to individuals and businesses alike. Google is known as one of the most <a href="http://www.smartdatacollective.com/bernardmarr/85871/analytics-google-great-example-data-driven-decision-making">data-driven companies</a> in the world. They collect it, analyze it, and make better decisions due to being aware of user data. Be like Google and use data to your advantage.</p>
  389. <h3><b>Second, think about the future consequences. </b></h3>
  390. <p style="text-align: center;">“<i>There is no such thing as a future decision. There are only present decisions that affect the future.” </i><i>&#8211; </i>Venita VanCaspel</p>
  391. <p>Can you think of a decision that you made long ago that is still affecting your life? My guess is that you can remember something, good or bad, that helped place you where you are at today. Whether it has something to do with your relationships, your work, your school, or your moving to a different city, there has been a decision along the way that changed everything.</p>
  392. <p>Every decision has a ripple effect on your world, sending future consequences into motion. Every choice has a cost; impacting people, the available time that you have, and your own journey. Every time you choose one thing over another, you are taking time and effort away from something else, or even someone else. This is just another reason that our choices are so important. This means that we must weigh the cost versus the payout; the risk versus the reward; and the effort versus the possible result; and then make decisions accordingly.</p>
  393. <h3><b>Third, when other people are involved, use emotional intelligence. </b></h3>
  394. <p style="text-align: center;"><i>“What really matters for success, character, happiness and life long achievements is a definite set of emotional skills – your emotional intelligence — not just purely cognitive abilities that are measured by conventional IQ tests.”</i>  — Daniel Goleman</p>
  395. <p>In a speech given at Harvard Business School, James Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase said, “Your IQ’s are all high enough for you to be very successful, but where people often fall short is on the EQ. It’s something you develop over time. A lot of management skills are EQ, because management is all about how people function.”</p>
  396. <p>Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, is someone else who is known for using his emotional intelligence. When someone wrote about their negative view of the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/technology/inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace.html?_r=0">work environment at Amazon</a> in the New York Times, saying that management wasn’t accommodating to its employees, Bezos recanted with an internal <a href="http://www.geekwire.com/2015/full-memo-jeff-bezos-responds-to-cutting-nyt-expose-says-tolerance-for-lack-of-empathy-needs-to-be-zero/">memo</a> to all of his employees. In this memo, Jeff made sure to say, “…our tolerance for any such lack of empathy needs to be zero,” and for good reason. Bezos, the most successful CEO ever in my opinion, understands just how important having emotional intelligence can be.</p>
  397. <p>Emotional intelligence, or EQ, is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one&#8217;s emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. It is explained as <a href="http://lifehacker.com/the-importance-of-self-awareness-and-how-to-become-mor-1624744518">self-awareness</a>, <a href="https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/self-regulation.htm">self-regulation</a>, <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation?language=en">motivation</a>, <a href="http://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/social-skills.html">social skills</a> and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/empathy">empathy</a> by Daniel Goleman, author of the book,<i> </i><a href="http://morethansound.net/shop/focus-hidden-driver-excellence-daniel-goleman/#.Up5eTmRDvlM"><i>Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence</i></a>. And these are all important attributes to possess as you make better decisions, because let’s face it, we are all emotional beings.</p>
  398. <p><b>When you look at the decisions that others made and decide if you want to experience similar consequences, think about the consequences that your decisions will have in the future, and use emotional intelligence as an advantage, you will begin making better decisions. Now go and make better decisions, today. </b></p>
  399. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/decision-making/">#123: Decision Making Made Easier</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  400. ]]></content:encoded>
  401. <enclosure length="11132678" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/123-Decision-Making-Made-Easier.mp3"/>
  402. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how decision making can be made easier.</itunes:subtitle>
  403. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[The number one reason that people make bad decisions is because of fear. And many times, fear comes from a lack of preparation. So, how can individuals prepare to make better decisions? It begins with three things.<br />
  404. <br />
  405. First, look at the data. <br />
  406. One of the easiest ways to know if you are making a good decision is to look at others who made the same decision in a similar situation, and decide if they experienced an outcome that you want to experience for yourself. The results may not turn out the exact same way, but they will most likely be close. Past decisions are full of data to learn from and shouldn’t be ignored.<br />
  407. This principle applies to individuals and businesses alike. Google is known as one of the most <a href="http://www.smartdatacollective.com/bernardmarr/85871/analytics-google-great-example-data-driven-decision-making">data-driven companies</a> in the world. They collect it, analyze it, and make better decisions due to being aware of user data. Be like Google and use data to your advantage.<br />
  408. Second, think about the future consequences. <br />
  409. “There is no such thing as a future decision. There are only present decisions that affect the future.” &#8211; Venita VanCaspel<br />
  410. Can you think of a decision that you made long ago that is still affecting your life? My guess is that you can remember something, good or bad, that helped place you where you are at today. Whether it has something to do with your relationships, your work, your school, or your moving to a different city, there has been a decision along the way that changed everything.<br />
  411. Every decision has a ripple effect on your world, sending future consequences into motion. Every choice has a cost; impacting people, the available time that you have, and your own journey. Every time you choose one thing over another, you are taking time and effort away from something else, or even someone else. This is just another reason that our choices are so important. This means that we must weigh the cost versus the payout; the risk versus the reward; and the effort versus the possible result; and then make decisions accordingly.<br />
  412. Third, when other people are involved, use emotional intelligence. <br />
  413. “What really matters for success, character, happiness and life long achievements is a definite set of emotional skills – your emotional intelligence — not just purely cognitive abilities that are measured by conventional IQ tests.”  — Daniel Goleman<br />
  414. In a speech given at Harvard Business School, James Dimon, CEO of JPMorgan Chase said, “Your IQ’s are all high enough for you to be very successful, but where people often fall short is on the EQ. It’s something you develop over time. A lot of management skills are EQ, because management is all about how people function.”<br />
  415. Jeff Bezos, the CEO of Amazon, is someone else who is known for using his emotional intelligence. When someone wrote about their negative view of the <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/16/technology/inside-amazon-wrestling-big-ideas-in-a-bruising-workplace.html?_r=0">work environment at Amazon</a> in the New York Times, saying that management wasn’t accommodating to its employees, Bezos recanted with an internal <a href="http://www.geekwire.com/2015/full-memo-jeff-bezos-responds-to-cutting-nyt-expose-says-tolerance-for-lack-of-empathy-needs-to-be-zero/">memo</a> to all of his employees. In this memo, Jeff made sure to say, “…our tolerance for any such lack of empathy needs to be zero,” and for good reason. Bezos, the most successful CEO ever in my opinion, understands just how important having emotional intelligence can be.<br />
  416. Emotional intelligence, or EQ, is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one&#8217;s emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships judiciously and empathetically. It is explained as <a href="http://lifehacker.com/the-importance-of-self-awareness-and-how-to-become-mor-1624744518">self-awareness</a>,]]></itunes:summary>
  417. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  418. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  419. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  420. <itunes:duration>5:48</itunes:duration>
  421. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  422. <item>
  423. <title>#122: Five Steps to Better Business Ideas</title>
  424. <link>https://asmithblog.com/better-business-ideas/</link>
  425. <pubDate>Tue, 18 Oct 2016 05:01:06 +0000</pubDate>
  426. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23378</guid>
  427. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="502" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-768x502.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better business ideas" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-768x502.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-300x196.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-1024x669.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-150x98.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas.png 1738w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam gives listeners five steps to having better business ideas. &lt;/p&gt;
  428. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-business-ideas/"&gt;#122: Five Steps to Better Business Ideas&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  429. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="502" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-768x502.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better business ideas" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-768x502.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-300x196.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-1024x669.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas-150x98.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/better-business-ideas.png 1738w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  430. <p>To grow our businesses we probably don’t need more money, but what we do need are better ideas. Stop worrying about new investors and lengthy business plans, and focus your attention on what really matters. If you want your business to thrive, you not only need better ideas for now, but for the road ahead, as well. This fact shouldn’t strike you with fear, but instead, it should make you realize how important the idea process is, and it should also excite you for what the future holds.</p>
  431. <p>So, here are the five most important steps to create better business ideas:</p>
  432. <p><span id="more-23378"></span></p>
  433. <h2>1. To have better business ideas, you must begin with research.</h2>
  434. <p><a href="http://www.apple.com/">José Scheuer</a>, a lecturer in business and marketing at the London School of Business and Finance, says that market research is necessary because competition is tougher than ever. In a recent interview, José explained that small businesses compete in a much larger field than ever before, much due to the growth of e-commerce. And with the growth of e-commerce, other small businesses, and large businesses, it is often found that competitors have greater negotiating power to source products and sell them at cheaper prices. This is why you must not miss the competitor advantage that research gives you.</p>
  435. <p><a href="http://smallbusiness.chron.com/types-business-research-methods-57582.html">Research</a> is what will separate you from everyone else and will only make you better. What are other people in your business space already doing? Steer clear from those ideas, and find your own niche. Research will tell you where you need to be now and in the future, as well.</p>
  436. <p>Who can you reach out to that will make you and your business better? Research those in your field who are doing things right, and learn from them. How do they work, what positives can you take away from their work, and how can you make your business better than theirs?</p>
  437. <p>Whichever area you need help with in your business, researching businesses who do things well and not so well will help you become better. You can always learn from the triumphs and mistakes of other businesses. It amazes me how easy of a concept this is, and yet people miss out on it time and time again. These are the same businesses asking themselves, “Why are we not effective?”, when there are tons of resources available to help them become better. You need research to become better, so you can impact more people.</p>
  438. <h2>2. To have better business ideas, you must build on your previous ideas.</h2>
  439. <p>Joel Gascoigne, the founder of <a href="https://buffer.com/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=Social&amp;utm_campaign=header-logo">Buffer</a>, built his company on the ideas of other scheduling Twitter clients and apps that didn’t perform well. He extracted the good ideas from those apps, threw away the bad ones, and then made his own tweet scheduler to fit his own needs and the needs of many others.</p>
  440. <p>If you aren’t familiar with Buffer, the main difference that sets it apart from other tweet schedulers is that it has created a way to queue up tweets based on the time of day where the most people can be reached, instead of scheduling each tweet individually, without knowing if your audience is even online to read your content. Joel’s idea with Buffer shows that rarely is one idea sufficient on its own, because <a href="https://blog.bufferapp.com/connections-in-the-brain-understanding-creativity-and-intelligenceconnections">ideas are meant to be built upon</a>. If an idea comes to you, make sure to capture it, but never consider it your final idea. This is where the ideation process is given life.</p>
  441. <p>My own practice is to grab two ideas that have one similarity or more, to see how they relate and to see how they’re different. Once I have an idea of how they fit together, I take two brand new ideas that are completely different from the first batch, and then find something similar between those two ideas. At the end, I take the first result and the second result, which are opposite in some way, and then try to connect the dots between the opposites to create an original idea. It’s time consuming, but it’s worth the extra effort every time.</p>
  442. <h2>3. To have better business ideas, you must encourage mistakes along the way.</h2>
  443. <p style="text-align: left;">Did you know that the slinky was the mistake product that came from attempting to build a meter designed to monitor power on naval battleships? The inventor, Richard Jones, was working with tension springs, and accidentally dropped one of them to the ground. When this happened, the spring kept bouncing from place to place after it hit the ground, thus creating the slinky.</p>
  444. <p>Did you also know that, Spencer Silver, a researcher with 3M Laboratories, is the person who developed post-it notes by accident? He was trying to develop a strong adhesive, but instead found an adhesive that was weaker than what he needed. It stuck to objects, but could be pulled off easily without leaving a mark. A great invention, but it wasn’t what he was looking for at the time. However, it was this grand mistake that led to a later business idea: the post-it note.</p>
  445. <p>Freedom in your workplace breeds creativity. This being said, to have better business ideas, you must learn to take risks, let go, and promote creativity. Yes, with trying new things <a href="http://99u.com/articles/7178/how-to-encourage-learning-by-making-smart-mistakes">there will always be mistakes</a> that are made, but that’s okay. It’s actually the only way to learn along the way, and who knows, you may find the next slinky or post-it note. Better business ideas are only found when you are willing to combine creativity, risk, and the willingness to make mistakes.</p>
  446. <p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>Creativity + Risk + Making Mistakes = Better Ideas</strong></em></p>
  447. <h2>4. To have better business ideas, you must realize that everyone on your team has something to give.</h2>
  448. <p>In 2015, when I heard that Alan Lafley would be <a href="http://www.cnbc.com/2015/07/28/procter-gamble-taylor-to-replace-ceo-lafley.html">stepping down as CEO</a> of Procter &amp; Gamble, I knew that it was a loss for P&amp;G. Everyone in the business world knows him as a person who listened to his team, welcomed feedback, and promoted healthy communication throughout his organization. Of course, David Taylor is doing a fine job as the new CEO, and is working to <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/us-procter-gamble-ceo-idUSKCN0VR2FC">fix the company’s agility</a> with decision making, but Lafley was the one who laid the extremely important groundwork for a company who now thrives off of this idea that everyone has something to give. I can only wonder if Lafley will be able to continue building this environment as an executive chairman, or if Taylor will strive to continue leading his company with this mantra at the forefront of everything they do. But, what I do know is how important this concept is for a team to grab hold of, because this can be the difference between a team who finds success and a team who misses the mark.</p>
  449. <p>Former First Lady, Barbara Bush said, “Some people give time, some money, some their skills and connections, some literally give their life&#8217;s blood. But everyone has something to give.” Yes, everyone has something to give, but individuals must be willing to look for opportunities to do so. It’s those people who you want to be on your team — the ones who want to change the world for the better.</p>
  450. <hr /><p><em>Everyone has something to give.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbetter-business-ideas%2F&#038;text=Everyone%20has%20something%20to%20give.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  451. <p>You may have your go-to people who you seek out for help with ideas, but to have great ideas, you must see things from every perspective, not just the perspective of those who only agree with you. And the best way to do this is to have conversations with your diverse team. I say ‘diverse’ because if everyone thinks like you do, there will only be good ideas, not great ideas. You need to surround yourself with people who will tell you the truth, not only those who will agree with you. Build a team that works in different strengths than you do, and use those strengths to build better ideas for your business. The more input, the better, as it gives you more feedback and data to go off of. And the more feedback and data you have, the better your ideas will be.</p>
  452. <h2>5. To have better business ideas, you must know who your customer is.</h2>
  453. <p>The idea of <a href="http://www.latimes.com/business/technology/la-fi-dollar-shave-club-20150926-story.html">Dollar Shave Club</a> allows members to select blades, pay $3 to $9 per month for the cost of their blades, and DSC then sends those blades directly to their member’s doors every month. This idea sounded very different than anything that had been done previously in the shaving industry, but in 2011, Michael Dubin and Mark Levine knew they were onto something huge. Their idea proved to be successful, and as of right now they own 16% of the U.S. cartridge market by volume. Their rapid growth places DSC just ahead of Schick as the nation’s second-biggest brand. As for online razor sales, Dollar Shave Club commands nearly 50% market share, according to Slice Intelligence. So as you can see, their better business idea sparked interest and the company has been growing ever since.</p>
  454. <p>Dollar Shave Club revolutionized the shaving industry, not only because they made the art of shaving easier for consumers, but because they are a company who understands their customers. They do this so well because they use data analytics to understand its member’s wants and needs. Sure, other companies collect this data, but not all companies dissect it, looking to improve in any area of business operations that they can. This is what sets Dollar Shave Club apart from so many other businesses. Looking at information and using it to their advantage allows them to deliver an outstanding customer experience every time. With over 2.2 million happy subscribers, they have proven that they will be around for a very long time, and their success is due to understanding that business is all about people.</p>
  455. <p>It is only when you know who your ideas are for that you can focus your efforts towards their needs with your products. Too many times people will put limitations on their ideas first, which will never produce the best ideas. Thinking broader at first and then narrowing down ideas is the only way to produce better business ideas.</p>
  456. <p>It is here that you can ask the questions, “<a href="http://www.infoentrepreneurs.org/en/guides/know-your-customers--needs/">Who is our customer?</a>”, “What does my customer want and need?”, and “What can our company do exceptionally well to help our customers?” Great business ideas are found where the answers to all of these questions intersect.</p>
  457. <p><strong>When you conduct research, build on other ideas, encourage mistakes along the way, realize that everyone has something to give, and know who your customer is, you will immediately make a bigger impact with your better business ideas. Now go and have better business ideas, today.</strong></p>
  458. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-business-ideas/">#122: Five Steps to Better Business Ideas</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  459. ]]></content:encoded>
  460. <enclosure length="22212164" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/Five-Steps-to-Better-Business-Ideas.mp3"/>
  461. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam gives listeners five steps to having better business ideas.</itunes:subtitle>
  462. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[To grow our businesses we probably don’t need more money, but what we do need are better ideas. Stop worrying about new investors and lengthy business plans, and focus your attention on what really matters. If you want your business to thrive, you not only need better ideas for now, but for the road ahead, as well. This fact shouldn’t strike you with fear, but instead, it should make you realize how important the idea process is, and it should also excite you for what the future holds.<br />
  463. So, here are the five most important steps to create better business ideas:<br />
  464. <br />
  465. 1. To have better business ideas, you must begin with research.<br />
  466. <a href="http://www.apple.com/">José Scheuer</a>, a lecturer in business and marketing at the London School of Business and Finance, says that market research is necessary because competition is tougher than ever. In a recent interview, José explained that small businesses compete in a much larger field than ever before, much due to the growth of e-commerce. And with the growth of e-commerce, other small businesses, and large businesses, it is often found that competitors have greater negotiating power to source products and sell them at cheaper prices. This is why you must not miss the competitor advantage that research gives you.<br />
  467. <a href="http://smallbusiness.chron.com/types-business-research-methods-57582.html">Research</a> is what will separate you from everyone else and will only make you better. What are other people in your business space already doing? Steer clear from those ideas, and find your own niche. Research will tell you where you need to be now and in the future, as well.<br />
  468. Who can you reach out to that will make you and your business better? Research those in your field who are doing things right, and learn from them. How do they work, what positives can you take away from their work, and how can you make your business better than theirs?<br />
  469. Whichever area you need help with in your business, researching businesses who do things well and not so well will help you become better. You can always learn from the triumphs and mistakes of other businesses. It amazes me how easy of a concept this is, and yet people miss out on it time and time again. These are the same businesses asking themselves, “Why are we not effective?”, when there are tons of resources available to help them become better. You need research to become better, so you can impact more people.<br />
  470. 2. To have better business ideas, you must build on your previous ideas.<br />
  471. Joel Gascoigne, the founder of <a href="https://buffer.com/?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=Social&amp;utm_campaign=header-logo">Buffer</a>, built his company on the ideas of other scheduling Twitter clients and apps that didn’t perform well. He extracted the good ideas from those apps, threw away the bad ones, and then made his own tweet scheduler to fit his own needs and the needs of many others.<br />
  472. If you aren’t familiar with Buffer, the main difference that sets it apart from other tweet schedulers is that it has created a way to queue up tweets based on the time of day where the most people can be reached, instead of scheduling each tweet individually, without knowing if your audience is even online to read your content. Joel’s idea with Buffer shows that rarely is one idea sufficient on its own, because <a href="https://blog.bufferapp.com/connections-in-the-brain-understanding-creativity-and-intelligenceconnections">ideas are meant to be built upon</a>. If an idea comes to you, make sure to capture it, but never consider it your final idea. This is where the ideation process is given life.<br />
  473. My own practice is to grab two ideas that have one similarity or more, to see how they relate and to see how they’re different. Once I have an idea of how they fit together, I take two brand new ideas that are completely different from the first batch, and then find something similar between those two ideas.]]></itunes:summary>
  474. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  475. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  476. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  477. <itunes:duration>11:34</itunes:duration>
  478. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  479. <item>
  480. <title>#121: My Biggest Weakness</title>
  481. <link>https://asmithblog.com/biggest-weakness/</link>
  482. <pubDate>Tue, 20 Sep 2016 06:01:28 +0000</pubDate>
  483. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23274</guid>
  484. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="450" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-768x450.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="biggest weakness" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-768x450.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-300x176.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-1024x600.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness.png 1744w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners about his biggest weakness. &lt;/p&gt;
  485. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/biggest-weakness/"&gt;#121: My Biggest Weakness&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  486. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="450" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-768x450.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="biggest weakness" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-768x450.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-300x176.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-1024x600.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/biggest-weakness.png 1744w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  487. <p>My biggest weakness is stopping long enough to live in the moment. (I&#8217;ve previously written a post on the need of being present, which you can find <a href="http://asmithblog.com/anywhere-else/">here</a>.) I know it and have always known it. This being said, I must be very intentional with celebrating any wins along the way, I must fight the urge to skip past the present moment, and I must put my phone down and engage with the people around me. I have fought my biggest weakness many times before, and won, but as with many issues we all face in life, it isn&#8217;t a one and done circumstance, but rather, a continuous battle that I find myself in.</p>
  488. <p>Since I have always dealt with this, I have learned a few things about how to best deal with bringing myself back to the present, instead of always being in the future, and here they are:<br />
  489. <strong><span id="more-23274"></span></strong></p>
  490. <h2><strong>First, realize that you will never get your present moments back. </strong></h2>
  491. <p>I have to say that I didn&#8217;t truly realize this point until I had kids. Imagining my kids ten years older than what they are now, and knowing what I want them to say about me, has significantly influenced where I put my time. I have cut out things that aren&#8217;t necessary in order to create the moments I want to have with them. I haven&#8217;t been perfect in this area, because there have been seasons where business dictated my schedule more than I liked, but I am very aware that a busy schedule is only manageable for a season, not a lifetime. If I have any piece of advice for you in regards to time management it is to find a reason big enough to make you question where you put your time, and then make changes to match what you want from your life. When you create margin in life, you can then put things back into your schedule in order to do what you really want to do. But don&#8217;t forget to leave enough time to enjoy the present, to stop and smell the roses, and to live in the moment.</p>
  492. <hr /><p><em>Yesterday is gone. Tomorrow has not yet come. We have only today. Let us begin. ― Mother Teresa</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbiggest-weakness%2F&#038;text=Yesterday%20is%20gone.%20Tomorrow%20has%20not%20yet%20come.%20We%20have%20only%20today.%20Let%20us%20begin.%20%E2%80%95%20Mother%20Teresa&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  493. <h2><strong>Second, see just how short life really is. </strong></h2>
  494. <p>28,000 days is the average person&#8217;s life expectancy. That may sound like a long time, but it really isn&#8217;t. You get one life, you can&#8217;t escape death, and what you do every day matters. Got it? Now go and figure out what matters to you, and cut out the things that don&#8217;t matter, because life is short, and you need to do something that matters.</p>
  495. <p><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/BOksW_NabEk" width="1120" height="630" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe></p>
  496. <h2><strong>And third, do what only you can do. </strong></h2>
  497. <p>When you take this idea to heart, the fear of missing out is lost in the hard work and dedication that it requires for doing what only you can do. You were put on this earth for a reason, and it is up to you to find that reason. You don&#8217;t have anything to prove to anyone else. Nobody else can be you. Own that, take that responsibility, and be the you who you are meant to be to the people around you.</p>
  498. <p><strong>Now, go and live in the moment today. </strong></p>
  499. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/biggest-weakness/">#121: My Biggest Weakness</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  500. ]]></content:encoded>
  501. <enclosure length="7708756" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/My-Biggest-Weakness.mp3"/>
  502. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners about his biggest weakness.</itunes:subtitle>
  503. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[My biggest weakness is stopping long enough to live in the moment. (I&#8217;ve previously written a post on the need of being present, which you can find <a href="http://asmithblog.com/anywhere-else/">here</a>.) I know it and have always known it. This being said, I must be very intentional with celebrating any wins along the way, I must fight the urge to skip past the present moment, and I must put my phone down and engage with the people around me. I have fought my biggest weakness many times before, and won, but as with many issues we all face in life, it isn&#8217;t a one and done circumstance, but rather, a continuous battle that I find myself in.<br />
  504. Since I have always dealt with this, I have learned a few things about how to best deal with bringing myself back to the present, instead of always being in the future, and here they are:<br />
  505. <br />
  506. First, realize that you will never get your present moments back. <br />
  507. I have to say that I didn&#8217;t truly realize this point until I had kids. Imagining my kids ten years older than what they are now, and knowing what I want them to say about me, has significantly influenced where I put my time. I have cut out things that aren&#8217;t necessary in order to create the moments I want to have with them. I haven&#8217;t been perfect in this area, because there have been seasons where business dictated my schedule more than I liked, but I am very aware that a busy schedule is only manageable for a season, not a lifetime. If I have any piece of advice for you in regards to time management it is to find a reason big enough to make you question where you put your time, and then make changes to match what you want from your life. When you create margin in life, you can then put things back into your schedule in order to do what you really want to do. But don&#8217;t forget to leave enough time to enjoy the present, to stop and smell the roses, and to live in the moment.<br />
  508. Second, see just how short life really is. <br />
  509. 28,000 days is the average person&#8217;s life expectancy. That may sound like a long time, but it really isn&#8217;t. You get one life, you can&#8217;t escape death, and what you do every day matters. Got it? Now go and figure out what matters to you, and cut out the things that don&#8217;t matter, because life is short, and you need to do something that matters.<br />
  510. <br />
  511. And third, do what only you can do. <br />
  512. When you take this idea to heart, the fear of missing out is lost in the hard work and dedication that it requires for doing what only you can do. You were put on this earth for a reason, and it is up to you to find that reason. You don&#8217;t have anything to prove to anyone else. Nobody else can be you. Own that, take that responsibility, and be the you who you are meant to be to the people around you.<br />
  513. Now, go and live in the moment today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  514. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  515. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  516. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  517. <itunes:duration>4:01</itunes:duration>
  518. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  519. <item>
  520. <title>#120: At Some Point You Have to Make A Decision</title>
  521. <link>https://asmithblog.com/make-decision/</link>
  522. <pubDate>Tue, 06 Sep 2016 06:01:18 +0000</pubDate>
  523. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23178</guid>
  524. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="509" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-768x509.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make a decision" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-768x509.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-300x199.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-1024x679.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tell listeners how to make better decisions, because at some point we all have to make a decision. &lt;/p&gt;
  525. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-decision/"&gt;#120: At Some Point You Have to Make A Decision&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  526. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="509" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-768x509.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make a decision" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-768x509.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-300x199.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-1024x679.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/make-a-decision.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  527. <p>Making a decision is much more difficult than anything else that comes before the actual decision. We can mentally prepare for what&#8217;s ahead, but to actually make a needed decision is much different that the process of preparation. To make a decision you must take all data into careful consideration, and then make the decision that you see fit, no matter how hard that may be. The good news is that very rarely is a &#8216;final decision&#8217; truly final. There&#8217;s always room for improvement and there&#8217;s usually a chance to make things right. This being said, people many times become paralyzed, not able to make a decision due to the fear of being wrong. Let me just say that perfection isn&#8217;t possible, no matter how much time is put into the process. There will always be something that could be done differently, but the most important part to know is that a decision must be made, right or wrong.</p>
  528. <p>So, here are five steps to making the best possible decision with the information you have in your possession: <strong><span id="more-23178"></span></strong></p>
  529. <h2><strong>First, become okay with making mistakes.</strong></h2>
  530. <p>If you&#8217;ve read my work before, then you know that I am all for making mistakes on the way to finding success. You need these mistakes to learn what works and what doesn&#8217;t. You can then make changes along the way to better your final outcome. This is called life. If you are just starting out along the decision process, it&#8217;s okay to not have it all figured out. Own that. You don&#8217;t need to know everything. Life will teach you lessons along the way &#8212; learn from them, become smarter from your journey, and keep pressing forward. Don&#8217;t let the wrong decisions cause you to give up, but rather, use what you learn from your decisions to become better in the future.</p>
  531. <p>Also on this point, keep your distance from those who force you to be perfect with every decision. Those are the people who will hold you back and keep you from ever making a decision, because it&#8217;s &#8216;not good enough.&#8217; Make the decision that your research and gut tells you to make and make changes if needed.</p>
  532. <h2><strong>Second, pay attention to your willingness to fight for your ideas. </strong></h2>
  533. <p>If I&#8217;m passionate about an idea and believe that it will work, then I see it as worth fighting for. If I&#8217;m not fighting for a certain outcome, then I know that it either doesn&#8217;t matter in the grand scheme of things, or I don&#8217;t care about the outcome. Either way, I don&#8217;t need to waste my time with it. This principle applies to anyone and everyone. If you don&#8217;t believe in something enough to fight for it, then it&#8217;s probably the wrong decision, and you need to rethink your position.</p>
  534. <h2><strong>Third, look at the decisions that others made and decide if you want to experience similar consequences.  </strong></h2>
  535. <p>One of the best ways to know if you are making a good decision or not is to look at others who made the same decision in a past similar situation, and decide if that&#8217;s the outcome you want for yourself. The results may not turn out the exact same way, but they will most likely be close.</p>
  536. <h2><strong>Fourth, don&#8217;t just look at what your decision will do right now, but think about the consequences that your decisions will have in the future. </strong></h2>
  537. <p>Every decision has a ripple effect on your world, sending future consequences into motion. Every choice has a cost; impacting people, the available time that you have, or your own journey. This can be heavy to think about, but consequences are real.</p>
  538. <h2><strong>And fifth, use emotional intelligence as an advantage. </strong></h2>
  539. <p>This step is important because <a href="http://www.inc.com/travis-bradberry/are-you-emotionally-intelligent-here-s-how-to-know-for-sure.html">emotional intelligence</a>, or EQ, takes emotions into consideration when making decisions, those of your own and the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is explained as <a href="http://lifehacker.com/the-importance-of-self-awareness-and-how-to-become-mor-1624744518">self-awareness</a>, <a href="https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/self-regulation.htm">self-regulation</a>, <a href="http://www.ted.com/talks/dan_pink_on_motivation?language=en">motivation</a>, <a href="http://www.skillsyouneed.com/ips/social-skills.html">social skills</a> and <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/basics/empathy">empathy</a> by Daniel Goleman, author of the book, <a href="http://morethansound.net/shop/focus-hidden-driver-excellence-daniel-goleman/#.Up5eTmRDvlM" target="_hplink" data-beacon="{&quot;p&quot;:{&quot;mnid&quot;:&quot;entry_text&quot;,&quot;lnid&quot;:&quot;citation&quot;,&quot;mpid&quot;:1,&quot;plid&quot;:&quot;http://morethansound.net/shop/focus-hidden-driver-excellence-daniel-goleman/#.Up5eTmRDvlM&quot;}}">Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence</a>. And these are all important attributes to possess as you make better decisions, because let&#8217;s face it, humans are emotional beings.</p>
  540. <h3><strong>Now use these five steps and go make your decision, today. </strong></h3>
  541. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-decision/">#120: At Some Point You Have to Make A Decision</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  542. ]]></content:encoded>
  543. <enclosure length="10419640" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/120-At-Some-Point-You-Have-to-Make-A-Decision-.mp3"/>
  544. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tell listeners how to make better decisions, because at some point we all have to make a decision.</itunes:subtitle>
  545. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Making a decision is much more difficult than anything else that comes before the actual decision. We can mentally prepare for what&#8217;s ahead, but to actually make a needed decision is much different that the process of preparation. To make a decision you must take all data into careful consideration, and then make the decision that you see fit, no matter how hard that may be. The good news is that very rarely is a &#8216;final decision&#8217; truly final. There&#8217;s always room for improvement and there&#8217;s usually a chance to make things right. This being said, people many times become paralyzed, not able to make a decision due to the fear of being wrong. Let me just say that perfection isn&#8217;t possible, no matter how much time is put into the process. There will always be something that could be done differently, but the most important part to know is that a decision must be made, right or wrong.<br />
  546. So, here are five steps to making the best possible decision with the information you have in your possession: <br />
  547. First, become okay with making mistakes.<br />
  548. If you&#8217;ve read my work before, then you know that I am all for making mistakes on the way to finding success. You need these mistakes to learn what works and what doesn&#8217;t. You can then make changes along the way to better your final outcome. This is called life. If you are just starting out along the decision process, it&#8217;s okay to not have it all figured out. Own that. You don&#8217;t need to know everything. Life will teach you lessons along the way &#8212; learn from them, become smarter from your journey, and keep pressing forward. Don&#8217;t let the wrong decisions cause you to give up, but rather, use what you learn from your decisions to become better in the future.<br />
  549. Also on this point, keep your distance from those who force you to be perfect with every decision. Those are the people who will hold you back and keep you from ever making a decision, because it&#8217;s &#8216;not good enough.&#8217; Make the decision that your research and gut tells you to make and make changes if needed.<br />
  550. Second, pay attention to your willingness to fight for your ideas. <br />
  551. If I&#8217;m passionate about an idea and believe that it will work, then I see it as worth fighting for. If I&#8217;m not fighting for a certain outcome, then I know that it either doesn&#8217;t matter in the grand scheme of things, or I don&#8217;t care about the outcome. Either way, I don&#8217;t need to waste my time with it. This principle applies to anyone and everyone. If you don&#8217;t believe in something enough to fight for it, then it&#8217;s probably the wrong decision, and you need to rethink your position.<br />
  552. Third, look at the decisions that others made and decide if you want to experience similar consequences.  <br />
  553. One of the best ways to know if you are making a good decision or not is to look at others who made the same decision in a past similar situation, and decide if that&#8217;s the outcome you want for yourself. The results may not turn out the exact same way, but they will most likely be close.<br />
  554. Fourth, don&#8217;t just look at what your decision will do right now, but think about the consequences that your decisions will have in the future. <br />
  555. Every decision has a ripple effect on your world, sending future consequences into motion. Every choice has a cost; impacting people, the available time that you have, or your own journey. This can be heavy to think about, but consequences are real.<br />
  556. And fifth, use emotional intelligence as an advantage. <br />
  557. This step is important because <a href="http://www.inc.com/travis-bradberry/are-you-emotionally-intelligent-here-s-how-to-know-for-sure.html">emotional intelligence</a>, or EQ, takes emotions into consideration when making decisions, those of your own and the emotions of others. Emotional intelligence is explained as <a href="http://lifehacker.]]></itunes:summary>
  558. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  559. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  560. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  561. <itunes:duration>5:25</itunes:duration>
  562. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  563. <item>
  564. <title>#119: How to Save Hours of Time Every Single Week</title>
  565. <link>https://asmithblog.com/save-hours/</link>
  566. <pubDate>Tue, 30 Aug 2016 06:01:23 +0000</pubDate>
  567. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23172</guid>
  568. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="506" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-768x506.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="save hours of time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-768x506.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-300x197.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-1024x674.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can save hours of time every single week. &lt;/p&gt;
  569. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/save-hours/"&gt;#119: How to Save Hours of Time Every Single Week&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  570. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="506" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-768x506.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="save hours of time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-768x506.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-300x197.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-1024x674.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/save-hours-of-time.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  571. <p>Time is one of the most important possessions we have, so we must learn to use it wisely. This being said, here are three ways to save hours every single week:</p>
  572. <hr /><p><em>Time is one of the most important possessions we have, so we must learn to use it wisely.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fsave-hours%2F&#038;text=Time%20is%20one%20of%20the%20most%20important%20possessions%20we%20have%2C%20so%20we%20must%20learn%20to%20use%20it%20wisely.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  573. <p><strong><span id="more-23172"></span></strong></p>
  574. <h2><strong>1. Don&#8217;t be afraid to ask more questions&#8230; or Google it. </strong></h2>
  575. <p>Many times, due to ego and pride, people won&#8217;t ask questions. It&#8217;s like the old story of men not stopping at the gas station to ask for directions, which kids don&#8217;t even understand because of gps and smartphones, but it further proves my point here of questions saving time. Whether you ask a question to someone who already knows the answer or you type it into Google, asking questions and seeking answers saves much more time that just trying to figure it out on your own. There&#8217;s a difference between doing new work to go where others haven&#8217;t gone before and doing tasks that others already know how to do but you haven&#8217;t done before. You don&#8217;t know everything &#8212; none of us do &#8212; and that&#8217;s perfectly fine. Keep asking questions and find the answers you need along the way. And then use the knowledge of others to become better at what you do.</p>
  576. <h2><strong>2. Batch as many tasks as you can. </strong></h2>
  577. <p>I have been using this process for years, as it doesn&#8217;t force me to drag out less than ideal tasks for longer than I need to. And even still, I also use this process for things that I like doing, such as writing. The mind best focuses on one thing at a time, and if you can devote each day of the week to one specific area, it&#8217;s better for you and your time. Doing this allows you to focus on the task at hand, allows you to get more done, and helps you build on previous ideas, rather than having to drop everything and come back later.</p>
  578. <h2><strong>3. Figure out how much time you actually want to devote to the necessities of life and execute accordingly. </strong></h2>
  579. <p>If you figure up all the time you take to care for children, sleep, eat, drive, shower, and use the restroom, the time adds up. Those are the necessities of life &#8212; the things you <em>have</em> to do. I&#8217;d say that all of these things add up to 11 hours per day, give or take a few hours. Whatever you <em>need </em>to do every day, tally up the time and hold yourself to it. Be realistic with the amount of time you need, because it&#8217;s important. Just like the budget you have for your finances, your budget of time keeps you accountable to what matters most.</p>
  580. <p>So now, if you add in work and working on the relationship you have with your significant other, you don&#8217;t really have much time left in your day. Now, the question becomes, where can you save even more time in order to make time for others? The answer is to combine strengthening relationships with the meals you already have to eat. I believe in Coke CEO, Muhtar Kent&#8217;s <a href="http://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/never-eat-alone-coke-ceos-4-tips-for-business-success">philosophy</a> of always eating with others so you can focus on relationships while taking care of the necessity that eating is. This is a simple way to fit even more in and care for people at the same time. Since caring for other people is the only reason that we do what we do, we must learn to steward our time well.</p>
  581. <h3><strong>Doing these three things will save you hours of time every single week. Now go and save more time, today. </strong></h3>
  582. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/save-hours/">#119: How to Save Hours of Time Every Single Week</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  583. ]]></content:encoded>
  584. <enclosure length="9429912" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/How-to-Save-Hours-of-Time-Every-Single-Week.mp3"/>
  585. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can save hours of time every single week.</itunes:subtitle>
  586. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Time is one of the most important possessions we have, so we must learn to use it wisely. This being said, here are three ways to save hours every single week:<br />
  587. <br />
  588. 1. Don&#8217;t be afraid to ask more questions&#8230; or Google it. <br />
  589. Many times, due to ego and pride, people won&#8217;t ask questions. It&#8217;s like the old story of men not stopping at the gas station to ask for directions, which kids don&#8217;t even understand because of gps and smartphones, but it further proves my point here of questions saving time. Whether you ask a question to someone who already knows the answer or you type it into Google, asking questions and seeking answers saves much more time that just trying to figure it out on your own. There&#8217;s a difference between doing new work to go where others haven&#8217;t gone before and doing tasks that others already know how to do but you haven&#8217;t done before. You don&#8217;t know everything &#8212; none of us do &#8212; and that&#8217;s perfectly fine. Keep asking questions and find the answers you need along the way. And then use the knowledge of others to become better at what you do.<br />
  590. 2. Batch as many tasks as you can. <br />
  591. I have been using this process for years, as it doesn&#8217;t force me to drag out less than ideal tasks for longer than I need to. And even still, I also use this process for things that I like doing, such as writing. The mind best focuses on one thing at a time, and if you can devote each day of the week to one specific area, it&#8217;s better for you and your time. Doing this allows you to focus on the task at hand, allows you to get more done, and helps you build on previous ideas, rather than having to drop everything and come back later.<br />
  592. 3. Figure out how much time you actually want to devote to the necessities of life and execute accordingly. <br />
  593. If you figure up all the time you take to care for children, sleep, eat, drive, shower, and use the restroom, the time adds up. Those are the necessities of life &#8212; the things you have to do. I&#8217;d say that all of these things add up to 11 hours per day, give or take a few hours. Whatever you need to do every day, tally up the time and hold yourself to it. Be realistic with the amount of time you need, because it&#8217;s important. Just like the budget you have for your finances, your budget of time keeps you accountable to what matters most.<br />
  594. So now, if you add in work and working on the relationship you have with your significant other, you don&#8217;t really have much time left in your day. Now, the question becomes, where can you save even more time in order to make time for others? The answer is to combine strengthening relationships with the meals you already have to eat. I believe in Coke CEO, Muhtar Kent&#8217;s <a href="http://www.coca-colacompany.com/stories/never-eat-alone-coke-ceos-4-tips-for-business-success">philosophy</a> of always eating with others so you can focus on relationships while taking care of the necessity that eating is. This is a simple way to fit even more in and care for people at the same time. Since caring for other people is the only reason that we do what we do, we must learn to steward our time well.<br />
  595. Doing these three things will save you hours of time every single week. Now go and save more time, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  596. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  597. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  598. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  599. <itunes:duration>4:55</itunes:duration>
  600. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  601. <item>
  602. <title>#118: Three More Ways to Be Nice</title>
  603. <link>https://asmithblog.com/be-nice/</link>
  604. <pubDate>Tue, 23 Aug 2016 06:01:09 +0000</pubDate>
  605. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23133</guid>
  606. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="445" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-768x445.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="be nice" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-768x445.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-300x174.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-1024x593.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-150x87.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice.png 1754w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam gives listeners three more reasons to be nice to others. &lt;/p&gt;
  607. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/be-nice/"&gt;#118: Three More Ways to Be Nice&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  608. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="445" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-768x445.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="be nice" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-768x445.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-300x174.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-1024x593.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice-150x87.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/be-nice.png 1754w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><div></div>
  609. <div></div>
  610. <div>People underestimate the power found in being nice to others, but it need not be forgotten. Being nice to others can open the door to opportunity, but of course, that&#8217;s not the reason to be nice. Being nice to others is just the right thing to do, because paying it forward puts more positivity in the world. Yes, focusing on bettering yourself is important, and yes, putting in the work is typically the fastest way to see results, but those things are just the beginning. The only reason to better yourself is to turn around and then impact other people. Now that we have that out of the way, I want to talk about the three ways that people can be nicer on a daily basis:</div>
  611. <p><strong><span id="more-23133"></span></strong></p>
  612. <h2><strong>The first way that people can be nicer is by being nicer in their businesses. </strong></h2>
  613. <p>There are two ways that people can operate their businesses &#8212; with a takeaway or giveaway mentality. In my experience, I have found that businesses grow much faster when they are more generous with customers than when they are always stingy. In fact, in an interview I did a few years back, I attributed giving things away for free as a key factor of my success; I believe in it that much.</p>
  614. <p>Business people, it&#8217;s okay to give some things away for free every once and awhile. Of course, I&#8217;m not saying to give everything away for free, nor am I saying that you shouldn&#8217;t make money &#8212; that&#8217;s not what I&#8217;m saying at all, actually. But what I am saying is that being nice in business is the best way to get more attention from a new audience, and it creates better relationships, no matter what business you&#8217;re in. When you begin thinking long-term rather than short-term, and you see every action as an investment rather than needing an immediate return on it, then you are well on your way to finding what it means to be generous in business. If you&#8217;re wondering if you should be more generous or more stingy with your next business decision, I would choose to error on the side of being generous.</p>
  615. <div>
  616. <div>
  617. <h2><strong>The second way that people can be nicer is by being grateful for opportunity. </strong></h2>
  618. </div>
  619. </div>
  620. <div>Having a good attitude is another way to be nice, and when gratefulness is present, it definitely shines through one&#8217;s attitude. We&#8217;ve all been around those who don&#8217;t have a good attitude, and what a difference it makes. Every day is an opportunity, and that&#8217;s enough to be grateful for. This means that gratefulness, happiness, and niceness can become a way of life when we realize what each minute of every day can bring. Choose to be grateful rather than ungrateful; it makes a world of difference. Being nice not only changes your world, but the world around you.</div>
  621. <h2><strong>And the third way that people can be nicer is by choosing better words. </strong></h2>
  622. <div>If you don&#8217;t have anything nice to say, find something nice to say and say it. It doesn&#8217;t take much looking to find people who are tearing down other people with their words, and what a sad reality that is. Whether we are looking at the blatantly mean bully, the passive-aggressive coworker, or the condescending boss, mean words hurt. When we think about the words we use, and take the response from others into consideration before we speak, we will create better relationships. The excuse of &#8220;I just don&#8217;t think before I speak&#8221; just can&#8217;t cut it anymore &#8212; we need to commit to use the brains that God gave us. It&#8217;s there for a reason. We are all better than cutting other people down. We can give life to others with our words.</div>
  623. <div></div>
  624. <div><hr /><p><em>We can give life to others with our words. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbe-nice%2F&#038;text=We%20can%20give%20life%20to%20others%20with%20our%20words.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr /></div>
  625. <h3><strong>Now go and be nice, today. </strong></h3>
  626. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/be-nice/">#118: Three More Ways to Be Nice</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  627. ]]></content:encoded>
  628. <enclosure length="8374983" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/118-Three-More-Ways-to-Be-Nice.mp3"/>
  629. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam gives listeners three more reasons to be nice to others.</itunes:subtitle>
  630. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  631. <br />
  632. People underestimate the power found in being nice to others, but it need not be forgotten. Being nice to others can open the door to opportunity, but of course, that&#8217;s not the reason to be nice. Being nice to others is just the right thing to do, because paying it forward puts more positivity in the world. Yes, focusing on bettering yourself is important, and yes, putting in the work is typically the fastest way to see results, but those things are just the beginning. The only reason to better yourself is to turn around and then impact other people. Now that we have that out of the way, I want to talk about the three ways that people can be nicer on a daily basis:<br />
  633. <br />
  634. The first way that people can be nicer is by being nicer in their businesses. <br />
  635. There are two ways that people can operate their businesses &#8212; with a takeaway or giveaway mentality. In my experience, I have found that businesses grow much faster when they are more generous with customers than when they are always stingy. In fact, in an interview I did a few years back, I attributed giving things away for free as a key factor of my success; I believe in it that much.<br />
  636. Business people, it&#8217;s okay to give some things away for free every once and awhile. Of course, I&#8217;m not saying to give everything away for free, nor am I saying that you shouldn&#8217;t make money &#8212; that&#8217;s not what I&#8217;m saying at all, actually. But what I am saying is that being nice in business is the best way to get more attention from a new audience, and it creates better relationships, no matter what business you&#8217;re in. When you begin thinking long-term rather than short-term, and you see every action as an investment rather than needing an immediate return on it, then you are well on your way to finding what it means to be generous in business. If you&#8217;re wondering if you should be more generous or more stingy with your next business decision, I would choose to error on the side of being generous.<br />
  637. <br />
  638. <br />
  639. The second way that people can be nicer is by being grateful for opportunity. <br />
  640. <br />
  641. <br />
  642. Having a good attitude is another way to be nice, and when gratefulness is present, it definitely shines through one&#8217;s attitude. We&#8217;ve all been around those who don&#8217;t have a good attitude, and what a difference it makes. Every day is an opportunity, and that&#8217;s enough to be grateful for. This means that gratefulness, happiness, and niceness can become a way of life when we realize what each minute of every day can bring. Choose to be grateful rather than ungrateful; it makes a world of difference. Being nice not only changes your world, but the world around you.<br />
  643. And the third way that people can be nicer is by choosing better words. <br />
  644. If you don&#8217;t have anything nice to say, find something nice to say and say it. It doesn&#8217;t take much looking to find people who are tearing down other people with their words, and what a sad reality that is. Whether we are looking at the blatantly mean bully, the passive-aggressive coworker, or the condescending boss, mean words hurt. When we think about the words we use, and take the response from others into consideration before we speak, we will create better relationships. The excuse of &#8220;I just don&#8217;t think before I speak&#8221; just can&#8217;t cut it anymore &#8212; we need to commit to use the brains that God gave us. It&#8217;s there for a reason. We are all better than cutting other people down. We can give life to others with our words.<br />
  645. <br />
  646. <br />
  647. Now go and be nice, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  648. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  649. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  650. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  651. <itunes:duration>4:22</itunes:duration>
  652. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  653. <item>
  654. <title>#117: How to Do Something That Matters</title>
  655. <link>https://asmithblog.com/do-something/</link>
  656. <pubDate>Tue, 16 Aug 2016 06:01:52 +0000</pubDate>
  657. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23095</guid>
  658. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="497" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-768x497.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="do something that matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-768x497.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-300x194.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-1024x662.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-150x97.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters.png 1754w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can do something that matters. &lt;/p&gt;
  659. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/do-something/"&gt;#117: How to Do Something That Matters&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  660. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="497" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-768x497.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="do something that matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-768x497.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-300x194.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-1024x662.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters-150x97.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/do-something-that-matters.png 1754w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  661. <p>Most people want to make a positive difference in the world, but many times, people don&#8217;t know where to start. If that&#8217;s you, here are the necessary five steps along the way to doing something that matters: <strong><span id="more-23095"></span></strong></p>
  662. <h2><strong>First, decide once and for all that you&#8217;re tired of not making a difference in the world.</strong></h2>
  663. <p>SO many people live life in a monotonous routine, not paying attention to the people around them. Listen, if you&#8217;re not impacting people in some way, then you&#8217;re not making a difference. I&#8217;ve been making a difference for the last ten years by consistently producing free content so my readers can benefit and use it in their own lives. Why did I start putting my valuable time into doing that? Because I wanted to make a difference in the world, so I used my expertise and combined it with my interest in social media to find my place in the business and self-help landscape. And it worked. Whatever you do in life, shoot for making a difference in the world. People need you.</p>
  664. <h2><strong>Second, find <em>your</em> passion and area of expertise, not someone else&#8217;s.</strong></h2>
  665. <p>Knowing who <i>YOU</i> are, and how you&#8217;re designed, and what sparks passion inside of you, and what you&#8217;re good at, is so important. Too often people look at others to know who they should be, but that&#8217;s not creative, that&#8217;s not innovative, that&#8217;s not leaving your imprint on the world, that&#8217;s not you; that&#8217;s someone else&#8217;s job, not yours. Stop worrying about what everyone else is doing, and begin concentrating on who you were designed to be. Ask yourself the question, &#8220;Who do I want to be and where do I want to be in life?&#8221; Answer that question and plan accordingly. Life is too short to spend wishing, or not being who you were intended to be in the first place. You have purpose.</p>
  666. <h2><strong>Third, stop looking for permission from other people to do what you know you are meant to do.</strong></h2>
  667. <p>What I am about to say I don&#8217;t like to admit, but it&#8217;s the truth &#8212; it&#8217;s how the world works. And here it is: If you don&#8217;t chase your dreams, someone else will recruit you for theirs. Now, if you believe in someone else&#8217;s dreams enough to help them, then I am all for it &#8212; helping people is what I do. But at some point you have to wonder if there isn&#8217;t something else that you were made for. Maybe it&#8217;s time for you to lead the way. My question to you is, &#8220;Why not you?&#8221;</p>
  668. <h2><strong>Fourth, find a problem that most people face and give them a solution that works.</strong></h2>
  669. <p>I am constantly asking people the question, &#8220;What problem do you need solved?&#8221; I ask this question because when enough people give the same answer, it lets me know that people need an answer. And if it lies in my area of expertise, then I will research it, draw a conclusion, and then produce content on the topic. When you do something that matters, you will find a solution that works through trial and error and provide it to those who need an answer. Complaining about the way things are is one thing, but actually taking the time to find a solution is taking it to another level. You were designed to help others.</p>
  670. <h2><strong>Fifth, put in the work. </strong></h2>
  671. <p>Putting in the work is the most important part of the equation. When results aren&#8217;t realized early on, and people aren&#8217;t patient enough, quitting becomes a reasonable option. On the other hand, when people are determined while putting in the work, and they already know who they are and what they were created to do, putting in the work becomes a way of life. When people have this mentality, a lengthy timeline isn&#8217;t a distraction, but rather, it becomes something to work towards. Your reward is found in the work.</p>
  672. <p>One of the weirdest questions that I get asked is, &#8220;Why do you work so much?&#8221; Of course, if you have read any of my work, then you know that I believe in the principle of getting back what you put into something. Big dreams require a lot of work; they just do. If you truly want to make your ideas a reality, you will put in the work.</p>
  673. <h3><strong>Now, go and do something that matters today. </strong></h3>
  674. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/do-something/">#117: How to Do Something That Matters</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  675. ]]></content:encoded>
  676. <enclosure length="9706601" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/How-to-Do-Something-That-Matters.mp3"/>
  677. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can do something that matters.</itunes:subtitle>
  678. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Most people want to make a positive difference in the world, but many times, people don&#8217;t know where to start. If that&#8217;s you, here are the necessary five steps along the way to doing something that matters: <br />
  679. First, decide once and for all that you&#8217;re tired of not making a difference in the world.<br />
  680. SO many people live life in a monotonous routine, not paying attention to the people around them. Listen, if you&#8217;re not impacting people in some way, then you&#8217;re not making a difference. I&#8217;ve been making a difference for the last ten years by consistently producing free content so my readers can benefit and use it in their own lives. Why did I start putting my valuable time into doing that? Because I wanted to make a difference in the world, so I used my expertise and combined it with my interest in social media to find my place in the business and self-help landscape. And it worked. Whatever you do in life, shoot for making a difference in the world. People need you.<br />
  681. Second, find your passion and area of expertise, not someone else&#8217;s.<br />
  682. Knowing who YOU are, and how you&#8217;re designed, and what sparks passion inside of you, and what you&#8217;re good at, is so important. Too often people look at others to know who they should be, but that&#8217;s not creative, that&#8217;s not innovative, that&#8217;s not leaving your imprint on the world, that&#8217;s not you; that&#8217;s someone else&#8217;s job, not yours. Stop worrying about what everyone else is doing, and begin concentrating on who you were designed to be. Ask yourself the question, &#8220;Who do I want to be and where do I want to be in life?&#8221; Answer that question and plan accordingly. Life is too short to spend wishing, or not being who you were intended to be in the first place. You have purpose.<br />
  683. Third, stop looking for permission from other people to do what you know you are meant to do.<br />
  684. What I am about to say I don&#8217;t like to admit, but it&#8217;s the truth &#8212; it&#8217;s how the world works. And here it is: If you don&#8217;t chase your dreams, someone else will recruit you for theirs. Now, if you believe in someone else&#8217;s dreams enough to help them, then I am all for it &#8212; helping people is what I do. But at some point you have to wonder if there isn&#8217;t something else that you were made for. Maybe it&#8217;s time for you to lead the way. My question to you is, &#8220;Why not you?&#8221;<br />
  685. Fourth, find a problem that most people face and give them a solution that works.<br />
  686. I am constantly asking people the question, &#8220;What problem do you need solved?&#8221; I ask this question because when enough people give the same answer, it lets me know that people need an answer. And if it lies in my area of expertise, then I will research it, draw a conclusion, and then produce content on the topic. When you do something that matters, you will find a solution that works through trial and error and provide it to those who need an answer. Complaining about the way things are is one thing, but actually taking the time to find a solution is taking it to another level. You were designed to help others.<br />
  687. Fifth, put in the work. <br />
  688. Putting in the work is the most important part of the equation. When results aren&#8217;t realized early on, and people aren&#8217;t patient enough, quitting becomes a reasonable option. On the other hand, when people are determined while putting in the work, and they already know who they are and what they were created to do, putting in the work becomes a way of life. When people have this mentality, a lengthy timeline isn&#8217;t a distraction, but rather, it becomes something to work towards. Your reward is found in the work.<br />
  689. One of the weirdest questions that I get asked is, &#8220;Why do you work so much?&#8221; Of course, if you have read any of my work, then you know that I believe in the principle of getting back wha...]]></itunes:summary>
  690. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  691. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  692. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  693. <itunes:duration>5:03</itunes:duration>
  694. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  695. <item>
  696. <title>#116: There’s More Time Than You Think</title>
  697. <link>https://asmithblog.com/more-time/</link>
  698. <pubDate>Tue, 09 Aug 2016 06:01:41 +0000</pubDate>
  699. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=23063</guid>
  700. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="509" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-768x509.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="more time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-768x509.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-300x199.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-1024x678.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time.png 1758w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can find more time in their day, whether they currently have 'enough' time or not. &lt;/p&gt;
  701. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/more-time/"&gt;#116: There’s More Time Than You Think&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  702. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="509" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-768x509.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="more time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-768x509.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-300x199.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-1024x678.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time-150x99.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/more-time.png 1758w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  703. <p>For the past ten years I have been building my online community, trying new things, and building businesses, all while attempting to meet my own expectations and the expectations of others in every other important area of life. Just like you, because of all the daily demands, I am always trying to find more time in my day. <strong><span id="more-23063"></span></strong></p>
  704. <p>After sleeping, working, and taking the time to meet all other basic human needs, it probably seems that there isn’t much time left to do what is needed &#8212; I know I have found myself in this place before &#8212; but I found that there are some fixes to the shortage of time we all experience. Once I began saying that I didn’t have enough time to exercise, or enough time to spend with friends, or enough time to vacation, or enough time to take a day or two off every week, or enough time to write a book, or enough time to [_fill in the blank_], I would hear of people who were busier than myself who had enough time to do all of the things I wanted to accomplish and even more, all while doing them well. You know who I&#8217;m talking about &#8212; the CEOs, and the entrepreneurs, and the politicians, and the successful business people who you hear about who have done everything you ever wanted to in life, but you in your busyness can’t seem to find any extra time in your day.</p>
  705. <p>So, what’s the difference between you and those who <em>can</em> find the time? The difference between them and you probably has to do with three things, and here they are:</p>
  706. <h2><strong>First, if you can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, you may be holding onto things you don&#8217;t need to keep.</strong></h2>
  707. <p>I can speak from experience here &#8212; when you run multiple businesses, you have to learn how to get creative with time, and that means that you learn to let go of things. Yes, you may even need to get rid of some things that you <em>like</em> doing in order to make room for the things that you <em>love</em> doing. Ask yourself, &#8220;What am I passionate about?&#8221; If you&#8217;re passionate enough, you&#8217;ll make ample room in your schedule for those things. Even if it means that you have to pay someone to cut the lawn in order to free up an hour, or you have to pick up carry-out for dinner to free up the hour of time spent cooking and cleaning up, or whatever small task you can pay others to do for you, it&#8217;s worth it if you can save any time at all. (Some people may think that fifteen minutes is just fifteen minutes, but I see it as fifteen minutes of opportunity.) As valuable as time is, my advice is to always save it when you can. Know what you need to do to accomplish your dreams, take care of the people who need you, and get rid of the excess. This is where you need to start when chasing your wildest dreams.</p>
  708. <h2><strong>Second, if you can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, it may be time to be more realistic with where you currently are in life. </strong></h2>
  709. <p>If you are a single mom or dad and you have three kids under the age of seven, this may not the best season to build a startup. If you can figure it out and still enjoy your children, then great, but so many people ignore their current situations and will find that they missed out on more important things later down the road. Trust me, when you realize the current season you are in and you dance in those lines, you will save both your relationships and your sanity. And if you are extremely driven to accomplish your dreams, and you want them right now, you need to begin pairing that determination with patience, as it will save you from so many future letdowns. Success is coming; it may just appear a little slower than you think.</p>
  710. <h2><strong>And third, if you still can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, it&#8217;s time to become more efficient. </strong></h2>
  711. <p>You know you can improve on efficiency when projects take much longer than they should. Maybe you allow your mind wander more than you should, or maybe you don&#8217;t give yourself enough deadlines, or maybe you are always working in an open space where people are free to interrupt you whenever they please, or maybe you engage in too much &#8216;small talk,&#8217; or maybe your meetings have become unfocused. Whatever the case may be, increased focus equals increased efficiency, so looking for ways to better your productivity is extremely important. Saving time allows you to start your next project sooner, it gives you back time to put in better work, and it makes space for the opportunity to put more time into the areas you actually need to work on more often.</p>
  712. <p><strong>When you get rid of the excess, are realistic with your time, and become more efficient, you will realize that you have more time than you think. Now, go and find more time today. </strong></p>
  713. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/more-time/">#116: There’s More Time Than You Think</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  714. ]]></content:encoded>
  715. <enclosure length="11798905" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Theres-More-Time-Than-You-Think.mp3"/>
  716. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can find more time in their day, whether they currently have 'enough' time or not.</itunes:subtitle>
  717. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[For the past ten years I have been building my online community, trying new things, and building businesses, all while attempting to meet my own expectations and the expectations of others in every other important area of life. Just like you, because of all the daily demands, I am always trying to find more time in my day. <br />
  718. After sleeping, working, and taking the time to meet all other basic human needs, it probably seems that there isn’t much time left to do what is needed &#8212; I know I have found myself in this place before &#8212; but I found that there are some fixes to the shortage of time we all experience. Once I began saying that I didn’t have enough time to exercise, or enough time to spend with friends, or enough time to vacation, or enough time to take a day or two off every week, or enough time to write a book, or enough time to [_fill in the blank_], I would hear of people who were busier than myself who had enough time to do all of the things I wanted to accomplish and even more, all while doing them well. You know who I&#8217;m talking about &#8212; the CEOs, and the entrepreneurs, and the politicians, and the successful business people who you hear about who have done everything you ever wanted to in life, but you in your busyness can’t seem to find any extra time in your day.<br />
  719. So, what’s the difference between you and those who can find the time? The difference between them and you probably has to do with three things, and here they are:<br />
  720. First, if you can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, you may be holding onto things you don&#8217;t need to keep.<br />
  721. I can speak from experience here &#8212; when you run multiple businesses, you have to learn how to get creative with time, and that means that you learn to let go of things. Yes, you may even need to get rid of some things that you like doing in order to make room for the things that you love doing. Ask yourself, &#8220;What am I passionate about?&#8221; If you&#8217;re passionate enough, you&#8217;ll make ample room in your schedule for those things. Even if it means that you have to pay someone to cut the lawn in order to free up an hour, or you have to pick up carry-out for dinner to free up the hour of time spent cooking and cleaning up, or whatever small task you can pay others to do for you, it&#8217;s worth it if you can save any time at all. (Some people may think that fifteen minutes is just fifteen minutes, but I see it as fifteen minutes of opportunity.) As valuable as time is, my advice is to always save it when you can. Know what you need to do to accomplish your dreams, take care of the people who need you, and get rid of the excess. This is where you need to start when chasing your wildest dreams.<br />
  722. Second, if you can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, it may be time to be more realistic with where you currently are in life. <br />
  723. If you are a single mom or dad and you have three kids under the age of seven, this may not the best season to build a startup. If you can figure it out and still enjoy your children, then great, but so many people ignore their current situations and will find that they missed out on more important things later down the road. Trust me, when you realize the current season you are in and you dance in those lines, you will save both your relationships and your sanity. And if you are extremely driven to accomplish your dreams, and you want them right now, you need to begin pairing that determination with patience, as it will save you from so many future letdowns. Success is coming; it may just appear a little slower than you think.<br />
  724. And third, if you still can&#8217;t seem to find enough time, it&#8217;s time to become more efficient. <br />
  725. You know you can improve on efficiency when projects take much longer than they should. Maybe you allow your mind wander more than you should, or maybe you don&#8217;t give yourself enough deadlines, or maybe you are always working in an open space wher...]]></itunes:summary>
  726. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  727. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  728. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  729. <itunes:duration>6:09</itunes:duration>
  730. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  731. <item>
  732. <title>#115: Do Anything But Sell Your Product</title>
  733. <link>https://asmithblog.com/sell-your-product/</link>
  734. <pubDate>Tue, 05 Jul 2016 06:01:36 +0000</pubDate>
  735. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22935</guid>
  736. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="412" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-768x412.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="sell your product" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-768x412.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-300x161.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-1024x549.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-150x80.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they should do anything but sell their product. &lt;/p&gt;
  737. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/sell-your-product/"&gt;#115: Do Anything But Sell Your Product&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  738. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="412" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-768x412.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="sell your product" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-768x412.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-300x161.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-1024x549.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product-150x80.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/sell-your-product.png 1756w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  739. <p>For the past three years I have offered life and business coaching sessions to people who are interested, but it has never something that I push. I figure that if people want to seek that service out from me, then they will see that I offer it on my website. And even though I offer this service, it&#8217;s not my main goal with my blog to gain more clients. In fact, I&#8217;ve had so many people interested that I have a waiting list right now. It&#8217;s a good problem to have, and I&#8217;ve had other investors approach me with ideas to scale my business even more, but again, that&#8217;s not my goal. So, what is my goal with everything I do? <strong><span id="more-22935"></span></strong></p>
  740. <p>My main goal in life is to make the best use of my time and to empower people. By myself, I can only coach twelve people at the most every month, whereas I can write on this blog and reach thousands of people with every article. Looking at these numbers, I can easily see that the best use of my time is to focus on providing content for my online audience. With my full schedule, posting online in any of the formats that I use &#8212; writing, video blogging, or podcasting &#8212; is the best use of my time.</p>
  741. <p>But, if my goal truly is to impact the most people that I possibly can, then the numbers don&#8217;t lie; I need to go where the people are. I charge a premium for coaching because I am short on time, but people are only interested in my program after hearing my unique perspective on my blog. This being said, I very rarely add a client just by telling people that I offer coaching, but instead, people approach me for coaching after reading my work and becoming a part of my online community. This is why my mentality on marketing has changed over the years. I now believe that selling a product has much less to do with the actual product than most think. But it does have more to do with whether the person selling a product is truthful and believable with how a product can be beneficial to one&#8217;s life. This is what makes testimonials so powerful.</p>
  742. <p>I&#8217;ve been writing for ten years now, not because I want to sell you something, but I began this blog because I enjoy writing, I feel like I can help people, and with these things in mind, people eventually took notice of my work. I gained attention by providing value, not by trying to make a sale, and this is what I am still trying to do. I&#8217;m just trying to add value. I see new opportunity as a means to begin new conversations and a way to spread new ideas. That&#8217;s the best way to influence, make a difference, and sell products.</p>
  743. <h3><strong>Now, go and do anything but sell your product, today. </strong></h3>
  744. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/sell-your-product/">#115: Do Anything But Sell Your Product</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  745. ]]></content:encoded>
  746. <enclosure length="7186307" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Do-Anything-But-Sell-Your-Product.mp3"/>
  747. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they should do anything but sell their product.</itunes:subtitle>
  748. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[For the past three years I have offered life and business coaching sessions to people who are interested, but it has never something that I push. I figure that if people want to seek that service out from me, then they will see that I offer it on my website. And even though I offer this service, it&#8217;s not my main goal with my blog to gain more clients. In fact, I&#8217;ve had so many people interested that I have a waiting list right now. It&#8217;s a good problem to have, and I&#8217;ve had other investors approach me with ideas to scale my business even more, but again, that&#8217;s not my goal. So, what is my goal with everything I do? <br />
  749. My main goal in life is to make the best use of my time and to empower people. By myself, I can only coach twelve people at the most every month, whereas I can write on this blog and reach thousands of people with every article. Looking at these numbers, I can easily see that the best use of my time is to focus on providing content for my online audience. With my full schedule, posting online in any of the formats that I use &#8212; writing, video blogging, or podcasting &#8212; is the best use of my time.<br />
  750. But, if my goal truly is to impact the most people that I possibly can, then the numbers don&#8217;t lie; I need to go where the people are. I charge a premium for coaching because I am short on time, but people are only interested in my program after hearing my unique perspective on my blog. This being said, I very rarely add a client just by telling people that I offer coaching, but instead, people approach me for coaching after reading my work and becoming a part of my online community. This is why my mentality on marketing has changed over the years. I now believe that selling a product has much less to do with the actual product than most think. But it does have more to do with whether the person selling a product is truthful and believable with how a product can be beneficial to one&#8217;s life. This is what makes testimonials so powerful.<br />
  751. I&#8217;ve been writing for ten years now, not because I want to sell you something, but I began this blog because I enjoy writing, I feel like I can help people, and with these things in mind, people eventually took notice of my work. I gained attention by providing value, not by trying to make a sale, and this is what I am still trying to do. I&#8217;m just trying to add value. I see new opportunity as a means to begin new conversations and a way to spread new ideas. That&#8217;s the best way to influence, make a difference, and sell products.<br />
  752. Now, go and do anything but sell your product, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  753. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  754. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  755. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  756. <itunes:duration>3:44</itunes:duration>
  757. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  758. <item>
  759. <title>#114: You and Your Work Aren’t for Everyone</title>
  760. <link>https://asmithblog.com/you-work-everyone/</link>
  761. <pubDate>Tue, 21 Jun 2016 06:01:46 +0000</pubDate>
  762. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22889</guid>
  763. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="421" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-768x421.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="you and your work" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-768x421.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-300x164.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-1024x561.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-150x82.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work.png 1450w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why their work can't be for everyone. &lt;/p&gt;
  764. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/you-work-everyone/"&gt;#114: You and Your Work Aren’t for Everyone&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  765. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="421" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-768x421.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="you and your work" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-768x421.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-300x164.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-1024x561.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work-150x82.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/you-and-your-work.png 1450w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  766. <p>When you realize that you and/or your work aren&#8217;t for everyone, it&#8217;s liberating. It&#8217;s at this point of realization that you can stop your appeal to the masses, and can instead find your audience. So, in an effort to help you push through the noise, here are three ways to shut out the critics when they come your way: <strong><span id="more-22889"></span></strong></p>
  767. <h2><strong>First, realize that anyone who has ever done anything great had many critics along the way. </strong></h2>
  768. <p>I am fascinated by the Wright brothers, because anyone who takes a giant leap with their work has my attention, and to go first is a pretty scary thing. (Some believe that <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/13/130503-wright-brothers-first-flight-gustave-whitehead-aviation-smithsonian-institution-adventure-world/">Gustave Whitehead</a> was the first man to take flight, but I still believe it was the Wright brothers.) The two owned a bicycle repair shop and spent any extra time they had working on their idea of creating a flying machine. They executed on their idea, and created modern aviation on December 17, 1903. They helped make the world a smaller place, so that the rest of us could fly and enjoy far away places. Their sense of adventure and innovation showed through their work, but the road to get there was anything but easy. They had their share of critics along the way, but they kept pressing forward, because they knew they were onto something great. Critics in the European aviation community converted much of the press to an anti-Wright brothers stance. The Wright brothers certainly made their share of mistakes, but they kept experimenting and eventually found a way to make their idea work. They had to know who they were and that their work was going to make a difference so that they could defy both the odds and the critics simultaneously. Of course, the Wright brothers aren&#8217;t the only ones who had to learn how to tune out critics, but the principle has always been the same: stay true to yourself, take risks, be innovative, do the work, and repeat.</p>
  769. <h2><strong>Second, realize that we are all different and not everyone will like you. </strong></h2>
  770. <p>This is just the truth. People&#8217;s personalities will clash, and as much as you want to be accepted by everyone, it will never happen. This is why it is so important to be yourself rather than trying to please everyone, because you will never be able to make everyone happy; you just won&#8217;t. The people who will love you and/or your work will be there for you no matter what, and the ones who don&#8217;t will still have their opinion no matter how hard you try to please them. Find the people who appreciate you and your work and fight to make a positive difference in the world.</p>
  771. <p>Now, please don&#8217;t hear me wrong. This isn&#8217;t a call to do whatever you want, but more of a call to find who you are and to be yourself, but to also care about other people and to produce great work for them at the same time. Great work always displays some piece of the work&#8217;s creator. You are you, but your work is an extension of who you are for this very reason. It is also for this reason that relationship brings an even deeper appreciation for one&#8217;s work. When I get to know someone, it helps me understand where the work came from, and that brings a deeper appreciation for their effort, their attempts, and their convictions. Relationships bring importance not only to the person, but to everything they do. If we have relationship, if it matters to you, then it matters to me.</p>
  772. <h2><strong>And third, produce results. </strong></h2>
  773. <p>Nothing shuts critics up faster than producing results. If people keep criticizing you and your work, don&#8217;t give them your precious time if you know you&#8217;re heading in the right direction, define what success is to you, focus on your work, and fight for success. Find the problem you want to fix, and fix it. We all need that from you.</p>
  774. <h3><strong>Now, go and produce your very best work, today.  </strong></h3>
  775. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/you-work-everyone/">#114: You and Your Work Aren&#8217;t for Everyone</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  776. ]]></content:encoded>
  777. <enclosure length="8517925" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/You-and-Your-Work-Arent-for-Everyone.mp3"/>
  778. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why their work can't be for everyone.</itunes:subtitle>
  779. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[When you realize that you and/or your work aren&#8217;t for everyone, it&#8217;s liberating. It&#8217;s at this point of realization that you can stop your appeal to the masses, and can instead find your audience. So, in an effort to help you push through the noise, here are three ways to shut out the critics when they come your way: <br />
  780. First, realize that anyone who has ever done anything great had many critics along the way. <br />
  781. I am fascinated by the Wright brothers, because anyone who takes a giant leap with their work has my attention, and to go first is a pretty scary thing. (Some believe that <a href="http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2013/13/130503-wright-brothers-first-flight-gustave-whitehead-aviation-smithsonian-institution-adventure-world/">Gustave Whitehead</a> was the first man to take flight, but I still believe it was the Wright brothers.) The two owned a bicycle repair shop and spent any extra time they had working on their idea of creating a flying machine. They executed on their idea, and created modern aviation on December 17, 1903. They helped make the world a smaller place, so that the rest of us could fly and enjoy far away places. Their sense of adventure and innovation showed through their work, but the road to get there was anything but easy. They had their share of critics along the way, but they kept pressing forward, because they knew they were onto something great. Critics in the European aviation community converted much of the press to an anti-Wright brothers stance. The Wright brothers certainly made their share of mistakes, but they kept experimenting and eventually found a way to make their idea work. They had to know who they were and that their work was going to make a difference so that they could defy both the odds and the critics simultaneously. Of course, the Wright brothers aren&#8217;t the only ones who had to learn how to tune out critics, but the principle has always been the same: stay true to yourself, take risks, be innovative, do the work, and repeat.<br />
  782. Second, realize that we are all different and not everyone will like you. <br />
  783. This is just the truth. People&#8217;s personalities will clash, and as much as you want to be accepted by everyone, it will never happen. This is why it is so important to be yourself rather than trying to please everyone, because you will never be able to make everyone happy; you just won&#8217;t. The people who will love you and/or your work will be there for you no matter what, and the ones who don&#8217;t will still have their opinion no matter how hard you try to please them. Find the people who appreciate you and your work and fight to make a positive difference in the world.<br />
  784. Now, please don&#8217;t hear me wrong. This isn&#8217;t a call to do whatever you want, but more of a call to find who you are and to be yourself, but to also care about other people and to produce great work for them at the same time. Great work always displays some piece of the work&#8217;s creator. You are you, but your work is an extension of who you are for this very reason. It is also for this reason that relationship brings an even deeper appreciation for one&#8217;s work. When I get to know someone, it helps me understand where the work came from, and that brings a deeper appreciation for their effort, their attempts, and their convictions. Relationships bring importance not only to the person, but to everything they do. If we have relationship, if it matters to you, then it matters to me.<br />
  785. And third, produce results. <br />
  786. Nothing shuts critics up faster than producing results. If people keep criticizing you and your work, don&#8217;t give them your precious time if you know you&#8217;re heading in the right direction, define what success is to you, focus on your work, and fight for success. Find the problem you want to fix, and fix it. We all need that from you.<br />
  787. Now, go and produce your very best work, today.  <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  788. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  789. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  790. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  791. <itunes:duration>4:26</itunes:duration>
  792. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  793. <item>
  794. <title>#113: 3 Questions to Ask Yourself to Find a Life Full of Passion</title>
  795. <link>https://asmithblog.com/life-passion/</link>
  796. <pubDate>Tue, 14 Jun 2016 06:01:00 +0000</pubDate>
  797. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22758</guid>
  798. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="391" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-768x391.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="create a life full of passion" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-768x391.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-300x153.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-1024x521.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-150x76.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion.png 1744w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they need to create a life full of passion. &lt;/p&gt;
  799. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/life-passion/"&gt;#113: 3 Questions to Ask Yourself to Find a Life Full of Passion&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  800. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="391" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-768x391.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="create a life full of passion" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-768x391.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-300x153.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-1024x521.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion-150x76.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/life-full-of-passion.png 1744w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  801. <p><a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/274415">You need passion</a> because you need to experience every ounce of life that you can. Yes, life is dull without passion. So if the idea of having passion intrigues you, but you don&#8217;t know how to obtain it, here are three questions you can ask yourself to get you heading in the right direction: <strong><span id="more-22758"></span></strong></p>
  802. <h2><strong>1. Do I jump out of bed, excited for the day ahead?</strong></h2>
  803. <p>If you hit the snooze button more often than not, then it may be time to look at your level of passion for life. (Or how much sleep you&#8217;re getting.) Are you excited about your life? If not, then this is something that you can change. If &#8216;dull&#8217; describes your life, then your best remedy is finding passion. Each new day includes strengthening relationships, doing great work, dreaming up new ideas, planning the future, and exploring nature. Life offers much to become passionate about.</p>
  804. <h2><strong>2. Am I curious about what life has to offer? </strong></h2>
  805. <p>Passion exudes out of people when they grab hold of a life worth being passionate about. And the only way for this to happen is to remain curious about life. When we stop being curious about life and what it holds for us, we lose sight of future opportunity, possibilities, and hope.</p>
  806. <p>What are you curious about? What sparks passion in you? What do you seek to change? Who do you seek to impact with your life? How can you influence others? How are you wired? These are great questions to begin with to raise your level of curiosity. Never stop asking questions and never stop being curious about what is to come.</p>
  807. <h2><strong>3. Do I realize that passion has more to do with my life as a whole than just the area of work?</strong></h2>
  808. <p>Many people never find a life full of passion because they only concentrate on finding passion in their work. And while being passionate about work is important, I believe that someone can become passionate about any type of work, as long as they find their reason for doing the work. When one finds their &#8216;why&#8217;<i> </i>there&#8217;s not much of anything that can stand in the way of finding purpose and passion. An easy way to do this in any profession is to find the people who you most impact and to do your work for those people, because people always matter. Yes, work is something to be passionate about, but outside of the conversation of work, life as a whole warrants passion. There is so much to do and life is shorter than you think. It&#8217;s time to use anything and everything to fuel your drive, and begin finding a passion for all facets of life.</p>
  809. <p><strong>Now, go and find more passion, today. </strong></p>
  810. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/life-passion/">#113: 3 Questions to Ask Yourself to Find a Life Full of Passion</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  811. ]]></content:encoded>
  812. <enclosure length="3745249" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/113-3-Questions-to-Ask-Yourself-to-Find-a-Life-Full-of-Passion-.mp3"/>
  813. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they need to create a life full of passion.</itunes:subtitle>
  814. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<a href="https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/274415">You need passion</a> because you need to experience every ounce of life that you can. Yes, life is dull without passion. So if the idea of having passion intrigues you, but you don&#8217;t know how to obtain it, here are three questions you can ask yourself to get you heading in the right direction: <br />
  815. 1. Do I jump out of bed, excited for the day ahead?<br />
  816. If you hit the snooze button more often than not, then it may be time to look at your level of passion for life. (Or how much sleep you&#8217;re getting.) Are you excited about your life? If not, then this is something that you can change. If &#8216;dull&#8217; describes your life, then your best remedy is finding passion. Each new day includes strengthening relationships, doing great work, dreaming up new ideas, planning the future, and exploring nature. Life offers much to become passionate about.<br />
  817. 2. Am I curious about what life has to offer? <br />
  818. Passion exudes out of people when they grab hold of a life worth being passionate about. And the only way for this to happen is to remain curious about life. When we stop being curious about life and what it holds for us, we lose sight of future opportunity, possibilities, and hope.<br />
  819. What are you curious about? What sparks passion in you? What do you seek to change? Who do you seek to impact with your life? How can you influence others? How are you wired? These are great questions to begin with to raise your level of curiosity. Never stop asking questions and never stop being curious about what is to come.<br />
  820. 3. Do I realize that passion has more to do with my life as a whole than just the area of work?<br />
  821. Many people never find a life full of passion because they only concentrate on finding passion in their work. And while being passionate about work is important, I believe that someone can become passionate about any type of work, as long as they find their reason for doing the work. When one finds their &#8216;why&#8217; there&#8217;s not much of anything that can stand in the way of finding purpose and passion. An easy way to do this in any profession is to find the people who you most impact and to do your work for those people, because people always matter. Yes, work is something to be passionate about, but outside of the conversation of work, life as a whole warrants passion. There is so much to do and life is shorter than you think. It&#8217;s time to use anything and everything to fuel your drive, and begin finding a passion for all facets of life.<br />
  822. Now, go and find more passion, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  823. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  824. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  825. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  826. <itunes:duration>3:54</itunes:duration>
  827. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  828. <item>
  829. <title>#112: Everything Has a Cost</title>
  830. <link>https://asmithblog.com/cost/</link>
  831. <pubDate>Tue, 07 Jun 2016 06:01:30 +0000</pubDate>
  832. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22745</guid>
  833. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="335" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-768x335.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Everything Has a Cost" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-768x335.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-300x131.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-1024x447.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-150x65.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost.png 1668w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why everything has a cost. &lt;/p&gt;
  834. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/cost/"&gt;#112: Everything Has a Cost&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  835. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="335" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-768x335.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Everything Has a Cost" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-768x335.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-300x131.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-1024x447.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost-150x65.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/everything-has-a-cost.png 1668w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  836. <p>Every time you choose one thing over another, you are taking time and effort away from something else, or even someone else. Every single choice has a cost. This is just another reason that our choices are so important. No, not everything in this world can be a priority for this very reason. We have to be very intentional with the way we live our lives, because we all have limited time and resources. Sure, we can delegate tasks to others, but this doesn&#8217;t solve everything. This means that we must weigh the cost versus the payout; the risk versus the reward; and the effort versus the possible result, and then make decisions accordingly.</p>
  837. <p>In an effort to help you see all of your options, even if there seems to be no margin left in your life, here are three ways to know if the cost of your choices is adding up to something great:<strong><span id="more-22745"></span></strong></p>
  838. <h2><strong>First, how important are the actions <em>you</em> are taking?</strong></h2>
  839. <p>So many times people do things that just aren&#8217;t important, but they feel are required of them. The role of the <a href="https://hbr.org/2014/11/signs-that-youre-a-micromanager">micromanager</a> comes to mind here. One question you can ask yourself along the way to know if you are doing what is necessary is, &#8220;Am I helping or hurting the situation?&#8221; People can actually hurt the outcome just by doing the right thing at the wrong time, so timing is important as well. Not to mention that when you allow others to make attempts, you allow them to learn valuable lessons in the process. Letting others take action empowers them to do more in the future. Yes, by not doing everything, you are actually helping people, because they need practice, too. In the end, it is imperative that you know you are doing the absolute very best thing you could be doing. If you&#8217;re not doing what brings the most value, then it&#8217;s probably time to find a way to either eliminate it or delegate it.</p>
  840. <h2><strong>Second, are people being positively impacted by most, if not all of your efforts? </strong></h2>
  841. <p>We can&#8217;t look at the amount of people who are impacted by our work enough, because the reach of our influence changes things. My goodness, are people important. To change the world, we must examine the way in which we view others. People aren&#8217;t here to be used and abused, but to be cared for, and it is when we find how we each are individually wired that we can care for people in remarkable ways. Sure, there are people all around us who need us, but we must be willing. Ideas are never enough; there must be action taken to create a lasting change.</p>
  842. <h2><strong>Third, how much do you value your time?</strong></h2>
  843. <p>Your decisions show how much you value your time. If you are wasting time, not focusing on your priorities, then you aren&#8217;t viewing your time as valuable. When you realize that we all only have one life to live, and there isn&#8217;t much guaranteed in this world, but we are all guaranteed to die, this whole valuing your time thing becomes so much more important. When you waste your time, you waste your life &#8212; it&#8217;s that simple.</p>
  844. <h3><strong>Now, go and weigh the cost, today. </strong></h3>
  845. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/cost/">#112: Everything Has a Cost</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  846. ]]></content:encoded>
  847. <enclosure length="4284417" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Everything-Has-a-Cost.mp3"/>
  848. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why everything has a cost.</itunes:subtitle>
  849. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Every time you choose one thing over another, you are taking time and effort away from something else, or even someone else. Every single choice has a cost. This is just another reason that our choices are so important. No, not everything in this world can be a priority for this very reason. We have to be very intentional with the way we live our lives, because we all have limited time and resources. Sure, we can delegate tasks to others, but this doesn&#8217;t solve everything. This means that we must weigh the cost versus the payout; the risk versus the reward; and the effort versus the possible result, and then make decisions accordingly.<br />
  850. In an effort to help you see all of your options, even if there seems to be no margin left in your life, here are three ways to know if the cost of your choices is adding up to something great:<br />
  851. First, how important are the actions you are taking?<br />
  852. So many times people do things that just aren&#8217;t important, but they feel are required of them. The role of the <a href="https://hbr.org/2014/11/signs-that-youre-a-micromanager">micromanager</a> comes to mind here. One question you can ask yourself along the way to know if you are doing what is necessary is, &#8220;Am I helping or hurting the situation?&#8221; People can actually hurt the outcome just by doing the right thing at the wrong time, so timing is important as well. Not to mention that when you allow others to make attempts, you allow them to learn valuable lessons in the process. Letting others take action empowers them to do more in the future. Yes, by not doing everything, you are actually helping people, because they need practice, too. In the end, it is imperative that you know you are doing the absolute very best thing you could be doing. If you&#8217;re not doing what brings the most value, then it&#8217;s probably time to find a way to either eliminate it or delegate it.<br />
  853. Second, are people being positively impacted by most, if not all of your efforts? <br />
  854. We can&#8217;t look at the amount of people who are impacted by our work enough, because the reach of our influence changes things. My goodness, are people important. To change the world, we must examine the way in which we view others. People aren&#8217;t here to be used and abused, but to be cared for, and it is when we find how we each are individually wired that we can care for people in remarkable ways. Sure, there are people all around us who need us, but we must be willing. Ideas are never enough; there must be action taken to create a lasting change.<br />
  855. Third, how much do you value your time?<br />
  856. Your decisions show how much you value your time. If you are wasting time, not focusing on your priorities, then you aren&#8217;t viewing your time as valuable. When you realize that we all only have one life to live, and there isn&#8217;t much guaranteed in this world, but we are all guaranteed to die, this whole valuing your time thing becomes so much more important. When you waste your time, you waste your life &#8212; it&#8217;s that simple.<br />
  857. Now, go and weigh the cost, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  858. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  859. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  860. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  861. <itunes:duration>4:28</itunes:duration>
  862. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  863. <item>
  864. <title>#111: Stop Seeking Permission and Approval to Work</title>
  865. <link>https://asmithblog.com/seeking-permission-approval/</link>
  866. <pubDate>Tue, 31 May 2016 06:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
  867. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22701</guid>
  868. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="423" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-768x423.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="seeking permission" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-768x423.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-300x165.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-1024x564.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-150x83.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval.png 1768w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they need to stop seeking permission and approval. &lt;/p&gt;
  869. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/seeking-permission-approval/"&gt;#111: Stop Seeking Permission and Approval to Work&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  870. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="423" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-768x423.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="seeking permission" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-768x423.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-300x165.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-1024x564.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval-150x83.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/seeking-permission-approval.png 1768w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  871. <p>The internet has been the most impactful thing to ever happen to my business, but it may not be for the reason that you&#8217;re thinking of. Sure, it has helped me make money, and it has given me a direct communication line to people, and it has given me a large audience, but more than anything, it has given me a way around seeking permission and approval. The internet, as a means of communication, has allowed me to just go and do. It gave me an opportunity that previous generations didn&#8217;t have, and this concept has changed the entire way that I view life. <strong><span id="more-22701"></span></strong></p>
  872. <p>No, I don&#8217;t have to run my work past anyone in editing before I get to click the &#8220;publish&#8221; button. Nor do I have to hope that the gatekeeper of a publication gives me permission to be printed in their publication. Nor do I have to seek approval from the masses before I get to work. In fact, I just log in to WordPress, write an article, and then publish it. You may not agree with everything that I say, but you&#8217;re engaged with this content in this very moment, and that&#8217;s worth something. And now, you can apply this concept of seeking permission from others to many areas in your own life. Instead of waiting for permission, many times, you just need to go and do.</p>
  873. <p>Now that we&#8217;ve talked about getting permission from other people to do something, now I need to talk about seeking approval from others to go and do something new. When previous generations have thought about work, they have thought about work being the one day job that they will hold for their entire lifetime. And while doing this will help people become really good at their craft, what it doesn&#8217;t do is fully take advantage of opportunity. It&#8217;s been a long, long time since I&#8217;ve only had one job and worked a 9-to-5, but that&#8217;s because I started one business while having another. I didn&#8217;t seek approval to start a new job; I just did it.</p>
  874. <p>All of this to say, too many people seek approval from others before they will go and do something, but many times, they already have what they need to begin. This is the same idea that those who are all talk have adopted. (You know the people who I am talking about.) So, if you are currently contemplating whether you should start something new or not, here are three reasons that you should stop seeking approval and begin working immediately:<strong><br />
  875. </strong></p>
  876. <h2><strong>First, seeking the need for others to call your work &#8220;perfect&#8221; halts progress faster than anything else.</strong></h2>
  877. <blockquote><p>Many people think of perfectionism as striving to be your best, but it is not about self-improvement; it&#8217;s about earning approval and acceptance.&#8221; &#8211; Brené Brown</p></blockquote>
  878. <p>If you keep waiting for others to tell you that your idea is perfect to begin the work, you&#8217;ll be waiting forever. No, perfect doesn&#8217;t exist, but working until you find something that is interesting enough to spark the curiosity within you that is needed to keep exploring is possible. And when you do find this, it is then and only then that you will provoke the thoughts of others. Shoot for that kind of influence through your work, because that&#8217;s as close to perfect that you&#8217;ll ever get.</p>
  879. <h2><strong>Second, to be creative and innovative, you have to stop seeking approval. </strong></h2>
  880. <blockquote><p>If you are going to do something truly innovative, you have to be someone who does not value social approval. You can&#8217;t need social approval to go forward. Otherwise, how would you ever do the thing that you are doing?&#8221; &#8211; Malcolm Gladwell</p></blockquote>
  881. <p>To seek approval before you begin is to push away any possibility of innovation. Think of anyone who has come before us who had a crazy idea. Do you think that each idea they had or each piece of work was immediately accepted by the masses? It&#8217;s usually quite the opposite. Stop talking and start doing meaningful work; it&#8217;s the only way to make a difference.</p>
  882. <hr /><p><em>To seek approval before you begin is to push away any possibility of innovation.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fseeking-permission-approval%2F&#038;text=To%20seek%20approval%20before%20you%20begin%20is%20to%20push%20away%20any%20possibility%20of%20innovation.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  883. <h2><strong>Third, if you keep seeking approval, your entire self-worth will be based on the opinion of others, which never gets to the root of the issue found in what you believe about yourself. </strong></h2>
  884. <blockquote><p>Most fears of rejection rest on the desire for approval from other people. Don&#8217;t base your self-esteem on their opinions.&#8221; &#8211; Harvey Mackay</p></blockquote>
  885. <p>People who seek permission and approval are deflecting what they should already know about themselves to another person&#8217;s opinion. But, I&#8217;m not as interested in what other people think of you as what you think about yourself. I already believe in you because you have unlimited potential, and I hope you choose to do right with it, but you must first believe in yourself before you ever think of doing meaningful work. You and the belief you have in yourself will always show through the work you produce. You are enough to produce something meaningful.</p>
  886. <h3><strong>Now, stop seeking permission and approval, today. </strong></h3>
  887. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/seeking-permission-approval/">#111: Stop Seeking Permission and Approval to Work</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  888. ]]></content:encoded>
  889. <enclosure length="5425863" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/111-Stop-Seeking-Permission-and-Approval-to-Work.mp3"/>
  890. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why they need to stop seeking permission and approval.</itunes:subtitle>
  891. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[The internet has been the most impactful thing to ever happen to my business, but it may not be for the reason that you&#8217;re thinking of. Sure, it has helped me make money, and it has given me a direct communication line to people, and it has given me a large audience, but more than anything, it has given me a way around seeking permission and approval. The internet, as a means of communication, has allowed me to just go and do. It gave me an opportunity that previous generations didn&#8217;t have, and this concept has changed the entire way that I view life. <br />
  892. No, I don&#8217;t have to run my work past anyone in editing before I get to click the &#8220;publish&#8221; button. Nor do I have to hope that the gatekeeper of a publication gives me permission to be printed in their publication. Nor do I have to seek approval from the masses before I get to work. In fact, I just log in to WordPress, write an article, and then publish it. You may not agree with everything that I say, but you&#8217;re engaged with this content in this very moment, and that&#8217;s worth something. And now, you can apply this concept of seeking permission from others to many areas in your own life. Instead of waiting for permission, many times, you just need to go and do.<br />
  893. Now that we&#8217;ve talked about getting permission from other people to do something, now I need to talk about seeking approval from others to go and do something new. When previous generations have thought about work, they have thought about work being the one day job that they will hold for their entire lifetime. And while doing this will help people become really good at their craft, what it doesn&#8217;t do is fully take advantage of opportunity. It&#8217;s been a long, long time since I&#8217;ve only had one job and worked a 9-to-5, but that&#8217;s because I started one business while having another. I didn&#8217;t seek approval to start a new job; I just did it.<br />
  894. All of this to say, too many people seek approval from others before they will go and do something, but many times, they already have what they need to begin. This is the same idea that those who are all talk have adopted. (You know the people who I am talking about.) So, if you are currently contemplating whether you should start something new or not, here are three reasons that you should stop seeking approval and begin working immediately:<br />
  895. <br />
  896. First, seeking the need for others to call your work &#8220;perfect&#8221; halts progress faster than anything else.<br />
  897. Many people think of perfectionism as striving to be your best, but it is not about self-improvement; it&#8217;s about earning approval and acceptance.&#8221; &#8211; Brené Brown<br />
  898. If you keep waiting for others to tell you that your idea is perfect to begin the work, you&#8217;ll be waiting forever. No, perfect doesn&#8217;t exist, but working until you find something that is interesting enough to spark the curiosity within you that is needed to keep exploring is possible. And when you do find this, it is then and only then that you will provoke the thoughts of others. Shoot for that kind of influence through your work, because that&#8217;s as close to perfect that you&#8217;ll ever get.<br />
  899. Second, to be creative and innovative, you have to stop seeking approval. <br />
  900. If you are going to do something truly innovative, you have to be someone who does not value social approval. You can&#8217;t need social approval to go forward. Otherwise, how would you ever do the thing that you are doing?&#8221; &#8211; Malcolm Gladwell<br />
  901. To seek approval before you begin is to push away any possibility of innovation. Think of anyone who has come before us who had a crazy idea. Do you think that each idea they had or each piece of work was immediately accepted by the masses? It&#8217;s usually quite the opposite. Stop talking and start doing meaningful work; it&#8217;s the only way to make a difference.<br />
  902. Third,]]></itunes:summary>
  903. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  904. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  905. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  906. <itunes:duration>5:39</itunes:duration>
  907. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  908. <item>
  909. <title>#110: 3 Ways to Become More Productive</title>
  910. <link>https://asmithblog.com/become-more-productive/</link>
  911. <pubDate>Tue, 24 May 2016 06:01:59 +0000</pubDate>
  912. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22645</guid>
  913. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="449" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-768x449.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Become More Productive" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-768x449.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-300x175.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-1024x599.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive.png 1762w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners 3 ways that they can become more productive. &lt;/p&gt;
  914. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/become-more-productive/"&gt;#110: 3 Ways to Become More Productive&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  915. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="449" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-768x449.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="Become More Productive" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-768x449.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-300x175.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-1024x599.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/become-more-productive.png 1762w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  916. <p>We all want to do great things with our lives, but for many, there just never seems to be enough time in the day to get everything done. This is why becoming your most productive self is so important. If you can&#8217;t seem to find the productivity levels that you&#8217;re looking for, here are 3 tips for you to take back your time and increase your productivity:<strong><span id="more-22645"></span></strong></p>
  917. <h2><strong>1. Put in the work before you reward yourself. </strong></h2>
  918. <p>The reason that most people don&#8217;t accomplish more with their lives is a lack of self-discipline and focus, and this first point addresses that very issue. If you just can&#8217;t stop looking at your phone or checking email, you first need to identify what it is that you need to accomplish, and then before you ever allow yourself to do those things that you know are unproductive, make sure to check off all important tasks first. This practical advice allows you to reward yourself for finishing what you set out to do and keeps you productive more often than not.</p>
  919. <h2><strong>2. Stop reading about others who are productive, and become productive yourself. </strong></h2>
  920. <p>You need to take action to become more productive. More often than not, you know what you need to be doing, but let this be just the push you need to take productivity seriously. Reading information and listening to what people have to say are so important, but at some point, you need to heed the advice for yourself and begin making decisions. Some decisions will be wrong, but some will be correct, as well. That&#8217;s just something you have to live with as someone who is becoming more productive. When you do this, you&#8217;ll begin moving in the right direction.</p>
  921. <h2><strong>3. Stop saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to everything. </strong></h2>
  922. <p>You should prioritize the things that matter most and automate as many of those things that you can through creating a routine centered around them, but please stop saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to every opportunity that comes your way. I hate letting people down, and I know how it feels to have to say &#8220;no&#8221; to people, but this could be the biggest obstacle to productivity that there is. Author Peter Drucker even said, &#8220;Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.&#8221; There are so many times that people are giving their all to something they&#8217;re not even made to do, but when we step into what we were made for, natural productivity can take place. Sure, there will be great opportunities that come your way, but that doesn&#8217;t mean that they&#8217;re a great fit for you. Remember, you&#8217;re the only one who can do you.</p>
  923. <h3><strong>Now, go and become more productive, today. </strong></h3>
  924. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/become-more-productive/">#110: 3 Ways to Become More Productive</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  925. ]]></content:encoded>
  926. <enclosure length="3809197" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/3-Ways-to-Become-More-Productive.mp3"/>
  927. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners 3 ways that they can become more productive.</itunes:subtitle>
  928. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We all want to do great things with our lives, but for many, there just never seems to be enough time in the day to get everything done. This is why becoming your most productive self is so important. If you can&#8217;t seem to find the productivity levels that you&#8217;re looking for, here are 3 tips for you to take back your time and increase your productivity:<br />
  929. 1. Put in the work before you reward yourself. <br />
  930. The reason that most people don&#8217;t accomplish more with their lives is a lack of self-discipline and focus, and this first point addresses that very issue. If you just can&#8217;t stop looking at your phone or checking email, you first need to identify what it is that you need to accomplish, and then before you ever allow yourself to do those things that you know are unproductive, make sure to check off all important tasks first. This practical advice allows you to reward yourself for finishing what you set out to do and keeps you productive more often than not.<br />
  931. 2. Stop reading about others who are productive, and become productive yourself. <br />
  932. You need to take action to become more productive. More often than not, you know what you need to be doing, but let this be just the push you need to take productivity seriously. Reading information and listening to what people have to say are so important, but at some point, you need to heed the advice for yourself and begin making decisions. Some decisions will be wrong, but some will be correct, as well. That&#8217;s just something you have to live with as someone who is becoming more productive. When you do this, you&#8217;ll begin moving in the right direction.<br />
  933. 3. Stop saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to everything. <br />
  934. You should prioritize the things that matter most and automate as many of those things that you can through creating a routine centered around them, but please stop saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to every opportunity that comes your way. I hate letting people down, and I know how it feels to have to say &#8220;no&#8221; to people, but this could be the biggest obstacle to productivity that there is. Author Peter Drucker even said, &#8220;Nothing is less productive than to make more efficient what should not be done at all.&#8221; There are so many times that people are giving their all to something they&#8217;re not even made to do, but when we step into what we were made for, natural productivity can take place. Sure, there will be great opportunities that come your way, but that doesn&#8217;t mean that they&#8217;re a great fit for you. Remember, you&#8217;re the only one who can do you.<br />
  935. Now, go and become more productive, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  936. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  937. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  938. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  939. <itunes:duration>3:58</itunes:duration>
  940. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  941. <item>
  942. <title>#109: Why It’s Necessary to Be Proactive</title>
  943. <link>https://asmithblog.com/proactive/</link>
  944. <pubDate>Tue, 17 May 2016 06:01:19 +0000</pubDate>
  945. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22619</guid>
  946. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="397" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-768x397.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="proactive reactive" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-768x397.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-300x155.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-1024x530.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-150x78.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive.png 1488w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam talks about why it is necessary to be proactive instead of reactive. &lt;/p&gt;
  947. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/proactive/"&gt;#109: Why It’s Necessary to Be Proactive&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  948. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="397" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-768x397.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="proactive reactive" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-768x397.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-300x155.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-1024x530.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive-150x78.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/proactive-reactive.png 1488w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  949. <p>Being proactive is important because people and businesses who are proactive in the right areas usually win. We can see how this plays out by looking at the differences between <a href="http://www.inc.com/david-van-rooy/the-little-known-personality-trait-that-predicts-entrepreneurial-success.html">successful companies</a> and struggling companies. The differences between <a href="http://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-ceo/2013/november/who-wrecked-jc-penney">J.C. Penney</a> and <a href="http://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/061515/top-6-most-profitable-clothing-retailers.asp">Nordstrom</a> are apparent &#8212; one is always reacting to trends whereas one is setting them. And <a href="https://www.airbnb.com">Airbnb</a> and <a href="https://www.uber.com">Uber</a> were proactive in a different way, in that they disrupted their entire markets by seeing what others couldn&#8217;t see, and then jumped on their open opportunities. But, all three of these companies offer more than services and products; they all offer great experiences.</p>
  950. <p>From these examples alone, we can see just how powerful being proactive can be in the marketplace. But there are lessons found in these business examples that we can use for our own lives, too. Here are three reasons that being proactive is important, not only for companies, but for each and every one of us:<strong><span id="more-22619"></span></strong></p>
  951. <h2><strong>1. Being proactive means that you are planning.</strong></h2>
  952. <p>Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all saw their plans come to life, and the same can happen for each and everyone of us, but we must first see the benefit in being proactive. When you&#8217;re proactive, it means you are not only dreaming, but you are putting a plan in place to tackle your dreams. Sure, having ideas in your head is one thing, but putting those thoughts out on paper is what begins bringing life to your goals. <a href="http://www.dominican.edu/academics/ahss/undergraduate-programs/psych/faculty/assets-gail-matthews/researchsummary2.pdf">Recent studies</a> performed by Dr. Gail Matthews, a professor from Dominican University, even show that written down goals result in success much more often than goals that are not written down. This is just one thing that proactive planning can do for you.</p>
  953. <p>Planning also saves you time. When you&#8217;re in the moment, and you have to make a split-decision, many times it is much more helpful if you could have planned your response to what played out. Of course, you can&#8217;t see the future, but planning can get you pretty close. Planning allows you to sit down and see all of your possibilities. No, not every plan will work out in the way that you want it to, but at the very least it will keep you moving towards your dreams.</p>
  954. <h2><strong>2. Being proactive means that you are seeing a need and filling it. </strong></h2>
  955. <p>Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all saw needs and filled those needs to help people find things they didn&#8217;t even know they needed. In fact, being proactive is the only way to see what people need, when they need it. However, in business, you can be too early or too late to market, whereas in life, it is never too early or late to begin. There&#8217;s only the now, and that&#8217;s always the best time to begin preparing. There are so many lost opportunities due to the fact that people just aren&#8217;t aware of people&#8217;s needs &#8212; right now or possible needs in the future &#8212; but being proactive changes that. It is proactiveness that leads to creativity and innovation. This reminds me of something that John Wooden said, &#8220;When an opportunity presents itself, it&#8217;s too late to prepare.&#8221;</p>
  956. <hr /><p><em>Proactiveness leads to creativity and innovation.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fproactive%2F&#038;text=Proactiveness%20leads%20to%20creativity%20and%20innovation.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  957. <h2><strong>3. Being proactive means that you aren&#8217;t becoming complacent. </strong></h2>
  958. <p>Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all understand the importance of remaining active. They are well-versed on trends, and if they know they aren&#8217;t where they should be in an area, they tweak their systems and infrastructure. In other words, you will never catch great companies being complacent, because they understand how important that being proactive is. Proactiveness can lead to greatness when there is purpose placed behind one&#8217;s direction.</p>
  959. <hr /><p><em>Proactiveness can lead to greatness when there is purpose placed behind one&#039;s direction.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fproactive%2F&#038;text=Proactiveness%20can%20lead%20to%20greatness%20when%20there%20is%20purpose%20placed%20behind%20one%27s%20direction.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  960. <p>I would even go as far as to say that there&#8217;s nothing worse than complacency. This is because when you become complacent, nothing is happening, and you allow fear to take over. Being proactive and beating fear means that you are <em>taking action</em> in all the right areas. Yes, proactiveness means that you have to act, because you need movement to make thinking ahead worth your time.</p>
  961. <h3><strong>In the end, being proactive puts you on the offense rather than defense, and you need better offense to grow. Now, go and be proactive, today.</strong></h3>
  962. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/proactive/">#109: Why It&#8217;s Necessary to Be Proactive</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  963. ]]></content:encoded>
  964. <enclosure length="5877677" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/109-Why-Its-Necessary-to-Be-Proactive.mp3"/>
  965. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam talks about why it is necessary to be proactive instead of reactive.</itunes:subtitle>
  966. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Being proactive is important because people and businesses who are proactive in the right areas usually win. We can see how this plays out by looking at the differences between <a href="http://www.inc.com/david-van-rooy/the-little-known-personality-trait-that-predicts-entrepreneurial-success.html">successful companies</a> and struggling companies. The differences between <a href="http://www.dmagazine.com/publications/d-ceo/2013/november/who-wrecked-jc-penney">J.C. Penney</a> and <a href="http://www.investopedia.com/articles/markets/061515/top-6-most-profitable-clothing-retailers.asp">Nordstrom</a> are apparent &#8212; one is always reacting to trends whereas one is setting them. And <a href="https://www.airbnb.com">Airbnb</a> and <a href="https://www.uber.com">Uber</a> were proactive in a different way, in that they disrupted their entire markets by seeing what others couldn&#8217;t see, and then jumped on their open opportunities. But, all three of these companies offer more than services and products; they all offer great experiences.<br />
  967. From these examples alone, we can see just how powerful being proactive can be in the marketplace. But there are lessons found in these business examples that we can use for our own lives, too. Here are three reasons that being proactive is important, not only for companies, but for each and every one of us:<br />
  968. 1. Being proactive means that you are planning.<br />
  969. Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all saw their plans come to life, and the same can happen for each and everyone of us, but we must first see the benefit in being proactive. When you&#8217;re proactive, it means you are not only dreaming, but you are putting a plan in place to tackle your dreams. Sure, having ideas in your head is one thing, but putting those thoughts out on paper is what begins bringing life to your goals. <a href="http://www.dominican.edu/academics/ahss/undergraduate-programs/psych/faculty/assets-gail-matthews/researchsummary2.pdf">Recent studies</a> performed by Dr. Gail Matthews, a professor from Dominican University, even show that written down goals result in success much more often than goals that are not written down. This is just one thing that proactive planning can do for you.<br />
  970. Planning also saves you time. When you&#8217;re in the moment, and you have to make a split-decision, many times it is much more helpful if you could have planned your response to what played out. Of course, you can&#8217;t see the future, but planning can get you pretty close. Planning allows you to sit down and see all of your possibilities. No, not every plan will work out in the way that you want it to, but at the very least it will keep you moving towards your dreams.<br />
  971. 2. Being proactive means that you are seeing a need and filling it. <br />
  972. Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all saw needs and filled those needs to help people find things they didn&#8217;t even know they needed. In fact, being proactive is the only way to see what people need, when they need it. However, in business, you can be too early or too late to market, whereas in life, it is never too early or late to begin. There&#8217;s only the now, and that&#8217;s always the best time to begin preparing. There are so many lost opportunities due to the fact that people just aren&#8217;t aware of people&#8217;s needs &#8212; right now or possible needs in the future &#8212; but being proactive changes that. It is proactiveness that leads to creativity and innovation. This reminds me of something that John Wooden said, &#8220;When an opportunity presents itself, it&#8217;s too late to prepare.&#8221;<br />
  973. 3. Being proactive means that you aren&#8217;t becoming complacent. <br />
  974. Nordstrom, Airbnb, and Uber all understand the importance of remaining active. They are well-versed on trends, and if they know they aren&#8217;t where they should be in an area, they tweak their systems and infrastructure. In other words,]]></itunes:summary>
  975. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  976. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  977. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  978. <itunes:duration>6:07</itunes:duration>
  979. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  980. <item>
  981. <title>#108: Do What You Love; Love What You Do</title>
  982. <link>https://asmithblog.com/do-what-you-love/</link>
  983. <pubDate>Tue, 10 May 2016 06:01:06 +0000</pubDate>
  984. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22498</guid>
  985. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="462" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-768x462.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="do what you love" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-768x462.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-300x181.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-1024x616.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-150x90.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do.png 1758w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners to do what they love, because when you do what you love, you love what you do. &lt;/p&gt;
  986. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/do-what-you-love/"&gt;#108: Do What You Love; Love What You Do&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  987. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="462" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-768x462.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="do what you love" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-768x462.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-300x181.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-1024x616.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do-150x90.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/do-what-you-love-love-what-you-do.png 1758w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  988. <p>I feel that after giving you content every single day for the past five years and having conversations with you on social media, I have a strong enough relationship with you to give you the truth, so here it goes. I&#8217;m genuinely exhausted with talking to people who hate their job and their life. (I&#8217;m coming out with the punches at the beginning of this episode.) I feel a passion and even an anger around this subject that comes from a good place, and it&#8217;s growing larger with the more life I live. This is because I am finding that people who hate something about their life isn&#8217;t an isolated problem, but rather, a problem that keeps coming up over and over again, with nothing being done about it. That last part is the main problem I have with it. When someone gives up, disregarding any need for change, it&#8217;s frustrating to see. These lives that are plagued by regret, the fear of making decisions, the fear of change, and unrealistic expectations that can&#8217;t be reached. But of course, someone must want help to actually change their life&#8217;s trajectory. In most cases, it took choices to get people where thay are at today, and it will take other choices to get them to love what they do again.</p>
  989. <hr /><p><em>Someone must want help to actually change.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fdo-what-you-love%2F&#038;text=Someone%20must%20want%20help%20to%20actually%20change.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  990. <p>If this is you, then it&#8217;s time to get over what has happened in the past. It&#8217;s time to remove yourself from seeing each day as a pity party, and instead, begin seeing it as a daily opportunity to learn something remarkable about yourself and the world around you. Don&#8217;t think you can see anything positive in your life? Think again. There&#8217;s something in there to be thankful for &#8212; I can promise that. Maybe this all sounds harsh, and you may even be angry at what I&#8217;m saying here, but it&#8217;s the truth.</p>
  991. <p>So, are you going through a rough time, but are ready to make some changes? Great, I&#8217;m so excited about that. Even when everything is falling apart and all seems lost, there&#8217;s hope. If you&#8217;re ready to love what you do, here are three ways to get there:</p>
  992. <p><strong><span id="more-22498"></span></strong></p>
  993. <h2><strong>1. Identify what work you actually love to do.</strong></h2>
  994. <p>As the discussions transpire that I told you about earlier, I see that these individuals want to do some other work with their lives, but it&#8217;s usually hard for them to put what that work actually is into words. When this happens, their lack of clarity becomes obvious to me. Focusing on the work that we love can only become possible when we identify what that work is. It isn&#8217;t enough to only do what we love, but work has to impact people to be fulfilling work.</p>
  995. <hr /><p><em>It isn&#039;t enough to only do what you love, but work has to impact people to be fulfilling.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fdo-what-you-love%2F&#038;text=It%20isn%27t%20enough%20to%20only%20do%20what%20you%20love%2C%20but%20work%20has%20to%20impact%20people%20to%20be%20fulfilling.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  996. <p>You only get one shot at life, so you might as well be doing what you love, right? Stop just thinking about it or talking about it, but go after it. Write it out, know what it is that you want to do, and then take action.</p>
  997. <h2><strong>2. Make necessary changes to see your dreams become reality.</strong></h2>
  998. <p>Stop making excuses and make changes instead. If you&#8217;re currently unhappy with your life and the way things are going, then that means you know changes need to be made. But, what changes need to be made and how will you make them? Let&#8217;s think about this &#8212; what does your ideal life look like? Let&#8217;s move on from work, and look at everything else, because maybe it&#8217;s not a change of work that you need, but rather a change in your personal life. Once you know what your ideal life looks like, you can then work backwards from there and make each area of life look exactly how you want it to.</p>
  999. <hr /><p><em>Stop making excuses and make changes instead.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fdo-what-you-love%2F&#038;text=Stop%20making%20excuses%20and%20make%20changes%20instead.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1000. <p>Do you need to begin exercising more often? Studies show that <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3025957/work-smart/what-happens-to-our-brains-when-we-exercise-and-how-it-makes-us-happier">happiness and exercise are linked</a>. Do you need stronger relationships? Research also shows that having great close <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/robert-waldinger-says-3-things-are-the-secret-to-happiness-2015-12">relationships are linked to happiness</a>. Do you need to forgive someone? <a href="http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/the_new_science_of_forgiveness">Forgiveness and happiness are even linked</a>. Do you feel like you&#8217;re lacking on time? <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/robert-waldinger-says-3-things-are-the-secret-to-happiness-2015-12">Valuing your time is also linked to happiness</a>. Are you lacking on sleep right now? Research shows that <a href="https://projecthappiness.com/good-nights-sleep-linked-to-happiness/">sleep and happiness are linked</a>, too. Actually, most of the subjects that I focus on help make you happier, which is why we need to talk about them. You probably didn&#8217;t need research to tell you that all of these things are linked to happiness, but if you did, you now have a bunch of links to show you how each example relates to being happier. Of course, <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/daviddisalvo/2016/04/22/massive-study-finds-genetic-links-to-happiness-and-depression/#4030fb5016a4">genes play a huge role in happiness</a> as well, but again, we need to only focus on what we can change. But the good news is that we can change a lot. And the more we change things to make us happier, the more we will love what we do.</p>
  1001. <h2><strong>3. Become good at what you do.</strong></h2>
  1002. <p><a href="http://www.businessnewsdaily.com/3302-10-ways-to-do-what-you-love-for-a-living.html">Loving what you do and being good at what you do</a> go hand in hand, because when you are good at something, you are growing. When there is no growth taking place, it is hard to fall in love with what you do. Sure, at the beginning you can love something without being good at it, but after showing up time and time again without improvement, you will only encounter frustration, and you&#8217;ll most likely give up after repeatedly trying to become better. If you don&#8217;t love what you do, you should be honest with yourself to see if you are truly giving it your all to become your very best. Many times, the only thing standing between someone and success is the effort that one is willing to put in to see results. If you are giving it your all and still aren&#8217;t seeing improvement, then maybe your efforts would be best used somewhere else &#8212; in something that you may love even more.</p>
  1003. <p>I want to help you, but you have to help yourself first. I&#8217;d love to hear some feedback from you on this podcast, because hearing from you is so important. Email me, contact me on social media, go leave a comment over on the blog &#8212; however you want to contact me &#8212; I&#8217;m available. I want to know what has worked for you and what hasn&#8217;t. Let&#8217;s reach our dreams together.</p>
  1004. <p><strong>Now, go and do what you love, today. </strong></p>
  1005. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/do-what-you-love/">#108: Do What You Love; Love What You Do</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1006. ]]></content:encoded>
  1007. <enclosure length="6805129" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/108-Do-What-You-Love-Love-What-You-Do.mp3"/>
  1008. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners to do what they love, because when you do what you love, you love what you do.</itunes:subtitle>
  1009. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[I feel that after giving you content every single day for the past five years and having conversations with you on social media, I have a strong enough relationship with you to give you the truth, so here it goes. I&#8217;m genuinely exhausted with talking to people who hate their job and their life. (I&#8217;m coming out with the punches at the beginning of this episode.) I feel a passion and even an anger around this subject that comes from a good place, and it&#8217;s growing larger with the more life I live. This is because I am finding that people who hate something about their life isn&#8217;t an isolated problem, but rather, a problem that keeps coming up over and over again, with nothing being done about it. That last part is the main problem I have with it. When someone gives up, disregarding any need for change, it&#8217;s frustrating to see. These lives that are plagued by regret, the fear of making decisions, the fear of change, and unrealistic expectations that can&#8217;t be reached. But of course, someone must want help to actually change their life&#8217;s trajectory. In most cases, it took choices to get people where thay are at today, and it will take other choices to get them to love what they do again.<br />
  1010. If this is you, then it&#8217;s time to get over what has happened in the past. It&#8217;s time to remove yourself from seeing each day as a pity party, and instead, begin seeing it as a daily opportunity to learn something remarkable about yourself and the world around you. Don&#8217;t think you can see anything positive in your life? Think again. There&#8217;s something in there to be thankful for &#8212; I can promise that. Maybe this all sounds harsh, and you may even be angry at what I&#8217;m saying here, but it&#8217;s the truth.<br />
  1011. So, are you going through a rough time, but are ready to make some changes? Great, I&#8217;m so excited about that. Even when everything is falling apart and all seems lost, there&#8217;s hope. If you&#8217;re ready to love what you do, here are three ways to get there:<br />
  1012. <br />
  1013. 1. Identify what work you actually love to do.<br />
  1014. As the discussions transpire that I told you about earlier, I see that these individuals want to do some other work with their lives, but it&#8217;s usually hard for them to put what that work actually is into words. When this happens, their lack of clarity becomes obvious to me. Focusing on the work that we love can only become possible when we identify what that work is. It isn&#8217;t enough to only do what we love, but work has to impact people to be fulfilling work.<br />
  1015. You only get one shot at life, so you might as well be doing what you love, right? Stop just thinking about it or talking about it, but go after it. Write it out, know what it is that you want to do, and then take action.<br />
  1016. 2. Make necessary changes to see your dreams become reality.<br />
  1017. Stop making excuses and make changes instead. If you&#8217;re currently unhappy with your life and the way things are going, then that means you know changes need to be made. But, what changes need to be made and how will you make them? Let&#8217;s think about this &#8212; what does your ideal life look like? Let&#8217;s move on from work, and look at everything else, because maybe it&#8217;s not a change of work that you need, but rather a change in your personal life. Once you know what your ideal life looks like, you can then work backwards from there and make each area of life look exactly how you want it to.<br />
  1018. Do you need to begin exercising more often? Studies show that <a href="http://www.fastcompany.com/3025957/work-smart/what-happens-to-our-brains-when-we-exercise-and-how-it-makes-us-happier">happiness and exercise are linked</a>. Do you need stronger relationships? Research also shows that having great close <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/robert-waldinger-says-3-things-are-the-secret-to-happiness-2015-12">relationships are linked to happiness</a>....]]></itunes:summary>
  1019. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1020. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1021. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1022. <itunes:duration>7:05</itunes:duration>
  1023. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1024. <item>
  1025. <title>#107: Your Happiness Is Yours, So Hold Onto It</title>
  1026. <link>https://asmithblog.com/happiness/</link>
  1027. <pubDate>Tue, 03 May 2016 06:01:09 +0000</pubDate>
  1028. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22415</guid>
  1029. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="357" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-768x357.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="happy happiness" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-768x357.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-300x139.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-1024x476.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-150x70.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness.png 1734w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the two areas that people need to focus on to increase happiness. &lt;/p&gt;
  1030. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/happiness/"&gt;#107: Your Happiness Is Yours, So Hold Onto It&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1031. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="357" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-768x357.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="happy happiness" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-768x357.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-300x139.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-1024x476.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness-150x70.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/happy-happiness.png 1734w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1032. <p>Too often people allow exterior influences to completely control their happiness, not allowing them to bounce back, but it doesn&#8217;t have to be this way. Levels of happiness can fluctuate, but knowing what controls these levels can help you regain happiness. Know that happiness is yours to hold onto, not for others to rob from you. When you understand this, life is much more balanced than allowing emotions to always dictate your mood.</p>
  1033. <p>So, if happiness seems difficult for you to find right now, here are the two things you need to pay the most attention to:</p>
  1034. <p><strong><span id="more-22415"></span></strong></p>
  1035. <h2><strong>First, know what is in your control and outside of your control, but realize that there&#8217;s more within your control than you probably think.</strong></h2>
  1036. <p>Far too often, people keep themselves concerned with things that they cannot change. This would be the first area that I would pay attention to when looking at your happiness levels. If you&#8217;re in business, then please understand that there isn&#8217;t much you can do to change the overall current market or economy. You can do your part and influence what you can, but there&#8217;s a natural upswing and downswing to things. Patience is the key in waiting for things to come back around.</p>
  1037. <hr /><p><em>Far too often, people keep themselves concerned with things that they cannot change.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fhappiness%2F&#038;text=Far%20too%20often%2C%20people%20keep%20themselves%20concerned%20with%20things%20that%20they%20cannot%20change.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1038. <p>Also, if you allow the choices of others to alter your happiness, then again, you are allowing something in which you do not control to sway your happiness levels. Remember your choices are yours and the decisions of others are theirs. You are not responsible for the choices of others, but you are responsible for your actions and reactions to things. You control your perception. This being said, you control more than you probably think.</p>
  1039. <h2><strong>Second, live with the decisions that you&#8217;ve made or make the choice to go a different direction, but stop complaining about the choices you are choosing to live with.</strong></h2>
  1040. <p>Seriously, complaining is just wasting time. If you aren&#8217;t happy with your life, please realize that it is your choice to stay stuck, or to choose a different path for your life. You choose to have the job you are in, you choose to work the amount of hours that you do, you choose to live where you live, and the list goes on. I know this may sound harsh, but it&#8217;s the truth.</p>
  1041. <hr /><p><em>Complaining is just wasting time.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fhappiness%2F&#038;text=Complaining%20is%20just%20wasting%20time.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1042. <p>Now, I do wish I could say that I&#8217;ve always practiced these things, but the truth is I have to remind myself of these truths often. That&#8217;s me being vulnerable and that&#8217;s me showing you what I&#8217;ve learned along the way. I do admit that it&#8217;s easy to forget that my busyness is a choice, but I&#8217;d never choose to do life differently.</p>
  1043. <p><strong>When you focus on doing these things, you will live a happier life. Now, go and be happy, today.</strong></p>
  1044. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/happiness/">#107: Your Happiness Is Yours, So Hold Onto It</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1045. ]]></content:encoded>
  1046. <enclosure length="3713902" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/107-Your-Happiness-Is-Yours-So-Hold-Onto-It.mp3"/>
  1047. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the two areas that people need to focus on to increase happiness.</itunes:subtitle>
  1048. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Too often people allow exterior influences to completely control their happiness, not allowing them to bounce back, but it doesn&#8217;t have to be this way. Levels of happiness can fluctuate, but knowing what controls these levels can help you regain happiness. Know that happiness is yours to hold onto, not for others to rob from you. When you understand this, life is much more balanced than allowing emotions to always dictate your mood.<br />
  1049. So, if happiness seems difficult for you to find right now, here are the two things you need to pay the most attention to:<br />
  1050. <br />
  1051. First, know what is in your control and outside of your control, but realize that there&#8217;s more within your control than you probably think.<br />
  1052. Far too often, people keep themselves concerned with things that they cannot change. This would be the first area that I would pay attention to when looking at your happiness levels. If you&#8217;re in business, then please understand that there isn&#8217;t much you can do to change the overall current market or economy. You can do your part and influence what you can, but there&#8217;s a natural upswing and downswing to things. Patience is the key in waiting for things to come back around.<br />
  1053. Also, if you allow the choices of others to alter your happiness, then again, you are allowing something in which you do not control to sway your happiness levels. Remember your choices are yours and the decisions of others are theirs. You are not responsible for the choices of others, but you are responsible for your actions and reactions to things. You control your perception. This being said, you control more than you probably think.<br />
  1054. Second, live with the decisions that you&#8217;ve made or make the choice to go a different direction, but stop complaining about the choices you are choosing to live with.<br />
  1055. Seriously, complaining is just wasting time. If you aren&#8217;t happy with your life, please realize that it is your choice to stay stuck, or to choose a different path for your life. You choose to have the job you are in, you choose to work the amount of hours that you do, you choose to live where you live, and the list goes on. I know this may sound harsh, but it&#8217;s the truth.<br />
  1056. Now, I do wish I could say that I&#8217;ve always practiced these things, but the truth is I have to remind myself of these truths often. That&#8217;s me being vulnerable and that&#8217;s me showing you what I&#8217;ve learned along the way. I do admit that it&#8217;s easy to forget that my busyness is a choice, but I&#8217;d never choose to do life differently.<br />
  1057. When you focus on doing these things, you will live a happier life. Now, go and be happy, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1058. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1059. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1060. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1061. <itunes:duration>3:52</itunes:duration>
  1062. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1063. <item>
  1064. <title>#106: You Have to Learn How to Adjust</title>
  1065. <link>https://asmithblog.com/adjust/</link>
  1066. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Apr 2016 06:01:23 +0000</pubDate>
  1067. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22347</guid>
  1068. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="368" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-768x368.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="learn how to adjust" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-768x368.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-300x144.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-1024x491.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-150x72.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust.png 1740w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the need for all of us to learn how to properly adjust to our current and possible future circumstances. &lt;/p&gt;
  1069. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/adjust/"&gt;#106: You Have to Learn How to Adjust&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1070. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="368" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-768x368.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="learn how to adjust" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-768x368.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-300x144.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-1024x491.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust-150x72.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/learn-how-to-adjust.png 1740w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1071. <p>Adjusting to new happenings that decide to come your way is how you remain successful. If you don&#8217;t learn how to adjust along the way, the rapid pace of life and work will take over, leaving you overwhelmed and confused as to what to do next. As you already know, things don&#8217;t always go as planned, so it is adjustment that will keep you on track when this happens.</p>
  1072. <p><strong><span id="more-22347"></span></strong>Author William Frederick Book said, &#8220;Learn to adjust yourself to the conditions you have to endure, but make a point of trying to alter or correct conditions so that they are most favorable to you.&#8221; So, this means that as you are adjusting to your current circumstances, your focus needs to be on two things: your current circumstances and your future success. This means that what you are going through now doesn&#8217;t have to be your future, because you have the power to adjust and make changes as you see fit. With enough thought and effort, you can change your course of direction.</p>
  1073. <hr /><p><em>What you are going through now doesn&#039;t have to be your future, because you can adjust. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fadjust%2F&#038;text=What%20you%20are%20going%20through%20now%20doesn%27t%20have%20to%20be%20your%20future%2C%20because%20you%20can%20adjust.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1074. <p>Sure, we all go through tough spots &#8212; that&#8217;s called life. But what&#8217;s important is that we are constantly aware and constantly tweaking so that we come out stronger and wiser in the end. If you are in the midst of a trial right now, it is imperative that you also adopt patience. Listen, I know that you want instant results, but that&#8217;s not realistic. Everyone likes instant gratification, but that&#8217;s not real life. What you need in these times of adjustment is patience, because harnessing patience is the only way to get through trials without sacrificing sanity and clarity along the way.</p>
  1075. <p>In fact, I would say that the one thing people don&#8217;t discuss enough is patience. Napoleon Hill, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Think-Grow-Rich-Landmark-Bestseller/dp/1585424331/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1461551872&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=think+and+grow+rich"><em>Think and Grow Rich</em></a>, said that &#8220;patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success,&#8221; and I absolutely have to agree with him. But to develop patience means that we have to learn how to endure our less than ideal circumstances along the way. Helen Keller said that &#8220;we could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world,&#8221; and she&#8217;s correct in saying that, as well. From these two quotes, we see that we absolutely need patience for success, but it is only the journey of life that can teach us patience. Life is a classroom if we are aware and allow it to teach us lessons along the way.</p>
  1076. <hr /><p><em>Patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success. - Napoleon Hill</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fadjust%2F&#038;text=Patience%2C%20persistence%20and%20perspiration%20make%20an%20unbeatable%20combination%20for%20success.%20-%20Napoleon%20Hill&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1077. <hr /><p><em>We could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world. - Helen Keller</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fadjust%2F&#038;text=We%20could%20never%20learn%20to%20be%20brave%20and%20patient%2C%20if%20there%20were%20only%20joy%20in%20the%20world.%20-%20Helen%20Keller&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1078. <p>So, how do we find patience? We all need to fall in love right now with the idea of leaving a positive lasting impression on this world. When we do this, we will realize that there is no way we can do this in a short amount of time. It&#8217;s not possible. Leaving a lasting legacy is a culmination of daily actions over a lifetime. You have to be patient if this is your mindset, and forced patience is many times the only way to adopt this mentality. People just aren&#8217;t naturally wired to be patient, but when you train yourself to be, it can be the difference between quitting things prematurely because of being fed up with mediocre results and adjusting to the right things so you can improve your results and make a bigger impact on the world over time.</p>
  1079. <hr /><p><em>Leaving a lasting legacy is a culmination of daily actions over a lifetime.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fadjust%2F&#038;text=Leaving%20a%20lasting%20legacy%20is%20a%20culmination%20of%20daily%20actions%20over%20a%20lifetime.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1080. <p>When your reality doesn’t meet your desires, it&#8217;s time to adjust. In your work, if things aren&#8217;t going well, then it&#8217;s time to adjust. And if your health isn&#8217;t where you want it to be, then it&#8217;s time to adjust. Whatever you are going through, your answer may not be to completely quit what you are doing, but to adjust accordingly.</p>
  1081. <p><strong>Now, go and adjust to your circumstances, today. </strong></p>
  1082. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/adjust/">#106: You Have to Learn How to Adjust</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1083. ]]></content:encoded>
  1084. <enclosure length="4783878" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/You-Have-to-Learn-How-to-Adjust.mp3"/>
  1085. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the need for all of us to learn how to properly adjust to our current and possible future circumstances.</itunes:subtitle>
  1086. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Adjusting to new happenings that decide to come your way is how you remain successful. If you don&#8217;t learn how to adjust along the way, the rapid pace of life and work will take over, leaving you overwhelmed and confused as to what to do next. As you already know, things don&#8217;t always go as planned, so it is adjustment that will keep you on track when this happens.<br />
  1087. Author William Frederick Book said, &#8220;Learn to adjust yourself to the conditions you have to endure, but make a point of trying to alter or correct conditions so that they are most favorable to you.&#8221; So, this means that as you are adjusting to your current circumstances, your focus needs to be on two things: your current circumstances and your future success. This means that what you are going through now doesn&#8217;t have to be your future, because you have the power to adjust and make changes as you see fit. With enough thought and effort, you can change your course of direction.<br />
  1088. Sure, we all go through tough spots &#8212; that&#8217;s called life. But what&#8217;s important is that we are constantly aware and constantly tweaking so that we come out stronger and wiser in the end. If you are in the midst of a trial right now, it is imperative that you also adopt patience. Listen, I know that you want instant results, but that&#8217;s not realistic. Everyone likes instant gratification, but that&#8217;s not real life. What you need in these times of adjustment is patience, because harnessing patience is the only way to get through trials without sacrificing sanity and clarity along the way.<br />
  1089. In fact, I would say that the one thing people don&#8217;t discuss enough is patience. Napoleon Hill, author of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Think-Grow-Rich-Landmark-Bestseller/dp/1585424331/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&amp;ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1461551872&amp;sr=1-1&amp;keywords=think+and+grow+rich">Think and Grow Rich</a>, said that &#8220;patience, persistence and perspiration make an unbeatable combination for success,&#8221; and I absolutely have to agree with him. But to develop patience means that we have to learn how to endure our less than ideal circumstances along the way. Helen Keller said that &#8220;we could never learn to be brave and patient, if there were only joy in the world,&#8221; and she&#8217;s correct in saying that, as well. From these two quotes, we see that we absolutely need patience for success, but it is only the journey of life that can teach us patience. Life is a classroom if we are aware and allow it to teach us lessons along the way.<br />
  1090. So, how do we find patience? We all need to fall in love right now with the idea of leaving a positive lasting impression on this world. When we do this, we will realize that there is no way we can do this in a short amount of time. It&#8217;s not possible. Leaving a lasting legacy is a culmination of daily actions over a lifetime. You have to be patient if this is your mindset, and forced patience is many times the only way to adopt this mentality. People just aren&#8217;t naturally wired to be patient, but when you train yourself to be, it can be the difference between quitting things prematurely because of being fed up with mediocre results and adjusting to the right things so you can improve your results and make a bigger impact on the world over time.<br />
  1091. When your reality doesn’t meet your desires, it&#8217;s time to adjust. In your work, if things aren&#8217;t going well, then it&#8217;s time to adjust. And if your health isn&#8217;t where you want it to be, then it&#8217;s time to adjust. Whatever you are going through, your answer may not be to completely quit what you are doing, but to adjust accordingly.<br />
  1092. Now, go and adjust to your circumstances, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1093. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1094. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1095. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1096. <itunes:duration>4:59</itunes:duration>
  1097. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1098. <item>
  1099. <title>#105: The 3 Types of Questions You Need to Be Asking</title>
  1100. <link>https://asmithblog.com/need-to-be-asking/</link>
  1101. <pubDate>Tue, 19 Apr 2016 06:01:47 +0000</pubDate>
  1102. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22279</guid>
  1103. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="433" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-768x433.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="asking right questions answers" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-768x433.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-300x169.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-1024x577.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-150x85.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers.png 1700w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners the three types of questions they need to be asking to find the right answers. &lt;/p&gt;
  1104. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/need-to-be-asking/"&gt;#105: The 3 Types of Questions You Need to Be Asking&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1105. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="433" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-768x433.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="asking right questions answers" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-768x433.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-300x169.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-1024x577.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers-150x85.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/ask-better-questions-right-answers.png 1700w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1106. <p>The best leaders don&#8217;t have all the perfect answers, and they realize it. But to find the best answers, they know they must ask all the right questions. That&#8217;s the difference between a good leader and a great one. Novelist, Thomas Berger said, &#8220;The art and science of asking questions is the source of all knowledge.&#8221; Writer, Arthur C. Clarke said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t pretend we have all the answers. But the questions are certainly worth thinking about.&#8221; And writer and philosopher, Voltaire, even said, “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”</p>
  1107. <hr /><p><em>Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers. - Voltaire</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fneed-to-be-asking%2F&#038;text=Judge%20a%20man%20by%20his%20questions%20rather%20than%20by%20his%20answers.%20-%20Voltaire&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1108. <p>Great leaders see questions as the best way to open doors of opportunity with their teams, and the best means to start new conversations. And it is only through relatability, conversation, and real-world application that the best answers are revealed. Great leaders understand that using practicality and logic are important, but they also understand that people are more important.</p>
  1109. <p>So, if you&#8217;re looking to find better answers, here are the three types of questions you should be asking:</p>
  1110. <p><strong><span id="more-22279"></span></strong></p>
  1111. <h2><strong>1. Ask questions that encourage people.</strong></h2>
  1112. <p>Putting other people down is never a good idea, and this includes when you are attempting to have others confidently produce great answers. A great question that always encourages people in the right area is, &#8220;Will what you are working on right now bring you benefit tomorrow?&#8221; If the answer is &#8220;yes,&#8221; then that person will be encouraged to keep pressing forward. But if the answer is &#8220;no,&#8221; then that person will know that they need to change their area of focus until they can answer, &#8220;yes.&#8221; Encourage people to keep pursuing the right efforts, and find better answers.</p>
  1113. <h2><strong>2. Ask questions that challenge people to become better. </strong></h2>
  1114. <p>Use challenging questions to make people think. Using this as a filter eliminates &#8220;yes&#8221; or &#8220;no&#8221; questions and shows the importance of open-ended questions. This also means that questions should cause people to evaluate and research each given scenario.</p>
  1115. <p>I absolutely love the two questions, &#8220;Are you avoiding anything?&#8221; and &#8220;Are you missing anything?&#8221; Many times people, including myself, will avoid necessary steps to finding the best possible answer. This is because we don&#8217;t either want to take the time, or the effort, or the energy, so we choose the first available shortcut instead. The problem with this is that shortcuts always produce the worst answers. Face your fears, and take more time to produce better answers.</p>
  1116. <h2><strong>3. Ask questions that provide clarity.</strong></h2>
  1117. <p>When people aren&#8217;t clear with what they&#8217;re saying, confusion for everyone involved is closeby. One of my favorite questions to provide more clarity with is, &#8220;What do you mean by that?&#8221; Questions like this one can only help others communicate exactly what they are trying to say. I have rarely found over-communication to be a bad thing. Pushing for clarity helps everyone to get on the same page, and doing so can only make everyone produce better answers.</p>
  1118. <hr /><p><em>Asking better questions is the only solution to providing better answers. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fneed-to-be-asking%2F&#038;text=Asking%20better%20questions%20is%20the%20only%20solution%20to%20providing%20better%20answers.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1119. <p><strong>Yes, asking great questions is a skill that needs to be developed, but as with anything useful, it takes time. This is a practice that is a must to become better, and a great place to start is with asking these three types of questions. Now, go and ask better questions, today. </strong></p>
  1120. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/need-to-be-asking/">#105: The 3 Types of Questions You Need to Be Asking</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1121. ]]></content:encoded>
  1122. <enclosure length="4284417" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/The-3-Types-of-Questions-You-Need-to-Be-Asking.mp3"/>
  1123. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners the three types of questions they need to be asking to find the right answers.</itunes:subtitle>
  1124. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[The best leaders don&#8217;t have all the perfect answers, and they realize it. But to find the best answers, they know they must ask all the right questions. That&#8217;s the difference between a good leader and a great one. Novelist, Thomas Berger said, &#8220;The art and science of asking questions is the source of all knowledge.&#8221; Writer, Arthur C. Clarke said, &#8220;I don&#8217;t pretend we have all the answers. But the questions are certainly worth thinking about.&#8221; And writer and philosopher, Voltaire, even said, “Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers.”<br />
  1125. Great leaders see questions as the best way to open doors of opportunity with their teams, and the best means to start new conversations. And it is only through relatability, conversation, and real-world application that the best answers are revealed. Great leaders understand that using practicality and logic are important, but they also understand that people are more important.<br />
  1126. So, if you&#8217;re looking to find better answers, here are the three types of questions you should be asking:<br />
  1127. <br />
  1128. 1. Ask questions that encourage people.<br />
  1129. Putting other people down is never a good idea, and this includes when you are attempting to have others confidently produce great answers. A great question that always encourages people in the right area is, &#8220;Will what you are working on right now bring you benefit tomorrow?&#8221; If the answer is &#8220;yes,&#8221; then that person will be encouraged to keep pressing forward. But if the answer is &#8220;no,&#8221; then that person will know that they need to change their area of focus until they can answer, &#8220;yes.&#8221; Encourage people to keep pursuing the right efforts, and find better answers.<br />
  1130. 2. Ask questions that challenge people to become better. <br />
  1131. Use challenging questions to make people think. Using this as a filter eliminates &#8220;yes&#8221; or &#8220;no&#8221; questions and shows the importance of open-ended questions. This also means that questions should cause people to evaluate and research each given scenario.<br />
  1132. I absolutely love the two questions, &#8220;Are you avoiding anything?&#8221; and &#8220;Are you missing anything?&#8221; Many times people, including myself, will avoid necessary steps to finding the best possible answer. This is because we don&#8217;t either want to take the time, or the effort, or the energy, so we choose the first available shortcut instead. The problem with this is that shortcuts always produce the worst answers. Face your fears, and take more time to produce better answers.<br />
  1133. 3. Ask questions that provide clarity.<br />
  1134. When people aren&#8217;t clear with what they&#8217;re saying, confusion for everyone involved is closeby. One of my favorite questions to provide more clarity with is, &#8220;What do you mean by that?&#8221; Questions like this one can only help others communicate exactly what they are trying to say. I have rarely found over-communication to be a bad thing. Pushing for clarity helps everyone to get on the same page, and doing so can only make everyone produce better answers.<br />
  1135. Yes, asking great questions is a skill that needs to be developed, but as with anything useful, it takes time. This is a practice that is a must to become better, and a great place to start is with asking these three types of questions. Now, go and ask better questions, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1136. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1137. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1138. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1139. <itunes:duration>4:28</itunes:duration>
  1140. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1141. <item>
  1142. <title>#104: How to Build the Best Life Plan</title>
  1143. <link>https://asmithblog.com/best-life-plan/</link>
  1144. <pubDate>Tue, 12 Apr 2016 06:01:22 +0000</pubDate>
  1145. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22165</guid>
  1146. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="474" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-768x474.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="life plan" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-768x474.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-300x185.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-1024x632.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-150x93.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan.png 1708w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can become super focused and build the best life plan. &lt;/p&gt;
  1147. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/best-life-plan/"&gt;#104: How to Build the Best Life Plan&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1148. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="474" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-768x474.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="life plan" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-768x474.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-300x185.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-1024x632.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan-150x93.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/life-plan.png 1708w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1149. <p>There are a lot of things that I don&#8217;t know that maybe I should, but there&#8217;s a reason for it. People tell me that they know how to do something, like rebuild a car, but I&#8217;m terrible at working on cars. People talk about the television shows that they enjoy, but I have never seen them. People talk about activities that they&#8217;ve done a million times, but I have never tried them, and I&#8217;m okay with that. I&#8217;ve also turned down great opportunities, because they didn&#8217;t quite fit into what I wanted to accomplish in life. Why? Because I stuck to the life plan I created for myself.</p>
  1150. <p>Sure, not everything has gone as planned, but the plan at the very least let me know what I wanted to accomplish in life, and if things didn&#8217;t fit into that plan, then I knew that it was okay to pass on those things. But more than not doing something that sounded good or fun, the main reason that I stuck to the plan is because of how valuable time is. As Tony Robbins said, “You’re already a financial trader. You might not think of it in just this way, but if you work for a living, you’re trading your time for money. Frankly, it’s just about the worst trade you can make. Why? You can always get more money, but you can’t get more time.”</p>
  1151. <hr /><p><em>You can always get more money, but you can’t get more time. - Tony Robbins</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbest-life-plan%2F&#038;text=You%20can%20always%20get%20more%20money%2C%20but%20you%20can%E2%80%99t%20get%20more%20time.%20-%20Tony%20Robbins&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1152. <p>The problem is that so many people just don&#8217;t get this concept. Wasted time is wasted opportunity. Everything we do costs us precious time. This being said, with every action we must ask ourselves, &#8220;Is this worth spending time on?&#8221; In other words, will what you are doing right now, later today, next week, next month, later this year, get you to your goals? If so, then great! You&#8217;re headed in the right direction. But if not, what can you eliminate or delegate to free up time? That&#8217;s where having a detailed life plan comes in handy.</p>
  1153. <p>So, if you need more time, enough is enough; it&#8217;s time to create a life plan. Here are three action steps to planning out your very best life, starting right now:</p>
  1154. <p><strong><span id="more-22165"></span></strong></p>
  1155. <h2><strong>First, focus on what you want to accomplish in life, and learn your craft. </strong></h2>
  1156. <p>When I look at all of the intricacies of running businesses, there really isn&#8217;t much time left for anything else. This being said, I have always known that I wanted to own businesses, so that has always been my focus. Many times I miss out on &#8220;fun&#8221;, because I gladly choose to work. This is because work is fun. This has allowed me to not only become better at what I do through the practice of work, but it has also allowed me to study other businesses and my own business field. Having fun is great, and I highly recommend it, but more than anything else, work is what brings success. When you know what you want to do in life, you can prepare ahead of time and learn your craft along the way through hard work.</p>
  1157. <h2><strong>Second, know the relationships you need to build on the way to getting there. </strong></h2>
  1158. <p>The relationships that I have built have been most important to my success. When I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur, I picked the brains of other entrepreneurs who had already been where I wanted to go. I took notes, I learned from them, and used their wisdom to make my journey easier. As you write out your life plan, be very detailed in not only the where, when and how, but the who, as well.</p>
  1159. <h2><strong>Third, know the other resources that you will need to succeed. </strong></h2>
  1160. <p>A building, an infrastructure, funding, employees, an office &#8212; what do you need? It&#8217;s important to really dial in on the &#8216;how&#8217; of doing what you do, so you can plan accordingly. You need the dream, but you need the action steps to get there even more. That&#8217;s why the &#8216;how&#8217; is so important. When you have the plan, you can then know where you want to go in life, and the necessary action to get there becomes much easier to navigate.</p>
  1161. <p>So, now that you have the core ideas behind constructing your life plan, think about the following sentence: In _(when)_ years, I want to be a _(what)_, living and working in _(where)_, and working alongside _(who)_. After you complete this sentence, give yourself actionable steps and a deadline to answer the &#8216;how&#8217; part of the life plan equation.</p>
  1162. <hr /><p><em>who + what + when + where + how = life plan</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbest-life-plan%2F&#038;text=who%20%2B%20what%20%2B%20when%20%2B%20where%20%2B%20how%20%3D%20life%20plan&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1163. <p>Now that you have built your own life plan, don&#8217;t forget to <a href="http://asmithblog.com/high-performing-team/">take others through the process</a>.</p>
  1164. <p><strong>Now, go and build your best life plan, today. </strong></p>
  1165. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/best-life-plan/">#104: How to Build the Best Life Plan</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1166. ]]></content:encoded>
  1167. <enclosure length="7494343" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/How-to-Build-the-Best-Life-Plan.mp3"/>
  1168. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can become super focused and build the best life plan.</itunes:subtitle>
  1169. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[There are a lot of things that I don&#8217;t know that maybe I should, but there&#8217;s a reason for it. People tell me that they know how to do something, like rebuild a car, but I&#8217;m terrible at working on cars. People talk about the television shows that they enjoy, but I have never seen them. People talk about activities that they&#8217;ve done a million times, but I have never tried them, and I&#8217;m okay with that. I&#8217;ve also turned down great opportunities, because they didn&#8217;t quite fit into what I wanted to accomplish in life. Why? Because I stuck to the life plan I created for myself.<br />
  1170. Sure, not everything has gone as planned, but the plan at the very least let me know what I wanted to accomplish in life, and if things didn&#8217;t fit into that plan, then I knew that it was okay to pass on those things. But more than not doing something that sounded good or fun, the main reason that I stuck to the plan is because of how valuable time is. As Tony Robbins said, “You’re already a financial trader. You might not think of it in just this way, but if you work for a living, you’re trading your time for money. Frankly, it’s just about the worst trade you can make. Why? You can always get more money, but you can’t get more time.”<br />
  1171. The problem is that so many people just don&#8217;t get this concept. Wasted time is wasted opportunity. Everything we do costs us precious time. This being said, with every action we must ask ourselves, &#8220;Is this worth spending time on?&#8221; In other words, will what you are doing right now, later today, next week, next month, later this year, get you to your goals? If so, then great! You&#8217;re headed in the right direction. But if not, what can you eliminate or delegate to free up time? That&#8217;s where having a detailed life plan comes in handy.<br />
  1172. So, if you need more time, enough is enough; it&#8217;s time to create a life plan. Here are three action steps to planning out your very best life, starting right now:<br />
  1173. <br />
  1174. First, focus on what you want to accomplish in life, and learn your craft. <br />
  1175. When I look at all of the intricacies of running businesses, there really isn&#8217;t much time left for anything else. This being said, I have always known that I wanted to own businesses, so that has always been my focus. Many times I miss out on &#8220;fun&#8221;, because I gladly choose to work. This is because work is fun. This has allowed me to not only become better at what I do through the practice of work, but it has also allowed me to study other businesses and my own business field. Having fun is great, and I highly recommend it, but more than anything else, work is what brings success. When you know what you want to do in life, you can prepare ahead of time and learn your craft along the way through hard work.<br />
  1176. Second, know the relationships you need to build on the way to getting there. <br />
  1177. The relationships that I have built have been most important to my success. When I knew that I wanted to be an entrepreneur, I picked the brains of other entrepreneurs who had already been where I wanted to go. I took notes, I learned from them, and used their wisdom to make my journey easier. As you write out your life plan, be very detailed in not only the where, when and how, but the who, as well.<br />
  1178. Third, know the other resources that you will need to succeed. <br />
  1179. A building, an infrastructure, funding, employees, an office &#8212; what do you need? It&#8217;s important to really dial in on the &#8216;how&#8217; of doing what you do, so you can plan accordingly. You need the dream, but you need the action steps to get there even more. That&#8217;s why the &#8216;how&#8217; is so important. When you have the plan, you can then know where you want to go in life, and the necessary action to get there becomes much easier to navigate.<br />
  1180. So, now that you have the core ideas behind constructing your life plan,]]></itunes:summary>
  1181. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1182. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1183. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1184. <itunes:duration>7:48</itunes:duration>
  1185. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1186. <item>
  1187. <title>#103: Quickly Make Better Decisions</title>
  1188. <link>https://asmithblog.com/better-decisions/</link>
  1189. <pubDate>Tue, 05 Apr 2016 06:01:28 +0000</pubDate>
  1190. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22078</guid>
  1191. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="410" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-768x410.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make better decisions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-768x410.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-300x160.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-1024x547.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-150x80.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions.png 1718w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can quickly make better decisions. &lt;/p&gt;
  1192. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-decisions/"&gt;#103: Quickly Make Better Decisions&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1193. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="410" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-768x410.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make better decisions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-768x410.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-300x160.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-1024x547.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions-150x80.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/make-better-decisions.png 1718w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1194. <p>I often talk about the importance of making better decisions, and the impact that decisions have on your life, but I don&#8217;t often communicate the importance of quickly making better decisions. Ths isn&#8217;t meant to rush you along in your decision making, but it is to help you realize that there will be times that quickly making decisions is required of you as a leader. There will be many situations where a quick answer is not only beneficial to you and a specific situation, but is necessary due to the rapid pace in which this world moves.</p>
  1195. <p>This being said, here are three reasons why you must become better at quickly making better decisions:</p>
  1196. <p><strong><span id="more-22078"></span></strong></p>
  1197. <h2><strong>The quicker you become at making better decisions, the longer you are able to reap the benefits. </strong><strong><br />
  1198. </strong></h2>
  1199. <p>I&#8217;ve always tried to make decisions with this piece of knowledge in mind. Some decisions have been bad and some have been good, but I&#8217;ve learned from each decision along the way. I don&#8217;t know about you, but for me, life has been one giant classroom, teaching me many things along the way from the decisions I have made.</p>
  1200. <p>But, there is one lesson that I&#8217;ve learned from my decisions, and it is that we should all look at decision-making in the same way that we look at financial investments. The benefits that we receive in the long-run from making better decisions sooner is tremendous. You can benefit greatly from starting the right business sooner rather than later. You can work in the business longer, you can reap the financial benefits for a longer period of time, you can better your entrepreneurial skills for a longer period of time, and the benefits go on and on. You really can apply this concept to making any better decision in life.</p>
  1201. <p>Again, this isn&#8217;t to push you to start before you are ready, but it is to get you thinking about the effects that your decisions have. When you look at life in this way, your excuse of being too young or not ready enough to take on more can&#8217;t exist, because maximizing your return on investment in life requires that you begin as soon as possible.</p>
  1202. <hr /><p><em>Maximizing your ROI in life requires that you begin as soon as possible.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbetter-decisions%2F&#038;text=Maximizing%20your%20ROI%20in%20life%20requires%20that%20you%20begin%20as%20soon%20as%20possible.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1203. <h2><strong>The quicker you become at making better decisions, the more you will be able to do.</strong></h2>
  1204. <p>Dave Girouard, the CEO of personal finance startup <a href="https://www.upstart.com/" target="_blank">Upstart,</a> believes that speed is the ultimate weapon in business, and he definitely has a point. I have noticed that the faster I become at making decisions, the more decisions that I am faced with in my day. Once I make a decision, I can then move on to the next one, opening up endless possibilities. Yes, I&#8217;m bad at multitasking, but there&#8217;s more to it than that. I have a process for making decisions, and it is only when I make one that I can move onto the next one. It helps me to at least commit to a plan, whether good or bad, and it also helps me move my full attention to the next thing. When I leave things open for too long, I tend to create unnecessary self-doubt, and can put off important decisions because of this.</p>
  1205. <p>As <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_S._Patton" target="_blank">General George Patton</a> said, &#8220;A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan next week.&#8221; Now, I&#8217;m not subscribing to the mentality that we should just do whatever comes to mind first without giving our decisions much thought, because we have brains for a reason. But, I am saying that a plan tends to become better with movement and experimentation. Sometimes, the best decision making happens once we are already in the fight, trying things out along the way; a trial and error if you will.</p>
  1206. <h2><strong>The quicker you become at making better decisions, the better you will become at acting and reacting.</strong></h2>
  1207. <p>Whether you realize it or not, decision-making is a muscle that needs to be worked on and strengthened. No, making a bad decision or two along the way probably won&#8217;t kill you, but they will let you learn from them along the way. Making decisions will also teach you how to handle the same situation in a better way in the future, again making you quicker at the process. It&#8217;s time to stop fearing the inevitable mistakes that making decisions brings, and start embracing moving ahead.</p>
  1208. <p>So, what is the best way to become better at decision making? Beyond knowing who you are and what you stand for, you must teach yourself to think long-term rather than short-term. If you are striving to leave a lasting impact on this world, this is the only way to ensure that it happens. Instant gratification is typically the worst possible answer, even if everyone tells you that it&#8217;s the best answer. Your decisions have a lasting impact, so it&#8217;s time to start making decisions like they really matter.</p>
  1209. <hr /><p><em>You will become better at making decisions once you begin thinking long-term rather than short-term.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbetter-decisions%2F&#038;text=You%20will%20become%20better%20at%20making%20decisions%20once%20you%20begin%20thinking%20long-term%20rather%20than%20short-term.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1210. <h3><strong>Now, go and make better decisions, today. </strong></h3>
  1211. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-decisions/">#103: Quickly Make Better Decisions</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1212. ]]></content:encoded>
  1213. <enclosure length="5639858" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/Quickly-Make-Better-Decisions.mp3"/>
  1214. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can quickly make better decisions.</itunes:subtitle>
  1215. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[I often talk about the importance of making better decisions, and the impact that decisions have on your life, but I don&#8217;t often communicate the importance of quickly making better decisions. Ths isn&#8217;t meant to rush you along in your decision making, but it is to help you realize that there will be times that quickly making decisions is required of you as a leader. There will be many situations where a quick answer is not only beneficial to you and a specific situation, but is necessary due to the rapid pace in which this world moves.<br />
  1216. This being said, here are three reasons why you must become better at quickly making better decisions:<br />
  1217. <br />
  1218. The quicker you become at making better decisions, the longer you are able to reap the benefits. <br />
  1219. <br />
  1220. I&#8217;ve always tried to make decisions with this piece of knowledge in mind. Some decisions have been bad and some have been good, but I&#8217;ve learned from each decision along the way. I don&#8217;t know about you, but for me, life has been one giant classroom, teaching me many things along the way from the decisions I have made.<br />
  1221. But, there is one lesson that I&#8217;ve learned from my decisions, and it is that we should all look at decision-making in the same way that we look at financial investments. The benefits that we receive in the long-run from making better decisions sooner is tremendous. You can benefit greatly from starting the right business sooner rather than later. You can work in the business longer, you can reap the financial benefits for a longer period of time, you can better your entrepreneurial skills for a longer period of time, and the benefits go on and on. You really can apply this concept to making any better decision in life.<br />
  1222. Again, this isn&#8217;t to push you to start before you are ready, but it is to get you thinking about the effects that your decisions have. When you look at life in this way, your excuse of being too young or not ready enough to take on more can&#8217;t exist, because maximizing your return on investment in life requires that you begin as soon as possible.<br />
  1223. The quicker you become at making better decisions, the more you will be able to do.<br />
  1224. Dave Girouard, the CEO of personal finance startup <a href="https://www.upstart.com/" target="_blank">Upstart,</a> believes that speed is the ultimate weapon in business, and he definitely has a point. I have noticed that the faster I become at making decisions, the more decisions that I am faced with in my day. Once I make a decision, I can then move on to the next one, opening up endless possibilities. Yes, I&#8217;m bad at multitasking, but there&#8217;s more to it than that. I have a process for making decisions, and it is only when I make one that I can move onto the next one. It helps me to at least commit to a plan, whether good or bad, and it also helps me move my full attention to the next thing. When I leave things open for too long, I tend to create unnecessary self-doubt, and can put off important decisions because of this.<br />
  1225. As <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_S._Patton" target="_blank">General George Patton</a> said, &#8220;A good plan violently executed now is better than a perfect plan next week.&#8221; Now, I&#8217;m not subscribing to the mentality that we should just do whatever comes to mind first without giving our decisions much thought, because we have brains for a reason. But, I am saying that a plan tends to become better with movement and experimentation. Sometimes, the best decision making happens once we are already in the fight, trying things out along the way; a trial and error if you will.<br />
  1226. The quicker you become at making better decisions, the better you will become at acting and reacting.<br />
  1227. Whether you realize it or not, decision-making is a muscle that needs to be worked on and strengthened. No, making a bad decision or two along the way probably won&#8217;t kill you,]]></itunes:summary>
  1228. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1229. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1230. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1231. <itunes:duration>5:52</itunes:duration>
  1232. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1233. <item>
  1234. <title>#102: Should You Care About What Other People Think?</title>
  1235. <link>https://asmithblog.com/what-other-people-think/</link>
  1236. <pubDate>Tue, 29 Mar 2016 06:01:57 +0000</pubDate>
  1237. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=22022</guid>
  1238. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="450" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-768x450.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="what other people think" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-768x450.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-300x176.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-1024x600.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think.png 1738w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why the blanket statement of "you shouldn't care what other people think" isn't always true. &lt;/p&gt;
  1239. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/what-other-people-think/"&gt;#102: Should You Care About What Other People Think?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1240. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="450" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-768x450.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="what other people think" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-768x450.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-300x176.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-1024x600.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think-150x88.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/what-people-think.png 1738w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1241. <p>&#8220;Should I care about what other people think?&#8221; is the question that will haunt you if you allow it to. It&#8217;s actually the reason that so many people don&#8217;t do what they know they ought to do. Do the questions, &#8220;Will people think that I&#8217;m not qualified to do this?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think that what I am doing is weird?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think that I am doing this to just show off?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think I am too young or old to do this?&#8221;, sound familiar to you? If so, you can fight the fear of what other people think with a better understanding of who you should listen to.</p>
  1242. <p>So, here are the three best ways to view what other people think about you, so you can make a bigger impact with your life:</p>
  1243. <p><strong><span id="more-22022"></span></strong></p>
  1244. <h2><strong>First, know who you are and know why you were put on this earth.</strong></h2>
  1245. <p>You are unique and have something valuable to offer to the world. When I truly understood this, enough was enough. It was time to care more about my purpose than what people thought of me. I found that it is only when this mental shift happens that true success can happen. Until you find this for yourself, you&#8217;re just a puppet being controlled by everyone else but yourself. When you understand that you are living and breathing for a reason, you can then use your fears as fuel to do something great with your life.</p>
  1246. <hr /><p><em>You should care more about your purpose than what people think of you.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fwhat-other-people-think%2F&#038;text=You%20should%20care%20more%20about%20your%20purpose%20than%20what%20people%20think%20of%20you.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1247. <p><em>So, how do you find what you were created to do?</em></p>
  1248. <p>Know what you are good at, know what you are passionate about, and know what people need from you. If it&#8217;s a business you are creating, that last point will sound a bit different. You not only need to know what people need from you, but you also need to be able to charge people for your product or service. We all have to make a living somehow, right? You were created for something amazing, but you must find where all of these points connect. And when you do, you will make a huge difference in this world.</p>
  1249. <h2><strong>Second, know who you should have speak into your life.</strong></h2>
  1250. <p>Don&#8217;t think for one minute that you should be doing life solo. We were never meant to do life alone. Of course, ultimately the decision as to what to do in the end is up to you, but you should care what the people in your inner circle think. The advice of mentors who you have brought into your life to help you navigate your life&#8217;s trajectory matters.</p>
  1251. <p>Another way to know if you should listen to someone is to ask the question, &#8220;Is this person trying to help me become better or hurt me?&#8221; This is the filter I use when I toss a negative email or keep it. This is also the filter I use as I contemplate concerning myself with someone&#8217;s opinion or not. And you know what? It gets rid of about 90% of negativity in my life. Beautiful, right? Knowing someone’s true intent will let you know if you should listen to them or not.</p>
  1252. <hr /><p><em>Knowing someone’s true intent will let you know if you should listen to them or not.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fwhat-other-people-think%2F&#038;text=Knowing%20someone%E2%80%99s%20true%20intent%20will%20let%20you%20know%20if%20you%20should%20listen%20to%20them%20or%20not.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1253. <p>I hate to break it to you, but there will be people who don&#8217;t like you along the way. There will be people who will tell you everything you&#8217;re doing wrong before they point out one thing that you&#8217;re doing right. But the people who only focus on what you are doing wrong don&#8217;t want you to succeed in the first place. You will know who wants you to succeed by the way they see the good in you before they ever see your flaws.</p>
  1254. <h2><strong>And third, understand that finding what other people think is an important factor in finding success for your business. </strong></h2>
  1255. <p>If you&#8217;re trying to grow your business, you better listen to what your customers and potential customers have to say. They are the heartbeat of what you do, and their feedback matters. Their input can actually make you better at what you do. If there is a majority of people who are unhappy with what you&#8217;re doing, it&#8217;s important to evaluate and reevaluate your work.</p>
  1256. <p>Can you become better? How can you become better? Those are two questions you can ask your client base and really listen to what they have to say, because your business success depends on it.</p>
  1257. <p>In the end, I would say that you should care what some people think, but it&#8217;s a balance. This being said, I believe that the blanket statement of &#8220;you shouldn&#8217;t care about what other people think&#8221; is only somewhat true. If you&#8217;re constantly wondering what people think of you, your own fear will be a detriment to your success. But, when you&#8217;re constantly seeking advice from those who have been where you are at before, you will find that you can actually benefit to find out what those people think about what you&#8217;re doing. In fact, their advice will most likely make you better.</p>
  1258. <h3><strong>Now, go and live life with purpose</strong>,<strong> today. </strong></h3>
  1259. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/what-other-people-think/">#102: Should You Care About What Other People Think?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1260. ]]></content:encoded>
  1261. <enclosure length="6091672" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Should-You-Care-About-What-Other-People-Think.mp3"/>
  1262. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why the blanket statement of "you shouldn't care what other people think" isn't always true.</itunes:subtitle>
  1263. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&#8220;Should I care about what other people think?&#8221; is the question that will haunt you if you allow it to. It&#8217;s actually the reason that so many people don&#8217;t do what they know they ought to do. Do the questions, &#8220;Will people think that I&#8217;m not qualified to do this?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think that what I am doing is weird?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think that I am doing this to just show off?&#8221;, or &#8220;Will people think I am too young or old to do this?&#8221;, sound familiar to you? If so, you can fight the fear of what other people think with a better understanding of who you should listen to.<br />
  1264. So, here are the three best ways to view what other people think about you, so you can make a bigger impact with your life:<br />
  1265. <br />
  1266. First, know who you are and know why you were put on this earth.<br />
  1267. You are unique and have something valuable to offer to the world. When I truly understood this, enough was enough. It was time to care more about my purpose than what people thought of me. I found that it is only when this mental shift happens that true success can happen. Until you find this for yourself, you&#8217;re just a puppet being controlled by everyone else but yourself. When you understand that you are living and breathing for a reason, you can then use your fears as fuel to do something great with your life.<br />
  1268. So, how do you find what you were created to do?<br />
  1269. Know what you are good at, know what you are passionate about, and know what people need from you. If it&#8217;s a business you are creating, that last point will sound a bit different. You not only need to know what people need from you, but you also need to be able to charge people for your product or service. We all have to make a living somehow, right? You were created for something amazing, but you must find where all of these points connect. And when you do, you will make a huge difference in this world.<br />
  1270. Second, know who you should have speak into your life.<br />
  1271. Don&#8217;t think for one minute that you should be doing life solo. We were never meant to do life alone. Of course, ultimately the decision as to what to do in the end is up to you, but you should care what the people in your inner circle think. The advice of mentors who you have brought into your life to help you navigate your life&#8217;s trajectory matters.<br />
  1272. Another way to know if you should listen to someone is to ask the question, &#8220;Is this person trying to help me become better or hurt me?&#8221; This is the filter I use when I toss a negative email or keep it. This is also the filter I use as I contemplate concerning myself with someone&#8217;s opinion or not. And you know what? It gets rid of about 90% of negativity in my life. Beautiful, right? Knowing someone’s true intent will let you know if you should listen to them or not.<br />
  1273. I hate to break it to you, but there will be people who don&#8217;t like you along the way. There will be people who will tell you everything you&#8217;re doing wrong before they point out one thing that you&#8217;re doing right. But the people who only focus on what you are doing wrong don&#8217;t want you to succeed in the first place. You will know who wants you to succeed by the way they see the good in you before they ever see your flaws.<br />
  1274. And third, understand that finding what other people think is an important factor in finding success for your business. <br />
  1275. If you&#8217;re trying to grow your business, you better listen to what your customers and potential customers have to say. They are the heartbeat of what you do, and their feedback matters. Their input can actually make you better at what you do. If there is a majority of people who are unhappy with what you&#8217;re doing, it&#8217;s important to evaluate and reevaluate your work.<br />
  1276. Can you become better? How can you become better? Those are two questions you can ask your client base and really liste...]]></itunes:summary>
  1277. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1278. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1279. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1280. <itunes:duration>6:20</itunes:duration>
  1281. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1282. <item>
  1283. <title>#101: Leadership and Grabbing Attention</title>
  1284. <link>https://asmithblog.com/attention/</link>
  1285. <pubDate>Tue, 22 Mar 2016 06:01:05 +0000</pubDate>
  1286. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21964</guid>
  1287. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="395" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-768x395.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="attention leadership problem" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-768x395.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-300x154.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-1024x527.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-150x77.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-e1458503374891.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the leadership problem we are currently facing due to people using the attention they've gained for the bad. &lt;/p&gt;
  1288. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/attention/"&gt;#101: Leadership and Grabbing Attention&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1289. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="395" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-768x395.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="attention leadership problem" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-768x395.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-300x154.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-1024x527.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-150x77.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/leadership-problem-e1458503374891.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1290. <p>With the current election happening, it doesn&#8217;t take long to realize that we are in the middle of a leadership problem. In fact, it has been the only election that has made me consider eventually running for office. No, this isn&#8217;t a podcast about this political election, but about leadership as a whole, so I won&#8217;t go into my thoughts on it here. But just know that I think this election has been an absolute circus. If you think that we are looking at the best candidates in Trump and Clinton, you are sadly mistaken. What we are looking at are the candidates with the deepest pockets; nothing more. Maybe the best candidates are holding out to run next time? I sure hope so.</p>
  1291. <p><strong><span id="more-21964"></span></strong></p>
  1292. <p>I&#8217;m now going to jump from talking about Trump and Clinton to the Kardashians, because there are two very important similarities between these individuals: attention and influence. I think it&#8217;s safe to say that the Kardashians are the most influential family in the world as of right now, which is sad, but true. And if leadership is controlled by the amount of influence one has and gives, then this further solidifies the fact that we have a leadership problem. If people are allowing the Kardashians to influence their lives more than anyone else, then this shows that they are learning from them, allowing their desires to be influenced by them, and also wanting to emulate them in some way. This is the reason that we have the current selfie generation, amongst other self-perception issues, but there&#8217;s a solution to this.</p>
  1293. <p>Once people stop paying attention to a particular story that is being shared, media moves on. Of course, this would take people to do this as a collective group, but if it happened, the overwhelming popularity of someone would cease to exist. Although it may now be too late to implement this idea in the presidential election, if it would have happened at the beginning, the popular candidates would be different than they are now, and no amount of money could have stopped it. What this doesn&#8217;t mean is to turn a blind eye to someone who is doing wrong, but if no one is paying attention to a presidential candidate or tv personality, a political party moves on, or ratings become so bad that a tv show is canceled. It&#8217;s the truth and it&#8217;s the way this world works.</p>
  1294. <p>Don&#8217;t like Trump? You should have stopped talking about him, good or bad, and stopped supporting his businesses long ago. Don&#8217;t like Clinton? You should have stopped talking about her, stopped funding the big businesses who fund her, and stopped commenting about her on Facebook long ago, as well. Don&#8217;t like the Kardashians? Stop watching their show and stop following their story. Attention of any kind will only continue to fuel the madness.</p>
  1295. <p>All of this is to say that we must be very careful as to who we allow to speak into our lives. Influence is a powerful thing, because it requires individuals to open their hearts and minds to receive the message that one is spreading. But the most important question in all of this is, what opens the door to influence? What creates the opportunity to influence people in 2016? The answer is attention. This is the single most important factor in both influence and leadership, and it will only become stronger as social media continues to become more popular. Media sees what is trending and then amplifies what is popular.</p>
  1296. <p style="text-align: center;"><hr /><p><em>Attention + Influence = Leadership</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fattention%2F&#038;text=Attention%20%2B%20Influence%20%3D%20Leadership&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr /></p>
  1297. <p style="text-align: left;">By no means am I the best entrepreneur in the world, as I&#8217;ve come to find that the best entrepreneurs as far as wealth builders and operators are those who are able to devote their full time and attention to one thing. But, I can say that I&#8217;ve successfully garnered attention, which is the gatekeeper to leading in a specific area. This is the one thing that has allowed me to influence millions of people over the last ten years, but this doesn&#8217;t mean I know everything; it just means I know how to successfully grab attention and use it for good. (When you gain attention, you have the choice to use it for good or bad.) If there&#8217;s any leadership secret I can offer, that&#8217;s it &#8212; grab attention, use that attention to speak wisdom into people&#8217;s lives, and repeat the process often.</p>
  1298. <hr /><p><em>Grab attention, use that attention to speak wisdom into people&#039;s lives, and repeat the process often.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fattention%2F&#038;text=Grab%20attention%2C%20use%20that%20attention%20to%20speak%20wisdom%20into%20people%27s%20lives%2C%20and%20repeat%20the%20process%20often.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1299. <p>Both Trump and Clinton have both used their money to grab the attention of media and people, and so far it has worked for them and their agendas, whether you think their proposed policies are good or bad. As for the Kardashians, they too have used their ability to gain attention to grow their own agendas. I say all of this to show you just how important that grabbing the attention of people can be, but please spread a good message when you gain attention. As a leader, it&#8217;s your responsibility to do so.</p>
  1300. <p>So, how can you grab the attention of more people to influence them? Here are three ideas to gain more attention, right now:</p>
  1301. <h2><strong>First, go where your audience is.</strong></h2>
  1302. <p>When I first started blogging, I focused mostly on growing my twitter following, because that&#8217;s where people were, and it paid off. Currently most people are on Twitter and Facebook, but it seems that more and more people are starting to use Snapchat, Youtube, and Instagram. Wherever the audience is that you want to speak to, go there. I promise that doing so will pay off.</p>
  1303. <p>Trump and Clinton know they cannot forget about the states that have voted Republican or Democrat before. And the Kardashians know that their audience is across every social network. They all use their demographic to their advantage, and doing so has helped them succeed. Further solidifying relationships that you already have and going where you know your work will be accepted is the easiest way to build attention.</p>
  1304. <h2><strong>Second, extend your reach outside your current sphere of influence.</strong></h2>
  1305. <p>I&#8217;ve dabbled with different social networks and business ideas to not only expand my reach and audience, but to stretch myself and make me better at cultivating new ideas. Trump and Clinton have both visited areas where their political parties haven&#8217;t done so well in the past and have picked up new supporters along the way because of it. And the Kardashians have grown in the fashion industry and in the technology space where they weren&#8217;t previously trying to break new ground in and have found success because of their new ventures.</p>
  1306. <p>Many times, gaining attention from others means that we stretch ourselves and make mistakes along the way. This is necessary to finding where one excels. You can move outside of where you currently are to find new avenues for your talents.</p>
  1307. <h2><strong>And third, constantly communicate what makes you different from everyone else. </strong></h2>
  1308. <p>I know that in the business landscape there isn&#8217;t anyone else who cares about relationships like I do, so I built my brand on it. I have a passion for this truth, and I feel the responsibility to share my convictions with others. When I began doing this, people took notice and my brand grew exponentially. All it took was for me to know the way I am wired and to tell others just how important other people are.</p>
  1309. <p>You can see how Trump and Clinton have communicated their own differences throughout their campaigns. They have some sort of idea about who they are, and are constantly pointing out the things that make them different from everyone else. And the Kardashians are always pointing out what makes their fashion, their cars, their music, and their family so different from everyone else. It&#8217;s why so many people watch their show and are always looking for what&#8217;s next, trying to keep up with their lifestyle.</p>
  1310. <p>Now, please hear me when I say that I don&#8217;t endorse any of these individuals, but I am using them as examples for this podcast on how to increase attention. They all know how to grab the attention of others, and for that one thing, we can learn from them.</p>
  1311. <p>If you are trying to grow a business, attention matters. It is what opens the doorway for you to have influence in the lives of others. When you grow attention, you will grow your audience.</p>
  1312. <h3><strong>Now, go and grab the attention of others, today.  </strong></h3>
  1313. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/attention/">#101: Leadership and Grabbing Attention</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1314. ]]></content:encoded>
  1315. <enclosure length="8397971" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/101-Leadership-and-Grabbing-Attention-.mp3"/>
  1316. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the leadership problem we are currently facing due to people using the attention they've gained for the bad.</itunes:subtitle>
  1317. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[With the current election happening, it doesn&#8217;t take long to realize that we are in the middle of a leadership problem. In fact, it has been the only election that has made me consider eventually running for office. No, this isn&#8217;t a podcast about this political election, but about leadership as a whole, so I won&#8217;t go into my thoughts on it here. But just know that I think this election has been an absolute circus. If you think that we are looking at the best candidates in Trump and Clinton, you are sadly mistaken. What we are looking at are the candidates with the deepest pockets; nothing more. Maybe the best candidates are holding out to run next time? I sure hope so.<br />
  1318. <br />
  1319. I&#8217;m now going to jump from talking about Trump and Clinton to the Kardashians, because there are two very important similarities between these individuals: attention and influence. I think it&#8217;s safe to say that the Kardashians are the most influential family in the world as of right now, which is sad, but true. And if leadership is controlled by the amount of influence one has and gives, then this further solidifies the fact that we have a leadership problem. If people are allowing the Kardashians to influence their lives more than anyone else, then this shows that they are learning from them, allowing their desires to be influenced by them, and also wanting to emulate them in some way. This is the reason that we have the current selfie generation, amongst other self-perception issues, but there&#8217;s a solution to this.<br />
  1320. Once people stop paying attention to a particular story that is being shared, media moves on. Of course, this would take people to do this as a collective group, but if it happened, the overwhelming popularity of someone would cease to exist. Although it may now be too late to implement this idea in the presidential election, if it would have happened at the beginning, the popular candidates would be different than they are now, and no amount of money could have stopped it. What this doesn&#8217;t mean is to turn a blind eye to someone who is doing wrong, but if no one is paying attention to a presidential candidate or tv personality, a political party moves on, or ratings become so bad that a tv show is canceled. It&#8217;s the truth and it&#8217;s the way this world works.<br />
  1321. Don&#8217;t like Trump? You should have stopped talking about him, good or bad, and stopped supporting his businesses long ago. Don&#8217;t like Clinton? You should have stopped talking about her, stopped funding the big businesses who fund her, and stopped commenting about her on Facebook long ago, as well. Don&#8217;t like the Kardashians? Stop watching their show and stop following their story. Attention of any kind will only continue to fuel the madness.<br />
  1322. All of this is to say that we must be very careful as to who we allow to speak into our lives. Influence is a powerful thing, because it requires individuals to open their hearts and minds to receive the message that one is spreading. But the most important question in all of this is, what opens the door to influence? What creates the opportunity to influence people in 2016? The answer is attention. This is the single most important factor in both influence and leadership, and it will only become stronger as social media continues to become more popular. Media sees what is trending and then amplifies what is popular.<br />
  1323. <br />
  1324. By no means am I the best entrepreneur in the world, as I&#8217;ve come to find that the best entrepreneurs as far as wealth builders and operators are those who are able to devote their full time and attention to one thing. But, I can say that I&#8217;ve successfully garnered attention, which is the gatekeeper to leading in a specific area. This is the one thing that has allowed me to influence millions of people over the last ten years, but this doesn&#8217;t mean I know everything; it just means I know how to successfully grab ...]]></itunes:summary>
  1325. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1326. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1327. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1328. <itunes:duration>8:45</itunes:duration>
  1329. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1330. <item>
  1331. <title>#100: What Should You Do When You Don’t Get Easy?</title>
  1332. <link>https://asmithblog.com/get-easy/</link>
  1333. <pubDate>Tue, 15 Mar 2016 06:01:49 +0000</pubDate>
  1334. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21951</guid>
  1335. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="365" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-768x365.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="don't get easy" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-768x365.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-300x143.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-1024x487.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-150x71.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-e1457921048396.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses what you should do when you don't get things as easy as you think.&lt;/p&gt;
  1336. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/get-easy/"&gt;#100: What Should You Do When You Don’t Get Easy?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1337. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="365" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-768x365.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="don&#039;t get easy" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-768x365.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-300x143.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-1024x487.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-150x71.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/dont-get-what-you-want-e1457921048396.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1338. <p>Thank you so much for listening to this podcast and reading my blog. You make all of this possible and I appreciate you so much. I can&#8217;t believe this is episode 100. Here&#8217;s to a few hundred more! Today, I want to share some of my own stories with you to give you a quick snapshot of my journey. From this, you will quickly see that when you expect easy, you&#8217;ll only get difficult. This is because success was never meant to be easy. Success takes hard work, which is the only way to produce results. There are no shortcuts here.</p>
  1339. <hr /><p><em>Success takes hard work, which is the only way to produce results. There are no shortcuts here.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fget-easy%2F&#038;text=Success%20takes%20hard%20work%2C%20which%20is%20the%20only%20way%20to%20produce%20results.%20There%20are%20no%20shortcuts%20here.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1340. <p>I can remember sitting on my roof many humid nights as a teenager in Alabama, looking up at the stars, dreaming of all the possibilities to come. You&#8217;re probably wondering how I got on my roof, so I&#8217;ll let you in. I did this by climbing a wobbly antenna, then leaping over onto the slanted roof shingles, and finally scrambling my way up to the spot between the chimney and the downward sloping section of the roof. I would use the brick chimney as a backrest, creating the most comfortable position I could find to view the sky above. Now that we have that out of the way, on with the important stuff.</p>
  1341. <p><strong><span id="more-21951"></span></strong></p>
  1342. <p>Of course, there were far fewer responsibilities then, so dreaming big wasn&#8217;t difficult. I knew I wanted to travel the world a million times over, I knew I wanted to be in a rock band, and I knew I wanted to make tons of money without having to go to work. Sounds like the normal dreams of a thirteen-year-old, right? But, even though these are the dreams I had, none of these things happened. I have never been out of the United States, I quit playing drums in a band years ago, and as soon as I turned sixteen and wanted a car, I found out that work was necessary to make money. All of these things would have required different decisions, more fighting for what I wanted, and more work along the way to make them happen.</p>
  1343. <p>This idea of putting in the work also translates to my marriage, which I dreamed would resemble an effortless fairy tale, but again I was wrong. If anyone tells you that having a great marriage doesn&#8217;t require work, they are lying. But, know that working on marriage is always worth the extra effort.</p>
  1344. <p>The same principle applies to my first four years of college. I dreamed that university would be easy, but these years took more effort than I could have ever imagined. I can remember taking a 5:30 a.m. math class to fit it in before work, only to return to school for two more classes after work. Wow, am I glad I don&#8217;t have to take any more 5:30 a.m. classes, but I&#8217;m sure you have a similar story of having to put in the work. How do I know that? Because anything worth having doesn&#8217;t come easy.</p>
  1345. <hr /><p><em>Anything worth having doesn&#039;t come easy.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fget-easy%2F&#038;text=Anything%20worth%20having%20doesn%27t%20come%20easy.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1346. <p>Fast forward to chasing the career that I thought was my dream, only to be told that it wasn&#8217;t going to go as planned. After ten years, I left that career, only to encounter more letdowns. I then decided that I didn&#8217;t want to work for someone else anymore, but I needed to work on building my own businesses. Is building businesses easy? Again, it&#8217;s a &#8220;no.&#8221; Ninety to one hundred hour work weeks aren&#8217;t for the faint of heart, but that&#8217;s what it takes to run multiple businesses.</p>
  1347. <p>So, why do I share all of these stories with you? Because I dreamed of living an easy life, but all I ended up with was the reminder that work is the only way to make dreams and expectations meet reality.</p>
  1348. <hr /><p><em>Work is the only way to make dreams and expectations meet reality.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fget-easy%2F&#038;text=Work%20is%20the%20only%20way%20to%20make%20dreams%20and%20expectations%20meet%20reality.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1349. <p>At some points, we&#8217;ve all come short of what we truly wanted from life. But the beauty is found in the things we didn&#8217;t see coming, which were lessons in disguise all along. In fact, life is one big classroom, reminding us of the need to be aware of our surroundings. What has my life taught me? The need for a better work ethic, the importance of perseverance, the power to fight for what I believe in, the dissatisfaction of not giving life my all, the freedom from caring what people think besides the people in my inner circle, the awareness of my true self-worth, and the uselessness of &#8220;what-ifs.&#8221;</p>
  1350. <p>I can&#8217;t tell you how many people I talked to over the past year who lost loved ones, who lost money over bad business deals, who went through terrible divorces, but I can tell you the answer I had for each person. My answer every time was this: &#8220;You can&#8217;t control the past, but you can control your perception of it. You can&#8217;t completely control the future, but your choices do help influence it. What will you learn from the past and what will you do today to help form your future?&#8221; There&#8217;s power in learning from the past and holding onto hope for a brighter future.</p>
  1351. <hr /><p><em>There&#039;s power in learning from the past and holding onto hope for a brighter future.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fget-easy%2F&#038;text=There%27s%20power%20in%20learning%20from%20the%20past%20and%20holding%20onto%20hope%20for%20a%20brighter%20future.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1352. <p>You don&#8217;t always get what you want, and that&#8217;s okay. The important thing is for you not to dwell on the past. There are so many &#8220;should&#8217;ve, would&#8217;ve, could&#8217;ve&#8221; situations in life, but you have to learn from it, and choose to move on.</p>
  1353. <p>If there&#8217;s anything I&#8217;ve learned from life, it&#8217;s that you need to keep putting the work in, even if you can&#8217;t see the results yet. Benefits will come, but the problem is that patience isn&#8217;t a common practice for most people. When you realize that overnight success doesn&#8217;t exist, work becomes a way of life rather than an extra task on a list of to-dos.</p>
  1354. <hr /><p><em>Success not only requires a better work ethic, but it requires patience.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fget-easy%2F&#038;text=Success%20not%20only%20requires%20a%20better%20work%20ethic%2C%20but%20it%20requires%20patience.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1355. <p>There&#8217;s too many important things to do. You&#8217;ve been dealt your hand of cards, and the only job you have is to make the best of it. You only get one shot at this life. The question is, what are you doing with it?</p>
  1356. <h3><strong>Now, go and make your best life, today. </strong></h3>
  1357. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/get-easy/">#100: What Should You Do When You Don&#8217;t Get Easy?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1358. ]]></content:encoded>
  1359. <enclosure length="6995300" type="audio/mpeg" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/What-Happens-When-You-Dont-Get-Easy.mp3"/>
  1360. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses what you should do when you don't get things as easy as you think.</itunes:subtitle>
  1361. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Thank you so much for listening to this podcast and reading my blog. You make all of this possible and I appreciate you so much. I can&#8217;t believe this is episode 100. Here&#8217;s to a few hundred more! Today, I want to share some of my own stories with you to give you a quick snapshot of my journey. From this, you will quickly see that when you expect easy, you&#8217;ll only get difficult. This is because success was never meant to be easy. Success takes hard work, which is the only way to produce results. There are no shortcuts here.<br />
  1362. I can remember sitting on my roof many humid nights as a teenager in Alabama, looking up at the stars, dreaming of all the possibilities to come. You&#8217;re probably wondering how I got on my roof, so I&#8217;ll let you in. I did this by climbing a wobbly antenna, then leaping over onto the slanted roof shingles, and finally scrambling my way up to the spot between the chimney and the downward sloping section of the roof. I would use the brick chimney as a backrest, creating the most comfortable position I could find to view the sky above. Now that we have that out of the way, on with the important stuff.<br />
  1363. <br />
  1364. Of course, there were far fewer responsibilities then, so dreaming big wasn&#8217;t difficult. I knew I wanted to travel the world a million times over, I knew I wanted to be in a rock band, and I knew I wanted to make tons of money without having to go to work. Sounds like the normal dreams of a thirteen-year-old, right? But, even though these are the dreams I had, none of these things happened. I have never been out of the United States, I quit playing drums in a band years ago, and as soon as I turned sixteen and wanted a car, I found out that work was necessary to make money. All of these things would have required different decisions, more fighting for what I wanted, and more work along the way to make them happen.<br />
  1365. This idea of putting in the work also translates to my marriage, which I dreamed would resemble an effortless fairy tale, but again I was wrong. If anyone tells you that having a great marriage doesn&#8217;t require work, they are lying. But, know that working on marriage is always worth the extra effort.<br />
  1366. The same principle applies to my first four years of college. I dreamed that university would be easy, but these years took more effort than I could have ever imagined. I can remember taking a 5:30 a.m. math class to fit it in before work, only to return to school for two more classes after work. Wow, am I glad I don&#8217;t have to take any more 5:30 a.m. classes, but I&#8217;m sure you have a similar story of having to put in the work. How do I know that? Because anything worth having doesn&#8217;t come easy.<br />
  1367. Fast forward to chasing the career that I thought was my dream, only to be told that it wasn&#8217;t going to go as planned. After ten years, I left that career, only to encounter more letdowns. I then decided that I didn&#8217;t want to work for someone else anymore, but I needed to work on building my own businesses. Is building businesses easy? Again, it&#8217;s a &#8220;no.&#8221; Ninety to one hundred hour work weeks aren&#8217;t for the faint of heart, but that&#8217;s what it takes to run multiple businesses.<br />
  1368. So, why do I share all of these stories with you? Because I dreamed of living an easy life, but all I ended up with was the reminder that work is the only way to make dreams and expectations meet reality.<br />
  1369. At some points, we&#8217;ve all come short of what we truly wanted from life. But the beauty is found in the things we didn&#8217;t see coming, which were lessons in disguise all along. In fact, life is one big classroom, reminding us of the need to be aware of our surroundings. What has my life taught me? The need for a better work ethic, the importance of perseverance, the power to fight for what I believe in, the dissatisfaction of not giving life my all,]]></itunes:summary>
  1370. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1371. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1372. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1373. <itunes:duration>7:17</itunes:duration>
  1374. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1375. <item>
  1376. <title>#099: This Is What Really Matters</title>
  1377. <link>https://asmithblog.com/really-matters/</link>
  1378. <pubDate>Tue, 08 Mar 2016 07:01:49 +0000</pubDate>
  1379. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21730</guid>
  1380. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="375" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-768x375.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="really matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-768x375.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-300x146.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-1024x500.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-150x73.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-e1457416068133.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the things in life that really matters.&lt;/p&gt;
  1381. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/really-matters/"&gt;#099: This Is What Really Matters&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1382. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="375" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-768x375.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="really matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-768x375.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-300x146.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-1024x500.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-150x73.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/people-really-matters-matter-e1457416068133.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1383. <p>People matter. Chris Peterson, one of the founding fathers of positive psychology, said that positive psychology could be summed up in 3 words: “other people matter.” Not new gadgets, or the latest and greatest car, or the biggest home, or your investments. While many others in the self-help and business field will try to tell you that these things should be your only focuses, this advice just isn&#8217;t correct. I know this is a top focus that many entrepreneurs focus on because a lot of business moguls that I follow on Instagram only share photos of stacks of money, new Ferraris, Rolexes, and penthouse suites; not people. Is this what the meaning of life has come to? I sure hope not.</p>
  1384. <p>On the other hand, please never feel bad for building wealth. Building wealth can be fun, and having fun is amazing, but I am more talking about wealth in that it should never be your sole focus. Building a bigger business is only worth it if you are impacting people in better ways.</p>
  1385. <hr /><p><em>Building a bigger business is only worth it if you are impacting people in better ways.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Freally-matters%2F&#038;text=Building%20a%20bigger%20business%20is%20only%20worth%20it%20if%20you%20are%20impacting%20people%20in%20better%20ways.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1386. <p><strong><span id="more-21730"></span></strong>The mindset that says you must increase your volume and your profits, leaving no efforts good enough, is a relentless cycle of let-downs, anyway. This is what builds a life of never finding what one is looking for. This also builds a life of never being happy and never finding peace. To find happiness you need to be able to see the fruits of your efforts, and the easiest way to do this is to see how you&#8217;ve helped other people.</p>
  1387. <p>When you flip your focus from money to people, employees and customers are taken care of properly, and more revenue is then a byproduct of the leadership work you&#8217;ve put in. When people are first, the rest of life falls into place. We are talking about leadership here, so if leadership is the impact you have on people, then I want to see the number of lives you are impacting, not the dollar amount in your bank account.</p>
  1388. <p>There was a time in life where money was my only focus, and I found that the chase of more, more, more was empty. When I achieved what I thought would make me happy, I only wanted more. I recently talked to my wife, Jasmine, about this time in life and she agrees &#8212; it was the most miserable we&#8217;ve ever been. Our priorities were out of whack, and as a result, we weren&#8217;t looking for ways to impact people. (If you haven&#8217;t noticed yet, leading in life is intentional.) Instead, we were looking out for what would only benefit ourselves. Again, only focusing on yourself is another wrong principle that many leadership books teach, but I&#8217;m here to challenge this idea. I fell for this trap, and I don&#8217;t want others to do the same.</p>
  1389. <p>When I found that the key to life is being intentional with pouring into the lives of other people, I stopped focusing on only getting to know people who I thought were successful, and instead focused my attention on everyone. You see, there&#8217;s tons of leadership books that also say to only focus on those relationships that will help make you more successful, leaving an underlying message that there&#8217;s people who shouldn&#8217;t matter to you, but that&#8217;s nonsense. All lives matter, not just a few.</p>
  1390. <hr /><p><em>The key to living a great life is being intentional with pouring into the lives of other people.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Freally-matters%2F&#038;text=The%20key%20to%20living%20a%20great%20life%20is%20being%20intentional%20with%20pouring%20into%20the%20lives%20of%20other%20people.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1391. <h3><strong>Now, go and focus on what really matters, today. </strong></h3>
  1392. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/really-matters/">#099: This Is What Really Matters</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1393. ]]></content:encoded>
  1394. <enclosure length="5942669" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/099-This-Is-What-Really-Matters-3816-12.24-AM.m4a"/>
  1395. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the things in life that really matters.</itunes:subtitle>
  1396. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[People matter. Chris Peterson, one of the founding fathers of positive psychology, said that positive psychology could be summed up in 3 words: “other people matter.” Not new gadgets, or the latest and greatest car, or the biggest home, or your investments. While many others in the self-help and business field will try to tell you that these things should be your only focuses, this advice just isn&#8217;t correct. I know this is a top focus that many entrepreneurs focus on because a lot of business moguls that I follow on Instagram only share photos of stacks of money, new Ferraris, Rolexes, and penthouse suites; not people. Is this what the meaning of life has come to? I sure hope not.<br />
  1397. On the other hand, please never feel bad for building wealth. Building wealth can be fun, and having fun is amazing, but I am more talking about wealth in that it should never be your sole focus. Building a bigger business is only worth it if you are impacting people in better ways.<br />
  1398. The mindset that says you must increase your volume and your profits, leaving no efforts good enough, is a relentless cycle of let-downs, anyway. This is what builds a life of never finding what one is looking for. This also builds a life of never being happy and never finding peace. To find happiness you need to be able to see the fruits of your efforts, and the easiest way to do this is to see how you&#8217;ve helped other people.<br />
  1399. When you flip your focus from money to people, employees and customers are taken care of properly, and more revenue is then a byproduct of the leadership work you&#8217;ve put in. When people are first, the rest of life falls into place. We are talking about leadership here, so if leadership is the impact you have on people, then I want to see the number of lives you are impacting, not the dollar amount in your bank account.<br />
  1400. There was a time in life where money was my only focus, and I found that the chase of more, more, more was empty. When I achieved what I thought would make me happy, I only wanted more. I recently talked to my wife, Jasmine, about this time in life and she agrees &#8212; it was the most miserable we&#8217;ve ever been. Our priorities were out of whack, and as a result, we weren&#8217;t looking for ways to impact people. (If you haven&#8217;t noticed yet, leading in life is intentional.) Instead, we were looking out for what would only benefit ourselves. Again, only focusing on yourself is another wrong principle that many leadership books teach, but I&#8217;m here to challenge this idea. I fell for this trap, and I don&#8217;t want others to do the same.<br />
  1401. When I found that the key to life is being intentional with pouring into the lives of other people, I stopped focusing on only getting to know people who I thought were successful, and instead focused my attention on everyone. You see, there&#8217;s tons of leadership books that also say to only focus on those relationships that will help make you more successful, leaving an underlying message that there&#8217;s people who shouldn&#8217;t matter to you, but that&#8217;s nonsense. All lives matter, not just a few.<br />
  1402. Now, go and focus on what really matters, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1403. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1404. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1405. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1406. <itunes:duration>4:05</itunes:duration>
  1407. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1408. <item>
  1409. <title>#098: The Power of Silence</title>
  1410. <link>https://asmithblog.com/silence/</link>
  1411. <pubDate>Tue, 01 Mar 2016 07:01:55 +0000</pubDate>
  1412. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21704</guid>
  1413. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="349" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-768x349.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="silence" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-768x349.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-300x136.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-1024x465.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-150x68.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-e1456615410918.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners about the power found in silence.&lt;/p&gt;
  1414. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/silence/"&gt;#098: The Power of Silence&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1415. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="349" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-768x349.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="silence" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-768x349.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-300x136.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-1024x465.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-150x68.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/silence-e1456615410918.png 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1416. <p>In 2016, silence isn&#8217;t being <a href="http://thoughtcatalog.com/jay-hawken/2014/01/why-we-need-more-silence-and-less-noise/">sought out often</a>. I see people every day driving down the road talking on their bluetooth earpieces, changing the radio station, while drinking their coffee, and eating their morning bagel. These same people are headed to work to only throw themselves into a ten hour workday of clients who need assistance and endless emails. They will then drive home, again talking on their phone, and will try to spend a few minutes with their family, only to lose them quickly to the need for sleep. They will then decide to fall asleep themselves due to exhaustion, and will wake up the following day for a repeat of the day before. Maybe you can relate to this lifestyle, but the glaring issue in this is the absence of silence.</p>
  1417. <p><strong><span id="more-21704"></span></strong></p>
  1418. <p>The power of silence is often overlooked, only so a few minutes of work and imagined productivity can be had. But when there is no room given for silence in one&#8217;s day, pressures mount, and the room needed to exhale isn&#8217;t given. We must be given the time to breathe, to rest, to reflect, to prepare. And when there is a constant push and pull in every single direction, something must give, and it will be one of the two: <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/get-some-headspace/201305/the-need-silence">your sanity or your schedule</a>.</p>
  1419. <p>You see, the problem is that some people have bought into the lie that they can just keep going, without the need of recharging. This mentality is a trap, a myth, and a letdown. It&#8217;s all of these things because the tyrant of work is designed to never let us discover ourselves, let alone the world around us. Without silence, no wonder stress is so prevalent. We need silence to live our very best lives.</p>
  1420. <hr /><p><em>We need silence to live our very best lives.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fsilence%2F&#038;text=We%20need%20silence%20to%20live%20our%20very%20best%20lives.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1421. <p>If we remain busy all of our days, always focused on the next task at hand, we will never gain the opportunity to dabble in the beauty that our lives and the world around us have to offer. If there&#8217;s never any time for silence, if there&#8217;s never any time for recharging and discovery, then it will be our unfocused busyness that will end up being our very worst enemy in the end. This is what creates the scene of people arriving at the end of their lives, only to regret their vast amounts of wasted time, and their lack of devotion to finding all that life had to offer.</p>
  1422. <p>You need silence, because you need direction. If you always take the next step, only because other people tell you to, you will miss out on directing your own life in the way it should go. If you don&#8217;t create dreams and aspirations for yourself, and passionately pursue them, other people will recruit you for their dreams instead.</p>
  1423. <p>Now that you see just how important silence is, here are three ways that you can find silence in your own life:</p>
  1424. <ul>
  1425. <li>Schedule at least a fifteen minute period of time each day where silence is your only focus.</li>
  1426. <li>Know the exact spot where you want to be silent at. Whether it&#8217;s at your spot on your favorite trail, or in your office sipping on coffee in your favorite mug, go to a spot where inspiration flows.</li>
  1427. <li>You can use some of this time to shut everything completely off in your mind, and some of this time to strategically plan your day. Your main goal should be stillness with no exterior influences. In these moments of silence, just be.</li>
  1428. </ul>
  1429. <p>Silence is something that everyone can partake in. Maybe you have been afraid to be silent in the past, but please know that there&#8217;s nothing to fear. You don&#8217;t always need to be <em>doing</em> something to be productive. In fact, I hope you find your moment of silence each day to be something you look forward to and benefit from immensely.</p>
  1430. <h3><strong>Now, go and find silence, today. </strong></h3>
  1431. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/silence/">#098: The Power of Silence</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1432. ]]></content:encoded>
  1433. <enclosure length="6299327" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/098-The-Power-of-Silence-22916-1.37-PM.m4a"/>
  1434. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners about the power found in silence.</itunes:subtitle>
  1435. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[In 2016, silence isn&#8217;t being <a href="http://thoughtcatalog.com/jay-hawken/2014/01/why-we-need-more-silence-and-less-noise/">sought out often</a>. I see people every day driving down the road talking on their bluetooth earpieces, changing the radio station, while drinking their coffee, and eating their morning bagel. These same people are headed to work to only throw themselves into a ten hour workday of clients who need assistance and endless emails. They will then drive home, again talking on their phone, and will try to spend a few minutes with their family, only to lose them quickly to the need for sleep. They will then decide to fall asleep themselves due to exhaustion, and will wake up the following day for a repeat of the day before. Maybe you can relate to this lifestyle, but the glaring issue in this is the absence of silence.<br />
  1436. <br />
  1437. The power of silence is often overlooked, only so a few minutes of work and imagined productivity can be had. But when there is no room given for silence in one&#8217;s day, pressures mount, and the room needed to exhale isn&#8217;t given. We must be given the time to breathe, to rest, to reflect, to prepare. And when there is a constant push and pull in every single direction, something must give, and it will be one of the two: <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/get-some-headspace/201305/the-need-silence">your sanity or your schedule</a>.<br />
  1438. You see, the problem is that some people have bought into the lie that they can just keep going, without the need of recharging. This mentality is a trap, a myth, and a letdown. It&#8217;s all of these things because the tyrant of work is designed to never let us discover ourselves, let alone the world around us. Without silence, no wonder stress is so prevalent. We need silence to live our very best lives.<br />
  1439. If we remain busy all of our days, always focused on the next task at hand, we will never gain the opportunity to dabble in the beauty that our lives and the world around us have to offer. If there&#8217;s never any time for silence, if there&#8217;s never any time for recharging and discovery, then it will be our unfocused busyness that will end up being our very worst enemy in the end. This is what creates the scene of people arriving at the end of their lives, only to regret their vast amounts of wasted time, and their lack of devotion to finding all that life had to offer.<br />
  1440. You need silence, because you need direction. If you always take the next step, only because other people tell you to, you will miss out on directing your own life in the way it should go. If you don&#8217;t create dreams and aspirations for yourself, and passionately pursue them, other people will recruit you for their dreams instead.<br />
  1441. Now that you see just how important silence is, here are three ways that you can find silence in your own life:<br />
  1442. <br />
  1443. * Schedule at least a fifteen minute period of time each day where silence is your only focus.<br />
  1444. * Know the exact spot where you want to be silent at. Whether it&#8217;s at your spot on your favorite trail, or in your office sipping on coffee in your favorite mug, go to a spot where inspiration flows.<br />
  1445. * You can use some of this time to shut everything completely off in your mind, and some of this time to strategically plan your day. Your main goal should be stillness with no exterior influences. In these moments of silence, just be.<br />
  1446. <br />
  1447. Silence is something that everyone can partake in. Maybe you have been afraid to be silent in the past, but please know that there&#8217;s nothing to fear. You don&#8217;t always need to be doing something to be productive. In fact, I hope you find your moment of silence each day to be something you look forward to and benefit from immensely.<br />
  1448. Now, go and find silence, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1449. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1450. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1451. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1452. <itunes:duration>4:20</itunes:duration>
  1453. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1454. <item>
  1455. <title>#097: Value Is the One Word That Changed My Life</title>
  1456. <link>https://asmithblog.com/value/</link>
  1457. <pubDate>Tue, 23 Feb 2016 07:01:32 +0000</pubDate>
  1458. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21653</guid>
  1459. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="value" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-e1455582672245.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why the word "value" has been so important to his own life. &lt;/p&gt;
  1460. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/value/"&gt;#097: Value Is the One Word That Changed My Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1461. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="value" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/value-e1455582672245.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>Many people wander aimlessly in life, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t, but bringing value is always the best answer. I recently wrote a post on the importance of becoming invaluable in your workplace, but the idea of value can be applied to any and every area of life. When you bring value, you attract others to you, influencing them along the way.</p>
  1462. <p>So, here are three questions to ask yourself when trying to figure out how you can add more value with your life:</p>
  1463. <p><strong><span id="more-21653"></span></strong></p>
  1464. <h3><b>How can I bring value to people?</b></h3>
  1465. <p>Since people are the most important thing in this world, this question comes first. In most cases, the easiest way to do this is to listen, and then speak when needed. People need help, and you being there for them shows that you care. Creating lasting relationships with people builds valuable connections and allows you to live life together, rather than in isolation. You can bring value when you contribute to relationships more than you take from them.</p>
  1466. <h3><b>How can I produce value with my work?</b></h3>
  1467. <p>The best work in this world offers solutions for people’s needs. When this happens, people will pay for your answers, whether it’s in the form of spoken word, written word, or in the form of a product. When people have problems and you answer with a solution, that’s providing value. That’s why it is important to give your very best work. There’s not only satisfaction for yourself found in a job well done, but your best work actually helps people. When you understand this, and realize that you can create better outcomes for people, the reason behind your work becomes more apparent. When this happens, the extra effort becomes worth your time.</p>
  1468. <h3><b>How can I value my own time and the time of others?</b></h3>
  1469. <p>Since time is one of our most valuable resources, we must learn to use it wisely. We steward our own time well by cherishing every minute of it, while allocating time for rest. Keep this in mind as you create your schedule, and see the difference it makes with your willingness to take more vacations, or even just stepping away. You are more effective when you recharge.</p>
  1470. <p>We value the time of others through our level of productivity. The way in which we conduct work meetings is a great way that we can show others that their time is important, too. People are more effective when you use meetings for their intended purposes, so it is important to limit small talk and end on time.</p>
  1471. <p>Adding value not only changes the way you see the world, but it it impacts people, it offers your very best work, and it ensures that you use your valuable time wisely. When you focus on these three questions, you don’t have to worry about living a great life, because bringing value to the world is what leading in life is all about.</p>
  1472. <h3><b>Now, go and bring value, today.</b></h3>
  1473. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/value/">#097: Value Is the One Word That Changed My Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1474. ]]></content:encoded>
  1475. <enclosure length="3791565" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/097-Value-Is-the-One-Word-That-Changed-My-Life.m4a"/>
  1476. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why the word "value" has been so important to his own life.</itunes:subtitle>
  1477. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Many people wander aimlessly in life, trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t, but bringing value is always the best answer. I recently wrote a post on the importance of becoming invaluable in your workplace, but the idea of value can be applied to any and every area of life. When you bring value, you attract others to you, influencing them along the way.<br />
  1478. So, here are three questions to ask yourself when trying to figure out how you can add more value with your life:<br />
  1479. <br />
  1480. How can I bring value to people?<br />
  1481. Since people are the most important thing in this world, this question comes first. In most cases, the easiest way to do this is to listen, and then speak when needed. People need help, and you being there for them shows that you care. Creating lasting relationships with people builds valuable connections and allows you to live life together, rather than in isolation. You can bring value when you contribute to relationships more than you take from them.<br />
  1482. How can I produce value with my work?<br />
  1483. The best work in this world offers solutions for people’s needs. When this happens, people will pay for your answers, whether it’s in the form of spoken word, written word, or in the form of a product. When people have problems and you answer with a solution, that’s providing value. That’s why it is important to give your very best work. There’s not only satisfaction for yourself found in a job well done, but your best work actually helps people. When you understand this, and realize that you can create better outcomes for people, the reason behind your work becomes more apparent. When this happens, the extra effort becomes worth your time.<br />
  1484. How can I value my own time and the time of others?<br />
  1485. Since time is one of our most valuable resources, we must learn to use it wisely. We steward our own time well by cherishing every minute of it, while allocating time for rest. Keep this in mind as you create your schedule, and see the difference it makes with your willingness to take more vacations, or even just stepping away. You are more effective when you recharge.<br />
  1486. We value the time of others through our level of productivity. The way in which we conduct work meetings is a great way that we can show others that their time is important, too. People are more effective when you use meetings for their intended purposes, so it is important to limit small talk and end on time.<br />
  1487. Adding value not only changes the way you see the world, but it it impacts people, it offers your very best work, and it ensures that you use your valuable time wisely. When you focus on these three questions, you don’t have to worry about living a great life, because bringing value to the world is what leading in life is all about.<br />
  1488. Now, go and bring value, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1489. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1490. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1491. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1492. <itunes:duration>3:53</itunes:duration>
  1493. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1494. <item>
  1495. <title>#096: How to Efficiently and Effectively Help People Find Success</title>
  1496. <link>https://asmithblog.com/success/</link>
  1497. <pubDate>Tue, 16 Feb 2016 07:01:08 +0000</pubDate>
  1498. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21564</guid>
  1499. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="514" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-768x514.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="success help busy" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-768x514.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-300x201.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-1024x685.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-e1455297515682.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shares how you can efficiently and effectively help people find success for themselves. &lt;/p&gt;
  1500. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/success/"&gt;#096: How to Efficiently and Effectively Help People Find Success&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1501. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="514" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-768x514.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="success help busy" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-768x514.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-300x201.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-1024x685.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/success-busier-e1455297515682.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1502. <p>We should all strive to give knowledge away in the most efficient and effective ways possible. Why? Because if you are truly captivated with making this world a better place and seeing other people grow, it becomes imperative that you do everything within your power to help others achieve their definition of success. So, with this idea in mind, here are three efficient and effective ways to help other people become successful:</p>
  1503. <p><strong><span id="more-21564"></span></strong></p>
  1504. <h2><strong>First, start a blog.</strong></h2>
  1505. <p>Sure, I do paid one-on-one coaching sessions to personally help people with what is going on in their lives and their business, but a much easier way for people to gain access to what I have to say is through my blog and podcast. I offer free posts and podcasts that offer valuable content every single day to help other people grow. Helping others is my mission in life, and I&#8217;m always looking for new ways to offer information in more efficient ways. I could sit down with twelve people every month in life coaching sessions, or I could write articles that reach thousands of people every day. The more reach had, with less time being given, opens up new possibilities to influence more people.</p>
  1506. <hr /><p><em>The more reach had, with less time being given, opens up new possibilities to influence more people.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fsuccess%2F&#038;text=The%20more%20reach%20had%2C%20with%20less%20time%20being%20given%2C%20opens%20up%20new%20possibilities%20to%20influence%20more%20people.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1507. <h2><strong>Second, write a book.</strong></h2>
  1508. <p>Other people want to know how to reach success in their own lives, and if you have reached success in your life, then it becomes a responsibility of yours to share knowledge. A person who hoards information only cares about themselves, but a person who shares knowledge to better the lives of others is someone who leads with their life. And a great way to share content is to write a book. This way, when you run into someone who needs help, you can just give them your book. Some would even say this is the best form of communication, as books have been around for ages, and they aren&#8217;t going anywhere anytime soon.</p>
  1509. <h2><strong>Third, teach a class, webinar, workshop, or conference. </strong></h2>
  1510. <p>This type of event seems to be what everyone&#8217;s doing right now, so to take advantage of the moment, you may want to think about holding one soon. Although the market is flooded with webinars and alike right now, it&#8217;s a great way to spark interest from others. You can offer it as a free event to build your email list, or you can charge a premium to pay for speakers who will bring a bigger audience to your event. Whichever way you decide to go with your event, when it is organized well, you can reach tons of people at one time. Not to mention that these events offer a live interaction aspect to them that can&#8217;t be found in blogs or books, giving you a better personal relationship with your audience.</p>
  1511. <p>In the end, if there is information inside of you that could help other people, it must come out. That way, it can be passed to others who will benefit from it for years to come. Your success helps others, and the more people you can help efficiently and effectively, the better.</p>
  1512. <hr /><p><em>Your success helps others.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fsuccess%2F&#038;text=Your%20success%20helps%20others.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1513. <h3><strong>Now, go and help others find success, today. </strong></h3>
  1514. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/success/">#096: How to Efficiently and Effectively Help People Find Success</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1515. ]]></content:encoded>
  1516. <enclosure length="3695253" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/How-to-Efficiently-and-Effectively-Help-People-Find-Success.m4a"/>
  1517. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shares how you can efficiently and effectively help people find success for themselves.</itunes:subtitle>
  1518. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We should all strive to give knowledge away in the most efficient and effective ways possible. Why? Because if you are truly captivated with making this world a better place and seeing other people grow, it becomes imperative that you do everything within your power to help others achieve their definition of success. So, with this idea in mind, here are three efficient and effective ways to help other people become successful:<br />
  1519. <br />
  1520. First, start a blog.<br />
  1521. Sure, I do paid one-on-one coaching sessions to personally help people with what is going on in their lives and their business, but a much easier way for people to gain access to what I have to say is through my blog and podcast. I offer free posts and podcasts that offer valuable content every single day to help other people grow. Helping others is my mission in life, and I&#8217;m always looking for new ways to offer information in more efficient ways. I could sit down with twelve people every month in life coaching sessions, or I could write articles that reach thousands of people every day. The more reach had, with less time being given, opens up new possibilities to influence more people.<br />
  1522. Second, write a book.<br />
  1523. Other people want to know how to reach success in their own lives, and if you have reached success in your life, then it becomes a responsibility of yours to share knowledge. A person who hoards information only cares about themselves, but a person who shares knowledge to better the lives of others is someone who leads with their life. And a great way to share content is to write a book. This way, when you run into someone who needs help, you can just give them your book. Some would even say this is the best form of communication, as books have been around for ages, and they aren&#8217;t going anywhere anytime soon.<br />
  1524. Third, teach a class, webinar, workshop, or conference. <br />
  1525. This type of event seems to be what everyone&#8217;s doing right now, so to take advantage of the moment, you may want to think about holding one soon. Although the market is flooded with webinars and alike right now, it&#8217;s a great way to spark interest from others. You can offer it as a free event to build your email list, or you can charge a premium to pay for speakers who will bring a bigger audience to your event. Whichever way you decide to go with your event, when it is organized well, you can reach tons of people at one time. Not to mention that these events offer a live interaction aspect to them that can&#8217;t be found in blogs or books, giving you a better personal relationship with your audience.<br />
  1526. In the end, if there is information inside of you that could help other people, it must come out. That way, it can be passed to others who will benefit from it for years to come. Your success helps others, and the more people you can help efficiently and effectively, the better.<br />
  1527. Now, go and help others find success, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1528. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1529. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1530. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1531. <itunes:duration>3:47</itunes:duration>
  1532. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1533. <item>
  1534. <title>#095: Four Ways to Make Your Best Work Even Better</title>
  1535. <link>https://asmithblog.com/best-work/</link>
  1536. <pubDate>Tue, 09 Feb 2016 07:01:06 +0000</pubDate>
  1537. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21477</guid>
  1538. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="403" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-768x403.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="best work" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-768x403.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-300x158.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-150x79.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better.png 872w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make their best work even better. &lt;/p&gt;
  1539. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/best-work/"&gt;#095: Four Ways to Make Your Best Work Even Better&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1540. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="403" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-768x403.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="best work" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-768x403.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-300x158.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better-150x79.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/best-work-better.png 872w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1541. <p>We all produce work in some form or fashion, and we all want to do our very best. But what happens when you finish your work, and know that it&#8217;s not your very best? Well, it is probably best to go back and fix your work to make it the best it can possibly be. But what if you could know what to do before you start working to set yourself up for producing even better work? It would save you tons of time, heartache, and frustration. In other words, it would set you up for success before you even begin.</p>
  1542. <p><em>Here are 4 ways to begin producing even better work, right now:</em></p>
  1543. <p><strong><span id="more-21477"></span></strong></p>
  1544. <h2><strong>First, prepare to the best of your ability by conducting research.</strong></h2>
  1545. <p>Many people want to dive straight into their work without putting the time and effort into doing the research, but great work never skips this part. Prior to this podcast, I have established that ideas are meant to be built upon, and research is a part of the process that allows you to do just that. Conducting research allows you to take the findings of other people who have excelled in a specific area of work, and then lets you use what you find as a case study for your own work. How did they work? What did they find? How can you build on their ideas and make their work better? All of these questions matter, as the answers allow you to skip the mistakes that their previous work found for you. Learn from research and use the lessons to make your best work even better.</p>
  1546. <hr /><p><em>Preparation always includes research.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbest-work%2F&#038;text=Preparation%20always%20includes%20research.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1547. <h2><strong>Second, bring passion into everything you do.</strong></h2>
  1548. <p>I am not just talking about the need to become passionate for your work, but the need to become passionate for life. This is what drives curiosity, and curiosity is a major factor in making your work the very best it can be. What solutions are you searching for? What can your discoveries do for the world? What is worth being passionate about? How can your passion impact people? These are just some questions that can spark curiosity within you, and let that be the main driving force behind what you do. When you are curious, you will persevere when others quit, and you will uncover solutions that others didn&#8217;t even think were possible.</p>
  1549. <h2><strong>Third, be creative with the entire process. </strong></h2>
  1550. <p>It is imperative that you are creative with the entire process, because doing so will challenge your work and test your boundaries. And it is when you change things up and challenge yourself with your work that your best work will become even better. If you are looking for an answer you have never come up with before, you must use a different process to get there, and that&#8217;s where the beauty of creativity becomes most useful. Implementing creativity is how you produce different work, and in a world of so many similar options, different work usually equates to better work.</p>
  1551. <hr /><p><em>If you are looking for a different answer, you must use a different process to get there.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fbest-work%2F&#038;text=If%20you%20are%20looking%20for%20a%20different%20answer%2C%20you%20must%20use%20a%20different%20process%20to%20get%20there.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1552. <h2><strong>Fourth, allow other people to be a part of your work.</strong></h2>
  1553. <p>I don&#8217;t know about you, but if I am in my work for too long, I can miss out on seeing the important details. I can become so focused on finishing that I rush past the given moments of making my best work even better, and that&#8217;s why having other people around us is so important.</p>
  1554. <p>We need to bring other people into the work process, so they can look at our work and show us where we missed opportunities. We must have friends, mentors, coaches, an audience, and/or work colleagues, that we can be comfortable enough with to share our work with. When we only look at work from one direction, we can only produce work that appeals to a very select group of people. When we allow other people in, we embrace different perspectives, and take their useful advice to help our work reach endless possibilities.</p>
  1555. <h3><strong>Now, take these four tips to make your best work even better, today. </strong></h3>
  1556. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/best-work/">#095: Four Ways to Make Your Best Work Even Better</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1557. ]]></content:encoded>
  1558. <enclosure length="4684413" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/095-Four-Ways-to-Make-Your-Best-Work-Even-Better.m4a"/>
  1559. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make their best work even better.</itunes:subtitle>
  1560. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We all produce work in some form or fashion, and we all want to do our very best. But what happens when you finish your work, and know that it&#8217;s not your very best? Well, it is probably best to go back and fix your work to make it the best it can possibly be. But what if you could know what to do before you start working to set yourself up for producing even better work? It would save you tons of time, heartache, and frustration. In other words, it would set you up for success before you even begin.<br />
  1561. Here are 4 ways to begin producing even better work, right now:<br />
  1562. <br />
  1563. First, prepare to the best of your ability by conducting research.<br />
  1564. Many people want to dive straight into their work without putting the time and effort into doing the research, but great work never skips this part. Prior to this podcast, I have established that ideas are meant to be built upon, and research is a part of the process that allows you to do just that. Conducting research allows you to take the findings of other people who have excelled in a specific area of work, and then lets you use what you find as a case study for your own work. How did they work? What did they find? How can you build on their ideas and make their work better? All of these questions matter, as the answers allow you to skip the mistakes that their previous work found for you. Learn from research and use the lessons to make your best work even better.<br />
  1565. Second, bring passion into everything you do.<br />
  1566. I am not just talking about the need to become passionate for your work, but the need to become passionate for life. This is what drives curiosity, and curiosity is a major factor in making your work the very best it can be. What solutions are you searching for? What can your discoveries do for the world? What is worth being passionate about? How can your passion impact people? These are just some questions that can spark curiosity within you, and let that be the main driving force behind what you do. When you are curious, you will persevere when others quit, and you will uncover solutions that others didn&#8217;t even think were possible.<br />
  1567. Third, be creative with the entire process. <br />
  1568. It is imperative that you are creative with the entire process, because doing so will challenge your work and test your boundaries. And it is when you change things up and challenge yourself with your work that your best work will become even better. If you are looking for an answer you have never come up with before, you must use a different process to get there, and that&#8217;s where the beauty of creativity becomes most useful. Implementing creativity is how you produce different work, and in a world of so many similar options, different work usually equates to better work.<br />
  1569. Fourth, allow other people to be a part of your work.<br />
  1570. I don&#8217;t know about you, but if I am in my work for too long, I can miss out on seeing the important details. I can become so focused on finishing that I rush past the given moments of making my best work even better, and that&#8217;s why having other people around us is so important.<br />
  1571. We need to bring other people into the work process, so they can look at our work and show us where we missed opportunities. We must have friends, mentors, coaches, an audience, and/or work colleagues, that we can be comfortable enough with to share our work with. When we only look at work from one direction, we can only produce work that appeals to a very select group of people. When we allow other people in, we embrace different perspectives, and take their useful advice to help our work reach endless possibilities.<br />
  1572. Now, take these four tips to make your best work even better, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1573. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1574. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1575. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1576. <itunes:duration>4:48</itunes:duration>
  1577. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1578. <item>
  1579. <title>#094: How to Stop Feeling Overwhelmed</title>
  1580. <link>https://asmithblog.com/overwhelmed/</link>
  1581. <pubDate>Tue, 02 Feb 2016 07:01:33 +0000</pubDate>
  1582. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21471</guid>
  1583. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="433" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-768x433.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="overwhelmed" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-768x433.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-1024x577.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-150x84.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed.jpg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can stop feeling overwhelmed immediately. &lt;/p&gt;
  1584. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/overwhelmed/"&gt;#094: How to Stop Feeling Overwhelmed&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1585. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="433" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-768x433.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="overwhelmed" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-768x433.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-1024x577.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed-150x84.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/overwhelmed.jpg 1280w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1586. <p>A year ago, I went through a period of time where I felt completely overwhelmed. My schedule was out of whack, I had said &#8220;yes&#8221; to far too many things, and as a result, I wasn&#8217;t getting enough sleep. I don&#8217;t know if you&#8217;ve ever experienced this combination, but if you have, you know how dangerous it can be. I thought I could handle it, all the way up until the point where I found that I couldn&#8217;t. This unbalance was keeping me from growing deeper relationships, producing my very best work, and properly taking care of myself. I was trying to keep up with every demand, and I had to finally say &#8220;enough&#8221; and walk away from the fast pace of life that I was running.</p>
  1587. <p>At any point in life where you go through a transformation, it becomes a pivotal point in time that one can look back on, gain understanding from, and be grateful for. Here are the four major takeaways I took from this point in life where I changed my entire view on things:</p>
  1588. <p><strong><span id="more-21471"></span></strong></p>
  1589. <h2><strong>First, start focusing on your fears. </strong></h2>
  1590. <p>I thought my issue was my schedule, but that wasn&#8217;t the root of the problem. The root of the problem was that I should have been focusing on my fear of letting people down. I was what you would call a &#8220;people pleaser.&#8221; If someone would ask me to do something, I would more than likely say &#8220;yes.&#8221; I forgot about the importance of barriers, and I paid dearly.</p>
  1591. <h2><strong>Second, you need to take a look at your schedule often. </strong></h2>
  1592. <p>I was treating my schedule like I had unlimited time, without giving a second thought of all the things I had already committed to. I forgot about the importance of going back through my schedule and eliminating what was unnecessary. I have now made this a monthly practice.</p>
  1593. <p>People will pull you in a million different directions if you allow them to, and pruning your schedule is the best way to keep that from happening. When you stop focusing on the gift you are supposed to be to the world, other people will volunteer you for a journey you&#8217;re not even supposed to be on.</p>
  1594. <h2><strong>Third, health is your top priority. </strong></h2>
  1595. <p>When your health is deteriorating, you can&#8217;t keep up with demands anyway. It doesn&#8217;t matter how many appointments you have in your schedule, if you aren&#8217;t healthy, showing up doesn&#8217;t even matter. Without health, you aren&#8217;t helping anyone. You can&#8217;t be effective, you can&#8217;t give life your all, and you can&#8217;t be a gift to those around you. If you feel your health is slipping because of meeting demands, it&#8217;s time to step back and reevaluate the importance of the things you do.</p>
  1596. <hr /><p><em>Health is your top priority.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Foverwhelmed%2F&#038;text=Health%20is%20your%20top%20priority.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1597. <h2><strong>Fourth, it&#8217;s time to focus. </strong></h2>
  1598. <p>Before this awakening, I used to do what I needed to do and then some. Since this time, I&#8217;ve learned that ultimate focus means doing what only I can do. Now, if someone else can do what I have in my schedule, I give it to someone else to do. I can only be in one place at a time, and the same goes for you. You are only one person.</p>
  1599. <p>This step is extremely important if you get to a point where everything you have committed to is important, and you can&#8217;t remove anything from your schedule, but you find that you don&#8217;t have the bandwidth to meet obligations. When you&#8217;ve reached your limit, it&#8217;s time to delegate and expand your reach by creating a team. This allows you to only focus on what you do best.</p>
  1600. <hr /><p><em>Do what only you can do.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Foverwhelmed%2F&#038;text=Do%20what%20only%20you%20can%20do.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1601. <p>In the end, not being overwhelmed with the demands of this world requires focus. If you keep committing to more, more, more, you will eventually reach a breaking point. The secret is to do something about your schedule now, before things get out of hand. And you can do just that by applying these four steps to your life, right now.</p>
  1602. <h3><strong>Now, go and stop feeling overwhelmed, today. </strong></h3>
  1603. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/overwhelmed/">#094: How to Stop Feeling Overwhelmed</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1604. ]]></content:encoded>
  1605. <enclosure length="4226008" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/094-How-to-Stop-Feeling-Overwhelmed.m4a"/>
  1606. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can stop feeling overwhelmed immediately.</itunes:subtitle>
  1607. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[A year ago, I went through a period of time where I felt completely overwhelmed. My schedule was out of whack, I had said &#8220;yes&#8221; to far too many things, and as a result, I wasn&#8217;t getting enough sleep. I don&#8217;t know if you&#8217;ve ever experienced this combination, but if you have, you know how dangerous it can be. I thought I could handle it, all the way up until the point where I found that I couldn&#8217;t. This unbalance was keeping me from growing deeper relationships, producing my very best work, and properly taking care of myself. I was trying to keep up with every demand, and I had to finally say &#8220;enough&#8221; and walk away from the fast pace of life that I was running.<br />
  1608. At any point in life where you go through a transformation, it becomes a pivotal point in time that one can look back on, gain understanding from, and be grateful for. Here are the four major takeaways I took from this point in life where I changed my entire view on things:<br />
  1609. <br />
  1610. First, start focusing on your fears. <br />
  1611. I thought my issue was my schedule, but that wasn&#8217;t the root of the problem. The root of the problem was that I should have been focusing on my fear of letting people down. I was what you would call a &#8220;people pleaser.&#8221; If someone would ask me to do something, I would more than likely say &#8220;yes.&#8221; I forgot about the importance of barriers, and I paid dearly.<br />
  1612. Second, you need to take a look at your schedule often. <br />
  1613. I was treating my schedule like I had unlimited time, without giving a second thought of all the things I had already committed to. I forgot about the importance of going back through my schedule and eliminating what was unnecessary. I have now made this a monthly practice.<br />
  1614. People will pull you in a million different directions if you allow them to, and pruning your schedule is the best way to keep that from happening. When you stop focusing on the gift you are supposed to be to the world, other people will volunteer you for a journey you&#8217;re not even supposed to be on.<br />
  1615. Third, health is your top priority. <br />
  1616. When your health is deteriorating, you can&#8217;t keep up with demands anyway. It doesn&#8217;t matter how many appointments you have in your schedule, if you aren&#8217;t healthy, showing up doesn&#8217;t even matter. Without health, you aren&#8217;t helping anyone. You can&#8217;t be effective, you can&#8217;t give life your all, and you can&#8217;t be a gift to those around you. If you feel your health is slipping because of meeting demands, it&#8217;s time to step back and reevaluate the importance of the things you do.<br />
  1617. Fourth, it&#8217;s time to focus. <br />
  1618. Before this awakening, I used to do what I needed to do and then some. Since this time, I&#8217;ve learned that ultimate focus means doing what only I can do. Now, if someone else can do what I have in my schedule, I give it to someone else to do. I can only be in one place at a time, and the same goes for you. You are only one person.<br />
  1619. This step is extremely important if you get to a point where everything you have committed to is important, and you can&#8217;t remove anything from your schedule, but you find that you don&#8217;t have the bandwidth to meet obligations. When you&#8217;ve reached your limit, it&#8217;s time to delegate and expand your reach by creating a team. This allows you to only focus on what you do best.<br />
  1620. In the end, not being overwhelmed with the demands of this world requires focus. If you keep committing to more, more, more, you will eventually reach a breaking point. The secret is to do something about your schedule now, before things get out of hand. And you can do just that by applying these four steps to your life, right now.<br />
  1621. Now, go and stop feeling overwhelmed, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1622. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1623. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1624. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1625. <itunes:duration>4:20</itunes:duration>
  1626. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1627. <item>
  1628. <title>#093: How to Build Better Relationships Within the Workplace</title>
  1629. <link>https://asmithblog.com/relationships-workplace/</link>
  1630. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Jan 2016 07:01:02 +0000</pubDate>
  1631. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21443</guid>
  1632. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-e1453759247197.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;So, if your workplace doesn’t have a great company culture due to a lack of relationship on your team, here are five ways to begin fixing problems, right now:&lt;/p&gt;
  1633. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/relationships-workplace/"&gt;#093: How to Build Better Relationships Within the Workplace&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1634. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/better-relationships-workplace-e1453759247197.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1635. <p>Since I am the only person in the business space who solely focuses on bettering relationships, when most clients reach out for business consulting, I always find myself helping with questions regarding people problems. As long as there are broken teams, I will be busy fixing people problems, and I don’t see a lack of dysfunctional teams anytime soon.</p>
  1636. <p>When individuals decide that they want to work with the other people on their team, the possible results are endless. But when people decide that they don’t want to become part of a team, but instead want to remain ego-driven individuals, the only possible results are terrible results. I have seen plenty of examples of what does work and what doesn’t work when it comes to building better team relationships within the workplace, and I want to share with you what I’ve found.</p>
  1637. <p>So, if your workplace doesn’t have a great company culture due to a lack of relationship on your team, here are five ways to begin fixing problems, right now:</p>
  1638. <p><strong><span id="more-21443"></span></strong></p>
  1639. <h2><b>First, you have to build trust. </b></h2>
  1640. <p>All solid relationships have trust as the foundation, and it starts with you, the leader. Are you trustworthy? Do you have good character? Are you the same person behind closed doors as you are out in front of people? Knowing the answers to these questions and making changes are extremely important for your business to be successful.</p>
  1641. <p>Next, do you have a problem with trusting other people? If you always feel like people are out to get you, then chances are that your team will adopt the same mindset. And if people are truly out to get you, have you thought about genuinely apologizing for the reason they are mad at you? I would say in most cases, when employees hold grudges against other employees, it’s because there was no apology for something that happened months ago. Sure, you may not feel the need to apologize, but be the bigger person by apologizing, and move on. It’s amazing what a little humility will do.</p>
  1642. <h2><b>Second, is your team properly trained?</b></h2>
  1643. <p>Most employees who feel that the rest of their team is out to get them is because their performance levels aren’t meeting the expectations of their boss, or other employees for that matter. And I would say that in 75% of those cases, the employees weren’t trained properly in the first place. Teaching people how to do their job correctly isn’t just important from a task point of view. Knowing how to do one’s job properly is actually important for business operations as a whole.</p>
  1644. <p>Leaders, if your team isn’t functioning properly, it may not be the individuals on your team, but rather the way you are doing things that is causing more harm than good. When workflows, meetings, work environments, and systems aren’t beneficial to your team, they serve as hinderances to building better work relationships. In many cases, employees get fed up with not having what they need to complete their job properly and end up taking it out on other employees they work with.</p>
  1645. <h2><b>Third, open communication is key.</b></h2>
  1646. <p>Without open communication, progress cannot be made. When people harbor bad feeling towards others on their team, they tend to either harshly verbalize their feeling towards them or they retreat from any contact with them. Either way, these tactics prove to be detrimental to a team’s performance. Individuals who walk around on eggshells all the time are not able to give their full contribution to their team, and as a result, their very best cannot be achieved.</p>
  1647. <p>Remember that everyone has something to offer, and if even one person is not offering their insights, then your team isn’t performing at maximum power and efficiency. If open communication is something that you’re struggling with, my suggestion would be to privately communicate all things that are getting in the way of your team performing at their very best with the people who are responsible for the lack of teamwork. The only time that things can’t be taken care of is when communication isn’t happen. Who knows? The people who are causing the issues may not even know there is an issue. And if they do know there’s an issue, then they need to figure out if they even want to be on the team.</p>
  1648. <p>Another exercise that has proven useful is going to each team member and telling them 1-3 things that you appreciate from them and their work. If negativity is all that can be focused on in your workplace, then something is wrong. It’s time to focus on the positive in each person.</p>
  1649. <p>Everyone is different, offering a variation of strengths, and that’s a beautiful thing. If you’re the leader of your team, then it’s your job to make sure they are in the correct role on your team. If they’re not in the right spot, you can always move them to a different area where they can excel.</p>
  1650. <hr /><p><em>Leaders, it’s your job to set people up for success, not failure.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Frelationships-workplace%2F&#038;text=Leaders%2C%20it%E2%80%99s%20your%20job%20to%20set%20people%20up%20for%20success%2C%20not%20failure.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1651. <p>Something else that stops open communication is gossip. I have found that gossip in the workplace is the biggest detriment to a team’s communication level. If someone is gossiping on your team, you have to take care of it. Gossiping is a form of fear, but bravery is going directly to another person if you have any issues with them. If you let gossip continue, then you are back to square one — struggling to build trust with your team.</p>
  1652. <h2><b>Fourth, what fears does your team have?</b></h2>
  1653. <p>This is a big one, because fear can spread like wildfire when it’s not used as fuel. Fear can be used as fuel by pushing teams ahead, while fear can be a setback when it stifles proper action. Know that fear will come when there are terrible market situations, or as your company is releasing a brand new product, or when you don’t feel you are matching or exceeding the offerings from similar companies, but fears like those should cause your team to become better, not to make you and your team hide. You’ll know if you are a part of a great team when fear comes. Great teams rise to the occasion, whereas not so great teams let their fears get the best of them.</p>
  1654. <hr /><p><em>Don’t let fear get in the way. Use fear as a fuel to move forward.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Frelationships-workplace%2F&#038;text=Don%E2%80%99t%20let%20fear%20get%20in%20the%20way.%20Use%20fear%20as%20a%20fuel%20to%20move%20forward.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1655. <h2><b>Fifth, do you have the right people on your team?</b></h2>
  1656. <p>If there is a lack of relationship on your team that is negatively affecting team morale, and the people who are causing a ruckus won’t change, then you need to get new people on your team. When one person is toxic, it will spread, so it is imperative to find these individuals on your team and get rid of them if all else fails. Of course this is a last resort, but to help people, they must first accept the help you are offering to them.</p>
  1657. <p>In the end, people are your most important business asset. It’s people who create a great company culture, it’s people who keep your team moving ahead, and it’s also people on your team who keep clients coming back for more. Keep relationships at the center of your business model, and see how much it can improve your team dynamic.</p>
  1658. <h3><strong>Now, go and build better relationships within your workplace, today.</strong></h3>
  1659. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/relationships-workplace/">#093: How to Build Better Relationships Within the Workplace</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1660. ]]></content:encoded>
  1661. <enclosure length="6952683" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/093-How-to-Build-Better-Relationships-Within-the-Workplace.m4a"/>
  1662. <itunes:subtitle>So, if your workplace doesn’t have a great company culture due to a lack of relationship on your team, here are five ways to begin fixing problems, right now:</itunes:subtitle>
  1663. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Since I am the only person in the business space who solely focuses on bettering relationships, when most clients reach out for business consulting, I always find myself helping with questions regarding people problems. As long as there are broken teams, I will be busy fixing people problems, and I don’t see a lack of dysfunctional teams anytime soon.<br />
  1664. When individuals decide that they want to work with the other people on their team, the possible results are endless. But when people decide that they don’t want to become part of a team, but instead want to remain ego-driven individuals, the only possible results are terrible results. I have seen plenty of examples of what does work and what doesn’t work when it comes to building better team relationships within the workplace, and I want to share with you what I’ve found.<br />
  1665. So, if your workplace doesn’t have a great company culture due to a lack of relationship on your team, here are five ways to begin fixing problems, right now:<br />
  1666. <br />
  1667. First, you have to build trust. <br />
  1668. All solid relationships have trust as the foundation, and it starts with you, the leader. Are you trustworthy? Do you have good character? Are you the same person behind closed doors as you are out in front of people? Knowing the answers to these questions and making changes are extremely important for your business to be successful.<br />
  1669. Next, do you have a problem with trusting other people? If you always feel like people are out to get you, then chances are that your team will adopt the same mindset. And if people are truly out to get you, have you thought about genuinely apologizing for the reason they are mad at you? I would say in most cases, when employees hold grudges against other employees, it’s because there was no apology for something that happened months ago. Sure, you may not feel the need to apologize, but be the bigger person by apologizing, and move on. It’s amazing what a little humility will do.<br />
  1670. Second, is your team properly trained?<br />
  1671. Most employees who feel that the rest of their team is out to get them is because their performance levels aren’t meeting the expectations of their boss, or other employees for that matter. And I would say that in 75% of those cases, the employees weren’t trained properly in the first place. Teaching people how to do their job correctly isn’t just important from a task point of view. Knowing how to do one’s job properly is actually important for business operations as a whole.<br />
  1672. Leaders, if your team isn’t functioning properly, it may not be the individuals on your team, but rather the way you are doing things that is causing more harm than good. When workflows, meetings, work environments, and systems aren’t beneficial to your team, they serve as hinderances to building better work relationships. In many cases, employees get fed up with not having what they need to complete their job properly and end up taking it out on other employees they work with.<br />
  1673. Third, open communication is key.<br />
  1674. Without open communication, progress cannot be made. When people harbor bad feeling towards others on their team, they tend to either harshly verbalize their feeling towards them or they retreat from any contact with them. Either way, these tactics prove to be detrimental to a team’s performance. Individuals who walk around on eggshells all the time are not able to give their full contribution to their team, and as a result, their very best cannot be achieved.<br />
  1675. Remember that everyone has something to offer, and if even one person is not offering their insights, then your team isn’t performing at maximum power and efficiency. If open communication is something that you’re struggling with, my suggestion would be to privately communicate all things that are getting in the way of your team performing at their very best with the people who are responsible for the lack of teamwork. The only time that things can’t be taken care of i...]]></itunes:summary>
  1676. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1677. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1678. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1679. <itunes:duration>7:08</itunes:duration>
  1680. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1681. <item>
  1682. <title>#092: How to Make Better Decisions</title>
  1683. <link>https://asmithblog.com/make-better-decisions/</link>
  1684. <pubDate>Tue, 19 Jan 2016 07:01:06 +0000</pubDate>
  1685. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21379</guid>
  1686. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="319" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-768x319.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make better decisions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-768x319.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-300x125.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-150x62.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions.png 912w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make better decisions starting, today. &lt;/p&gt;
  1687. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-better-decisions/"&gt;#092: How to Make Better Decisions&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1688. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="319" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-768x319.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make better decisions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-768x319.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-300x125.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions-150x62.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/make-better-decisions.png 912w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1689. <p>We&#8217;ve all made decisions that we wish we could take back. In fact, as soon as I said that, you were most likely able to think of a decision that was the 22nd best choice available to you in that moment, yet you still chose it. Making bad decisions will happen, but the important part is to learn from them and begin making better decisions in the future. But, how?</p>
  1690. <p><em>Here are four ways to begin making better decisions, right now:</em></p>
  1691. <p><strong><span id="more-21379"></span></strong></p>
  1692. <h2><strong>Believe that you can make a difference. </strong></h2>
  1693. <p>At the core of taking action is the belief that one can make a difference. It&#8217;s why people start new businesses, it&#8217;s why people protest the system based on their beliefs, and it&#8217;s the only reason that change in this world takes place. I know that when I haven&#8217;t believed that I could make a real difference in this world, I chose the easy way out, instead of the best way. And as you already know, the easy way isn&#8217;t always the best way. However, it is when you truly believe that you can make a difference in the world that putting in the necessary effort becomes worth the extra energy.</p>
  1694. <hr /><p><em>At the core of taking action is the belief that one can make a difference.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fmake-better-decisions%2F&#038;text=At%20the%20core%20of%20taking%20action%20is%20the%20belief%20that%20one%20can%20make%20a%20difference.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1695. <h2><strong>Leave yourself more time for better decisions to take place.</strong></h2>
  1696. <p>Taking the best way has usually meant that I needed to put more work in, and it was going to take longer, so there has been many times that I opted for the easiest decision instead. Making better decisions means making the right decision, no matter how much effort is needed.</p>
  1697. <p>And sometimes you may feel that you need to make a quick decision, but this may just be a misconception. You may have more time to make a decision than you think. Yes, there are times where we must make quick decisions, but it&#8217;s important to differentiate between the times where quickness is beneficial to decision making, and where taking the time to evaluate the situation is more important than a speedy answer.</p>
  1698. <h2><strong>Surround yourself with people who are already making better decisions. </strong></h2>
  1699. <p>Motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, said, “You are the average of the five people that you spend the most time with,” and for good reason. <a href="http://theidproject.org/blog/kipp-efinger/2012/02/06/thoughts-are-contagious">Thought processes</a> and <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2009/11/bad-decisions-may-be-contagious">decision making techniques</a> are contagious. This being said, if you spend enough time with people who are making better decisions, you will pick up on how they come to such solutions, and will begin to adopt their practices. Of course, the same idea applies to making bad decisions, so this is why Rohn&#8217;s advice is so important. When you learn from better decision makers, you will reap the benefits greatly.</p>
  1700. <hr /><p><em>You are the average of the five people that you spend the most time with. - Jim Rohn</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fmake-better-decisions%2F&#038;text=You%20are%20the%20average%20of%20the%20five%20people%20that%20you%20spend%20the%20most%20time%20with.%20-%20Jim%20Rohn&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1701. <h2><strong>Take all possible outcomes into consideration before making your final decision. </strong></h2>
  1702. <p>Sometimes the easiest way to know if your time and effort will be worth the struggle is to ask yourself, &#8220;What&#8217;s the worst that can happen?&#8221; If making a wrong decision doesn&#8217;t bring about much grief or heartache, then why not give it a try? Experimenting with all possible outcomes isn&#8217;t a bad thing, but you must evaluate the risk versus the reward to know if your decisions are even worth your time in the first place.</p>
  1703. <h3><strong>Now, go and make better decisions, today. </strong></h3>
  1704. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-better-decisions/">#092: How to Make Better Decisions</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1705. ]]></content:encoded>
  1706. <enclosure length="3839906" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/092-How-to-Make-Better-Decisions.m4a"/>
  1707. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make better decisions starting, today.</itunes:subtitle>
  1708. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We&#8217;ve all made decisions that we wish we could take back. In fact, as soon as I said that, you were most likely able to think of a decision that was the 22nd best choice available to you in that moment, yet you still chose it. Making bad decisions will happen, but the important part is to learn from them and begin making better decisions in the future. But, how?<br />
  1709. Here are four ways to begin making better decisions, right now:<br />
  1710. <br />
  1711. Believe that you can make a difference. <br />
  1712. At the core of taking action is the belief that one can make a difference. It&#8217;s why people start new businesses, it&#8217;s why people protest the system based on their beliefs, and it&#8217;s the only reason that change in this world takes place. I know that when I haven&#8217;t believed that I could make a real difference in this world, I chose the easy way out, instead of the best way. And as you already know, the easy way isn&#8217;t always the best way. However, it is when you truly believe that you can make a difference in the world that putting in the necessary effort becomes worth the extra energy.<br />
  1713. Leave yourself more time for better decisions to take place.<br />
  1714. Taking the best way has usually meant that I needed to put more work in, and it was going to take longer, so there has been many times that I opted for the easiest decision instead. Making better decisions means making the right decision, no matter how much effort is needed.<br />
  1715. And sometimes you may feel that you need to make a quick decision, but this may just be a misconception. You may have more time to make a decision than you think. Yes, there are times where we must make quick decisions, but it&#8217;s important to differentiate between the times where quickness is beneficial to decision making, and where taking the time to evaluate the situation is more important than a speedy answer.<br />
  1716. Surround yourself with people who are already making better decisions. <br />
  1717. Motivational speaker, Jim Rohn, said, “You are the average of the five people that you spend the most time with,” and for good reason. <a href="http://theidproject.org/blog/kipp-efinger/2012/02/06/thoughts-are-contagious">Thought processes</a> and <a href="http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2009/11/bad-decisions-may-be-contagious">decision making techniques</a> are contagious. This being said, if you spend enough time with people who are making better decisions, you will pick up on how they come to such solutions, and will begin to adopt their practices. Of course, the same idea applies to making bad decisions, so this is why Rohn&#8217;s advice is so important. When you learn from better decision makers, you will reap the benefits greatly.<br />
  1718. Take all possible outcomes into consideration before making your final decision. <br />
  1719. Sometimes the easiest way to know if your time and effort will be worth the struggle is to ask yourself, &#8220;What&#8217;s the worst that can happen?&#8221; If making a wrong decision doesn&#8217;t bring about much grief or heartache, then why not give it a try? Experimenting with all possible outcomes isn&#8217;t a bad thing, but you must evaluate the risk versus the reward to know if your decisions are even worth your time in the first place.<br />
  1720. Now, go and make better decisions, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1721. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1722. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1723. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1724. <itunes:duration>3:56</itunes:duration>
  1725. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1726. <item>
  1727. <title>#091: How to Get Your Work Noticed</title>
  1728. <link>https://asmithblog.com/get-your-work-noticed/</link>
  1729. <pubDate>Tue, 12 Jan 2016 07:01:53 +0000</pubDate>
  1730. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21346</guid>
  1731. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="493" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-768x493.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="get your work noticed" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-768x493.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-300x193.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-150x96.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed.png 877w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you how you can get your work noticed.&lt;/p&gt;
  1732. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/get-your-work-noticed/"&gt;#091: How to Get Your Work Noticed&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1733. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="493" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-768x493.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="get your work noticed" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-768x493.png 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-300x193.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed-150x96.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/get-your-work-noticed.png 877w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1734. <p>There are many people I talk to that just want their work to be noticed. I’ve been there, as well. Ten years ago, when I started blogging, I just wanted my work to be noticed, too. I wanted instant recognition, but that didn’t happen.</p>
  1735. <p>The problem with this mentality is that there is no such thing as overnight success. Anyone who thinks that they can reach their goal instantly is in for a rude awakening. In my own work, I quickly found out that people weren’t just going to start taking notice without first doing something worth taking notice of. I needed to produce more ideas that mattered, so that’s where I began.</p>
  1736. <p><strong><span id="more-21346"></span></strong></p>
  1737. <h2><b>So, if you currently want to get your work noticed, my first question to you would be, “Is your idea and/or product worthy of attention?” </b></h2>
  1738. <p>Without a worthy idea or product, you’re just noise in an already noisy world. So, what makes a product worthy? The research of an idea or product, the execution of the product, and the delivery of the product to customers. Without one of these three things, the product will be a flop. The execution of the product is the step where a product’s worthiness is focused on the most.</p>
  1739. <p>Too many times products or ideas are released to the general public before they’re executed to the best of a team’s ability, and I will be the first to say when this happens, it is frustrating to say the least. I can remember standing in line for hours to get my hands on the very first iPhone, and the experience with the phone was terrible with reception and functionality. At first I was blinded by the coolness factor of the phone, but the more I used it, the less appealing it was. I thought about trying an Android phone, but the ease of syncing my other Apple products with my iPhone is what kept me buying future iPhones. And people would say to me, “but, it’s Apple,” and my response was, “I need a phone that works.” It wasn’t ready for launch — end of story. Thank goodness the iPhone got better with time, and I now love my iPhone 6+.</p>
  1740. <p>The only thing that saved the first iPhone was the marketing around the new gadget, which brings me to my next point.</p>
  1741. <h2><b>Second, if you want to get your work noticed, have you considered your packaging? </b></h2>
  1742. <p>There is so much that goes into the marketing of a product, but I really want to focus on the packaging. If you are a writer, then the book cover is a very important focus of yours. If you are an entrepreneur and have a new product, the way your product is packaged tells your customer how detail oriented you are. If you are offering a service, then the time you put into preparation and the expertise you offer is your packaging. You communicate a vast amount of information by the design of your company logo, the building you work in, and even by the way you talk to clients on the phone. All of these attributes are part of the package your business offers. The way that a product or service is packaged tells the customer a story before they even experience what you and your business have to offer.</p>
  1743. <h2><b>Third, if you want to get your work noticed, have you taken the time to build relationships?</b></h2>
  1744. <p>If you’ve followed my work, then you know that I place a huge importance on people, and for good reason. I love people. I have learned to never take relationships for granted, as people are the reason that I have the opportunity to do what I do in the first place.</p>
  1745. <p>If you have a business of any kind, then I would ask you to at least consider the benefits of creating relationships with your clients. The main reason that this is important is that companies can only become real to customers when they speak to them on a personal basis. Until then, a company is just a logo. Putting a face with a voice who cares about an individual builds trust, and shows that a brand cares.</p>
  1746. <h2><b>Fourth, if you want to get your work noticed, have you pinpointed your audience?</b></h2>
  1747. <p>If you offer any product or service, you must know who your target audience is. If you know this, then the process of developing your product is much easier. If you know the answer to the question, “Who will buy this?”, then you have created less headaches, and more precision with your product. Knowing this lets you develop a product specifically for that group of people, and gives you insight as to how it best fits into their lives. You can even focus your research to what that group of people needs, which will only make your work better in the end. Without knowing this, your guess is as good as mine to making your work a success.</p>
  1748. <h2><b>Fifth, if you want to get your work noticed, have you considered your voice?</b></h2>
  1749. <p>I’m not necessarily talking about the octave of your voice, but I am talking about your writing voice, especially if you market yourself online. I write as I would talk to you over coffee, so I work hard to make sure that my sincerity comes through my writing voice. It would be a shame if I wrote like Shakespeare wrote, because I’m not Shakespeare. If I did this, there would definitely be a disconnect from my work if you ever met me in person. In the 1500’s and 1600’s, Shakespeare’s voice made sense, but not in 2015.</p>
  1750. <p>I know that Shakespeare is an extremely different comparison to myself, but I think you get the point. As you write, we want to know you, not someone else. Make sure you convey the message you want and need to communicate in your own voice, and people will take notice of your work. Your voice and your work matter.</p>
  1751. <p>If there’s any message I want to convey through this podcast episode, it’s that focused work produced over time is the only thing that will bring great results. If your work isn’t being noticed yet, know that you must keep putting the work in. Don’t quit right before success comes. Perseverance with your best work is the only way to make your work even better.</p>
  1752. <h3><b>Now, go and get your work noticed, today.</b></h3>
  1753. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/get-your-work-noticed/">#091: How to Get Your Work Noticed</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1754. ]]></content:encoded>
  1755. <enclosure length="6469992" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/091-How-to-Get-Your-Work-Noticed.m4a"/>
  1756. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you how you can get your work noticed.</itunes:subtitle>
  1757. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[There are many people I talk to that just want their work to be noticed. I’ve been there, as well. Ten years ago, when I started blogging, I just wanted my work to be noticed, too. I wanted instant recognition, but that didn’t happen.<br />
  1758. The problem with this mentality is that there is no such thing as overnight success. Anyone who thinks that they can reach their goal instantly is in for a rude awakening. In my own work, I quickly found out that people weren’t just going to start taking notice without first doing something worth taking notice of. I needed to produce more ideas that mattered, so that’s where I began.<br />
  1759. <br />
  1760. So, if you currently want to get your work noticed, my first question to you would be, “Is your idea and/or product worthy of attention?” <br />
  1761. Without a worthy idea or product, you’re just noise in an already noisy world. So, what makes a product worthy? The research of an idea or product, the execution of the product, and the delivery of the product to customers. Without one of these three things, the product will be a flop. The execution of the product is the step where a product’s worthiness is focused on the most.<br />
  1762. Too many times products or ideas are released to the general public before they’re executed to the best of a team’s ability, and I will be the first to say when this happens, it is frustrating to say the least. I can remember standing in line for hours to get my hands on the very first iPhone, and the experience with the phone was terrible with reception and functionality. At first I was blinded by the coolness factor of the phone, but the more I used it, the less appealing it was. I thought about trying an Android phone, but the ease of syncing my other Apple products with my iPhone is what kept me buying future iPhones. And people would say to me, “but, it’s Apple,” and my response was, “I need a phone that works.” It wasn’t ready for launch — end of story. Thank goodness the iPhone got better with time, and I now love my iPhone 6+.<br />
  1763. The only thing that saved the first iPhone was the marketing around the new gadget, which brings me to my next point.<br />
  1764. Second, if you want to get your work noticed, have you considered your packaging? <br />
  1765. There is so much that goes into the marketing of a product, but I really want to focus on the packaging. If you are a writer, then the book cover is a very important focus of yours. If you are an entrepreneur and have a new product, the way your product is packaged tells your customer how detail oriented you are. If you are offering a service, then the time you put into preparation and the expertise you offer is your packaging. You communicate a vast amount of information by the design of your company logo, the building you work in, and even by the way you talk to clients on the phone. All of these attributes are part of the package your business offers. The way that a product or service is packaged tells the customer a story before they even experience what you and your business have to offer.<br />
  1766. Third, if you want to get your work noticed, have you taken the time to build relationships?<br />
  1767. If you’ve followed my work, then you know that I place a huge importance on people, and for good reason. I love people. I have learned to never take relationships for granted, as people are the reason that I have the opportunity to do what I do in the first place.<br />
  1768. If you have a business of any kind, then I would ask you to at least consider the benefits of creating relationships with your clients. The main reason that this is important is that companies can only become real to customers when they speak to them on a personal basis. Until then, a company is just a logo. Putting a face with a voice who cares about an individual builds trust, and shows that a brand cares.<br />
  1769. Fourth, if you want to get your work noticed, have you pinpointed your audience?<br />
  1770. If you offer any product or service,]]></itunes:summary>
  1771. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1772. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1773. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1774. <itunes:duration>6:38</itunes:duration>
  1775. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1776. <item>
  1777. <title>#090: 4 Ways to Make This Year Better than Last Year</title>
  1778. <link>https://asmithblog.com/make-this-year-better/</link>
  1779. <pubDate>Tue, 05 Jan 2016 07:01:14 +0000</pubDate>
  1780. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21152</guid>
  1781. <description>&lt;img width="600" height="300" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1.jpg 600w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1-300x150.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1-150x75.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains how you can make this year better than last year. &lt;/p&gt;
  1782. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-this-year-better/"&gt;#090: 4 Ways to Make This Year Better than Last Year&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1783. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="600" height="300" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1.jpg 600w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1-300x150.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/image-1-150x75.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px" />
  1784. <p>Hopefully 2015 was one of your best years ever, and having 2016 eclipse it almost seems impossible. But we can always work at making our lives better. So, here are the 4 ways that we can all make this year better than last year:</p>
  1785. <p><strong><span id="more-21152"></span></strong></p>
  1786. <h2><b>Look at the opposite.</b></h2>
  1787. <p>In the midst of similarities, the best approach is to look for the opposites. I had a great year, so the question I will be asking myself is, “What didn’t go so well last year?” If your year wasn’t so great, begin by asking yourself, “What went great last year?” It’s okay to have a bad year. I’ve had plenty of them. The priority in times that could have gone much better is to keep moving and use what you’ve learned along the way to accomplish more in life.</p>
  1788. <h2><b>Stop letting things get in your way, but be realistic.</b></h2>
  1789. <p>Focus is what will get you and me both to our dreams. When your focus isn’t where it should be, then it is much more difficult to accomplish your goals. To do this, categorize tasks for each goal into one of these four categories: urgent, important, less important, and unimportant. In doing this, your goals will be much more manageable, and you’ll make sure to complete everything you need to do. This exercise also helps you connect the dots between your goals. Can you be more efficient and complete a few of the necessary action steps for your goals in the same sitting? If so, you might as well work smarter, not harder.</p>
  1790. <p>On another note, I didn’t do as well with my exercise goals as I wanted to in 2015. I had a goal to run a marathon, but the necessary training never happened. The reason that it never happened is that I had other huge goals that I wanted to accomplish in 2015, and I put those first. If I were to do everything that I had planned on doing in 2015, I would have probably slept three hours a night, and I’m a mess with no sleep. The issue wasn’t the amount of work that I was putting in, but the issue was that I wasn’t being realistic with my goals. So instead of beating myself up this year for not completing everything that I plan, I’m going to be more realistic with my goals for 2016.</p>
  1791. <h2><b>Be more aware of the needs of others.</b></h2>
  1792. <p>Some people are more naturally wired to be aware of needs than others, but the important thing to realize is that we can all be more aware than we currently are. Even though being aware of the needs of others helps better relationships outside of work, this year I will be looking for even more ways to implement this principle in business, as I believe this is the foundation for building a business to become bigger and better. If you’re also looking to better your business this year, you should ask yourself, “How can I be more aware of the needs of others?” You will always need to focus on how you can become better before you will get bigger.</p>
  1793. <h2><b>Never lose sight of why you do what you do.</b></h2>
  1794. <p>I’ve lost sight of my <i>why</i> before, and the results were awful. The terrible thing is that it happens to so many people. When you don’t know your <i>why,</i> your passion for life is lost, and a life without passion is a life with little hope. Your <i>why</i> wakes you up in the morning, your <i>why</i> increases your determination, and your <i>why</i> helps you find your way. Don’t let this year end without catching your <i>why</i>.</p>
  1795. <h3><b>You can use these four keys to make this year better than last year. Now, go and live a better life, today.</b></h3>
  1796. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-this-year-better/">#090: 4 Ways to Make This Year Better than Last Year</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1797. ]]></content:encoded>
  1798. <enclosure length="4394913" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/090-4-Ways-to-Make-This-Year-Better-Than-Last-Year-.m4a"/>
  1799. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains how you can make this year better than last year.</itunes:subtitle>
  1800. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Hopefully 2015 was one of your best years ever, and having 2016 eclipse it almost seems impossible. But we can always work at making our lives better. So, here are the 4 ways that we can all make this year better than last year:<br />
  1801. <br />
  1802. Look at the opposite.<br />
  1803. In the midst of similarities, the best approach is to look for the opposites. I had a great year, so the question I will be asking myself is, “What didn’t go so well last year?” If your year wasn’t so great, begin by asking yourself, “What went great last year?” It’s okay to have a bad year. I’ve had plenty of them. The priority in times that could have gone much better is to keep moving and use what you’ve learned along the way to accomplish more in life.<br />
  1804. Stop letting things get in your way, but be realistic.<br />
  1805. Focus is what will get you and me both to our dreams. When your focus isn’t where it should be, then it is much more difficult to accomplish your goals. To do this, categorize tasks for each goal into one of these four categories: urgent, important, less important, and unimportant. In doing this, your goals will be much more manageable, and you’ll make sure to complete everything you need to do. This exercise also helps you connect the dots between your goals. Can you be more efficient and complete a few of the necessary action steps for your goals in the same sitting? If so, you might as well work smarter, not harder.<br />
  1806. On another note, I didn’t do as well with my exercise goals as I wanted to in 2015. I had a goal to run a marathon, but the necessary training never happened. The reason that it never happened is that I had other huge goals that I wanted to accomplish in 2015, and I put those first. If I were to do everything that I had planned on doing in 2015, I would have probably slept three hours a night, and I’m a mess with no sleep. The issue wasn’t the amount of work that I was putting in, but the issue was that I wasn’t being realistic with my goals. So instead of beating myself up this year for not completing everything that I plan, I’m going to be more realistic with my goals for 2016.<br />
  1807. Be more aware of the needs of others.<br />
  1808. Some people are more naturally wired to be aware of needs than others, but the important thing to realize is that we can all be more aware than we currently are. Even though being aware of the needs of others helps better relationships outside of work, this year I will be looking for even more ways to implement this principle in business, as I believe this is the foundation for building a business to become bigger and better. If you’re also looking to better your business this year, you should ask yourself, “How can I be more aware of the needs of others?” You will always need to focus on how you can become better before you will get bigger.<br />
  1809. Never lose sight of why you do what you do.<br />
  1810. I’ve lost sight of my why before, and the results were awful. The terrible thing is that it happens to so many people. When you don’t know your why, your passion for life is lost, and a life without passion is a life with little hope. Your why wakes you up in the morning, your why increases your determination, and your why helps you find your way. Don’t let this year end without catching your why.<br />
  1811. You can use these four keys to make this year better than last year. Now, go and live a better life, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1812. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1813. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1814. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1815. <itunes:duration>4:30</itunes:duration>
  1816. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1817. <item>
  1818. <title>#089: Why New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work</title>
  1819. <link>https://asmithblog.com/goals-new-years-resolutions/</link>
  1820. <pubDate>Tue, 29 Dec 2015 07:01:44 +0000</pubDate>
  1821. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21194</guid>
  1822. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="384" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-768x384.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="new year's resolutions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-768x384.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-300x150.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-150x75.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-e1451155924174.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why goals work, but New Year's resolutions don't.&lt;/p&gt;
  1823. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/goals-new-years-resolutions/"&gt;#089: Why New Year’s Resolutions Don’t Work&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1824. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="384" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-768x384.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="new year&#039;s resolutions" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-768x384.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-300x150.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-150x75.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/new-years-resolutions-e1451155924174.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1825. <p>When the facts tell you that <a href="http://www.statisticbrain.com/new-years-resolution-statistics/">92%</a> of New Year&#8217;s resolutions fail, you know that there&#8217;s a problem. Yet, 45% of Americans look over this fact and spend time thinking up new ones every year. Well, I&#8217;m tired of seeing this happen year after year, so that&#8217;s why episode eighty-nine is on New Year&#8217;s Resolutions. As a life coach I have found that some things work, and other things don&#8217;t, and I want to tell you what I&#8217;ve found.</p>
  1826. <p><em>So, here are the six top reasons that New Year&#8217;s resolutions don&#8217;t work:</em></p>
  1827. <p><strong><span id="more-21194"></span></strong></p>
  1828. <h2><strong>Most people aren&#8217;t very specific.</strong></h2>
  1829. <p>The top five New Year&#8217;s resolutions are lose weight, get organized, spend less and save more, enjoy life to the fullest, and staying fit and healthy. As you can see, people aren&#8217;t very specific with their resolutions. This is where goals differ from resolutions. Use <a href="http://asmithblog.com/goals-that-get-results/">SMART goals</a> to help you stay on track in the future, and see the difference that well-thought-out goals differ from writing the first thoughts that come to your mind.</p>
  1830. <hr /><p><em>New Year&#039;s resolutions are for people who don&#039;t believe in the power of setting goals all year long.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fgoals-new-years-resolutions%2F&#038;text=New%20Year%27s%20resolutions%20are%20for%20people%20who%20don%27t%20believe%20in%20the%20power%20of%20setting%20goals%20all%20year%20long.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1831. <h2><strong>Most people don&#8217;t find their <em>why</em>.</strong></h2>
  1832. <p>You need a reason to why you are pursuing your goals. What&#8217;s the reason behind the reason? Why do you want to lose weight? Why do you want to get more organized? Why do you need to spend less and save more? Why do you want to enjoy life to the fullest? Why do you want to stay fit and healthy? Yes, all of these things would make life easier, but why is that important to you? Your answers to this question should be tied into your goal to remind you why you are pursuing it in the first place, because if you forget the reason, you&#8217;ll likely quit before seeing the finish line.</p>
  1833. <h2><strong>There aren&#8217;t many people who have found passion.</strong></h2>
  1834. <p>This point ties perfectly into the last point, because once you know your why, you have what you need to begin your pursuit. This is the main reason that only eight percent of people complete their New Year&#8217;s resolutions. These people don&#8217;t know why they want what they want, and so they don&#8217;t have their fuel to push them forward. If your goal is to just go to the gym, you first need to tie it to the facts that it will help you lose weight and keep it off, make you feel better, give you more energy, make your thinking process more effective, relieve stress, better your heart health, extend your day, and will ultimately help you live longer. Now, that&#8217;s something we can all get passionate about.</p>
  1835. <h2><strong>There are many people who aren&#8217;t realistic.</strong></h2>
  1836. <p>If you want to run a marathon, that&#8217;s great. I do, too. But it would be unrealistic to think that you can go and run a marathon without first being able to run a mile. This podcast episode is centered around health, as it is the top resolution that people have, but each principle here applies to whatever goal you are chasing. If you take anything away from this point, it should be that you need to put the necessary work in before you can expect to see success.</p>
  1837. <p>I wouldn&#8217;t focus on your goal of losing 40 pounds, but I would focus on losing ten. I wouldn&#8217;t fast meals entirely, but I would cut out the foods that will help you lose weight. Remember, we need to look at what you will realistically do here. Again, this is pertaining to your health, but it also applies to other things. I wouldn&#8217;t focus on becoming a millionaire without first paying off all of your debt. I also wouldn&#8217;t focus on getting organized until you get rid of everything you don&#8217;t want first.</p>
  1838. <p>Without preparation you will only come up short on your goals, which leads to bigger amounts of frustration than anyone needs to deal with. When this happens, not finding success seems like failure, but it&#8217;s really a lack of preparation. Put the time in now and find success in the future. That&#8217;s how it has always worked, and it&#8217;s how it will always work in the future.</p>
  1839. <p>Being realistic doesn&#8217;t allow for shortcuts, but it requires hard work and determination to find success with your goals. There&#8217;s no need to go full throttle, but you should ease yourself into your goals instead. Goals aren&#8217;t accomplished overnight, but when we are realistic, know where we are, and take baby steps, our goals will be much easier to achieve.</p>
  1840. <h2><strong>A lot of people don&#8217;t take timing into consideration. </strong></h2>
  1841. <p>Let&#8217;s be honest. One of the biggest reasons that resolutions don&#8217;t stick is that everyone who makes them has found themselves lazier the past two months than the previous ten. During November and December people like to eat, they find themselves sleeping longer due to having Christmas breaks and kids being out of school, and the weather is frigid, which nobody likes. It&#8217;s much more difficult to get motivated in winter, and then to try to shock yourself with drastically changing everything that you have been doing for the past eight weeks is quite the feat.</p>
  1842. <p>So, you have two options here to help you with your goals for 2016. First, you can create habits that you stick to every single day, instead of trying to unlearn every bad habit that you pick up along the way. Or, you could use timing and your surroundings to your advantage. In the case of your health, I wouldn&#8217;t try running in the snow, but I would suggest a gym membership during the winter months. Timing has a lot to do with what you will accomplish and what you won&#8217;t, so be aware of how it plays into what goals you set, and if you accomplish them or not.</p>
  1843. <h2><strong>A lot of people are pursuing too much.</strong></h2>
  1844. <p>One of the main reasons that people don&#8217;t complete their resolutions is that they have ten written down and are pursuing them all at once. Goal chasing never turns out well when done this way. Dream big and take one goal at a time. Once you complete your one goal, then add another one. Trying to pursue too many goals at once decreases focus and prolongs success. Unless you need to work on a goal that requires something of you way in advance, the best thing you could do is to focus on one goal until you see it finished, and then begin chasing another. And if this doesn&#8217;t work, you may need to bring people alongside you to help you find success. Doing this will help save you time, too.</p>
  1845. <p>When you are able to prioritize you goals, and can use the momentum you find in completing one goal at a time, you will systematically complete everything you&#8217;ve ever wanted to. Until then, just keep putting in the work.</p>
  1846. <h3><strong>Now, go and complete your biggest goals, today.</strong></h3>
  1847. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/goals-new-years-resolutions/">#089: Why New Year&#8217;s Resolutions Don&#8217;t Work</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1848. ]]></content:encoded>
  1849. <enclosure length="6759552" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/089-Why-New-Years-Resolutions-Dont-Work.m4a"/>
  1850. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why goals work, but New Year's resolutions don't.</itunes:subtitle>
  1851. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[When the facts tell you that <a href="http://www.statisticbrain.com/new-years-resolution-statistics/">92%</a> of New Year&#8217;s resolutions fail, you know that there&#8217;s a problem. Yet, 45% of Americans look over this fact and spend time thinking up new ones every year. Well, I&#8217;m tired of seeing this happen year after year, so that&#8217;s why episode eighty-nine is on New Year&#8217;s Resolutions. As a life coach I have found that some things work, and other things don&#8217;t, and I want to tell you what I&#8217;ve found.<br />
  1852. So, here are the six top reasons that New Year&#8217;s resolutions don&#8217;t work:<br />
  1853. <br />
  1854. Most people aren&#8217;t very specific.<br />
  1855. The top five New Year&#8217;s resolutions are lose weight, get organized, spend less and save more, enjoy life to the fullest, and staying fit and healthy. As you can see, people aren&#8217;t very specific with their resolutions. This is where goals differ from resolutions. Use <a href="http://asmithblog.com/goals-that-get-results/">SMART goals</a> to help you stay on track in the future, and see the difference that well-thought-out goals differ from writing the first thoughts that come to your mind.<br />
  1856. Most people don&#8217;t find their why.<br />
  1857. You need a reason to why you are pursuing your goals. What&#8217;s the reason behind the reason? Why do you want to lose weight? Why do you want to get more organized? Why do you need to spend less and save more? Why do you want to enjoy life to the fullest? Why do you want to stay fit and healthy? Yes, all of these things would make life easier, but why is that important to you? Your answers to this question should be tied into your goal to remind you why you are pursuing it in the first place, because if you forget the reason, you&#8217;ll likely quit before seeing the finish line.<br />
  1858. There aren&#8217;t many people who have found passion.<br />
  1859. This point ties perfectly into the last point, because once you know your why, you have what you need to begin your pursuit. This is the main reason that only eight percent of people complete their New Year&#8217;s resolutions. These people don&#8217;t know why they want what they want, and so they don&#8217;t have their fuel to push them forward. If your goal is to just go to the gym, you first need to tie it to the facts that it will help you lose weight and keep it off, make you feel better, give you more energy, make your thinking process more effective, relieve stress, better your heart health, extend your day, and will ultimately help you live longer. Now, that&#8217;s something we can all get passionate about.<br />
  1860. There are many people who aren&#8217;t realistic.<br />
  1861. If you want to run a marathon, that&#8217;s great. I do, too. But it would be unrealistic to think that you can go and run a marathon without first being able to run a mile. This podcast episode is centered around health, as it is the top resolution that people have, but each principle here applies to whatever goal you are chasing. If you take anything away from this point, it should be that you need to put the necessary work in before you can expect to see success.<br />
  1862. I wouldn&#8217;t focus on your goal of losing 40 pounds, but I would focus on losing ten. I wouldn&#8217;t fast meals entirely, but I would cut out the foods that will help you lose weight. Remember, we need to look at what you will realistically do here. Again, this is pertaining to your health, but it also applies to other things. I wouldn&#8217;t focus on becoming a millionaire without first paying off all of your debt. I also wouldn&#8217;t focus on getting organized until you get rid of everything you don&#8217;t want first.<br />
  1863. Without preparation you will only come up short on your goals, which leads to bigger amounts of frustration than anyone needs to deal with. When this happens, not finding success seems like failure, but it&#8217;s really a lack of preparation.]]></itunes:summary>
  1864. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1865. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1866. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1867. <itunes:duration>6:56</itunes:duration>
  1868. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1869. <item>
  1870. <title>#088: How to Stop Complacency and Begin Making a Difference</title>
  1871. <link>https://asmithblog.com/complacency/</link>
  1872. <pubDate>Tue, 22 Dec 2015 07:01:20 +0000</pubDate>
  1873. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=21067</guid>
  1874. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="complacent complacency" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-e1450654967157.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how to stop complacency, and begin doing more with their lives.&lt;/p&gt;
  1875. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/complacency/"&gt;#088: How to Stop Complacency and Begin Making a Difference&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1876. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-768x512.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="complacent complacency" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-768x512.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-150x100.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/complacent-e1450654967157.jpg 1200w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1877. <p>This week, I need to talk to you about complacency. Far too often people fall short of their potential due to a lack of drive. People lose focus, they lose their way, and they lose hope. When these things are lost, it is only that individual who can find it again.</p>
  1878. <p>So, how can you make sure that you&#8217;re not being complacent? I have three tips to help you make sure you&#8217;re always moving ahead with the right things in life:</p>
  1879. <p><strong><span id="more-21067"></span></strong></p>
  1880. <h2><strong>First, be mindful that complacency and rest are not the same things. </strong></h2>
  1881. <p>Many times, it is a struggle for people to differentiate between being lazy and getting much needed rest. I wrestle with the popular term &#8220;hustle&#8221; for this very reason. It sounds like a never-ending struggle to me. What ever happened to the term &#8220;hard work&#8221;? Is that not good enough anymore? Maybe it&#8217;s just me&#8230;</p>
  1882. <p>Anyway, people who are always going and never stop long enough to plan, or breathe for that matter, will end up tired and confused in the end. Don&#8217;t ever beat yourself up for needing rest. It&#8217;s essential for brainpower and function.</p>
  1883. <h2><strong>Second, realize that awareness wins.</strong></h2>
  1884. <p><span class="bqQuoteLink">One of my favorite quotes on complacency comes from, Andy Grove. He said, &#8220;Success breeds complacency. Complacency breeds failure. Only the paranoid survive.&#8221; And in a way, he has a point. It&#8217;s easy to stop looking ahead for far too long when success comes, but we must alter our view on success. We should all look at each success as a stepping stone to another. Remember that life consists of a long list of successes, not just one.</span></p>
  1885. <hr /><p><em>Success breeds complacency. Complacency breeds failure. Only the paranoid survive. - Andy Grove</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fcomplacency%2F&#038;text=Success%20breeds%20complacency.%20Complacency%20breeds%20failure.%20Only%20the%20paranoid%20survive.%20-%20Andy%20Grove&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1886. <p><span class="bqQuoteLink">What is it that drives you? Do you need rest? Is this a season that you need to just need to put the work in? Do you need to be planning? Do you need to be dreaming? All of these require tons of work, but when people aren&#8217;t physically moving, they can feel complacent. Of course, becoming paranoid about success and complacency like Grove&#8217;s quote from before is taking it too far, but we must be aware of the marathon that life is. If you treat it as a sprint, you will eventually become exhausted, and that will most likely lead to complacency. To avoid complacency you need to be self-aware and aware of what is needed around you. </span></p>
  1887. <h2><strong>Third, complacency thrives when there is no plan.</strong></h2>
  1888. <p>Complacency loves to come right before you take the first step. Imagine you are at a fork in the road and trying to look at your map so that you know which road to travel. This idea shows how complacency abounds when you either don&#8217;t have a plan, or don&#8217;t know what step to take next within the plan you have already created. Sure, plans will change, but your drive doesn&#8217;t have to diminish. Even when things don&#8217;t go as plan, it&#8217;s imperative that you gather yourself, make a new plan, keep looking ahead, and continue to move forward.</p>
  1889. <p>Complacency will ruin your life if you allow it to, but the decision is all yours. Will you give in, or will you make an attempt? If you never try, you&#8217;ll never know, so you might as well take a step.</p>
  1890. <h3><strong>Now, go and make a difference, today. </strong></h3>
  1891. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/complacency/">#088: How to Stop Complacency and Begin Making a Difference</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1892. ]]></content:encoded>
  1893. <enclosure length="4322515" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/088-How-to-Stop-Complacency-and-Begin-Making-a-Difference.m4a"/>
  1894. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how to stop complacency, and begin doing more with their lives.</itunes:subtitle>
  1895. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[This week, I need to talk to you about complacency. Far too often people fall short of their potential due to a lack of drive. People lose focus, they lose their way, and they lose hope. When these things are lost, it is only that individual who can find it again.<br />
  1896. So, how can you make sure that you&#8217;re not being complacent? I have three tips to help you make sure you&#8217;re always moving ahead with the right things in life:<br />
  1897. <br />
  1898. First, be mindful that complacency and rest are not the same things. <br />
  1899. Many times, it is a struggle for people to differentiate between being lazy and getting much needed rest. I wrestle with the popular term &#8220;hustle&#8221; for this very reason. It sounds like a never-ending struggle to me. What ever happened to the term &#8220;hard work&#8221;? Is that not good enough anymore? Maybe it&#8217;s just me&#8230;<br />
  1900. Anyway, people who are always going and never stop long enough to plan, or breathe for that matter, will end up tired and confused in the end. Don&#8217;t ever beat yourself up for needing rest. It&#8217;s essential for brainpower and function.<br />
  1901. Second, realize that awareness wins.<br />
  1902. One of my favorite quotes on complacency comes from, Andy Grove. He said, &#8220;Success breeds complacency. Complacency breeds failure. Only the paranoid survive.&#8221; And in a way, he has a point. It&#8217;s easy to stop looking ahead for far too long when success comes, but we must alter our view on success. We should all look at each success as a stepping stone to another. Remember that life consists of a long list of successes, not just one.<br />
  1903. What is it that drives you? Do you need rest? Is this a season that you need to just need to put the work in? Do you need to be planning? Do you need to be dreaming? All of these require tons of work, but when people aren&#8217;t physically moving, they can feel complacent. Of course, becoming paranoid about success and complacency like Grove&#8217;s quote from before is taking it too far, but we must be aware of the marathon that life is. If you treat it as a sprint, you will eventually become exhausted, and that will most likely lead to complacency. To avoid complacency you need to be self-aware and aware of what is needed around you. <br />
  1904. Third, complacency thrives when there is no plan.<br />
  1905. Complacency loves to come right before you take the first step. Imagine you are at a fork in the road and trying to look at your map so that you know which road to travel. This idea shows how complacency abounds when you either don&#8217;t have a plan, or don&#8217;t know what step to take next within the plan you have already created. Sure, plans will change, but your drive doesn&#8217;t have to diminish. Even when things don&#8217;t go as plan, it&#8217;s imperative that you gather yourself, make a new plan, keep looking ahead, and continue to move forward.<br />
  1906. Complacency will ruin your life if you allow it to, but the decision is all yours. Will you give in, or will you make an attempt? If you never try, you&#8217;ll never know, so you might as well take a step.<br />
  1907. Now, go and make a difference, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1908. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1909. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1910. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1911. <itunes:duration>4:26</itunes:duration>
  1912. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1913. <item>
  1914. <title>#087: The Best Way for You to Know Which Ideas You Should Pursue</title>
  1915. <link>https://asmithblog.com/ideas/</link>
  1916. <pubDate>Tue, 15 Dec 2015 07:01:03 +0000</pubDate>
  1917. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20863</guid>
  1918. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="418" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-768x418.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="best ideas pursue" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-768x418.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-300x163.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-1024x557.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-150x82.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea.jpg 1276w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how to choose which ideas they should pursue. &lt;/p&gt;
  1919. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/ideas/"&gt;#087: The Best Way for You to Know Which Ideas You Should Pursue&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1920. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="418" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-768x418.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="best ideas pursue" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-768x418.jpg 768w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-300x163.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-1024x557.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea-150x82.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/best-ideas-idea.jpg 1276w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>I recently talked about <a href="http://asmithblog.com/great-ideas/">how to have great ideas</a>, and <a href="http://asmithblog.com/better-products/">how to create better products</a> with those ideas here on the podcast. In those episodes I talked about living life, continually building upon ideas, fascination, building a great team, building something that you will use, and taking your time. But, how do we choose which ideas we should pursue in the first place? Well, it comes down to a three question system that I have created, and here it is:</p>
  1921. <p><strong><span id="more-20863"></span></strong></p>
  1922. <h2><strong>First, what is your experience in?</strong></h2>
  1923. <p>Not only is this question important so that you know what you&#8217;re doing, but it helps you build credibility on a specific topic. The more often you build on a certain idea, or speak about a certain idea, the more knowledge you will gain. And the more research you put in, the more exposure you gain, and the more you learn how to use the idea and how to deal with it, the more you will be known as an expert. I would even suggest that you overshare a topic until people associate you with a product or idea, because it is only at this point that people will know that you have the answers they need in that area. Keep pursuing the same thing over time until you become reputable.</p>
  1924. <h2><strong>Second, which ideas give the most return?</strong></h2>
  1925. <p>I often skip over the topic of return on investment, but it is extremely important. We all have resources to grow, not to hold onto and squander. When you are spending time growing healthy relationships, I hope that you are fully giving yourself, and gaining valuable lessons from people in return. When you invest money into something, I hope that your goal isn&#8217;t to lose money or break even &#8212; it should be to profit. And when you invest time into something, I hope that you find what you are looking for, too.</p>
  1926. <p>So, when I am thinking about the return on an idea, I always look at where these 3 things intersect:</p>
  1927. <ul>
  1928. <li><em>The possible amount of lives changed </em></li>
  1929. <li><em>The shortest amount of time input for the most benefits received </em></li>
  1930. <li><em>The financial profit gained from amount of work</em></li>
  1931. </ul>
  1932. <p>I know your goal isn&#8217;t to use all of your available resources and gain nothing. If this is the case, then you could just go on vacation and not worry about work. Yes, this idea sounds great, but it isn&#8217;t realistic, nor is it very rewarding. When we gain resources from our work, we can then reinvest them into the next best ideas that we have. Until then, let&#8217;s keep looking for a great ROI.</p>
  1933. <h2><strong>Third, what idea(s) can you build more than one product off of? </strong></h2>
  1934. <p>My problem for years was that I kept a blog that couldn&#8217;t be expanded past that. There was no book that I could write to enhance the content, there were no speaking engagements that I could book from it, and there were no online courses that I could possibly create for the content. I built my blog and wasn&#8217;t thinking broader. It was a good run, but I eventually grew tired of the same old thing, and needed to find a way to offer people something more.</p>
  1935. <p>I learned that I shouldn&#8217;t pursue ideas that are so niche that I could only have one idea out of it, and the same idea applies for you. If you want to have a bigger impact, only pursue ideas that are broad enough to write about, speak about, and build a product with. This requires some prior planning on your part, but it will be worth it in the long run. When you think about it now, you won&#8217;t get years into the future and wish you would have done it differently.</p>
  1936. <p>But, the good news is that if you have already chased an idea that you have found to be lackluster, it&#8217;s never too late to start over. Sometimes, it takes more clarity to quit than it does to keep going. Wherever you are in the process, you can use this three question system to pave a better future for you and your ideas.</p>
  1937. <h3><strong>Now, go and pursue the correct ideas, today.</strong></h3>
  1938. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/ideas/">#087: The Best Way for You to Know Which Ideas You Should Pursue</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1939. ]]></content:encoded>
  1940. <enclosure length="4226003" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/087-The-Best-Way-for-You-to-Know-Which-Ideas-You-Should-Pursue.m4a"/>
  1941. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how to choose which ideas they should pursue.</itunes:subtitle>
  1942. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[I recently talked about <a href="http://asmithblog.com/great-ideas/">how to have great ideas</a>, and <a href="http://asmithblog.com/better-products/">how to create better products</a> with those ideas here on the podcast. In those episodes I talked about living life, continually building upon ideas, fascination, building a great team, building something that you will use, and taking your time. But, how do we choose which ideas we should pursue in the first place? Well, it comes down to a three question system that I have created, and here it is:<br />
  1943. <br />
  1944. First, what is your experience in?<br />
  1945. Not only is this question important so that you know what you&#8217;re doing, but it helps you build credibility on a specific topic. The more often you build on a certain idea, or speak about a certain idea, the more knowledge you will gain. And the more research you put in, the more exposure you gain, and the more you learn how to use the idea and how to deal with it, the more you will be known as an expert. I would even suggest that you overshare a topic until people associate you with a product or idea, because it is only at this point that people will know that you have the answers they need in that area. Keep pursuing the same thing over time until you become reputable.<br />
  1946. Second, which ideas give the most return?<br />
  1947. I often skip over the topic of return on investment, but it is extremely important. We all have resources to grow, not to hold onto and squander. When you are spending time growing healthy relationships, I hope that you are fully giving yourself, and gaining valuable lessons from people in return. When you invest money into something, I hope that your goal isn&#8217;t to lose money or break even &#8212; it should be to profit. And when you invest time into something, I hope that you find what you are looking for, too.<br />
  1948. So, when I am thinking about the return on an idea, I always look at where these 3 things intersect:<br />
  1949. <br />
  1950. * The possible amount of lives changed <br />
  1951. * The shortest amount of time input for the most benefits received <br />
  1952. * The financial profit gained from amount of work<br />
  1953. <br />
  1954. I know your goal isn&#8217;t to use all of your available resources and gain nothing. If this is the case, then you could just go on vacation and not worry about work. Yes, this idea sounds great, but it isn&#8217;t realistic, nor is it very rewarding. When we gain resources from our work, we can then reinvest them into the next best ideas that we have. Until then, let&#8217;s keep looking for a great ROI.<br />
  1955. Third, what idea(s) can you build more than one product off of? <br />
  1956. My problem for years was that I kept a blog that couldn&#8217;t be expanded past that. There was no book that I could write to enhance the content, there were no speaking engagements that I could book from it, and there were no online courses that I could possibly create for the content. I built my blog and wasn&#8217;t thinking broader. It was a good run, but I eventually grew tired of the same old thing, and needed to find a way to offer people something more.<br />
  1957. I learned that I shouldn&#8217;t pursue ideas that are so niche that I could only have one idea out of it, and the same idea applies for you. If you want to have a bigger impact, only pursue ideas that are broad enough to write about, speak about, and build a product with. This requires some prior planning on your part, but it will be worth it in the long run. When you think about it now, you won&#8217;t get years into the future and wish you would have done it differently.<br />
  1958. But, the good news is that if you have already chased an idea that you have found to be lackluster, it&#8217;s never too late to start over. Sometimes, it takes more clarity to quit than it does to keep going. Wherever you are in the process, you can use this three question system to pave a better future for you and your ideas.<br />
  1959. Now, go and pursue the correct ideas,]]></itunes:summary>
  1960. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  1961. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  1962. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  1963. <itunes:duration>4:20</itunes:duration>
  1964. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  1965. <item>
  1966. <title>#086: The Best Way to Look at Marketing</title>
  1967. <link>https://asmithblog.com/marketing/</link>
  1968. <pubDate>Tue, 08 Dec 2015 07:01:21 +0000</pubDate>
  1969. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20860</guid>
  1970. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="303" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="marketing" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586.png 1240w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-300x118.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-1024x404.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-150x59.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can become better at marketing, and it's not what you think.&lt;/p&gt;
  1971. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/marketing/"&gt;#086: The Best Way to Look at Marketing&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  1972. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="303" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="marketing" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586.png 1240w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-300x118.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-1024x404.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/marketing-e1449590954586-150x59.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  1973. <p>In 2008, I turned down my first speaking gig for a marketing convention. In 2009, I did the same thing again. Needless to say, I was trying to communicate that I didn&#8217;t want to be a marketer, or even come across as a marketer. In 2013, I was asked to speak at another marketing convention, and in 2014 I was asked to do a keynote on how to make more money online, both of which I turned down, too.</p>
  1974. <p>As far as marketers go, most but not all of them remind me of sleazy car salesmen. Maybe your first thought of marketing goes to the same mental picture, as well. The people that asked me to speak at all of those events expected me to be this same classic marketer, and wanted me to tell people that all they needed to do was x, y, and z, and they would make millions of dollars from it. I knew this is what they wanted, so I graciously declined. But, here&#8217;s the truth about marketing:</p>
  1975. <p><strong><span id="more-20860"></span></strong></p>
  1976. <h2><strong>Everything you do is marketing.</strong></h2>
  1977. <hr /><p><em>Everything you do is marketing.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fmarketing%2F&#038;text=Everything%20you%20do%20is%20marketing.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1978. <p>Marketing then isn&#8217;t just the sale, as in the case of the sleazy car salesman, but it&#8217;s about creating relationship. One can not offer the best product or service until he or she understands their client.</p>
  1979. <p>The classic marketing scene isn&#8217;t my forte, because of my belief that everything someone does is marketing. The way someone talks to others, the way someone writes ad copy, the way someone&#8217;s website appears &#8212; it all culminates to the relationships we create with each other in real life, or online.</p>
  1980. <p>But, even more than all of these things, the number one way that someone can market themselves well is to produce the best product they possibly can. If you have a terrible product, the rest of these things don&#8217;t even matter. Don&#8217;t waste your time. When you focus on your product, word of mouth marketing will do the work for you. People can&#8217;t resist telling other people about a great product that they need to try for themselves.</p>
  1981. <hr /><p><em>The number one way that someone can market themselves well is to produce the best product they possibly can.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fmarketing%2F&#038;text=The%20number%20one%20way%20that%20someone%20can%20market%20themselves%20well%20is%20to%20produce%20the%20best%20product%20they%20possibly%20can.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  1982. <p>If you&#8217;re putting more time, or even the same amount of time into your marketing plan as you have into coming up with your idea or creating your product, then you have a huge problem. Make your product the best it can possibly be, and the rest will be much easier. If it&#8217;s a service that you offer, then make it the best that you can make it. Whatever it is that you are trying to sell, the more time and work you put into it, the better it will be. I wish I had a sexier answer for marketing, but it&#8217;s the only answer that I know will work.</p>
  1983. <p>When you have a terrible product, you end up having to convince people to buy it. When you have a great product, you can&#8217;t wait to tell others about it, because you know they will love it, and it will improve their lives. I want to help people, and I know you do, too.</p>
  1984. <h3><strong>Now, go and become better at marketing, today.</strong></h3>
  1985. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/marketing/">#086: The Best Way to Look at Marketing</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  1986. ]]></content:encoded>
  1987. <enclosure length="3453827" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/086-The-Best-Way-to-Look-at-Marketing.m4a"/>
  1988. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can become better at marketing, and it's not what you think.</itunes:subtitle>
  1989. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[In 2008, I turned down my first speaking gig for a marketing convention. In 2009, I did the same thing again. Needless to say, I was trying to communicate that I didn&#8217;t want to be a marketer, or even come across as a marketer. In 2013, I was asked to speak at another marketing convention, and in 2014 I was asked to do a keynote on how to make more money online, both of which I turned down, too.<br />
  1990. As far as marketers go, most but not all of them remind me of sleazy car salesmen. Maybe your first thought of marketing goes to the same mental picture, as well. The people that asked me to speak at all of those events expected me to be this same classic marketer, and wanted me to tell people that all they needed to do was x, y, and z, and they would make millions of dollars from it. I knew this is what they wanted, so I graciously declined. But, here&#8217;s the truth about marketing:<br />
  1991. <br />
  1992. Everything you do is marketing.<br />
  1993. Marketing then isn&#8217;t just the sale, as in the case of the sleazy car salesman, but it&#8217;s about creating relationship. One can not offer the best product or service until he or she understands their client.<br />
  1994. The classic marketing scene isn&#8217;t my forte, because of my belief that everything someone does is marketing. The way someone talks to others, the way someone writes ad copy, the way someone&#8217;s website appears &#8212; it all culminates to the relationships we create with each other in real life, or online.<br />
  1995. But, even more than all of these things, the number one way that someone can market themselves well is to produce the best product they possibly can. If you have a terrible product, the rest of these things don&#8217;t even matter. Don&#8217;t waste your time. When you focus on your product, word of mouth marketing will do the work for you. People can&#8217;t resist telling other people about a great product that they need to try for themselves.<br />
  1996. If you&#8217;re putting more time, or even the same amount of time into your marketing plan as you have into coming up with your idea or creating your product, then you have a huge problem. Make your product the best it can possibly be, and the rest will be much easier. If it&#8217;s a service that you offer, then make it the best that you can make it. Whatever it is that you are trying to sell, the more time and work you put into it, the better it will be. I wish I had a sexier answer for marketing, but it&#8217;s the only answer that I know will work.<br />
  1997. When you have a terrible product, you end up having to convince people to buy it. When you have a great product, you can&#8217;t wait to tell others about it, because you know they will love it, and it will improve their lives. I want to help people, and I know you do, too.<br />
  1998. Now, go and become better at marketing, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  1999. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2000. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2001. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2002. <itunes:duration>3:33</itunes:duration>
  2003. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2004. <item>
  2005. <title>#085: How to Create Better Products</title>
  2006. <link>https://asmithblog.com/better-products/</link>
  2007. <pubDate>Tue, 01 Dec 2015 07:01:45 +0000</pubDate>
  2008. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20782</guid>
  2009. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/better-products-e1447807386792.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better products" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can create better products with their great ideas. &lt;/p&gt;
  2010. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-products/"&gt;#085: How to Create Better Products&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2011. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/better-products-e1447807386792.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better products" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" />
  2012. <p>Whether you are a writer, an entrepreneur, in management, or any other profession for that matter, at some point you will probably have some direct impact on helping create better products.</p>
  2013. <p>Last week, we discussed how we can have better ideas, but today I want to talk about taking those ideas and forming them into a better product. Why do we need to focus on this? Because the most valuable places in this world are graveyards. This is because each gravestone marks a body in the ground, which represents ideas that never went further than just an idea. I am positive that every individual that has left this earth did so with at least one great idea in their head, but the sad truth is that they did nothing with it. They had something more valuable than money in their possession, and they squandered it. So, how do we prevent this from happening?</p>
  2014. <p><em>Here are four ways you can create better products with your ideas right now:</em></p>
  2015. <p><strong><span id="more-20782"></span></strong></p>
  2016. <h2><strong>Create a great team.</strong></h2>
  2017. <p>Build a team with skills you don&#8217;t already possess, not only to speed up the process, but to make the product the best it can possibly be. I don&#8217;t do web design, not only because I don&#8217;t want to do, but because I am not good at it. I have never taken the time to learn coding, and I don&#8217;t plan on doing so. I&#8217;ve showed my inadequacies in this area many times in the past with my different blogs. I&#8217;m just good enough at design to break something, and then I am forced to scramble to make it work again before people get upset. It&#8217;s very frustrating and time consuming, so I decided long ago that I am best suited for other things. I tell you all of this to show that I know my strengths, and you should to. Know your strengths, build a better team around your strengths, but not with the same strengths, and create better products as a result.</p>
  2018. <h2><strong>Build better products that you need yourself. </strong></h2>
  2019. <p>The conversation centered around what people want and need is a very valuable conversation. Many surveys every year are conducted for this very reason, and companies pay other online companies big bucks to track how consumers use web pages, so they know how to display messages and ads online. It&#8217;s a huge industry, and it&#8217;s great to be ahead of the curve, but what if you don&#8217;t have the resources as a company to conduct these experiments yet? Your best option is to create something for yourself. Stop wondering what other people want and need, and start building something for yourself. Since you are a consumer of goods already, and you already have a basic understanding of what you want and need, maybe the best question to ask is, &#8220;What do I want to use?&#8221; If you began with step number one and already have a team, then maybe the best question is, &#8220;What would this team use on a daily basis?&#8221; As an example, I personally need an app that will tell me exactly where things are located in the grocery store so I can save time, so that&#8217;s where I should start.</p>
  2020. <h2><strong>Take your time. </strong></h2>
  2021. <p>I am cautious of the advice of &#8220;just do it&#8221;, because the more we adopt this slogan for our lives, the more likely we are to take every first product idea that comes our way and run with it. And let me tell you, very rarely is the first idea the best one. When you take your time with building a product, you have a better product in the end. No matter what profession you are in, taking your time can make all the difference in the world.</p>
  2022. <h2><strong>Revolutionize an industry that already exists.</strong></h2>
  2023. <p>Maybe the issue you are experiencing is trying to come up with a completely different category of product. While it would be amazing if you could create a new category, it is much more likely that you can make an already existing product or category better. Think about technology for a minute. How many more great ideas have there been in the area of technology over the past ten years? TVs have a much clearer picture, phones have gotten slimmer and faster, more users are adopting social media as a form of communication because of these mobile devices, and Wifi is available almost everywhere. This being said, it is best to look at a brand new product and try to make that better, rather than one that has been out for years already. When products have been out for quite some time already, most of the problems have already been worked out. When you work on a new product, you can be the one that works out the problems, and in result will produce a better product than before.</p>
  2024. <h3><strong>Now, go and create better products, today. </strong></h3>
  2025. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/better-products/">#085: How to Create Better Products</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2026. ]]></content:encoded>
  2027. <enclosure length="4901625" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/085-How-to-Create-Better-Products.m4a"/>
  2028. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can create better products with their great ideas.</itunes:subtitle>
  2029. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Whether you are a writer, an entrepreneur, in management, or any other profession for that matter, at some point you will probably have some direct impact on helping create better products.<br />
  2030. Last week, we discussed how we can have better ideas, but today I want to talk about taking those ideas and forming them into a better product. Why do we need to focus on this? Because the most valuable places in this world are graveyards. This is because each gravestone marks a body in the ground, which represents ideas that never went further than just an idea. I am positive that every individual that has left this earth did so with at least one great idea in their head, but the sad truth is that they did nothing with it. They had something more valuable than money in their possession, and they squandered it. So, how do we prevent this from happening?<br />
  2031. Here are four ways you can create better products with your ideas right now:<br />
  2032. <br />
  2033. Create a great team.<br />
  2034. Build a team with skills you don&#8217;t already possess, not only to speed up the process, but to make the product the best it can possibly be. I don&#8217;t do web design, not only because I don&#8217;t want to do, but because I am not good at it. I have never taken the time to learn coding, and I don&#8217;t plan on doing so. I&#8217;ve showed my inadequacies in this area many times in the past with my different blogs. I&#8217;m just good enough at design to break something, and then I am forced to scramble to make it work again before people get upset. It&#8217;s very frustrating and time consuming, so I decided long ago that I am best suited for other things. I tell you all of this to show that I know my strengths, and you should to. Know your strengths, build a better team around your strengths, but not with the same strengths, and create better products as a result.<br />
  2035. Build better products that you need yourself. <br />
  2036. The conversation centered around what people want and need is a very valuable conversation. Many surveys every year are conducted for this very reason, and companies pay other online companies big bucks to track how consumers use web pages, so they know how to display messages and ads online. It&#8217;s a huge industry, and it&#8217;s great to be ahead of the curve, but what if you don&#8217;t have the resources as a company to conduct these experiments yet? Your best option is to create something for yourself. Stop wondering what other people want and need, and start building something for yourself. Since you are a consumer of goods already, and you already have a basic understanding of what you want and need, maybe the best question to ask is, &#8220;What do I want to use?&#8221; If you began with step number one and already have a team, then maybe the best question is, &#8220;What would this team use on a daily basis?&#8221; As an example, I personally need an app that will tell me exactly where things are located in the grocery store so I can save time, so that&#8217;s where I should start.<br />
  2037. Take your time. <br />
  2038. I am cautious of the advice of &#8220;just do it&#8221;, because the more we adopt this slogan for our lives, the more likely we are to take every first product idea that comes our way and run with it. And let me tell you, very rarely is the first idea the best one. When you take your time with building a product, you have a better product in the end. No matter what profession you are in, taking your time can make all the difference in the world.<br />
  2039. Revolutionize an industry that already exists.<br />
  2040. Maybe the issue you are experiencing is trying to come up with a completely different category of product. While it would be amazing if you could create a new category, it is much more likely that you can make an already existing product or category better. Think about technology for a minute. How many more great ideas have there been in the area of technology over the past ten years?]]></itunes:summary>
  2041. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2042. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2043. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2044. <itunes:duration>5:02</itunes:duration>
  2045. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2046. <item>
  2047. <title>#084: How to Have Great Ideas</title>
  2048. <link>https://asmithblog.com/great-ideas/</link>
  2049. <pubDate>Tue, 24 Nov 2015 07:01:23 +0000</pubDate>
  2050. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20779</guid>
  2051. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better ideas" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas-150x150.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas-300x300.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can think clearly, enhance the creative process, and have great ideas.&lt;/p&gt;
  2052. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/great-ideas/"&gt;#084: How to Have Great Ideas&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2053. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better ideas" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas-150x150.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/better_ideas-300x300.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2054. <p>There are many great ideas that have been had over time that people gave up on, or forgot about, or just didn&#8217;t feel like working towards. Next week, I&#8217;ll tell you how you can produce better products with your great ideas, but this week I only want to focus on the idea stage. This is where the magic happens. This is where products are given life.</p>
  2055. <p><em>Here are three ways to begin having more great ideas right now:</em></p>
  2056. <p><strong><span id="more-20779"></span></strong></p>
  2057. <h2><strong>Great ideas are produced by living life and then entering the idea phase.</strong></h2>
  2058. <p>We can look at ideas from the past ten years, and see that they are different in many ways. The things that are available to us now comes from being able to put more time into research, more time to think up new ideas, and more time to test our own limits. Your ideas right now will hopefully be better than they were ten years ago. You have had ten more years of experience influencing your ideas &#8212; ten more years of taking action, ten more years of joy, and ten more years of struggle. Living life, and living it to the full, is the best way to have great ideas. If you are having trouble with coming up with new ideas, leave isolation and live more life. It is in every day living that fresh ideas will come, because the best ideas are birthed out of experience.</p>
  2059. <p>The experiences that have happened to you help shape the ideas that you have. Who your ideas are for and what problems your ideas help solve are based on how you see the world. Your personal needs and wants will even help form the direction you take with your life to impact the world. The possibilities are endless, but it is your journey that helps you find your place in the world. The reason that there are so many different ideas is that there are so many people in this world. We are all wired so differently, and that&#8217;s a beautiful thing. What becomes even more remarkable is when people ask the question, &#8220;Who else has the same idea as me?&#8221; When people ask this question and will find other people to join them, ideas become bigger and will spread faster. An even better question to ask is, &#8220;Who has different ideas than me and will collaborate?&#8221; Again, we need to live more life, find more people to join, and produce better ideas to better the world.</p>
  2060. <h2><strong>Great ideas are meant to be built upon.</strong></h2>
  2061. <p>The reason that I give you three or more ideas every post, is that maybe all three ideas won&#8217;t work for you, but most likely, at least one of them will. The other reason that I do this is because one idea is very rarely sufficient on its own. Ideas are meant to be built upon. If an idea comes to you, write it down to capture it, but don&#8217;t consider it your final idea. Your ideas are meant to connect the dots, so others can enjoy your creation. Very rarely are ideas completely original at first, but it is when you piece all of your ideas that fit together into a package where you create an original idea.</p>
  2062. <p>My own practice is to grab two ideas that have one similarity or more, to see how they relate and to see how they&#8217;re different. Once I have have an idea of how they fit together, I take two brand new ideas that are completely different from the first batch, and then find something similar between those two ideas. And at the end, I take the first result and the second result, which are opposite in some way, and then try to connect the dots between the opposites. This is where original ideas are born. I use this practice in my writing, but I learned the concept from the automotive industry. Car makers produce new types of cars given this formula. This is why we see vehicles by companies that look nothing like other cars they have produced in the past.</p>
  2063. <h2><strong>Great ideas require fascination. </strong></h2>
  2064. <p>Yes, the idea process that I just described is a time-consuming process. But, it produces original ideas, so I find that it&#8217;s worth it. At the core of all of this is a fascination for the product you want to produce. You&#8217;ll put the work and time in if you are fascinated. If you are fascinated with it, and stuck with what to do next with your ideas, then the best thing to do sometimes is to work backwards from there. What are the ideas that you think are needed to see production happen? You may find that the process is nothing like you thought it would be, but it at least gets your mind headed in the right direction. Fascination with an idea or product is enough to start working towards your goal.</p>
  2065. <h3><em><strong>Now, go and have more great ideas, today. </strong></em></h3>
  2066. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/great-ideas/">#084: How to Have Great Ideas</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2067. ]]></content:encoded>
  2068. <enclosure length="5070508" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/084-How-to-Have-Great-Ideas.m4a"/>
  2069. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can think clearly, enhance the creative process, and have great ideas.</itunes:subtitle>
  2070. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[There are many great ideas that have been had over time that people gave up on, or forgot about, or just didn&#8217;t feel like working towards. Next week, I&#8217;ll tell you how you can produce better products with your great ideas, but this week I only want to focus on the idea stage. This is where the magic happens. This is where products are given life.<br />
  2071. Here are three ways to begin having more great ideas right now:<br />
  2072. <br />
  2073. Great ideas are produced by living life and then entering the idea phase.<br />
  2074. We can look at ideas from the past ten years, and see that they are different in many ways. The things that are available to us now comes from being able to put more time into research, more time to think up new ideas, and more time to test our own limits. Your ideas right now will hopefully be better than they were ten years ago. You have had ten more years of experience influencing your ideas &#8212; ten more years of taking action, ten more years of joy, and ten more years of struggle. Living life, and living it to the full, is the best way to have great ideas. If you are having trouble with coming up with new ideas, leave isolation and live more life. It is in every day living that fresh ideas will come, because the best ideas are birthed out of experience.<br />
  2075. The experiences that have happened to you help shape the ideas that you have. Who your ideas are for and what problems your ideas help solve are based on how you see the world. Your personal needs and wants will even help form the direction you take with your life to impact the world. The possibilities are endless, but it is your journey that helps you find your place in the world. The reason that there are so many different ideas is that there are so many people in this world. We are all wired so differently, and that&#8217;s a beautiful thing. What becomes even more remarkable is when people ask the question, &#8220;Who else has the same idea as me?&#8221; When people ask this question and will find other people to join them, ideas become bigger and will spread faster. An even better question to ask is, &#8220;Who has different ideas than me and will collaborate?&#8221; Again, we need to live more life, find more people to join, and produce better ideas to better the world.<br />
  2076. Great ideas are meant to be built upon.<br />
  2077. The reason that I give you three or more ideas every post, is that maybe all three ideas won&#8217;t work for you, but most likely, at least one of them will. The other reason that I do this is because one idea is very rarely sufficient on its own. Ideas are meant to be built upon. If an idea comes to you, write it down to capture it, but don&#8217;t consider it your final idea. Your ideas are meant to connect the dots, so others can enjoy your creation. Very rarely are ideas completely original at first, but it is when you piece all of your ideas that fit together into a package where you create an original idea.<br />
  2078. My own practice is to grab two ideas that have one similarity or more, to see how they relate and to see how they&#8217;re different. Once I have have an idea of how they fit together, I take two brand new ideas that are completely different from the first batch, and then find something similar between those two ideas. And at the end, I take the first result and the second result, which are opposite in some way, and then try to connect the dots between the opposites. This is where original ideas are born. I use this practice in my writing, but I learned the concept from the automotive industry. Car makers produce new types of cars given this formula. This is why we see vehicles by companies that look nothing like other cars they have produced in the past.<br />
  2079. Great ideas require fascination. <br />
  2080. Yes, the idea process that I just described is a time-consuming process. But, it produces original ideas, so I find that it&#8217;s worth it. At the core of all of this is a fascination for the product you want t...]]></itunes:summary>
  2081. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2082. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2083. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2084. <itunes:duration>5:12</itunes:duration>
  2085. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2086. <item>
  2087. <title>#083: It’s Time to Fight for What You Want from Life</title>
  2088. <link>https://asmithblog.com/fight/</link>
  2089. <pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2015 07:01:52 +0000</pubDate>
  2090. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20758</guid>
  2091. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="356" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="fight boxing gloves ring" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring.jpg 1080w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-300x139.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-1024x474.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-150x69.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam gives listeners tips on how they can fight for a better life, starting immediately.&lt;/p&gt;
  2092. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/fight/"&gt;#083: It’s Time to Fight for What You Want from Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2093. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="356" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="fight boxing gloves ring" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring.jpg 1080w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-300x139.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-1024x474.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/fight-boxing-gloves-ring-150x69.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2094. <p>Living a great life is hardly ever easy, and most of it seems like a constant fight. That’s why these episodes are so important to listen to. They give a glimpse into some things that I have used personally to find success. No, I’m not even close to having everything figured out, but most people keep wisdom to themselves when they find it. I’m quite the opposite. If I find wisdom, I can’t wait to give it away, in hopes that you will maybe find something valuable that you can apply in your own life. So, if you’ve ever wondered, “Why has Adam and his team produced free content for the past five years?”, the answer is that we care about people. I figure that you are a good enough reason to do all of this, so I continue to provide value.</p>
  2095. <hr /><p><em>Living a great life isn’t easy.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffight%2F&#038;text=Living%20a%20great%20life%20isn%E2%80%99t%20easy.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2096. <p>No matter what issues you’re facing, there&#8217;s an underlying truth applies to all of us — we have to learn how to fight. Things will not happen on their own. I’m sorry to break it to you, but a wish and a prayer is not enough. We need a plan, we need determination, and we need to be willing to put the work in.</p>
  2097. <hr /><p><em>We need a plan, we need determination, and we need to be willing to put the work in.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffight%2F&#038;text=We%20need%20a%20plan%2C%20we%20need%20determination%2C%20and%20we%20need%20to%20be%20willing%20to%20put%20the%20work%20in.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2098. <p>Maybe you are fighting with waking up when you want to, or maybe you are fighting with spending enough time with your family, or maybe you are fighting with what to do with your business or career to make it better, or maybe you are fighting with making time for friends, or maybe you are fighting with what to do with your finances, or maybe you are fighting with the best ways to better your health. Whatever the case may be, there is hope for you. How do I know this? Because, you will never fight for something you don’t truly care about.</p>
  2099. <hr /><p><em>You will never fight for something you don’t truly care about.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffight%2F&#038;text=You%20will%20never%20fight%20for%20something%20you%20don%E2%80%99t%20truly%20care%20about.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2100. <p>The fact that you are fighting with it and wrestling for good change in your life, tells me that at least an ounce of your being wants to become better in your needed area of change. And the best part of this is that striving to become better is the best start to change that you could ever have. Stop beating yourself up for not getting immediate results. It is a process to get to where you want to be, and that’s a beautiful thing. Life is intended to be a journey.</p>
  2101. <p><em>So, here are three ways you can be better prepared to fight for a better life right now:</em></p>
  2102. <p><strong><span id="more-20758"></span></strong></p>
  2103. <h2><b>Surround yourself with people.</b></h2>
  2104. <p>If we were all perfect, we wouldn’t need anyone else in our lives. Life is all about relationship, and when we give ourselves to that idea, we are able to not only strengthen ourselves, but those around us. In the midst of pain, in the midst of rejoicing, life is meant to be lived together. Within our relationships with family, friends, and even our business relationships, we can learn from those around us, and we can impart the wisdom we pick up along the way into the lives of others, as well. Nothing is gained when wisdom is kept to one’s self, but you must first believe in the power of relationship.</p>
  2105. <p><i>Here are twelve tips on how you can begin building more relationships right now:</i></p>
  2106. <ul>
  2107. <li>Become known for having the most open schedule.</li>
  2108. <li>Make it easy for everyone involved.</li>
  2109. <li>Be yourself.</li>
  2110. <li>Find common ground.</li>
  2111. <li>Gather everyone together.</li>
  2112. <li>Give hugs instead of handshakes.</li>
  2113. <li>Listen.</li>
  2114. <li>Keep eye contact.</li>
  2115. <li>Ask better questions.</li>
  2116. <li>Become better at remembering names.</li>
  2117. <li>Be a giver of small gifts.</li>
  2118. <li>Find ways to compliment others.</li>
  2119. </ul>
  2120. <h2><b>Know what it is you are up against.  </b></h2>
  2121. <p>Do you know what you want from life? If you do, that’s great. But, it’s time to not only know what you want from life &#8212; it’s time to take action. Stand tall, fight the good fight, and press forward. Too many times people will just take life as it comes to them, but if you already know what you want from life, there’s no point in standing around. Make a plan for action and go do something amazing. If your biggest fears seem too big to face, it’s time to fight. If it’s a current circumstance you are having to endure, it’s time to fight.</p>
  2122. <hr /><p><em>If your biggest fears seem too big to face, it’s time to fight.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffight%2F&#038;text=If%20your%20biggest%20fears%20seem%20too%20big%20to%20face%2C%20it%E2%80%99s%20time%20to%20fight.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2123. <h2><b>Only go for one thing.</b></h2>
  2124. <p>I used to keep a goal list for everything I wanted to complete in my lifetime, but I easily became overwhelmed with all that I wanted to accomplish. If you’re listening to this podcast or reading my blog, then I know your goal is to live an awesome life, too. This probably means that you have tons of things you want to do in your lifetime, but I don’t want you to focus on all of those things. What I want you to do is to focus on your one top goal, because multi-tasking doesn’t work anyway. Go ahead and write that one thing down and take a look at your goal every single day. Once you complete that one thing, you should then write down your next biggest goal and only focus on it. Continue this process one goal at a time, and before you know it, you’ll have every goal completed. Doing this will increase your focus and keep you fighting. It’s easy to become paralyzed in fear when you have too many goals that you are pursuing at one time, but you can change your approach to goals. Remember, it’s not about the time you have, but it’s more about the focus you use on a daily basis that will help you live life with purpose.</p>
  2125. <h3><b><i>Now, go and fight for a better life, today. </i></b></h3>
  2126. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/fight/">#083: It&#8217;s Time to Fight for What You Want from Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2127. ]]></content:encoded>
  2128. <enclosure length="6035718" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/083-Fight-For-What-You-Want-From-Life.m4a"/>
  2129. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam gives listeners tips on how they can fight for a better life, starting immediately.</itunes:subtitle>
  2130. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Living a great life is hardly ever easy, and most of it seems like a constant fight. That’s why these episodes are so important to listen to. They give a glimpse into some things that I have used personally to find success. No, I’m not even close to having everything figured out, but most people keep wisdom to themselves when they find it. I’m quite the opposite. If I find wisdom, I can’t wait to give it away, in hopes that you will maybe find something valuable that you can apply in your own life. So, if you’ve ever wondered, “Why has Adam and his team produced free content for the past five years?”, the answer is that we care about people. I figure that you are a good enough reason to do all of this, so I continue to provide value.<br />
  2131. No matter what issues you’re facing, there&#8217;s an underlying truth applies to all of us — we have to learn how to fight. Things will not happen on their own. I’m sorry to break it to you, but a wish and a prayer is not enough. We need a plan, we need determination, and we need to be willing to put the work in.<br />
  2132. Maybe you are fighting with waking up when you want to, or maybe you are fighting with spending enough time with your family, or maybe you are fighting with what to do with your business or career to make it better, or maybe you are fighting with making time for friends, or maybe you are fighting with what to do with your finances, or maybe you are fighting with the best ways to better your health. Whatever the case may be, there is hope for you. How do I know this? Because, you will never fight for something you don’t truly care about.<br />
  2133. The fact that you are fighting with it and wrestling for good change in your life, tells me that at least an ounce of your being wants to become better in your needed area of change. And the best part of this is that striving to become better is the best start to change that you could ever have. Stop beating yourself up for not getting immediate results. It is a process to get to where you want to be, and that’s a beautiful thing. Life is intended to be a journey.<br />
  2134. So, here are three ways you can be better prepared to fight for a better life right now:<br />
  2135. <br />
  2136. Surround yourself with people.<br />
  2137. If we were all perfect, we wouldn’t need anyone else in our lives. Life is all about relationship, and when we give ourselves to that idea, we are able to not only strengthen ourselves, but those around us. In the midst of pain, in the midst of rejoicing, life is meant to be lived together. Within our relationships with family, friends, and even our business relationships, we can learn from those around us, and we can impart the wisdom we pick up along the way into the lives of others, as well. Nothing is gained when wisdom is kept to one’s self, but you must first believe in the power of relationship.<br />
  2138. Here are twelve tips on how you can begin building more relationships right now:<br />
  2139. <br />
  2140. * Become known for having the most open schedule.<br />
  2141. * Make it easy for everyone involved.<br />
  2142. * Be yourself.<br />
  2143. * Find common ground.<br />
  2144. * Gather everyone together.<br />
  2145. * Give hugs instead of handshakes.<br />
  2146. * Listen.<br />
  2147. * Keep eye contact.<br />
  2148. * Ask better questions.<br />
  2149. * Become better at remembering names.<br />
  2150. * Be a giver of small gifts.<br />
  2151. * Find ways to compliment others.<br />
  2152. <br />
  2153. Know what it is you are up against.  <br />
  2154. Do you know what you want from life? If you do, that’s great. But, it’s time to not only know what you want from life &#8212; it’s time to take action. Stand tall, fight the good fight, and press forward. Too many times people will just take life as it comes to them, but if you already know what you want from life, there’s no point in standing around. Make a plan for action and go do something amazing. If your biggest fears seem too big to face, it’s time to fight. If it’s a current circumstance you are having to endure, it’s time to fight.<br />
  2155. Only go for one thing.<br />
  2156. ]]></itunes:summary>
  2157. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2158. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2159. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2160. <itunes:duration>6:12</itunes:duration>
  2161. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2162. <item>
  2163. <title>#082: “Just Do It” Is Terrible Advice Without Preparation</title>
  2164. <link>https://asmithblog.com/terrible-advice/</link>
  2165. <pubDate>Tue, 10 Nov 2015 07:01:14 +0000</pubDate>
  2166. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20497</guid>
  2167. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="just do it terrible advice" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why "just do it" is terrible advice.&lt;/p&gt;
  2168. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/terrible-advice/"&gt;#082: “Just Do It” Is Terrible Advice Without Preparation&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2169. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="just do it terrible advice" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/just-do-it-terrible-advice-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2170. <p>God gave us brains for a reason. This being said, &#8220;Just do it&#8221; is terrible advice, when there has been no preparation put into the &#8220;it&#8221;. I never want to confuse people, so after I wrote the phrase &#8220;If you keep waiting for the perfect time to begin, you’ll be waiting for a very long time&#8221; on my social media accounts the other day, I knew that I needed to give you more context. Please know that everything in life is a process, and that while there is no better time to begin than now, you shouldn&#8217;t be taking one giant leap towards your goal. &#8220;Rome wasn&#8217;t built in a day&#8221; is truth, not just some saying that sounds good. It truly is dedication to your journey, paired with persevereance to push you through difficulty along the way that makes you stronger, wiser, and better in the end.</p>
  2171. <p>You cannot just go and start a business without any prior training in a specific field and expect to succeed. In fact, you can apply this principle to anything you want to do. To &#8220;just do it&#8221; and throw tons of money into a business, or a project without knowing what you are doing is both dumb and irresponsible. So, here are four ways you can wisely achieve your end goals, while experiencing less frustration along the way:</p>
  2172. <p><strong><span id="more-20497"></span></strong></p>
  2173. <h2><strong>Make A Plan</strong></h2>
  2174. <p>I will always go back to the need for this great advice. It&#8217;s never simple to construct a good plan, but it&#8217;s always worth the time. Planning allows you to dream, it allows you to form your future, and it helps you see your full potential. It&#8217;s fun to imagine what life can be with a little bit of imagination and a lot of work. Following a plan is even more difficult than constructing it, but the only way to reap benefits is to put forth effort. Make a plan, execute it, and enjoy the reward. And if things don&#8217;t work out as planned &#8212; which sometimes they don&#8217;t &#8212; there&#8217;s always plan b.</p>
  2175. <p>Ten years ago, I wrote down my top goal in life, and it just so happens that I&#8217;m working on the dream right now. Knowing what I wanted to do ten years ago allowed me to consistently work at becoming better, which brings me to my second tip &#8212; take baby steps.</p>
  2176. <h2><strong>Take Baby Steps</strong></h2>
  2177. <p>If something isn&#8217;t working, then it&#8217;s probably because you missed a step along the way, and need to take the time to evaluate the situation at hand, before you continue to move forward. The advice of &#8220;just do it&#8221; makes you want to have your dreams right away, but life just doesn&#8217;t work this way. Honestly, the process is the most enjoyable part. It&#8217;s where you make mistakes, it&#8217;s where you learn from the mess that life is, it&#8217;s where you impact people along the way, and it&#8217;s where you realize just how far you&#8217;ve come. The journey is necessary to prepare you for your even brighter future. You just have to be willing to find patience, determination, and discipline. The question is, are you willing to put the time in?</p>
  2178. <h2><strong>Build Security for the Future</strong></h2>
  2179. <p>What this brings to mind in my own journey is that I&#8217;ve built a business while owning another, more secure business to bring in other income. It is what has proven to work in my own life, and I would recommend it to others as well. Sure, it&#8217;s a lot of work, but such is life. People need to stop trying to escape work, and instead embrace it, for it is the time and effort we put in our work that can strengthen our desire to see success.</p>
  2180. <p>There is no need to put things in jeopardy of collapsing, when it may only take another year or two to see your dreams come true. What you need is more patience, not more achievements. What people have lost sight of is the need to enjoy life along the journey that is life. When people lose sight of this truth, the road to their dreams becomes miserable, not enjoyable. And if you can&#8217;t enjoy the pursuit of the things that you want most out of life, then what can you enjoy?</p>
  2181. <h2><strong>Soak Up Wisdom In Any Way You Can</strong></h2>
  2182. <p>Along the way, one of our first responses should be to learn from anything and everything we possibly can. Whether you like to read web articles, sit down with mentors, network with others in your field, talk to people who you consider to be wise, watch videos on YouTube, or listen to podcasts, there are so many ways that you can learn what you need to know. It is so important to make the time to increase knowledge while you are pursuing your &#8220;it&#8221;. Don&#8217;t become so immersed in the work, that you forget to learn along the way. And as John Wooden said, &#8220;When an opportunity presents itself, it is too late to prepare.&#8221; Prepare now, and use what you have learned from your experiences in the future.</p>
  2183. <h3><strong>Now, go and prepare for your future, today.</strong></h3>
  2184. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/terrible-advice/">#082: &#8220;Just Do It&#8221; Is Terrible Advice Without Preparation</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2185. ]]></content:encoded>
  2186. <enclosure length="5263553" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/082-Just-Do-It-Is-Terrible-Advice-Without-Preparation.m4a"/>
  2187. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why "just do it" is terrible advice.</itunes:subtitle>
  2188. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[God gave us brains for a reason. This being said, &#8220;Just do it&#8221; is terrible advice, when there has been no preparation put into the &#8220;it&#8221;. I never want to confuse people, so after I wrote the phrase &#8220;If you keep waiting for the perfect time to begin, you’ll be waiting for a very long time&#8221; on my social media accounts the other day, I knew that I needed to give you more context. Please know that everything in life is a process, and that while there is no better time to begin than now, you shouldn&#8217;t be taking one giant leap towards your goal. &#8220;Rome wasn&#8217;t built in a day&#8221; is truth, not just some saying that sounds good. It truly is dedication to your journey, paired with persevereance to push you through difficulty along the way that makes you stronger, wiser, and better in the end.<br />
  2189. You cannot just go and start a business without any prior training in a specific field and expect to succeed. In fact, you can apply this principle to anything you want to do. To &#8220;just do it&#8221; and throw tons of money into a business, or a project without knowing what you are doing is both dumb and irresponsible. So, here are four ways you can wisely achieve your end goals, while experiencing less frustration along the way:<br />
  2190. <br />
  2191. Make A Plan<br />
  2192. I will always go back to the need for this great advice. It&#8217;s never simple to construct a good plan, but it&#8217;s always worth the time. Planning allows you to dream, it allows you to form your future, and it helps you see your full potential. It&#8217;s fun to imagine what life can be with a little bit of imagination and a lot of work. Following a plan is even more difficult than constructing it, but the only way to reap benefits is to put forth effort. Make a plan, execute it, and enjoy the reward. And if things don&#8217;t work out as planned &#8212; which sometimes they don&#8217;t &#8212; there&#8217;s always plan b.<br />
  2193. Ten years ago, I wrote down my top goal in life, and it just so happens that I&#8217;m working on the dream right now. Knowing what I wanted to do ten years ago allowed me to consistently work at becoming better, which brings me to my second tip &#8212; take baby steps.<br />
  2194. Take Baby Steps<br />
  2195. If something isn&#8217;t working, then it&#8217;s probably because you missed a step along the way, and need to take the time to evaluate the situation at hand, before you continue to move forward. The advice of &#8220;just do it&#8221; makes you want to have your dreams right away, but life just doesn&#8217;t work this way. Honestly, the process is the most enjoyable part. It&#8217;s where you make mistakes, it&#8217;s where you learn from the mess that life is, it&#8217;s where you impact people along the way, and it&#8217;s where you realize just how far you&#8217;ve come. The journey is necessary to prepare you for your even brighter future. You just have to be willing to find patience, determination, and discipline. The question is, are you willing to put the time in?<br />
  2196. Build Security for the Future<br />
  2197. What this brings to mind in my own journey is that I&#8217;ve built a business while owning another, more secure business to bring in other income. It is what has proven to work in my own life, and I would recommend it to others as well. Sure, it&#8217;s a lot of work, but such is life. People need to stop trying to escape work, and instead embrace it, for it is the time and effort we put in our work that can strengthen our desire to see success.<br />
  2198. There is no need to put things in jeopardy of collapsing, when it may only take another year or two to see your dreams come true. What you need is more patience, not more achievements. What people have lost sight of is the need to enjoy life along the journey that is life. When people lose sight of this truth, the road to their dreams becomes miserable, not enjoyable. And if you can&#8217;t enjoy the pursuit of the things that you want most ou...]]></itunes:summary>
  2199. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2200. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2201. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2202. <itunes:duration>5:24</itunes:duration>
  2203. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2204. <item>
  2205. <title>#081: People Don’t Always Need Your Opinion In Conversation</title>
  2206. <link>https://asmithblog.com/opinion/</link>
  2207. <pubDate>Tue, 03 Nov 2015 07:01:21 +0000</pubDate>
  2208. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20488</guid>
  2209. <description>&lt;img width="670" height="636" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="opinion" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion.jpg 670w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion-300x285.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion-150x142.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 670px) 100vw, 670px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why people don't always need your opinion, but they do need you to listen. &lt;/p&gt;
  2210. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/opinion/"&gt;#081: People Don’t Always Need Your Opinion In Conversation&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2211. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="670" height="636" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="opinion" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion.jpg 670w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion-300x285.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/opinion-150x142.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 670px) 100vw, 670px" />
  2212. <p>We are all unique and that is a beautiful thing. Some are more introverted, who like to keep to themselves in most instances, and lose energy from being around other people. Then there are extroverts, who are energized by being around other people and talking to them. Extroverts, of course, are more outspoken, and can tend to rule most conversations. For those of you who don&#8217;t quite fit into either of these two classic categories, then there are <a href="http://www.scienceofpeople.com/2014/12/ambivert-extrovert-introvert/">ambiverts</a> &#8212; people who exhibit qualities of both introversion and extroversion.</p>
  2213. <p>Some people will give introverts a hard time, because they don&#8217;t say enough. And some will give extroverts a hard time, because they say too much. Yes, depending on which category you fall into has a lot to do with how you handle yourself in conversation, but it has nothing to do with common sense and courtesy. And no matter which category you fall into, when people come to talk to you about something, it doesn&#8217;t mean they always want or need your opinion. Too often, people forget the power found in listening.</p>
  2214. <p>With becoming better communicators, it is important to not only focus on what we say, and how we say it, but we all need to become better listeners, too. Here are three ways to know if you are better at listening first or giving your opinion too soon:</p>
  2215. <p><strong><span id="more-20488"></span></strong></p>
  2216. <h2><b>Is your first response to speak or to listen?</b></h2>
  2217. <p>Knowing the answer to this question will tell you whether you lean towards giving your opinion first, or if your first response is to listen to the needs of others. An example of this in my own life was when I had a friend who came to me because he was having trouble in every area of life. He was going through a very rough season, and just needed someone to talk to. I was fortunate enough to see this as an opportunity to just listen, so I sat there on the phone for an hour and fifteen minutes listening to my friend on the other side of the phone spilling his guts out for me to listen to. You know what would have really messed this opportunity up? If I would have interjected at some point along the way. The conversation went where it was supposed to go. If I would have stopped him along the way, I would have been selfish in controlling the conversation and forcing it to go where I wanted it to go. If you don&#8217;t listen, what you say won&#8217;t make any sense to the other person.</p>
  2218. <p>But, you want to know what happened at the end of the conversation? He asked me what he should do. That&#8217;s right. I waited my turn. It didn&#8217;t take me forcing my opinion on him, but he asked for advice when <i>he</i> was ready to hear what I would have to say. Too often people interject their own needs into a conversation, without ever considering what the other person needs. Advice said at the wrong time falls on deaf ears, which doesn’t help anyone. In most cases, people will ask you for your opinion if they really want it. If they don&#8217;t ask for it, they will ask someone else, figure it out for themselves, or read advice in a book or online from a respected source.</p>
  2219. <p>I promise that you don’t have to have all the answers, nor should you put that sort of pressure on yourself. People need friends who will just be there for them, and just being this person for others is enough. Sometimes, the need for human interaction just needs another person to listen, and that&#8217;s okay.</p>
  2220. <h2><b>Do people come to you for advice?</b></h2>
  2221. <p>If someone has communicated that they are coming to you for advice, then by all means, give it. But, it is very different if someone is just coming to you to talk. This is where two-way communication and listening to see what other people need from you is important.</p>
  2222. <p>If people repeatedly come to you for advice, then it is probably a good sign that you are great at both giving advice and listening. You see, the two go hand in hand. One cannot give great advice without first listening to the needs of others. We can all say words without giving them much thought, but it takes a great listener to give heartfelt advice. That’s the mark of someone who loves people, and also understands what people need.</p>
  2223. <h2><b>Are you known as someone who talks too much?</b></h2>
  2224. <p>Although I would call myself a writer who speaks, rather than the other way around, people still come to me for advice on public speaking. Although I haven’t had much practice at public speaking as of late, I do believe it is important for anyone who wants to impact people to develop this craft in one way or another.</p>
  2225. <p>[Sidenote: I haven’t booked any speaking engagements lately for two reasons. First, because I have been focusing nonstop on writing. And second, because I promised Jasmine that I wouldn’t travel until our son Nolan turned one, which is this month. We have a four-year-old and a one-year-old, which is absolutely bonkers! This being said, I plan on next year being full of speaking engagements, and I can’t wait for you to hear some new ideas I have been working on.]</p>
  2226. <p>Anyway, I believe the reason that people want to get better at public speaking is because they often look at being able to speak in public as the most important form of communication. While I do believe speaking is an important form of communication, being out in front of people delivering your opinion on things is a very one-sided form of communication. Yes, to become really good at public speaking you have to be in touch with your audience and know what they need from you, but getting feedback from them after speaking is a much more difficult task. In other words, to be a great communicator, you cannot be all talk. At some point, you must look at all facets of communication, including the power found in listening.</p>
  2227. <p>We were told as kids that talking too much in school would get us in trouble, and this advice remains true today. The trouble found in not listening is that people will not want to be around you for too long if you never let others get a word in. I have found in my lifetime that there a lot of people who like to hear themselves talk. The problem with keeping relationships one-sided is that it keeps deep relationships from happening.</p>
  2228. <p>A rule that I have applied in my life to listening versus speaking is the 60/40 rule, and filling in the gaps in conversation when needed. Of course each situation is different, but listening 60% of the time and speaking 40% of the time is a great rule for everyone to adopt, because it allows individuals to give their full attention to others. And there’s never anything wrong with making others feel special by giving eye contact, a full heart, and actually taking the time to listen to them. Listening is just another great way to impact more people with your life.</p>
  2229. <h3><b><i>Now, go and listen to others, today.</i></b></h3>
  2230. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/opinion/">#081: People Don&#8217;t Always Need Your Opinion In Conversation</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2231. ]]></content:encoded>
  2232. <enclosure length="6880246" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/081-People-Dont-Always-Need-Your-Opinion-In-Conversation.m4a"/>
  2233. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why people don't always need your opinion, but they do need you to listen.</itunes:subtitle>
  2234. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We are all unique and that is a beautiful thing. Some are more introverted, who like to keep to themselves in most instances, and lose energy from being around other people. Then there are extroverts, who are energized by being around other people and talking to them. Extroverts, of course, are more outspoken, and can tend to rule most conversations. For those of you who don&#8217;t quite fit into either of these two classic categories, then there are <a href="http://www.scienceofpeople.com/2014/12/ambivert-extrovert-introvert/">ambiverts</a> &#8212; people who exhibit qualities of both introversion and extroversion.<br />
  2235. Some people will give introverts a hard time, because they don&#8217;t say enough. And some will give extroverts a hard time, because they say too much. Yes, depending on which category you fall into has a lot to do with how you handle yourself in conversation, but it has nothing to do with common sense and courtesy. And no matter which category you fall into, when people come to talk to you about something, it doesn&#8217;t mean they always want or need your opinion. Too often, people forget the power found in listening.<br />
  2236. With becoming better communicators, it is important to not only focus on what we say, and how we say it, but we all need to become better listeners, too. Here are three ways to know if you are better at listening first or giving your opinion too soon:<br />
  2237. <br />
  2238. Is your first response to speak or to listen?<br />
  2239. Knowing the answer to this question will tell you whether you lean towards giving your opinion first, or if your first response is to listen to the needs of others. An example of this in my own life was when I had a friend who came to me because he was having trouble in every area of life. He was going through a very rough season, and just needed someone to talk to. I was fortunate enough to see this as an opportunity to just listen, so I sat there on the phone for an hour and fifteen minutes listening to my friend on the other side of the phone spilling his guts out for me to listen to. You know what would have really messed this opportunity up? If I would have interjected at some point along the way. The conversation went where it was supposed to go. If I would have stopped him along the way, I would have been selfish in controlling the conversation and forcing it to go where I wanted it to go. If you don&#8217;t listen, what you say won&#8217;t make any sense to the other person.<br />
  2240. But, you want to know what happened at the end of the conversation? He asked me what he should do. That&#8217;s right. I waited my turn. It didn&#8217;t take me forcing my opinion on him, but he asked for advice when he was ready to hear what I would have to say. Too often people interject their own needs into a conversation, without ever considering what the other person needs. Advice said at the wrong time falls on deaf ears, which doesn’t help anyone. In most cases, people will ask you for your opinion if they really want it. If they don&#8217;t ask for it, they will ask someone else, figure it out for themselves, or read advice in a book or online from a respected source.<br />
  2241. I promise that you don’t have to have all the answers, nor should you put that sort of pressure on yourself. People need friends who will just be there for them, and just being this person for others is enough. Sometimes, the need for human interaction just needs another person to listen, and that&#8217;s okay.<br />
  2242. Do people come to you for advice?<br />
  2243. If someone has communicated that they are coming to you for advice, then by all means, give it. But, it is very different if someone is just coming to you to talk. This is where two-way communication and listening to see what other people need from you is important.<br />
  2244. If people repeatedly come to you for advice, then it is probably a good sign that you are great at both giving advice and listening. You see, the two go hand in hand.]]></itunes:summary>
  2245. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2246. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2247. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2248. <itunes:duration>7:04</itunes:duration>
  2249. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2250. <item>
  2251. <title>#080: Credibility Is Necessary for Leaders</title>
  2252. <link>https://asmithblog.com/credibility/</link>
  2253. <pubDate>Tue, 27 Oct 2015 06:01:31 +0000</pubDate>
  2254. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20484</guid>
  2255. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/credibility-leadership-e1445887321311.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="credibility" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why building credibility is so important. &lt;/p&gt;
  2256. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/credibility/"&gt;#080: Credibility Is Necessary for Leaders&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2257. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/credibility-leadership-e1445887321311.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="credibility" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" />
  2258. <p>About two months ago, I had a phone conversation with an editor friend of mine that I will probably never forget. She kept asking questions about me that she wanted lengthier answers to. Whatever I would say about myself, it just wasn’t enough, and as a result, she would then dig deeper. The issue was that I typically let my work speak for itself, and don’t usually care to ramble about my accomplishments. She finally said, “Adam, you have to learn how to talk about yourself more. People want and need to know more about your work, and you need to give that to them.” I simply replied, “I know”, and I began talking about something else to divert attention to a different topic. The truth is that I have never felt very comfortable talking about myself for extended periods of time in a conversation, as I have always been afraid that it would come off arrogant, or as bragging, or as overconfident.</p>
  2259. <p>The phone conversation that day got me thinking about the online world as we know it. Everyone is trying to sell something, everyone has something to say, and everyone wants our attention. There is much more junk on the internet than there are diamonds, or even diamonds in the rough for that matter, so we are forced to wade through all the junk to find the gems. Giving people unbridled accessibility to their very own platform has created this madness. This is why it is so important to find our audience, and to build trust with them. And a great way to start building trust is to repeatedly produce great work. Don&#8217;t become known for producing junk. When those who have found belief in the message you are sharing, they will share the information you need delivered, both online and by word of mouth in real life. Yes, producing credibility with your team, or audience, extends your reach even further.</p>
  2260. <hr /><p><em>A great way to start building trust is to repeatedly produce amazing work.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fcredibility%2F&#038;text=A%20great%20way%20to%20start%20building%20trust%20is%20to%20repeatedly%20produce%20amazing%20work.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2261. <p><strong><span id="more-20484"></span></strong></p>
  2262. <p>Just about the worst thing we could do then is to squander opportunities to impact people with actual important things to say, and product that can seriously help people live better lives. The more unimportant information that you share, the more noise that is contributed to the already noisy world, and the less long-term attention that is earned. So, how can we effectively communicate as leaders online? How can we be more confident in telling others about ourselves and our brand?</p>
  2263. <hr /><p><em>Live with purpose, share important information, and put in the work.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fcredibility%2F&#038;text=Live%20with%20purpose%2C%20share%20important%20information%2C%20and%20put%20in%20the%20work.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2264. <p>If you do all of these things, then I can guarantee you that you will build your audience. As someone who runs an online business, communicating with you — my audience — is extremely important. It’s what creates more opportunities and supplies more resources for me to reach more people. And I’m guessing that if you are listening to this or reading this, then you are at least remotely interested in what I have to say.</p>
  2265. <p>We can all start with viewing people who share information with us online as individuals who are trying to build credibility, not as people who are trying to show off. Many times, I can base my assumptions off of previous encounters with people who have ruined my perspective of even new individuals I come in contact with, which isn’t fair to anyone.</p>
  2266. <hr /><p><em>Not everyone is the same — I can promise that.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fcredibility%2F&#038;text=Not%20everyone%20is%20the%20same%20%E2%80%94%20I%20can%20promise%20that.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2267. <p>I remember reading a leadership book one time that said credibility is the foundation of leadership, and it makes a lot of sense. If people don’t believe in you, then they will never be able to believe in your message. For people to follow, they must know that they can trust you, and to do so, they need to know who you truly are. Both the good and the bad — people need all aspects to be able to build real relationship.</p>
  2268. <hr /><p><em>Credibility is the foundation of leadership.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fcredibility%2F&#038;text=Credibility%20is%20the%20foundation%20of%20leadership.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2269. <p><em>So, here are six specific areas to focus on to produce more credibility in your own life:</em></p>
  2270. <ul>
  2271. <li>It begins with your character.</li>
  2272. <li>Realize that you don&#8217;t know everything. In doing this, you will find what you do know and focus on those things. Doing this will increase your expertise in your specific field of study and work.</li>
  2273. <li>Practice, practice, practice.</li>
  2274. <li>Go the extra mile and over-deliver.</li>
  2275. <li>Be who you are, and stop trying to be like someone else.</li>
  2276. <li>Be completely honest.</li>
  2277. </ul>
  2278. <h3><strong><em>Of course, building credibility and trust with people takes time, but there&#8217;s no better time to begin than right now. Now, let’s all go and build credibility, today.</em></strong></h3>
  2279. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/credibility/">#080: Credibility Is Necessary for Leaders</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2280. ]]></content:encoded>
  2281. <enclosure length="5697913" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/080-Credibility-Is-Necessary-for-Leaders.m4a"/>
  2282. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why building credibility is so important.</itunes:subtitle>
  2283. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[About two months ago, I had a phone conversation with an editor friend of mine that I will probably never forget. She kept asking questions about me that she wanted lengthier answers to. Whatever I would say about myself, it just wasn’t enough, and as a result, she would then dig deeper. The issue was that I typically let my work speak for itself, and don’t usually care to ramble about my accomplishments. She finally said, “Adam, you have to learn how to talk about yourself more. People want and need to know more about your work, and you need to give that to them.” I simply replied, “I know”, and I began talking about something else to divert attention to a different topic. The truth is that I have never felt very comfortable talking about myself for extended periods of time in a conversation, as I have always been afraid that it would come off arrogant, or as bragging, or as overconfident.<br />
  2284. The phone conversation that day got me thinking about the online world as we know it. Everyone is trying to sell something, everyone has something to say, and everyone wants our attention. There is much more junk on the internet than there are diamonds, or even diamonds in the rough for that matter, so we are forced to wade through all the junk to find the gems. Giving people unbridled accessibility to their very own platform has created this madness. This is why it is so important to find our audience, and to build trust with them. And a great way to start building trust is to repeatedly produce great work. Don&#8217;t become known for producing junk. When those who have found belief in the message you are sharing, they will share the information you need delivered, both online and by word of mouth in real life. Yes, producing credibility with your team, or audience, extends your reach even further.<br />
  2285. <br />
  2286. Just about the worst thing we could do then is to squander opportunities to impact people with actual important things to say, and product that can seriously help people live better lives. The more unimportant information that you share, the more noise that is contributed to the already noisy world, and the less long-term attention that is earned. So, how can we effectively communicate as leaders online? How can we be more confident in telling others about ourselves and our brand?<br />
  2287. If you do all of these things, then I can guarantee you that you will build your audience. As someone who runs an online business, communicating with you — my audience — is extremely important. It’s what creates more opportunities and supplies more resources for me to reach more people. And I’m guessing that if you are listening to this or reading this, then you are at least remotely interested in what I have to say.<br />
  2288. We can all start with viewing people who share information with us online as individuals who are trying to build credibility, not as people who are trying to show off. Many times, I can base my assumptions off of previous encounters with people who have ruined my perspective of even new individuals I come in contact with, which isn’t fair to anyone.<br />
  2289. I remember reading a leadership book one time that said credibility is the foundation of leadership, and it makes a lot of sense. If people don’t believe in you, then they will never be able to believe in your message. For people to follow, they must know that they can trust you, and to do so, they need to know who you truly are. Both the good and the bad — people need all aspects to be able to build real relationship.<br />
  2290. So, here are six specific areas to focus on to produce more credibility in your own life:<br />
  2291. <br />
  2292. * It begins with your character.<br />
  2293. * Realize that you don&#8217;t know everything. In doing this, you will find what you do know and focus on those things. Doing this will increase your expertise in your specific field of study and work.<br />
  2294. * Practice, practice, practice.<br />
  2295. * Go the extra mile and over-deliver.<br />
  2296. * Be who you are,]]></itunes:summary>
  2297. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2298. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2299. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2300. <itunes:duration>5:51</itunes:duration>
  2301. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2302. <item>
  2303. <title>#079: You Should Be Measuring Your Amount of Focus, Not Your Amount of Time</title>
  2304. <link>https://asmithblog.com/focus-time/</link>
  2305. <pubDate>Tue, 20 Oct 2015 06:01:10 +0000</pubDate>
  2306. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20394</guid>
  2307. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="543" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="amount of focus" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus.jpg 1000w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus-300x212.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus-150x106.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses why you should begin measuring your amount of focus, not the amount of time you have. &lt;/p&gt;
  2308. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/focus-time/"&gt;#079: You Should Be Measuring Your Amount of Focus, Not Your Amount of Time&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2309. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="543" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="amount of focus" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus.jpg 1000w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus-300x212.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/focus-150x106.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2310. <p><em>&#8220;Life is just too hectic every single day.&#8221;</em> Does this sound like something you&#8217;ve said about your life? If it does, then I have something different for you to try. I know you have tried managing your time better, because that is our first response to feeling that there isn&#8217;t enough time in a day, but have you given any thought to increasing your capacity? What could you do if you had more focus? Could you handle your amount of focus better than the amount of time you have in your current season of life?</p>
  2311. <div>
  2312. <p>Too many times, people focus on the fact that they have so little time left in the day to accomplish what they want to after meeting all of their necessities. This amount of time may be thirty minutes, one hour, four hours, or anything in-between, but the <a href="http://asmithblog.com/most-important/">most important</a> thing to remember is that it isn’t about how much time you have in your day, but it&#8217;s what you do with it that counts. This means that whatever amount of time you have in your day to work on the most important things in life, it is more about the amount of focus you put into it, rather than the amount of time you have. When we are able to find our best focus we can do more with one hour than most can do with four. We all know people who seem to be able to accomplish more with their time than anyone else. Focus, not time, is the one thing that those same people understand more than anyone else. Focus increases productivity, which leads to better time management. When I began to see how managing focus rather than time worked in my own life, I began accomplishing more than ever before, and it can do the same for you.</p>
  2313. <hr /><p><em>People should be measuring their amount of focus, not their time. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=People%20should%20be%20measuring%20their%20amount%20of%20focus%2C%20not%20their%20time.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2314. <p>Very rarely are any of us able to increase the amount of time we have in a day, but we have all tried to find more of it. Instead of heightening our focus, we try to add time so we can take longer to do tasks that should take days, not weeks. This, of course, is procrastination. Putting things off until the last second then is not a time issue, but an issue with focus. And the first place to look at when needing to increase focus is the amount of things we have going on in our lives.</p>
  2315. <p><em>Is your plate too full?</em></p>
  2316. <p>As our lives continue, we tend to add more things. It&#8217;s only natural. But, the one thing we tend to forget is the need to quit things. For many of us, the easy thing to do is to add, but the much more difficult task is to quit. Never forget the need for both as you strive to live a balanced life.</p>
  2317. <p>So, now that you understand the need for adding more to you life, while quitting things along the way, you are now ready to understand how you can apply a larger amount of focus to your own life. I have already done podcasts about the importance of getting the correct amounts of sleep for your individual needs, exercising, eating the right foods, and quitting the right things, but maybe you have tried all of these things and need something more to work with. If things just aren’t working the way you want them to in the area of time management, the issue may be that you aren&#8217;t asking the right questions yet.</p>
  2318. <p><em>Here are the four questions you need to ask yourself to see if you can increase the amount of focus in your life:</em></p>
  2319. <p><strong><span id="more-20394"></span></strong></p>
  2320. <h2><b>Who is influencing me? </b></h2>
  2321. <p>Notice that I did not ask you who the people are that are around you, because some people don’t have control over who they are around, especially at work. (No, my advice to you will never be to run away from every job where you don&#8217;t like someone. If that was my advice, then it would be very difficult for you to ever find a job. I can guarantee you that at one job or another in your lifetime, you will work with someone who you don&#8217;t perfectly see eye-to-eye with in some way. People are different, and that&#8217;s a beautiful thing.) However, it is important to take notice of the people you allow to influence you and speak into your life.</p>
  2322. <hr /><p><em>Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow. - Helen Keller</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=Keep%20your%20face%20to%20the%20sunshine%20and%20you%20cannot%20see%20a%20shadow.%20-%20Helen%20Keller&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2323. <p>Your mind is a powerful thing, and it is yours to protect. You either let in positivity or negativity. You allow words of life or words of death to influence your very being, that will eventually make their way to you heart and mind. This is why it is so important to choose carefully. When you believe that you can do something, it is much easier to keep pushing forward with more focus, than when you believe that you will fail at something.</p>
  2324. <hr /><p><em>Hope in something more gives focus.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=Hope%20in%20something%20more%20gives%20focus.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2325. <p>Begin surrounding yourself with people who you want to emulate the fruits of. The more people you spend time with that you want to become like, the more habits of theirs that you will pick up. When I began learning from people who got more done in their day due to having more focus, I eventually picked up on the need for it in my own life. I became tired of only wanting it, and began pursuing and displaying more focus myself. The people who you allow to influence you will change your life.</p>
  2326. <h2><b>Is the order of my day actually helping me focus? </b></h2>
  2327. <hr /><p><em>Yes, we all need to learn from each other, but schedules are the last thing that needs to be copied. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=Yes%2C%20we%20all%20need%20to%20learn%20from%20each%20other%2C%20but%20schedules%20are%20the%20last%20thing%20that%20needs%20to%20be%20copied.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2328. <p>People need different amounts of sleep, have different careers, have different family situations, have different amounts of distances to commute, need different things from life depending on what life stage they are in, and yet I hear that people have copied the schedules of other people, thinking that they will somehow receive the same benefits. This makes absolutely no sense. Please, figure out what to do with your schedule on your own, and follow other people in different areas. Sure, there are principles that can be applied to everyone&#8217;s schedule, such as the need for a blocked out time for meditation, but your day will look very different than everyone else&#8217;s. It would be ignorant to think that everyone has a flexible schedule, works from home, or even that they work during the daytime.</p>
  2329. <p>Come to think of it, I met an emergency room nurse last week who hadn&#8217;t slept in 30 hours. If I would have suggested that she wake up at 5 or 6 am, she would have either laughed at me or given me a blank stare. Either way, suggesting a set schedule for someone else to follow without looking at their personal circumstances first is absurd. Stop following someone else&#8217;s schedule hoping that it will increase focus in your own life. Begin having better focus by crafting your own and adjusting it along the way.</p>
  2330. <h2><b>Where am I able to get my best work done?</b></h2>
  2331. <p>Does going to the library or your office help you complete work in half the time that it takes you to do work at home? Going where you do your best work is always worth it because you can give your complete self to people after you are finished working. Giving your full self is always better than giving only half of yourself to other people, no matter how much time it is that you can be fully engaged with others.</p>
  2332. <hr /><p><em>Giving your full self is always better than giving only half of yourself to other people.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=Giving%20your%20full%20self%20is%20always%20better%20than%20giving%20only%20half%20of%20yourself%20to%20other%20people.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2333. <p>When working at home, I have a tendency to gradually work on things all day, dragging on work that should only take an hour or two to finish. Sure, with kids at home, it is more difficult to get work done, but there&#8217;s also something else at play here. When I am not able to fully engage in my work, I only get a fraction of a complete thought, which I end up needing to piece together to complete what I am working on. Diving into work, finishing thoughts, and being able to leave work as done for the day, all helps with feeling fulfilled and being able to devote my full time to people.</p>
  2334. <h2><b>Are the practices I am using the best possible ones to get the most out of what I am working on?</b></h2>
  2335. <p>We have covered the who, when, and where of focusing, so we are now going to discuss the how. It is the how where we can take advantage of time the most. It is here where we get to experiment in order to find the best ways, and we become better at what we do through repetition. We become great at what we do by finding the best processes in which to do them. This is why the basic principle of understanding fundamentals is so important. Many times people shoot for the stars without first building their rocket. When this happens, people unnecessarily lose hope by not finding their target. But, to find the target, people need the tools and training that are necessary to hit the bullseye.</p>
  2336. <hr /><p><em>Many times people shoot for the stars without first building their rocket. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffocus-time%2F&#038;text=Many%20times%20people%20shoot%20for%20the%20stars%20without%20first%20building%20their%20rocket.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2337. <p>What are the tools that you need to succeed? What is the training you need to succeed? The answers to these two questions will give you what you need to know about implementing the best possible practices right now. From here you can now build your best practices. It is then trial and error in your practices that will make you better. Yes, everything in life is a process, including learning how to focus, but it&#8217;s the most honest answer I can possibly give you. The ability to become super focused doesn&#8217;t happen over night, but knowing how to find it will help you produce your best work.</p>
  2338. <h3><strong>Who, when, where, and how? Answer these questions to apply to your what, and do your very best work. Now, go and increase your amount of focus, today.</strong></h3>
  2339. </div>
  2340. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/focus-time/">#079: You Should Be Measuring Your Amount of Focus, Not Your Amount of Time</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2341. ]]></content:encoded>
  2342. <enclosure length="8714100" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/079-You-Should-Be-Measuring-Your-Amount-of-Focus-Not-Your-Amount-of-Time.m4a"/>
  2343. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses why you should begin measuring your amount of focus, not the amount of time you have.</itunes:subtitle>
  2344. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&#8220;Life is just too hectic every single day.&#8221; Does this sound like something you&#8217;ve said about your life? If it does, then I have something different for you to try. I know you have tried managing your time better, because that is our first response to feeling that there isn&#8217;t enough time in a day, but have you given any thought to increasing your capacity? What could you do if you had more focus? Could you handle your amount of focus better than the amount of time you have in your current season of life?<br />
  2345. <br />
  2346. Too many times, people focus on the fact that they have so little time left in the day to accomplish what they want to after meeting all of their necessities. This amount of time may be thirty minutes, one hour, four hours, or anything in-between, but the <a href="http://asmithblog.com/most-important/">most important</a> thing to remember is that it isn’t about how much time you have in your day, but it&#8217;s what you do with it that counts. This means that whatever amount of time you have in your day to work on the most important things in life, it is more about the amount of focus you put into it, rather than the amount of time you have. When we are able to find our best focus we can do more with one hour than most can do with four. We all know people who seem to be able to accomplish more with their time than anyone else. Focus, not time, is the one thing that those same people understand more than anyone else. Focus increases productivity, which leads to better time management. When I began to see how managing focus rather than time worked in my own life, I began accomplishing more than ever before, and it can do the same for you.<br />
  2347. Very rarely are any of us able to increase the amount of time we have in a day, but we have all tried to find more of it. Instead of heightening our focus, we try to add time so we can take longer to do tasks that should take days, not weeks. This, of course, is procrastination. Putting things off until the last second then is not a time issue, but an issue with focus. And the first place to look at when needing to increase focus is the amount of things we have going on in our lives.<br />
  2348. Is your plate too full?<br />
  2349. As our lives continue, we tend to add more things. It&#8217;s only natural. But, the one thing we tend to forget is the need to quit things. For many of us, the easy thing to do is to add, but the much more difficult task is to quit. Never forget the need for both as you strive to live a balanced life.<br />
  2350. So, now that you understand the need for adding more to you life, while quitting things along the way, you are now ready to understand how you can apply a larger amount of focus to your own life. I have already done podcasts about the importance of getting the correct amounts of sleep for your individual needs, exercising, eating the right foods, and quitting the right things, but maybe you have tried all of these things and need something more to work with. If things just aren’t working the way you want them to in the area of time management, the issue may be that you aren&#8217;t asking the right questions yet.<br />
  2351. Here are the four questions you need to ask yourself to see if you can increase the amount of focus in your life:<br />
  2352. <br />
  2353. Who is influencing me? <br />
  2354. Notice that I did not ask you who the people are that are around you, because some people don’t have control over who they are around, especially at work. (No, my advice to you will never be to run away from every job where you don&#8217;t like someone. If that was my advice, then it would be very difficult for you to ever find a job. I can guarantee you that at one job or another in your lifetime, you will work with someone who you don&#8217;t perfectly see eye-to-eye with in some way. People are different, and that&#8217;s a beautiful thing.) However, it is important to take notice of the people you allow to influence you and speak into your life.<br />
  2355. ]]></itunes:summary>
  2356. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2357. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2358. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2359. <itunes:duration>8:56</itunes:duration>
  2360. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2361. <item>
  2362. <title>#078: How the Fear of Looking at Reality Is Hurting Everyone</title>
  2363. <link>https://asmithblog.com/fear-reality/</link>
  2364. <pubDate>Tue, 13 Oct 2015 06:01:29 +0000</pubDate>
  2365. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20353</guid>
  2366. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses how the fear of looking at reality is hurting everyone.&lt;/p&gt;
  2367. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/fear-reality/"&gt;#078: How the Fear of Looking at Reality Is Hurting Everyone&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2368. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/fear-reality-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2369. <p>The main problem with businesses and individuals holding onto fear is that they don’t see how much their fears affect both employees and customers. Sure, they may know that fear is what is keeping them from reaching their full potential, but they still aren’t able to look at their reality. They refuse to see what is really happening, and end up avoiding contact with their biggest issues at all costs.</p>
  2370. <p>Please know that it is only when you accept that fear will come and that you will need to learn to move through it that you will begin moving forward. It is here where we truly see the importance of looking at our fears.</p>
  2371. <hr /><p><em>It is only when you accept that fear will come that you will begin moving forward.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffear-reality%2F&#038;text=It%20is%20only%20when%20you%20accept%20that%20fear%20will%20come%20that%20you%20will%20begin%20moving%20forward.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2372. <p>Plain and simple, for things to become better, we must face the facts. Is doing this easy? Absolutely not, but it is essential for any sort of growth to take place. If looking at your current reality has proven difficult for you, I have three ways for you to begin dealing with your fears in more effective ways, starting right now.</p>
  2373. <p><strong><span id="more-20353"></span></strong></p>
  2374. <h2><b>1. Surround yourself with people who will be honest with you.</b></h2>
  2375. <p>There are too many people who surround themselves with people who only agree with them. This is a huge mistake no matter which way you look at it. When people don’t agree with you it forces you to look at things from every perspective, not just your own. Doing this relinquishes your right to not analyze reality. Even if you don’t want to, others will help you see the full picture. When people only tell you what you want to hear, the facts are clouded and the opportunity of making things right isn’t given.</p>
  2376. <hr /><p><em>When people don’t agree with you it forces you to look at things from every perspective, not just your own.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffear-reality%2F&#038;text=When%20people%20don%E2%80%99t%20agree%20with%20you%20it%20forces%20you%20to%20look%20at%20things%20from%20every%20perspective%2C%20not%20just%20your%20own.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2377. <p>If you are a CEO, an entrepreneur, in human resources, or are in management, I would recommend you look at your staff and pinpoint the ones who will be honest with you about everything; the good, the bad, and the ugly. You should actually make this a requirement of the ones you want in your inner circle. These are the people who you want to ask for feedback from when you need to make a critical decision. These are the people you want on your team.</p>
  2378. <h2><b>2. Answer the question, “Why do I do what I do?”</b></h2>
  2379. <p>This question requires you to become super focused with what you do in life, because if the <i>why</i> doesn’t matter, then the decision has to be made if you should be doing it at all. Life is too short to spend time doing stuff that doesn’t line up with where you want to go. When the <i>why</i> is answered and it lines up with your goals, then all the work that will help you get to where you want to be will be worth it.</p>
  2380. <hr /><p><em>If the why doesn’t matter, then the decision has to be made if you should be doing it at all. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffear-reality%2F&#038;text=If%20the%20why%20doesn%E2%80%99t%20matter%2C%20then%20the%20decision%20has%20to%20be%20made%20if%20you%20should%20be%20doing%20it%20at%20all.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2381. <p>In reality, a lot of work along the way isn’t necessarily fun, even when you are working towards your goals, but the fact that it is necessary to move you forward makes it all worth it. I love being an entrepreneur, but even with having employees, I still have to do paperwork and gather tax information, which isn’t fun for me. There are also meetings that I attend which aren’t the most fun, but they inform me of what I need to know for the future. Honestly, I’ve found that there are necessary parts of owning businesses that aren’t always fun. The old saying of “you don’t work a day in your life when you enjoy what you do” sounds good, but it just isn’t true. Even though I want to tell you that life is only full of rainbows and cotton candy, there will be some days that there will be work you don’t necessarily want to do, but it is part of a much bigger plan of falling in love with the <i>why</i>. I am sure you can relate to what I am saying here in some way. Knowing the <i>why</i> behind doing the work you love and the work that you wish you didn&#8217;t have to do will be what motivates you through all of the days you are doing the not so fun stuff along the way.</p>
  2382. <hr /><p><em>“You don’t work a day in your life when you enjoy what you do” sounds good, but it just isn’t true.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffear-reality%2F&#038;text=%E2%80%9CYou%20don%E2%80%99t%20work%20a%20day%20in%20your%20life%20when%20you%20enjoy%20what%20you%20do%E2%80%9D%20sounds%20good%2C%20but%20it%20just%20isn%E2%80%99t%20true.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2383. <p>When you answer the <i>why</i>, it will be the heart that prompts you to look at what is really happening, rather than the false reality you have created in your mind. Every action needs a purpose, so when you decide to look at the reason you do what you do, looking at ways to improve will be seen in a different perspective. You will then want to analyze the true problems at hand and discover how you can make them better. This is the best way to look at reality. When you care about what you do, you will have much more of a drive to find solutions and fix your reality for the better.</p>
  2384. <p>But, I would also challenge you on your answer here. If your <em>why</em> is solely profit, then I would say you have the wrong motive. When people are the reason that you do what you do, you will have a better work environment because you treat your staff well and it is a mentality that will spread company-wide. You will also make better decisions because you will realize there are people on the other side of what you do. You will also make better products, because you will see how great your reach is and the impact you can have on people. When people are your <i>why, </i>your company is better, and that’s a fact.</p>
  2385. <h2><b>3. When you take action, stop attempting perfection.</b></h2>
  2386. <h2><b><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/reality-success.jpg"><img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-20358 aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/reality-success.jpg" alt="reality-success" width="500" height="355" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/reality-success.jpg 500w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/reality-success-300x213.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/reality-success-150x107.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px" /></a> </b></h2>
  2387. <p>So many people won’t attempt their fears, because they feel it has to be perfect the first time. The reality is that you will make mistakes along the way, and that&#8217;s okay. I know I have talked about this many times before, but perfectionists need to hear this truth repeatedly.</p>
  2388. <p>It is in the practice of making mistakes that you will gain more insight and accomplish more than you ever have before. This rule has applied to everyone who has lived before us, and it remains true to this day. It is only in the process of making mistakes that you will find your best solution for your current reality. When you take your first solution for being the best, you cancel out all other opportunities. But, when you show up to make 5, 10, 50, 100, or 500 mistakes, to find your absolute best idea, it will be the mistakes along the way that will help you find your one great idea.</p>
  2389. <p>This means that coming up with your best solutions to problems comes down to how many times you show up to do the work. The odds are in your favor the more often you attempt to find solutions. If you look at your current reality and don’t see what you like, you can show up to do the work that will actually change things for the better. The control you have in finding success is determined by how much work you are willing to put in.</p>
  2390. <hr /><p><em>Coming up with your best solutions to problems comes down to how many times you show up to do the work.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Ffear-reality%2F&#038;text=Coming%20up%20with%20your%20best%20solutions%20to%20problems%20comes%20down%20to%20how%20many%20times%20you%20show%20up%20to%20do%20the%20work.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2391. <h3><strong>When you do these things, you will become more willing to look at your reality than ever before. Not only will it help your own personal life and business, but you will also impact the lives of others in bigger ways when you decide to stop letting fear have the upper hand in your life, today.</strong></h3>
  2392. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/fear-reality/">#078: How the Fear of Looking at Reality Is Hurting Everyone</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2393. ]]></content:encoded>
  2394. <enclosure length="6687213" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/078-How-The-Fear-of-Looking-At-Reality-Is-Hurting-Everyone.m4a"/>
  2395. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses how the fear of looking at reality is hurting everyone.</itunes:subtitle>
  2396. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[The main problem with businesses and individuals holding onto fear is that they don’t see how much their fears affect both employees and customers. Sure, they may know that fear is what is keeping them from reaching their full potential, but they still aren’t able to look at their reality. They refuse to see what is really happening, and end up avoiding contact with their biggest issues at all costs.<br />
  2397. Please know that it is only when you accept that fear will come and that you will need to learn to move through it that you will begin moving forward. It is here where we truly see the importance of looking at our fears.<br />
  2398. Plain and simple, for things to become better, we must face the facts. Is doing this easy? Absolutely not, but it is essential for any sort of growth to take place. If looking at your current reality has proven difficult for you, I have three ways for you to begin dealing with your fears in more effective ways, starting right now.<br />
  2399. <br />
  2400. 1. Surround yourself with people who will be honest with you.<br />
  2401. There are too many people who surround themselves with people who only agree with them. This is a huge mistake no matter which way you look at it. When people don’t agree with you it forces you to look at things from every perspective, not just your own. Doing this relinquishes your right to not analyze reality. Even if you don’t want to, others will help you see the full picture. When people only tell you what you want to hear, the facts are clouded and the opportunity of making things right isn’t given.<br />
  2402. If you are a CEO, an entrepreneur, in human resources, or are in management, I would recommend you look at your staff and pinpoint the ones who will be honest with you about everything; the good, the bad, and the ugly. You should actually make this a requirement of the ones you want in your inner circle. These are the people who you want to ask for feedback from when you need to make a critical decision. These are the people you want on your team.<br />
  2403. 2. Answer the question, “Why do I do what I do?”<br />
  2404. This question requires you to become super focused with what you do in life, because if the why doesn’t matter, then the decision has to be made if you should be doing it at all. Life is too short to spend time doing stuff that doesn’t line up with where you want to go. When the why is answered and it lines up with your goals, then all the work that will help you get to where you want to be will be worth it.<br />
  2405. In reality, a lot of work along the way isn’t necessarily fun, even when you are working towards your goals, but the fact that it is necessary to move you forward makes it all worth it. I love being an entrepreneur, but even with having employees, I still have to do paperwork and gather tax information, which isn’t fun for me. There are also meetings that I attend which aren’t the most fun, but they inform me of what I need to know for the future. Honestly, I’ve found that there are necessary parts of owning businesses that aren’t always fun. The old saying of “you don’t work a day in your life when you enjoy what you do” sounds good, but it just isn’t true. Even though I want to tell you that life is only full of rainbows and cotton candy, there will be some days that there will be work you don’t necessarily want to do, but it is part of a much bigger plan of falling in love with the why. I am sure you can relate to what I am saying here in some way. Knowing the why behind doing the work you love and the work that you wish you didn&#8217;t have to do will be what motivates you through all of the days you are doing the not so fun stuff along the way.<br />
  2406. When you answer the why, it will be the heart that prompts you to look at what is really happening, rather than the false reality you have created in your mind. Every action needs a purpose, so when you decide to look at the reason you do what you do, looking at ways to improve will be seen in a different perspective.]]></itunes:summary>
  2407. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2408. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2409. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2410. <itunes:duration>6:52</itunes:duration>
  2411. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2412. <item>
  2413. <title>#077: The 6 Words You Need to Stop Using Right Now</title>
  2414. <link>https://asmithblog.com/words-stop-using/</link>
  2415. <pubDate>Tue, 06 Oct 2015 06:01:18 +0000</pubDate>
  2416. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20196</guid>
  2417. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="336" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="words" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter.png 881w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter-300x131.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter-150x66.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners the six words he no longer uses, and why they should stop using them, as well.&lt;/p&gt;
  2418. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/words-stop-using/"&gt;#077: The 6 Words You Need to Stop Using Right Now&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2419. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="336" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="words" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter.png 881w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter-300x131.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/words-matter-150x66.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2420. <p>Lately, I have been thinking more and more about the words I use, and the words I don&#8217;t use anymore. The old saying of &#8220;sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me&#8221; is a lie. Let&#8217;s face it &#8212; words matter. The words that you use say a lot about what you and your company stands for. That&#8217;s why not only individuals are being condemned for what they say on social media, but businesses are also subject to the same standards for their choice of words, as well. There are some words that people just shouldn&#8217;t use because they make others feel bad, and then there are others that you shouldn&#8217;t use because they just don&#8217;t make any sense. Whether you are an individual or a business, the same rules apply to you.</p>
  2421. <p><em>So, here are the six words that I no longer use in my vocabulary, and the reasons why I have stopped using them:</em></p>
  2422. <p><strong><span id="more-20196"></span></strong></p>
  2423. <h2><strong>Aspiring</strong></h2>
  2424. <p>This is my least favorite word in the English language. Stop trying to do what you have always wanted to do, and just be what you want to be. I have previously used the word &#8220;aspiring&#8221; when I wanted to become a writer, but now <em>I am</em> a writer. I used to be an aspiring entrepreneur, but now <em>I am</em> an entrepreneur. What&#8217;s the difference?  I stopped using the word &#8220;aspiring&#8221; and decided to take action. Individuals and businesses, stop saying you want to do something, and instead begin working towards your goals of being what you want to be. Stop aspiring, and start doing.</p>
  2425. <hr /><p><em>Stop aspiring, and start doing.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fwords-stop-using%2F&#038;text=Stop%20aspiring%2C%20and%20start%20doing.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2426. <h2><strong>Failure</strong></h2>
  2427. <p>I talked about this word last week, but I still don&#8217;t like it. &#8220;I&#8217;m a failure.&#8221; &#8220;We are doomed for failure.&#8221; &#8220;You are a failure.&#8221; Pick any sentence that you want to &#8212; it doesn&#8217;t sound good in any context. &#8220;I made some mistakes.&#8221; &#8220;We made some mistakes.&#8221; &#8220;You made some mistakes.&#8221; Mistakes can be fixed and learned from, and failure&#8230;well, failure is doomed for failure. Do us all a favor and please find another word to use instead of this dreadful one. You are never a failure and your business is never a failure either, so stop speaking and acting like one.</p>
  2428. <h2><strong>Hate</strong></h2>
  2429. <p>I&#8217;m referring to using this word in the context of hating things that don&#8217;t deserve one of the harshest words in the English language.When using this word for no good reason, it sounds like nails on a chalkboard. I know I can&#8217;t be the only person that feels this way. If you or your company uses this word for marketing materials, or even just lingo around the office, please find another word. Fill in the blank: &#8220;I hate _____.&#8221; However you finished that sentence to describe something that doesn&#8217;t deserve the word, it sounds bad. I had to stop using it when I heard other people use it, and would play the sentence on repeat inside my head for days on end. Maybe it&#8217;s something I heard from another kid when I was growing up and it has stuck with me for this many years, but whatever it is, the word doesn&#8217;t sit well with me. &#8220;I despise&#8221;, &#8220;I don&#8217;t like&#8221;, &#8220;I really don&#8217;t like&#8221;, &#8220;I loathe&#8221;, &#8220;I detest&#8221; &#8212; take your pick. Just about any word is better than <em>hate</em>.</p>
  2430. <h2><strong>Impossible</strong></h2>
  2431. <p>I used to use this word a lot, but I found that it defeats any attempt that I am getting ready to make, before I even begin. Remember, words are powerful. &#8220;You know, people have told me that it&#8217;s impossible, but I am maybe going to give it a try.&#8221; sounds a lot worse than, &#8220;I know that I can do this, because I have been preparing for this moment for years. It&#8217;s definitely possible.&#8221; If you are working within your strength set, and have been working towards your goals like we talk about repeatedly, then nothing you do is impossible. In fact, it&#8217;s most likely probable.</p>
  2432. <hr /><p><em>Remember, words are powerful.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fwords-stop-using%2F&#038;text=Remember%2C%20words%20are%20powerful.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2433. <h2><strong>Fearless</strong></h2>
  2434. <p>Lately, I have seen this word on more inspirational posts than I care to look at. To tell you the truth, the more I see this word, the more it aggravates me. Why? Because the word isn&#8217;t true and it shouldn&#8217;t exist. There, I said it. Do people really believe that they can be fearless? I have reasons to believe that no one can be, but somewhere deep down, people want to believe that they can be. For people to post this word across their social media accounts, it tells me that there&#8217;s more to it than the word just having a nice ring to it. Feel free to contact me if you feel I&#8217;m wrong, and I&#8217;d be happy to have some friendly dialogue through email about it with you, but I don&#8217;t get why people believe that it&#8217;s possible to achieve fearlessness. Stop acting like you don&#8217;t fear before you make big decisions for yourself or for your business. You&#8217;re not fooling this guy.</p>
  2435. <h2><strong>I Don&#8217;t Care</strong></h2>
  2436. <p>I know that this is a phrase rather than a single word, but if someone else cares about something, then you should at the very least somewhat care about the outcome, too. If someone comes to you, and cares enough to speak up about an issue, then you need to not only be available to listen, but you need to realize the fact that they are coming to you because they genuinely care enough to say something. The conversation I am talking about here goes something like this: &#8220;You offended me with what you said yesterday.&#8221; And the response given to that person&#8217;s comment is, &#8220;I&#8217;m sorry, but it&#8217;s what needed to be said.&#8221; Whether &#8220;I don&#8217;t care&#8221; is actually said or not, if it is implied, it still hurts.</p>
  2437. <p>I cannot tell you how many people I have worked with that will justify what they say to others by passing the responsibility off to the other person, and it was their fault that they reacted the way they did. As if to say, that people shouldn&#8217;t have emotions, and the best answer is to somehow &#8220;just get over it.&#8221; Have people really become this irresponsible? People don&#8217;t want to take responsibility for their actions or the words they speak, but life doesn&#8217;t work this way. There are always ramifications to what someone says. Choosing words carefully is a responsibility that all of us have. Do you care about this truth?</p>
  2438. <hr /><p><em>Choosing words carefully is a responsibility that all of us have.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fwords-stop-using%2F&#038;text=Choosing%20words%20carefully%20is%20a%20responsibility%20that%20all%20of%20us%20have.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2439. <p>This is just a short list of the words that I don&#8217;t use anymore, but I am sure there are more out there. Do you have words that you don&#8217;t like using? I&#8217;d love to hear what they are. Maybe we can make some progress in this area, and stop making people feel bad about themselves, and defeating ourselves before we even begin. Chances are that if the words we hear don&#8217;t sit well with us, then they may sting when they are said to others. It&#8217;s at least worth our time to think about the words we use, and don&#8217;t use, because words can impact people in a negative way.</p>
  2440. <h3><em><strong>Now, go and choose better words, today. </strong></em></h3>
  2441. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/words-stop-using/">#077: The 6 Words You Need to Stop Using Right Now</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2442. ]]></content:encoded>
  2443. <enclosure length="7850079" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/077-The-6-Words-You-Need-to-Stop-Using-Right-Now.m4a"/>
  2444. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners the six words he no longer uses, and why they should stop using them, as well.</itunes:subtitle>
  2445. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Lately, I have been thinking more and more about the words I use, and the words I don&#8217;t use anymore. The old saying of &#8220;sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me&#8221; is a lie. Let&#8217;s face it &#8212; words matter. The words that you use say a lot about what you and your company stands for. That&#8217;s why not only individuals are being condemned for what they say on social media, but businesses are also subject to the same standards for their choice of words, as well. There are some words that people just shouldn&#8217;t use because they make others feel bad, and then there are others that you shouldn&#8217;t use because they just don&#8217;t make any sense. Whether you are an individual or a business, the same rules apply to you.<br />
  2446. So, here are the six words that I no longer use in my vocabulary, and the reasons why I have stopped using them:<br />
  2447. <br />
  2448. Aspiring<br />
  2449. This is my least favorite word in the English language. Stop trying to do what you have always wanted to do, and just be what you want to be. I have previously used the word &#8220;aspiring&#8221; when I wanted to become a writer, but now I am a writer. I used to be an aspiring entrepreneur, but now I am an entrepreneur. What&#8217;s the difference?  I stopped using the word &#8220;aspiring&#8221; and decided to take action. Individuals and businesses, stop saying you want to do something, and instead begin working towards your goals of being what you want to be. Stop aspiring, and start doing.<br />
  2450. Failure<br />
  2451. I talked about this word last week, but I still don&#8217;t like it. &#8220;I&#8217;m a failure.&#8221; &#8220;We are doomed for failure.&#8221; &#8220;You are a failure.&#8221; Pick any sentence that you want to &#8212; it doesn&#8217;t sound good in any context. &#8220;I made some mistakes.&#8221; &#8220;We made some mistakes.&#8221; &#8220;You made some mistakes.&#8221; Mistakes can be fixed and learned from, and failure&#8230;well, failure is doomed for failure. Do us all a favor and please find another word to use instead of this dreadful one. You are never a failure and your business is never a failure either, so stop speaking and acting like one.<br />
  2452. Hate<br />
  2453. I&#8217;m referring to using this word in the context of hating things that don&#8217;t deserve one of the harshest words in the English language.When using this word for no good reason, it sounds like nails on a chalkboard. I know I can&#8217;t be the only person that feels this way. If you or your company uses this word for marketing materials, or even just lingo around the office, please find another word. Fill in the blank: &#8220;I hate _____.&#8221; However you finished that sentence to describe something that doesn&#8217;t deserve the word, it sounds bad. I had to stop using it when I heard other people use it, and would play the sentence on repeat inside my head for days on end. Maybe it&#8217;s something I heard from another kid when I was growing up and it has stuck with me for this many years, but whatever it is, the word doesn&#8217;t sit well with me. &#8220;I despise&#8221;, &#8220;I don&#8217;t like&#8221;, &#8220;I really don&#8217;t like&#8221;, &#8220;I loathe&#8221;, &#8220;I detest&#8221; &#8212; take your pick. Just about any word is better than hate.<br />
  2454. Impossible<br />
  2455. I used to use this word a lot, but I found that it defeats any attempt that I am getting ready to make, before I even begin. Remember, words are powerful. &#8220;You know, people have told me that it&#8217;s impossible, but I am maybe going to give it a try.&#8221; sounds a lot worse than, &#8220;I know that I can do this, because I have been preparing for this moment for years. It&#8217;s definitely possible.&#8221; If you are working within your strength set, and have been working towards your goals like we talk about repeatedly, then nothing you do is impossible. In fact, it&#8217;s most likely probable.<br />
  2456. Fearless<br />
  2457. Lately,]]></itunes:summary>
  2458. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2459. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2460. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2461. <itunes:duration>8:03</itunes:duration>
  2462. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2463. <item>
  2464. <title>#076: The 4 Biggest Differences Between Leaders and Bosses</title>
  2465. <link>https://asmithblog.com/leaders-bosses/</link>
  2466. <pubDate>Tue, 29 Sep 2015 06:01:24 +0000</pubDate>
  2467. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20163</guid>
  2468. <description>&lt;img width="346" height="346" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="bosses leaders" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader.jpg 346w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader-150x150.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader-300x300.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 346px) 100vw, 346px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains the four biggest differences between leaders and bosses.&lt;/p&gt;
  2469. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/leaders-bosses/"&gt;#076: The 4 Biggest Differences Between Leaders and Bosses&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2470. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="346" height="346" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="bosses leaders" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader.jpg 346w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader-150x150.jpg 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/boss-leader-300x300.jpg 300w" sizes="(max-width: 346px) 100vw, 346px" />
  2471. <p>We have all worked for people who are leaders, and those who are bosses. We learn what we should do by looking at the lives of leaders, and we learn what not to do by looking at the actions of bosses. Maybe you are wondering if you work for a leader or a boss, or you may need to know if you are a leader or a boss yourself.</p>
  2472. <h3><em><strong>Here are the four main differences between the two, and they are anything but subtle:</strong></em><br />
  2473. <strong><span id="more-20163"></span></strong></h3>
  2474. <h2><strong>Leaders inspire others to act by being out front, and bosses expect everyone else to do all the work.</strong></h2>
  2475. <p>As the picture shows above, leaders aren&#8217;t afraid to go first. They realize that it is difficult to go first sometimes, so they will lead in order to release the tension for others. Going first allows others to go next with less hesitation and more boldness. You can lead by testing the waters and telling others if it is okay for them to dive in.</p>
  2476. <p>Leaders also don&#8217;t expect others to do all the work. In fact, I would say that one of the most important attributes for a leader to possess is the willingness to work hard. Things will never just happen on their own, but with hard work over time, positive results can take place. But before the work takes place, leaders realize the importance of giving motivation to the entire team. Employees need to know the <em>why </em>behind<em> </em>the necessity of moving ahead. Giving employees the reason behind doing things is important, so a better work environment can be created. Employees must believe that their work makes a meaningful contribution in order to make the biggest possible impact through their work. When leaders paint this picture well, their company will thrive. When bosses don’t do this, all motivation will be lost.</p>
  2477. <h2><b>Leaders have vision for the future and are proactive, but bosses only maintain what they already have and are reactive to situations.</b></h2>
  2478. <p>When you or who you work for can see out ahead before problems happen, the entire team gets to enjoy the benefits. This is leading at its finest. Taking care of issues so others don’t have to deal with them shows employees that those around them care about their well-being.</p>
  2479. <p>This concept not only applies to dealing with problems, but having this visionary mentality will create tremendous growth. If systems can be set in place now that can make the future better, then by all means please begin this necessary conversation now within your company, whether you have a leadership title or not. (You don’t need a title to lead; you just need a voice.) Having visionaries in leadership is a necessity for your company to be relevant twenty years from now, and being proactive ensures that your entire team will head in the right direction over time.</p>
  2480. <p>Leaders are creative with the plan when they need to be, and bosses only know one plan. When a plan doesn’t work out, is your company paralyzed, or is a new plan quickly formed and executed? Leaders are great at this, but bosses are not.</p>
  2481. <h2><b>Leaders care about relationships, whereas bosses care about their title.</b></h2>
  2482. <hr /><p><em>If you look after your staff, they&#039;ll look after your customers. It&#039;s that simple. - Sir Richard Branson</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fleaders-bosses%2F&#038;text=If%20you%20look%20after%20your%20staff%2C%20they%27ll%20look%20after%20your%20customers.%20It%27s%20that%20simple.%20-%20Sir%20Richard%20Branson&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2483. <p>Of course, businesses won&#8217;t be around for long without making money, but that is a byproduct of creating an environment where people want to be, employees and customers alike. A team whose leadership cares about them as individuals will produce more benefits than teams who don’t have a leadership team who builds relationships with them.</p>
  2484. <p>Bosses who solely focus on the bottom line, pushing all focus on relationships aside to command orders from their team just because they have a management title, will cause burnout in employees. In doing this, they won&#8217;t be left with anyone who wants to work for them. What these bosses don’t realize is that added revenue is always a byproduct of happy employees interacting with customers on a daily basis. People want to buy from companies who offer great service and a remarkable guest experience, and building relationships with your team is a great place to start leading right away.</p>
  2485. <p>As Patrick Lencioni points out in his book, <i><a href="http://www.tablegroup.com/books/signs/">3 Signs of a Miserable Job</a></i>, to keep good employees, you need to help them be happy and fulfilled. Business success actually depends on it. One of the signs of a miserable job that he mentions in his book is when employees feel that they are anonymous. This is why I have spoken before on why <a href="http://asmithblog.com/story-matters/">creating relationships with employees</a> is so important. When staff feels unappreciated, unimportant, and ignored, the feeling of discontentment within your staff will grow. In short, leaders display empathy within relationships, whereas bosses display apathy. Leaders seek to understand how their employees are feeling, and bosses don&#8217;t care.</p>
  2486. <h2><b>Leaders allow others to learn from their mistakes as well. Bosses humiliate others when they miss the mark.</b></h2>
  2487. <p>I have never met a leader who was a micromanager for each stage of the creation process. Never. Leaders produce other leaders who can think for themselves. Bosses create robots who need to be told what to do. Leaders know the power of coaching employees, and then releasing their team to make a difference. Bosses on the other hand, can&#8217;t wait until you mess up so they can pounce on your mistakes, making you feel inadequate. But, leaders see mistakes as more than opportunities to belittle you. Leaders see the bigger picture. They take any mistake, and turn it into opportunities to help direct others, so employees can gain the full power found in the process of learning. Within the process of learning, patience is taught, knowledge is given, and confidence is built. This process allows people to become the best possible employees they can be.</p>
  2488. <p>Mistakes found through experimentation are necessary lessons that will eventually give you the outcome you are looking for. Hear me when I say that making mistakes doesn&#8217;t make you a failure. In fact, I don&#8217;t believe that leaders should use the word &#8220;failure&#8221;, because errors can be fixed. Sure it may take some time, but with persistence, the teaching moments found in making mistakes will turn into more experience, and experience turns into maturity, and maturity turns into making better decisions.</p>
  2489. <p>This being said, the only way to fight the perfectionism that has been plaguing you for far too long is to go and try something different. What is it that you have been afraid of doing? Whatever it is, it may be time to finally experiment with it. And when you make the decision to attempt new things, you may even make a few mistakes, but that&#8217;s not failure &#8212; that&#8217;s learning.</p>
  2490. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  2491. <p>Now that you know the differences, find leaders, not bosses, that you can learn more from. Surrounding yourself with people who have the attributes you desire can only make you better. And if you lean more towards being a boss yourself, then right now is the best time to make a change.</p>
  2492. <h3><strong>Now, go and lead, today.</strong></h3>
  2493. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/leaders-bosses/">#076: The 4 Biggest Differences Between Leaders and Bosses</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2494. ]]></content:encoded>
  2495. <enclosure length="8328031" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/076-The-4-Biggest-Differences-Between-Leaders-and-Bosses.m4a"/>
  2496. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains the four biggest differences between leaders and bosses.</itunes:subtitle>
  2497. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We have all worked for people who are leaders, and those who are bosses. We learn what we should do by looking at the lives of leaders, and we learn what not to do by looking at the actions of bosses. Maybe you are wondering if you work for a leader or a boss, or you may need to know if you are a leader or a boss yourself.<br />
  2498. Here are the four main differences between the two, and they are anything but subtle:<br />
  2499. <br />
  2500. Leaders inspire others to act by being out front, and bosses expect everyone else to do all the work.<br />
  2501. As the picture shows above, leaders aren&#8217;t afraid to go first. They realize that it is difficult to go first sometimes, so they will lead in order to release the tension for others. Going first allows others to go next with less hesitation and more boldness. You can lead by testing the waters and telling others if it is okay for them to dive in.<br />
  2502. Leaders also don&#8217;t expect others to do all the work. In fact, I would say that one of the most important attributes for a leader to possess is the willingness to work hard. Things will never just happen on their own, but with hard work over time, positive results can take place. But before the work takes place, leaders realize the importance of giving motivation to the entire team. Employees need to know the why behind the necessity of moving ahead. Giving employees the reason behind doing things is important, so a better work environment can be created. Employees must believe that their work makes a meaningful contribution in order to make the biggest possible impact through their work. When leaders paint this picture well, their company will thrive. When bosses don’t do this, all motivation will be lost.<br />
  2503. Leaders have vision for the future and are proactive, but bosses only maintain what they already have and are reactive to situations.<br />
  2504. When you or who you work for can see out ahead before problems happen, the entire team gets to enjoy the benefits. This is leading at its finest. Taking care of issues so others don’t have to deal with them shows employees that those around them care about their well-being.<br />
  2505. This concept not only applies to dealing with problems, but having this visionary mentality will create tremendous growth. If systems can be set in place now that can make the future better, then by all means please begin this necessary conversation now within your company, whether you have a leadership title or not. (You don’t need a title to lead; you just need a voice.) Having visionaries in leadership is a necessity for your company to be relevant twenty years from now, and being proactive ensures that your entire team will head in the right direction over time.<br />
  2506. Leaders are creative with the plan when they need to be, and bosses only know one plan. When a plan doesn’t work out, is your company paralyzed, or is a new plan quickly formed and executed? Leaders are great at this, but bosses are not.<br />
  2507. Leaders care about relationships, whereas bosses care about their title.<br />
  2508. Of course, businesses won&#8217;t be around for long without making money, but that is a byproduct of creating an environment where people want to be, employees and customers alike. A team whose leadership cares about them as individuals will produce more benefits than teams who don’t have a leadership team who builds relationships with them.<br />
  2509. Bosses who solely focus on the bottom line, pushing all focus on relationships aside to command orders from their team just because they have a management title, will cause burnout in employees. In doing this, they won&#8217;t be left with anyone who wants to work for them. What these bosses don’t realize is that added revenue is always a byproduct of happy employees interacting with customers on a daily basis. People want to buy from companies who offer great service and a remarkable guest experience, and building relationships with your team is a great place to start leading right away....]]></itunes:summary>
  2510. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2511. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2512. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2513. <itunes:duration>8:33</itunes:duration>
  2514. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2515. <item>
  2516. <title>#075: 14 Steps to a More Confident You</title>
  2517. <link>https://asmithblog.com/confident/</link>
  2518. <pubDate>Tue, 22 Sep 2015 06:01:49 +0000</pubDate>
  2519. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=20048</guid>
  2520. <description>&lt;img width="704" height="457" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="confident confidence" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence.jpg 704w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence-300x195.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence-150x97.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam gives listeners fourteen ways they can be more confident, today. &lt;/p&gt;
  2521. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/confident/"&gt;#075: 14 Steps to a More Confident You&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2522. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="704" height="457" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="confident confidence" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence.jpg 704w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence-300x195.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/confident-confidence-150x97.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px" />
  2523. <p>Two years ago on a cold December morning, I met a friend for breakfast at his hotel. He had a speaking engagement in town, and I took the opportunity to spend some time with him. He may be my most confident friend (in a good way, not in that overconfident annoying way), and one of the smartest people I know, so I try to learn from him whenever I can. The way he talks, the way he gestures, the way he listens, the way he loves people &#8212; it all conveys a very confident message. The message he portrays with his life is one that I hadn&#8217;t spent much time paying attention to before, but after spending that morning with him, he began telling me the things that made him the person that he is today. Of course, I couldn&#8217;t jot down notes from our conversation fast enough.</p>
  2524. <p><em>I wrote down 14 points that day, along with my own commentary, and each discipline can make you more confident right now. Here they are:</em></p>
  2525. <p><strong><span id="more-20048"></span></strong></p>
  2526. <h2><strong>Accept yourself for who you are.</strong></h2>
  2527. <hr /><p><em>It&#039;s only when you accept everything you are - and aren&#039;t - that you will truly succeed.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fconfident%2F&#038;text=It%27s%20only%20when%20you%20accept%20everything%20you%20are%20-%20and%20aren%27t%20-%20that%20you%20will%20truly%20succeed.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2528. <p>Who are you? You need to know this by heart and own it. There is only one you, and you have so much to offer to the rest of the world.</p>
  2529. <h2><strong>Find what you believe in and fight for it.</strong></h2>
  2530. <p>The older I get, the more fed up I become with staying quiet. Life has definitely changed me, and maybe it has done the same for you. There&#8217;s too much to do, and not enough people doing the right things. You will know that you are fighting for what you believe in when you begin to set trends, rather than following them.</p>
  2531. <h2><strong>Study.</strong></h2>
  2532. <p>Typically, the reason that people feel insecure is because they don&#8217;t know enough about the subject they have a lack of confidence in. Studying a subject is one of the best ways you can build confidence in a specific area immediately.</p>
  2533. <h2><strong>Surround yourself with confidence boosters.</strong></h2>
  2534. <p>The people you surround yourself with and the messages you listen to affect the way you see yourself. Having encouragers around you can only help with boosting your confidence.</p>
  2535. <h2><strong>Don&#8217;t stand for humiliation.</strong></h2>
  2536. <p>When there has been a culture of humiliation that is created, growth is suppressed. If you are being humiliated or you see others that are being humiliated, don&#8217;t allow it. You have the right and responsibility to speak up.</p>
  2537. <h2><strong>This is the only time I will say this, but you have to focus on both your strengths and weaknesses.</strong></h2>
  2538. <p>Confidence is more situational for most people. I am guessing that the things you are feeling less confident in are the same things that you consider your weaknesses to be. Being a <a href="http://fourhourworkweek.com/2007/09/14/the-top-5-reasons-to-be-a-jack-of-all-trades/">jack of all trades</a> has many advantages, and this way, you can take advantage of them as well.</p>
  2539. <h2><strong>When you find success, celebrate it.</strong></h2>
  2540. <hr /><p><em>Too many people skip over their successes, and only focus on their failures. This is nonsense.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fconfident%2F&#038;text=Too%20many%20people%20skip%20over%20their%20successes%2C%20and%20only%20focus%20on%20their%20failures.%20This%20is%20nonsense.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2541. <p>Too many people skip over their successes, and only focus on their failures. This is nonsense. When you put time and work into anything that is a success, it calls for celebration. I don&#8217;t care what it is &#8211; when you are successful, you need to recognize it.</p>
  2542. <h2><strong>Be positive.</strong></h2>
  2543. <p>When you are positive about the future, you remain hopeful for a better outcome. When you are pessimistic, it is much easier to lose hope in finding confidence. Positivity begins with self-talk. Don&#8217;t wait for others to lift your spirits, but instead speak words of life to yourself.</p>
  2544. <h2><strong>Cheer others on, but don&#8217;t compare yourself to others in an unhealthy way.</strong></h2>
  2545. <p>Be there for others to encourage them along the way, but never let comparison be your measurement of accomplishment. This is why knowing who you are and pursuing the things you want out of life is so important. When you understand this, you understand what makes you different from everyone else and will pursue those things confidently in your own strength. In doing this, you are becoming the best you. Until then, you are looking to others for your definition of success. Using social media to compare yourself doesn&#8217;t help either. Use social media to congratulate people for their successes, not to judge them for it.</p>
  2546. <hr /><p><em>Using social media to compare yourself doesn&#039;t help.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fconfident%2F&#038;text=Using%20social%20media%20to%20compare%20yourself%20doesn%27t%20help.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2547. <h2><strong>Work on your body language.</strong></h2>
  2548. <p>I usually don&#8217;t recommend faking it until you make it, but in this area I will. Stop slouching, stop saying &#8220;like&#8230;&#8221; and &#8220;ummm&#8230;&#8221;, and stop avoiding eye contact. In other words, you can change your outward expression of confidence to others through body language and your speech before you believe it for yourself.</p>
  2549. <h2><strong>Learn to move on.</strong></h2>
  2550. <p>Confidence is linked to regret in most cases. Stop worrying about what is done, stop taking things so personally, and learn to move ahead. You&#8217;ll be better for learning this life-changing concept.</p>
  2551. <h2><strong>Do what is right, even in the face of adversity.</strong></h2>
  2552. <p>When you do what is right, there is less gray area to question. There is confidence found in knowing that you have done the right thing.</p>
  2553. <h2><strong>Take more risks.</strong></h2>
  2554. <p>The more you risk, the more you are putting on the line. Confidence might not be there during the first risk you take, but there will definitely be more confidence present when you take your tenth risk. Keep risking something to build confidence in your life.</p>
  2555. <h2><strong>Admit your mistakes.</strong></h2>
  2556. <hr /><p><em>Mistakes will come, so be prepared to use them as learning moments.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fconfident%2F&#038;text=Mistakes%20will%20come%2C%20so%20be%20prepared%20to%20use%20them%20as%20learning%20moments.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2557. <p>Mistakes will come, so be prepared to use them as learning moments, rather than events that will stop you in your tracks. When you change your mindset here, you won&#8217;t let mistakes take the life out of you, but will instead learn from them and will let the growth you obtain build both confidence and character.</p>
  2558. <h3><em><strong>These are the fourteen things that you can do right now to build more confidence. Now, go and be more confident, today.</strong></em></h3>
  2559. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/confident/">#075: 14 Steps to a More Confident You</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2560. ]]></content:encoded>
  2561. <enclosure length="6663046" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/075-14-Steps-to-a-More-Confident-You.m4a"/>
  2562. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam gives listeners fourteen ways they can be more confident, today.</itunes:subtitle>
  2563. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Two years ago on a cold December morning, I met a friend for breakfast at his hotel. He had a speaking engagement in town, and I took the opportunity to spend some time with him. He may be my most confident friend (in a good way, not in that overconfident annoying way), and one of the smartest people I know, so I try to learn from him whenever I can. The way he talks, the way he gestures, the way he listens, the way he loves people &#8212; it all conveys a very confident message. The message he portrays with his life is one that I hadn&#8217;t spent much time paying attention to before, but after spending that morning with him, he began telling me the things that made him the person that he is today. Of course, I couldn&#8217;t jot down notes from our conversation fast enough.<br />
  2564. I wrote down 14 points that day, along with my own commentary, and each discipline can make you more confident right now. Here they are:<br />
  2565. <br />
  2566. Accept yourself for who you are.<br />
  2567. Who are you? You need to know this by heart and own it. There is only one you, and you have so much to offer to the rest of the world.<br />
  2568. Find what you believe in and fight for it.<br />
  2569. The older I get, the more fed up I become with staying quiet. Life has definitely changed me, and maybe it has done the same for you. There&#8217;s too much to do, and not enough people doing the right things. You will know that you are fighting for what you believe in when you begin to set trends, rather than following them.<br />
  2570. Study.<br />
  2571. Typically, the reason that people feel insecure is because they don&#8217;t know enough about the subject they have a lack of confidence in. Studying a subject is one of the best ways you can build confidence in a specific area immediately.<br />
  2572. Surround yourself with confidence boosters.<br />
  2573. The people you surround yourself with and the messages you listen to affect the way you see yourself. Having encouragers around you can only help with boosting your confidence.<br />
  2574. Don&#8217;t stand for humiliation.<br />
  2575. When there has been a culture of humiliation that is created, growth is suppressed. If you are being humiliated or you see others that are being humiliated, don&#8217;t allow it. You have the right and responsibility to speak up.<br />
  2576. This is the only time I will say this, but you have to focus on both your strengths and weaknesses.<br />
  2577. Confidence is more situational for most people. I am guessing that the things you are feeling less confident in are the same things that you consider your weaknesses to be. Being a <a href="http://fourhourworkweek.com/2007/09/14/the-top-5-reasons-to-be-a-jack-of-all-trades/">jack of all trades</a> has many advantages, and this way, you can take advantage of them as well.<br />
  2578. When you find success, celebrate it.<br />
  2579. Too many people skip over their successes, and only focus on their failures. This is nonsense. When you put time and work into anything that is a success, it calls for celebration. I don&#8217;t care what it is &#8211; when you are successful, you need to recognize it.<br />
  2580. Be positive.<br />
  2581. When you are positive about the future, you remain hopeful for a better outcome. When you are pessimistic, it is much easier to lose hope in finding confidence. Positivity begins with self-talk. Don&#8217;t wait for others to lift your spirits, but instead speak words of life to yourself.<br />
  2582. Cheer others on, but don&#8217;t compare yourself to others in an unhealthy way.<br />
  2583. Be there for others to encourage them along the way, but never let comparison be your measurement of accomplishment. This is why knowing who you are and pursuing the things you want out of life is so important. When you understand this, you understand what makes you different from everyone else and will pursue those things confidently in your own strength. In doing this, you are becoming the best you. Until then, you are looking to others for your definition of success.]]></itunes:summary>
  2584. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2585. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2586. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2587. <itunes:duration>6:50</itunes:duration>
  2588. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2589. <item>
  2590. <title>#074: How to Identify the Right Priorities in Your Life</title>
  2591. <link>https://asmithblog.com/right-priorities/</link>
  2592. <pubDate>Tue, 15 Sep 2015 06:01:18 +0000</pubDate>
  2593. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19953</guid>
  2594. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="priorities" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-150x150.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-300x300.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can begin setting the right priorities in their lives.&lt;/p&gt;
  2595. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/right-priorities/"&gt;#074: How to Identify the Right Priorities in Your Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2596. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="768" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="priorities" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.png 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-150x150.png 150w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-300x300.png 300w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2597. <p>When <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith/">coaching</a> people, one of the questions I receive the most is, “How do I set the right priorities and actually stick to them?” This question tells me that people know that there is a difference between the things that they say are their priorities, and what their priorities actually are. It also tells me that people want to change, but don’t know how. It also tells me that people aren’t able to put the time they want to into their priorities. As you can see, this question tells me a lot.</p>
  2598. <p>Since so many people struggle with this issue, I decided to come up with a priority exercise. I have done this exercise myself, I walk other people through it on a regular basis, and it will work for you as well. All you need is a quiet space to think, and a way to capture some notes.</p>
  2599. <p>Are you ready to learn more about yourself?</p>
  2600. <p><em>Here is the ten-step exercise you need in order to give your true priorities more attention, right now:</em><br />
  2601. <strong><span id="more-19953"></span></strong></p>
  2602. <h2><strong>Write down your top four priorities as they are right now.</strong></h2>
  2603. <hr /><p><em>Priorities are identified by where you spend most of your time.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fright-priorities%2F&#038;text=Priorities%20are%20identified%20by%20where%20you%20spend%20most%20of%20your%20time.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2604. <p>Priorities are identified by where you spend most of your time. Even if your priorities aren’t currently where they need to be, the most important part of this step is to be completely honest with yourself.</p>
  2605. <h2><strong>Write down 1 – 2 sentences, identifying who you really are in this moment.</strong></h2>
  2606. <hr /><p><em>If you don’t know who you are, then it will be difficult to move towards who you want to become.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fright-priorities%2F&#038;text=If%20you%20don%E2%80%99t%20know%20who%20you%20are%2C%20then%20it%20will%20be%20difficult%20to%20move%20towards%20who%20you%20want%20to%20become.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2607. <p>If you don’t know who you are now, then it will be very difficult to move towards who you want to become. Every map has a beginning point and a destination, and your life is no different. Progress can only be measured when we can pinpoint where we have come from.</p>
  2608. <h2><strong>Identify who it is you want to become.</strong></h2>
  2609. <p>Now, is the point where you get to dream. What do you want your priorities to be? Who do you want to be? Who do you want to impact? What change do you want to make on this world? These are all questions that you need to answer and capture into words.</p>
  2610. <p>When we can eloquently speak and write down who it is we want to become, we can become more comfortable with the journey that will get us there. When we keep our dreams inside and never put words to them, it makes us feel uncomfortable with the necessary action to get us to our goals. It’s time to be comfortable with becoming a better you.</p>
  2611. <hr /><p><em>It’s time to be comfortable with becoming a better you.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fright-priorities%2F&#038;text=It%E2%80%99s%20time%20to%20be%20comfortable%20with%20becoming%20a%20better%20you.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2612. <h2><strong>Write down every single thing that is consistent in your weekly schedule as it is right now, and identify how much time you spend on these things.</strong></h2>
  2613. <p>Now that you have your weekly activities in front of you, add up the time that you spend doing each of your priorities on a weekly basis, and write that amount of time by each priority.</p>
  2614. <h2><strong>Identify what the people around you need the most right now, and what they will need from you in the future.</strong></h2>
  2615. <p>We need to go deeper than just knowing who are your priorities, we need to detail out what you need to do to support your priorities in the best possible ways. This will enable you to develop a priority plan. An example of how this works is within the category of family. If you have small children, the things that they need now and what they will need eighteen years from now look entirely different. How you will love them and care for them will change based on their needs. The more you can identify these needs and prepare for them well, the better. This exercise helps you to see the needs of others before they happen, before they are asked for, and before anyone else sees them. With these points in mind, know that you can begin working in small steps preparing for the future. To do this, begin putting weekly action steps in your schedule now that will help get you to where you need to be in the future.</p>
  2616. <h2><strong>Identify the things that bring the most value, and give these items more of your time.</strong></h2>
  2617. <p><img decoding="async" class="size-full wp-image-19985 aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.jpg" alt="priorities" width="400" height="219" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities.jpg 400w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-300x164.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/priorities-150x82.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px" /></p>
  2618. <p>This principle works the same for money as it does time. When we treat time as currency, we will begin to see how important value is.</p>
  2619. <hr /><p><em>When we treat time as currency, we will begin to see how important value is.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fright-priorities%2F&#038;text=When%20we%20treat%20time%20as%20currency%2C%20we%20will%20begin%20to%20see%20how%20important%20value%20is.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2620. <p>Most people want the best value out of their dollar. They want to stretch their money as far as it will go, but most people don’t think of time in this way. When we make this simple mental shift, the way we schedule our time will be much different. How can we get more out of our time? How can we make the most out of each day?</p>
  2621. <p>If we believe that people are our biggest responsibility and bring the most value, then the majority of our time will be best spent building relationships. Of course, rejuvenation time can bring value, so never feel guilty for that, but knowing what brings value, and what takes value away from our time, will change the way you view time.</p>
  2622. <h2><strong>Use this step to remove the things in life that won&#8217;t matter to you in twenty-five years.</strong></h2>
  2623. <p>In other words, what doesn’t bring value? The unlimited time wasters in this world are easy distractions from doing what matters. When you are serious about getting more done and reaching more people, you will be much more aware of their presence in your life.</p>
  2624. <h2><strong>Write out your new priorities in the order of importance.</strong></h2>
  2625. <p>Now, that you have a much better grasp on where you currently stand and who you want to become, it is time to realign your priorities. This is to show you where you want to go next. Seeing where your time is actually going versus where you want it to go, is just the wake-up call that most people need.</p>
  2626. <h2><strong>Devote ample time to putting action to your priorities.</strong></h2>
  2627. <blockquote>
  2628. <h3><strong>Action expresses priorities. &#8211; Gandhi</strong></h3>
  2629. </blockquote>
  2630. <p>This is where you need to rewrite your weekly schedule, allotting the time you need to devote to your new priorities. Knowing what you need to do to move ahead is half the battle, and actually doing it is the other half. Knowledge and action are the two things that will get you to where you need to be. When you use your schedule to lay out your plan, you will be able to use it as a guide for your life. That’s the power of a purposed schedule.</p>
  2631. <p>(Don’t forget the power of minimalism. You can actually make room for more, while doing less. It’s all about realizing what is important, including sleep and downtime, and prioritizing those things. It’s not about packing your schedule full, but more about using your time wisely. Take the permission to breathe and enjoy life.)</p>
  2632. <h2><strong>Repeat this exercise on a quarterly basis.</strong></h2>
  2633. <p>Priorities have an easy way of becoming unbalanced quickly if we don’t stay aware of where we are at in life. Remember that this exercise isn’t a one-time deal, and that you will need to examine yourself often to stay proactive in priority management. The key is to <a href="http://asmithblog.com/quit/">stop</a> and <a href="http://asmithblog.com/quit-busy/">start</a> the right things, before life gets out of hand.</p>
  2634. <p>Rarely do people need more time. If anything, people need to learn how to manage their time better, and this exercise will help you do just that.</p>
  2635. <h3><em><strong>Now, go and devote more time to your priorities, today.</strong></em></h3>
  2636. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/right-priorities/">#074: How to Identify the Right Priorities in Your Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2637. ]]></content:encoded>
  2638. <enclosure length="6590723" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/074-How-to-Identify-the-Right-Priorities-in-Your-Life.m4a"/>
  2639. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can begin setting the right priorities in their lives.</itunes:subtitle>
  2640. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[When <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith/">coaching</a> people, one of the questions I receive the most is, “How do I set the right priorities and actually stick to them?” This question tells me that people know that there is a difference between the things that they say are their priorities, and what their priorities actually are. It also tells me that people want to change, but don’t know how. It also tells me that people aren’t able to put the time they want to into their priorities. As you can see, this question tells me a lot.<br />
  2641. Since so many people struggle with this issue, I decided to come up with a priority exercise. I have done this exercise myself, I walk other people through it on a regular basis, and it will work for you as well. All you need is a quiet space to think, and a way to capture some notes.<br />
  2642. Are you ready to learn more about yourself?<br />
  2643. Here is the ten-step exercise you need in order to give your true priorities more attention, right now:<br />
  2644. <br />
  2645. Write down your top four priorities as they are right now.<br />
  2646. Priorities are identified by where you spend most of your time. Even if your priorities aren’t currently where they need to be, the most important part of this step is to be completely honest with yourself.<br />
  2647. Write down 1 – 2 sentences, identifying who you really are in this moment.<br />
  2648. If you don’t know who you are now, then it will be very difficult to move towards who you want to become. Every map has a beginning point and a destination, and your life is no different. Progress can only be measured when we can pinpoint where we have come from.<br />
  2649. Identify who it is you want to become.<br />
  2650. Now, is the point where you get to dream. What do you want your priorities to be? Who do you want to be? Who do you want to impact? What change do you want to make on this world? These are all questions that you need to answer and capture into words.<br />
  2651. When we can eloquently speak and write down who it is we want to become, we can become more comfortable with the journey that will get us there. When we keep our dreams inside and never put words to them, it makes us feel uncomfortable with the necessary action to get us to our goals. It’s time to be comfortable with becoming a better you.<br />
  2652. Write down every single thing that is consistent in your weekly schedule as it is right now, and identify how much time you spend on these things.<br />
  2653. Now that you have your weekly activities in front of you, add up the time that you spend doing each of your priorities on a weekly basis, and write that amount of time by each priority.<br />
  2654. Identify what the people around you need the most right now, and what they will need from you in the future.<br />
  2655. We need to go deeper than just knowing who are your priorities, we need to detail out what you need to do to support your priorities in the best possible ways. This will enable you to develop a priority plan. An example of how this works is within the category of family. If you have small children, the things that they need now and what they will need eighteen years from now look entirely different. How you will love them and care for them will change based on their needs. The more you can identify these needs and prepare for them well, the better. This exercise helps you to see the needs of others before they happen, before they are asked for, and before anyone else sees them. With these points in mind, know that you can begin working in small steps preparing for the future. To do this, begin putting weekly action steps in your schedule now that will help get you to where you need to be in the future.<br />
  2656. Identify the things that bring the most value, and give these items more of your time.<br />
  2657. <br />
  2658. This principle works the same for money as it does time. When we treat time as currency, we will begin to see how important value is.<br />
  2659. Most people want the best value out of their dollar.]]></itunes:summary>
  2660. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2661. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2662. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2663. <itunes:duration>6:46</itunes:duration>
  2664. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2665. <item>
  2666. <title>#073: 8 Signs It May Be Time to Quit</title>
  2667. <link>https://asmithblog.com/quit/</link>
  2668. <pubDate>Tue, 08 Sep 2015 06:01:55 +0000</pubDate>
  2669. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19790</guid>
  2670. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="when is it time to quit" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit.jpg 3773w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reveals 8 ways to know that it is time to quit.&lt;/p&gt;
  2671. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/quit/"&gt;#073: 8 Signs It May Be Time to Quit&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2672. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="when is it time to quit" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit.jpg 3773w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/when-is-it-time-to-quit-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2673. <p>Learning to quit the right things in the right way is especially important for those who can never seem to find enough time for the things in life that they truly care about. This of course goes back to not identifying priorities, but also not being clear on what someone wants from life. There is only so much time in the day, and there is only so much that can be done. Learning to know our own limits, knowing how to make the most out of each and every day, and understanding what quitting can actually do for you is imperative for your success. Most people want to look at quitting from a negative view as “throwing in the towel”, but I am one of the few who doesn’t look at quitting as failure. When quitting is done correctly, it isn&#8217;t giving up &#8211; it&#8217;s making room for something better.</p>
  2674. <hr /><p><em>When quitting is done correctly, it isn&#039;t giving up - it&#039;s making room for something better. </em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2Fquit%2F&#038;text=When%20quitting%20is%20done%20correctly%2C%20it%20isn%27t%20giving%20up%20-%20it%27s%20making%20room%20for%20something%20better.%20&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  2675. <p>So, in this necessary discovery of knowing what you need to quit, I want to help you in whatever stage of life you are in. <b><i>Here are 8 signs it may be time to quit something, in order to make room for something better: </i></b></p>
  2676. <p><strong><span id="more-19790"></span></strong></p>
  2677. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if your mental and physical health is deteriorating. </b></h2>
  2678. <p>As many times as I have started something new, I have also had to know when to quit. Anyone can start something, but quitting gracefully is a true art. If you quit too early, you will miss out on the full benefits of starting in the first place and embarking on the journey. But, if you quit too late, stress levels will soar, your mental and physical health will diminish, and burnout will ensue. I can promise that, because I have experienced this firsthand.</p>
  2679. <p>If you don&#8217;t have any balance in your life, the health and relationship results will be the same. Some people would say that there is no such thing as work-life balance, but I’m calling bluff. You have to figure out what works for you, but I would challenge you to get to the spot in life where you are fitting your work around the most important people in your life, rather than the other way around. Society has tried to trick us for far too long that work is more important than relationships, but I’m not stupid. No work is worth making family, friends, or other relationships suffer.</p>
  2680. <p>Nothing in this world is worth long-term diminishing health, because if you are unhealthy, you will have nothing to offer to others. It may be time to quit, so that you can bring balance back to your life. Take care of your health, and take care of others as well.</p>
  2681. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if you are experiencing constant frustration.</b></h2>
  2682. <p>Frustration isn’t a reason to quit, but if it’s daily, or even weekly frustration that you are experiencing, that’s usually a good sign that you may need to use your time for<b> </b>something that empowers you, rather than for something that discourages.</p>
  2683. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if dead ends keep showing up.</b></h2>
  2684. <p>When there’s no possible way that you can become better at something, it may be time to move on. Maybe you’ve tried studying more to become better, and the people around you aren’t making you better, and you honestly can’t remember the last thing you have learned, then it may be time to quit in order to become better.</p>
  2685. <p>A clue that will tell you if you are currently in a dead end, is that the time you&#8217;ve been doing something is the only reason you keep doing it. When tenure is the sole reason keeping you dedicated, then it may be time to quit. When I have been working on something for months, it is difficult to quit. But, when something isn&#8217;t working, it is best to just move on. You will know if you’ve had ample time to find your definition of success. If you have given yourself enough time and you still can’t seem to find breakthrough, it may be time to move on.</p>
  2686. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if your plan isn&#8217;t working.</b></h2>
  2687. <p>If you have been following a plan, and it isn’t working, then make a different plan. Maybe the plan looks good on paper, and everyone in your inner circle agrees that it’s a great plan, but if it isn’t providing the results that you want or need, then it’s time for a new plan.</p>
  2688. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if you would rather be doing something awful.</b></h2>
  2689. <p>For me, if I would rather be at home doing laundry than what I am currently doing, then I know it is time for me to quit. Doing the laundry is my least favorite thing to do in the world, so if it sounds more promising than what I’m working on, then I force myself to walk away immediately. There is no sense in being miserable &#8211; life is way too short for that.</p>
  2690. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if you don&#8217;t feel appreciated.</b></h2>
  2691. <p>If you are living life without feeling loved, it may be time to quit what you are doing, and try something different. Once you feel appreciated by those around you, there’s no going back. Of course, this goes both ways, so if you don’t feel appreciated right now, make sure you are doing everything in your power to make those around you feel appreciated as well. Instead of looking at quitting as your first option in this situation, you have the power within you to create a thriving culture of appreciation. Once you’ve tried everything you can and if you still don’t feel appreciated, then it may be time to quit.</p>
  2692. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if life is boring.</b></h2>
  2693. <p>There’s something to say for living life full of wonder. Waking up with amazement for a new day is a great way to see the world. When life isn’t this way, it is easy to become bored with the way life is going. If you are finding life to be this way, and you’ve already tried making what you are doing fun, it may be time to quit to find a new found curiosity for the world around you.</p>
  2694. <h2><b>It may be time to quit if there&#8217;s little value found in what you are doing.</b></h2>
  2695. <p>When you get to the end of your life, what are you going to want to be able to look back on and find value in? Whatever your answer to this question is, that is what you need to be working on daily. You may need to quit what you are doing, in order to find value.</p>
  2696. <p>Of course these are just some indications that it may be time to quit something, but if anything, knowing what&#8217;s a good enough reason to quit is half the battle. Quitting is hardly ever the best answer at first, but if time goes on and these indicators are still there, it may be time to look at quitting.</p>
  2697. <p>If quitting immediately sounds too drastic, then I have something else for you to try. While you are contemplating quitting, feel free to try other things while you are still attempting to find success in your endeavors. Testing the waters may just be the answer you are looking for. Doing this can sometimes offer enough courage to keep moving ahead.</p>
  2698. <h3><em><strong>Now, go and quit something to make room for something better, today.</strong></em></h3>
  2699. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/quit/">#073: 8 Signs It May Be Time to Quit</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2700. ]]></content:encoded>
  2701. <enclosure length="7700608" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/073-8-Ways-to-Know-It-May-Be-Time-to-Quit-.m4a"/>
  2702. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reveals 8 ways to know that it is time to quit.</itunes:subtitle>
  2703. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Learning to quit the right things in the right way is especially important for those who can never seem to find enough time for the things in life that they truly care about. This of course goes back to not identifying priorities, but also not being clear on what someone wants from life. There is only so much time in the day, and there is only so much that can be done. Learning to know our own limits, knowing how to make the most out of each and every day, and understanding what quitting can actually do for you is imperative for your success. Most people want to look at quitting from a negative view as “throwing in the towel”, but I am one of the few who doesn’t look at quitting as failure. When quitting is done correctly, it isn&#8217;t giving up &#8211; it&#8217;s making room for something better.<br />
  2704. So, in this necessary discovery of knowing what you need to quit, I want to help you in whatever stage of life you are in. Here are 8 signs it may be time to quit something, in order to make room for something better: <br />
  2705. <br />
  2706. It may be time to quit if your mental and physical health is deteriorating. <br />
  2707. As many times as I have started something new, I have also had to know when to quit. Anyone can start something, but quitting gracefully is a true art. If you quit too early, you will miss out on the full benefits of starting in the first place and embarking on the journey. But, if you quit too late, stress levels will soar, your mental and physical health will diminish, and burnout will ensue. I can promise that, because I have experienced this firsthand.<br />
  2708. If you don&#8217;t have any balance in your life, the health and relationship results will be the same. Some people would say that there is no such thing as work-life balance, but I’m calling bluff. You have to figure out what works for you, but I would challenge you to get to the spot in life where you are fitting your work around the most important people in your life, rather than the other way around. Society has tried to trick us for far too long that work is more important than relationships, but I’m not stupid. No work is worth making family, friends, or other relationships suffer.<br />
  2709. Nothing in this world is worth long-term diminishing health, because if you are unhealthy, you will have nothing to offer to others. It may be time to quit, so that you can bring balance back to your life. Take care of your health, and take care of others as well.<br />
  2710. It may be time to quit if you are experiencing constant frustration.<br />
  2711. Frustration isn’t a reason to quit, but if it’s daily, or even weekly frustration that you are experiencing, that’s usually a good sign that you may need to use your time for something that empowers you, rather than for something that discourages.<br />
  2712. It may be time to quit if dead ends keep showing up.<br />
  2713. When there’s no possible way that you can become better at something, it may be time to move on. Maybe you’ve tried studying more to become better, and the people around you aren’t making you better, and you honestly can’t remember the last thing you have learned, then it may be time to quit in order to become better.<br />
  2714. A clue that will tell you if you are currently in a dead end, is that the time you&#8217;ve been doing something is the only reason you keep doing it. When tenure is the sole reason keeping you dedicated, then it may be time to quit. When I have been working on something for months, it is difficult to quit. But, when something isn&#8217;t working, it is best to just move on. You will know if you’ve had ample time to find your definition of success. If you have given yourself enough time and you still can’t seem to find breakthrough, it may be time to move on.<br />
  2715. It may be time to quit if your plan isn&#8217;t working.<br />
  2716. If you have been following a plan, and it isn’t working, then make a different plan. Maybe the plan looks good on paper, and everyone in your inner circle agrees that it’s a gre...]]></itunes:summary>
  2717. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2718. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2719. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2720. <itunes:duration>7:54</itunes:duration>
  2721. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2722. <item>
  2723. <title>#072: The Power of Positivity</title>
  2724. <link>https://asmithblog.com/positivity/</link>
  2725. <pubDate>Tue, 25 Aug 2015 06:01:08 +0000</pubDate>
  2726. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19556</guid>
  2727. <description>&lt;img width="640" height="633" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="positivity" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity.jpg 640w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity-300x297.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity-150x148.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why positivity and thankfulness are so powerful.&lt;/p&gt;
  2728. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/positivity/"&gt;#072: The Power of Positivity&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2729. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="640" height="633" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="positivity" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity.jpg 640w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity-300x297.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/positivity-150x148.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px" />
  2730. <p>You can begin increasing positivity in your own life by viewing yourself in the correct way. You are someone who matters and what you do with your life matters. Believe this and move forward. Once you view yourself in a positive light, positivity will flow out of you through your words and actions. Positivity isn’t just a state of mind, but it is a way of life that is to be lived out consistently.</p>
  2731. <p><strong><span id="more-19556"></span></strong></p>
  2732. <h2><strong>Stop Waiting For Positivity to Find You</strong></h2>
  2733. <p>The biggest lie you will be faced with when dealing with pursuing a positive outlook on life is that you can’t have it now. This lie will tell you that you have to go find your positivity in some big success, and on the other side of that you will find happiness, but this is so far from the truth that it hurts. Happiness can be found now, not on the other side of success. It has to do with the way you see things in life right now and it is up to you to change how you view where you are currently at in life.</p>
  2734. <h2><strong>Being Happy</strong></h2>
  2735. <p>Part of true success is being happy while doing what you do. If you have to show up on a daily basis, you might as well be happy while doing it. If you can practice happiness now in the present, you will perform better and be more determined to find success. Happiness isn’t something that comes from success, because once you find what your preconceived idea of what success is, you will just think something else in the future will make you happier. With this type of mentality, there will never be anything good enough to satisfy your happiness craving. You can be happy now by living in a constant state of positivity.</p>
  2736. <p>Happiness doesn’t come from outside circumstances, but instead it is comes from inside of you. Be positive about life now, because life is all around you. There are life moments happening that involve real people who need you right now. When you realize this, it will be easier to see the positivity that comes from making a difference in the lives of others.</p>
  2737. <p>Seeing life for the positivity that is in it isn&#8217;t refusing to see the negative things happening around you, but a positive worldview can actually change your perception, and even your outcomes. With positivity, you can predetermine that when turbulence comes, you will see these life moments as lessons, rather than dead ends. It is your choice and outlook on life that determines what you do when life doesn&#8217;t go exactly as planned.</p>
  2738. <p>If you want something to change, it has to begin with you. Take the permission to apply positivity to every area of your life and watch what this alone does in your life. A happy individual, family, and team at work is always more productive when positivity influences each area of life.</p>
  2739. <p>Think about this &#8211; In relationships, does the negative trait of fear or the positive trait of love drive a better relationship? It is always the positive trait of love. Fear strikes down all communication, but love allows for more expressive communication to take place. You will always want to do more for the people who you love rather than the people you fear, and you will want to be with these same people as well. You can have that same effect on others when you possess positivity in your own life.</p>
  2740. <h2><strong>Negativity</strong></h2>
  2741. <p>Once you experience what positivity feels like, you will want to stay there. The issue is that people have become far too comfortable in living with negativity consuming them, but in all actuality, we should run away from it as fast as we can. So, how can we get past negativity? I believe the biggest proponent of negativity is not fully understanding the amount of power that it can and will have on our lives if we allow it to. The best way to know if you have been putting positivity or negativity into your life, is to look at your <em>thoughts, emotions, and reactions. </em>Doing this will help you move past negativity and will help you find more positivity in your life.</p>
  2742. <p>Your thoughts will tell you a lot about what you have been consuming lately. Are your thoughts negative or are your thoughts uplifting? You will tend to think on good things when you have a positive outlook on life. Since positivity starts with you, let your thoughts be positive and filled with life. Do this and let your mind be free to enjoy life to the fullest. Life is too short to let negativity take over.</p>
  2743. <p>Are you down in the dumps on most days, feeling down and out, sad at circumstances going on in your life, or are you full of joy? Are your emotions in line with positivity? When you are full of joy, it is easy to pass it on to others. When you are sad, it is easier to pass that on to others. You can change the atmosphere with your demeanor alone. Don’t let emotions dictate where your day will go. Instead, take over your emotions and use them to help guide you, but never let them be your master. Yes, we were made as emotional beings and they are a terrible master, but we can use them to our advantage to let us know if we are leaning towards positivity or negativity.</p>
  2744. <p>Another good way to know if you are a positive person is to look at the people you attract. Other people who possess positivity will want to be around you even more when you are uplifting and positive with your own emotions. When you have a positive outlook on life, you can use your emotions to help influence movement for a worthy cause.</p>
  2745. <p>Take a look at your reactions to everyday moments. Is your tendency to fly off the handle at any little thing, or do you take most situations in stride? How you react says a lot about which way you lean, and what external components you have been putting in. Anger comes out when negativity has been poured in, and peace and calmness come out when you focus on positivity. Focus on bringing a calm to the storm and see just how good life really is.</p>
  2746. <p>Do you want more positivity in your life? Your answer is to put more good in. Read healthier books, surround yourself with more uplifting people, and speak life into others. That is how you control your outlook on life. The more belief you can pour into yourself from outside influences, the more you will believe in yourself.</p>
  2747. <h3><em><strong>Don’t fall for being negative with your thought patterns and your views. Fight to see the good in all situations. Now, go and show positivity to others, today. </strong></em></h3>
  2748. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/positivity/">#072: The Power of Positivity</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2749. ]]></content:encoded>
  2750. <enclosure length="7000926" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/072-The-Power-of-Positivity.m4a"/>
  2751. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why positivity and thankfulness are so powerful.</itunes:subtitle>
  2752. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[You can begin increasing positivity in your own life by viewing yourself in the correct way. You are someone who matters and what you do with your life matters. Believe this and move forward. Once you view yourself in a positive light, positivity will flow out of you through your words and actions. Positivity isn’t just a state of mind, but it is a way of life that is to be lived out consistently.<br />
  2753. <br />
  2754. Stop Waiting For Positivity to Find You<br />
  2755. The biggest lie you will be faced with when dealing with pursuing a positive outlook on life is that you can’t have it now. This lie will tell you that you have to go find your positivity in some big success, and on the other side of that you will find happiness, but this is so far from the truth that it hurts. Happiness can be found now, not on the other side of success. It has to do with the way you see things in life right now and it is up to you to change how you view where you are currently at in life.<br />
  2756. Being Happy<br />
  2757. Part of true success is being happy while doing what you do. If you have to show up on a daily basis, you might as well be happy while doing it. If you can practice happiness now in the present, you will perform better and be more determined to find success. Happiness isn’t something that comes from success, because once you find what your preconceived idea of what success is, you will just think something else in the future will make you happier. With this type of mentality, there will never be anything good enough to satisfy your happiness craving. You can be happy now by living in a constant state of positivity.<br />
  2758. Happiness doesn’t come from outside circumstances, but instead it is comes from inside of you. Be positive about life now, because life is all around you. There are life moments happening that involve real people who need you right now. When you realize this, it will be easier to see the positivity that comes from making a difference in the lives of others.<br />
  2759. Seeing life for the positivity that is in it isn&#8217;t refusing to see the negative things happening around you, but a positive worldview can actually change your perception, and even your outcomes. With positivity, you can predetermine that when turbulence comes, you will see these life moments as lessons, rather than dead ends. It is your choice and outlook on life that determines what you do when life doesn&#8217;t go exactly as planned.<br />
  2760. If you want something to change, it has to begin with you. Take the permission to apply positivity to every area of your life and watch what this alone does in your life. A happy individual, family, and team at work is always more productive when positivity influences each area of life.<br />
  2761. Think about this &#8211; In relationships, does the negative trait of fear or the positive trait of love drive a better relationship? It is always the positive trait of love. Fear strikes down all communication, but love allows for more expressive communication to take place. You will always want to do more for the people who you love rather than the people you fear, and you will want to be with these same people as well. You can have that same effect on others when you possess positivity in your own life.<br />
  2762. Negativity<br />
  2763. Once you experience what positivity feels like, you will want to stay there. The issue is that people have become far too comfortable in living with negativity consuming them, but in all actuality, we should run away from it as fast as we can. So, how can we get past negativity? I believe the biggest proponent of negativity is not fully understanding the amount of power that it can and will have on our lives if we allow it to. The best way to know if you have been putting positivity or negativity into your life, is to look at your thoughts, emotions, and reactions. Doing this will help you move past negativity and will help you find more positivity in your life.<br />
  2764. ]]></itunes:summary>
  2765. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2766. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2767. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2768. <itunes:duration>7:11</itunes:duration>
  2769. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2770. <item>
  2771. <title>#071: Be a Good Steward with What You Already Have</title>
  2772. <link>https://asmithblog.com/good-steward/</link>
  2773. <pubDate>Tue, 18 Aug 2015 06:01:20 +0000</pubDate>
  2774. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19524</guid>
  2775. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="511" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="good steward stewardship" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship.jpg 3008w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-300x199.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-1024x681.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you how to be a good steward with what you already have in your possession.&lt;/p&gt;
  2776. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/good-steward/"&gt;#071: Be a Good Steward with What You Already Have&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2777. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="511" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="good steward stewardship" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship.jpg 3008w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-300x199.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-1024x681.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/good-steward-stewardship-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2778. <p>We have seen less importance placed on becoming a good steward, and more importance placed on what we can gain. I would also say that we have seen a negative shift in the way people view responsibility. Let me be the first to tell you that things won’t happen the way you want them to until you take some responsibility. You have to take responsibility for your actions, the decisions that have gotten you to where you are today, and for moving ahead.</p>
  2779. <p><strong><span id="more-19524"></span></strong></p>
  2780. <h2><strong>The Story of Brandon</strong></h2>
  2781. <p>One of the best examples I have ever seen of someone who knew how to be a good steward with their lives was my boss at my first job, Brandon. He is still to this day the best manager I have ever known. Brandon knew how to coach others to become better, how to get great results, and he was also very personable with everyone. Because of this, Brandon was able to build trust and relationships with both the team and with customers.</p>
  2782. <p>Looking from the outside, it didn&#8217;t seem like he should be this far along in life. He was young, he really hadn’t been in management for a long time, and he was attending grad school full-time while working full-time to pay for all of his schooling. But, even with being stretched in every direction, he understood the importance of doing well with what he already had. He didn&#8217;t let busyness deter him from pouring into the lives of others.</p>
  2783. <p>I knew he had something that I wasn’t able to grasp yet, but now I understand. He was being a good steward. He knew that he didn’t have to go out and gather a bunch of different attributes first, but he was already enough. He didn&#8217;t wait to hopefully become a better leader <i>someday, </i>but he saw life as an opportunity and took advantage of it. Even though Brandon was in a waiting season himself, he knew what it meant to be a good steward with what he already had.</p>
  2784. <h2><strong>Being A Good Steward With the Present Moment</strong></h2>
  2785. <p>Brandon displayed what it meant to do well with what someone already has, but what about the trend of obtaining more, more, more? The want of something more isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when it becomes your sole purpose, it becomes your wrong motive. When having more is always your focus, you miss out on each daily opportunity to use the talents and passions you already have in your possession to lead in the lives of others right now. When your focus is on the present moment, you will be able to give more to those around you. In doing this, you will have more influence. If I am using John Maxwell&#8217;s definition of leadership, being influence, nothing more nothing less, then this is where we need to focus.</p>
  2786. <p>When you understand the need that people have for you and you know what needs to be done, it then becomes your responsibility to be a good steward and give life all that you already have. When you learn to be a good steward, you learn the importance of treasuring what you already have in your possession. When you learn how to be a good steward, growth always comes.</p>
  2787. <h2><strong>The Waiting Season</strong></h2>
  2788. <p>When things are going great, you probably don’t feel a huge need to focus on being a good steward, because things couldn’t be better. But, let me challenge you to not lose focus on what is at hand, so you can continue to grow. Being a good steward not only maintains greatness in life, but stewarding well is what grows people into becoming something better. Maybe you currently find yourself in the midst of waiting and are wondering if the next door will ever open again. Maybe you are making plans and are getting ready to put the work in. Or, maybe you are submerged in the trenches of your work right now, wondering when this pace will ever let up. Or, maybe you are in the season of reaping the benefits of the work you have put in for so many years and are wondering what to do with all of it now. Plain and simple, being a good steward in every life season is what will keep you growing.</p>
  2789. <p>If you are currently in a waiting season or have been there at some point in life, you know just how difficult this season is if you allow it to be. But, understand that waiting doesn’t have to be as difficult as most people make it out to be. Waiting will try to keep you to yourself and will try to settle you into contentment, but at some point you have to move out of your comfort zone and dare to make a change. At some point you will have to go and do. You can use the waiting season as a time to step out and go do something different.</p>
  2790. <p>There is no better time to plan your life out and all the intricacies of it than in the waiting season. Once you do this, you can start moving through this season and get to the next. Time is too precious to waste. You can use time to impact others in huge ways, especially in the waiting season.</p>
  2791. <h2><strong>Dreams Paired With Planning</strong></h2>
  2792. <p>The dreams that you have are what inspires people. People find inspiration in what you are pursuing with your life, but your dreams still need a plan to make them happen. Dreams excel when they are put into a plan. Your plan is simply a means to achieve your dreams, but every inspiration starts with a huge dream burning inside of you. You can be a good steward by taking responsibility now. Live your story, tell it, learn from it, and plan it out.</p>
  2793. <p>Within the practice of planning out your dreams, you get to see what you care about. You should pencil each and every detail out, even the gifts you want to bring out of others are important to identify. Planning is just another way to be a good steward with your life. Your plan should impact the lives of others, because it will always be people that matter.</p>
  2794. <h2><strong>Hard Work</strong></h2>
  2795. <p>But, even after constructing a plan, remember that only having a plan is never enough. At some point you will have to put in hard work. At some point you need to come to the realization that forward movement is the only thing that makes great things happen. When you are a good steward and put hard work into the right things, you will find success, because hard work always pays off.</p>
  2796. <p>I know the sexy solution is to say that you can use mind over matter and just think these things into existence, but the truth is that putting hard work into the right things always wins. I know it takes a lot of time to put in the necessary work, but it isn’t possible to skip this most important step of the process. The truth of the matter is people want to skip this step because again, people want to write off responsibility and take the easy way out.</p>
  2797. <h2><strong>Excuses</strong></h2>
  2798. <p>But, when you realize the importance that hard work has in making things happen, making excuses seems like a really dumb thing to do. I used to dream of the day that things would become easier, but that day never came and it doesn’t look like it will show up anytime soon. I used to make excuses as to why I couldn&#8217;t be there for others due to a lack of time, but I hadn&#8217;t yet discovered the power of being a good steward with my life. The fact is that there are still people I come in contact with every second of the day who need me, and I still have the same responsibility to be a good steward that I&#8217;ve always had.</p>
  2799. <p>Yes, I am now busier with my family, I have more commitments, and I work more than I ever have before, but the difference is that I have stopped making excuses as to why I can&#8217;t make the time for people. When others aren&#8217;t our top priority, all of this is in vain. All of this work we put into <em>Leadership In Life </em>doesn&#8217;t matter<em> </em>when people don&#8217;t matter. This idea is that serious.</p>
  2800. <p>Being a good steward with my life didn&#8217;t just happen somehow, though. There came a time in my life where I had to declare that no matter what amount of time I was given, I would use it to the best of my abilities to impact the lives of other people. I had to make the decision to be a good steward with my time, and you can make the same decision right now.</p>
  2801. <h2><strong>Are You Doing Well With What You Already Have?</strong></h2>
  2802. <p>In most cases, results will speak for themselves. If you are a business owner or an employee at a business, then you know that looking at your profit and loss statements will show if you have been a good steward with your resources. If you are working on a project for the business you work at, then you know that the time you put into your project will show itself by displaying just how prepared you really are when it comes time to present. When you are a good steward with your financial resources, you know that it will show both in your expenditures and your savings.</p>
  2803. <p>Being a good steward is what strengthens character and integrity within each and every one of us. Whether we are talking about work, time, or money, being a good steward with our resources sets us up for greater success. It shows that we are paying attention, that we care about our responsibilities, and that we want to do well with what we already have.</p>
  2804. <p>This concept of being a good steward is something that is hardly ever discussed in the world of wanting more. When is the last time you really thought about being responsible for taking care of what you already have and growing it into something better? When something is given to you and huge, new opportunities come into your life, take the responsibility to be a good steward with them. Once you do well with what you have now, more will come to you. That’s a principle that has always worked, and one that will remain true until the end of time.</p>
  2805. <p>Sometimes it may seem easier to give something away, delegate it, or even forget about it, rather than being a good steward with it. The thing is that we usually have the seed already in our hands, but we may not have the ultimate solution in our possession yet. If you can imagine planting a seed and taking care of it until it grows into a full plant or tree, this is what being a good steward looks like. When you live life well, you can know that what you already have in the ground will eventually grow to be a beautiful life-giving plant.</p>
  2806. <h3><em><strong>You can give away everything you have within yourself to others right now, so you know how to be an even better steward with bigger opportunities in the future. It&#8217;s a great time to practice being a good steward, today. </strong></em></h3>
  2807. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/good-steward/">#071: Be a Good Steward with What You Already Have</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2808. ]]></content:encoded>
  2809. <enclosure length="9920648" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/071-Be-A-Good-Steward-With-What-You-Already-Have.m4a"/>
  2810. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you how to be a good steward with what you already have in your possession.</itunes:subtitle>
  2811. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[We have seen less importance placed on becoming a good steward, and more importance placed on what we can gain. I would also say that we have seen a negative shift in the way people view responsibility. Let me be the first to tell you that things won’t happen the way you want them to until you take some responsibility. You have to take responsibility for your actions, the decisions that have gotten you to where you are today, and for moving ahead.<br />
  2812. <br />
  2813. The Story of Brandon<br />
  2814. One of the best examples I have ever seen of someone who knew how to be a good steward with their lives was my boss at my first job, Brandon. He is still to this day the best manager I have ever known. Brandon knew how to coach others to become better, how to get great results, and he was also very personable with everyone. Because of this, Brandon was able to build trust and relationships with both the team and with customers.<br />
  2815. Looking from the outside, it didn&#8217;t seem like he should be this far along in life. He was young, he really hadn’t been in management for a long time, and he was attending grad school full-time while working full-time to pay for all of his schooling. But, even with being stretched in every direction, he understood the importance of doing well with what he already had. He didn&#8217;t let busyness deter him from pouring into the lives of others.<br />
  2816. I knew he had something that I wasn’t able to grasp yet, but now I understand. He was being a good steward. He knew that he didn’t have to go out and gather a bunch of different attributes first, but he was already enough. He didn&#8217;t wait to hopefully become a better leader someday, but he saw life as an opportunity and took advantage of it. Even though Brandon was in a waiting season himself, he knew what it meant to be a good steward with what he already had.<br />
  2817. Being A Good Steward With the Present Moment<br />
  2818. Brandon displayed what it meant to do well with what someone already has, but what about the trend of obtaining more, more, more? The want of something more isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but when it becomes your sole purpose, it becomes your wrong motive. When having more is always your focus, you miss out on each daily opportunity to use the talents and passions you already have in your possession to lead in the lives of others right now. When your focus is on the present moment, you will be able to give more to those around you. In doing this, you will have more influence. If I am using John Maxwell&#8217;s definition of leadership, being influence, nothing more nothing less, then this is where we need to focus.<br />
  2819. When you understand the need that people have for you and you know what needs to be done, it then becomes your responsibility to be a good steward and give life all that you already have. When you learn to be a good steward, you learn the importance of treasuring what you already have in your possession. When you learn how to be a good steward, growth always comes.<br />
  2820. The Waiting Season<br />
  2821. When things are going great, you probably don’t feel a huge need to focus on being a good steward, because things couldn’t be better. But, let me challenge you to not lose focus on what is at hand, so you can continue to grow. Being a good steward not only maintains greatness in life, but stewarding well is what grows people into becoming something better. Maybe you currently find yourself in the midst of waiting and are wondering if the next door will ever open again. Maybe you are making plans and are getting ready to put the work in. Or, maybe you are submerged in the trenches of your work right now, wondering when this pace will ever let up. Or, maybe you are in the season of reaping the benefits of the work you have put in for so many years and are wondering what to do with all of it now. Plain and simple, being a good steward in every life season is what will keep you growing.<br />
  2822. If you are currently in a waiting season or hav...]]></itunes:summary>
  2823. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2824. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2825. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2826. <itunes:duration>10:11</itunes:duration>
  2827. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2828. <item>
  2829. <title>#070: Create A Better Company Culture</title>
  2830. <link>https://asmithblog.com/company-culture/</link>
  2831. <pubDate>Tue, 11 Aug 2015 06:01:51 +0000</pubDate>
  2832. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19395</guid>
  2833. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better company culture" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture.jpg 822w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains to listeners how they can help create a better company culture.&lt;/p&gt;
  2834. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/company-culture/"&gt;#070: Create A Better Company Culture&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2835. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="better company culture" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture.jpg 822w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/company-culture-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  2836. <p>Gallup research shows that only <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/165269/worldwide-employees-engaged-work.aspx">13% of workers are actively engaged in their work</a>. Here&#8217;s an article stating that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-people-quit-their-jobs-2015-7?utm_content=buffer3a825&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=facebook.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer">people don&#8217;t quit jobs, they quit managers</a>. I also found an article on <a href="http://inc42.com/buzz/employees-quit/">the 9 things that make good employees quit</a>. I share these articles with you as proof that the topic of company culture is important, and for good reason.</p>
  2837. <p>Businesses tend to focus the majority of their energy on attracting the right employees, but place much less focus on how they can keep the right people. Employee retention is a focus that’s worth the time and effort, because cultivating a great company culture is a necessity for your business to thrive. So, how can you help ensure a better company culture at your place of work?</p>
  2838. <p><strong><span id="more-19395"></span></strong></p>
  2839. <p><strong>1. Listen and be heard.</strong></p>
  2840. <p>Listening shows that you are engaged with what is going on within your company. When you really listen to what individuals on your team have to say, it shows you care about others.</p>
  2841. <p>Listening isn&#8217;t the only way to show you care about others. Voicing your opinion shows that you care about the outcome as well. You will fight for what you believe to be right. Remember this truth the next time you have the urge to say something and feel like shying away from the opportunity. Voicing how you feel on a certain topic only shows that you care about creating a better outcome.</p>
  2842. <p>If you are in a leadership role at your company, then it is your responsibility to listen to your team’s input. Of course a decision needs to be made once all input is received, but listening to your team shows that you genuinely care about the perspective of others.</p>
  2843. <p>At some point a real disconnect happened between employers and employees. This happened when a few company executives decided to call all the shots and expected everyone else to fit in the terrible culture they created. The only problem with this is that a better company culture isn’t dictated &#8211; it’s acted out by people who care. A better company culture can begin to form when teams work together and healthy dialogue is exchanged between everyone involved.</p>
  2844. <p><strong>2. Make creativity a top priority.</strong></p>
  2845. <p>Company cultures suffer when creativity is lost in the shuffle. Once things stop moving forward, employees disengage. Everyone suffers when things remain stagnant. Businesses need to keep creativity in the forefront of all that they do.</p>
  2846. <p><em>Some questions you can ask yourself to create a better company culture are: </em></p>
  2847. <p>How can we continually innovate?<br />
  2848. How can we continually stay ahead of other companies in our field?<br />
  2849. How can we make our daily activities the best they can possibly be?<br />
  2850. How can we become more productive with our time?<br />
  2851. How can we reach more people?</p>
  2852. <p>Answer these questions often to see your company culture soar. The possibilities for your company are endless when creativity is considered to be a necessity.</p>
  2853. <p><strong>3. Engrain the <em>Why</em> into everything.</strong></p>
  2854. <p>If company culture is built by everything we do, then the mission of your company needs to be present in the actions of every employee. If management is doing their job well, then they are the ones who give the necessary tools to create a better environment for their employees. But, when employees see how they fit into the equation, they can help propel an engaging company culture to take it to the next level. A better company culture is the responsibility of everyone involved, not just a select few. Grab hold of the W<i>hy </i>behind what your company does and see the difference it can make.</p>
  2855. <p><b><em><strong>Now, go and create a better company culture, today.</strong></em></b></p>
  2856. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/company-culture/">#070: Create A Better Company Culture</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2857. ]]></content:encoded>
  2858. <enclosure length="4901595" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/070-Create-A-Better-Company-Culture.m4a"/>
  2859. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains to listeners how they can help create a better company culture.</itunes:subtitle>
  2860. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Gallup research shows that only <a href="http://www.gallup.com/poll/165269/worldwide-employees-engaged-work.aspx">13% of workers are actively engaged in their work</a>. Here&#8217;s an article stating that <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/why-people-quit-their-jobs-2015-7?utm_content=buffer3a825&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_source=facebook.com&amp;utm_campaign=buffer">people don&#8217;t quit jobs, they quit managers</a>. I also found an article on <a href="http://inc42.com/buzz/employees-quit/">the 9 things that make good employees quit</a>. I share these articles with you as proof that the topic of company culture is important, and for good reason.<br />
  2861. Businesses tend to focus the majority of their energy on attracting the right employees, but place much less focus on how they can keep the right people. Employee retention is a focus that’s worth the time and effort, because cultivating a great company culture is a necessity for your business to thrive. So, how can you help ensure a better company culture at your place of work?<br />
  2862. <br />
  2863. 1. Listen and be heard.<br />
  2864. Listening shows that you are engaged with what is going on within your company. When you really listen to what individuals on your team have to say, it shows you care about others.<br />
  2865. Listening isn&#8217;t the only way to show you care about others. Voicing your opinion shows that you care about the outcome as well. You will fight for what you believe to be right. Remember this truth the next time you have the urge to say something and feel like shying away from the opportunity. Voicing how you feel on a certain topic only shows that you care about creating a better outcome.<br />
  2866. If you are in a leadership role at your company, then it is your responsibility to listen to your team’s input. Of course a decision needs to be made once all input is received, but listening to your team shows that you genuinely care about the perspective of others.<br />
  2867. At some point a real disconnect happened between employers and employees. This happened when a few company executives decided to call all the shots and expected everyone else to fit in the terrible culture they created. The only problem with this is that a better company culture isn’t dictated &#8211; it’s acted out by people who care. A better company culture can begin to form when teams work together and healthy dialogue is exchanged between everyone involved.<br />
  2868. 2. Make creativity a top priority.<br />
  2869. Company cultures suffer when creativity is lost in the shuffle. Once things stop moving forward, employees disengage. Everyone suffers when things remain stagnant. Businesses need to keep creativity in the forefront of all that they do.<br />
  2870. Some questions you can ask yourself to create a better company culture are: <br />
  2871. How can we continually innovate?<br />
  2872. How can we continually stay ahead of other companies in our field?<br />
  2873. How can we make our daily activities the best they can possibly be?<br />
  2874. How can we become more productive with our time?<br />
  2875. How can we reach more people?<br />
  2876. Answer these questions often to see your company culture soar. The possibilities for your company are endless when creativity is considered to be a necessity.<br />
  2877. 3. Engrain the Why into everything.<br />
  2878. If company culture is built by everything we do, then the mission of your company needs to be present in the actions of every employee. If management is doing their job well, then they are the ones who give the necessary tools to create a better environment for their employees. But, when employees see how they fit into the equation, they can help propel an engaging company culture to take it to the next level. A better company culture is the responsibility of everyone involved, not just a select few. Grab hold of the Why behind what your company does and see the difference it can make.<br />
  2879. Now, go and create a better company culture, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  2880. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2881. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2882. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2883. <itunes:duration>5:02</itunes:duration>
  2884. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2885. <item>
  2886. <title>#069: Why Looking at Your Past Is so Important</title>
  2887. <link>https://asmithblog.com/your-past/</link>
  2888. <pubDate>Tue, 04 Aug 2015 06:01:22 +0000</pubDate>
  2889. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19274</guid>
  2890. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="look at your past" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past.jpg 1920w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners why looking at your past is so important.&lt;/p&gt;
  2891. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/your-past/"&gt;#069: Why Looking at Your Past Is so Important&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2892. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="432" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="look at your past" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past.jpg 1920w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-300x169.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/look-at-your-past-150x84.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  2893.  
  2894. <p>When I took the StrengthsFinder test, I found that my number one strength is “futuristic”. It’s truly my blessing and my curse. I always want to live in the future, curious as to what’ s next, but I have forced myself to analyze my past. Why? Because it’s necessary. Of course we don’t want to dwell on the negativity from our past because we can’t change what has already been done, but we can continually learn from it and change our lives from this one simple practice.</p>
  2895. <p><em>Here are the three main reasons I believe looking at your past is one of the most important things you can do:</em></p>
  2896. <p><strong><span id="more-19274"></span></strong></p>
  2897. <p><strong>1. Looking at your past helps ensure that bad history doesn’t repeat itself.</strong></p>
  2898. <p>We all have times in life that didn&#8217;t turn out so well. The way we can all turn these negative experiences into positive ones is by not being afraid to look at the past. Although it may not be comfortable, we can work to not only look at the past, but to learn from it. James Burke said, “Why should we look to the past in order to prepare for the future? Because there is nowhere else to look.” We should look at both mistakes in the past and victories and take advantage of them, because we can.</p>
  2899. <p>But, the only way to know that bad history won’t repeat itself is by making changes now so the future won’t turn out the same way. Want to change your future? Begin making better choices right now.</p>
  2900. <p><strong>2. Looking at your past gives you incredible stories to share with others.</strong></p>
  2901. <p>Looking at your past not only improves your memory, but making this a regular practice helps you to never forget where you came from. I will again recommend journaling to be able to remember moments, but some of the best stories that I share now are from the far past. This is fun for me, because I can see what obstacles I have overcome to get where I am today. You have had to do the same thing in your own life, and it’s in these experiences that make you who you are.</p>
  2902. <p>Every time you don’t allow your past to be used in some way, you rob others from experiences you have already encountered. You already have valuable insight on situations that others may encounter along their journey, so you might as well begin using it for good. Share your past to help someone else’s future.</p>
  2903. <p><strong>3. Looking at your past lets you know what you can improve.</strong></p>
  2904. <p>Looking at your past tells you how well you have been working in your strengths and weaknesses. You’ve probably heard the definition of insanity before — it’s doing the same things over and over again expecting different results. Some people do this without even realizing it, and when they do this they get stuck in a monotonous cycle that leads to a rut.</p>
  2905. <p>Looking at the past in this way will tell you if you have been working towards your goals or not. Based on this analyzation you will have a good idea of what kind of improvements need to be made. If you have been working towards your goals, then that’s amazing. Keep it up! But if you’ve been heading the opposite direction, then by all means make the needed improvements now instead of “someday”. (That may be my least favorite word ever.)</p>
  2906. <h3><em><strong>Make looking at your past a habitual practice. It will not only help you now, but it will assist you in planning for the future. Take these three steps and begin looking at your past, today.</strong></em></h3>
  2907. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/your-past/">#069: Why Looking at Your Past Is so Important</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2908. ]]></content:encoded>
  2909. <enclosure length="4515524" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/069-Why-Looking-At-Your-Past-Is-So-Important.m4a"/>
  2910. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners why looking at your past is so important.</itunes:subtitle>
  2911. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  2912. When I took the StrengthsFinder test, I found that my number one strength is “futuristic”. It’s truly my blessing and my curse. I always want to live in the future, curious as to what’ s next, but I have forced myself to analyze my past. Why? Because it’s necessary. Of course we don’t want to dwell on the negativity from our past because we can’t change what has already been done, but we can continually learn from it and change our lives from this one simple practice.<br />
  2913. Here are the three main reasons I believe looking at your past is one of the most important things you can do:<br />
  2914. <br />
  2915. 1. Looking at your past helps ensure that bad history doesn’t repeat itself.<br />
  2916. We all have times in life that didn&#8217;t turn out so well. The way we can all turn these negative experiences into positive ones is by not being afraid to look at the past. Although it may not be comfortable, we can work to not only look at the past, but to learn from it. James Burke said, “Why should we look to the past in order to prepare for the future? Because there is nowhere else to look.” We should look at both mistakes in the past and victories and take advantage of them, because we can.<br />
  2917. But, the only way to know that bad history won’t repeat itself is by making changes now so the future won’t turn out the same way. Want to change your future? Begin making better choices right now.<br />
  2918. 2. Looking at your past gives you incredible stories to share with others.<br />
  2919. Looking at your past not only improves your memory, but making this a regular practice helps you to never forget where you came from. I will again recommend journaling to be able to remember moments, but some of the best stories that I share now are from the far past. This is fun for me, because I can see what obstacles I have overcome to get where I am today. You have had to do the same thing in your own life, and it’s in these experiences that make you who you are.<br />
  2920. Every time you don’t allow your past to be used in some way, you rob others from experiences you have already encountered. You already have valuable insight on situations that others may encounter along their journey, so you might as well begin using it for good. Share your past to help someone else’s future.<br />
  2921. 3. Looking at your past lets you know what you can improve.<br />
  2922. Looking at your past tells you how well you have been working in your strengths and weaknesses. You’ve probably heard the definition of insanity before — it’s doing the same things over and over again expecting different results. Some people do this without even realizing it, and when they do this they get stuck in a monotonous cycle that leads to a rut.<br />
  2923. Looking at the past in this way will tell you if you have been working towards your goals or not. Based on this analyzation you will have a good idea of what kind of improvements need to be made. If you have been working towards your goals, then that’s amazing. Keep it up! But if you’ve been heading the opposite direction, then by all means make the needed improvements now instead of “someday”. (That may be my least favorite word ever.)<br />
  2924. Make looking at your past a habitual practice. It will not only help you now, but it will assist you in planning for the future. Take these three steps and begin looking at your past, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  2925. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2926. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2927. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2928. <itunes:duration>4:38</itunes:duration>
  2929. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2930. <item>
  2931. <title>#068: Four Ways To Be Happier Than You Are Right Now</title>
  2932. <link>https://asmithblog.com/happier-podcast/</link>
  2933. <pubDate>Tue, 28 Jul 2015 06:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
  2934. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19048</guid>
  2935. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/be-happier-e1437844885400.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="be happier" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows listeners four ways that they can be happier.&lt;/p&gt;
  2936. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/happier-podcast/"&gt;#068: Four Ways To Be Happier Than You Are Right Now&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2937. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/be-happier-e1437844885400.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="be happier" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  2938.  
  2939. <p>After reading Gretchen Rubin&#8217;s <a href="https://gretchenrubin.com/books/the-happiness-project/about-the-book/"><em>The Happiness Project</em></a>, I became more interested with what makes people happier. Everyone wants to be happier, but not many people know where to look, and that&#8217;s okay. What I have found in my research is that the road to happiness is not a one-size-fits-all approach. The beautiful creativity, the endless possibilities, and being able to analyze what works and what doesn&#8217;t are just a few of the things that makes life amazing.</p>
  2940. <h3><em>This being said, let&#8217;s look at what habits most happier people possess that anyone can use in their own lives:</em></h3>
  2941. <p><strong><span id="more-19048"></span></strong></p>
  2942. <p><strong>1. Most happier people challenge themselves in a fun way. </strong></p>
  2943. <p>If you find yourself incurious about life, it is time to reevaluate. When you challenge yourself and become curious once again, it will immediately spark interest in your life&#8217;s passions, and in return will make you happier. When you begin doing this, no it may not always be easy, but easy usually doesn&#8217;t equate to doing what&#8217;s important. In fact, very few times will it be easy to do what&#8217;s important.</p>
  2944. <p>Ask any leader if their journey was easy, and I can almost guarantee that there were bumps along the way. But when you find these leaders, also ask them about the mistakes they made along the way. Actually, ask anyone who has been successful about the mistakes they&#8217;ve made along the way. I&#8217;m sure they will have many stories to share with you.</p>
  2945. <p>Most happy and successful people allow themselves to make mistakes, instead of being hard on themselves. Learn to make attempts and have fun along the way. When you challenge yourself while allowing yourself to try and try again, you will find yourself a much happier person.</p>
  2946. <p><strong>2. Most happier people exercise and get outside. </strong></p>
  2947. <p>Exercise is scientifically proven to increase happiness due to releasing dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain. Because of this, people who are more physically active report greater levels of excitement and enthusiasm than people who are less physically active. Exercise can make you less stressed out, energize you, and boost confidence. Exercise also helps me when I am feeling anxious.</p>
  2948. <p>Some <a href="https://www.thebabbleout.com/running/how-does-running-improve-health-and-mood/">studies even show</a> that 20 minutes of exercise is all you need. David Conroy, professor of kinesiology said, &#8220;You don&#8217;t have to be the fittest person who is exercising every day to receive the feel-good benefits of exercise. It&#8217;s a matter of taking it one day at a time, of trying to get your activity in, and then there&#8217;s this feel-good reward afterwards.&#8221;</p>
  2949. <p><strong>3. Most happier people spend time focusing on other people.</strong></p>
  2950. <p>When we do things for others, we feel better about our own lives and are able to see the difference we are making in the lives of others. I think a huge reason in this is that we are able to take the focus off of our own problems, and help others through our lives instead. Conversation and companionship in relationships contribute to more happiness. When we know that people truly care about us, we become happier. <a href="http://www.pursuit-of-happiness.org/science-of-happiness/communicating/">Research</a> has found that the characteristics of people who are happy and show the fewest signs of depression are those who have “strong ties to friends and family and commitment to spending time with them.”</p>
  2951. <p>We can also spend more time with people in a more organized way that is found in volunteering our time and service. In a <a href="http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/13/119">recent review</a> of 40 studies done over the last 20 years, <a href="http://www.everydayhealth.com/depression/how-volunteering-can-lessen-depression-and-extend-your-life.aspx">researchers found</a> that one activity was far more important than the rest for boosting psychological health: volunteering. This activity, the researchers reported, had been found in many volunteers to be linked with a reduced risk of depression, a higher amount of overall satisfaction, and even a reduced risk of death from of a <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21918889">physical illness as a consequence of mental distress</a>. (via <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-be-happy-2015-7#ixzz3gvSoKdHU">Business Insider</a>)</p>
  2952. <p><strong>4. Most happier people put themselves in less stressful situations. </strong></p>
  2953. <p>People who are happier tend to commute shorter distances to work, avoid comparing themselves to other people, keep their schedules open, and are able to remain present rather than thinking about the next thing they have to do. In other words, they find ways to lessen or eliminate unnecessary stresses. We have talked before about wearing busyness as a badge of honor, but it is when we stop doing this that life opens itself up to us and stress lessens.</p>
  2954. <p>Think of how much better life would be if you were able to eliminate some of the stress you experience. You would be ecstatic if you could do this, right? But, sometimes this can be easier said than done. If you are having trouble thinking of ways that you can begin reducing stress in your life, here are 10 ways you can begin right now:</p>
  2955. <ul>
  2956. <li>Reframe problems.</li>
  2957. <li>Have realistic expectations.</li>
  2958. <li>Work to change your worldview lens.</li>
  2959. <li>Forgive the people you need to forgive.</li>
  2960. <li><a href="http://asmithblog.com/more-sleep/">Sleep more</a>.</li>
  2961. <li>Laugh every single day.</li>
  2962. <li>Learn to say &#8220;I&#8217;m sorry&#8221; more often and move on.</li>
  2963. <li>Procrastinate less.</li>
  2964. <li>Keep a journal.</li>
  2965. <li>Have a creative outlet.</li>
  2966. </ul>
  2967. <h3><em><strong>I hope these tips have helped you. Once you challenge yourself, exercise, focus on others, and put yourself in less stressful situations, you will be well on your way to being a happier person, today.</strong></em></h3>
  2968. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/happier-podcast/">#068: Four Ways To Be Happier Than You Are Right Now</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  2969. ]]></content:encoded>
  2970. <enclosure length="6132265" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/068-Four-Ways-To-Be-Happier-Than-You-Are-Right-Now.m4a"/>
  2971. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows listeners four ways that they can be happier.</itunes:subtitle>
  2972. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  2973. After reading Gretchen Rubin&#8217;s <a href="https://gretchenrubin.com/books/the-happiness-project/about-the-book/">The Happiness Project</a>, I became more interested with what makes people happier. Everyone wants to be happier, but not many people know where to look, and that&#8217;s okay. What I have found in my research is that the road to happiness is not a one-size-fits-all approach. The beautiful creativity, the endless possibilities, and being able to analyze what works and what doesn&#8217;t are just a few of the things that makes life amazing.<br />
  2974. This being said, let&#8217;s look at what habits most happier people possess that anyone can use in their own lives:<br />
  2975. <br />
  2976. 1. Most happier people challenge themselves in a fun way. <br />
  2977. If you find yourself incurious about life, it is time to reevaluate. When you challenge yourself and become curious once again, it will immediately spark interest in your life&#8217;s passions, and in return will make you happier. When you begin doing this, no it may not always be easy, but easy usually doesn&#8217;t equate to doing what&#8217;s important. In fact, very few times will it be easy to do what&#8217;s important.<br />
  2978. Ask any leader if their journey was easy, and I can almost guarantee that there were bumps along the way. But when you find these leaders, also ask them about the mistakes they made along the way. Actually, ask anyone who has been successful about the mistakes they&#8217;ve made along the way. I&#8217;m sure they will have many stories to share with you.<br />
  2979. Most happy and successful people allow themselves to make mistakes, instead of being hard on themselves. Learn to make attempts and have fun along the way. When you challenge yourself while allowing yourself to try and try again, you will find yourself a much happier person.<br />
  2980. 2. Most happier people exercise and get outside. <br />
  2981. Exercise is scientifically proven to increase happiness due to releasing dopamine, a neurotransmitter in the brain. Because of this, people who are more physically active report greater levels of excitement and enthusiasm than people who are less physically active. Exercise can make you less stressed out, energize you, and boost confidence. Exercise also helps me when I am feeling anxious.<br />
  2982. Some <a href="https://www.thebabbleout.com/running/how-does-running-improve-health-and-mood/">studies even show</a> that 20 minutes of exercise is all you need. David Conroy, professor of kinesiology said, &#8220;You don&#8217;t have to be the fittest person who is exercising every day to receive the feel-good benefits of exercise. It&#8217;s a matter of taking it one day at a time, of trying to get your activity in, and then there&#8217;s this feel-good reward afterwards.&#8221;<br />
  2983. 3. Most happier people spend time focusing on other people.<br />
  2984. When we do things for others, we feel better about our own lives and are able to see the difference we are making in the lives of others. I think a huge reason in this is that we are able to take the focus off of our own problems, and help others through our lives instead. Conversation and companionship in relationships contribute to more happiness. When we know that people truly care about us, we become happier. <a href="http://www.pursuit-of-happiness.org/science-of-happiness/communicating/">Research</a> has found that the characteristics of people who are happy and show the fewest signs of depression are those who have “strong ties to friends and family and commitment to spending time with them.”<br />
  2985. We can also spend more time with people in a more organized way that is found in volunteering our time and service. In a <a href="http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2458/13/119">recent review</a> of 40 studies done over the last 20 years, <a href="http://www.everydayhealth.com/depression/how-volunteering-can-lessen-depression-and-extend-your-life.aspx">researchers found</a> that one activity was far more importan...]]></itunes:summary>
  2986. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  2987. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  2988. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  2989. <itunes:duration>6:17</itunes:duration>
  2990. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  2991. <item>
  2992. <title>#067: Quit Being Too Busy</title>
  2993. <link>https://asmithblog.com/quit-busy/</link>
  2994. <pubDate>Tue, 21 Jul 2015 06:01:37 +0000</pubDate>
  2995. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=19046</guid>
  2996. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="quit" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that they may need to quit.&lt;/p&gt;
  2997. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/quit-busy/"&gt;#067: Quit Being Too Busy&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  2998. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="quit" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit.jpg 1280w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/quit-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><h3></h3>
  2999.  
  3000. <p>We can all become overoptimistic of our capabilities at some point in our lifetimes and then find ourselves overwhelmed with all that we have going on if not careful. Past the need to focus on our priorities and knowing who we are, there will be times in our lives that we find that we have too many things going on. Being busy and overwhelmed never helps anyone. I believe that all of us can and should continuously tweak our schedules, so that we can find more bandwidth on a daily basis. Now, by no means do I have a perfect schedule. I am currently in the process of discovering how I can make my own schedule better and hiring more people to make it all work. But, I have discovered life-giving keys during this process of keeping a better schedule. The closer you get to finding what works for you, the more often you will be able to work in your passions and purpose.</p>
  3001. <h3><em><strong>So, here are four tips that have proven useful to bringing balance back to my own schedule, and I know they will help you as well:</strong></em></h3>
  3002. <p><strong><span id="more-19046"></span></strong></p>
  3003. <h2><strong>1. Know what you want from your schedule before committing.</strong></h2>
  3004. <p>This is an easy step to overlook, but it is necessary to bring a balance to your life. What do you want to do? Who do you want to be? Who do you want to spend time with? You need to realize the answers to these questions now, so you can commit to the right things later.</p>
  3005. <h2><strong>2. Learn to say &#8220;no&#8221;.</strong></h2>
  3006. <p>Sure, saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to more opportunities is what helps you to begin doing new things, but you need to know when enough is enough. Sometimes the best thing to say is &#8220;no&#8221;, even to those things you may enjoy doing. This is important in order to allow more room for the things that you were made to do.</p>
  3007. <h2><strong>3. Quit double the amount of activities you begin.</strong></h2>
  3008. <p>In order to get my schedule back in order, I have quit more activities in the past week than I ever have before. I have found that a good rule of thumb is to quit doing two things for every one thing you start doing. I have adopted this practice and it is absolutely liberating. It will also constantly remind you what your priorities are.</p>
  3009. <h2><strong>4. Realize that life changes and stay engaged with where your heart remains.</strong></h2>
  3010. <p>Know that the commitments you make today may not be your heart a year from now. That&#8217;s why it is important to hear what your heart is saying, and to also be engaged with the life you are living. When you are self-aware, you can better anticipate issues that may arise in the future. This should be a routine practice you commit to at least every month to keep the activities you are committed to in line with your pursuits.</p>
  3011. <h3><strong><em>Now go and use these four tips to find more balance, today. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.</em></strong></h3>
  3012. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/quit-busy/">#067: Quit Being Too Busy</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3013. ]]></content:encoded>
  3014. <enclosure length="3798398" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/067-Quit-Being-Too-Busy.m4a"/>
  3015. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that they may need to quit.</itunes:subtitle>
  3016. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  3017. We can all become overoptimistic of our capabilities at some point in our lifetimes and then find ourselves overwhelmed with all that we have going on if not careful. Past the need to focus on our priorities and knowing who we are, there will be times in our lives that we find that we have too many things going on. Being busy and overwhelmed never helps anyone. I believe that all of us can and should continuously tweak our schedules, so that we can find more bandwidth on a daily basis. Now, by no means do I have a perfect schedule. I am currently in the process of discovering how I can make my own schedule better and hiring more people to make it all work. But, I have discovered life-giving keys during this process of keeping a better schedule. The closer you get to finding what works for you, the more often you will be able to work in your passions and purpose.<br />
  3018. So, here are four tips that have proven useful to bringing balance back to my own schedule, and I know they will help you as well:<br />
  3019. <br />
  3020. 1. Know what you want from your schedule before committing.<br />
  3021. This is an easy step to overlook, but it is necessary to bring a balance to your life. What do you want to do? Who do you want to be? Who do you want to spend time with? You need to realize the answers to these questions now, so you can commit to the right things later.<br />
  3022. 2. Learn to say &#8220;no&#8221;.<br />
  3023. Sure, saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to more opportunities is what helps you to begin doing new things, but you need to know when enough is enough. Sometimes the best thing to say is &#8220;no&#8221;, even to those things you may enjoy doing. This is important in order to allow more room for the things that you were made to do.<br />
  3024. 3. Quit double the amount of activities you begin.<br />
  3025. In order to get my schedule back in order, I have quit more activities in the past week than I ever have before. I have found that a good rule of thumb is to quit doing two things for every one thing you start doing. I have adopted this practice and it is absolutely liberating. It will also constantly remind you what your priorities are.<br />
  3026. 4. Realize that life changes and stay engaged with where your heart remains.<br />
  3027. Know that the commitments you make today may not be your heart a year from now. That&#8217;s why it is important to hear what your heart is saying, and to also be engaged with the life you are living. When you are self-aware, you can better anticipate issues that may arise in the future. This should be a routine practice you commit to at least every month to keep the activities you are committed to in line with your pursuits.<br />
  3028. Now go and use these four tips to find more balance, today. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3029. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3030. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3031. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3032. <itunes:duration>3:54</itunes:duration>
  3033. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3034. <item>
  3035. <title>#066: 5 Tips to Simplify Your Life</title>
  3036. <link>https://asmithblog.com/simplify-save-time/</link>
  3037. <pubDate>Tue, 14 Jul 2015 06:01:41 +0000</pubDate>
  3038. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=18658</guid>
  3039. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/simplify-e1436679112660.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="simplify time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners what they can simplify in their own life so they can think about more important things. &lt;/p&gt;
  3040. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/simplify-save-time/"&gt;#066: 5 Tips to Simplify Your Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3041. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/simplify-e1436679112660.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="simplify time" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><h2></h2>
  3042.  
  3043. <p>We all get the same twenty-four hours per day that everyone else does. So how is it that some people seem to get more done than everyone else? It has to do with the mental space that individuals take up with the unnecessary. If you are constantly thinking about everything else besides what you need to get done, well then you won&#8217;t do what is important. For those who have figured this out, they have more brain power to think about what needs to be done and more energy to take care of the tasks at hand.</p>
  3044. <p><em>If this sounds like the person you want to become, I have five tips for you to simplify your life in order to get more done:</em></p>
  3045. <p><strong><span id="more-18658"></span></strong></p>
  3046. <h2><strong>1. Save 45 minutes per day. Simplify by creating a daily uniform.</strong></h2>
  3047. <p>It&#8217;s no coincidence that Steve Jobs wore the same black turtleneck and jeans everyday and that Mark Zuckerberg does the same with his hoodie, grey t-shirt, and jeans, and that Albert Einstein always wore the same grey suit and that President Obama only wears grey or blue suits. Sure it&#8217;s part of their branding, but they figured out that if they could have one outfit they would simplify the shopping, the trying on of clothes, the finding of the favorite shirt and pants, the daily choice of picking out what to wear, the finding of what matches, waiting on the washing of laundry in order to have clothes that do match, the time it takes to iron, and the choosing of what goes in the suitcase when traveling, they would save tons of time and would instead save brainpower for things that matter much more than clothes. Whether they were the ones to actually do these things themselves or if someone else was doing it all for them, it still takes up precious time. When you already know what you are going to wear, you save time and are able to do more in your day. This being said, when you find your favorite shirts, pants or shoes, buy more than one of them. This keeps you from having to find new favorites in the future when the best product you have found is discontinued and you have to start the process all over again.</p>
  3048. <h2><strong>2. Save 30 minutes per day. Simplify by eating the same meals everyday. </strong></h2>
  3049. <p>I learned this tip from <a href="http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-20383/why-i-eat-the-same-thing-every-single-day.html">Nathan Wiebe</a>, and have already applied it to breakfast and lunch. I have kept dinner as a different meal every night, because I love trying different foods and use it as a reward system. And no, I could never go to the <a href="http://fourhourworkweek.com/2015/07/05/stanley-mcchrystal/">one meal per day system</a> that General Stan McChrystal recently talked about with Tim Ferriss. By simplifying two meals out of the day, I don&#8217;t have to research new foods. It&#8217;s just easier to simplify as many meals as you can, but it also increases discipline and willpower when you&#8217;re able to stick with a meal plan.</p>
  3050. <h2><strong>3. Save 20 minutes per day. Stop procrastinating. </strong></h2>
  3051. <p>I learned this tip from time architect, <a href="http://www.oprah.com/home/How-to-Get-7-More-Hours-in-Your-Day/1">Jana Kemp</a>. She says to take care of all outstanding calls, paperwork, and emails the same day, so that they don&#8217;t get put on a to-do list somewhere to be forgotten about. This is just one other thing that takes up mental space, but it doesn&#8217;t have to. When you learn to simplify by prioritizing, you will see how much damage that procrastinating can make.</p>
  3052. <h2><strong>4. Save 30 minutes per day. Create templates for everything you do online. </strong></h2>
  3053. <p><a href="http://fortune.com/2012/10/08/stop-checking-your-email-now/">The average person sends 40 emails per day</a>. That&#8217;s not only a lot of emails being sent every day, but that is a lot of time that goes into thinking up the topic, the body, and actually constructing the email. How many similar emails do you send on a daily basis? No matter how many emails you send, the answer you have been looking for to take back control of your email inbox is <a href="http://socialtriggers.com/dealing-with-email-overload/">email response templates</a>. Last year I looked at how many emails I was writing on a daily basis, and I was pretty close to giving up on email altogether. It was too much for one person to control without having proper systems in place to handle it. These email templates helped me find a way to streamline the process and take back my time.</p>
  3054. <h2><strong>5. Save time throughout the day. Keep a strict bedtime and wake up time.</strong></h2>
  3055. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/more-sleep/">I covered sleep in my previous podcast</a>, but it&#8217;s important enough to cover again. When you get the right amount of sleep for your body, you fight fatigue through sleep rather than throughout the day. When you don&#8217;t get enough sleep, you make worse decisions and your mind is cloudy throughout the day. Sure you can fight fatigue with running, naps, or coffee in the middle of the day, but a good night&#8217;s sleep is the best possible way to ensure you are at your highest productivity level throughout the day. You will get more done in less time when you take the time to recharge through sleep.</p>
  3056. <p>This is all about creating routines and the more you can turn into a system, the better. Get ready for bed at the same time and in the same order to make nights easier. The same goes for mornings. The more often you give the same routine a chance, you will be able to see what works, what doesn&#8217;t, and you will also become faster at it. This allows you to fit more things into your day, again saving you time.</p>
  3057. <h3><strong><em>Use these five tips and go simplify your life, today. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.</em></strong></h3>
  3058. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/simplify-save-time/">#066: 5 Tips to Simplify Your Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3059. ]]></content:encoded>
  3060. <enclosure length="3540569" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/066-5-Tips-to-Simplify-Your-Life.m4a"/>
  3061. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners what they can simplify in their own life so they can think about more important things.</itunes:subtitle>
  3062. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  3063. We all get the same twenty-four hours per day that everyone else does. So how is it that some people seem to get more done than everyone else? It has to do with the mental space that individuals take up with the unnecessary. If you are constantly thinking about everything else besides what you need to get done, well then you won&#8217;t do what is important. For those who have figured this out, they have more brain power to think about what needs to be done and more energy to take care of the tasks at hand.<br />
  3064. If this sounds like the person you want to become, I have five tips for you to simplify your life in order to get more done:<br />
  3065. <br />
  3066. 1. Save 45 minutes per day. Simplify by creating a daily uniform.<br />
  3067. It&#8217;s no coincidence that Steve Jobs wore the same black turtleneck and jeans everyday and that Mark Zuckerberg does the same with his hoodie, grey t-shirt, and jeans, and that Albert Einstein always wore the same grey suit and that President Obama only wears grey or blue suits. Sure it&#8217;s part of their branding, but they figured out that if they could have one outfit they would simplify the shopping, the trying on of clothes, the finding of the favorite shirt and pants, the daily choice of picking out what to wear, the finding of what matches, waiting on the washing of laundry in order to have clothes that do match, the time it takes to iron, and the choosing of what goes in the suitcase when traveling, they would save tons of time and would instead save brainpower for things that matter much more than clothes. Whether they were the ones to actually do these things themselves or if someone else was doing it all for them, it still takes up precious time. When you already know what you are going to wear, you save time and are able to do more in your day. This being said, when you find your favorite shirts, pants or shoes, buy more than one of them. This keeps you from having to find new favorites in the future when the best product you have found is discontinued and you have to start the process all over again.<br />
  3068. 2. Save 30 minutes per day. Simplify by eating the same meals everyday. <br />
  3069. I learned this tip from <a href="http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-20383/why-i-eat-the-same-thing-every-single-day.html">Nathan Wiebe</a>, and have already applied it to breakfast and lunch. I have kept dinner as a different meal every night, because I love trying different foods and use it as a reward system. And no, I could never go to the <a href="http://fourhourworkweek.com/2015/07/05/stanley-mcchrystal/">one meal per day system</a> that General Stan McChrystal recently talked about with Tim Ferriss. By simplifying two meals out of the day, I don&#8217;t have to research new foods. It&#8217;s just easier to simplify as many meals as you can, but it also increases discipline and willpower when you&#8217;re able to stick with a meal plan.<br />
  3070. 3. Save 20 minutes per day. Stop procrastinating. <br />
  3071. I learned this tip from time architect, <a href="http://www.oprah.com/home/How-to-Get-7-More-Hours-in-Your-Day/1">Jana Kemp</a>. She says to take care of all outstanding calls, paperwork, and emails the same day, so that they don&#8217;t get put on a to-do list somewhere to be forgotten about. This is just one other thing that takes up mental space, but it doesn&#8217;t have to. When you learn to simplify by prioritizing, you will see how much damage that procrastinating can make.<br />
  3072. 4. Save 30 minutes per day. Create templates for everything you do online. <br />
  3073. <a href="http://fortune.com/2012/10/08/stop-checking-your-email-now/">The average person sends 40 emails per day</a>. That&#8217;s not only a lot of emails being sent every day, but that is a lot of time that goes into thinking up the topic, the body, and actually constructing the email. How many similar emails do you send on a daily basis? No matter how many emails you send, the answer you have been looking for to take back control of your emai...]]></itunes:summary>
  3074. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3075. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3076. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3077. <itunes:duration>7:13</itunes:duration>
  3078. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3079. <item>
  3080. <title>#065: How and Why to Get More Sleep</title>
  3081. <link>https://asmithblog.com/more-sleep/</link>
  3082. <pubDate>Tue, 07 Jul 2015 06:01:43 +0000</pubDate>
  3083. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=18749</guid>
  3084. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="499" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="more sleep" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep.png 848w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep-300x195.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep-150x97.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can get more sleep and why they need more sleep in their lives. &lt;/p&gt;
  3085. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/more-sleep/"&gt;#065: How and Why to Get More Sleep&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3086. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="499" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="more sleep" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep.png 848w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep-300x195.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/more-sleep-150x97.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3087.  
  3088. <p>As you know, I tend to talk a lot about action because it is how I am geared and it&#8217;s what actually gets things done. But what I haven&#8217;t given enough attention to is downtime through sleep. I haven&#8217;t always been the best at getting more sleep, but this is a serious change I am beginning to make in my life. After adopting a nonsensical mentality of &#8220;I&#8217;ll work now and sleep when I die&#8221; for many years to keep up with everything, this change comes from many people close to me calling it out in my own life. I just can&#8217;t keep the pace up. This kind of lifestyle has become a real epidemic in 2015 for all of us.</p>
  3089. <p><strong><span id="more-18749"></span></strong></p>
  3090. <p>The thing is that I could tell you how busy I am, but my guess is that you are just as busy or may even be busier. There seems to be higher expectations, more work being given to individuals, much shorter deadlines, more people to please, and less time being given to families at home in order to finish this work. Let&#8217;s face it &#8211; most of our lack of sleep is due to stress or staying up to finish work. While more and more people push society with higher expectations, I want to challenge you to not fall for this trap. The more we give into these false standards, the more stress that we voluntarily bring upon ourselves.</p>
  3091. <p>I saw signs pointing to this struggle in a documentary I recently watched entitled <a href="http://www.thehappymovie.com/film/">Happy</a>. This documentary is about what makes people happy, but in an effort to see the flip-side of happiness, the documentary also talked about Japan&#8217;s workforce literally working themselves to death. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leslie-hendry/happiness-tips_b_3672326.html">Karoshi</a> as it has been named, is such a problem with employees due to Japan not having regulated overtime laws that people have given it a name. Yes, <a href="http://nypost.com/2015/02/06/japans-plan-to-stop-employees-from-working-themselves-to-death/">it looks like there is an effort to make this issue better</a>, but I think it points to a much larger mindset we have all created &#8211; one that rewards more work and punishes the rejuvenation we need that is found in sleep.</p>
  3092. <p>Health not only includes eating healthy and the workouts that most people think of when they hear the word, but also sleep. Maybe when you were younger you thought you could take on the world and keep going no matter what detriment you brought to your body, but have realized that this isn&#8217;t a manageable reality. At least it&#8217;s not a reality for people who want to get more done. Action is just part of the equation of accomplishing more. You need the fuel found in sleep to finish what you started, because without it a struggle with lack of energy and burnout are both close by.</p>
  3093. <h3><strong><em>If you think that more sleep each night sounds great, but you are having trouble finding the good night&#8217;s sleep you are looking for, here are 25 tips to help you:</em></strong></h3>
  3094. <ul>
  3095. <li>Start the day out with exercise.</li>
  3096. <li>Have a regular meditation time.</li>
  3097. <li>Write down a to-do list for the next day to get everything out of your mind for the evening. Get ahead and stay ahead by doing this.</li>
  3098. <li>Eliminate caffeine or only consume it in the early afternoon or before.</li>
  3099. <li>Be smart with napping.</li>
  3100. <li>Stay away from large meals at night.</li>
  3101. <li>Stop drinking after 8pm.</li>
  3102. <li>Implement deep breathing exercises.</li>
  3103. <li>Know what is mentally relaxing and go there to unwind from stress.</li>
  3104. <li>Power down an hour before bedtime.</li>
  3105. <li>Set a regular bedtime.</li>
  3106. <li>Wake up at the same time every day.</li>
  3107. <li>Increase light exposure during the day.</li>
  3108. <li>Avoid brighter lights before bedtime.</li>
  3109. <li>Take a hot bath.</li>
  3110. <li>Try aromatherapy.</li>
  3111. <li>Dont stress about sleep.</li>
  3112. <li>Paint your bedroom a softer color.</li>
  3113. <li>Keep &#8220;white noise&#8221; in the background.</li>
  3114. <li>Make sure bedroom is a cooler temperature.</li>
  3115. <li>Make sure your room is dark at night.</li>
  3116. <li>Make sure your mattress, sheets, and pillows are comfortable.</li>
  3117. <li>If that fails try separate blankets in a shared bed.</li>
  3118. <li>Try a more quiet alarm clock and stop hitting the snooze button to wake up more refreshed. The sleep in-between alarms isn&#8217;t good sleep.</li>
  3119. <li>If all else fails, get out of bed and try something else.</li>
  3120. </ul>
  3121. <h3><strong><em>Now that you have what you need to find a good night&#8217;s sleep, here are the three main benefits that getting more sleep gives individuals:</em></strong></h3>
  3122. <h2><strong>1. More sleep gives clarity and focus to &#8220;win&#8221; more often.</strong></h2>
  3123. <p>The photo below shows how much sleep top athletes get on a daily basis. It just goes to show how much of a priority the top athletes in the entire world values sleep. If they value sleep this much, so should we. Just as sleep helps athletes perform at their highest level and produce better results, it can do the same for all of us.</p>
  3124. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/prosleepchart1.jpg"><img decoding="async" class=" wp-image-18873 size-full aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/prosleepchart1.jpg" alt="how much sleep do pro athletes get? chart" width="704" height="371" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/prosleepchart1.jpg 704w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/prosleepchart1-300x158.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/prosleepchart1-150x79.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 704px) 100vw, 704px" /></a></p>
  3125. <h2><strong>2. More sleep gives you a better attitude and outlook on life.</strong></h2>
  3126. <p>We have all been through times in life where we have had less sleep. It makes life much more difficult to see in a positive light. A lack of sleep can cause quick mood swings leaving us grumpy and unapproachable. <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-power-rest/201311/want-treat-depression-get-people-sleep">It can even lead to depression</a>. It&#8217;s almost weird to think that we can help all of this and more with sleep, but it&#8217;s true.</p>
  3127. <h2><strong>3. Contrary to what most people believe, adequate amounts of sleep allows you to accomplish more.</strong></h2>
  3128. <p><a href="http://sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-much-sleep-do-we-really-need">More sleep</a> (7-9 hours) can help your memory, increase creativity, help you with your weight, lower stress, and can even contribute to living a longer life, <a href="http://www.health.com/health/gallery/0,,20459221,00.html">says this article on health.com</a>. I used to think that the longer I could extend my day with staying up to work, the more I could accomplish, but I was wrong. Sleep is the fuel for the energy we all need to help us through the day. We will actually get more done when we give ourselves the correct amount of sleep and allow ourselves to rejuvenate.</p>
  3129. <h3><strong><em>When you realize how important sleep is, you will stop feeling bad for getting more of it and will feel better with your new and improved lifestyle. Now, go and get more sleep, today. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.</em></strong></h3>
  3130. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/more-sleep/">#065: How and Why to Get More Sleep</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3131. ]]></content:encoded>
  3132. <enclosure length="3673934" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/065-How-and-Why-to-Get-More-Sleep.m4a"/>
  3133. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can get more sleep and why they need more sleep in their lives.</itunes:subtitle>
  3134. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3135. As you know, I tend to talk a lot about action because it is how I am geared and it&#8217;s what actually gets things done. But what I haven&#8217;t given enough attention to is downtime through sleep. I haven&#8217;t always been the best at getting more sleep, but this is a serious change I am beginning to make in my life. After adopting a nonsensical mentality of &#8220;I&#8217;ll work now and sleep when I die&#8221; for many years to keep up with everything, this change comes from many people close to me calling it out in my own life. I just can&#8217;t keep the pace up. This kind of lifestyle has become a real epidemic in 2015 for all of us.<br />
  3136. <br />
  3137. The thing is that I could tell you how busy I am, but my guess is that you are just as busy or may even be busier. There seems to be higher expectations, more work being given to individuals, much shorter deadlines, more people to please, and less time being given to families at home in order to finish this work. Let&#8217;s face it &#8211; most of our lack of sleep is due to stress or staying up to finish work. While more and more people push society with higher expectations, I want to challenge you to not fall for this trap. The more we give into these false standards, the more stress that we voluntarily bring upon ourselves.<br />
  3138. I saw signs pointing to this struggle in a documentary I recently watched entitled <a href="http://www.thehappymovie.com/film/">Happy</a>. This documentary is about what makes people happy, but in an effort to see the flip-side of happiness, the documentary also talked about Japan&#8217;s workforce literally working themselves to death. <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/leslie-hendry/happiness-tips_b_3672326.html">Karoshi</a> as it has been named, is such a problem with employees due to Japan not having regulated overtime laws that people have given it a name. Yes, <a href="http://nypost.com/2015/02/06/japans-plan-to-stop-employees-from-working-themselves-to-death/">it looks like there is an effort to make this issue better</a>, but I think it points to a much larger mindset we have all created &#8211; one that rewards more work and punishes the rejuvenation we need that is found in sleep.<br />
  3139. Health not only includes eating healthy and the workouts that most people think of when they hear the word, but also sleep. Maybe when you were younger you thought you could take on the world and keep going no matter what detriment you brought to your body, but have realized that this isn&#8217;t a manageable reality. At least it&#8217;s not a reality for people who want to get more done. Action is just part of the equation of accomplishing more. You need the fuel found in sleep to finish what you started, because without it a struggle with lack of energy and burnout are both close by.<br />
  3140. If you think that more sleep each night sounds great, but you are having trouble finding the good night&#8217;s sleep you are looking for, here are 25 tips to help you:<br />
  3141. <br />
  3142. * Start the day out with exercise.<br />
  3143. * Have a regular meditation time.<br />
  3144. * Write down a to-do list for the next day to get everything out of your mind for the evening. Get ahead and stay ahead by doing this.<br />
  3145. * Eliminate caffeine or only consume it in the early afternoon or before.<br />
  3146. * Be smart with napping.<br />
  3147. * Stay away from large meals at night.<br />
  3148. * Stop drinking after 8pm.<br />
  3149. * Implement deep breathing exercises.<br />
  3150. * Know what is mentally relaxing and go there to unwind from stress.<br />
  3151. * Power down an hour before bedtime.<br />
  3152. * Set a regular bedtime.<br />
  3153. * Wake up at the same time every day.<br />
  3154. * Increase light exposure during the day.<br />
  3155. * Avoid brighter lights before bedtime.<br />
  3156. * Take a hot bath.<br />
  3157. * Try aromatherapy.<br />
  3158. * Dont stress about sleep.<br />
  3159. * Paint your bedroom a softer color.<br />
  3160. * Keep &#8220;white noise&#8221; in the background.<br />
  3161. * Make sure bedroom is a cooler temperature.<br />
  3162. ]]></itunes:summary>
  3163. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3164. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3165. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3166. <itunes:duration>7:29</itunes:duration>
  3167. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3168. <item>
  3169. <title>#064: Make Life Easier With These 7 Steps</title>
  3170. <link>https://asmithblog.com/make-life-easier/</link>
  3171. <pubDate>Tue, 30 Jun 2015 06:01:03 +0000</pubDate>
  3172. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=18646</guid>
  3173. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="371" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make life easier" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier.png 853w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier-300x145.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier-150x72.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make life easier instantly.&lt;/p&gt;
  3174. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-life-easier/"&gt;#064: Make Life Easier With These 7 Steps&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3175. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="371" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="make life easier" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier.png 853w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier-300x145.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/make-life-easier-150x72.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3176.  
  3177. <p>We have all made things more difficult than they need to be, and most of these times are due to not putting enough thought into our actions. Sure, it is important to begin moving ahead, but what about knowing where we are going? I would say that anticipation is a much needed quality for all of us to possess. The key to foresight is knowing that it is much less about luck than what most would make it out to be. When we put thought into our lives each calculated response can make life easier. When we take correct action now, the future can become much more predictable.</p>
  3178. <p>Do you want to lead a remarkable life? Put thought into it. On the other hand, if you want to lead an unremarkable life, don&#8217;t think about what effects your actions will make. Most people think that life lived according to the latter principle is much easier, when it&#8217;s actually much more difficult to make wise decisions on the fly when we don&#8217;t have grounded beliefs. When we know beyond a shadow of a doubt what we were made to be and do, clarity comes. Sure surprises come, but many less of them are present when we choose to look ahead. The secret is to not only think about today, but to look at tomorrow, next week, next year, the next ten years, the next twenty-five, and so on. It requires a mental shift to see the importance in this, but your future deserves it.</p>
  3179. <h3><em>Here are the seven ways I have found to make life easier in my own life each and every time before taking anything new on:</em></h3>
  3180. <p><strong><span id="more-18646"></span></strong></p>
  3181. <h2><strong>1. Ask yourself, &#8220;What do I stand for?&#8221;</strong></h2>
  3182. <p>I intentionally ask myself this question repeatedly, because if I don&#8217;t know this I waver. The same goes for you. Who are you and what do you believe? You should know this inside and out, because it changes how you view yourself and the world around you. What you believe will help you to know right decisions from wrong decisions. You make life easier when you honestly answer this question, because it keeps you on track and gives you answers to issues before you even have to address them. Clarity here is a necessary foundation for accomplishing more with your life and helps you make life easier because it helps you prioritize what is truly important and move forward.</p>
  3183. <h2><strong>2. Ask yourself, &#8220;What do I want to accomplish?&#8221;</strong></h2>
  3184. <p>In other words, what do you want the outcome to be from what you are doing with your life? When you get to the end of your lifetime, what will you want to be able to look back on and be grateful for? This question helps make life easier because it keeps you focused on the right things you have set out to do. Answering this question keeps you saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to the right opportunities and helps you say &#8220;no&#8221; to the things that aren&#8217;t the right fit for you. We have all said &#8220;yes&#8221; to things that keep us too busy to be able to focus on our full potential. When we are able to separate our strengths from our weaknesses and our essentials from our nonessentials, we can become much more focused on our life&#8217;s priorities and accomplish more.</p>
  3185. <h2><strong>3. What plan do you have in place to ensure that you get the results that you desire?</strong></h2>
  3186. <p>The previous two steps will help you before you get to this step of creating a detailed plan and putting it in place. If you don&#8217;t first know who you are and what you want to do, it will be impossible to put a plan into action. To accomplish more in your lifetime you need to make a perfect plan to pursue. I can help you form a specific individual life plan through my one-on-one <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith/">life coaching program</a>, or you can take the seven steps in this episode to help you craft your own. However you decide to go about it, a plan is necessary for you to reach your biggest dream. You don&#8217;t have to keep taking guesses at what you should do next with your life. The time is now to make a plan tailored for you individually, so you can make a unique impact on this world.</p>
  3187. <h2><strong>4. To be successful you need to focus on all areas of life, not just one.</strong></h2>
  3188. <p>Please note that for you to create the best plan possible, you will need to make specific goals in each area of life to build on top of each other. Most people don&#8217;t see how much one area can affect another and become frustrated with the fact that they can&#8217;t seem to finish what they started. The main reason this happens is that an unseen hinderance from another area of life is keeping people from accomplishing more. In order to remain focused and make life easier, the five areas you need to pay attention to are health, time, relationships, career, and finances.</p>
  3189. <p>Within health there is physical health, mental health, and spiritual health. I try to focus more on managing energy more than time, but that&#8217;s a different episode. It&#8217;s essential to pay attention to your energy levels in order to accomplish more in your day. Even though we go through busy seasons where we give more energy than in other seasons, it is important to be aware at all times how energy and the lack of it affects you. This begins with getting structured with the way you schedule your day so that you can fit in workouts, studying, and meditation.</p>
  3190. <p>There is also the focus of time. We have talked about this in previous episodes, because it is what everyone wants more of. The thing that people need to focus on is how they can use the time they already have in better ways rather than trying to find more time. We all only have 24 hours in a day, but it is what we are doing with those hours that will lead to us accomplishing more or wishing we would have somehow done more. If you focus on everything else, I promise that more time will appear in your day. Margin comes when you live a fruitful, productive life. Stop managing time and instead begin measuring energy.</p>
  3191. <p>Within relationships there is your marriage relationship or your relationship with your significant other. There is also the important relationships you have with your kids. Outside of this there are the relationships you have with people at your place of work, your friends, and the new relationships you are creating on a weekly basis. As you can see, a lot of life is about creating relationships and nurturing them.</p>
  3192. <p>Within your career it is about defining you role in your workplace, what you want to accomplish in your role, how you can expand your reach through your work, and what and how you can give back to your place of work. Whether you are self-employed or work for a company, there are always ways that you can expand your reach and give back.</p>
  3193. <p>Focusing on your finances is important because it dictates so much that each of us can do. Finances can help you take care of your family, help others, and sets you up for a better future. Even though I don&#8217;t talk much about this subject, it is an important subject to focus on. It is yet another tool that can help you expand your reach and help you take care of others.</p>
  3194. <p>This is just a quick glance at how we should all focus on health, time, relationships, career, and finances, but it is necessary if you want to make life easier.</p>
  3195. <h2><strong>5. What time frame do you need to complete your plan in?</strong></h2>
  3196. <p>We all need deadlines to make sure we will actually finish what we started. The aspect of time again becomes important because deadlines are a form of accountability. Even if you don&#8217;t think you necessarily need a timeline, when do you realistically want to complete your plan by? How long do you want to take writing that book of yours? How long do you want to take to start your new business? By when do you want to travel to the country you&#8217;ve always wanted to visit? Dreaming that turns into action not only includes what you want to do, but it also includes a realistic timeline. It is much easier to finish what you started when you have a timeline in place to guide you through the process. Completing what you begin is exciting, so make it fun! Once you have a deadline, it is important to then work backwards to give yourself the necessary daily, weekly, and monthly action steps needed to turn dreams into reality.</p>
  3197. <h2><strong>6. Who do you want to impact?</strong></h2>
  3198. <p>Who is it exactly that will ultimately benefit from your actions? For me, this is the question that makes my plan worthwhile. If what you are doing isn&#8217;t impacting people, then you aren&#8217;t challenging others and you aren&#8217;t growing others. Your life&#8217;s work needs people on the receiving end to make a lasting difference. Sure, there is part of the process where you are alone in the planning process, but in the process of making an impact, you need to be aware of not only what you are providing to help people, but who needs you. Knowing who your plan and work is for will help you know where to spend your time.</p>
  3199. <h2><strong>7. Who can you bring along side of you to help you carry your plan?</strong></h2>
  3200. <p>If you read my blog, you can tell that I believe in this principle. There&#8217;s no way that I could be an expert on every leadership topic out there, so I brought in a team of experts to share their knowledge with this audience on a daily basis. There&#8217;s no way that one person can know everything there is to know.</p>
  3201. <p>My experience tells me that you will need to look at the strengths of others in order to form a well-rounded team of some sorts to help you achieve your goals. Whether we are talking about mentors for your personal life, consultants for your business, or developing a team to work with on projects, it is important to notice what you need that you cannot do on your own.</p>
  3202. <p>Once you do this, don&#8217;t be afraid to ask for help from individuals who could make you better in these identified areas. Life is too short not to live it well and it is other people who will help get you there. When you bring others in who complement your strengths, you will go further than you&#8217;ve ever dreamed.</p>
  3203. <h3><strong>Now, go and live life to the fullest with less distractions and more direction. You can use these seven tips to make life easier, today.</strong></h3>
  3204. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/make-life-easier/">#064: Make Life Easier With These 7 Steps</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3205. ]]></content:encoded>
  3206. <enclosure length="6007168" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/064-Make-Life-Easier-With-These-7-Steps.m4a"/>
  3207. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can make life easier instantly.</itunes:subtitle>
  3208. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3209. We have all made things more difficult than they need to be, and most of these times are due to not putting enough thought into our actions. Sure, it is important to begin moving ahead, but what about knowing where we are going? I would say that anticipation is a much needed quality for all of us to possess. The key to foresight is knowing that it is much less about luck than what most would make it out to be. When we put thought into our lives each calculated response can make life easier. When we take correct action now, the future can become much more predictable.<br />
  3210. Do you want to lead a remarkable life? Put thought into it. On the other hand, if you want to lead an unremarkable life, don&#8217;t think about what effects your actions will make. Most people think that life lived according to the latter principle is much easier, when it&#8217;s actually much more difficult to make wise decisions on the fly when we don&#8217;t have grounded beliefs. When we know beyond a shadow of a doubt what we were made to be and do, clarity comes. Sure surprises come, but many less of them are present when we choose to look ahead. The secret is to not only think about today, but to look at tomorrow, next week, next year, the next ten years, the next twenty-five, and so on. It requires a mental shift to see the importance in this, but your future deserves it.<br />
  3211. Here are the seven ways I have found to make life easier in my own life each and every time before taking anything new on:<br />
  3212. <br />
  3213. 1. Ask yourself, &#8220;What do I stand for?&#8221;<br />
  3214. I intentionally ask myself this question repeatedly, because if I don&#8217;t know this I waver. The same goes for you. Who are you and what do you believe? You should know this inside and out, because it changes how you view yourself and the world around you. What you believe will help you to know right decisions from wrong decisions. You make life easier when you honestly answer this question, because it keeps you on track and gives you answers to issues before you even have to address them. Clarity here is a necessary foundation for accomplishing more with your life and helps you make life easier because it helps you prioritize what is truly important and move forward.<br />
  3215. 2. Ask yourself, &#8220;What do I want to accomplish?&#8221;<br />
  3216. In other words, what do you want the outcome to be from what you are doing with your life? When you get to the end of your lifetime, what will you want to be able to look back on and be grateful for? This question helps make life easier because it keeps you focused on the right things you have set out to do. Answering this question keeps you saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to the right opportunities and helps you say &#8220;no&#8221; to the things that aren&#8217;t the right fit for you. We have all said &#8220;yes&#8221; to things that keep us too busy to be able to focus on our full potential. When we are able to separate our strengths from our weaknesses and our essentials from our nonessentials, we can become much more focused on our life&#8217;s priorities and accomplish more.<br />
  3217. 3. What plan do you have in place to ensure that you get the results that you desire?<br />
  3218. The previous two steps will help you before you get to this step of creating a detailed plan and putting it in place. If you don&#8217;t first know who you are and what you want to do, it will be impossible to put a plan into action. To accomplish more in your lifetime you need to make a perfect plan to pursue. I can help you form a specific individual life plan through my one-on-one <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith/">life coaching program</a>, or you can take the seven steps in this episode to help you craft your own. However you decide to go about it, a plan is necessary for you to reach your biggest dream. You don&#8217;t have to keep taking guesses at what you should do next with your life. The time is now to make a plan tailored for you...]]></itunes:summary>
  3219. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3220. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3221. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3222. <itunes:duration>12:14</itunes:duration>
  3223. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3224. <item>
  3225. <title>#063: Your Story Matters If You Want to Build Community</title>
  3226. <link>https://asmithblog.com/story-matters/</link>
  3227. <pubDate>Tue, 23 Jun 2015 06:01:48 +0000</pubDate>
  3228. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=18182</guid>
  3229. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="503" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="story matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters.png 821w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters-300x197.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters-150x98.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shares why your story matters. &lt;/p&gt;
  3230. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/story-matters/"&gt;#063: Your Story Matters If You Want to Build Community&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3231. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="503" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="story matters" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters.png 821w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters-300x197.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/story-matters-150x98.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" />
  3232. <p>Companies today are concerned about attracting and retaining individuals who are between 20-35 years old. By 2025, this age group will comprise 75% of the global workforce. When the global marketing firm <a href="http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2015/05/27/3-ways-to-attract-and-retain-millennial-employees/">McCann WorldGroup surveyed 7,000 Millennials in 2011</a>, it found more than 90% of those surveyed rated “connection and community” as their greatest need. Community is that important! As the researchers put it, “to truly grasp the power of connection for this generation, we can look at how they wish to be remembered. It is not for their beauty, their power, or their influence, but simply for the quality of their human relationships and their ability to look after those around them.”</p>
  3233. <p>We can see from this research that what the world needs more of is us. People don&#8217;t need a new break room, or more money, or more perks to make them happier &#8211; people need you and your relationship. They need your story, because your story matters. Telling it allows you to reach out and begin new relationships. Your story matters, because that&#8217;s what gets you in the door.</p>
  3234. <p><em>In order to help you build better relationships, I have compiled a list of five thoughts to help you share your story in better ways than you ever have before:</em></p>
  3235. <p><strong><span id="more-18182"></span></strong></p>
  3236. <h2><strong>1. Realize that everyone has a story.</strong></h2>
  3237. <p>When you fully see this, you can get over the low points that you have experienced along the way. Pull from the best and the worst moments of your life and let people in. Sharing pulls people in and allows for them to share with you. Many times we will only focus on the negative areas of our story, but what about the amazing parts? What good and bad life-altering events have taken place in your past? Every great story has conflict, but it also includes a climax and resolution. Every part of your story matters. How have you healed along the way and how are you better now than you were before? These are all elements of your great story that you desperately need to share.</p>
  3238. <h2><strong>2. Realize that your story is far from over.</strong></h2>
  3239. <p>Your past is to learn from. Don&#8217;t let it hold you up. Every time someone allows their past to dictate their future, they hold back their story from impacting the world. Maybe you have a dark past, but your future is so much more important. The pages that have been written about your life are done, but you have the opportunity to write a more powerful story in the future. Everyone has something amazing to offer to those around them. You can begin writing your new chapter right now.</p>
  3240. <h2><strong>3. Your story matters because it helps you relate.</strong></h2>
  3241. <p>Last year I wrote an article for <a href="http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-articles/170666-3-keys-for-sharing-your-story.html">ChurchLeaders.com</a> to help pastors and others learn how to tell their story in better ways. It doesn&#8217;t matter who or where we are talking about &#8211; all people crave community whether they realize it or not. And the easiest way to begin new relationships and grow a community is learning how to tell your story. Your story matters because it helps you to relate with all sorts of people. A lot of times people believe that what has happened in their own lives hasn&#8217;t taken place in any one else&#8217;s life, so they choose not to share. I really start to doubt that there aren&#8217;t similarities in all of us, and those similarities begin with the need for community. Learn how to tell your story and pull people closer to you.</p>
  3242. <h2><strong>4. You need to be honest and let others know what makes you who you are.</strong></h2>
  3243. <p>Every part of your story matters. Fear will tell you to hold back. Don&#8217;t do it. Honesty and vulnerability are keys to building trust in any relationship. The more you build relationships this way from the beginning, the more true community you will build over time. People want and need to know you, all of you.</p>
  3244. <h2><strong>5. Your story matters because it is your most powerful possession.</strong></h2>
  3245. <p>So many tangible things don&#8217;t remain important over time, but the power of your story remains constant your entire lifetime. The reason for this is that you will keep making decisions that will continually add to your story. From this point forward, decide to make decisions you want to add to the pages of your life&#8217;s story.</p>
  3246. <p>When you realize these five things and see how they can help you share your story more often, you are well on your way to creating more lasting relationships. When you see how much your story matters, the reason to share becomes much more clear. The reason you need to share your story is to build a bigger and better community.</p>
  3247. <h3><strong>Now go and share your story, today. <em><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.</em></strong></h3>
  3248. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/story-matters/">#063: Your Story Matters If You Want to Build Community</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3249. ]]></content:encoded>
  3250. <enclosure length="3102482" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/063-Your-Story-Matters-If-You-Want-to-Build-Community.m4a"/>
  3251. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shares why your story matters.</itunes:subtitle>
  3252. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Companies today are concerned about attracting and retaining individuals who are between 20-35 years old. By 2025, this age group will comprise 75% of the global workforce. When the global marketing firm <a href="http://www.foxbusiness.com/personal-finance/2015/05/27/3-ways-to-attract-and-retain-millennial-employees/">McCann WorldGroup surveyed 7,000 Millennials in 2011</a>, it found more than 90% of those surveyed rated “connection and community” as their greatest need. Community is that important! As the researchers put it, “to truly grasp the power of connection for this generation, we can look at how they wish to be remembered. It is not for their beauty, their power, or their influence, but simply for the quality of their human relationships and their ability to look after those around them.”<br />
  3253. We can see from this research that what the world needs more of is us. People don&#8217;t need a new break room, or more money, or more perks to make them happier &#8211; people need you and your relationship. They need your story, because your story matters. Telling it allows you to reach out and begin new relationships. Your story matters, because that&#8217;s what gets you in the door.<br />
  3254. In order to help you build better relationships, I have compiled a list of five thoughts to help you share your story in better ways than you ever have before:<br />
  3255. <br />
  3256. 1. Realize that everyone has a story.<br />
  3257. When you fully see this, you can get over the low points that you have experienced along the way. Pull from the best and the worst moments of your life and let people in. Sharing pulls people in and allows for them to share with you. Many times we will only focus on the negative areas of our story, but what about the amazing parts? What good and bad life-altering events have taken place in your past? Every great story has conflict, but it also includes a climax and resolution. Every part of your story matters. How have you healed along the way and how are you better now than you were before? These are all elements of your great story that you desperately need to share.<br />
  3258. 2. Realize that your story is far from over.<br />
  3259. Your past is to learn from. Don&#8217;t let it hold you up. Every time someone allows their past to dictate their future, they hold back their story from impacting the world. Maybe you have a dark past, but your future is so much more important. The pages that have been written about your life are done, but you have the opportunity to write a more powerful story in the future. Everyone has something amazing to offer to those around them. You can begin writing your new chapter right now.<br />
  3260. 3. Your story matters because it helps you relate.<br />
  3261. Last year I wrote an article for <a href="http://www.churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-articles/170666-3-keys-for-sharing-your-story.html">ChurchLeaders.com</a> to help pastors and others learn how to tell their story in better ways. It doesn&#8217;t matter who or where we are talking about &#8211; all people crave community whether they realize it or not. And the easiest way to begin new relationships and grow a community is learning how to tell your story. Your story matters because it helps you to relate with all sorts of people. A lot of times people believe that what has happened in their own lives hasn&#8217;t taken place in any one else&#8217;s life, so they choose not to share. I really start to doubt that there aren&#8217;t similarities in all of us, and those similarities begin with the need for community. Learn how to tell your story and pull people closer to you.<br />
  3262. 4. You need to be honest and let others know what makes you who you are.<br />
  3263. Every part of your story matters. Fear will tell you to hold back. Don&#8217;t do it. Honesty and vulnerability are keys to building trust in any relationship. The more you build relationships this way from the beginning, the more true community you will build over time.]]></itunes:summary>
  3264. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3265. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3266. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3267. <itunes:duration>6:19</itunes:duration>
  3268. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3269. <item>
  3270. <title>#062: Take Action</title>
  3271. <link>https://asmithblog.com/take-action/</link>
  3272. <pubDate>Tue, 16 Jun 2015 06:01:22 +0000</pubDate>
  3273. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17952</guid>
  3274. <description>&lt;img width="653" height="328" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more.png 653w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more-300x151.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more-150x75.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 653px) 100vw, 653px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can move past talking and finally take action.&lt;/p&gt;
  3275. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/take-action/"&gt;#062: Take Action&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3276. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="653" height="328" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more.png 653w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more-300x151.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/take-action-do-more-150x75.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 653px) 100vw, 653px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3277.  
  3278. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3279. <blockquote>
  3280. <h3><strong><em><span class="bqQuoteLink">Action is the foundational key to all success. &#8211; </span>Pablo Picasso</em></strong></h3>
  3281. <p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote>
  3282. <p>One of the biggest problems in this world is the fact that most people don&#8217;t follow through. Good intentions are great and all, but it takes more than good intentions to make things happen. Results require action. Without action, lives don&#8217;t change.</p>
  3283. <p>For years I talked about how I would accomplish things, but never took it further than that. I didn&#8217;t put action to the plan I had created and my results weren&#8217;t good because of it. I was a good dreamer, but not so good at implementation. I knew deep down that something had to change, but how? I found some keys to moving through the dreaming stage, and I want to share them with you in this episode.</p>
  3284. <p><em>Here are three ways for you to move past talking about doing something and actually take action:</em></p>
  3285. <p><strong><span id="more-17952"></span></strong></p>
  3286. <h3><strong>1. Action comes with an internal change.</strong></h3>
  3287. <blockquote>
  3288. <h3><strong><em><span class="bqQuoteLink">Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action. &#8211; </span></em><em>Peter Drucker</em></strong></h3>
  3289. </blockquote>
  3290. <p>It takes more than a plan to get things done. It takes heart, and heart fades away if there isn&#8217;t an internal drive to do more. If you want to accomplish anything, it is important to first search yourself and see your true potential. You are capable of more than you probably think.</p>
  3291. <h3><strong>2. Your focus needs to be clear.</strong></h3>
  3292. <blockquote>
  3293. <h3><strong><em><span class="bqQuoteLink">Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them. &#8211; </span>Jack Canfield</em></strong></h3>
  3294. </blockquote>
  3295. <p>Do you know what you want to accomplish with your life? It isn&#8217;t about what sounds good to do. You need to do what you feel compelled to do and make those things important. How do you make those things important? Spend your time doing what you have made important. Focus on prioritizing your life and the rest will fall into place.</p>
  3296. <h3><strong>3. See that what you do will help others.</strong></h3>
  3297. <blockquote>
  3298. <h3><strong><em><span class="bqQuoteLink">Empathy is the starting point for creating a community and taking action. It&#8217;s the impetus for creating change. &#8211; </span>Max Carver</em></strong></h3>
  3299. </blockquote>
  3300. <p>If you want to have a lasting impact, people need to be on the receiving end of your actions. You have heard me talk about the importance of helping others and even refer to this as the main theme of living a life of purpose, and it&#8217;s still true. People matter more than anything else. When people become the reason behind the reason that you do things, you will be compelled to take action.</p>
  3301. <h3><em><strong>Implement these three points in your life and take action, today. </strong></em></h3>
  3302. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/take-action/">#062: Take Action</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3303. ]]></content:encoded>
  3304. <enclosure length="2032784" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/062-Take-Action.m4a"/>
  3305. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells listeners how they can move past talking and finally take action.</itunes:subtitle>
  3306. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3307. &nbsp;<br />
  3308. <br />
  3309. Action is the foundational key to all success. &#8211; Pablo Picasso<br />
  3310. &nbsp;<br />
  3311. One of the biggest problems in this world is the fact that most people don&#8217;t follow through. Good intentions are great and all, but it takes more than good intentions to make things happen. Results require action. Without action, lives don&#8217;t change.<br />
  3312. For years I talked about how I would accomplish things, but never took it further than that. I didn&#8217;t put action to the plan I had created and my results weren&#8217;t good because of it. I was a good dreamer, but not so good at implementation. I knew deep down that something had to change, but how? I found some keys to moving through the dreaming stage, and I want to share them with you in this episode.<br />
  3313. Here are three ways for you to move past talking about doing something and actually take action:<br />
  3314. <br />
  3315. 1. Action comes with an internal change.<br />
  3316. <br />
  3317. Follow effective action with quiet reflection. From the quiet reflection will come even more effective action. &#8211; Peter Drucker<br />
  3318. <br />
  3319. It takes more than a plan to get things done. It takes heart, and heart fades away if there isn&#8217;t an internal drive to do more. If you want to accomplish anything, it is important to first search yourself and see your true potential. You are capable of more than you probably think.<br />
  3320. 2. Your focus needs to be clear.<br />
  3321. <br />
  3322. Successful people maintain a positive focus in life no matter what is going on around them. They stay focused on their past successes rather than their past failures, and on the next action steps they need to take to get them closer to the fulfillment of their goals rather than all the other distractions that life presents to them. &#8211; Jack Canfield<br />
  3323. <br />
  3324. Do you know what you want to accomplish with your life? It isn&#8217;t about what sounds good to do. You need to do what you feel compelled to do and make those things important. How do you make those things important? Spend your time doing what you have made important. Focus on prioritizing your life and the rest will fall into place.<br />
  3325. 3. See that what you do will help others.<br />
  3326. <br />
  3327. Empathy is the starting point for creating a community and taking action. It&#8217;s the impetus for creating change. &#8211; Max Carver<br />
  3328. <br />
  3329. If you want to have a lasting impact, people need to be on the receiving end of your actions. You have heard me talk about the importance of helping others and even refer to this as the main theme of living a life of purpose, and it&#8217;s still true. People matter more than anything else. When people become the reason behind the reason that you do things, you will be compelled to take action.<br />
  3330. Implement these three points in your life and take action, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3331. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3332. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3333. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3334. <itunes:duration>4:08</itunes:duration>
  3335. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3336. <item>
  3337. <title>#061: Fear Can Be A Good Thing</title>
  3338. <link>https://asmithblog.com/fear-good-thing/</link>
  3339. <pubDate>Tue, 02 Jun 2015 06:01:55 +0000</pubDate>
  3340. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17409</guid>
  3341. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="412" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good.png 894w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good-300x161.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good-150x81.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows listeners how fear can be a good thing.&lt;/p&gt;
  3342. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/fear-good-thing/"&gt;#061: Fear Can Be A Good Thing&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3343. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="412" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good.png 894w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good-300x161.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fear-good-150x81.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3344.  
  3345. <p>Most people look at fear as something to always avoid, but fear doesn&#8217;t have to be a bad thing. I&#8217;m not talking about fear as in the fear of heights, but more as in the fear of not making a difference with your life. Seeing some fears as good can be what helps us accomplish more.</p>
  3346. <p><em>Here are three ways that you can deal with your fears differently than you are right now and look at them in a better light:</em></p>
  3347. <p><strong><span id="more-17409"></span></strong></p>
  3348. <p><strong>1. Fear is learned.</strong></p>
  3349. <p>Your fears only have the power that you hand over to them, and in most cases, fears aren&#8217;t as big as you have made them out to be. Somewhere along the way you picked up the fears that you have, whether people told you up front that you should be scared of these fears or they were put into your subconscious somehow. Whatever the case may be, someone told you that doing what you are doing will hurt you, and you bought in. If you want to do something that you are currently afraid of, then it will take a rewiring of the way you see things before it will get better. But, there is hope. Even though it is more difficult to do, if a fear was learned, then it is most definitely possible to unlearn that same fear. Are you willing to put in the work?</p>
  3350. <p><strong>2. Fear does not make you weaker.</strong></p>
  3351. <p>Everyone fears so that&#8217;s not what makes you weak. Believing the lies that fear tells you is what will make you weak. On the other hand, people who are strong have learned to deal with fear in better ways and tell themselves why they are bigger and better than their fears. It may be time to tell yourself all the reasons that you can, instead of telling yourself all the reasons you can&#8217;t. Are you listening to the right voices?</p>
  3352. <p><strong>3. Fear lets you know you are onto something good. </strong></p>
  3353. <p>Fear is a part of life that reminds you that you&#8217;re alive. Anytime that fear comes in like a tidal wave, it&#8217;s a good indication that whatever you are fearing is something you care about. Sometimes, the things we are most called to are the things we fear the most. We all fear something. Learn from these moments and keep pursuing your convictions. You are specifically wired for doing great things in your own way, and it is up to you to go after life with everything you have to make your dreams a reality.</p>
  3354. <p>Fear is a deterrent if you allow it to be, but it can also be the force that pushes you to do more in life. Do you fear the fears you are currently facing more than living a mediocre life? That&#8217;s a question that only you can decide.</p>
  3355. <p><em><strong>Now go and be brave, today. </strong></em></p>
  3356. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/fear-good-thing/">#061: Fear Can Be A Good Thing</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3357. ]]></content:encoded>
  3358. <enclosure length="1862717" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/061-Fear-Can-Be-A-Good-Thing.m4a"/>
  3359. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows listeners how fear can be a good thing.</itunes:subtitle>
  3360. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3361. Most people look at fear as something to always avoid, but fear doesn&#8217;t have to be a bad thing. I&#8217;m not talking about fear as in the fear of heights, but more as in the fear of not making a difference with your life. Seeing some fears as good can be what helps us accomplish more.<br />
  3362. Here are three ways that you can deal with your fears differently than you are right now and look at them in a better light:<br />
  3363. <br />
  3364. 1. Fear is learned.<br />
  3365. Your fears only have the power that you hand over to them, and in most cases, fears aren&#8217;t as big as you have made them out to be. Somewhere along the way you picked up the fears that you have, whether people told you up front that you should be scared of these fears or they were put into your subconscious somehow. Whatever the case may be, someone told you that doing what you are doing will hurt you, and you bought in. If you want to do something that you are currently afraid of, then it will take a rewiring of the way you see things before it will get better. But, there is hope. Even though it is more difficult to do, if a fear was learned, then it is most definitely possible to unlearn that same fear. Are you willing to put in the work?<br />
  3366. 2. Fear does not make you weaker.<br />
  3367. Everyone fears so that&#8217;s not what makes you weak. Believing the lies that fear tells you is what will make you weak. On the other hand, people who are strong have learned to deal with fear in better ways and tell themselves why they are bigger and better than their fears. It may be time to tell yourself all the reasons that you can, instead of telling yourself all the reasons you can&#8217;t. Are you listening to the right voices?<br />
  3368. 3. Fear lets you know you are onto something good. <br />
  3369. Fear is a part of life that reminds you that you&#8217;re alive. Anytime that fear comes in like a tidal wave, it&#8217;s a good indication that whatever you are fearing is something you care about. Sometimes, the things we are most called to are the things we fear the most. We all fear something. Learn from these moments and keep pursuing your convictions. You are specifically wired for doing great things in your own way, and it is up to you to go after life with everything you have to make your dreams a reality.<br />
  3370. Fear is a deterrent if you allow it to be, but it can also be the force that pushes you to do more in life. Do you fear the fears you are currently facing more than living a mediocre life? That&#8217;s a question that only you can decide.<br />
  3371. Now go and be brave, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3372. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3373. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3374. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3375. <itunes:duration>3:47</itunes:duration>
  3376. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3377. <item>
  3378. <title>#060: Here Are Three Reasons You Should Start A Blog</title>
  3379. <link>https://asmithblog.com/060-why-you-should-start-blog/</link>
  3380. <pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2015 06:15:35 +0000</pubDate>
  3381. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17358</guid>
  3382. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="508" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="start a blog" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog.png 856w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog-300x198.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog-150x99.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why you should start a blog. When you start a blog it allows you to have complete control over online customization.&lt;/p&gt;
  3383. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/060-why-you-should-start-blog/"&gt;#060: Here Are Three Reasons You Should Start A Blog&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3384. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="508" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog.png" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="start a blog" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog.png 856w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog-300x198.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/start-a-blog-150x99.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3385.  
  3386. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3387. <p>I don&#8217;t have the typical writing story of beginning to write in elementary school and being engulfed in reading from childhood.  I don&#8217;t know if that&#8217;s the typical story actually, but I didn&#8217;t enjoy reading until high school and I began writing shortly after that, because it was my introverted way of getting things out of my head. After I had been writing for a few years, I had a college professor tell me that I should focus more on my writing because he saw potential in me. So, I did what anyone should do when they want to focus more on their writing. I sought out the necessary tools to do so in the digital age.</p>
  3388. <h3><em>Here are the three things that you should start a blog:</em></h3>
  3389. <p><strong><span id="more-17358"></span></strong></p>
  3390. <div class="visually_embed">
  3391. <p><script id="visually_embed_script_71630" class="visually_embed_script" src="http://a.visual.ly/api/embed/71630?width=540" type="text/javascript"></script></p>
  3392. </div>
  3393. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3394. <h2><strong>1. When you start a blog it allows you to unleash your voice.</strong></h2>
  3395. <p>Blogs allow for writers to put their content in digital format for readers to see forever. We are all creating our stories online, whether we realize it or not, and have the opportunity to portray our uniqueness to the world. You have a unique life experience and a story that you have been developing for years, and when you setup your blog, it will be time to let the words begin to spill out.</p>
  3396. <h2><strong>2. When you start a blog you will build your audience.</strong></h2>
  3397. <p><a href="http://www.thecultureist.com/2013/05/09/how-many-people-use-the-internet-more-than-2-billion-infographic/">More than two billion people use the internet right now</a> and your potential audience will only continue to grow. So now that you have a blog, define who it is that you specifically want to target, what they need, and what you can offer them. People want well-written content on a weekly or daily basis, and a blog gives you a chance to speak directly to your audience as often as you see fit.</p>
  3398. <h2><strong>3. When you start a blog it allows you to have complete control over online customization.</strong></h2>
  3399. <p>I started writing with a xanga account, then posterous, then tumblr, then <a href="http://wordpress.com/" rel="nofollow">wordpress.com</a>, and then ended up with a self-hosted wordpress blog, and I am so glad I eventually found the best platform to be on. When you register your domain and set it up through <a href="http://wordpress.org">wordpress.org</a>, you can have complete control over what your webspace looks like. WordPress allows you to leave your own personal mark where everyone gathers &#8211; online. Different <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=241369&amp;u=1076604&amp;m=28169&amp;urllink=&amp;afftrack=">themes</a> and plugins are what gives you this control, and there are so many to choose from, so you can bring your personality not only to your content, but to your design as well.</p>
  3400. <h3><em><strong>If you don&#8217;t feel the need to start a blog, I hope this podcast has inspired you to look into <a href="http://asmithblog.com/create-wordpress-blog/">setting one up</a>. When you do this, you will gain more influence and reach more people, today.</strong></em></h3>
  3401. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/060-why-you-should-start-blog/">#060: Here Are Three Reasons You Should Start A Blog</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3402. ]]></content:encoded>
  3403. <enclosure length="1923516" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/060-Why-You-Should-Start-A-Blog.m4a"/>
  3404. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why you should start a blog. When you start a blog it allows you to have complete control over online customization.</itunes:subtitle>
  3405. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3406. &nbsp;<br />
  3407. I don&#8217;t have the typical writing story of beginning to write in elementary school and being engulfed in reading from childhood.  I don&#8217;t know if that&#8217;s the typical story actually, but I didn&#8217;t enjoy reading until high school and I began writing shortly after that, because it was my introverted way of getting things out of my head. After I had been writing for a few years, I had a college professor tell me that I should focus more on my writing because he saw potential in me. So, I did what anyone should do when they want to focus more on their writing. I sought out the necessary tools to do so in the digital age.<br />
  3408. Here are the three things that you should start a blog:<br />
  3409. <br />
  3410. <br />
  3411. <br />
  3412. <br />
  3413. &nbsp;<br />
  3414. 1. When you start a blog it allows you to unleash your voice.<br />
  3415. Blogs allow for writers to put their content in digital format for readers to see forever. We are all creating our stories online, whether we realize it or not, and have the opportunity to portray our uniqueness to the world. You have a unique life experience and a story that you have been developing for years, and when you setup your blog, it will be time to let the words begin to spill out.<br />
  3416. 2. When you start a blog you will build your audience.<br />
  3417. <a href="http://www.thecultureist.com/2013/05/09/how-many-people-use-the-internet-more-than-2-billion-infographic/">More than two billion people use the internet right now</a> and your potential audience will only continue to grow. So now that you have a blog, define who it is that you specifically want to target, what they need, and what you can offer them. People want well-written content on a weekly or daily basis, and a blog gives you a chance to speak directly to your audience as often as you see fit.<br />
  3418. 3. When you start a blog it allows you to have complete control over online customization.<br />
  3419. I started writing with a xanga account, then posterous, then tumblr, then <a href="http://wordpress.com/" rel="nofollow">wordpress.com</a>, and then ended up with a self-hosted wordpress blog, and I am so glad I eventually found the best platform to be on. When you register your domain and set it up through <a href="http://wordpress.org">wordpress.org</a>, you can have complete control over what your webspace looks like. WordPress allows you to leave your own personal mark where everyone gathers &#8211; online. Different <a href="http://www.shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=241369&amp;u=1076604&amp;m=28169&amp;urllink=&amp;afftrack=">themes</a> and plugins are what gives you this control, and there are so many to choose from, so you can bring your personality not only to your content, but to your design as well.<br />
  3420. If you don&#8217;t feel the need to start a blog, I hope this podcast has inspired you to look into <a href="http://asmithblog.com/create-wordpress-blog/">setting one up</a>. When you do this, you will gain more influence and reach more people, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3421. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3422. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3423. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3424. <itunes:duration>3:55</itunes:duration>
  3425. <rawvoice:metamark type="audio"/>
  3426. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3427. <item>
  3428. <title>#059: What I Look For In A Mentor</title>
  3429. <link>https://asmithblog.com/059-mentor-mentors-mentoring/</link>
  3430. <pubDate>Tue, 12 May 2015 06:01:31 +0000</pubDate>
  3431. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17354</guid>
  3432. <description>&lt;img width="509" height="236" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor.jpg 509w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-300x139.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-150x70.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 509px) 100vw, 509px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;The reason for being mentored is to have people speak into your life who have been through what you are currently going through or what you will go through in the future.&lt;/p&gt;
  3433. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/059-mentor-mentors-mentoring/"&gt;#059: What I Look For In A Mentor&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3434. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="509" height="236" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor.jpg 509w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-300x139.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-150x70.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 509px) 100vw, 509px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3435.  
  3436. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3437. <p>I believe that some people are confused on what the word <em>mentor</em> means. They think it needs to be some elaborate meeting and that it will equal someone else dictating what they will do with their life. If that&#8217;s the meaning of mentor, then I don&#8217;t want any part of it. Here is the definition of mentor &#8211; &#8220;An experienced and trusted adviser. To advise or train.&#8221; Take it or leave it, that&#8217;s what it means. To seek out a mentor means that you want to be advised as what to do with your life.</p>
  3438. <p>If you are mentoring or being mentored, then you know how important it is. The reason for being mentored is to have people speak into your life who have been through what you are currently going through or what you will go through in the future. They can help you make less mistakes, because the truth of the matter is that <strong>you can either learn from mistakes or from mentors</strong>. It&#8217;s your choice.</p>
  3439. <p><strong><span id="more-17354"></span></strong></p>
  3440. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring.png"><img decoding="async" class="alignnone size-full wp-image-17485" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring.png" alt="mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring" width="1000" height="512" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring.png 1000w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring-300x154.png 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring-150x77.png 150w" sizes="(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px" /></a></p>
  3441. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3442. <blockquote><p><em><strong>The 2 topics that my mentors help direct me in is my relationships and my businesses. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3443. <p>These two topics are my biggest concerns. At first, my main issues with being mentored were that I didn&#8217;t have enough time to meet with them and that I wanted to just keep some things personal. When I realized that mentoring can sometimes be done by just a phone call  or by checking in weekly or monthly and that life is best lived with others in community, stepping out and seeking advice from people I respect and who I want to speak into my life became much easier.</p>
  3444. <p><strong>Relationships</strong></p>
  3445. <p>My biggest prioritized relationship is the one with my wife, Jasmine. My second highest priority in relationships is with my kids. When these are in sync, life is great. When they aren&#8217;t, chaos abounds. Since these relationships are so important to me, we have finally set up ways to ensure that they don&#8217;t lower from our single top focus. How did we do this? We now enforce the top three rules of marriage &#8211; constant communication, honesty, and show each other our individual <a href="http://www.5lovelanguages.com">love languages</a>. [Book] (Jasmine&#8217;s love language is quality time and mine is words of affirmation.)</p>
  3446. <p>Mentors of mine who direct me in the relationships department with my family need to have been married for at least fifteen years and have grown children. There are just so many issues that are dealt with inside of marriage that people who are single don&#8217;t deal with. Of course there are plenty of things that I take away from people who aren&#8217;t married, but what I cannot take for myself from them is time management. The main difference between people who are married and those who aren&#8217;t is the way that time is scheduled, and for me that is a huge deal.</p>
  3447. <p>For those who are married, there should be time set aside every day for family time. For people who don&#8217;t have a family, then this time can be used for other things. So, to say that I should be able to keep up with people who are not married in my work would be a ridiculous goal if life&#8217;s priorities are correct. Yes, everyone has the same amount of hours in a day, but the way we use it is completely different depending on where we are at in life. My best advice is to research the background of people who you are reading about or letting speak into your life, because they might not have the same responsibilities as you and that drastically changes things.</p>
  3448. <p>This is the best criteria I can give you for selecting a mentor.  If there are people who are married who have a great relationship with their spouse and children and accomplish a lot in their day, then I am all ears to hear their secrets as to what they do to get it all done. These are the people that I want to learn from.</p>
  3449. <p><strong>Business</strong></p>
  3450. <p>In business, I look to other successful entrepreneurs for mentoring. My measures of successful entrepreneurs include their influence through innovation, continual growth, a great company culture, close relationships with employees and customers, and an extremely profitable bottom line. With younger entrepreneurs and CEOs in the picture than ever, age is definitely not a factor for me in guidance with successful business mentoring. While I typically look for older people to direct me in relationships with my family, a higher priority for me in business is to evaluate the <em>valuable</em> <em>perspective</em> of business people, regardless of age. To dismiss the Mark Zuckerbergs of the world would be stupid on my part. In business, it is more about the life experiences that possible mentors have been through more than any other factor out there.</p>
  3451. <blockquote><p><em><strong>Who already has a handle on the target market I am pursuing and how can I improve on what they are offering?</strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3452. <p>It is innovation that got successful business people to where they are at, and it is innovation that will also help my businesses to continue to grow. Innovation is the key to growth in this day and age of business, so a top priority of mine when talking about mentors in business is to find those who have a grasp on cutting edge innovation and what people will want tomorrow, so I can seek out wisdom there.</p>
  3453. <p>When someone achieves greatness any of these areas, then I know I want to become closer to them, because we have common ground that can be built upon. If these friendships turn into mentoring relationships, then great. If not, then we have something and common and I know there won&#8217;t ever be that awkward quiet space in conversation.</p>
  3454. <p>Of course, there is a difference with my relationships with mentors and friends. This isn&#8217;t to say that I am this selective with people I have friendships with, but I am very selective when choosing mentors. If I want to become better, then I believe that the people who I allow to speak into my life on a mentoring level will ultimately have a huge impact on who I am as a person. This being said, my goal in surrounding myself with better people is that I become better myself.</p>
  3455. <p>I hope this podcast has sparked an interest in you to step out and become mentored yourself. I can promise that being mentored will only help you find success in your endeavors.</p>
  3456. <p><em><strong>Now, go and find a mentor, today.</strong></em></p>
  3457. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/059-mentor-mentors-mentoring/">#059: What I Look For In A Mentor</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3458. ]]></content:encoded>
  3459. <enclosure length="4378492" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/059-What-I-Look-For-In-A-Mentor.m4a"/>
  3460. <itunes:subtitle>The reason for being mentored is to have people speak into your life who have been through what you are currently going through or what you will go through in the future.</itunes:subtitle>
  3461. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3462. &nbsp;<br />
  3463. I believe that some people are confused on what the word mentor means. They think it needs to be some elaborate meeting and that it will equal someone else dictating what they will do with their life. If that&#8217;s the meaning of mentor, then I don&#8217;t want any part of it. Here is the definition of mentor &#8211; &#8220;An experienced and trusted adviser. To advise or train.&#8221; Take it or leave it, that&#8217;s what it means. To seek out a mentor means that you want to be advised as what to do with your life.<br />
  3464. If you are mentoring or being mentored, then you know how important it is. The reason for being mentored is to have people speak into your life who have been through what you are currently going through or what you will go through in the future. They can help you make less mistakes, because the truth of the matter is that you can either learn from mistakes or from mentors. It&#8217;s your choice.<br />
  3465. <br />
  3466. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/mentor-John-C.-Crosby-mentoring.png"></a><br />
  3467. &nbsp;<br />
  3468. The 2 topics that my mentors help direct me in is my relationships and my businesses. <br />
  3469. These two topics are my biggest concerns. At first, my main issues with being mentored were that I didn&#8217;t have enough time to meet with them and that I wanted to just keep some things personal. When I realized that mentoring can sometimes be done by just a phone call  or by checking in weekly or monthly and that life is best lived with others in community, stepping out and seeking advice from people I respect and who I want to speak into my life became much easier.<br />
  3470. Relationships<br />
  3471. My biggest prioritized relationship is the one with my wife, Jasmine. My second highest priority in relationships is with my kids. When these are in sync, life is great. When they aren&#8217;t, chaos abounds. Since these relationships are so important to me, we have finally set up ways to ensure that they don&#8217;t lower from our single top focus. How did we do this? We now enforce the top three rules of marriage &#8211; constant communication, honesty, and show each other our individual <a href="http://www.5lovelanguages.com">love languages</a>. [Book] (Jasmine&#8217;s love language is quality time and mine is words of affirmation.)<br />
  3472. Mentors of mine who direct me in the relationships department with my family need to have been married for at least fifteen years and have grown children. There are just so many issues that are dealt with inside of marriage that people who are single don&#8217;t deal with. Of course there are plenty of things that I take away from people who aren&#8217;t married, but what I cannot take for myself from them is time management. The main difference between people who are married and those who aren&#8217;t is the way that time is scheduled, and for me that is a huge deal.<br />
  3473. For those who are married, there should be time set aside every day for family time. For people who don&#8217;t have a family, then this time can be used for other things. So, to say that I should be able to keep up with people who are not married in my work would be a ridiculous goal if life&#8217;s priorities are correct. Yes, everyone has the same amount of hours in a day, but the way we use it is completely different depending on where we are at in life. My best advice is to research the background of people who you are reading about or letting speak into your life, because they might not have the same responsibilities as you and that drastically changes things.<br />
  3474. This is the best criteria I can give you for selecting a mentor.  If there are people who are married who have a great relationship with their spouse and children and accomplish a lot in their day, then I am all ears to hear their secrets as to what they do to get it all done. These are the people that I want to learn from.<br />
  3475. Business<br />
  3476. In business,]]></itunes:summary>
  3477. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3478. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3479. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3480. <itunes:duration>8:55</itunes:duration>
  3481. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3482. <item>
  3483. <title>#058: How To Grow An Audience</title>
  3484. <link>https://asmithblog.com/058-how-grow-audience/</link>
  3485. <pubDate>Tue, 28 Apr 2015 06:01:20 +0000</pubDate>
  3486. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17332</guid>
  3487. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="435" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/grow-an-audience-e1430194410105.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows you how to grow an audience.&lt;/p&gt;
  3488. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/058-how-grow-audience/"&gt;#058: How To Grow An Audience&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3489. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="435" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/grow-an-audience-e1430194410105.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" />
  3490. <p>Growing an audience begins with this question &#8211;</p>
  3491. <p><em><strong>What matters most?</strong></em></p>
  3492. <p>Say it with me.</p>
  3493. <p>This is something I had to define for myself three years ago when I rebranded my online presence. I answered this question with <strong>&#8220;caring about people&#8221;</strong> and built my entire brand on that. This is why I begin each week&#8217;s blog topics with relationships, and then fill the rest of the week with other topics to equip people with the tools they need to lead in life. Relationship with people is the foundation for what each and every one of us contribute to this world. I don&#8217;t care what job you have, the <em>Why? </em>behind what you do should always be that it will impact people. It is when we lose sight of the <em>Why? </em>that we<em> </em>begin<em> </em>losing focus of our own importance in carrying out the mission.</p>
  3494. <p>Right before I did this online rebranding, I read Patrick Lencioni&#8217;s <em><a href="http://amzn.com/0787995312">The Three Signs of A Miserable Job</a></em> and remembered that one of the three points he made was that jobs are miserable if you don&#8217;t know why they matter. We can apply this concept not only to our jobs, but anything we do. When you put people on the receiving end of what you do, you then know why you and your company exists. Introverted or extroverted, at the very core of us all is the desire to impact people, whether we realize it or not.</p>
  3495. <p>If you have lost sight of the <em>Why? </em>for your role in your business<em>, </em>here are 3 ways to get back to doing what matters most and get back to growing your audience:</p>
  3496. <p><strong><span id="more-17332"></span></strong></p>
  3497. <p><strong>1. Listen to your audience. </strong></p>
  3498. <p>It doesn&#8217;t matter what business you own, listening to what your customers, clients, and audience wants and needs is huge when it comes to growing your business. I can&#8217;t tell you how many entrepreneurs I have met who stick their head in the sand and either just don&#8217;t care and want to do their own thing or they are too afraid to listen to constructive feedback from customers. Whether it&#8217;s forming a survey or creating some sort of public forum, having a way to hear from the public is essential to see where you may be lacking, or so you can see what you are excelling in, so you can focus more of your attention there.</p>
  3499. <p><strong>2. Pinpoint your differences.</strong></p>
  3500. <p>To stand out in a world where there are enough products and services to confuse consumers, you need to pinpoint your differences. Why do these things set you apart? What products and services do you offer that your competitors don&#8217;t? Why should people care about your offerings? No matter how small it is, you need to make sure that people clearly know what it is that makes you different. Even if you think you have already done this, maybe you haven&#8217;t clearly communicated this to your audience and displayed it prominently for people to see.</p>
  3501. <p><strong>3. Bring your business back to what it is about &#8211; people.</strong></p>
  3502. <p>As a business, you are there to offer products and services to an audience, so that they can profit from it. That&#8217;s why people will come back time and time again. Maybe you have lost sight of that and have been focused so much on what you are profiting from it that you forgot the reason you began doing what you do. Issues in our own lives are amplified when we are focused on ourselves. When we focus on the lives of others, our own issues become minuscule and we are reminded of the reason we are here on this earth &#8211; to touch the lives of others.</p>
  3503. <p><em><strong>Use these three points and return to why you do what you do to grow your audience, today. </strong></em></p>
  3504. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/058-how-grow-audience/">#058: How To Grow An Audience</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3505. ]]></content:encoded>
  3506. <enclosure length="2543448" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/058-How-To-Grow-An-Audience.m4a"/>
  3507. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows you how to grow an audience.</itunes:subtitle>
  3508. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Growing an audience begins with this question &#8211;<br />
  3509. What matters most?<br />
  3510. Say it with me.<br />
  3511. This is something I had to define for myself three years ago when I rebranded my online presence. I answered this question with &#8220;caring about people&#8221; and built my entire brand on that. This is why I begin each week&#8217;s blog topics with relationships, and then fill the rest of the week with other topics to equip people with the tools they need to lead in life. Relationship with people is the foundation for what each and every one of us contribute to this world. I don&#8217;t care what job you have, the Why? behind what you do should always be that it will impact people. It is when we lose sight of the Why? that we begin losing focus of our own importance in carrying out the mission.<br />
  3512. Right before I did this online rebranding, I read Patrick Lencioni&#8217;s <a href="http://amzn.com/0787995312">The Three Signs of A Miserable Job</a> and remembered that one of the three points he made was that jobs are miserable if you don&#8217;t know why they matter. We can apply this concept not only to our jobs, but anything we do. When you put people on the receiving end of what you do, you then know why you and your company exists. Introverted or extroverted, at the very core of us all is the desire to impact people, whether we realize it or not.<br />
  3513. If you have lost sight of the Why? for your role in your business, here are 3 ways to get back to doing what matters most and get back to growing your audience:<br />
  3514. <br />
  3515. 1. Listen to your audience. <br />
  3516. It doesn&#8217;t matter what business you own, listening to what your customers, clients, and audience wants and needs is huge when it comes to growing your business. I can&#8217;t tell you how many entrepreneurs I have met who stick their head in the sand and either just don&#8217;t care and want to do their own thing or they are too afraid to listen to constructive feedback from customers. Whether it&#8217;s forming a survey or creating some sort of public forum, having a way to hear from the public is essential to see where you may be lacking, or so you can see what you are excelling in, so you can focus more of your attention there.<br />
  3517. 2. Pinpoint your differences.<br />
  3518. To stand out in a world where there are enough products and services to confuse consumers, you need to pinpoint your differences. Why do these things set you apart? What products and services do you offer that your competitors don&#8217;t? Why should people care about your offerings? No matter how small it is, you need to make sure that people clearly know what it is that makes you different. Even if you think you have already done this, maybe you haven&#8217;t clearly communicated this to your audience and displayed it prominently for people to see.<br />
  3519. 3. Bring your business back to what it is about &#8211; people.<br />
  3520. As a business, you are there to offer products and services to an audience, so that they can profit from it. That&#8217;s why people will come back time and time again. Maybe you have lost sight of that and have been focused so much on what you are profiting from it that you forgot the reason you began doing what you do. Issues in our own lives are amplified when we are focused on ourselves. When we focus on the lives of others, our own issues become minuscule and we are reminded of the reason we are here on this earth &#8211; to touch the lives of others.<br />
  3521. Use these three points and return to why you do what you do to grow your audience, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3522. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3523. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3524. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3525. <itunes:duration>5:11</itunes:duration>
  3526. <rawvoice:metamark type="audio"/>
  3527. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3528. <item>
  3529. <title>#057: Do What Is Necessary to Create</title>
  3530. <link>https://asmithblog.com/057-what-necessary-create/</link>
  3531. <pubDate>Tue, 21 Apr 2015 06:01:02 +0000</pubDate>
  3532. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17208</guid>
  3533. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/create-e1429477168727.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam helps you discover what is necessary for you to create. &lt;/p&gt;
  3534. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/057-what-necessary-create/"&gt;#057: Do What Is Necessary to Create&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3535. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/create-e1429477168727.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3536.  
  3537. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3538. <p>If you are a creative, then you know there are some things you have to do to carry out creativity. You have a responsibility to look at the world in a different way. Of course, doing the same things that everyone else is doing will get you the same results that everyone else is achieving. You can and will accomplish more with your life when you adopt creativity for yourself.</p>
  3539. <p>The excuse for most people that don&#8217;t create outside of their minimum basic contributions to this world is a lack of time. I mean, I get it. But, to do what you truly want to with your life, your view on how you are creative will have to change. When you change your view, you will realize that the creativity you are pursuing won&#8217;t complete itself. If you are to become more creative, then you will need to give it some effort, but I can help get you there.</p>
  3540. <p><em>I want to help you get your best jump start on living a more creative life, so here are five tips that you need to live out more creativity with your life:</em></p>
  3541. <p><strong><span id="more-17208"></span></strong></p>
  3542. <p><strong>1. You need to schedule creative time.</strong></p>
  3543. <p>This point hits you one of three ways &#8211; you either don&#8217;t have any more extra time, you feel that creativity should just flow whenever you have a free moment, or structure of any type feels like a constraint on your creativity. The truth is that scheduled time for creativity is what keeps you accountable to the process. It is what keeps you showing up time and time again to get the work done and if there&#8217;s anything that you need, it is more commitment to the craft you are pursuing. That&#8217;s exactly what this scheduled creative time gives.</p>
  3544. <p><strong>2. You need to get alone.</strong></p>
  3545. <p>This is the worst part of the process for me. With a wife and two children, the last thing that I want to do is isolate myself. But, being alone is one of the most necessary parts of the creative process. Being alone gives necessary clarity in the midst of a noisy world and when done correctly you are more efficient in the other areas of your life.</p>
  3546. <p>Being alone is most effective when you know where you need to be to create. If you work best in a quiet environment, find a library or other quiet environment to create. If you work better in a noisy environment, find a busy coffee shop to be creative in. If you find that you can&#8217;t create in your office environment, then it&#8217;s time to get out. The right environment can help you be more creative, and the great thing is that you can probably choose where you do your work at some point in your day.</p>
  3547. <p><strong>3. You need to take care of things as they happen.</strong></p>
  3548. <p>Something has to give when you pick up new things to do, but beginning anew doesn&#8217;t always have to mean that other areas of life need to suffer. When we know what our top priorities are, we don&#8217;t have to wonder what it is that needs less attention, because we have already streamlined our life in the way it should be. When we take on anything and everything, life quickly becomes chaotic. I&#8217;m sorry to break it to you, but you can&#8217;t possibly do everything in this world and still do it well. But, when you decide what you need to pour your heart into, you allow yourself to be more creative in these areas and can make a bigger impact as well.</p>
  3549. <p>Room to breathe and margin is what helps you get the work done. Now, some people like pressure in the creative process, but I have found that space allows for more time, which allows more tinkering with ideas. Great things happen when there is time to mold ideas into better ones, and that only happens when we give the process of finding solutions more of our time. Rushing creativity gives basic thoughts, but when we have time to ponder these ideas, it is here that we get to push through to find our best possible answers.</p>
  3550. <p><strong>4. You need to create more often.</strong></p>
  3551. <p>When people say they haven&#8217;t done what they have wanted to in life, my first question to them is, &#8220;Well, how many times have you shown up?&#8221; The process comes down to odds. If you have only shown up five times, then you don&#8217;t have that good of a chance to find what you are looking for. But, if you show up 100 times, successful creativity is probably right around the corner. Practice is what makes the process easier and helps ideas flow in more manageable ways. The more you show up to work, the easier it becomes. The more often you create, the easier it is to see what works and what doesn&#8217;t.</p>
  3552. <p><strong>5. Share the process and results you find with others.</strong></p>
  3553. <p>At some point you need to share your ideas and creations with others. This sort of brainstorming with other people helps you shape your ideas into something that can help them as well. It is always helpful to hear from others to make sure you are heading in the right direction and thinking of all possible ways to produce better outcomes.</p>
  3554. <p>You can also build a team of some sorts, either by hiring virtual assistants or other employees, to free yourself to create more often. The more ways you can find to create, share your creativity with others, and empower others to create, the more impact you will have through creativity.</p>
  3555. <p><em><strong>In the comment section, I would love to hear what the creative process looks like for you and what you are working on, today.</strong></em></p>
  3556. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/057-what-necessary-create/">#057: Do What Is Necessary to Create</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3557. ]]></content:encoded>
  3558. <enclosure length="3126830" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/057-Do-What-Is-Necessary-to-Create.m4a"/>
  3559. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam helps you discover what is necessary for you to create.</itunes:subtitle>
  3560. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3561. &nbsp;<br />
  3562. If you are a creative, then you know there are some things you have to do to carry out creativity. You have a responsibility to look at the world in a different way. Of course, doing the same things that everyone else is doing will get you the same results that everyone else is achieving. You can and will accomplish more with your life when you adopt creativity for yourself.<br />
  3563. The excuse for most people that don&#8217;t create outside of their minimum basic contributions to this world is a lack of time. I mean, I get it. But, to do what you truly want to with your life, your view on how you are creative will have to change. When you change your view, you will realize that the creativity you are pursuing won&#8217;t complete itself. If you are to become more creative, then you will need to give it some effort, but I can help get you there.<br />
  3564. I want to help you get your best jump start on living a more creative life, so here are five tips that you need to live out more creativity with your life:<br />
  3565. <br />
  3566. 1. You need to schedule creative time.<br />
  3567. This point hits you one of three ways &#8211; you either don&#8217;t have any more extra time, you feel that creativity should just flow whenever you have a free moment, or structure of any type feels like a constraint on your creativity. The truth is that scheduled time for creativity is what keeps you accountable to the process. It is what keeps you showing up time and time again to get the work done and if there&#8217;s anything that you need, it is more commitment to the craft you are pursuing. That&#8217;s exactly what this scheduled creative time gives.<br />
  3568. 2. You need to get alone.<br />
  3569. This is the worst part of the process for me. With a wife and two children, the last thing that I want to do is isolate myself. But, being alone is one of the most necessary parts of the creative process. Being alone gives necessary clarity in the midst of a noisy world and when done correctly you are more efficient in the other areas of your life.<br />
  3570. Being alone is most effective when you know where you need to be to create. If you work best in a quiet environment, find a library or other quiet environment to create. If you work better in a noisy environment, find a busy coffee shop to be creative in. If you find that you can&#8217;t create in your office environment, then it&#8217;s time to get out. The right environment can help you be more creative, and the great thing is that you can probably choose where you do your work at some point in your day.<br />
  3571. 3. You need to take care of things as they happen.<br />
  3572. Something has to give when you pick up new things to do, but beginning anew doesn&#8217;t always have to mean that other areas of life need to suffer. When we know what our top priorities are, we don&#8217;t have to wonder what it is that needs less attention, because we have already streamlined our life in the way it should be. When we take on anything and everything, life quickly becomes chaotic. I&#8217;m sorry to break it to you, but you can&#8217;t possibly do everything in this world and still do it well. But, when you decide what you need to pour your heart into, you allow yourself to be more creative in these areas and can make a bigger impact as well.<br />
  3573. Room to breathe and margin is what helps you get the work done. Now, some people like pressure in the creative process, but I have found that space allows for more time, which allows more tinkering with ideas. Great things happen when there is time to mold ideas into better ones, and that only happens when we give the process of finding solutions more of our time. Rushing creativity gives basic thoughts, but when we have time to ponder these ideas, it is here that we get to push through to find our best possible answers.<br />
  3574. 4. You need to create more often.<br />
  3575. When people say they haven&#8217;t done what they have wanted to in life, my first question to them is,]]></itunes:summary>
  3576. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3577. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3578. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3579. <itunes:duration>6:22</itunes:duration>
  3580. <rawvoice:metamark type="audio"/>
  3581. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3582. <item>
  3583. <title>#056: Your Plans Will Change</title>
  3584. <link>https://asmithblog.com/056-your-plans-will-change/</link>
  3585. <pubDate>Tue, 14 Apr 2015 06:01:14 +0000</pubDate>
  3586. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17093</guid>
  3587. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/your-plans-will-change-e1428953182624.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains the need for a plan, but also informs listeners that plan will change, too.&lt;/p&gt;
  3588. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/056-your-plans-will-change/"&gt;#056: Your Plans Will Change&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3589. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/your-plans-will-change-e1428953182624.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3590.  
  3591. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3592. <p>If you would have asked me five or even ten years ago if I had a plan for my future and if I believed it would unfold perfectly, without hesitation I would have said &#8220;yes&#8221;. I had no idea how far off base I was on planning, either. While I will tell you how important it is to have a plan, because it will send you in the right direction, what it won&#8217;t do is end up perfectly. Sorry if you are a perfectionist. I know this is the last thing that you want to hear right now.</p>
  3593. <p>Even though I will make a plan for the next five years this October, what I will not do is solely rely on this plan? Why? Because while you used to be able to make five or ten year plans and things would stick closer to the plan, the truth is that everything is changing at a much more rapid pace, especially with anything related to business goals.</p>
  3594. <p><em>So, here are three things that recovering perfectionists, like myself, can learn about developing plans in 2015:</em></p>
  3595. <p><strong><span id="more-17093"></span></strong></p>
  3596. <p><strong>1. Plans will change, maybe even drastically.</strong></p>
  3597. <p>If you are like me, you don&#8217;t like this answer. But, plans will always change. Your one-year plans, five-year plans, and ten-year plans will all be different. If you were to ask me ten years ago what I would be doing today, I would have told you that I wanted to be a business owner, but I had no idea what type of business it would be or how it would happen.</p>
  3598. <p>If you told me I was going to be a writer twenty or twenty-five years ago, I would have laughed. I don&#8217;t have that typical, &#8221; I knew that I wanted to write since I was ten years old&#8221; story. I didn&#8217;t realize I loved to write until my freshman year of college. At ten years old, I wanted to be a professional baseball player. I landed a long way from that dream, but I now realize that ideas, this world, and our perspective change, and that&#8217;s a good thing. In high school, I knew I wanted to own a business, but writing wasn&#8217;t even on the radar yet. I am very thankful that my perception changed.</p>
  3599. <p><strong>2. Even though we don&#8217;t land exactly where we plan, it sure does help us move forward. </strong></p>
  3600. <p>I have lived life both without planning and with planning, and I have to say that that living with a plan of some sorts motivates. No matter who you listen to on how to develop your plan and what you think it should like, a plan is always better than no plan. Why is it important to plan even though it probably won&#8217;t turn out exactly how you think it will, then? Because, not only will a plan get you moving in the right direction, it will also get you thinking in the right way.</p>
  3601. <p><strong>3. Future plans not only let you dream, but they encourage it.</strong></p>
  3602. <p>When people tell me they don&#8217;t have a life plan, my next question is always, &#8220;When is the last time you dreamed?&#8221; This usually takes place in the second or third life coaching session without fail. Planning requires dreaming. I would dare you to dream a five year plan out and pick yourself to be in a completely different spot than you are today. If your plan doesn&#8217;t have you growing in any way in the next five years, you need to come up with a different plan. But, if you are willing to dream and take risks, you are well on your way to creating a worthy plan for your life. All you need is a little imagination.</p>
  3603. <p><em><strong>When you dare to dream, even though plans rarely come to pass with perfection and you don&#8217;t know where you will end up, doors will open long the way. That&#8217;s what the journey gives you. Go and make a huge plan for your future, today.</strong></em></p>
  3604. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/056-your-plans-will-change/">#056: Your Plans Will Change</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3605. ]]></content:encoded>
  3606. <enclosure length="2008475" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/056-Your-Plans-Will-Change.m4a"/>
  3607. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains the need for a plan, but also informs listeners that plan will change, too.</itunes:subtitle>
  3608. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3609. &nbsp;<br />
  3610. If you would have asked me five or even ten years ago if I had a plan for my future and if I believed it would unfold perfectly, without hesitation I would have said &#8220;yes&#8221;. I had no idea how far off base I was on planning, either. While I will tell you how important it is to have a plan, because it will send you in the right direction, what it won&#8217;t do is end up perfectly. Sorry if you are a perfectionist. I know this is the last thing that you want to hear right now.<br />
  3611. Even though I will make a plan for the next five years this October, what I will not do is solely rely on this plan? Why? Because while you used to be able to make five or ten year plans and things would stick closer to the plan, the truth is that everything is changing at a much more rapid pace, especially with anything related to business goals.<br />
  3612. So, here are three things that recovering perfectionists, like myself, can learn about developing plans in 2015:<br />
  3613. <br />
  3614. 1. Plans will change, maybe even drastically.<br />
  3615. If you are like me, you don&#8217;t like this answer. But, plans will always change. Your one-year plans, five-year plans, and ten-year plans will all be different. If you were to ask me ten years ago what I would be doing today, I would have told you that I wanted to be a business owner, but I had no idea what type of business it would be or how it would happen.<br />
  3616. If you told me I was going to be a writer twenty or twenty-five years ago, I would have laughed. I don&#8217;t have that typical, &#8221; I knew that I wanted to write since I was ten years old&#8221; story. I didn&#8217;t realize I loved to write until my freshman year of college. At ten years old, I wanted to be a professional baseball player. I landed a long way from that dream, but I now realize that ideas, this world, and our perspective change, and that&#8217;s a good thing. In high school, I knew I wanted to own a business, but writing wasn&#8217;t even on the radar yet. I am very thankful that my perception changed.<br />
  3617. 2. Even though we don&#8217;t land exactly where we plan, it sure does help us move forward. <br />
  3618. I have lived life both without planning and with planning, and I have to say that that living with a plan of some sorts motivates. No matter who you listen to on how to develop your plan and what you think it should like, a plan is always better than no plan. Why is it important to plan even though it probably won&#8217;t turn out exactly how you think it will, then? Because, not only will a plan get you moving in the right direction, it will also get you thinking in the right way.<br />
  3619. 3. Future plans not only let you dream, but they encourage it.<br />
  3620. When people tell me they don&#8217;t have a life plan, my next question is always, &#8220;When is the last time you dreamed?&#8221; This usually takes place in the second or third life coaching session without fail. Planning requires dreaming. I would dare you to dream a five year plan out and pick yourself to be in a completely different spot than you are today. If your plan doesn&#8217;t have you growing in any way in the next five years, you need to come up with a different plan. But, if you are willing to dream and take risks, you are well on your way to creating a worthy plan for your life. All you need is a little imagination.<br />
  3621. When you dare to dream, even though plans rarely come to pass with perfection and you don&#8217;t know where you will end up, doors will open long the way. That&#8217;s what the journey gives you. Go and make a huge plan for your future, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3622. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3623. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3624. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3625. <itunes:duration>4:05</itunes:duration>
  3626. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3627. <item>
  3628. <title>#055: Be Thankful For The Journey</title>
  3629. <link>https://asmithblog.com/055-thankful-for-the-journey/</link>
  3630. <pubDate>Tue, 07 Apr 2015 06:01:49 +0000</pubDate>
  3631. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17096</guid>
  3632. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/thankful-journey-e1428201938971.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that when times are rough, remembering to be thankful for what you do have is what will help you along your journey.&lt;/p&gt;
  3633. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/055-thankful-for-the-journey/"&gt;#055: Be Thankful For The Journey&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3634. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/thankful-journey-e1428201938971.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3635.  
  3636. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3637. <p>We have all found ourselves at times in life where things could be better. Life looks bleak when we feel we have done everything in our power, and still the results that we see don&#8217;t seem to match our efforts. But, we can still press forward and see things differently in these times by developing one thing in our lives &#8211; <em><strong>the habit of thankfulness</strong></em>.</p>
  3638. <p>Thankfulness is such a huge part of your journey to living out a life of purpose. Most people only look for this thankfulness in the huge events that happen in life, but your <em>perspective</em> changes for the better when you decide to be grateful for everything that happens in life, including the small things. Thankfulness can even be found when life isn&#8217;t going well, but this requires you to change your outlook on life.</p>
  3639. <p>When you decide to be optimistic and thankful, even when times are rough, it is thankfulness that will get you through these valleys. This outlook causes you to view the world differently and helps you choose to see the good in life once again. You already know that life is better when you let thankfulness have a bigger hold in your life, but what about those times where you just can&#8217;t seem to find it? What can you do when the world is crumbling around you and you can&#8217;t seem to find a way out? Well, thankfulness is still your best answer.</p>
  3640. <blockquote><p><em><strong>You may not be able to control your current situation, but you can control your current perception.</strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3641. <p>Try this &#8211;</p>
  3642. <p><em>In this moment, how many things can you count that you are thankful for with just one minute of your time? </em></p>
  3643. <p>Hopefully, you had so many things to count that you couldn&#8217;t stop coming up with things to be thankful for.  <em><strong>But i</strong><strong>f not, I have</strong><strong> three ways to pull more thankfulness out of your life so you can begin using it for positive fuel in your journey:</strong></em></p>
  3644. <p><strong><span id="more-17096"></span></strong></p>
  3645. <p><strong>1. Take the time to pause and reflect on a daily basis.</strong></p>
  3646. <p>Busyness will attempt to rob you from thankfulness every chance that it gets. It is the number one thing you need to fight in life, because it is your absolute biggest enemy that will detain you from thankfulness and a life filled with joy.</p>
  3647. <p><strong>2. Listen to your language.</strong></p>
  3648. <p>Do you want to know the quickest way to see if you are living out thankfulness in your life or not? Listen to the words you are speaking. Are they thankful and positive or unthankful and negative? Listening to your words will let you know your heart&#8217;s perspective, because people who are thankful speak thankfulness into their lives and into the lives of others.</p>
  3649. <p><strong>3. Fight for unity in your relationships.</strong></p>
  3650. <p>It may sound odd to fight for unity, but your relationships will either cause you to want to be thankful or to be ungrateful for where you currently find yourself along your life&#8217;s journey. When there isn&#8217;t unity in your relationships, it is almost impossible to be thankful for the positivity that is filling other areas of your life, even if everything else is approaching perfection. Once you fix your relationships, you will be able to fix your outlook on life and find more thankfulness on a daily basis.</p>
  3651. <p><em><strong>Take the time to pause and reflect on a daily basis, listen to your language, and fight for unity in your relationships. Try implementing these three thankfulness principles in your life and see the immediate difference, today. </strong></em></p>
  3652. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/055-thankful-for-the-journey/">#055: Be Thankful For The Journey</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3653. ]]></content:encoded>
  3654. <enclosure length="2446128" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/055-Be-Thankful-For-The-Journey.m4a"/>
  3655. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that when times are rough, remembering to be thankful for what you do have is what will help you along your journey.</itunes:subtitle>
  3656. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3657. &nbsp;<br />
  3658. We have all found ourselves at times in life where things could be better. Life looks bleak when we feel we have done everything in our power, and still the results that we see don&#8217;t seem to match our efforts. But, we can still press forward and see things differently in these times by developing one thing in our lives &#8211; the habit of thankfulness.<br />
  3659. Thankfulness is such a huge part of your journey to living out a life of purpose. Most people only look for this thankfulness in the huge events that happen in life, but your perspective changes for the better when you decide to be grateful for everything that happens in life, including the small things. Thankfulness can even be found when life isn&#8217;t going well, but this requires you to change your outlook on life.<br />
  3660. When you decide to be optimistic and thankful, even when times are rough, it is thankfulness that will get you through these valleys. This outlook causes you to view the world differently and helps you choose to see the good in life once again. You already know that life is better when you let thankfulness have a bigger hold in your life, but what about those times where you just can&#8217;t seem to find it? What can you do when the world is crumbling around you and you can&#8217;t seem to find a way out? Well, thankfulness is still your best answer.<br />
  3661. You may not be able to control your current situation, but you can control your current perception.<br />
  3662. Try this &#8211;<br />
  3663. In this moment, how many things can you count that you are thankful for with just one minute of your time? <br />
  3664. Hopefully, you had so many things to count that you couldn&#8217;t stop coming up with things to be thankful for.  But if not, I have three ways to pull more thankfulness out of your life so you can begin using it for positive fuel in your journey:<br />
  3665. <br />
  3666. 1. Take the time to pause and reflect on a daily basis.<br />
  3667. Busyness will attempt to rob you from thankfulness every chance that it gets. It is the number one thing you need to fight in life, because it is your absolute biggest enemy that will detain you from thankfulness and a life filled with joy.<br />
  3668. 2. Listen to your language.<br />
  3669. Do you want to know the quickest way to see if you are living out thankfulness in your life or not? Listen to the words you are speaking. Are they thankful and positive or unthankful and negative? Listening to your words will let you know your heart&#8217;s perspective, because people who are thankful speak thankfulness into their lives and into the lives of others.<br />
  3670. 3. Fight for unity in your relationships.<br />
  3671. It may sound odd to fight for unity, but your relationships will either cause you to want to be thankful or to be ungrateful for where you currently find yourself along your life&#8217;s journey. When there isn&#8217;t unity in your relationships, it is almost impossible to be thankful for the positivity that is filling other areas of your life, even if everything else is approaching perfection. Once you fix your relationships, you will be able to fix your outlook on life and find more thankfulness on a daily basis.<br />
  3672. Take the time to pause and reflect on a daily basis, listen to your language, and fight for unity in your relationships. Try implementing these three thankfulness principles in your life and see the immediate difference, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3673. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3674. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3675. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3676. <itunes:duration>4:59</itunes:duration>
  3677. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3678. <item>
  3679. <title>#054: How Are You Doing On Those 2015 Goals?</title>
  3680. <link>https://asmithblog.com/2015-goals/</link>
  3681. <pubDate>Tue, 31 Mar 2015 06:01:55 +0000</pubDate>
  3682. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17088</guid>
  3683. <description>&lt;img width="610" height="324" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals.jpg 610w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals-300x159.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals-150x80.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds you of the importance of going after your 2015 goals, and achieving them. &lt;/p&gt;
  3684. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/2015-goals/"&gt;#054: How Are You Doing On Those 2015 Goals?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3685. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="610" height="324" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals.jpg 610w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals-300x159.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/2015-goals-150x80.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 610px) 100vw, 610px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3686.  
  3687. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3688. <p>I didn&#8217;t start off the year with a podcast on goals, but I should have. I believe in the power of goals, and hopefully you do, too. Goals are what gets you looking ahead, making a better impact, and assists you in implementing your best plan. Yes, I am a huge believer in goals, but of course, we need more than a plan to see real success. Without action in your plan, you are all talk.</p>
  3689. <blockquote><p><em><strong>You can have the best plan in the world, but it takes action and proper execution to obtain the results that you desire. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3690. <p>This being said, it is the last day in March 2015, and maybe you haven&#8217;t began moving on your dreams for this year, yet. That means that one-fourth of this year is already over and you haven&#8217;t created the good momentum you need to see results. Your year so far might be the busiest time you have ever experienced in life and you are wondering where the last three months went. Or maybe you are on the other side of this, are already checking your goals off, and you are well on your way to making 2015 your best year ever. If that&#8217;s you, I absolutely love that you are seeing your desired results in your life right now!</p>
  3691. <p>But, if you are one of the people out there wondering where the last three months have gone and still don&#8217;t know quite where to begin to make this year great, I have three awesome tips for you. If you will let me, I want to help you take your foot off the brakes and show you how to begin accelerating immediately.</p>
  3692. <p><em>Here we go&#8230;</em></p>
  3693. <p><strong><span id="more-17088"></span></strong></p>
  3694. <p><strong>1. Realize just how much you want to accomplish your goals.</strong></p>
  3695. <p>It doesn&#8217;t matter if your goals have to do with health in all areas, personal/fun, relationships, finances, or your career, you have to be &#8220;bought in&#8221; to take the first step. Without buy in, you will never be committed, and without commitment, your goals won&#8217;t accomplish themselves. But, when you decide you are in it to win it, your goals will begin to be fun, rather than some duty you sort of want to see happen.</p>
  3696. <p><strong>2. Be aware of the magnitude of your goals.</strong></p>
  3697. <p>Your goals are big. They are huge. They will impact you. They will impact a magnitude of other people. But, they will only have impact if you see them through.</p>
  3698. <p><strong>3. See 2014 for what you gained from it, see 2015 for the opportunity it is, and see 2016 for where you will be.</strong></p>
  3699. <p>Maybe 2014 was great for you. That&#8217;s awesome. You can continue that momentum into this year and keep building on your success. Or, maybe it wasn&#8217;t so great, and you need some big changes in 2015 to get things going in the right direction. Want to know the great news in this situation? You can begin right now!</p>
  3700. <blockquote><p><em><strong>The great decisions you make right now will change your life forever for the better. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3701. <p>That&#8217;s your answer to see even better results in 2016. When you start making great decisions now, you will reap the benefits immediately, but also in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.</p>
  3702. <p>No, the journey to accomplishing your biggest goals is hardly ever easy, but adopting these three tips in your own life will make the journey much easier.</p>
  3703. <p><em><strong>Now, take these tips and apply them to accomplishing your goals, today. </strong></em><em><strong><a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.</strong></em></p>
  3704. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/2015-goals/">#054: How Are You Doing On Those 2015 Goals?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3705. ]]></content:encoded>
  3706. <enclosure length="2239726" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/054-How-Are-You-Doing-On-Those-2015-Goals.m4a"/>
  3707. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds you of the importance of going after your 2015 goals, and achieving them.</itunes:subtitle>
  3708. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3709. &nbsp;<br />
  3710. I didn&#8217;t start off the year with a podcast on goals, but I should have. I believe in the power of goals, and hopefully you do, too. Goals are what gets you looking ahead, making a better impact, and assists you in implementing your best plan. Yes, I am a huge believer in goals, but of course, we need more than a plan to see real success. Without action in your plan, you are all talk.<br />
  3711. You can have the best plan in the world, but it takes action and proper execution to obtain the results that you desire. <br />
  3712. This being said, it is the last day in March 2015, and maybe you haven&#8217;t began moving on your dreams for this year, yet. That means that one-fourth of this year is already over and you haven&#8217;t created the good momentum you need to see results. Your year so far might be the busiest time you have ever experienced in life and you are wondering where the last three months went. Or maybe you are on the other side of this, are already checking your goals off, and you are well on your way to making 2015 your best year ever. If that&#8217;s you, I absolutely love that you are seeing your desired results in your life right now!<br />
  3713. But, if you are one of the people out there wondering where the last three months have gone and still don&#8217;t know quite where to begin to make this year great, I have three awesome tips for you. If you will let me, I want to help you take your foot off the brakes and show you how to begin accelerating immediately.<br />
  3714. Here we go&#8230;<br />
  3715. <br />
  3716. 1. Realize just how much you want to accomplish your goals.<br />
  3717. It doesn&#8217;t matter if your goals have to do with health in all areas, personal/fun, relationships, finances, or your career, you have to be &#8220;bought in&#8221; to take the first step. Without buy in, you will never be committed, and without commitment, your goals won&#8217;t accomplish themselves. But, when you decide you are in it to win it, your goals will begin to be fun, rather than some duty you sort of want to see happen.<br />
  3718. 2. Be aware of the magnitude of your goals.<br />
  3719. Your goals are big. They are huge. They will impact you. They will impact a magnitude of other people. But, they will only have impact if you see them through.<br />
  3720. 3. See 2014 for what you gained from it, see 2015 for the opportunity it is, and see 2016 for where you will be.<br />
  3721. Maybe 2014 was great for you. That&#8217;s awesome. You can continue that momentum into this year and keep building on your success. Or, maybe it wasn&#8217;t so great, and you need some big changes in 2015 to get things going in the right direction. Want to know the great news in this situation? You can begin right now!<br />
  3722. The great decisions you make right now will change your life forever for the better. <br />
  3723. That&#8217;s your answer to see even better results in 2016. When you start making great decisions now, you will reap the benefits immediately, but also in the days, weeks, months, and years to come.<br />
  3724. No, the journey to accomplishing your biggest goals is hardly ever easy, but adopting these three tips in your own life will make the journey much easier.<br />
  3725. Now, take these tips and apply them to accomplishing your goals, today. <a href="https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/live-life-purpose-adam-smith/id794871982?mt=2">Please leave a review on iTunes</a> if you enjoyed this episode.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3726. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3727. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3728. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3729. <itunes:duration>4:34</itunes:duration>
  3730. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3731. <item>
  3732. <title>#053: What Tools Do You Already Have?</title>
  3733. <link>https://asmithblog.com/053-what-tools-you-already-have/</link>
  3734. <pubDate>Tue, 24 Mar 2015 06:01:04 +0000</pubDate>
  3735. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=17025</guid>
  3736. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Tools-What-Do-You-Already-Have--e1426999638615.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds you that you probably already have the tools you need to be successful.&lt;/p&gt;
  3737. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/053-what-tools-you-already-have/"&gt;#053: What Tools Do You Already Have?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3738. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Tools-What-Do-You-Already-Have--e1426999638615.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3739.  
  3740. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3741. <p>Being fully satisfied within a career was always a journey for me, before I found the life we are currently living out. I can remember that even in the midst of 2006 that I was unhappy with the job I was in, but it would take another six years to finally leave. This time span felt like a never-ending roller coaster that wasn&#8217;t ever going to let me off.</p>
  3742. <p>By 2009, we were anxious for any type of change that could and would take place, because we were searching for more of something. This &#8220;something&#8221; couldn&#8217;t be figured out by either of us, but we both knew there had to be good momentum found in movement. Jasmine and I wanted more stability than what my job was offering us then. We wanted to plant roots in a place that we loved, and we didn&#8217;t want to waste our life sitting on the sidelines. We knew we had to do something about it, so we did.</p>
  3743. <p>Later that year, we moved to Colorado, the state we had dreamed about for years, in search for something new. We moved west with a plan of staying employed with the company I had been with over the years, only until I could find another career in Colorado. That didn&#8217;t seem like too far of a stretch, and we were highly optimistic, thinking that I would switch careers in a few weeks or months at the latest. In the meantime, we would also help plant a church in the Denver area along with some friends we came out with from Georgia. Life was exciting, new, and full of adventure.</p>
  3744. <p>Well, I ended up staying with that same company for nearly three more years, for a total of ten, before we would leave what was familiar to us. Remember how I said we moved out thinking that I would just find another career shortly after we moved out to Colorado? Well, things didn&#8217;t happen the way we planned. It&#8217;s funny how time has a way of getting away from you when you let it. At the beginning of 2012, it was finally time to leave my career of ten years with the same company.</p>
  3745. <p>The main factor that caused me to leave was that my marriage was falling apart. (You know, it&#8217;s funny what choosing to work every hour of the day will do to you and your family. It will create distance. Let my life teach you something. Don&#8217;t do it.) My marriage desperately needing my attention and the constant reminder of needing to explore a different career for the past six years were the two driving forces behind me making this much needed transition. Yes, this is me reflecting on this time in life only three years later, so not much time has passed. But, one of the most important lessons I have ever taken away is to be a quick learner of life, especially from those times that have so many valuable takeaways in them that you can&#8217;t help but take a step back and take notice. I am thankful to have learned many beautiful life lessons during this season that helped mold me into the person I am today, and they will never leave me.</p>
  3746. <p>The process of leaving my job was like nothing I had experienced before. I have to say that I felt like a fish out of water as I searched for what I would be doing next, because after doing something for ten years, it was the only thing I felt comfortable with and qualified to do. I felt trapped in a box of preexisting qualifications that I had bestowed upon myself, without expanding my future horizon. I was only able to see my skills as it applied to working for that company, rather than seeing my full potential within something entirely different.</p>
  3747. <p>I was seeing that I needed to go and gather up a bunch of new resources and abilities, and hopefully have something better to offer a future employer. Not that there is anything wrong with gaining new information and developing yourself further &#8211; I&#8217;m not saying that. What I am saying is that you already have tons of information and potential within you right now waiting to be released. At that time in life I felt inadequate, I was stuck in the past, and the future was still a bit blurry.  I felt &#8220;stuck&#8221; and thought I needed to gain more in order to be an asset to others. But, when I understood that wanting something more was enough on its own, I began using the curiosity I already had and began creating a better path for the future.</p>
  3748. <p>Maybe right now in this moment, you find yourself in a season of transition, and maybe my journey reminds you of your own. The future is difficult to see right now, but it doesn&#8217;t have to be. When you have curiosity and pair it with movement, you have more control over what&#8217;s ahead than you may think.</p>
  3749. <p><em>Here are three ways to change your future for the better, starting right now with what you already have, in your current situation(s).</em></p>
  3750. <p><strong><span id="more-17025"></span></strong></p>
  3751. <p><strong>1. Treat any new season as a time of opportunity.</strong></p>
  3752. <p>When I began moving and gave myself the opportunity to be curious, a whole new world of potential opened up. I didn&#8217;t even have to work for another company, if I didn&#8217;t want to. At first this was hard to understand, because I had been doing one thing for so long. I only knew the traditional work setting and that was comfortable for me. It took some time to understand that I actually could and would start my own businesses, even though it had never worked out before. Once I grasped onto the fact that I could create my own destiny, it gave me permission to do more with my life.</p>
  3753. <blockquote><p><em><strong>When you understand that the sky is the limit, it gives you freedom to make bigger and better choices to create a better journey for yourself.  </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3754. <p>Even if the season you are currently in seems like all you can do is just wait for the next thing to happen so you can start taking some steps forward, you can begin doing something where you are right now. Stop letting other people tell you that you need to wait, and instead begin looking at your life as an open opportunity, because that&#8217;s what it is. When you stop putting your life in a box, and instead give yourself more room to explore, bigger and better things will happen.</p>
  3755. <p><strong>2. Know that just because you have dealt with situations poorly in the past, that doesn&#8217;t mean you have to do the same now or in the future. See your value and live it out</strong><b>. </b></p>
  3756. <p>As I reflect on this opportunity season of newness in life, I would approach it much differently, now. I would find what it is that made me valuable to the same company for ten years, and build on those things. I didn&#8217;t quickly see what I already had, but rather I saw all of my flaws and what I needed more of in order to become valuable.</p>
  3757. <blockquote><p><em><strong>When we don&#8217;t see our own value, we cannot offer value to others.</strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3758. <p>Instead of it taking time to see what valuables I already had in my possession, I would instead know them and own them right away, instead of wasting precious time. (But, know that life is a journey for a reason. It is the road that teaches us things like this.) Value is important, because you need to see it in your own life, and you need to live a life that gives value away to others through your relationships. Go and live out your value, and see the difference it makes.</p>
  3759. <p><strong>3. Don&#8217;t ever forget how much of a role that other people play in your life.</strong></p>
  3760. <p>We remember all of the people that rallied around us during that time of transition and helped us move forward, better equipped for what the future would bring us. We are eternally grateful for our friends who helped us and mentored us through that season. We came out of that time with a new understanding on what it means to help people and changed our complete worldview from the entire process.</p>
  3761. <blockquote><p><em><strong>It was other people who rallied alongside of us that helped us see what a difference we could make in the lives of those around us. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3762. <p>These people have changed us forever, because now we want to go and make that kind of difference in the lives of others. It is during this time where I intentionally changed the entire focus of this online community, because God and people are the only things that are important in this world. Our family now has more close relationships than we have ever had before, because we now understand the importance of building relationship with others, whereas we didn&#8217;t take the time to before. When you realize how much people matter, you find the importance of moving ahead with what you already have, rather than standing still, wishing that you had more.</p>
  3763. <p>I tell you all of these things to help you through any sort of transition within any future life decision. My best advice to you is to search what you already have in your grasp, instead of solely focusing on what new attributes that you can obtain.</p>
  3764. <p><strong>I know that you already have so much to offer, you just need to see it for yourself, today. </strong></p>
  3765. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/053-what-tools-you-already-have/">#053: What Tools Do You Already Have?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3766. ]]></content:encoded>
  3767. <enclosure length="4949831" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/053-What-Tools-Do-You-Already-Have.m4a"/>
  3768. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds you that you probably already have the tools you need to be successful.</itunes:subtitle>
  3769. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3770. &nbsp;<br />
  3771. Being fully satisfied within a career was always a journey for me, before I found the life we are currently living out. I can remember that even in the midst of 2006 that I was unhappy with the job I was in, but it would take another six years to finally leave. This time span felt like a never-ending roller coaster that wasn&#8217;t ever going to let me off.<br />
  3772. By 2009, we were anxious for any type of change that could and would take place, because we were searching for more of something. This &#8220;something&#8221; couldn&#8217;t be figured out by either of us, but we both knew there had to be good momentum found in movement. Jasmine and I wanted more stability than what my job was offering us then. We wanted to plant roots in a place that we loved, and we didn&#8217;t want to waste our life sitting on the sidelines. We knew we had to do something about it, so we did.<br />
  3773. Later that year, we moved to Colorado, the state we had dreamed about for years, in search for something new. We moved west with a plan of staying employed with the company I had been with over the years, only until I could find another career in Colorado. That didn&#8217;t seem like too far of a stretch, and we were highly optimistic, thinking that I would switch careers in a few weeks or months at the latest. In the meantime, we would also help plant a church in the Denver area along with some friends we came out with from Georgia. Life was exciting, new, and full of adventure.<br />
  3774. Well, I ended up staying with that same company for nearly three more years, for a total of ten, before we would leave what was familiar to us. Remember how I said we moved out thinking that I would just find another career shortly after we moved out to Colorado? Well, things didn&#8217;t happen the way we planned. It&#8217;s funny how time has a way of getting away from you when you let it. At the beginning of 2012, it was finally time to leave my career of ten years with the same company.<br />
  3775. The main factor that caused me to leave was that my marriage was falling apart. (You know, it&#8217;s funny what choosing to work every hour of the day will do to you and your family. It will create distance. Let my life teach you something. Don&#8217;t do it.) My marriage desperately needing my attention and the constant reminder of needing to explore a different career for the past six years were the two driving forces behind me making this much needed transition. Yes, this is me reflecting on this time in life only three years later, so not much time has passed. But, one of the most important lessons I have ever taken away is to be a quick learner of life, especially from those times that have so many valuable takeaways in them that you can&#8217;t help but take a step back and take notice. I am thankful to have learned many beautiful life lessons during this season that helped mold me into the person I am today, and they will never leave me.<br />
  3776. The process of leaving my job was like nothing I had experienced before. I have to say that I felt like a fish out of water as I searched for what I would be doing next, because after doing something for ten years, it was the only thing I felt comfortable with and qualified to do. I felt trapped in a box of preexisting qualifications that I had bestowed upon myself, without expanding my future horizon. I was only able to see my skills as it applied to working for that company, rather than seeing my full potential within something entirely different.<br />
  3777. I was seeing that I needed to go and gather up a bunch of new resources and abilities, and hopefully have something better to offer a future employer. Not that there is anything wrong with gaining new information and developing yourself further &#8211; I&#8217;m not saying that. What I am saying is that you already have tons of information and potential within you right now waiting to be released. At that time in life I felt inadequate,]]></itunes:summary>
  3778. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3779. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3780. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3781. <itunes:duration>10:05</itunes:duration>
  3782. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3783. <item>
  3784. <title>#052: Take Back Your Time and Have More Influence</title>
  3785. <link>https://asmithblog.com/052-take-back-time-have-more-influence/</link>
  3786. <pubDate>Tue, 10 Mar 2015 06:01:57 +0000</pubDate>
  3787. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16824</guid>
  3788. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam goes over just how important your time is when it comes to your influence on others. &lt;/p&gt;
  3789. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/052-take-back-time-have-more-influence/"&gt;#052: Take Back Your Time and Have More Influence&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3790. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/influence-time-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3791.  
  3792. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3793. <p>Let&#8217;s face it. When you barely have enough time to breathe, you can&#8217;t focus on other people, because having too little time only allows you to focus on yourself. And if people are what life is all about, then we need to be aware of what our place is in the world around us and it is also important to be available for listening to what people have to say and filling the needs in their lives.</p>
  3794. <p>If the importance of time seems like a great concept, but you are still navigating the concept of time, here are three quotes from people who understood how to use time to their advantage to influence the world around them and beyond.</p>
  3795. <p>Steve Jobs said,</p>
  3796. <blockquote><p>My favorite things in life don&#8217;t cost any money. It&#8217;s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time.</p></blockquote>
  3797. <p>Benjamin Franklin said,</p>
  3798. <blockquote><p>Lost time is never found again.</p></blockquote>
  3799. <p>Nelson Mandela said,</p>
  3800. <blockquote><p>We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.</p></blockquote>
  3801. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3802. <p>All three of these people understood keys to getting more done with their lives. They realized the power in stopping the complaints about the amount of time they had, and instead relentlessly followed their life&#8217;s purpose. As you begin to take the importance of time to heart, you will see that time is the most important resource you have at your fingertips. We all get the same amount of time, but what&#8217;s different is how every person spends it.</p>
  3803. <p>Are you ready to spend your time in better ways?</p>
  3804. <p><em>Here are three takeaways from these geniuses that we can all use to take back our time and get our lives back to a better pace.</em></p>
  3805. <p><strong><span id="more-16824"></span></strong></p>
  3806. <p><strong> 1. Know What You&#8217;re Focusing On All The Time</strong></p>
  3807. <p>In an interview with Apple’s head of design, we gain some rare insight into the mind of Steve Jobs and see just how much emphasis he placed on focus. Not only for himself, but for those around him.</p>
  3808. <p>Most people refer to focus as what they would like to accomplish right now or within a set time frame, but for Jobs, “focus” was a singular, long-term, and constant obsession. Jobs knew what he was focused on, and that’s all that mattered all the time.</p>
  3809. <blockquote><p><strong>Steve was the most remarkably focused person I’ve ever met in my life. And the thing with focus is, it’s not this thing you aspire to, or you decide on Monday, ‘You know, I’m going to be focused.’ It is an every minute, ‘Why are we talking about this? This is what we’re working on.’ You can achieve so much when you truly focus. (<a href="http://college.usatoday.com/2014/10/24/3-key-behaviors-steve-jobs-instilled-in-his-employees-can-help-you-too/">USA Today</a>)</strong></p></blockquote>
  3810. <p><strong>2. Your Daily Routine Will Guide You </strong></p>
  3811. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule.png"><img decoding="async" class=" size-full wp-image-16895 aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule.png" alt="benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule" width="463" height="764" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule.png 463w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule-182x300.png 182w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule-91x150.png 91w" sizes="(max-width: 463px) 100vw, 463px" /></a></p>
  3812. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3813. <p>Benjamin Franklin&#8217;s daily routine says it all. First, you need to know what you are doing, so if you are just taking life as it comes, take a lesson from Franklin here. As we look at his daily routine, we see just how important a detailed schedule really is and how important it is to use focus to take our time back for what makes the most impact in this world. So, what exactly do I see from his routine?  I see four things from his day.</p>
  3814. <blockquote><p><em><strong>He never failed to plan, work, examine, and have fun. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3815. <p>If you implement these four things in your life, you will live out great days, weeks, months, and years. Your life will produce influence when you set your day up for success through a great daily routine.</p>
  3816. <p><strong>3. Positivity In the Midst of Life Brings Influence</strong></p>
  3817. <p>By just looking at the life of Mandela, I learn a wealth of knowledge that I can use on a daily basis. The fact that he was in prison for 27 years and was able to accomplish all that he did in much less time than the rest of us have, is truly remarkable. He took having a positive outlook on life to a whole new level. I mean, I can&#8217;t say that I would have the outlook on life that he did after being in prison for 27 years. Also, the fact that he had enough passion within him to put his life on the line, stand up for what was right and what he believed in, is inspiring to say the least.</p>
  3818. <blockquote><p><em><strong>The biggest takeaway from Mandela is that positivity paired with passion can accomplish more than we can even dream of if we will just put our minds to it. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  3819. <p>I love to look at the lives of others and learn from them on how they accomplished so much with their lives. When we take the time to take notes from this world, we gain more knowledge and are able to impart even more influence on the world around us.</p>
  3820. <p><strong>When you apply these three things to your own life, you will take back your time and have more influence, today.</strong></p>
  3821. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3822. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/052-take-back-time-have-more-influence/">#052: Take Back Your Time and Have More Influence</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3823. ]]></content:encoded>
  3824. <enclosure length="3394007" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/052-Take-Back-Your-Time-and-Have-More-Influence.m4a"/>
  3825. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam goes over just how important your time is when it comes to your influence on others.</itunes:subtitle>
  3826. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3827. &nbsp;<br />
  3828. Let&#8217;s face it. When you barely have enough time to breathe, you can&#8217;t focus on other people, because having too little time only allows you to focus on yourself. And if people are what life is all about, then we need to be aware of what our place is in the world around us and it is also important to be available for listening to what people have to say and filling the needs in their lives.<br />
  3829. If the importance of time seems like a great concept, but you are still navigating the concept of time, here are three quotes from people who understood how to use time to their advantage to influence the world around them and beyond.<br />
  3830. Steve Jobs said,<br />
  3831. My favorite things in life don&#8217;t cost any money. It&#8217;s really clear that the most precious resource we all have is time.<br />
  3832. Benjamin Franklin said,<br />
  3833. Lost time is never found again.<br />
  3834. Nelson Mandela said,<br />
  3835. We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.<br />
  3836. &nbsp;<br />
  3837. All three of these people understood keys to getting more done with their lives. They realized the power in stopping the complaints about the amount of time they had, and instead relentlessly followed their life&#8217;s purpose. As you begin to take the importance of time to heart, you will see that time is the most important resource you have at your fingertips. We all get the same amount of time, but what&#8217;s different is how every person spends it.<br />
  3838. Are you ready to spend your time in better ways?<br />
  3839. Here are three takeaways from these geniuses that we can all use to take back our time and get our lives back to a better pace.<br />
  3840. <br />
  3841.  1. Know What You&#8217;re Focusing On All The Time<br />
  3842. In an interview with Apple’s head of design, we gain some rare insight into the mind of Steve Jobs and see just how much emphasis he placed on focus. Not only for himself, but for those around him.<br />
  3843. Most people refer to focus as what they would like to accomplish right now or within a set time frame, but for Jobs, “focus” was a singular, long-term, and constant obsession. Jobs knew what he was focused on, and that’s all that mattered all the time.<br />
  3844. Steve was the most remarkably focused person I’ve ever met in my life. And the thing with focus is, it’s not this thing you aspire to, or you decide on Monday, ‘You know, I’m going to be focused.’ It is an every minute, ‘Why are we talking about this? This is what we’re working on.’ You can achieve so much when you truly focus. (<a href="http://college.usatoday.com/2014/10/24/3-key-behaviors-steve-jobs-instilled-in-his-employees-can-help-you-too/">USA Today</a>)<br />
  3845. 2. Your Daily Routine Will Guide You <br />
  3846. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/benjamin-franklin-daily-schedule.png"></a><br />
  3847. &nbsp;<br />
  3848. Benjamin Franklin&#8217;s daily routine says it all. First, you need to know what you are doing, so if you are just taking life as it comes, take a lesson from Franklin here. As we look at his daily routine, we see just how important a detailed schedule really is and how important it is to use focus to take our time back for what makes the most impact in this world. So, what exactly do I see from his routine?  I see four things from his day.<br />
  3849. He never failed to plan, work, examine, and have fun. <br />
  3850. If you implement these four things in your life, you will live out great days, weeks, months, and years. Your life will produce influence when you set your day up for success through a great daily routine.<br />
  3851. 3. Positivity In the Midst of Life Brings Influence<br />
  3852. By just looking at the life of Mandela, I learn a wealth of knowledge that I can use on a daily basis. The fact that he was in prison for 27 years and was able to accomplish all that he did in much less time than the rest of us have, is truly remarkable. He took having a positive outlook on life to a whole new level. I mean,]]></itunes:summary>
  3853. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3854. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3855. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3856. <itunes:duration>6:55</itunes:duration>
  3857. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3858. <item>
  3859. <title>#051: Leadership Books Are Missing Three Things</title>
  3860. <link>https://asmithblog.com/051-leadership-books-missing/</link>
  3861. <pubDate>Tue, 03 Mar 2015 07:01:44 +0000</pubDate>
  3862. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16807</guid>
  3863. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses what leadership books are missing.&lt;/p&gt;
  3864. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/051-leadership-books-missing/"&gt;#051: Leadership Books Are Missing Three Things&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3865. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="512" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership-300x200.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/leadership-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3866.  
  3867. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3868. <p>I started reading leadership and self-help books at first, because of professors making it a requirement in college. I then took a career path that also recommended reading them, so I could grow along the way. It was great advice, but if I&#8217;m honest, at that point in life I was reading them out of duty, rather than reading them because I enjoyed them. It just seemed like everyone made the same points over and over again in these books, but worded them in different ways, hoping that readers wouldn&#8217;t notice.</p>
  3869. <p>As I began writing more often, I began enjoying books much more than previously. It was fun to see the ideas that others had, but still not much had changed in the past ten years on what authors were serving with their words. I began seeing how stale the topic of leadership really was, and also what it needed. I saw that leadership needed to return to the reason the word even exists.</p>
  3870. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3871. <p><em><strong>Here are the three main points that I see most leadership books miss out on and why they are too important to miss:</strong></em></p>
  3872. <p><strong><span id="more-16807"></span></strong></p>
  3873. <p><strong>1. These leadership books I am talking about always places the importance on you, but never take it one step further. </strong></p>
  3874. <p>Leadership is always about impacting other people, but leadership books seem to always look out for numero uno. I get it. You have to be better to impact other people, but that&#8217;s always where it stops. What if I told you that if you are stopping there, you are missing out on impacting people and ultimately missing out on leading well? You can read all the leadership and self-help books that you want to, but if you don&#8217;t actually share your knowledge and put them into action, then you aren&#8217;t leading; you are just consuming.</p>
  3875. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3876. <p><strong>2. If other people are so important, then empathy and love are the biggest leadership traits there are. </strong></p>
  3877. <p><em>empathy &#8211; the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.</em></p>
  3878. <p>Again, you have to care for others deeply in order to lead well, and the only way to do this is to listen to the needs of others and act upon them. Since this is true, then empathy may be the best tool in your leadership arsenal, while hustle is the best tool in your advancement tool belt .</p>
  3879. <p>Maybe you are in your car right now, listening to this podcast, and saying back to me, &#8220;Well Adam, you don&#8217;t know how little time I actually have to talk with others, let alone be empathetic.&#8221;. While that may be a valid point to you, everyone else in this world is in the same boat.</p>
  3880. <p>Like I have said before, it&#8217;s less about the amount of time you have, and more about what you do with the time that you have. I am not asking you to create more time, but rather choose to use it more wisely than you are right now. Choosing better ways to use your time should include loving other and showing empathy towards them as well. When you can relate to people, you will know how they need to be helped and what you can do to best serve them and lead in their life.</p>
  3881. <p>Listen, I know you are busy. Everyone is busy. But, that cannot be your excuse anymore. When you choose to take the time to stop long enough and hear someone else&#8217;s story and then show love through your life, you are leading. That&#8217;s the best way each and every one of us have to lead in this moment.</p>
  3882. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3883. <p><strong>3. You don&#8217;t have to wait for &#8220;someday&#8221;.</strong></p>
  3884. <p>This being said, you already have everything you need to lead right now. Most books will tell you that when you are a manager, or &#8220;in charge&#8221; in some capacity, or become a CEO of a company, then maybe just maybe you will be ready and able to lead. But, what this misses out on is that you already have the essential tools in your possession to lead with your life every single day. You have a full heart and the ability to care and do for other people. Don&#8217;t ever let anyone tell you that you are not enough, because you are. You can and will make a difference once you believe that. Choose to take that belief and run with it.</p>
  3885. <p><strong>Even though most leadership books miss these three points, you don&#8217;t have to. We can look through out history and see the difference makers of this world and how they made a difference, and these three points are the difference makers. You can do the same when you believe these three life-changing points and begin doing something with them, today.</strong></p>
  3886. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3887. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/051-leadership-books-missing/">#051: Leadership Books Are Missing Three Things</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3888. ]]></content:encoded>
  3889. <enclosure length="3442673" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/051-Leadership-Books-Are-Missing-Three-Things.m4a"/>
  3890. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses what leadership books are missing.</itunes:subtitle>
  3891. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3892. &nbsp;<br />
  3893. I started reading leadership and self-help books at first, because of professors making it a requirement in college. I then took a career path that also recommended reading them, so I could grow along the way. It was great advice, but if I&#8217;m honest, at that point in life I was reading them out of duty, rather than reading them because I enjoyed them. It just seemed like everyone made the same points over and over again in these books, but worded them in different ways, hoping that readers wouldn&#8217;t notice.<br />
  3894. As I began writing more often, I began enjoying books much more than previously. It was fun to see the ideas that others had, but still not much had changed in the past ten years on what authors were serving with their words. I began seeing how stale the topic of leadership really was, and also what it needed. I saw that leadership needed to return to the reason the word even exists.<br />
  3895. &nbsp;<br />
  3896. Here are the three main points that I see most leadership books miss out on and why they are too important to miss:<br />
  3897. <br />
  3898. 1. These leadership books I am talking about always places the importance on you, but never take it one step further. <br />
  3899. Leadership is always about impacting other people, but leadership books seem to always look out for numero uno. I get it. You have to be better to impact other people, but that&#8217;s always where it stops. What if I told you that if you are stopping there, you are missing out on impacting people and ultimately missing out on leading well? You can read all the leadership and self-help books that you want to, but if you don&#8217;t actually share your knowledge and put them into action, then you aren&#8217;t leading; you are just consuming.<br />
  3900. &nbsp;<br />
  3901. 2. If other people are so important, then empathy and love are the biggest leadership traits there are. <br />
  3902. empathy &#8211; the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.<br />
  3903. Again, you have to care for others deeply in order to lead well, and the only way to do this is to listen to the needs of others and act upon them. Since this is true, then empathy may be the best tool in your leadership arsenal, while hustle is the best tool in your advancement tool belt .<br />
  3904. Maybe you are in your car right now, listening to this podcast, and saying back to me, &#8220;Well Adam, you don&#8217;t know how little time I actually have to talk with others, let alone be empathetic.&#8221;. While that may be a valid point to you, everyone else in this world is in the same boat.<br />
  3905. Like I have said before, it&#8217;s less about the amount of time you have, and more about what you do with the time that you have. I am not asking you to create more time, but rather choose to use it more wisely than you are right now. Choosing better ways to use your time should include loving other and showing empathy towards them as well. When you can relate to people, you will know how they need to be helped and what you can do to best serve them and lead in their life.<br />
  3906. Listen, I know you are busy. Everyone is busy. But, that cannot be your excuse anymore. When you choose to take the time to stop long enough and hear someone else&#8217;s story and then show love through your life, you are leading. That&#8217;s the best way each and every one of us have to lead in this moment.<br />
  3907. &nbsp;<br />
  3908. 3. You don&#8217;t have to wait for &#8220;someday&#8221;.<br />
  3909. This being said, you already have everything you need to lead right now. Most books will tell you that when you are a manager, or &#8220;in charge&#8221; in some capacity, or become a CEO of a company, then maybe just maybe you will be ready and able to lead. But, what this misses out on is that you already have the essential tools in your possession to lead with your life every single day. You have a full heart and the ability to care and do for other people. Don&#8217;t ever let anyone tell you that you are not enough,]]></itunes:summary>
  3910. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3911. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3912. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3913. <itunes:duration>7:01</itunes:duration>
  3914. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3915. <item>
  3916. <title>#050: Consistency Takes You to The Next Level</title>
  3917. <link>https://asmithblog.com/050-consistency-takes-you-the-next-level/</link>
  3918. <pubDate>Tue, 17 Feb 2015 07:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
  3919. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16660</guid>
  3920. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="510" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency-300x199.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the need for you to have consistency in your life.&lt;/p&gt;
  3921. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/050-consistency-takes-you-the-next-level/"&gt;#050: Consistency Takes You to The Next Level&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3922. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="510" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency.jpg 1024w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency-300x199.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/consistency-150x100.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p>&nbsp;</p>
  3923.  
  3924. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3925. <p>Consistency is something that I have always struggled with. I can get on these kicks of doing awesome things and then will suddenly stop them due to not seeing fast results. Just because something is good, doesn&#8217;t mean that it will always bring the immediate results that I want, but it also doesn&#8217;t mean I should stop doing them.</p>
  3926. <p><em>I one day came to an epiphany.</em></p>
  3927. <p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>Just because immediate results don&#8217;t come, that doesn&#8217;t mean you should stop. Doing things just because they are good for your mind, body and soul are good enough on their own. </strong></em></p>
  3928. <p>I understand that we are human and there are days we just don&#8217;t <em>feel</em> like it. For those days we still need consistency in our lives, but how?</p>
  3929. <p><em><strong>Here are six ways to have more consistency in your own life and push through those times that you just don&#8217;t feel like it.</strong></em></p>
  3930. <p><strong><span id="more-16660"></span></strong></p>
  3931. <p><strong>1. Pursue what you are extremely passionate about.</strong></p>
  3932. <p>Plain and simple, you will only consistently do what you really want to do. I have heard people as of late diminish the importance of passion, but I couldn&#8217;t disagree more. You need passion for what you are doing for it to work long-term. Find your passion for life and find passion for the greatness you achieve routinely. When you continuously practice passion, you won&#8217;t be able to keep yourself from attempting those things on a regular basis.</p>
  3933. <p><strong>2. Cut out all of the life-draining excess.</strong></p>
  3934. <p>All of the things that you are <em>sort of</em> committed to are just wasting your time. Cut out those things that you sort of want to do and see how much better you become at consistency.</p>
  3935. <p><strong>3. Create life-giving routines.</strong></p>
  3936. <p>Consistency demands structure, unless you are trying to be routinely free-spirited. Consistently performing routines will get you where you want to be faster than just about anything else.</p>
  3937. <p><strong>4. Use a positive vocabulary.</strong></p>
  3938. <p>The way you word things will help you see life in a more positive light. Wording what you need to accomplish in a more positive manner will help you be more consistent, even with the things that you don&#8217;t necessarily want to do.</p>
  3939. <p><strong>5. Believe in the benefits of consistency.</strong></p>
  3940. <p>You won&#8217;t care to be consistent unless you see the true benefits of it. Sometimes you have to retrain how you see things in order to do what you <em>need</em> to do, rather than just the things that you <em>want</em> to do.</p>
  3941. <p><strong>6. Know the why.</strong></p>
  3942. <p>Why do you want to be more consistent? Do you believe it will actually make you better? Do you believe that it will help you accomplish more? If so, then you are well on your way to becoming more consistent in life.</p>
  3943. <p><em><strong>Those are the six things that will keep you more consistent with the things that you want and need to do in life. Go and find more consistency, today. </strong></em></p>
  3944. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/050-consistency-takes-you-the-next-level/">#050: Consistency Takes You to The Next Level</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3945. ]]></content:encoded>
  3946. <enclosure length="2300308" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/050-Consistency-Takes-You-to-The-Next-Level.m4a"/>
  3947. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the need for you to have consistency in your life.</itunes:subtitle>
  3948. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  3949. &nbsp;<br />
  3950. Consistency is something that I have always struggled with. I can get on these kicks of doing awesome things and then will suddenly stop them due to not seeing fast results. Just because something is good, doesn&#8217;t mean that it will always bring the immediate results that I want, but it also doesn&#8217;t mean I should stop doing them.<br />
  3951. I one day came to an epiphany.<br />
  3952. Just because immediate results don&#8217;t come, that doesn&#8217;t mean you should stop. Doing things just because they are good for your mind, body and soul are good enough on their own. <br />
  3953. I understand that we are human and there are days we just don&#8217;t feel like it. For those days we still need consistency in our lives, but how?<br />
  3954. Here are six ways to have more consistency in your own life and push through those times that you just don&#8217;t feel like it.<br />
  3955. <br />
  3956. 1. Pursue what you are extremely passionate about.<br />
  3957. Plain and simple, you will only consistently do what you really want to do. I have heard people as of late diminish the importance of passion, but I couldn&#8217;t disagree more. You need passion for what you are doing for it to work long-term. Find your passion for life and find passion for the greatness you achieve routinely. When you continuously practice passion, you won&#8217;t be able to keep yourself from attempting those things on a regular basis.<br />
  3958. 2. Cut out all of the life-draining excess.<br />
  3959. All of the things that you are sort of committed to are just wasting your time. Cut out those things that you sort of want to do and see how much better you become at consistency.<br />
  3960. 3. Create life-giving routines.<br />
  3961. Consistency demands structure, unless you are trying to be routinely free-spirited. Consistently performing routines will get you where you want to be faster than just about anything else.<br />
  3962. 4. Use a positive vocabulary.<br />
  3963. The way you word things will help you see life in a more positive light. Wording what you need to accomplish in a more positive manner will help you be more consistent, even with the things that you don&#8217;t necessarily want to do.<br />
  3964. 5. Believe in the benefits of consistency.<br />
  3965. You won&#8217;t care to be consistent unless you see the true benefits of it. Sometimes you have to retrain how you see things in order to do what you need to do, rather than just the things that you want to do.<br />
  3966. 6. Know the why.<br />
  3967. Why do you want to be more consistent? Do you believe it will actually make you better? Do you believe that it will help you accomplish more? If so, then you are well on your way to becoming more consistent in life.<br />
  3968. Those are the six things that will keep you more consistent with the things that you want and need to do in life. Go and find more consistency, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  3969. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  3970. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  3971. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  3972. <itunes:duration>4:41</itunes:duration>
  3973. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  3974. <item>
  3975. <title>#049: Selfish</title>
  3976. <link>https://asmithblog.com/049-selfish/</link>
  3977. <pubDate>Tue, 10 Feb 2015 07:01:44 +0000</pubDate>
  3978. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16545</guid>
  3979. <description>&lt;img width="768" height="418" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me.jpg 1000w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me-300x163.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me-150x82.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /&gt;&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses why being selfish is the worst trait you can possess.&lt;/p&gt;
  3980. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/049-selfish/"&gt;#049: Selfish&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  3981. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<img width="768" height="418" src="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me.jpg" class="webfeedsFeaturedVisual wp-post-image" alt="" decoding="async" style="display: block; margin: auto; margin-bottom: 5px;max-width: 100%;" link_thumbnail="" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me.jpg 1000w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me-300x163.jpg 300w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/selfish_me-150x82.jpg 150w" sizes="(max-width: 768px) 100vw, 768px" /><p style="text-align: left;"></p>
  3982. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  3983. <p>The question, &#8220;What is your main purpose in life, Adam?&#8221; has stuck with me ever since he asked me. That came from a friend years ago. I have thought about that question many times along the way, and have had many different answers for it as well. After we cut past all the other things that matter in life first &#8211; God, family, relationships &#8211; I was challenged to dive deeper with my life&#8217;s work. It took me months to come up with an answer, but that was because I was making it too difficult. I looked over all of the subjects I had talked about and written about over the years, and as I looked at my different thoughts, I was finally able to put the answer to this question into words. So, here it is &#8211;</p>
  3984. <p><strong><span id="more-16545"></span></strong></p>
  3985. <p><em><strong>My mission in life is to challenge selfishness.</strong></em></p>
  3986. <p>What I love doing is helping others find areas to show love and help others along the way. There are so many facets to living a great life, and this is the foundation of it all. If there&#8217;s one thing I am on this world to fight against, it is selfishness, because I have been there and have learned to hate what it turned my heart into and I see it in the world around me, too. It&#8217;s destroying lives, and people don&#8217;t even realize it. Listen, if your outlook on life is that it is all about you and it&#8217;s you against the world, then I have news for you. To live a healthy life, full of beautiful relationships and impacting lives, this cannot be your approach.</p>
  3987. <p><em><strong>Everything is not about you. It&#8217;s about others.</strong></em></p>
  3988. <p>To sum it up in one sentence, this message is my life work. It is the foundation for everything I believe in. People are all about more, more, more, never being satisfied with just giving themselves to loving people. I have spent years destroying selfishness in my own life, because it creeps in, until one day you look up and realize that you have been living the opposite of a better life. I have seen the destructive path that it can cause. I have seen it destroy lives, because the pursuit of those lives were after the wrong things, and it cost them dearly. Of course you can change and bounce back from anything, but it&#8217;s always best not to go through heartache and pain if you don&#8217;t have to.</p>
  3989. <p>So, spread love instead of selfishness, because if there&#8217;s one thing this world needs less of, it&#8217;s selfishness. Remember that as you search yourself, as you get ready for your day, as you encounter and embrace people, and as you end your day. People need you to show more selflessness than any other thing you could give away with your life.</p>
  3990. <p>My challenge to you today is to search yourself of selfishness and rid yourself of what has you focused on the wrong things in life. After you do that, don&#8217;t stop at just one area of selfishness, because there are probably be more. That&#8217;s how it works for me, anyways. It&#8217;s a daily walk my friend. However selfish you have been in the past, it will be a process, but it&#8217;s a journey worth embarking on.</p>
  3991. <p><em><strong>Go, and change the world around you with fighting selfishness, today. </strong></em></p>
  3992. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/049-selfish/">#049: Selfish</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  3993. ]]></content:encoded>
  3994. <enclosure length="2372980" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/049-Selfish.m4a"/>
  3995. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses why being selfish is the worst trait you can possess.</itunes:subtitle>
  3996. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  3997. &nbsp;<br />
  3998. The question, &#8220;What is your main purpose in life, Adam?&#8221; has stuck with me ever since he asked me. That came from a friend years ago. I have thought about that question many times along the way, and have had many different answers for it as well. After we cut past all the other things that matter in life first &#8211; God, family, relationships &#8211; I was challenged to dive deeper with my life&#8217;s work. It took me months to come up with an answer, but that was because I was making it too difficult. I looked over all of the subjects I had talked about and written about over the years, and as I looked at my different thoughts, I was finally able to put the answer to this question into words. So, here it is &#8211;<br />
  3999. <br />
  4000. My mission in life is to challenge selfishness.<br />
  4001. What I love doing is helping others find areas to show love and help others along the way. There are so many facets to living a great life, and this is the foundation of it all. If there&#8217;s one thing I am on this world to fight against, it is selfishness, because I have been there and have learned to hate what it turned my heart into and I see it in the world around me, too. It&#8217;s destroying lives, and people don&#8217;t even realize it. Listen, if your outlook on life is that it is all about you and it&#8217;s you against the world, then I have news for you. To live a healthy life, full of beautiful relationships and impacting lives, this cannot be your approach.<br />
  4002. Everything is not about you. It&#8217;s about others.<br />
  4003. To sum it up in one sentence, this message is my life work. It is the foundation for everything I believe in. People are all about more, more, more, never being satisfied with just giving themselves to loving people. I have spent years destroying selfishness in my own life, because it creeps in, until one day you look up and realize that you have been living the opposite of a better life. I have seen the destructive path that it can cause. I have seen it destroy lives, because the pursuit of those lives were after the wrong things, and it cost them dearly. Of course you can change and bounce back from anything, but it&#8217;s always best not to go through heartache and pain if you don&#8217;t have to.<br />
  4004. So, spread love instead of selfishness, because if there&#8217;s one thing this world needs less of, it&#8217;s selfishness. Remember that as you search yourself, as you get ready for your day, as you encounter and embrace people, and as you end your day. People need you to show more selflessness than any other thing you could give away with your life.<br />
  4005. My challenge to you today is to search yourself of selfishness and rid yourself of what has you focused on the wrong things in life. After you do that, don&#8217;t stop at just one area of selfishness, because there are probably be more. That&#8217;s how it works for me, anyways. It&#8217;s a daily walk my friend. However selfish you have been in the past, it will be a process, but it&#8217;s a journey worth embarking on.<br />
  4006. Go, and change the world around you with fighting selfishness, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4007. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4008. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4009. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4010. <itunes:duration>4:50</itunes:duration>
  4011. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4012. <item>
  4013. <title>#048: Just Do What Is Important</title>
  4014. <link>https://asmithblog.com/048-what-important/</link>
  4015. <pubDate>Tue, 03 Feb 2015 07:01:53 +0000</pubDate>
  4016. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16471</guid>
  4017. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that at some point in this life you have to decide to just do what is important.&lt;/p&gt;
  4018. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/048-what-important/"&gt;#048: Just Do What Is Important&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4019. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  4020.  
  4021. <p>Everyone comes to a point in life where they have to decide what they feel compelled to do, and once this decision is made, you then need to decide what to do with it. It&#8217;s a true crossroad in life. Do you keep doing what you have been doing because it&#8217;s the easy thing to do and it &#8220;works&#8221;, or do you follow the road less traveled &#8211; the one where you step out and take a huge risk? This road is the one where you are driven to do what has been filling your mind for years, but you haven&#8217;t had it within you to pull the trigger, quite yet.</p>
  4022. <p><strong><span id="more-16471"></span></strong></p>
  4023. <p>You&#8217;re waiting for something, but don&#8217;t know what it is. You keep coming up with excuses as to why you can&#8217;t do that one thing, and all the signs are pointing to why you can. But, still you focus on the excuses as to why you can&#8217;t take the next step.</p>
  4024. <ul>
  4025. <li>I&#8217;m too young.</li>
  4026. <li>I&#8217;m too old.</li>
  4027. <li>I&#8217;m not educated enough.</li>
  4028. <li>I don&#8217;t have enough experience.</li>
  4029. <li>I don&#8217;t have enough time.</li>
  4030. </ul>
  4031. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4032. <p>These excuses keep coming and the fear from it all keeps piling on top of each other. You have given into the lie that it is too late for you to pursue your dream(s) and have settled.</p>
  4033. <p>There is still that internal pull to that burning passion within that continues to move you. It&#8217;s what matters most to you and that subject matter you want and need to share with others. When you truly decide what the most important thing you have to share with others is, doing what&#8217;s important will become your sole purpose. My advice to you &#8211;</p>
  4034. <blockquote><p><em><strong>Whatever you do with each and every breath, do what is truly important. </strong></em></p></blockquote>
  4035. <p>That&#8217;s your answer to doing something great. What&#8217;s your biggest conviction? What are you burning to tell other people about? What do people need to know about in order to make their lives better? Those are all things you have contemplated and you probably have your answer. You&#8217;ve just been so busy telling yourself all of the reasons you&#8217;re crazy, instead of focusing on why your passion is brilliant. The truth is that there will be no better moment than right now for you to do what is important to you and pursue your dreams.</p>
  4036. <h3><strong>You are different for a reason. You are uniquely wired to bring about change to a world that needs you. Pursue your important passions and go make a difference, today.</strong></h3>
  4037. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/048-what-important/">#048: Just Do What Is Important</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4038. ]]></content:encoded>
  4039. <enclosure length="1765445" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/048-Just-Do-What-Is-Important.m4a"/>
  4040. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds listeners that at some point in this life you have to decide to just do what is important.</itunes:subtitle>
  4041. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4042. Everyone comes to a point in life where they have to decide what they feel compelled to do, and once this decision is made, you then need to decide what to do with it. It&#8217;s a true crossroad in life. Do you keep doing what you have been doing because it&#8217;s the easy thing to do and it &#8220;works&#8221;, or do you follow the road less traveled &#8211; the one where you step out and take a huge risk? This road is the one where you are driven to do what has been filling your mind for years, but you haven&#8217;t had it within you to pull the trigger, quite yet.<br />
  4043. <br />
  4044. You&#8217;re waiting for something, but don&#8217;t know what it is. You keep coming up with excuses as to why you can&#8217;t do that one thing, and all the signs are pointing to why you can. But, still you focus on the excuses as to why you can&#8217;t take the next step.<br />
  4045. <br />
  4046. * I&#8217;m too young.<br />
  4047. * I&#8217;m too old.<br />
  4048. * I&#8217;m not educated enough.<br />
  4049. * I don&#8217;t have enough experience.<br />
  4050. * I don&#8217;t have enough time.<br />
  4051. <br />
  4052. &nbsp;<br />
  4053. These excuses keep coming and the fear from it all keeps piling on top of each other. You have given into the lie that it is too late for you to pursue your dream(s) and have settled.<br />
  4054. There is still that internal pull to that burning passion within that continues to move you. It&#8217;s what matters most to you and that subject matter you want and need to share with others. When you truly decide what the most important thing you have to share with others is, doing what&#8217;s important will become your sole purpose. My advice to you &#8211;<br />
  4055. Whatever you do with each and every breath, do what is truly important. <br />
  4056. That&#8217;s your answer to doing something great. What&#8217;s your biggest conviction? What are you burning to tell other people about? What do people need to know about in order to make their lives better? Those are all things you have contemplated and you probably have your answer. You&#8217;ve just been so busy telling yourself all of the reasons you&#8217;re crazy, instead of focusing on why your passion is brilliant. The truth is that there will be no better moment than right now for you to do what is important to you and pursue your dreams.<br />
  4057. You are different for a reason. You are uniquely wired to bring about change to a world that needs you. Pursue your important passions and go make a difference, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4058. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4059. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4060. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4061. <itunes:duration>3:36</itunes:duration>
  4062. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4063. <item>
  4064. <title>#047: The Best Ways To Use Evernote As A Writer</title>
  4065. <link>https://asmithblog.com/047-best-ways-use-evernote-writer/</link>
  4066. <pubDate>Tue, 20 Jan 2015 07:01:29 +0000</pubDate>
  4067. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16231</guid>
  4068. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the best ways to use Evernote as a writer.&lt;/p&gt;
  4069. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/047-best-ways-use-evernote-writer/"&gt;#047: The Best Ways To Use Evernote As A Writer&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4070. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  4071.  
  4072. <p>If you have followed me for any length of time, then you know that <a href="https://evernote.com">Evernote</a> is my favorite app and tool on the market. I have been asked many times how I use the app, and I am finally to the point where I feel the need to break it down, so that others can benefit from the process that I use to save time in the writing process. Why? Because I don&#8217;t know how I would write without Evernote. It&#8217;s been a huge help to getting important ideas out of my head and into writing.</p>
  4073. <p><em>Here are the 3 ways that I use Evernote to the fullest:</em></p>
  4074. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4075. <p><strong>1. Have a <a href="http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/how-to-do-the-ultimate-brain-dump.html">brain dump</a> folder.</strong></p>
  4076. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4077. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders.png"><img decoding="async" class="  wp-image-16299 aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders-576x1024.png" alt="evernote_folders" width="510" height="907" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders-576x1024.png 576w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders-169x300.png 169w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders-84x150.png 84w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders.png 1125w" sizes="(max-width: 510px) 100vw, 510px" /></a></p>
  4078. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4079. <p><span id="more-16231"></span></p>
  4080. <p>This is essential for me, because I can even forget what I was going to write in the amount of time it takes to switch folders. I also have about 50 different potential blog, podcast, and book ideas that go through my head on any given day, and Evernote allows me to cut past the usual brain dumping process when I have a brain dump folder. This allows me to skip the brain dump process when I sit down to work on my writings. All of the content I need to expound upon is already in this folder. Convenient, time-saving, and painless.</p>
  4081. <p><strong>2. Have different folders in which your content will be sifted into.</strong></p>
  4082. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4083. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing.png"><img decoding="async" class="  wp-image-16300 aligncenter" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing-576x1024.png" alt="evernote_writing" width="510" height="907" srcset="https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing-576x1024.png 576w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing-169x300.png 169w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing-84x150.png 84w, https://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing.png 1125w" sizes="(max-width: 510px) 100vw, 510px" /></a></p>
  4084. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4085. <p>I then use my already labeled folders for blog posts, podcasts, and books. When I have a chance to go through it all, that is when I am able to section all of the week&#8217;s content into the designated folders that I have already created. Doing this allows me to open that specific folder that I need to work on for that day, and dive right in. Talk about saving time and energy. The folder feature is the best thing that Evernote offers. It has caused me to recreate my entire workflow and allows me to accomplish more in one day than I used to in one week. If you are like me, then you find any and every way to save time that you can.</p>
  4086. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4087. <p><strong>3. Use the sync feature with Evernote, so that you can write on the go.</strong></p>
  4088. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4089. <p>I used to use <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/pages/">Pages</a> on my phone more often, but I got tired of not having everything in one program. I got exhausted with moving information from one page to another, and then having to make sure that I was working on the most up-to-date document. I wanted to use <a href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php">Scrinever</a>, but they don&#8217;t offer an iPhone app to let me write all my ideas on my <a href="https://www.apple.com/iphone-6/">iPhone Plus</a> when I am on the go. I am the biggest fan of keeping all content in one place. I am a believer that when you have less content in other places, it is much easier to piece the puzzle together.</p>
  4090. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4091. <p>These are the three steps that I have found to be best when using Evernote. No, I wouldn&#8217;t call myself an Evernote expert by any means, but I do know that Evernote offers me more flexibility than any other tool out there, and that alone makes me a fan of Evernote for all of my writing.</p>
  4092. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/047-best-ways-use-evernote-writer/">#047: The Best Ways To Use Evernote As A Writer</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4093. ]]></content:encoded>
  4094. <enclosure length="2349113" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/047-The-Best-Ways-To-Use-Evernote-As-A-Writer.m4a"/>
  4095. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the best ways to use Evernote as a writer.</itunes:subtitle>
  4096. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4097. If you have followed me for any length of time, then you know that <a href="https://evernote.com">Evernote</a> is my favorite app and tool on the market. I have been asked many times how I use the app, and I am finally to the point where I feel the need to break it down, so that others can benefit from the process that I use to save time in the writing process. Why? Because I don&#8217;t know how I would write without Evernote. It&#8217;s been a huge help to getting important ideas out of my head and into writing.<br />
  4098. Here are the 3 ways that I use Evernote to the fullest:<br />
  4099. &nbsp;<br />
  4100. 1. Have a <a href="http://www.lifehack.org/articles/lifehack/how-to-do-the-ultimate-brain-dump.html">brain dump</a> folder.<br />
  4101. &nbsp;<br />
  4102. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_folders.png"></a><br />
  4103. &nbsp;<br />
  4104. <br />
  4105. This is essential for me, because I can even forget what I was going to write in the amount of time it takes to switch folders. I also have about 50 different potential blog, podcast, and book ideas that go through my head on any given day, and Evernote allows me to cut past the usual brain dumping process when I have a brain dump folder. This allows me to skip the brain dump process when I sit down to work on my writings. All of the content I need to expound upon is already in this folder. Convenient, time-saving, and painless.<br />
  4106. 2. Have different folders in which your content will be sifted into.<br />
  4107. &nbsp;<br />
  4108. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/evernote_writing.png"></a><br />
  4109. &nbsp;<br />
  4110. I then use my already labeled folders for blog posts, podcasts, and books. When I have a chance to go through it all, that is when I am able to section all of the week&#8217;s content into the designated folders that I have already created. Doing this allows me to open that specific folder that I need to work on for that day, and dive right in. Talk about saving time and energy. The folder feature is the best thing that Evernote offers. It has caused me to recreate my entire workflow and allows me to accomplish more in one day than I used to in one week. If you are like me, then you find any and every way to save time that you can.<br />
  4111. &nbsp;<br />
  4112. 3. Use the sync feature with Evernote, so that you can write on the go.<br />
  4113. &nbsp;<br />
  4114. I used to use <a href="http://www.apple.com/mac/pages/">Pages</a> on my phone more often, but I got tired of not having everything in one program. I got exhausted with moving information from one page to another, and then having to make sure that I was working on the most up-to-date document. I wanted to use <a href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php">Scrinever</a>, but they don&#8217;t offer an iPhone app to let me write all my ideas on my <a href="https://www.apple.com/iphone-6/">iPhone Plus</a> when I am on the go. I am the biggest fan of keeping all content in one place. I am a believer that when you have less content in other places, it is much easier to piece the puzzle together.<br />
  4115. &nbsp;<br />
  4116. These are the three steps that I have found to be best when using Evernote. No, I wouldn&#8217;t call myself an Evernote expert by any means, but I do know that Evernote offers me more flexibility than any other tool out there, and that alone makes me a fan of Evernote for all of my writing.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4117. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4118. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4119. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4120. <itunes:duration>4:47</itunes:duration>
  4121. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4122. <item>
  4123. <title>#046: Want To Be More Effective? Add More People.</title>
  4124. <link>https://asmithblog.com/046-more-effective-add-more-people/</link>
  4125. <pubDate>Tue, 06 Jan 2015 07:01:17 +0000</pubDate>
  4126. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=16109</guid>
  4127. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you how you can be more effective in 2015. You need to add more people.&lt;/p&gt;
  4128. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/046-more-effective-add-more-people/"&gt;#046: Want To Be More Effective? Add More People.&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4129. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  4130.  
  4131. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4132. <p>Thank you for tuning into <em>Live Life With Purpose</em>. It&#8217;s a new year and I hope your 2015 is off to a great start! I also know you have a lot of awesome goals that you want to accomplish this year, and are well on your way to making them happen.</p>
  4133. <p>But, what if I told you a key ingredient that will not only help you reach your goals, but will allow you to be more effective with your goals, will help you accomplish more, and will help you achieve your goals faster?</p>
  4134. <p>Ready?</p>
  4135. <p><span id="more-16109"></span></p>
  4136. <blockquote><p><em><strong>You need more people to help you be more effective in 2015.</strong></em></p></blockquote>
  4137. <p>I don&#8217;t care how awesome you are, you need to surround yourself with other awesome people to be even more awesome. Incorporate more people than yourself and watch as greatness grows. You don&#8217;t have all the answers, so it&#8217;s time to start seeing where you could use some help.</p>
  4138. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4139. <p><em>Do you want to grow your business exponentially this year?</em> Listen to <a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/240202">business podcasts</a>, join a <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/chicceo/2013/10/21/7-reasons-to-join-a-mastermind-group/">business-centered</a> <a href="http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/how-to-start-and-run-a-mastermind-group.html">mastermind group</a>, or read <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/24-must-read-blogs-for-entrepreneurs-2012-6#quora-1">business-minded blogs</a> and <a href="http://asmithblog.com/best-books-2014">books</a>.</p>
  4140. <p><em>Do you want to run a <a href="http://www.active.com/running/marathon">marathon</a>? </em>Seek out <a href="http://www.active.com/running/articles/10-tips-for-beginning-runners">help from other runners</a>, print out a <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_4/">training schedule</a>, <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/photos/41-superfoods-how-they-can-help-your-running">make healthier choices</a>, and <a href="http://running.competitor.com/2014/08/training/the-four-best-strength-training-exercises-for-runners_40725">begin working out on a more regular basis</a>.</p>
  4141. <p><em>Do you need to begin setting your family up better financially? </em>Use <a href="http://www.learnvest.com/2014/04/best-money-tips/">online resources</a><em> </em>at your fingertips for great advice and listen to what people like <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/home/">Dave Ramsey</a> says on his <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/show/home/">radio show</a>.</p>
  4142. <p><em>Do you want to start writing your book this year? </em>You can read<em> </em>helpful<em> </em><a href="http://positivewriter.com/top-25-writing-blogs/">writing blogs</a>, find that <a href="http://writetodone.com/31-ways-to-find-inspiration-for-your-writing/">subject</a> that is burning in your heart, and then sit down and write out your take on it.</p>
  4143. <p><em>Do you want to take your relationships to the next level? </em>Be intentional and sit down at the beginning of each month and see what days work out for you to hang out with people. You can make it consistent by making it the same dates every month. This will make you even more intentional with relationships.</p>
  4144. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4145. <p>Whatever it is that you want to accomplish in 2015, the resources available to us now are far greater than any other generation before us has encountered. Also, see that every solution I offered you won&#8217;t cost you a penny. All of these tasks I gave involve content or services from asking questions to other people, but it is all free!</p>
  4146. <p>Too many times people want to offer services that will cost you an arm and a leg, but there are better answers to your current circumstances than throwing money at it. You can work towards your dreams right now, even if you don&#8217;t have the resources to invest right now. Stop using that excuse in 2015, and start gathering the information you need from others to succeed.</p>
  4147. <p>Sure, I offer a <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith">coaching program</a> to people who need more of a push in their lives to reach their goals faster, but the one thing I spend almost all of my time trying to teach people to instill in their lives is <a href="http://asmithblog.us2.list-manage.com/subscribe/post?u=5e65afb95e2b72dadafc597d9&amp;id=f054c05d87"><strong>self-discipline</strong></a>. I find that people seek out every answer to life, only to find out somewhere down the road that the responsibility <em>always</em> falls back on them.</p>
  4148. <p>But, I also love seeing when people get serious enough about their lives that they will reach out and do whatever it takes to reach their definition of success. It sometimes helps people to get serious about life when they make an monetary investment, so they can stay accountable in that way. When people get serious about their lives, it is about whatever works.</p>
  4149. <p>Yes, if you need that extra push, accountability, and a think tank, then coaching may be a great option for you. But, the most important characteristic you can hold onto is drive, heart, self-discipline, and motivation. This means that your progress is in your hands and your hands alone, but the smart thing remains to enlist help from others. If there&#8217;s help available, then by all means, take it. No matter how smart you are, you don&#8217;t have all the answers. You can and will be better when you take life on together, rather than separate. Don&#8217;t isolate yourself when it comes to improvement. People want to see you succeed, myself included.</p>
  4150. <p><strong>Let&#8217;s decide right now to make this our best year yet. Here&#8217;s to an amazing 2015. Let us begin with being teachable and receiving help from others, today.</strong></p>
  4151. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/046-more-effective-add-more-people/">#046: Want To Be More Effective? Add More People.</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4152. ]]></content:encoded>
  4153. <enclosure length="3685863" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/046-Want-To-Be-More-Effective-Add-More-People..m4a"/>
  4154. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you how you can be more effective in 2015. You need to add more people.</itunes:subtitle>
  4155. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4156. &nbsp;<br />
  4157. Thank you for tuning into Live Life With Purpose. It&#8217;s a new year and I hope your 2015 is off to a great start! I also know you have a lot of awesome goals that you want to accomplish this year, and are well on your way to making them happen.<br />
  4158. But, what if I told you a key ingredient that will not only help you reach your goals, but will allow you to be more effective with your goals, will help you accomplish more, and will help you achieve your goals faster?<br />
  4159. Ready?<br />
  4160. <br />
  4161. You need more people to help you be more effective in 2015.<br />
  4162. I don&#8217;t care how awesome you are, you need to surround yourself with other awesome people to be even more awesome. Incorporate more people than yourself and watch as greatness grows. You don&#8217;t have all the answers, so it&#8217;s time to start seeing where you could use some help.<br />
  4163. &nbsp;<br />
  4164. Do you want to grow your business exponentially this year? Listen to <a href="http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/240202">business podcasts</a>, join a <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/chicceo/2013/10/21/7-reasons-to-join-a-mastermind-group/">business-centered</a> <a href="http://www.lifehack.org/articles/productivity/how-to-start-and-run-a-mastermind-group.html">mastermind group</a>, or read <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/24-must-read-blogs-for-entrepreneurs-2012-6#quora-1">business-minded blogs</a> and <a href="http://asmithblog.com/best-books-2014">books</a>.<br />
  4165. Do you want to run a <a href="http://www.active.com/running/marathon">marathon</a>? Seek out <a href="http://www.active.com/running/articles/10-tips-for-beginning-runners">help from other runners</a>, print out a <a href="http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_4/">training schedule</a>, <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/photos/41-superfoods-how-they-can-help-your-running">make healthier choices</a>, and <a href="http://running.competitor.com/2014/08/training/the-four-best-strength-training-exercises-for-runners_40725">begin working out on a more regular basis</a>.<br />
  4166. Do you need to begin setting your family up better financially? Use <a href="http://www.learnvest.com/2014/04/best-money-tips/">online resources</a> at your fingertips for great advice and listen to what people like <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/home/">Dave Ramsey</a> says on his <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/show/home/">radio show</a>.<br />
  4167. Do you want to start writing your book this year? You can read helpful <a href="http://positivewriter.com/top-25-writing-blogs/">writing blogs</a>, find that <a href="http://writetodone.com/31-ways-to-find-inspiration-for-your-writing/">subject</a> that is burning in your heart, and then sit down and write out your take on it.<br />
  4168. Do you want to take your relationships to the next level? Be intentional and sit down at the beginning of each month and see what days work out for you to hang out with people. You can make it consistent by making it the same dates every month. This will make you even more intentional with relationships.<br />
  4169. &nbsp;<br />
  4170. Whatever it is that you want to accomplish in 2015, the resources available to us now are far greater than any other generation before us has encountered. Also, see that every solution I offered you won&#8217;t cost you a penny. All of these tasks I gave involve content or services from asking questions to other people, but it is all free!<br />
  4171. Too many times people want to offer services that will cost you an arm and a leg, but there are better answers to your current circumstances than throwing money at it. You can work towards your dreams right now, even if you don&#8217;t have the resources to invest right now. Stop using that excuse in 2015, and start gathering the information you need from others to succeed.<br />
  4172. Sure, I offer a <a href="http://asmithblog.com/life-coaching-adam-smith">coaching program</a> to people who need more of a push in their lives to reach their goals faster,]]></itunes:summary>
  4173. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4174. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4175. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4176. <itunes:duration>7:30</itunes:duration>
  4177. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4178. <item>
  4179. <title>#045: The Second Different View On Time Management – The Importance of Sleep</title>
  4180. <link>https://asmithblog.com/045-sleep-time-management/</link>
  4181. <pubDate>Tue, 09 Dec 2014 07:01:23 +0000</pubDate>
  4182. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15806</guid>
  4183. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses his second different view on time management - sleep.&lt;/p&gt;
  4184. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/045-sleep-time-management/"&gt;#045: The Second Different View On Time Management – The Importance of Sleep&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4185. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  4186. <figure style="width: 630px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="http://greatist.com/happiness/the-secret-to-better-sleep/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><img decoding="async" style="border: none;" src="http://greatist.com/sites/default/files/SleepBetter_Final.png" alt="" width="630" height="4197" border="0" /></a><figcaption class="wp-caption-text">Get <a href="http://greatist.com/">better sleep tips and ideas</a> at Greatist.com</figcaption></figure>
  4187.  
  4188. <p>The purpose of this podcast is for you to understand what issues might be present in your life and then you should be able to have takeaways to apply in your life and live a life with more purpose. So, what are we talking about today to help you achieve this? Sleep.</p>
  4189. <p>This topic is so important, that I am dedicating a podcast episode to it.</p>
  4190. <p>Sleep may be more important than you previously thought. I am seeing an increase on the belief that more sleep is a good thing, but for every person who thinks correctly about their need for sleep, there are five other people who brag that they can get by just fine with five hours of sleep or less. The mentality that less sleep allows for more time during the day is a false belief, because the energy that comes from having the correct amount of sleep for your body is used to be more effective in the hours of the day that you already have. It isn&#8217;t about creating more hours, it is more about increasing productivity within the hours that you already have.</p>
  4191. <p>There are countless studies out there stating the importance of sleep and how it can actually help you, and I am just going to reference one here.</p>
  4192. <blockquote><p><a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health"><strong>The Harvard Women’s Health Watch suggests there are six reasons to get enough sleep:</strong></a> [quote]</p></blockquote>
  4193. <ol>
  4194. <li>Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.</li>
  4195. <li>Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.</li>
  4196. <li>Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.</li>
  4197. <li>Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.</li>
  4198. <li>Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.</li>
  4199. <li>Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.</li>
  4200. </ol>
  4201. <p>If this isn&#8217;t proof enough that sleep is beneficial to your life, then take the time to read a few more of the <a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health">pro-sleep studies</a> available to read that go in more depth on sleep cycles, how much sleep people actually need, and the importance of understanding REM <a href="https://www.healthambition.com/eat-to-sleep-foods-that-can-make-you-sleep-like-a-baby/">sleep</a>.</p>
  4202. <blockquote><p><strong>Here are three ways to <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/adult-health/in-depth/sleep/art-20048379">find better sleep</a>:</strong></p></blockquote>
  4203. <p>1. Wind down mentally without electronics.</p>
  4204. <p>2. Write down what is on your mind and get it out.</p>
  4205. <p>3. Don&#8217;t do too much close to bedtime.</p>
  4206. <p>If you don&#8217;t take my word for it or you don&#8217;t want to listen to Harvard&#8217;s research due to the belief that you keep too hectic of a schedule to get more sleep, then you may need to make the decision yourself to sleep more in order to be more productive, energetic, and effective. Don&#8217;t wait until exhaustion forces you to get more sleep.</p>
  4207. <h3><strong>See the benefits and begin getting better sleep, today.</strong></h3>
  4208. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/045-sleep-time-management/">#045: The Second Different View On Time Management &#8211; The Importance of Sleep</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4209. ]]></content:encoded>
  4210. <enclosure length="2823002" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/045-The-Second-Different-View-On-Time-Management-The-Importance-of-Sleep.m4a"/>
  4211. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses his second different view on time management - sleep.</itunes:subtitle>
  4212. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4213. The purpose of this podcast is for you to understand what issues might be present in your life and then you should be able to have takeaways to apply in your life and live a life with more purpose. So, what are we talking about today to help you achieve this? Sleep.<br />
  4214. This topic is so important, that I am dedicating a podcast episode to it.<br />
  4215. Sleep may be more important than you previously thought. I am seeing an increase on the belief that more sleep is a good thing, but for every person who thinks correctly about their need for sleep, there are five other people who brag that they can get by just fine with five hours of sleep or less. The mentality that less sleep allows for more time during the day is a false belief, because the energy that comes from having the correct amount of sleep for your body is used to be more effective in the hours of the day that you already have. It isn&#8217;t about creating more hours, it is more about increasing productivity within the hours that you already have.<br />
  4216. There are countless studies out there stating the importance of sleep and how it can actually help you, and I am just going to reference one here.<br />
  4217. <a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health">The Harvard Women’s Health Watch suggests there are six reasons to get enough sleep:</a> [quote]<br />
  4218. <br />
  4219. * Learning and memory: Sleep helps the brain commit new information to memory through a process called memory consolidation. In studies, people who’d slept after learning a task did better on tests later.<br />
  4220. * Metabolism and weight: Chronic sleep deprivation may cause weight gain by affecting the way our bodies process and store carbohydrates, and by altering levels of hormones that affect our appetite.<br />
  4221. * Safety: Sleep debt contributes to a greater tendency to fall asleep during the daytime. These lapses may cause falls and mistakes such as medical errors, air traffic mishaps, and road accidents.<br />
  4222. * Mood: Sleep loss may result in irritability, impatience, inability to concentrate, and moodiness. Too little sleep can also leave you too tired to do the things you like to do.<br />
  4223. * Cardiovascular health: Serious sleep disorders have been linked to hypertension, increased stress hormone levels, and irregular heartbeat.<br />
  4224. * Disease: Sleep deprivation alters immune function, including the activity of the body’s killer cells. Keeping up with sleep may also help fight cancer.<br />
  4225. <br />
  4226. If this isn&#8217;t proof enough that sleep is beneficial to your life, then take the time to read a few more of the <a href="http://www.health.harvard.edu/press_releases/importance_of_sleep_and_health">pro-sleep studies</a> available to read that go in more depth on sleep cycles, how much sleep people actually need, and the importance of understanding REM <a href="https://www.healthambition.com/eat-to-sleep-foods-that-can-make-you-sleep-like-a-baby/">sleep</a>.<br />
  4227. Here are three ways to <a href="http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/adult-health/in-depth/sleep/art-20048379">find better sleep</a>:<br />
  4228. 1. Wind down mentally without electronics.<br />
  4229. 2. Write down what is on your mind and get it out.<br />
  4230. 3. Don&#8217;t do too much close to bedtime.<br />
  4231. If you don&#8217;t take my word for it or you don&#8217;t want to listen to Harvard&#8217;s research due to the belief that you keep too hectic of a schedule to get more sleep, then you may need to make the decision yourself to sleep more in order to be more productive, energetic, and effective. Don&#8217;t wait until exhaustion forces you to get more sleep.<br />
  4232. See the benefits and begin getting better sleep, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4233. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4234. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4235. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4236. <itunes:duration>5:45</itunes:duration>
  4237. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4238. <item>
  4239. <title>#044: The First Different View On Time Management</title>
  4240. <link>https://asmithblog.com/044-the-first-different-view-time-management/</link>
  4241. <pubDate>Tue, 02 Dec 2014 07:01:56 +0000</pubDate>
  4242. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15636</guid>
  4243. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the first different view he has on time management.&lt;/p&gt;
  4244. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/044-the-first-different-view-time-management/"&gt;#044: The First Different View On Time Management&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4245. <content:encoded><![CDATA[
  4246. <p>Along our journey we all get to know people who we would consider leaders and want to learn from them. Most of the leaders I have come in contact with along my journey are those that are very protective with their schedule. This, I definitely don’t disagree with. Being protective with your time for your family is necessary, but what I am talking about is the time spent outside of family time. What I disagree with is when “leaders” won’t give anyone and everyone at least some of their time.</p>
  4247. <p>I believe this one difference separates the real leaders from those who think they are leaders. Why is this? It goes back to my definition of leadership. Each and every one of us have our own definition of leadership and thoughts on what leadership should look like. Most people think of the act of leadership as this huge event that only happens a few times within a year, decade, or even in a lifetime. My definition of leadership looks more like love than anything else. Leadership is the selfless act of impacting others through your life. That’s where leadership happens. So, what does that mean for all of us? Leadership happens all the time. It happens on a daily basis.</p>
  4248. <p><em>How can you change this view in your life right now?</em></p>
  4249. <p>You can begin giving anyone and everyone time in your schedule. I hear a lot of leaders say they only give time to those who are important to them or that can benefit them in some way. Well, that might be the most selfish thing I&#8217;ve ever heard. When you give something to get something in return, that’s not any part of leadership, that’s manipulation. Let’s call it what it is.</p>
  4250. <hr /><p><em>When you give something to get something in return, that’s not leadership, that’s manipulation.</em><br /><a href='https://twitter.com/intent/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Fasmithblog.com%2F044-the-first-different-view-time-management%2F&#038;text=When%20you%20give%20something%20to%20get%20something%20in%20return%2C%20that%E2%80%99s%20not%20leadership%2C%20that%E2%80%99s%20manipulation.&#038;via=asmithblog&#038;related=asmithblog' target='_blank' rel="noopener noreferrer" >Click To Tweet</a><br /><hr />
  4251. <p>As discussed in the last episode, my view of time management is changing, and it starts here. This view is one that not many people have adopted, but it may be the most important view change you can have on time management and your schedule. Why don&#8217;t more people think this way? People aren&#8217;t aware how much selfishness can ruin their ability to lead with their lives. We all have to want and learn to fight selfishness with everything we have within us and let selflessness take action in all of our lives.</p>
  4252. <p>So,<em> how do you actually achieve a leadership lifestyle with your schedule, impact more people, and begin to manage your time better? You can start by doing these 3 things:</em></p>
  4253. <h2><strong>1. Streamline the meetings you are having already.</strong></h2>
  4254. <p>We have all been in those meetings that cover more things than are needed. These are those meetings that are twenty minutes in and the realization hits you that you are in the wrong place at the right time. You then look at your watch an hour later and realize there are no real action items from the meeting you are in. It is all talk and you don&#8217;t have anything to actually go and do with it. With every meeting time you have in your schedule, know what you want to do with it. No, not every personal meeting needs an agenda, but know that you want to just sit and talk in those times. With every meeting you have that covers business, you do need an agenda to make the best use of your time. Use bullet points, convey what you need to and then get on to what matters most; relationships. Stop covering things that don’t need to be covered in meetings, and instead get to know people on a more personal level. You already have the time you need, but you may just not be using it in the best possible way. Use your time more effectively and impact the lives of more people in return.</p>
  4255. <h2><strong>2. If it doesn&#8217;t effect your relationships in a negative way, meet with the same people less often than you are right now if possible.</strong></h2>
  4256. <p>Some of those weekly meetings you are having with mentors, friends, and acquaintances might be more effective if you changed those meetings to once every two weeks or once per month. You can use that extra time to meet with other people who you can pour life into and you will also have more things to cover within each time you meet with someone new if there is more time in between each meeting. You can still create meaningful relationships, even if times that you meet aren’t as frequent. You will increase productivity as a result and impact more lives. Again, this is just another way you can lead more effectively through your life.</p>
  4257. <h2><strong>3. Turn unnecessary meetings into phone calls or emails, instead.</strong></h2>
  4258. <p>Reevaluate the reasons that you get together in the first place. If it is more out of duty than creating relationships with people, try to turn those into emails or phone calls. If these meetings can easily and effectively be done via a different form of communication, then by all means mix it up a bit. Maybe it’s time to rethink the process and not just do it that way because it’s the way that it has always be done. Use technology well in your situations and connect over web chat, phone, or email instead. If you can save on travel time alone, it’s worth it in order to be able to have more time back to impact the lives of others.</p>
  4259. <p>I hope these three points help you in your journey to getting back more time to live life with more purpose and impact. Yes, your time is precious, but people are more precious. If people need you, be there. And remember, the people who can do something in return for you aren&#8217;t the only people who deserve your time. Use these action items to love anyone and everyone with your time.</p>
  4260. <p><strong>Take a look at your view of time management, do these three things, and make more time for others, today. </strong></p>
  4261. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/044-the-first-different-view-time-management/">#044: The First Different View On Time Management</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4262. ]]></content:encoded>
  4263. <enclosure length="3746596" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/044-The-First-Different-View-On-Time-Management.m4a"/>
  4264. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the first different view he has on time management.</itunes:subtitle>
  4265. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Along our journey we all get to know people who we would consider leaders and want to learn from them. Most of the leaders I have come in contact with along my journey are those that are very protective with their schedule. This, I definitely don’t disagree with. Being protective with your time for your family is necessary, but what I am talking about is the time spent outside of family time. What I disagree with is when “leaders” won’t give anyone and everyone at least some of their time.<br />
  4266. I believe this one difference separates the real leaders from those who think they are leaders. Why is this? It goes back to my definition of leadership. Each and every one of us have our own definition of leadership and thoughts on what leadership should look like. Most people think of the act of leadership as this huge event that only happens a few times within a year, decade, or even in a lifetime. My definition of leadership looks more like love than anything else. Leadership is the selfless act of impacting others through your life. That’s where leadership happens. So, what does that mean for all of us? Leadership happens all the time. It happens on a daily basis.<br />
  4267. How can you change this view in your life right now?<br />
  4268. You can begin giving anyone and everyone time in your schedule. I hear a lot of leaders say they only give time to those who are important to them or that can benefit them in some way. Well, that might be the most selfish thing I&#8217;ve ever heard. When you give something to get something in return, that’s not any part of leadership, that’s manipulation. Let’s call it what it is.<br />
  4269. As discussed in the last episode, my view of time management is changing, and it starts here. This view is one that not many people have adopted, but it may be the most important view change you can have on time management and your schedule. Why don&#8217;t more people think this way? People aren&#8217;t aware how much selfishness can ruin their ability to lead with their lives. We all have to want and learn to fight selfishness with everything we have within us and let selflessness take action in all of our lives.<br />
  4270. So, how do you actually achieve a leadership lifestyle with your schedule, impact more people, and begin to manage your time better? You can start by doing these 3 things:<br />
  4271. 1. Streamline the meetings you are having already.<br />
  4272. We have all been in those meetings that cover more things than are needed. These are those meetings that are twenty minutes in and the realization hits you that you are in the wrong place at the right time. You then look at your watch an hour later and realize there are no real action items from the meeting you are in. It is all talk and you don&#8217;t have anything to actually go and do with it. With every meeting time you have in your schedule, know what you want to do with it. No, not every personal meeting needs an agenda, but know that you want to just sit and talk in those times. With every meeting you have that covers business, you do need an agenda to make the best use of your time. Use bullet points, convey what you need to and then get on to what matters most; relationships. Stop covering things that don’t need to be covered in meetings, and instead get to know people on a more personal level. You already have the time you need, but you may just not be using it in the best possible way. Use your time more effectively and impact the lives of more people in return.<br />
  4273. 2. If it doesn&#8217;t effect your relationships in a negative way, meet with the same people less often than you are right now if possible.<br />
  4274. Some of those weekly meetings you are having with mentors, friends, and acquaintances might be more effective if you changed those meetings to once every two weeks or once per month. You can use that extra time to meet with other people who you can pour life into and you will also have more things to cover within each time you meet with someone new if th...]]></itunes:summary>
  4275. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4276. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4277. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4278. <itunes:duration>7:38</itunes:duration>
  4279. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4280. <item>
  4281. <title>#043: The Real Issue With Time</title>
  4282. <link>https://asmithblog.com/043-real-issue-time/</link>
  4283. <pubDate>Tue, 18 Nov 2014 07:01:17 +0000</pubDate>
  4284. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15567</guid>
  4285. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the real issue with our time.&lt;/p&gt;
  4286. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/043-real-issue-time/"&gt;#043: The Real Issue With Time&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4287. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  4288.  
  4289. <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong> </strong></span></p>
  4290. <p>When I think about this podcast and what it stands for &#8211; &#8220;to live life with purpose&#8221; &#8211; the meaning is something that I have to define to myself.</p>
  4291. <p><em>What does it mean to live life with purpose?</em></p>
  4292. <p>Does it mean that you need to get a lot of things done to live life with purpose?</p>
  4293. <p>I believe that is part of it, but that is only the &#8220;how&#8221; part of the equation. The how is what leads you to the why. the why of the equation is people. We are to get things done in order to impart ourselves into the lives of other people. Everyone thinks that they can and should stop with the &#8220;how&#8221;, but if we do this we miss the entire point of living our lives well.</p>
  4294. <p>I believe this one statement requires all of us to not only look at how we are using our time, but how we view time and time management altogether.</p>
  4295. <p><em><strong>Today, this idea challenges me with this thought &#8211;</strong></em></p>
  4296. <p><em> It isn&#8217;t about the amount of time you have, but what you do with it that counts. When we steward our time well, we live our lives well.</em></p>
  4297. <p>We are taught from adolescence that time is the most important thing we own, but it is because time is what we give other people that makes it so important. Let us never forget the &#8220;why&#8221;. Time is only important because all people are important, not just you.</p>
  4298. <p>This idea brings me to my next thought, which you may disagree with, but I&#8217;m okay with that.</p>
  4299. <blockquote><p><em>If there is ever a choice between being somewhere on time or creating memories with people in the moment, the need to take advantage of making memories in that moment is the better choice.</em></p></blockquote>
  4300. <p>Now, hold on and hear me out. I still respect you and I still believe in respecting your time, but realize I not only value you, but everyone else in this world, too. Yes, I talk a lot about time management and focus, but I can sometimes get lost in the &#8220;how&#8221; of things as well. The &#8220;why&#8221; should always be the reason behind the reason in everything we do. If the reason of &#8220;why&#8221; to live life always comes back to people, I would rather be known for loving than for being on time.</p>
  4301. <p>Are both possible to coexist? Sure. But, the main downfall of using time management with the preexisting idea that you are doing it well with a full schedule is the fact that it forces you to always live in the future and never allows you to relax and just be present with the people around you. Where do you need to be next? Where do you need to be tomorrow? Where do you need to be next week? A full schedule forces us all to live in the future, and again, most people would accept that as the norm and be totally fine with living this way. When we take the time to slow down and take advantage of the current moments,we are in. it is only then that we can take the time to make an impact.</p>
  4302. <p>I used to think that every single thing had to be scheduled in during every day, but the more that I live my life, the more I realize that I can miss out on opportunities when every single part of my day is scheduled out. <em><strong>My idea of time management is changing.</strong></em> When I talk about creating margin in your life, there shouldn&#8217;t be anything taking up this space. Leave time in your day to just love on people, because that my friend, is way more than enough.</p>
  4303. <h3><strong>Go and give people more of your margin, today.</strong></h3>
  4304. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/043-real-issue-time/">#043: The Real Issue With Time</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4305. ]]></content:encoded>
  4306. <enclosure length="2458244" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/043-The-Real-Issue-With-Time.m4a"/>
  4307. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the real issue with our time.</itunes:subtitle>
  4308. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  4309.  <br />
  4310. When I think about this podcast and what it stands for &#8211; &#8220;to live life with purpose&#8221; &#8211; the meaning is something that I have to define to myself.<br />
  4311. What does it mean to live life with purpose?<br />
  4312. Does it mean that you need to get a lot of things done to live life with purpose?<br />
  4313. I believe that is part of it, but that is only the &#8220;how&#8221; part of the equation. The how is what leads you to the why. the why of the equation is people. We are to get things done in order to impart ourselves into the lives of other people. Everyone thinks that they can and should stop with the &#8220;how&#8221;, but if we do this we miss the entire point of living our lives well.<br />
  4314. I believe this one statement requires all of us to not only look at how we are using our time, but how we view time and time management altogether.<br />
  4315. Today, this idea challenges me with this thought &#8211;<br />
  4316. It isn&#8217;t about the amount of time you have, but what you do with it that counts. When we steward our time well, we live our lives well.<br />
  4317. We are taught from adolescence that time is the most important thing we own, but it is because time is what we give other people that makes it so important. Let us never forget the &#8220;why&#8221;. Time is only important because all people are important, not just you.<br />
  4318. This idea brings me to my next thought, which you may disagree with, but I&#8217;m okay with that.<br />
  4319. If there is ever a choice between being somewhere on time or creating memories with people in the moment, the need to take advantage of making memories in that moment is the better choice.<br />
  4320. Now, hold on and hear me out. I still respect you and I still believe in respecting your time, but realize I not only value you, but everyone else in this world, too. Yes, I talk a lot about time management and focus, but I can sometimes get lost in the &#8220;how&#8221; of things as well. The &#8220;why&#8221; should always be the reason behind the reason in everything we do. If the reason of &#8220;why&#8221; to live life always comes back to people, I would rather be known for loving than for being on time.<br />
  4321. Are both possible to coexist? Sure. But, the main downfall of using time management with the preexisting idea that you are doing it well with a full schedule is the fact that it forces you to always live in the future and never allows you to relax and just be present with the people around you. Where do you need to be next? Where do you need to be tomorrow? Where do you need to be next week? A full schedule forces us all to live in the future, and again, most people would accept that as the norm and be totally fine with living this way. When we take the time to slow down and take advantage of the current moments,we are in. it is only then that we can take the time to make an impact.<br />
  4322. I used to think that every single thing had to be scheduled in during every day, but the more that I live my life, the more I realize that I can miss out on opportunities when every single part of my day is scheduled out. My idea of time management is changing. When I talk about creating margin in your life, there shouldn&#8217;t be anything taking up this space. Leave time in your day to just love on people, because that my friend, is way more than enough.<br />
  4323. Go and give people more of your margin, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4324. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4325. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4326. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4327. <itunes:duration>5:00</itunes:duration>
  4328. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4329. <item>
  4330. <title>#042: Peel Back The Layers To Life</title>
  4331. <link>https://asmithblog.com/042-peel-back-the-layers-life/</link>
  4332. <pubDate>Tue, 11 Nov 2014 07:01:45 +0000</pubDate>
  4333. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15472</guid>
  4334. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam helps listeners peel back the layers of life and takes a deeper look at them.&lt;/p&gt;
  4335. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/042-peel-back-the-layers-life/"&gt;#042: Peel Back The Layers To Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4336. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<!--[if lt IE 9]><script>document.createElement('audio');</script><![endif]-->
  4337. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15472-1" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/042-Peel-Back-The-Layers-To-Life.m4a?_=1" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/042-Peel-Back-The-Layers-To-Life.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/042-Peel-Back-The-Layers-To-Life.m4a</a></audio>
  4338. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4339. <p>Besides living out each season of life, there is the process of <em>moving through</em> these seasons. Within these layers, there is the motion of life that we all go through. The first layer leads you to the second one, and the second to the third. That being said, there are three significant layers to your life and how you live in them dictates how you perceive your current circumstances and even your future layers of life.</p>
  4340. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4341. <p><strong>There are three layers to life and here is what each layer looks like:</strong></p>
  4342. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4343. <p><strong>The Pursuit</strong> &#8211; Like the cops in a car chase going after the bad guys in an action flick, maybe you are pursuing your biggest dreams with all you have, giving it your best Dukes of Hazard style. These are those moments in life where you will do anything to reach goals, even if it&#8217;s at 2am when you have to wake up at 5am, so you can make it to your day job on time. I am convinced that this is the most frustrating time in life. It feels like people and your job are pulling you in 100 different directions, not to mention all of the different things you need to do in the middle of the night, so that you can reach your biggest dreams.</p>
  4344. <p>It can be draining, demotivating, and mind-boggling, but it can also be rewarding. I am a firm believer that life is what you make it, including the process of the pursuit. One of the first things that can suffer within your pursuits are the the things you hold most dear, like your family and other loved ones. The pursuit was never meant to make people suffer. Your pursuit is always meant to bless others. The only point for your pursuit is to make a difference in the lives of others. Set up your pursuit in a way that impacts more people in a positive way, rather than sucking the life out of your relationships.</p>
  4345. <p><em>Tip: Make a realistic timeline and deadline for yourself to reach your biggest dreams, while including your most important obligations first along the way.</em></p>
  4346. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4347. <p><strong>Satisfaction and Contentment</strong> &#8211; Once you are able to reach these dreams you have been chasing for so long, there is a feeling of satisfaction and contentment. Everyone is wired differently. Some choose to dwell here in this contentment and is okay to stay there and then some want more, more, more. My point I want to make here is the difference between wanting more and the need to steward well with what you already have. I believe people have forgotten just how important it is to do well with what you already have. People need to continuously want more. You can go ahead and do well with what you already have in your possession. If your first reaction is to keep going after more, you can and will miss the true meaning of life. When you aren&#8217;t concentrating on the next big thing, it allows you to step back and see the need of those around you.</p>
  4348. <p><em>Tip: Pause long enough to see the needs of those around you. You already have enough in your possession to make a difference. You just need to go and do.</em></p>
  4349. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4350. <p><strong>Fulfillment</strong> &#8211; Once someone has been working in this satisfaction and contentment for quite some time, there is a fulfillment that comes along with it. But, it directly ties into doing things for others, not pursing more things and the pursuit of one&#8217;s self. The pursuit of more is an empty journey, that can only be filled with something of more substance. That&#8217;s where fulfillment comes from. I&#8217;m sorry to inform you that this fulfillment can&#8217;t be found in yourself or your accomplishments. This fulfillment can only come from a relationship with Jesus and creating lasting relationships with people. As previously discussed in another episode, the only reason to pour into yourself is to then pour into the lives of others.</p>
  4351. <p><em>Tip: Find fulfillment in things that last, not the things in life that waver. </em></p>
  4352. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4353. <p>You know, I think about this life a lot, including successes and mistakes. I think about both to learn from them and pull out the things I want to repeat in the future. The pursuit is filled with wins and losses that we need to take the time to learn from. When you do this, the pursuit becomes an even more important part of life. It&#8217;s not only the layer of life where the action happens, but it&#8217;s also where you will pull away the most life lessons. The next season of satisfaction is more about working with what you already have and making people better with it, including yourself. The last layer of fulfillment is found in the source of it all.</p>
  4354. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4355. <p><em><strong>No matter where you are at, you can steward well in your current layer of life, today. </strong></em></p>
  4356. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/042-peel-back-the-layers-life/">#042: Peel Back The Layers To Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4357. ]]></content:encoded>
  4358. <enclosure length="4014060" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/042-Peel-Back-The-Layers-To-Life.m4a"/>
  4359. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam helps listeners peel back the layers of life and takes a deeper look at them.</itunes:subtitle>
  4360. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4361. Besides living out each season of life, there is the process of moving through these seasons. Within these layers, there is the motion of life that we all go through. The first layer leads you to the second one, and the second to the third. That being said, there are three significant layers to your life and how you live in them dictates how you perceive your current circumstances and even your future layers of life.<br />
  4362. &nbsp;<br />
  4363. There are three layers to life and here is what each layer looks like:<br />
  4364. &nbsp;<br />
  4365. The Pursuit &#8211; Like the cops in a car chase going after the bad guys in an action flick, maybe you are pursuing your biggest dreams with all you have, giving it your best Dukes of Hazard style. These are those moments in life where you will do anything to reach goals, even if it&#8217;s at 2am when you have to wake up at 5am, so you can make it to your day job on time. I am convinced that this is the most frustrating time in life. It feels like people and your job are pulling you in 100 different directions, not to mention all of the different things you need to do in the middle of the night, so that you can reach your biggest dreams.<br />
  4366. It can be draining, demotivating, and mind-boggling, but it can also be rewarding. I am a firm believer that life is what you make it, including the process of the pursuit. One of the first things that can suffer within your pursuits are the the things you hold most dear, like your family and other loved ones. The pursuit was never meant to make people suffer. Your pursuit is always meant to bless others. The only point for your pursuit is to make a difference in the lives of others. Set up your pursuit in a way that impacts more people in a positive way, rather than sucking the life out of your relationships.<br />
  4367. Tip: Make a realistic timeline and deadline for yourself to reach your biggest dreams, while including your most important obligations first along the way.<br />
  4368. &nbsp;<br />
  4369. Satisfaction and Contentment &#8211; Once you are able to reach these dreams you have been chasing for so long, there is a feeling of satisfaction and contentment. Everyone is wired differently. Some choose to dwell here in this contentment and is okay to stay there and then some want more, more, more. My point I want to make here is the difference between wanting more and the need to steward well with what you already have. I believe people have forgotten just how important it is to do well with what you already have. People need to continuously want more. You can go ahead and do well with what you already have in your possession. If your first reaction is to keep going after more, you can and will miss the true meaning of life. When you aren&#8217;t concentrating on the next big thing, it allows you to step back and see the need of those around you.<br />
  4370. Tip: Pause long enough to see the needs of those around you. You already have enough in your possession to make a difference. You just need to go and do.<br />
  4371. &nbsp;<br />
  4372. Fulfillment &#8211; Once someone has been working in this satisfaction and contentment for quite some time, there is a fulfillment that comes along with it. But, it directly ties into doing things for others, not pursing more things and the pursuit of one&#8217;s self. The pursuit of more is an empty journey, that can only be filled with something of more substance. That&#8217;s where fulfillment comes from. I&#8217;m sorry to inform you that this fulfillment can&#8217;t be found in yourself or your accomplishments. This fulfillment can only come from a relationship with Jesus and creating lasting relationships with people. As previously discussed in another episode, the only reason to pour into yourself is to then pour into the lives of others.<br />
  4373. Tip: Find fulfillment in things that last, not the things in life that waver. <br />
  4374. &nbsp;<br />
  4375. You know, I think about this life a lot, including successes and mistakes.]]></itunes:summary>
  4376. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4377. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4378. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4379. <itunes:duration>8:10</itunes:duration>
  4380. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4381. <item>
  4382. <title>#041: Positive Thinking Is Good, But Action Is Better</title>
  4383. <link>https://asmithblog.com/041-positive-thinking-good-action-better/</link>
  4384. <pubDate>Tue, 28 Oct 2014 06:01:14 +0000</pubDate>
  4385. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15397</guid>
  4386. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses why action is better than anything else you could ever do.&lt;/p&gt;
  4387. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/041-positive-thinking-good-action-better/"&gt;#041: Positive Thinking Is Good, But Action Is Better&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4388. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15397-2" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/041-Positive-Thinking-Is-Good-But-Action-Is-Better-.m4a?_=2" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/041-Positive-Thinking-Is-Good-But-Action-Is-Better-.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/041-Positive-Thinking-Is-Good-But-Action-Is-Better-.m4a</a></audio>
  4389. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4390. <p>Yes, I know that I focus a lot on the idea of positive thinking here on the show, but the thing about thinking is that it only helps you. Thinking can only go that far. It is one thing to hold all that positive thinking to yourself, but what takes that one step further is when you take those ideas and go do something with them. It takes more than positive thinking to get things done. It requires action.</p>
  4391. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4392. <blockquote><p><em><strong>For anyone to get something out of all your positive thinking, you actually have to go do something with it.</strong></em></p></blockquote>
  4393. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4394. <p>So, how can we all go and do something with all the good thoughts in our heads?</p>
  4395. <p><em>Here are three things to look at when you are trying to make a difference in the lives of others and desire to go beyond positive thinking.</em></p>
  4396. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4397. <p><strong>1. Ask yourself, &#8220;What is compelling me to do good for others?&#8221;.</strong></p>
  4398. <p>In other words, why do you want to do good? Is it because it feels good? That&#8217;s good if it does, but there has to be more to it than that. When you fully understand the benefit of doing good for others, you will then see the importance of reaching outside yourself and impacting the lives of others. When you see the potential that is inside of you and are aware of the needs of others, you will be compelled by the needs of others, not only the need of doing what feels good for yourself. There are tons of things that you could be doing that will temporarily satisfy you, but there is nothing in this life that is better than being there for other people.</p>
  4399. <p><strong>2. Have you created space in your schedule to make an impact?</strong></p>
  4400. <p>Know that you need margin in your life and that you need to do whatever you can to create it. Why? This is because people need you. They don&#8217;t need your thoughts, and they don&#8217;t need the leftovers from you after you pour yourself into everything else going on in your day. People just need you. They actually need all of you. The lady hurting next door because she is going through a rough time, or the young adult that has somehow lost his way that you can be a mentor to, or the man who can only find help in everything else but the solution to his real issue needs your life and your help. They all need help from you or someone you know, and just thinking about them isn&#8217;t going to be the fix they need. I can guarantee it. People are hurting and you probably have the solution. A great place to begin is to just be there for them and listen to what they have to say. If you don&#8217;t believe this, then you underestimate the power of being there for others. Yes, the answer is to be available for others to make an impact in their lives. Create margin in your life so that you can help others. That&#8217;s your fix.</p>
  4401. <p><strong>3. What is it that you want to accomplish with you life?</strong></p>
  4402. <p>We covered this in the episode on leaving a great legacy, but it is another incredibly important question to answer. I know that you want to be known for more than just a positive thinker and I know that you want to be known for more than the person with all the ideas. &#8220;What are you doing?&#8221; is the most important question I could be asking you right now. Why?</p>
  4403. <blockquote><p>&nbsp;</p>
  4404. <p><strong><em>It requires movement paired with care to make a lasting impact. </em></strong></p>
  4405. <p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote>
  4406. <p>If you want to leave an impact with your life, it requires you to look outward.</p>
  4407. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4408. <p><strong>So, are you ready to make a difference? You can start by implementing these three things in your life and become more than a positive thinker. You can go and make a difference in the lives of others with your actions, today.</strong></p>
  4409. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/041-positive-thinking-good-action-better/">#041: Positive Thinking Is Good, But Action Is Better</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4410. ]]></content:encoded>
  4411. <enclosure length="2834992" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/041-Positive-Thinking-Is-Good-But-Action-Is-Better-.m4a"/>
  4412. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses why action is better than anything else you could ever do.</itunes:subtitle>
  4413. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4414. Yes, I know that I focus a lot on the idea of positive thinking here on the show, but the thing about thinking is that it only helps you. Thinking can only go that far. It is one thing to hold all that positive thinking to yourself, but what takes that one step further is when you take those ideas and go do something with them. It takes more than positive thinking to get things done. It requires action.<br />
  4415. &nbsp;<br />
  4416. For anyone to get something out of all your positive thinking, you actually have to go do something with it.<br />
  4417. &nbsp;<br />
  4418. So, how can we all go and do something with all the good thoughts in our heads?<br />
  4419. Here are three things to look at when you are trying to make a difference in the lives of others and desire to go beyond positive thinking.<br />
  4420. &nbsp;<br />
  4421. 1. Ask yourself, &#8220;What is compelling me to do good for others?&#8221;.<br />
  4422. In other words, why do you want to do good? Is it because it feels good? That&#8217;s good if it does, but there has to be more to it than that. When you fully understand the benefit of doing good for others, you will then see the importance of reaching outside yourself and impacting the lives of others. When you see the potential that is inside of you and are aware of the needs of others, you will be compelled by the needs of others, not only the need of doing what feels good for yourself. There are tons of things that you could be doing that will temporarily satisfy you, but there is nothing in this life that is better than being there for other people.<br />
  4423. 2. Have you created space in your schedule to make an impact?<br />
  4424. Know that you need margin in your life and that you need to do whatever you can to create it. Why? This is because people need you. They don&#8217;t need your thoughts, and they don&#8217;t need the leftovers from you after you pour yourself into everything else going on in your day. People just need you. They actually need all of you. The lady hurting next door because she is going through a rough time, or the young adult that has somehow lost his way that you can be a mentor to, or the man who can only find help in everything else but the solution to his real issue needs your life and your help. They all need help from you or someone you know, and just thinking about them isn&#8217;t going to be the fix they need. I can guarantee it. People are hurting and you probably have the solution. A great place to begin is to just be there for them and listen to what they have to say. If you don&#8217;t believe this, then you underestimate the power of being there for others. Yes, the answer is to be available for others to make an impact in their lives. Create margin in your life so that you can help others. That&#8217;s your fix.<br />
  4425. 3. What is it that you want to accomplish with you life?<br />
  4426. We covered this in the episode on leaving a great legacy, but it is another incredibly important question to answer. I know that you want to be known for more than just a positive thinker and I know that you want to be known for more than the person with all the ideas. &#8220;What are you doing?&#8221; is the most important question I could be asking you right now. Why?<br />
  4427. &nbsp;<br />
  4428. It requires movement paired with care to make a lasting impact. <br />
  4429. &nbsp;<br />
  4430. If you want to leave an impact with your life, it requires you to look outward.<br />
  4431. &nbsp;<br />
  4432. So, are you ready to make a difference? You can start by implementing these three things in your life and become more than a positive thinker. You can go and make a difference in the lives of others with your actions, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4433. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4434. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4435. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4436. <itunes:duration>5:46</itunes:duration>
  4437. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4438. <item>
  4439. <title>#040: Adversity Is A Good Thing</title>
  4440. <link>https://asmithblog.com/040-adversity-good-thing/</link>
  4441. <pubDate>Tue, 21 Oct 2014 06:01:43 +0000</pubDate>
  4442. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15333</guid>
  4443. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why adversity is actually a good thing. &lt;/p&gt;
  4444. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/040-adversity-good-thing/"&gt;#040: Adversity Is A Good Thing&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4445. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15333-3" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/040-Adversity-Is-A-Good-Thing.m4a?_=3" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/040-Adversity-Is-A-Good-Thing.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/040-Adversity-Is-A-Good-Thing.m4a</a></audio>
  4446. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4447. <p>Adversity. Most, if not all people look at adversity as a bad thing, but what if I told you that it is the one thing that tells us if we are still engaged with the life we are pursuing in the first place? If there is anything I have learned about adversity, it is that bumps in your journey are there to check and see if you are really committed to what you are doing or not.</p>
  4448. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4449. <p><em><strong>Not only does adversity do this, but it also helps you implement these three important things in your life.</strong></em></p>
  4450. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4451. <p><strong>1. Learning</strong></p>
  4452. <p>The learning process takes you further when you are actually open to learning something from what you do in life. If you keep doing the same thing over and over again that never gets you the good results you desire, you will never learn from the adversity that comes to you in life. If you keep shying away from adversity, you will never learn the lessons that this process has to offer. When bad things come your way, don’t let them scare you off. Let them shape you into a stronger, more determined person. Learn from these moments in life and repeat. Once you learn to learn from adversity, you will be more apt to embrace it.</p>
  4453. <p><strong>2. Perseverance</strong></p>
  4454. <p>Not only are you to embrace adversity, but you are to keep moving through it. Perseverance is key to accomplishing anything in life. Why? Because bad things will happen. Such is life. But, it’s what you do with it that will ultimately make you or break you. So, how do you learn to look at adversity in this way? Take the time to process possible outcomes. The question that this will answer is, &#8220;What is the worst that can actually happen to me?”. When you learn to face the facts and see that the worst that can happen to you in adversity is usually not that bad, you will learn to keep moving against all odds.</p>
  4455. <p><strong>3. Growing</strong></p>
  4456. <p>If you aren’t continually growing in all circumstances and situations, you won’t end up going very far. You see, growth can be found in every moment, especially when you encounter sour life situations. When you learn how to handle life in the best ways possible, you will take away lessons for the future and growth will occur. When you don’t take the time to learn from life, you won’t end up growing. What you will do is continually make mistakes in the way you handle the same exact situations in the future. Growth comes when you make the choice to. When you decide to grow through the rough spots that do come your way, you will come out better for it on the other side.</p>
  4457. <p>The great thing about making this choice, is that more opportunities come your way to show what you have learned. This growth creates momentum and creates movement. You will keep moving forward once you understand the most effective way to deal with life’s adversity. The other thing to note here is that approaching life with this mentality is what will bring positivity as well. When you realize that adversity will come, your mentality towards these situations isn’t filled with negativity. Since you now understand that adversity will come no matter what and once you decide to not shy away from it and instead make the decision to embrace it, you can go ahead and prepare right now for when these times come in tomorrow, next week, or next month. Preparation allows for you to dictate proactively how you will act upon adversity, rather than deciding after the fact how you will react to it in the moment.</p>
  4458. <p>I know it can be difficult to finally look adversity in the eye, learn along the way, persevere through the valleys and grow from these less than ideal moments, but it is necessary to live life to the fullest. Maybe you are familiar with shying away from adversity, but when you take the time to actually look and see what it is that you accomplished when you did that, I can guarantee that it wasn’t much.</p>
  4459. <p><em><strong>When you see adversity for the three areas it offers growth in, you will then begin to live life to the fullest starting, today. </strong></em></p>
  4460. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/040-adversity-good-thing/">#040: Adversity Is A Good Thing</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4461. ]]></content:encoded>
  4462. <enclosure length="2968642" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/040-Adversity-Is-A-Good-Thing.m4a"/>
  4463. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why adversity is actually a good thing.</itunes:subtitle>
  4464. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4465. Adversity. Most, if not all people look at adversity as a bad thing, but what if I told you that it is the one thing that tells us if we are still engaged with the life we are pursuing in the first place? If there is anything I have learned about adversity, it is that bumps in your journey are there to check and see if you are really committed to what you are doing or not.<br />
  4466. &nbsp;<br />
  4467. Not only does adversity do this, but it also helps you implement these three important things in your life.<br />
  4468. &nbsp;<br />
  4469. 1. Learning<br />
  4470. The learning process takes you further when you are actually open to learning something from what you do in life. If you keep doing the same thing over and over again that never gets you the good results you desire, you will never learn from the adversity that comes to you in life. If you keep shying away from adversity, you will never learn the lessons that this process has to offer. When bad things come your way, don’t let them scare you off. Let them shape you into a stronger, more determined person. Learn from these moments in life and repeat. Once you learn to learn from adversity, you will be more apt to embrace it.<br />
  4471. 2. Perseverance<br />
  4472. Not only are you to embrace adversity, but you are to keep moving through it. Perseverance is key to accomplishing anything in life. Why? Because bad things will happen. Such is life. But, it’s what you do with it that will ultimately make you or break you. So, how do you learn to look at adversity in this way? Take the time to process possible outcomes. The question that this will answer is, &#8220;What is the worst that can actually happen to me?”. When you learn to face the facts and see that the worst that can happen to you in adversity is usually not that bad, you will learn to keep moving against all odds.<br />
  4473. 3. Growing<br />
  4474. If you aren’t continually growing in all circumstances and situations, you won’t end up going very far. You see, growth can be found in every moment, especially when you encounter sour life situations. When you learn how to handle life in the best ways possible, you will take away lessons for the future and growth will occur. When you don’t take the time to learn from life, you won’t end up growing. What you will do is continually make mistakes in the way you handle the same exact situations in the future. Growth comes when you make the choice to. When you decide to grow through the rough spots that do come your way, you will come out better for it on the other side.<br />
  4475. The great thing about making this choice, is that more opportunities come your way to show what you have learned. This growth creates momentum and creates movement. You will keep moving forward once you understand the most effective way to deal with life’s adversity. The other thing to note here is that approaching life with this mentality is what will bring positivity as well. When you realize that adversity will come, your mentality towards these situations isn’t filled with negativity. Since you now understand that adversity will come no matter what and once you decide to not shy away from it and instead make the decision to embrace it, you can go ahead and prepare right now for when these times come in tomorrow, next week, or next month. Preparation allows for you to dictate proactively how you will act upon adversity, rather than deciding after the fact how you will react to it in the moment.<br />
  4476. I know it can be difficult to finally look adversity in the eye, learn along the way, persevere through the valleys and grow from these less than ideal moments, but it is necessary to live life to the fullest. Maybe you are familiar with shying away from adversity, but when you take the time to actually look and see what it is that you accomplished when you did that, I can guarantee that it wasn’t much.<br />
  4477. When you see adversity for the three areas it offers growth in, you will then begin to live life to the fullest starting, today.]]></itunes:summary>
  4478. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4479. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4480. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4481. <itunes:duration>6:03</itunes:duration>
  4482. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4483. <item>
  4484. <title>#039: Build A Better Legacy</title>
  4485. <link>https://asmithblog.com/039-build-better-legacy/</link>
  4486. <pubDate>Tue, 14 Oct 2014 06:01:47 +0000</pubDate>
  4487. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15282</guid>
  4488. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam covers what it takes to leave a better legacy.&lt;/p&gt;
  4489. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/039-build-better-legacy/"&gt;#039: Build A Better Legacy&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4490. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15282-4" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/039-Build-A-Better-Legacy.m4a?_=4" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/039-Build-A-Better-Legacy.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/039-Build-A-Better-Legacy.m4a</a></audio>
  4491. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4492. <p><em>What do you want to be known for?</em></p>
  4493. <p>That’s the question you need to answer right now.</p>
  4494. <p><em>Why is this one question so important to not only think about, but answer? </em></p>
  4495. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4496. <p>This is because what you do right now is what helps create your legacy. Yes, you can make up for mistakes later, but it is much easier for you to create a legacy rather than to repair it. Start working today towards putting your best into your future. This is what will build your lasting legacy.</p>
  4497. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4498. <blockquote><p><strong><em>Here are three ways you can build a better legacy for your life:</em></strong></p>
  4499. <p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote>
  4500. <p><strong>1. Decide once and for all what you want to do with your life.</strong><br />
  4501. You make the greatest impact when you are clear on where you are headed. Wandering in life wastes time, makes you unhappy and makes you less effective. When you know what you are doing and understand the importance of this, the straight and best way to success becomes your best and only option. No, there aren’t any shortcuts to success, but know that making a plan will help get you to your goals faster.</p>
  4502. <p><strong>2. Decide that what you do really does matter.</strong></p>
  4503. <p>While this may seem common knowledge, the world around us would tell me it’s not. People’s actions would tell me that what they are missing is motivation from knowing the importance of what they are doing with their lives. When you are able to see the importance of what you do, the realization alone will propel you forward. You matter and what you do matters. And within making this important decision to think about your life differently, begin doing what is right if you aren’t already. Don’t fall for short-term gain and satisfaction, while sacrificing long-term legacy. Again, do what matters and do what is right.</p>
  4504. <p><strong>3. Reach outside of yourself in every single circumstance that you can.</strong></p>
  4505. <p>People matter. This being said, you create a bigger legacy when you realize that life is bigger than just yourself. Go and do something for others. Stop only looking out for yourself, and begin thinking about the benefits of others. It is always other people that will receive what you are pouring out with your life, so you might as well produce good fruits with your life. People either benefit from you or suffer. It is a choice of what you do with your life, so touch the lives of others in a positive way as much as you can.</p>
  4506. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4507. <p><strong><em>Life is just better this way. Do these three things, and build a better legacy starting, today.</em></strong></p>
  4508. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/039-build-better-legacy/">#039: Build A Better Legacy</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4509. ]]></content:encoded>
  4510. <enclosure length="2251685" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/039-Build-A-Better-Legacy.m4a"/>
  4511. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam covers what it takes to leave a better legacy.</itunes:subtitle>
  4512. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4513. What do you want to be known for?<br />
  4514. That’s the question you need to answer right now.<br />
  4515. Why is this one question so important to not only think about, but answer? <br />
  4516. &nbsp;<br />
  4517. This is because what you do right now is what helps create your legacy. Yes, you can make up for mistakes later, but it is much easier for you to create a legacy rather than to repair it. Start working today towards putting your best into your future. This is what will build your lasting legacy.<br />
  4518. &nbsp;<br />
  4519. Here are three ways you can build a better legacy for your life:<br />
  4520. &nbsp;<br />
  4521. 1. Decide once and for all what you want to do with your life.<br />
  4522. You make the greatest impact when you are clear on where you are headed. Wandering in life wastes time, makes you unhappy and makes you less effective. When you know what you are doing and understand the importance of this, the straight and best way to success becomes your best and only option. No, there aren’t any shortcuts to success, but know that making a plan will help get you to your goals faster.<br />
  4523. 2. Decide that what you do really does matter.<br />
  4524. While this may seem common knowledge, the world around us would tell me it’s not. People’s actions would tell me that what they are missing is motivation from knowing the importance of what they are doing with their lives. When you are able to see the importance of what you do, the realization alone will propel you forward. You matter and what you do matters. And within making this important decision to think about your life differently, begin doing what is right if you aren’t already. Don’t fall for short-term gain and satisfaction, while sacrificing long-term legacy. Again, do what matters and do what is right.<br />
  4525. 3. Reach outside of yourself in every single circumstance that you can.<br />
  4526. People matter. This being said, you create a bigger legacy when you realize that life is bigger than just yourself. Go and do something for others. Stop only looking out for yourself, and begin thinking about the benefits of others. It is always other people that will receive what you are pouring out with your life, so you might as well produce good fruits with your life. People either benefit from you or suffer. It is a choice of what you do with your life, so touch the lives of others in a positive way as much as you can.<br />
  4527. &nbsp;<br />
  4528. Life is just better this way. Do these three things, and build a better legacy starting, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4529. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4530. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4531. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4532. <itunes:duration>4:35</itunes:duration>
  4533. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4534. <item>
  4535. <title>#038: Love People</title>
  4536. <link>https://asmithblog.com/038-love-people/</link>
  4537. <pubDate>Tue, 07 Oct 2014 06:01:22 +0000</pubDate>
  4538. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15202</guid>
  4539. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the need to love people more often.&lt;/p&gt;
  4540. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/038-love-people/"&gt;#038: Love People&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4541. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15202-5" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/038-Love-People.m4a?_=5" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/038-Love-People.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/038-Love-People.m4a</a></audio>
  4542. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4543. <p>“I love you.” is the most popular sentence ever spoken, but there has to be more to love than just words. This is because people need more than words from you. Love is an action, imparted into the lives of others. But, in most instances, I have noticed that people like to find excuses as to why they can’t go and do something for others. Whether if it is because someone doesn’t believe like they do, or they don’t look a certain way, or they don’t fit into this box of what the ideal person should be, there are only certain people that deserve your precious time. But, this just isn’t the way our lives were designed to be like.</p>
  4544. <p><strong>Love is life and life is love</strong>.</p>
  4545. <p>Why do I put such an emphasis on this? Because love opens doors and blesses others. Love is what impacts more people than any other trait you possess. It really is that powerful. Want to know what you can do to make a difference?</p>
  4546. <p><strong>Go love people.</strong></p>
  4547. <p>Life is meant to give away, not for keeping to yourself. Whereas with a lot of things in life you can do them in excess, with love, it isn&#8217;t possible. You can love too little, but you can&#8217;t love too much. That&#8217;s the beautiful thing about love. When you see that love is the definition of life, you see the vast opportunity that is given. I won&#8217;t give you more steps to love, because the fact of the matter is that people need you. No matter where you are at today, you just need to go love people.</p>
  4548. <p><em><strong>You can and will make a lasting impact with love starting, today.</strong></em></p>
  4549. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/038-love-people/">#038: Love People</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4550. ]]></content:encoded>
  4551. <enclosure length="1984139" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/038-Love-People.m4a"/>
  4552. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the need to love people more often.</itunes:subtitle>
  4553. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4554. “I love you.” is the most popular sentence ever spoken, but there has to be more to love than just words. This is because people need more than words from you. Love is an action, imparted into the lives of others. But, in most instances, I have noticed that people like to find excuses as to why they can’t go and do something for others. Whether if it is because someone doesn’t believe like they do, or they don’t look a certain way, or they don’t fit into this box of what the ideal person should be, there are only certain people that deserve your precious time. But, this just isn’t the way our lives were designed to be like.<br />
  4555. Love is life and life is love.<br />
  4556. Why do I put such an emphasis on this? Because love opens doors and blesses others. Love is what impacts more people than any other trait you possess. It really is that powerful. Want to know what you can do to make a difference?<br />
  4557. Go love people.<br />
  4558. Life is meant to give away, not for keeping to yourself. Whereas with a lot of things in life you can do them in excess, with love, it isn&#8217;t possible. You can love too little, but you can&#8217;t love too much. That&#8217;s the beautiful thing about love. When you see that love is the definition of life, you see the vast opportunity that is given. I won&#8217;t give you more steps to love, because the fact of the matter is that people need you. No matter where you are at today, you just need to go love people.<br />
  4559. You can and will make a lasting impact with love starting, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4560. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4561. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4562. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4563. <itunes:duration>4:02</itunes:duration>
  4564. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4565. <item>
  4566. <title>#037: Stop Trying To Be A Perfectionist</title>
  4567. <link>https://asmithblog.com/037-stop-trying-perfectionist/</link>
  4568. <pubDate>Tue, 23 Sep 2014 06:01:09 +0000</pubDate>
  4569. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15080</guid>
  4570. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why you should stop trying to be a perfectionist.&lt;/p&gt;
  4571. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/037-stop-trying-perfectionist/"&gt;#037: Stop Trying To Be A Perfectionist&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4572. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15080-6" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/037-Stop-Trying-To-Be-A-Perfectionist.m4a?_=6" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/037-Stop-Trying-To-Be-A-Perfectionist.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/037-Stop-Trying-To-Be-A-Perfectionist.m4a</a></audio>
  4573. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4574. <p>Perfection. Everyone tries to obtain this mysterious goal, but falls short every single time they set out to accomplish this. Most, if not all of frustration comes from this lofty, unobtainable goal not happening. I believe it is important to not only see that perfection cannot be reached, but it is also important to understand the benefits from not being a perfectionist.</p>
  4575. <p><em><strong>Here are the four major benefits of not trying to be a perfectionist:</strong></em></p>
  4576. <p><strong>1. You will create better relationships.</strong></p>
  4577. <p>When you learn to stop putting up a perfection shield to keep others from knowing the ins-and-outs of your imperfect life, you will let more people in and will create more lasting relationships. This allows you to be closer with others and learn more through them and be able to pour into the lives of more people.</p>
  4578. <p><strong>2. Life is much more fun.</strong></p>
  4579. <p>When you break through the fear of failure and stop procrastinating due to the possible dismay of others, you learn that perfectionism was never really your true goal in the first place. All you really wanted to do in life was to make a difference in the lives of others. When you come to this realization, life is always more fun to be in. When you learn to live to have more fun with your life, you will also learn to stop focusing so much on yourself and will begin focusing on the lives of others.</p>
  4580. <p><strong>3. Stress levels are lower.</strong></p>
  4581. <p>When you aren’t bending over backwards to meet crazy deadlines and aren’t spreading yourself too thin, life is much more enjoyable. Perfectionists tend to take more things personal, so when you break this, you will bounce back quicker from negativity.</p>
  4582. <p>One area to look at concerning your stress levels is with the expectations you have set for yourself. People can definitely have too high of expectations when they aren’t even attainable. When you have realistic expectations for yourself and others, you are able to reach huge goals with less stress. It’s a win-win.</p>
  4583. <p><strong>4. Creativity flourishes. </strong></p>
  4584. <p>Within the creative process it is imperative to allow for imperfection. We have talked about this before, but it is a necessary point to take away here. And you don’t need to have a job in a creative role to apply this in your life. When you are creative with your everyday life and willing to make mistakes along the way, you allow yourself room to breathe and room to make things better through making more mistakes.</p>
  4585. <p><em><strong>Now, this doesn’t diminish the fact that we should strive for perfection, but we are not to let perfection be what deters us from taking risks and allowing ourselves to make mistakes. When we step out and do these four things, we can allow imperfection to make us better, today.</strong></em></p>
  4586. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/037-stop-trying-perfectionist/">#037: Stop Trying To Be A Perfectionist</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4587. ]]></content:encoded>
  4588. <enclosure length="1972113" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/037-Stop-Trying-To-Be-A-Perfectionist.m4a"/>
  4589. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why you should stop trying to be a perfectionist.</itunes:subtitle>
  4590. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4591. Perfection. Everyone tries to obtain this mysterious goal, but falls short every single time they set out to accomplish this. Most, if not all of frustration comes from this lofty, unobtainable goal not happening. I believe it is important to not only see that perfection cannot be reached, but it is also important to understand the benefits from not being a perfectionist.<br />
  4592. Here are the four major benefits of not trying to be a perfectionist:<br />
  4593. 1. You will create better relationships.<br />
  4594. When you learn to stop putting up a perfection shield to keep others from knowing the ins-and-outs of your imperfect life, you will let more people in and will create more lasting relationships. This allows you to be closer with others and learn more through them and be able to pour into the lives of more people.<br />
  4595. 2. Life is much more fun.<br />
  4596. When you break through the fear of failure and stop procrastinating due to the possible dismay of others, you learn that perfectionism was never really your true goal in the first place. All you really wanted to do in life was to make a difference in the lives of others. When you come to this realization, life is always more fun to be in. When you learn to live to have more fun with your life, you will also learn to stop focusing so much on yourself and will begin focusing on the lives of others.<br />
  4597. 3. Stress levels are lower.<br />
  4598. When you aren’t bending over backwards to meet crazy deadlines and aren’t spreading yourself too thin, life is much more enjoyable. Perfectionists tend to take more things personal, so when you break this, you will bounce back quicker from negativity.<br />
  4599. One area to look at concerning your stress levels is with the expectations you have set for yourself. People can definitely have too high of expectations when they aren’t even attainable. When you have realistic expectations for yourself and others, you are able to reach huge goals with less stress. It’s a win-win.<br />
  4600. 4. Creativity flourishes. <br />
  4601. Within the creative process it is imperative to allow for imperfection. We have talked about this before, but it is a necessary point to take away here. And you don’t need to have a job in a creative role to apply this in your life. When you are creative with your everyday life and willing to make mistakes along the way, you allow yourself room to breathe and room to make things better through making more mistakes.<br />
  4602. Now, this doesn’t diminish the fact that we should strive for perfection, but we are not to let perfection be what deters us from taking risks and allowing ourselves to make mistakes. When we step out and do these four things, we can allow imperfection to make us better, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4603. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4604. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4605. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4606. <itunes:duration>4:01</itunes:duration>
  4607. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4608. <item>
  4609. <title>#036: Why Is It So Difficult To Be Honest With Ourselves?</title>
  4610. <link>https://asmithblog.com/036-why-difficult-honest-with-ourselves/</link>
  4611. <pubDate>Tue, 16 Sep 2014 06:01:03 +0000</pubDate>
  4612. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=15025</guid>
  4613. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam answers the important question, "Why is it so difficult to be honest with ourselves?".&lt;/p&gt;
  4614. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/036-why-difficult-honest-with-ourselves/"&gt;#036: Why Is It So Difficult To Be Honest With Ourselves?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4615. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-15025-7" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/036-Why-Is-It-So-Difficult-To-Be-Honest-With-Ourselves.m4a?_=7" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/036-Why-Is-It-So-Difficult-To-Be-Honest-With-Ourselves.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/036-Why-Is-It-So-Difficult-To-Be-Honest-With-Ourselves.m4a</a></audio>
  4616. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4617. <p>When bad things happen, it’s time to stop blaming anyone and everyone besides ourselves. Stop pointing the finger out, and instead point it in. It’s at this point when we look at ourselves, that we can actually do something about it. Problems don’t just go away when we don’t deal with them, and it’s time that we stop acting like issues will somehow just disappear when we don’t look at them.</p>
  4618. <p>Who are we letting down when we aren’t honest with ourselves? The only person we are actually letting down is ourselves, and in return it is through our lives where we can let everyone else down when we are also down.</p>
  4619. <p>And so, why do we let ourselves down and others down? It is always fear that keeps us from dealing with what needs to be dealt with and keeps us from being honest with ourselves. Fear will keep us from ever stepping out and doing anything with our lives. Want to know how to overcome this fear? Don’t expect to be perfect. You can’t live up to that expectation.</p>
  4620. <p>A note to perfectionists &#8211; Breathe. It’s okay to not be perfect. Believe that and move on with your life. Seek out answers and help along the way, and all will be just fine. Lean in to your journey and listen to guidance along the way. You are never alone. Fear likes to corner us and make us believe we are alone, but that’s never the case. So, are you ready to tackle the fear you have been facing? Look outward.</p>
  4621. <p>The first step in getting help is realizing that you can’t do it all yourself, and you don’t have to. Stop isolating yourself and trying to come up with solutions on your own. Be strong and be encouraged.</p>
  4622. <p>Second, you have to face the facts at some point. No matter how tough it is sometimes, sometimes the need is to look in the mirror and just be honest. What is it that’s wrong and what needs to be done to fix it?</p>
  4623. <p>And third, keep moving. Just because something terrible happens, you can’t stop. You are meant for so much more than stopping. The rest of us need you to keep going.</p>
  4624. <p><em><strong>When you are honest with yourself, it is then and only then that you can deal with your current situation and begin living with more impact. Be honest and make a difference starting, today. </strong></em></p>
  4625. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/036-why-difficult-honest-with-ourselves/">#036: Why Is It So Difficult To Be Honest With Ourselves?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4626. ]]></content:encoded>
  4627. <enclosure length="1789779" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/09/036-Why-Is-It-So-Difficult-To-Be-Honest-With-Ourselves.m4a"/>
  4628. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam answers the important question, "Why is it so difficult to be honest with ourselves?".</itunes:subtitle>
  4629. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4630. When bad things happen, it’s time to stop blaming anyone and everyone besides ourselves. Stop pointing the finger out, and instead point it in. It’s at this point when we look at ourselves, that we can actually do something about it. Problems don’t just go away when we don’t deal with them, and it’s time that we stop acting like issues will somehow just disappear when we don’t look at them.<br />
  4631. Who are we letting down when we aren’t honest with ourselves? The only person we are actually letting down is ourselves, and in return it is through our lives where we can let everyone else down when we are also down.<br />
  4632. And so, why do we let ourselves down and others down? It is always fear that keeps us from dealing with what needs to be dealt with and keeps us from being honest with ourselves. Fear will keep us from ever stepping out and doing anything with our lives. Want to know how to overcome this fear? Don’t expect to be perfect. You can’t live up to that expectation.<br />
  4633. A note to perfectionists &#8211; Breathe. It’s okay to not be perfect. Believe that and move on with your life. Seek out answers and help along the way, and all will be just fine. Lean in to your journey and listen to guidance along the way. You are never alone. Fear likes to corner us and make us believe we are alone, but that’s never the case. So, are you ready to tackle the fear you have been facing? Look outward.<br />
  4634. The first step in getting help is realizing that you can’t do it all yourself, and you don’t have to. Stop isolating yourself and trying to come up with solutions on your own. Be strong and be encouraged.<br />
  4635. Second, you have to face the facts at some point. No matter how tough it is sometimes, sometimes the need is to look in the mirror and just be honest. What is it that’s wrong and what needs to be done to fix it?<br />
  4636. And third, keep moving. Just because something terrible happens, you can’t stop. You are meant for so much more than stopping. The rest of us need you to keep going.<br />
  4637. When you are honest with yourself, it is then and only then that you can deal with your current situation and begin living with more impact. Be honest and make a difference starting, today. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4638. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4639. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4640. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4641. <itunes:duration>3:38</itunes:duration>
  4642. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4643. <item>
  4644. <title>#035: Renew Your Mind</title>
  4645. <link>https://asmithblog.com/035-renew-mind/</link>
  4646. <pubDate>Tue, 02 Sep 2014 06:01:21 +0000</pubDate>
  4647. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14918</guid>
  4648. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam reminds you why it is important to renew your mind.&lt;/p&gt;
  4649. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/035-renew-mind/"&gt;#035: Renew Your Mind&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4650. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14918-8" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/035-Renew-Your-Mind.m4a?_=8" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/035-Renew-Your-Mind.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/035-Renew-Your-Mind.m4a</a></audio>
  4651. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4652. <p>Today, I want to talk to you about where you are at mentally. I believe that once you overcome the mental battles we all face on a daily basis, the physical and spiritual areas of life come so much easier. They even come naturally, if you will. This is because most of life and doing great things with your life starts in the mind. Your mind forces you to see things positively and it also will help you see things negatively, if you choose so. I am here to tell you that if you want to see good fruits in your life and if you want to have a more positive outlook on this world, you need to focus on renewing your mind.</p>
  4653. <p>This is so important that the Bible is very clear that it is not a one time thing that happens in your life.  The most famous verse on the renewing of the mind is Romans 12:2 which says,</p>
  4654. <blockquote><p><em><strong><span style="color: #001320;">Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind&#8230;</span></strong></em></p></blockquote>
  4655. <p>Doing this will give you a Philippians 4:8 mindset. The fact the word “renewing” is used means that it is a constant process that happens on a daily basis. Renewing means to make new or as if new again, or restore. How often do you renew your mind? Now, how often do you <em>need</em> to renew your mind? How often are you completely positive on the life that you live out? How often are you bent towards seeing life through a negative lens? What are you currently doing to renew your mind? How can you implement a renewing of your mind on a daily basis?</p>
  4656. <p>I believe these are all questions you need to ask yourself to see where you are in the renewal process. We all need this realignment. When your mind is renewed, you will overcome life’s rough spots. In this you will step out more often against all odds and do great things no matter what outside circumstances are going on in life. When you have already fought and lost the mental battle before you have even started, you are fighting a losing battle. Make the decision prior to going into any situation by renewing your mind on a daily basis. You need this to succeed. Spend some time meditating today on God and His Word to find peace, encouragement, direction, and hope.</p>
  4657. <p><em><strong>Do this and be transformed, today.</strong></em></p>
  4658. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/035-renew-mind/">#035: Renew Your Mind</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4659. ]]></content:encoded>
  4660. <enclosure length="1972127" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/035-Renew-Your-Mind.m4a"/>
  4661. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam reminds you why it is important to renew your mind.</itunes:subtitle>
  4662. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4663. Today, I want to talk to you about where you are at mentally. I believe that once you overcome the mental battles we all face on a daily basis, the physical and spiritual areas of life come so much easier. They even come naturally, if you will. This is because most of life and doing great things with your life starts in the mind. Your mind forces you to see things positively and it also will help you see things negatively, if you choose so. I am here to tell you that if you want to see good fruits in your life and if you want to have a more positive outlook on this world, you need to focus on renewing your mind.<br />
  4664. This is so important that the Bible is very clear that it is not a one time thing that happens in your life.  The most famous verse on the renewing of the mind is Romans 12:2 which says,<br />
  4665. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind&#8230;<br />
  4666. Doing this will give you a Philippians 4:8 mindset. The fact the word “renewing” is used means that it is a constant process that happens on a daily basis. Renewing means to make new or as if new again, or restore. How often do you renew your mind? Now, how often do you need to renew your mind? How often are you completely positive on the life that you live out? How often are you bent towards seeing life through a negative lens? What are you currently doing to renew your mind? How can you implement a renewing of your mind on a daily basis?<br />
  4667. I believe these are all questions you need to ask yourself to see where you are in the renewal process. We all need this realignment. When your mind is renewed, you will overcome life’s rough spots. In this you will step out more often against all odds and do great things no matter what outside circumstances are going on in life. When you have already fought and lost the mental battle before you have even started, you are fighting a losing battle. Make the decision prior to going into any situation by renewing your mind on a daily basis. You need this to succeed. Spend some time meditating today on God and His Word to find peace, encouragement, direction, and hope.<br />
  4668. Do this and be transformed, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4669. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4670. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4671. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4672. <itunes:duration>4:01</itunes:duration>
  4673. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4674. <item>
  4675. <title>#034: Stop Complaining</title>
  4676. <link>https://asmithblog.com/034-stop-complaining/</link>
  4677. <pubDate>Tue, 26 Aug 2014 06:01:12 +0000</pubDate>
  4678. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14845</guid>
  4679. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why you need to stop complaining and start seeing the goodness all around you to be grateful for. &lt;/p&gt;
  4680. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/034-stop-complaining/"&gt;#034: Stop Complaining&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4681. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14845-9" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/034-Stop-Complaining.m4a?_=9" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/034-Stop-Complaining.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/034-Stop-Complaining.m4a</a></audio>
  4682. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4683. <p>Sometimes we can be blinded by the few bad things that are going on in our lives and we can let those happenings control our view on life. One or two bad things going on in your life doesn&#8217;t culminate to a bad life. It also doesn&#8217;t mean you should start complaining either. What does complaining do? It brings you down even more, changes your outlook to a more negative one, and it makes you focus on the negativity going on in your life. If you take the time to realize everything else going on in the world around you that is much worse than what you are currently going through, then you will see that you really don’t have anything legitimate to complain about. Now of course comparing your life to others and standing by while doing nothing for people to help them see a better light will do nothing for anyone involved, but it is good to be able to see where your issues lie in the grand scheme of things. When you have a better perspective on life, you will see that your circumstances might not be as bad as you maybe thought they were.</p>
  4684. <p><em><strong>Here are three ways to see if you tend to complain more often than not:</strong></em></p>
  4685. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4686. <p><strong>1. What are your words and actions showing?</strong></p>
  4687. <p>In other words, what fruits are you producing with your life? Your words of course will tell you if you are complaining, but you need to take a look at your actions as well. When everything you say and do is negative, it will creep into every area of your life. Choose to speak positive words of life, and watch your actions line up with your words. Complaining will only bring more negativity into your life and it is a downward spiral from there.</p>
  4688. <p><strong>2.  Do you tend to be more grateful or ungrateful?</strong></p>
  4689. <p>Take a minute to think about what you are currently going through. Do you find yourself complaining about life or are you excited about life’s cheerful moments? Even if life is full of negativity in this season of life for you, choose to see the things in life that you can currently be grateful for. When you tend to be grateful, life has a way of bringing an abundance of positivity your way, just because that is your outlook on life. Two people can go through the exact same situation and come out of it with completely different outlooks on life. Choose to be grateful in everything, even if the only thing you can see to be grateful for is having another day to love other people. That&#8217;s definitely something to be grateful, as that is the most important thing you can possibly do.</p>
  4690. <p><strong>3. What do you think the perception is that others have of you?</strong></p>
  4691. <p>Usually negative people attract other negative people and the same goes for positivity attracting positivity. So, who are you hanging around? Of course this doesn&#8217;t mean that every person doesn&#8217;t matter, even if they have a negative outlook on life. But, it is important to know what other people think of you and what your reputation is, so you can see who and what you attract. Even if you think you are a positive person, the perception of others can be different. Strive to be a blessing to others in all you do and make an impact through being a more positive person.</p>
  4692. <p>Ask yourself these three questions and you will see growth in your life immediately.</p>
  4693. <p><em><strong>Start speaking life to your current circumstances and stop complaining, today.</strong></em></p>
  4694. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/034-stop-complaining/">#034: Stop Complaining</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4695. ]]></content:encoded>
  4696. <enclosure length="2385348" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/034-Stop-Complaining.m4a"/>
  4697. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why you need to stop complaining and start seeing the goodness all around you to be grateful for.</itunes:subtitle>
  4698. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4699. Sometimes we can be blinded by the few bad things that are going on in our lives and we can let those happenings control our view on life. One or two bad things going on in your life doesn&#8217;t culminate to a bad life. It also doesn&#8217;t mean you should start complaining either. What does complaining do? It brings you down even more, changes your outlook to a more negative one, and it makes you focus on the negativity going on in your life. If you take the time to realize everything else going on in the world around you that is much worse than what you are currently going through, then you will see that you really don’t have anything legitimate to complain about. Now of course comparing your life to others and standing by while doing nothing for people to help them see a better light will do nothing for anyone involved, but it is good to be able to see where your issues lie in the grand scheme of things. When you have a better perspective on life, you will see that your circumstances might not be as bad as you maybe thought they were.<br />
  4700. Here are three ways to see if you tend to complain more often than not:<br />
  4701. &nbsp;<br />
  4702. 1. What are your words and actions showing?<br />
  4703. In other words, what fruits are you producing with your life? Your words of course will tell you if you are complaining, but you need to take a look at your actions as well. When everything you say and do is negative, it will creep into every area of your life. Choose to speak positive words of life, and watch your actions line up with your words. Complaining will only bring more negativity into your life and it is a downward spiral from there.<br />
  4704. 2.  Do you tend to be more grateful or ungrateful?<br />
  4705. Take a minute to think about what you are currently going through. Do you find yourself complaining about life or are you excited about life’s cheerful moments? Even if life is full of negativity in this season of life for you, choose to see the things in life that you can currently be grateful for. When you tend to be grateful, life has a way of bringing an abundance of positivity your way, just because that is your outlook on life. Two people can go through the exact same situation and come out of it with completely different outlooks on life. Choose to be grateful in everything, even if the only thing you can see to be grateful for is having another day to love other people. That&#8217;s definitely something to be grateful, as that is the most important thing you can possibly do.<br />
  4706. 3. What do you think the perception is that others have of you?<br />
  4707. Usually negative people attract other negative people and the same goes for positivity attracting positivity. So, who are you hanging around? Of course this doesn&#8217;t mean that every person doesn&#8217;t matter, even if they have a negative outlook on life. But, it is important to know what other people think of you and what your reputation is, so you can see who and what you attract. Even if you think you are a positive person, the perception of others can be different. Strive to be a blessing to others in all you do and make an impact through being a more positive person.<br />
  4708. Ask yourself these three questions and you will see growth in your life immediately.<br />
  4709. Start speaking life to your current circumstances and stop complaining, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4710. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4711. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4712. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4713. <itunes:duration>4:51</itunes:duration>
  4714. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4715. <item>
  4716. <title>#033: Positivity Is So Much Better Than Negativity</title>
  4717. <link>https://asmithblog.com/033-positivity-much-better-than-negativity/</link>
  4718. <pubDate>Tue, 12 Aug 2014 06:01:28 +0000</pubDate>
  4719. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14717</guid>
  4720. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains why positivity is so much better than negativity.&lt;/p&gt;
  4721. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/033-positivity-much-better-than-negativity/"&gt;#033: Positivity Is So Much Better Than Negativity&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4722. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  4723. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14717-10" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/033-Positivity-Is-So-Much-Better-Than-Negativity.m4a?_=10" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/033-Positivity-Is-So-Much-Better-Than-Negativity.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/033-Positivity-Is-So-Much-Better-Than-Negativity.m4a</a></audio>
  4724. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4725. <p>In this world, there are two different types of people &#8211; those who are negative and those who are positive. The fact of the matter is that we all have a choice in the way we will react to things and the outlook that we have on life. These things play into the views we have on this world and will ultimately form positivity or negativity in our lives, but it is still a choice of whether we are positive or negative people.</p>
  4726. <p><em><strong>Here are three tips on how you can choose positivity more often than negativity:</strong></em></p>
  4727. <p><strong>1. Seize the day.</strong></p>
  4728. <p>&#8220;Carpe diem&#8221;. There is a lot to making each day count and being excited about what each new day holds. It gets you a great start to your day each and every time and gets your mind where it should be, which is having a positive outlook on the day ahead. There is so many opportunities for you to impact others within a day, so take advantage of it. Go and get as much as you can out of life, and you can begin by taking every opportunity today. Positivity is found in anticipation of what the day holds.</p>
  4729. <p><strong>2. Choose to be positive.</strong></p>
  4730. <p>This is an obvious point, but with all the negativity out there, it can sometimes be tough to make this choice. But, when you do make this choice, you will be able to stick out in a good way. Want to know how to be influential? Be positive. People want to be around that on a daily basis.</p>
  4731. <p><strong>3. Think before you act and react.</strong></p>
  4732. <p>It is one thing to think positively, but it is even more to live out positivity through your actions. When something bad happens in your life, the easy thing to do is to react the same way that situation acted upon you. Take the better road and think about the situation at hand, before you act and react.</p>
  4733. <p><em><strong>When you have to pick between being positive or negative with your life, choose positivity. In what other ways can people be more positive with their lives?</strong></em></p>
  4734. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/033-positivity-much-better-than-negativity/">#033: Positivity Is So Much Better Than Negativity</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4735. ]]></content:encoded>
  4736. <enclosure length="1826372" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/033-Positivity-Is-So-Much-Better-Than-Negativity.m4a"/>
  4737. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains why positivity is so much better than negativity.</itunes:subtitle>
  4738. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4739. &nbsp;<br />
  4740. In this world, there are two different types of people &#8211; those who are negative and those who are positive. The fact of the matter is that we all have a choice in the way we will react to things and the outlook that we have on life. These things play into the views we have on this world and will ultimately form positivity or negativity in our lives, but it is still a choice of whether we are positive or negative people.<br />
  4741. Here are three tips on how you can choose positivity more often than negativity:<br />
  4742. 1. Seize the day.<br />
  4743. &#8220;Carpe diem&#8221;. There is a lot to making each day count and being excited about what each new day holds. It gets you a great start to your day each and every time and gets your mind where it should be, which is having a positive outlook on the day ahead. There is so many opportunities for you to impact others within a day, so take advantage of it. Go and get as much as you can out of life, and you can begin by taking every opportunity today. Positivity is found in anticipation of what the day holds.<br />
  4744. 2. Choose to be positive.<br />
  4745. This is an obvious point, but with all the negativity out there, it can sometimes be tough to make this choice. But, when you do make this choice, you will be able to stick out in a good way. Want to know how to be influential? Be positive. People want to be around that on a daily basis.<br />
  4746. 3. Think before you act and react.<br />
  4747. It is one thing to think positively, but it is even more to live out positivity through your actions. When something bad happens in your life, the easy thing to do is to react the same way that situation acted upon you. Take the better road and think about the situation at hand, before you act and react.<br />
  4748. When you have to pick between being positive or negative with your life, choose positivity. In what other ways can people be more positive with their lives?<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4749. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4750. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4751. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4752. <itunes:duration>3:43</itunes:duration>
  4753. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4754. <item>
  4755. <title>#032: Quality Time, Not Amount of Time</title>
  4756. <link>https://asmithblog.com/032-quality-time-amount-time/</link>
  4757. <pubDate>Tue, 05 Aug 2014 06:01:44 +0000</pubDate>
  4758. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14631</guid>
  4759. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this post, Adam shows you how quality time is what really matters, not the amount of time you have.&lt;/p&gt;
  4760. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/032-quality-time-amount-time/"&gt;#032: Quality Time, Not Amount of Time&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4761. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14631-11" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/032-Quality-Time-Not-Amount-of-Time.m4a?_=11" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/032-Quality-Time-Not-Amount-of-Time.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/032-Quality-Time-Not-Amount-of-Time.m4a</a></audio>
  4762. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4763. <p><span style="color: #323333;">It is always the quality of time you spend with your life, rather than the amount of time you have to spend, that makes the biggest difference in the lives of others. </span>Think about this. When you are with family or friends, do you feel more connected after sitting at a table with them not having much to say or when you are having deep meaningful conversation with them? Of course you feel closer with other people when you have the latter. Now, tie any sort of time frame to either the amount of time you have to spend with people or the quality of time that you spend with people, and the amount of time becomes a lot less important when you have an abundance of quality time with people. Actually, the quantity becomes a whole lot less important. What does matter is that you are finding each and every opportunity you have with people to bring quality out of it.</p>
  4764. <p><em><strong>Here are the three top ways you can bring quality out of every moment that you spend with others:</strong></em></p>
  4765. <p><strong>1. Stop focusing on the amount of time you have with people.</strong></p>
  4766. <p>I am guessing that your schedule is pretty tight. Same here. With my schedule, I used to look at the amount of time I had to spend with someone, but I have changed my view on that common misconception. It is more about quality than quantity when it comes to your time. Give some time for this to sink in. Now, let’s take a second to see how this works in our lives. If you have two hours with someone, is it easier to just let the time go? Or, if you have just ten minutes with someone, are you more apt to squeezing every second out of your time with them? I would offer that it doesn’t matter how much time you have with someone, but it does matter that you are taking every moment you have to truly care about others. If it is 15 or 30 minutes that you have with someone, it isn’t saying that you only have that short amount of time with them, but it is seeing the huge opportunity you have with that 15 or 30 minutes to bless others. Use the time you have to get to know other people in a more personal way. Use your time wisely instead of looking at the amount of time you have, as it is the most important possession we all have.<br />
  4767. <strong><br />
  4768. 2. Go into your time with others knowing what you want to give the other person.</strong></p>
  4769. <p>Notice that I didn&#8217;t say to know what you want from the other person, but instead bring to each relationship what you have to bless others. It all goes back to being intentional with your time, and the number one priority you have with your time is the time you put into your relationships. If you know of a need that another person has, equip yourself going into your time with the other person to fill that need. Don’t throw away your time by not being there for others, but instead be aware of the needs around you. This is another way to be more intentional with every second you have in your day.</p>
  4770. <p><strong>3. Stop letting distractions get the best of you.</strong></p>
  4771. <p>Whether we are talking about phone calls, emails, texts, the internet, television, or any other distractions that tends to creep into your life, those are the things that rob us from the intentionality and purpose we need to bring to every one of our relationships. Distractions of any type are the things that get in the way of strengthening relationships with people and we have to fight against them to truly build our relationships to where they need to be. The need for each and every one of us to pour into the lives of others is great, so we have to be more intentional with focusing on what matters most. People matter, so don’t let silly distractions be the thing that keeps you from giving your quality time to others.</p>
  4772. <p><em><strong>It is these three things &#8211; focusing on the quality of time you spend with people, rather than the amount of time you have to spend with people, going into your time with others knowing what you want to give the other person, and not letting distractions get the best of you &#8211; that will push you to make a bigger difference in the lives of others, today. </strong></em></p>
  4773. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/032-quality-time-amount-time/">#032: Quality Time, Not Amount of Time</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4774. ]]></content:encoded>
  4775. <enclosure length="2701252" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/032-Quality-Time-Not-Amount-of-Time.m4a"/>
  4776. <itunes:subtitle>In this post, Adam shows you how quality time is what really matters, not the amount of time you have.</itunes:subtitle>
  4777. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4778. It is always the quality of time you spend with your life, rather than the amount of time you have to spend, that makes the biggest difference in the lives of others. Think about this. When you are with family or friends, do you feel more connected after sitting at a table with them not having much to say or when you are having deep meaningful conversation with them? Of course you feel closer with other people when you have the latter. Now, tie any sort of time frame to either the amount of time you have to spend with people or the quality of time that you spend with people, and the amount of time becomes a lot less important when you have an abundance of quality time with people. Actually, the quantity becomes a whole lot less important. What does matter is that you are finding each and every opportunity you have with people to bring quality out of it.<br />
  4779. Here are the three top ways you can bring quality out of every moment that you spend with others:<br />
  4780. 1. Stop focusing on the amount of time you have with people.<br />
  4781. I am guessing that your schedule is pretty tight. Same here. With my schedule, I used to look at the amount of time I had to spend with someone, but I have changed my view on that common misconception. It is more about quality than quantity when it comes to your time. Give some time for this to sink in. Now, let’s take a second to see how this works in our lives. If you have two hours with someone, is it easier to just let the time go? Or, if you have just ten minutes with someone, are you more apt to squeezing every second out of your time with them? I would offer that it doesn’t matter how much time you have with someone, but it does matter that you are taking every moment you have to truly care about others. If it is 15 or 30 minutes that you have with someone, it isn’t saying that you only have that short amount of time with them, but it is seeing the huge opportunity you have with that 15 or 30 minutes to bless others. Use the time you have to get to know other people in a more personal way. Use your time wisely instead of looking at the amount of time you have, as it is the most important possession we all have.<br />
  4782. <br />
  4783. 2. Go into your time with others knowing what you want to give the other person.<br />
  4784. Notice that I didn&#8217;t say to know what you want from the other person, but instead bring to each relationship what you have to bless others. It all goes back to being intentional with your time, and the number one priority you have with your time is the time you put into your relationships. If you know of a need that another person has, equip yourself going into your time with the other person to fill that need. Don’t throw away your time by not being there for others, but instead be aware of the needs around you. This is another way to be more intentional with every second you have in your day.<br />
  4785. 3. Stop letting distractions get the best of you.<br />
  4786. Whether we are talking about phone calls, emails, texts, the internet, television, or any other distractions that tends to creep into your life, those are the things that rob us from the intentionality and purpose we need to bring to every one of our relationships. Distractions of any type are the things that get in the way of strengthening relationships with people and we have to fight against them to truly build our relationships to where they need to be. The need for each and every one of us to pour into the lives of others is great, so we have to be more intentional with focusing on what matters most. People matter, so don’t let silly distractions be the thing that keeps you from giving your quality time to others.<br />
  4787. It is these three things &#8211; focusing on the quality of time you spend with people, rather than the amount of time you have to spend with people, going into your time with others knowing what you want to give the other person, and not letting distractions get the best of you &#8211; that will pu...]]></itunes:summary>
  4788. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4789. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4790. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4791. <itunes:duration>5:30</itunes:duration>
  4792. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4793. <item>
  4794. <title>#031: Leading Starts In Your Home</title>
  4795. <link>https://asmithblog.com/leading-starts-your-home/</link>
  4796. <pubDate>Tue, 29 Jul 2014 06:01:30 +0000</pubDate>
  4797. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14553</guid>
  4798. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the idea that leading starts in your home.&lt;/p&gt;
  4799. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/leading-starts-your-home/"&gt;#031: Leading Starts In Your Home&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4800. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14553-12" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/031-Leading-Starts-In-Your-Home.m4a?_=12" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/031-Leading-Starts-In-Your-Home.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/031-Leading-Starts-In-Your-Home.m4a</a></audio>
  4801. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4802. <p>We all have this story of where we have been, where we are currently at in life, and where we are going, and usually the biggest contributor to this are the relationships in our life, and the biggest relationship we could ever have is our marriages. When your marriage is great, then life is great. But on the other hand, when your marriage isn’t going so well, then life doesn’t quite equal your expectations to living out a great life. We have all been there. If you have lived any sort of length of life, then you know life isn’t always perfect, no matter how much we want it to be. In these times life may look depressing, but it doesn’t have to. Our lives can be full of life when we choose for it to be. No, life may not always be perfect, but we can strive for it, and the first step is in showing that we care. Showing that we care about the people around us and care about where our lives end up in general, because living a great life makes a difference. When the marriage relationship is where it supposed to be, life is where it is supposed to be. The biggest part of leadership that we can all get better at is in our homes. It is a huge responsibility, but we can make it easier through making it the number one priority in our lives. Marriage is work, but the rewards from the work are plentiful. Just like anything else, you reap what you sow. It is up to you the amount of focus and energy you put into your relationships, but I do guarantee that you will get out of it what you put in. At some points in life, you feel the work more than other times. When things with your spouse are in harmony, everything else seems to fall into place. I don’t know about you, but I love these times in life! The goal should be to have these times more often. There has been a trend for years now where bad marriages have become the “norm”, but it doesn’t have to be this way. It is time to stop accepting this as as an okay thing. We all can do better than mediocre, right? If excellence in our marriages is a major priority, then we should at least have a better plan to actually make this happen.</p>
  4803. <p><em><strong>Here are the 3 main areas for you to put a little more focus on to make your relationship with your spouse better overnight:</strong></em><br />
  4804. <strong>1. Quality Time</strong><br />
  4805. Devote more time to the most important person in your life; your spouse. Whether it is five more minutes a day, one more hour or a day per week. However busy your schedule is, you have the chance to make a bigger impact in your marriage by just showing that you care with your time. Think about your time and how you are spending it right now. I am sure there is at least a few more minutes you can devote to your marriage to make it stronger than it has ever been before.</p>
  4806. <p>To explain what I am talking about, let me tell you where Jasmine and I are currently at in life. Jasmine is pregnant with a little baby boy! We were just apart from each other for over two weeks and she is fighting sickness through her pregnancy right now. She is such a trooper, but it would be easy to let the lack of time we are spending together because of everything else going on to get in the way, but we strive to use our time well. Of course it isn’t that we are perfect with our time, but it is that we are striving to be. each of us know this about each other and understand obstacles, but at the end of the day we have both learned to set time aside more quality time for one another. You see, it isn’t always the amount of time that you think you have, but how you use it that counts. The need for quality time together right now is apparent, yet we are connected more than ever. We have been down that rocky road of where our marriage wasn’t going well, and we know that feeling of despair in the midst of it all too well. We don’t want to ever go back there again, and we know how to get there as well as how not to get there, and it begins with spending quality time with your spouse and family.</p>
  4807. <p><b>Here are some necessary questions to ask yourself along the way referring to your time:</b></p>
  4808. <p><em>Is there a good balance to your life?</em><br />
  4809. <em> Where is your time going?</em><br />
  4810. <em> Does your family need you more?</em><br />
  4811. <em> How can you better your relationship with your spouse through giving him/her more time?</em></p>
  4812. <p>These are just a few questions to ponder, but they are definitely valid ones. With time becoming less and less due to our schedules becoming busier through more obligations and expectations from others, we have to prioritize our most important relationships more than ever before. Scheduling time with your spouse isn’t a bad idea, as it ensures that time is actually devoted to one of your biggest priorities, the relationship you have with your spouse.</p>
  4813. <p><strong>2. Communication</strong><br />
  4814. This is another huge aspect of marriage. For things to get better and better in marriage,  you have to learn to communicate effectively with one another. You can’t hold your spouse accountable for the things they do not know, because you haven’t communicated them. Talk openly with your spouse and listen to what they have to say. Your spouse will have insight into things that you haven’t even thought of before. Trust me, your spouse sees things that you don’t, or at least that has been my experience. My wife is intuitive beyond belief. It seems that God has given her that amazing ability, so I have learned to listen to her guidance, as it has proven to save me from different mistakes along the way. Maybe you or your spouse have seen the same thing in the other person. Learn to listen and take your spouse’s knowledge to heart. You and your spouse are on the same team, so start acting like it. Grow that special relationship through communication.</p>
  4815. <p><strong>3. Date Your Spouse</strong><br />
  4816. This point is one of the first things that gets neglected when we get busy, but it is an easy one to make happen. I am guilty of letting it be too long before a date occurs, but again we are both striving to make it happen and we know that. The issue for us is always the same. It becomes finding a babysitter, but I get exhausted in having the same excuse all the time. Striving to make something happen brings thing into existence. Of course you have to actually make it happen, but if it is on your radar, it is much more likely to happen. Time and communication are better spent when we are able to do these things during alone time. We all need to remember to have more fun, because it is. Start compiling a list together by finding things that you and your spouse both enjoy, so when the time comes your decisions have already been made for you and you can enjoy the time even more. Compiling this list together is a great discussion time and you can build up the excitement of having your date time to look forward to.</p>
  4817. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4818. <p>The points listed will help you both connect with each other. I would say a good rule of thumb is that if there is something in your life that allows for “disconnect”, then it is at least worth a discussion on what needs to be done to solve the issue or even a discussion on how to connect more through that area could help. 90% of the time there is actually an easy fix that can be done to improve the situation. Use these three point to dramatically improve your leadership in your home. Start there, and everything else in life will come.</p>
  4819. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4820. <p><em><strong>My challenge to you is to begin focusing more attention on your home starting today. Leading starts in your home. You and your family deserve it.</strong></em></p>
  4821. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/leading-starts-your-home/">#031: Leading Starts In Your Home</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4822. ]]></content:encoded>
  4823. <enclosure length="4913167" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/031-Leading-Starts-In-Your-Home.m4a"/>
  4824. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the idea that leading starts in your home.</itunes:subtitle>
  4825. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4826. We all have this story of where we have been, where we are currently at in life, and where we are going, and usually the biggest contributor to this are the relationships in our life, and the biggest relationship we could ever have is our marriages. When your marriage is great, then life is great. But on the other hand, when your marriage isn’t going so well, then life doesn’t quite equal your expectations to living out a great life. We have all been there. If you have lived any sort of length of life, then you know life isn’t always perfect, no matter how much we want it to be. In these times life may look depressing, but it doesn’t have to. Our lives can be full of life when we choose for it to be. No, life may not always be perfect, but we can strive for it, and the first step is in showing that we care. Showing that we care about the people around us and care about where our lives end up in general, because living a great life makes a difference. When the marriage relationship is where it supposed to be, life is where it is supposed to be. The biggest part of leadership that we can all get better at is in our homes. It is a huge responsibility, but we can make it easier through making it the number one priority in our lives. Marriage is work, but the rewards from the work are plentiful. Just like anything else, you reap what you sow. It is up to you the amount of focus and energy you put into your relationships, but I do guarantee that you will get out of it what you put in. At some points in life, you feel the work more than other times. When things with your spouse are in harmony, everything else seems to fall into place. I don’t know about you, but I love these times in life! The goal should be to have these times more often. There has been a trend for years now where bad marriages have become the “norm”, but it doesn’t have to be this way. It is time to stop accepting this as as an okay thing. We all can do better than mediocre, right? If excellence in our marriages is a major priority, then we should at least have a better plan to actually make this happen.<br />
  4827. Here are the 3 main areas for you to put a little more focus on to make your relationship with your spouse better overnight:<br />
  4828. 1. Quality Time<br />
  4829. Devote more time to the most important person in your life; your spouse. Whether it is five more minutes a day, one more hour or a day per week. However busy your schedule is, you have the chance to make a bigger impact in your marriage by just showing that you care with your time. Think about your time and how you are spending it right now. I am sure there is at least a few more minutes you can devote to your marriage to make it stronger than it has ever been before.<br />
  4830. To explain what I am talking about, let me tell you where Jasmine and I are currently at in life. Jasmine is pregnant with a little baby boy! We were just apart from each other for over two weeks and she is fighting sickness through her pregnancy right now. She is such a trooper, but it would be easy to let the lack of time we are spending together because of everything else going on to get in the way, but we strive to use our time well. Of course it isn’t that we are perfect with our time, but it is that we are striving to be. each of us know this about each other and understand obstacles, but at the end of the day we have both learned to set time aside more quality time for one another. You see, it isn’t always the amount of time that you think you have, but how you use it that counts. The need for quality time together right now is apparent, yet we are connected more than ever. We have been down that rocky road of where our marriage wasn’t going well, and we know that feeling of despair in the midst of it all too well. We don’t want to ever go back there again, and we know how to get there as well as how not to get there, and it begins with spending quality time with your spouse and family.<br />
  4831. ]]></itunes:summary>
  4832. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4833. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4834. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4835. <itunes:duration>10:00</itunes:duration>
  4836. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4837. <item>
  4838. <title>#030: The Power of Minimalism</title>
  4839. <link>https://asmithblog.com/030-minimalism/</link>
  4840. <pubDate>Tue, 22 Jul 2014 06:01:44 +0000</pubDate>
  4841. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14495</guid>
  4842. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses what instilling minimalism into your life can do for you.&lt;/p&gt;
  4843. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/030-minimalism/"&gt;#030: The Power of Minimalism&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4844. <content:encoded><![CDATA[
  4845. <p>Minimalism is a concept that isn’t looked at often, because people want more and they want it now. Most people find themselves in a busy lifestyle and want a way out, but they keep adding more. Very rarely does someone take the time to think about what it is that could bring balance back into their life. The best answer to a busy schedule is a new lifestyle and mindset, and minimalism offers both of these things.</p>
  4846. <p>Minimalism is defined as a style or technique (as in music, literature, or design) that is characterized by extreme spareness and simplicity, but what if we took this idea and made it a way of life for ourselves? Minimalism creates a simpler way of life for people who will adopt this idea. The minimalist lifestyle carries over into every area of life and becomes part of everything we do. We all need to adopt this mindset now, so we can better prepare for the future.</p>
  4847. <p>We are all busy right now, and if we keep committing to things past what we can actually handle, we will eventually become over-burdened and stressed out. Whatever happened to a simpler way of life? When we begin bringing back a simple balance to our lives, it spills out into what we can do for others. This simplicity and minimalism brings more time into our lives for others.</p>
  4848. <p>The main benefit of minimalism is that it forces us to take a step back and take a good, hard look at our lives. Doing this also reminds us to enjoy the life we are already living out. So, where does implementing minimalism into our lives begin? It starts as a way of life.</p>
  4849. <p>If it is easier for you to conquer physical things first, and then go onto tackling the other ways you can implement minimalism into your life, then do it that way. You can start with the physical clutter that you see on daily basis around your home and office. Getting rid of things frees up not only physical space, but mental space to think as well. This is a great way to free up your mind to think about more important things.</p>
  4850. <p>Once you have your physical space where you want it to be, then begin focusing on the things that take up your time and your mental space. How can you get rid of things in your schedule to enjoy your time more with your family and also spend more time diving into the lives of other people more often? How can you lessen your commitment to those things that either don’t interest you or aren’t productive for you to be doing in the first place?</p>
  4851. <p>There is a balance to saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to things in life and being over-committed, and it is found in minimalism. Minimalism ties you to less possessions of this world and helps you focus on what matters most, which will always be people.</p>
  4852. <h3>
  4853. <strong>Take the time to see what you can cut out today to create a better way of life starting, today.</strong></h3>
  4854. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/030-minimalism/">#030: The Power of Minimalism</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4855. ]]></content:encoded>
  4856. <enclosure length="2288023" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/030-The-Power-of-Minimalism.m4a"/>
  4857. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses what instilling minimalism into your life can do for you.</itunes:subtitle>
  4858. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Minimalism is a concept that isn’t looked at often, because people want more and they want it now. Most people find themselves in a busy lifestyle and want a way out, but they keep adding more. Very rarely does someone take the time to think about what it is that could bring balance back into their life. The best answer to a busy schedule is a new lifestyle and mindset, and minimalism offers both of these things.<br />
  4859. Minimalism is defined as a style or technique (as in music, literature, or design) that is characterized by extreme spareness and simplicity, but what if we took this idea and made it a way of life for ourselves? Minimalism creates a simpler way of life for people who will adopt this idea. The minimalist lifestyle carries over into every area of life and becomes part of everything we do. We all need to adopt this mindset now, so we can better prepare for the future.<br />
  4860. We are all busy right now, and if we keep committing to things past what we can actually handle, we will eventually become over-burdened and stressed out. Whatever happened to a simpler way of life? When we begin bringing back a simple balance to our lives, it spills out into what we can do for others. This simplicity and minimalism brings more time into our lives for others.<br />
  4861. The main benefit of minimalism is that it forces us to take a step back and take a good, hard look at our lives. Doing this also reminds us to enjoy the life we are already living out. So, where does implementing minimalism into our lives begin? It starts as a way of life.<br />
  4862. If it is easier for you to conquer physical things first, and then go onto tackling the other ways you can implement minimalism into your life, then do it that way. You can start with the physical clutter that you see on daily basis around your home and office. Getting rid of things frees up not only physical space, but mental space to think as well. This is a great way to free up your mind to think about more important things.<br />
  4863. Once you have your physical space where you want it to be, then begin focusing on the things that take up your time and your mental space. How can you get rid of things in your schedule to enjoy your time more with your family and also spend more time diving into the lives of other people more often? How can you lessen your commitment to those things that either don’t interest you or aren’t productive for you to be doing in the first place?<br />
  4864. There is a balance to saying &#8220;yes&#8221; to things in life and being over-committed, and it is found in minimalism. Minimalism ties you to less possessions of this world and helps you focus on what matters most, which will always be people.<br />
  4865. <br />
  4866. Take the time to see what you can cut out today to create a better way of life starting, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4867. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4868. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4869. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4870. <itunes:duration>4:39</itunes:duration>
  4871. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4872. <item>
  4873. <title>#029: Have More Peace In Your Life</title>
  4874. <link>https://asmithblog.com/029-have-more-peace/</link>
  4875. <pubDate>Tue, 15 Jul 2014 06:01:40 +0000</pubDate>
  4876. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14435</guid>
  4877. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam uncovers three ways for you to bring more peace into your life.&lt;/p&gt;
  4878. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/029-have-more-peace/"&gt;#029: Have More Peace In Your Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4879. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14435-13" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/029-Have-More-Peace-In-Your-Life.m4a?_=13" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/029-Have-More-Peace-In-Your-Life.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/029-Have-More-Peace-In-Your-Life.m4a</a></audio>
  4880. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4881. <p>I am guessing that you have a lot going on your life. In fact, you may barely be hanging on for dear life, just hoping for life to somehow slow down and your want is that life will give you back margin in your schedule once again. If you are looking at life this way, you are looking at life from the wrong point of view. You need to look at life in a more positive view. The answer is not to somehow manage the craziness, but you need to learn to bring more peace into your life. That’s your answer.</p>
  4882. <p><em>Here are three ways to bring more peace into your life and view life in a more positive light:</em></p>
  4883. <p><strong>1. Don’t be afraid to look at reality.</strong></p>
  4884. <p>This may sound weird to look at reality, especially if you are in a struggle right now, but doing this is necessary to move on in life. You are not fully able to deal with the issues at hand, until you are able to look at your current reality. When you do this, you are able to take care of the issues at hand and deal with what is happening in your current reality. If your present circumstances are great, then it will be easier to look at. This point is to really speak to those of you in a current mess, and need a way out. Don’t be afraid to look at where you are currently at and start making a plan to move ahead to a more positive reality. Once you do this, you will feel more peaceful with your circumstances and learn to build resilience along the way. Do this and learn to see a more positive world around you.</p>
  4885. <p><strong>2. Be quiet.</strong></p>
  4886. <p>In the busy, noisy world that we all live in, we would all benefit from taking at least 10 minutes out of our days to meditate on God. You won’t be sorry you implemented this routine in your life and from it you will learn the power of being still. Being quiet not only allows you to think, but it also gives you more time to search yourself and prepare for what is ahead. In this time, it’s not a bad idea to do nothing. We all need to have time in our day where we just sit and be. Doing this will allow you to discover more peace and will help you live in more harmony than you do right now. There is power in being still and quiet.</p>
  4887. <p><strong>3. Help others.</strong></p>
  4888. <p>I couldn’t do this episode without including this point. We all need more reminders to do good for others. There is something peaceful that comes from doing good for the lives of others. When people receive the benefits from your help, you help bring peace to others and yourself. Do more good and see more peace lived out through everyone involved.</p>
  4889. <p>When you decide to look at your current reality no matter where you are at in life, when you decide to be quiet and still, and when you help others, you bring exponential levels of peace back into your life.</p>
  4890. <p><b>Do these three things to find more peace in your life, today.</b></p>
  4891. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/029-have-more-peace/">#029: Have More Peace In Your Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4892. ]]></content:encoded>
  4893. <enclosure length="2397340" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/029-Have-More-Peace-In-Your-Life.m4a"/>
  4894. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam uncovers three ways for you to bring more peace into your life.</itunes:subtitle>
  4895. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4896. I am guessing that you have a lot going on your life. In fact, you may barely be hanging on for dear life, just hoping for life to somehow slow down and your want is that life will give you back margin in your schedule once again. If you are looking at life this way, you are looking at life from the wrong point of view. You need to look at life in a more positive view. The answer is not to somehow manage the craziness, but you need to learn to bring more peace into your life. That’s your answer.<br />
  4897. Here are three ways to bring more peace into your life and view life in a more positive light:<br />
  4898. 1. Don’t be afraid to look at reality.<br />
  4899. This may sound weird to look at reality, especially if you are in a struggle right now, but doing this is necessary to move on in life. You are not fully able to deal with the issues at hand, until you are able to look at your current reality. When you do this, you are able to take care of the issues at hand and deal with what is happening in your current reality. If your present circumstances are great, then it will be easier to look at. This point is to really speak to those of you in a current mess, and need a way out. Don’t be afraid to look at where you are currently at and start making a plan to move ahead to a more positive reality. Once you do this, you will feel more peaceful with your circumstances and learn to build resilience along the way. Do this and learn to see a more positive world around you.<br />
  4900. 2. Be quiet.<br />
  4901. In the busy, noisy world that we all live in, we would all benefit from taking at least 10 minutes out of our days to meditate on God. You won’t be sorry you implemented this routine in your life and from it you will learn the power of being still. Being quiet not only allows you to think, but it also gives you more time to search yourself and prepare for what is ahead. In this time, it’s not a bad idea to do nothing. We all need to have time in our day where we just sit and be. Doing this will allow you to discover more peace and will help you live in more harmony than you do right now. There is power in being still and quiet.<br />
  4902. 3. Help others.<br />
  4903. I couldn’t do this episode without including this point. We all need more reminders to do good for others. There is something peaceful that comes from doing good for the lives of others. When people receive the benefits from your help, you help bring peace to others and yourself. Do more good and see more peace lived out through everyone involved.<br />
  4904. When you decide to look at your current reality no matter where you are at in life, when you decide to be quiet and still, and when you help others, you bring exponential levels of peace back into your life.<br />
  4905. Do these three things to find more peace in your life, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  4906. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4907. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4908. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4909. <itunes:duration>4:53</itunes:duration>
  4910. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4911. <item>
  4912. <title>#028: Why “You Need to Make More Mistakes” Is My Most Popular Post</title>
  4913. <link>https://asmithblog.com/why-you-need-make-more-mistakes/</link>
  4914. <pubDate>Tue, 08 Jul 2014 06:01:46 +0000</pubDate>
  4915. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14346</guid>
  4916. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains the real reason that "You Need to Make More Mistakes" is the most popular post that he has ever written.&lt;/p&gt;
  4917. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/why-you-need-make-more-mistakes/"&gt;#028: Why “You Need to Make More Mistakes” Is My Most Popular Post&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4918. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14346-14" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Episode-028-Why-You-Need-to-Make-More-Mistakes-Is-My-Most-Popular-Post.m4a?_=14" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Episode-028-Why-You-Need-to-Make-More-Mistakes-Is-My-Most-Popular-Post.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Episode-028-Why-You-Need-to-Make-More-Mistakes-Is-My-Most-Popular-Post.m4a</a></audio>
  4919. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4920. <p>My most popular blog post ever on my website is “You Need to Make More Mistakes&#8221; and it probably will be for a long time. I see that people are looking for more than a reason and an excuse to make mistakes, they want to take things in their own hands and try to save themselves. People want to take their own weaknesses and make themselves strong, when their passions and desires came from God in the first place. People want to self-help themselves to redemption. What people haven’t been able to look past is the idea that self-help is a way to help themselves. They never look further than this and see the true purpose for help. The only reason to seek help is to pour into yourself and then pour into others. We are all vessels that are intended to pour out into the lives of others. It never stops.</p>
  4921. <p>The point to realize here is that no matter what we do in our own power, it will never be good enough to save ourselves. None of us are good enough to do that. Now, that doesn’t mean to neglect living a great life, because we are to always be a blessing in the lives of others through what we say and what we do, but the only thing that can save us is Jesus, not our works. Every time we try to take life into our own hands, we will fail. God is the source that gives power, energy and strength to carry out a great life. Again, we were created to rely on Him. Every time we try to earn approval through works, it negates what the cross has already done. God doesn’t require you to do something to get something from Him. That’s the reason it is a finished work. His cross is bigger than anything you and me could ever do! That’s what is so beautiful about a relationship with Jesus Christ. God gives gifts, not rewards. It is not about what you do, but God gives us gifts freely because of His love for us. Go ahead and make mistakes not because you set out to do so, but because you aren&#8217;t perfect. It will happen. No matter how big the mistakes are, or if you can fix them in your own power or not, when you mess up Jesus is still there my friend. If you have ever wanted to know my beliefs and concerns on this matter there it is. Yes, I write a self-help blog and speak on the topic, but my goal is to always point to Jesus through my life, because He first loved me. We all love, because He first loved us.</p>
  4922. <p><b><i>God&#8217;s love and passion for us is bigger than anyone can fathom.</i></b></p>
  4923. <p>That&#8217;s right. The maker of this universe loves you and me more than we can even begin to understand.</p>
  4924. <p><i>God knew you were going to mess up. </i><br />
  4925. <i>God knew you were going to disappoint and let others down.</i><br />
  4926. <i>God knew you weren&#8217;t perfect.</i></p>
  4927. <p>And the thing is, He says that it is ok.</p>
  4928. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4929. <blockquote><p><i>As high as heaven is over the earth, </i><i>so strong is his love to those who fear him. </i><i>And as far as sunrise is from sunset, </i><i>he has separated us from our sins.</i></p>
  4930. <p><b>Psalm 103:11-12</b></p></blockquote>
  4931. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4932. <p>He knew these things were going to happen and decided to look past all of the &#8220;mess ups&#8221;.  After all of this, He still just wants to know us more.</p>
  4933. <p><b><i>Unconditional love is a beautiful thing.</i></b></p>
  4934. <p>Let God’s love for you define you because it already has. Don&#8217;t let your circumstances define you.</p>
  4935. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4936. <blockquote><p>And don’t be wishing you were someplace else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God’s place for you. Live and obey and love and believe right there.<b> </b>God defines your life…</p>
  4937. <p><span style="color: #000000;"><b>1 Cor. 7:17, MSG</b></span></p></blockquote>
  4938. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4939. <p>Now, try to look at unconditional love from your daily point of view. Think of how many times someone has done something wrong against you. That one time someone cut in line. That time that someone said a bad thing or a lot of bad things about you. It is difficult to stay calm in every one of these situations and come out of it immediately loving the person who wronged you, right? When you think of it, these situations are small in comparison to what people do on a daily basis, and yet God sent His Son for all of that and more. So, maybe something has been bothering you for awhile. Maybe something so big that bitterness has set in and it now feels good to hold onto. We have all been there, but there is something that feels even better than a grudge… f<i>reedom in knowing complete happiness. </i> If there is someone or something that is keeping you back from expressing God’s love in your life and through your life, it is time to let go of it and let God take over. Right now is the best time to let your resentment go. Don&#8217;t let it go another day.</p>
  4940. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4941. <p><b>Yes, you will make mistakes but that&#8217;s okay. Realize that God is the source and show His love in every situation beginning, today.</b></p>
  4942. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/why-you-need-make-more-mistakes/">#028: Why &#8220;You Need to Make More Mistakes&#8221; Is My Most Popular Post</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4943. ]]></content:encoded>
  4944. <enclosure length="4099052" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/Episode-028-Why-You-Need-to-Make-More-Mistakes-Is-My-Most-Popular-Post.m4a"/>
  4945. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains the real reason that "You Need to Make More Mistakes" is the most popular post that he has ever written.</itunes:subtitle>
  4946. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  4947. My most popular blog post ever on my website is “You Need to Make More Mistakes&#8221; and it probably will be for a long time. I see that people are looking for more than a reason and an excuse to make mistakes, they want to take things in their own hands and try to save themselves. People want to take their own weaknesses and make themselves strong, when their passions and desires came from God in the first place. People want to self-help themselves to redemption. What people haven’t been able to look past is the idea that self-help is a way to help themselves. They never look further than this and see the true purpose for help. The only reason to seek help is to pour into yourself and then pour into others. We are all vessels that are intended to pour out into the lives of others. It never stops.<br />
  4948. The point to realize here is that no matter what we do in our own power, it will never be good enough to save ourselves. None of us are good enough to do that. Now, that doesn’t mean to neglect living a great life, because we are to always be a blessing in the lives of others through what we say and what we do, but the only thing that can save us is Jesus, not our works. Every time we try to take life into our own hands, we will fail. God is the source that gives power, energy and strength to carry out a great life. Again, we were created to rely on Him. Every time we try to earn approval through works, it negates what the cross has already done. God doesn’t require you to do something to get something from Him. That’s the reason it is a finished work. His cross is bigger than anything you and me could ever do! That’s what is so beautiful about a relationship with Jesus Christ. God gives gifts, not rewards. It is not about what you do, but God gives us gifts freely because of His love for us. Go ahead and make mistakes not because you set out to do so, but because you aren&#8217;t perfect. It will happen. No matter how big the mistakes are, or if you can fix them in your own power or not, when you mess up Jesus is still there my friend. If you have ever wanted to know my beliefs and concerns on this matter there it is. Yes, I write a self-help blog and speak on the topic, but my goal is to always point to Jesus through my life, because He first loved me. We all love, because He first loved us.<br />
  4949. God&#8217;s love and passion for us is bigger than anyone can fathom.<br />
  4950. That&#8217;s right. The maker of this universe loves you and me more than we can even begin to understand.<br />
  4951. God knew you were going to mess up. <br />
  4952. God knew you were going to disappoint and let others down.<br />
  4953. God knew you weren&#8217;t perfect.<br />
  4954. And the thing is, He says that it is ok.<br />
  4955. &nbsp;<br />
  4956. As high as heaven is over the earth, so strong is his love to those who fear him. And as far as sunrise is from sunset, he has separated us from our sins.<br />
  4957. Psalm 103:11-12<br />
  4958. &nbsp;<br />
  4959. He knew these things were going to happen and decided to look past all of the &#8220;mess ups&#8221;.  After all of this, He still just wants to know us more.<br />
  4960. Unconditional love is a beautiful thing.<br />
  4961. Let God’s love for you define you because it already has. Don&#8217;t let your circumstances define you.<br />
  4962. &nbsp;<br />
  4963. And don’t be wishing you were someplace else or with someone else. Where you are right now is God’s place for you. Live and obey and love and believe right there. God defines your life…<br />
  4964. 1 Cor. 7:17, MSG<br />
  4965. &nbsp;<br />
  4966. Now, try to look at unconditional love from your daily point of view. Think of how many times someone has done something wrong against you. That one time someone cut in line. That time that someone said a bad thing or a lot of bad things about you. It is difficult to stay calm in every one of these situations and come out of it immediately loving the person who wronged you, right? When you think of it, these situations are small in comparison to what people do on a daily basis,]]></itunes:summary>
  4967. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  4968. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  4969. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  4970. <itunes:duration>8:21</itunes:duration>
  4971. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  4972. <item>
  4973. <title>#027: What Should I Do Now?</title>
  4974. <link>https://asmithblog.com/027-what-should-now/</link>
  4975. <pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2014 06:01:07 +0000</pubDate>
  4976. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14256</guid>
  4977. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows you the answers to the question, "What should I do now?"&lt;/p&gt;
  4978. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/027-what-should-now/"&gt;#027: What Should I Do Now?&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  4979. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14256-15" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-27-What-Should-I-Do-Now.m4a?_=15" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-27-What-Should-I-Do-Now.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-27-What-Should-I-Do-Now.m4a</a></audio>
  4980. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4981. <blockquote><p>What should I do now?</p></blockquote>
  4982. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4983. <p>Maybe you have done all you know to do and you are now stuck. We have all been there. Feeling stuck is when we usually become complacent thinking that not much can happen so we don’t move, instead of seeking out direction. It is in these times of feeling stuck that listening to God is not only necessary for your own sanity, but it is required to move forward. But, even in this moment of feeling stuck, movement is what makes things happen.</p>
  4984. <p><em>Here are the three things you need to do in your moments of feeling stuck to bring the best possible outcomes:</em></p>
  4985. <p><b>1. Listen to God.</b><br />
  4986. You can listen to God through His Word or listen to God through His Voice. This is why it is so important to stay in God’s Word, because there are so many tips from wise people in God’s Word that help you deal with issues that still exist today. Principles apply whether we are talking about then, or now. People still deal with the same emotions, faults and desires today as they did back then. The main point that can speak to you no matter what you are dealing with right now, is that you can’t do this alone, and the great thing is that God wants to help you. Begging isn’t required to conjure God up into maybe helping you. He wants to help you. Prayer is just a way to communicate to God, because He wants to hear and help you. Remember that God is always on your side. If you don’t have that view of God, that is what has to change before your relationship with Him is a healthy one.</p>
  4987. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4988. <p><b>2. At some point you will have to put in some effort.</b><br />
  4989. This feeling of being stuck will try to keep you to yourself and will try to settle you into contentment with the journey you are on, but don’t let this happen. At some point you have to move out of your comfort zone and dare to make a change. Use these times to step out and go do something different. Have fun with it! A lot of what this podcast is about is going and doing, but the source of wanting to bless others is God. Yes for some people it seems that doing good for others is a bigger desire than for others, but most importantly, God told us to go and make a difference. If you haven’t figured this out yet, when you try to do things on your own is usually when you fail. We only can do so much in our power, because we were created to rely on Him. The two important reasons to live a life of purpose is to Honor God and bless others. Maybe you will be the best glimpse of God that someone may ever see. You don’t know exactly where people have been, and you looking to be a blessing to others allows relationships to happen and creates space to give back to others.</p>
  4990. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4991. <p><b>3. Be influenced by awesome people, books, videos, and podcasts in the meantime.</b><br />
  4992. We have talked about having mentors, and in this waiting time is a great time to have wise people who speak into your life. Not only can people pour into your life in when feeling like you are alone and stuck, but so can great books. You have probably learned a lot through reading great books in your lifetime and the waiting season is no different. Make a reading list and read books such as <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rework-Jason-Fried/dp/0307463745 ">Rework</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Daring-Greatly-Courage-Vulnerable-Transforms/dp/1592407331">Daring Greatly</a>, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Power-Habit-What-Life-Business/dp/1400069289/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;sr=&amp;qid=  ">Power of Habit</a> that will force you to think out of the box, help motivate you, show you how your body works, give you practical and not so practical action steps. Those are the kinds of books and that give you the most momentum. Videos on youtube such as Ted Videos and podcasts that help you see a better perspective are great tools to have in waiting as well. You can learn a lot of things from all these resources and begin applying what you learn from them right now.</p>
  4993. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  4994. <p>So as you can see, feeling stuck doesn’t have to be overwhelming. You can be productive during these times. There is so much you can do when you feel that there is no next step to take. Make sure you take enough time out to meditate, read God’s Word and listen to what He is saying, at some point you will have to go and do, and pour into yourself through people and resources to move ahead in life.</p>
  4995. <p><em><strong>Do these three things and take the next step, today.</strong></em></p>
  4996. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/027-what-should-now/">#027: What Should I Do Now?</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  4997. ]]></content:encoded>
  4998. <enclosure length="3199580" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-27-What-Should-I-Do-Now.m4a"/>
  4999. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows you the answers to the question, "What should I do now?"</itunes:subtitle>
  5000. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5001. What should I do now?<br />
  5002. &nbsp;<br />
  5003. Maybe you have done all you know to do and you are now stuck. We have all been there. Feeling stuck is when we usually become complacent thinking that not much can happen so we don’t move, instead of seeking out direction. It is in these times of feeling stuck that listening to God is not only necessary for your own sanity, but it is required to move forward. But, even in this moment of feeling stuck, movement is what makes things happen.<br />
  5004. Here are the three things you need to do in your moments of feeling stuck to bring the best possible outcomes:<br />
  5005. 1. Listen to God.<br />
  5006. You can listen to God through His Word or listen to God through His Voice. This is why it is so important to stay in God’s Word, because there are so many tips from wise people in God’s Word that help you deal with issues that still exist today. Principles apply whether we are talking about then, or now. People still deal with the same emotions, faults and desires today as they did back then. The main point that can speak to you no matter what you are dealing with right now, is that you can’t do this alone, and the great thing is that God wants to help you. Begging isn’t required to conjure God up into maybe helping you. He wants to help you. Prayer is just a way to communicate to God, because He wants to hear and help you. Remember that God is always on your side. If you don’t have that view of God, that is what has to change before your relationship with Him is a healthy one.<br />
  5007. &nbsp;<br />
  5008. 2. At some point you will have to put in some effort.<br />
  5009. This feeling of being stuck will try to keep you to yourself and will try to settle you into contentment with the journey you are on, but don’t let this happen. At some point you have to move out of your comfort zone and dare to make a change. Use these times to step out and go do something different. Have fun with it! A lot of what this podcast is about is going and doing, but the source of wanting to bless others is God. Yes for some people it seems that doing good for others is a bigger desire than for others, but most importantly, God told us to go and make a difference. If you haven’t figured this out yet, when you try to do things on your own is usually when you fail. We only can do so much in our power, because we were created to rely on Him. The two important reasons to live a life of purpose is to Honor God and bless others. Maybe you will be the best glimpse of God that someone may ever see. You don’t know exactly where people have been, and you looking to be a blessing to others allows relationships to happen and creates space to give back to others.<br />
  5010. &nbsp;<br />
  5011. 3. Be influenced by awesome people, books, videos, and podcasts in the meantime.<br />
  5012. We have talked about having mentors, and in this waiting time is a great time to have wise people who speak into your life. Not only can people pour into your life in when feeling like you are alone and stuck, but so can great books. You have probably learned a lot through reading great books in your lifetime and the waiting season is no different. Make a reading list and read books such as <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Rework-Jason-Fried/dp/0307463745 ">Rework</a>, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Daring-Greatly-Courage-Vulnerable-Transforms/dp/1592407331">Daring Greatly</a>, and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Power-Habit-What-Life-Business/dp/1400069289/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&amp;sr=&amp;qid=  ">Power of Habit</a> that will force you to think out of the box, help motivate you, show you how your body works, give you practical and not so practical action steps. Those are the kinds of books and that give you the most momentum. Videos on youtube such as Ted Videos and podcasts that help you see a better perspective are great tools to have in waiting as well. You can learn a lot of things from all these resources and begin applying what you learn from them right now.]]></itunes:summary>
  5013. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5014. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5015. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5016. <itunes:duration>6:31</itunes:duration>
  5017. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5018. <item>
  5019. <title>#026: The Need For Encouragement</title>
  5020. <link>https://asmithblog.com/026-encouragement/</link>
  5021. <pubDate>Tue, 24 Jun 2014 06:01:34 +0000</pubDate>
  5022. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14167</guid>
  5023. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam explains just how important encouragement is.&lt;/p&gt;
  5024. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/026-encouragement/"&gt;#026: The Need For Encouragement&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5025. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<div class="mceTemp"></div>
  5026. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5027. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14167-16" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-26-Encouragement.m4a?_=16" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-26-Encouragement.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-26-Encouragement.m4a</a></audio>
  5028. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5029. <p>In episode 6, we talked about the power of words and just how powerful they really are. You can either use your words to tear people down or you can use them to lift others up. I don’t know about you, but I choose lifting others up. It’s definitely more fun and your words might just be the thing that motivates the other person to see their strengths and go after their dreams.</p>
  5030. <p>Motivation lifts spirits, teaches you how to build others up, creates bonds, strengthens friendships, draws others to you and embodies positivity. Doesn’t that sound like something you want to do? Encouragement is the outward expression of love and positivity. Encouragement is lifting people up through words because you care.</p>
  5031. <p><b><i>Here are three ways to use encouragement in your everyday life and show people how much you really care:</i></b></p>
  5032. <p><b>1. When you don’t know what else to say, use encouragement. </b></p>
  5033. <p>I hear a lot of times that people just don’t know what to say in situations. If you encounter a situation like this, use encouragement to show people just how loved they are. See the best in people and show them, when they might not be able to see it all. Displaying what you notice for them to see will bring them into a better state of mind and help them see their positive traits in a better light.</p>
  5034. <p><b>2. When people are down, use encouragement.</b></p>
  5035. <p>What better way to lift people up than by lifting them up with your words? People have so many great qualities within them, and sometimes they might just need a friend to show them what they are. Encouragement lifts the spirits of others and helps them see the hundreds of good things going on around them and in their lives, instead of the one bad thing that they are focusing on.</p>
  5036. <p><b>3. When people are hesitant or unsure, use encouragement.</b></p>
  5037. <p>Again encouragement is that thing that gives courage when people are feeling unsure. Encouragement builds bridges to people’s fears. It helps them see that they can actually do it and encourages them to take the first step. Of course in encouragement, you aren’t telling lies or just telling them things to bring false hope, In encouragement, you are simply telling the person the best things you see in their life and presenting the positive traits they obtain. When people are in bad situations, they can sometimes only see the negativity going on in their lives, and you can be there to help them begin seeing the positivity all around them.</p>
  5038. <p>Of course we will use positivity over negativity any day of the week, so always use encouragement. The opposite of encouragement, which is discouragement, tears people down and fails people when they need a friend. Of course there are times we may disagree with what people are doing, but discouragement isn’t the answer. In times like these, options are the answer. If you oppose something, you should always bring what you see as a better option to the table. Without options, your words are just negativity. Be a friend and be a light with the life you live out. Always bring positivity and encourage others every step of the way.</p>
  5039. <p><b><i>Go and encourage, today.</i></b></p>
  5040. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/026-encouragement/">#026: The Need For Encouragement</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5041. ]]></content:encoded>
  5042. <enclosure length="2361032" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-26-Encouragement.m4a"/>
  5043. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam explains just how important encouragement is.</itunes:subtitle>
  5044. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5045. &nbsp;<br />
  5046. &nbsp;<br />
  5047. In episode 6, we talked about the power of words and just how powerful they really are. You can either use your words to tear people down or you can use them to lift others up. I don’t know about you, but I choose lifting others up. It’s definitely more fun and your words might just be the thing that motivates the other person to see their strengths and go after their dreams.<br />
  5048. Motivation lifts spirits, teaches you how to build others up, creates bonds, strengthens friendships, draws others to you and embodies positivity. Doesn’t that sound like something you want to do? Encouragement is the outward expression of love and positivity. Encouragement is lifting people up through words because you care.<br />
  5049. Here are three ways to use encouragement in your everyday life and show people how much you really care:<br />
  5050. 1. When you don’t know what else to say, use encouragement. <br />
  5051. I hear a lot of times that people just don’t know what to say in situations. If you encounter a situation like this, use encouragement to show people just how loved they are. See the best in people and show them, when they might not be able to see it all. Displaying what you notice for them to see will bring them into a better state of mind and help them see their positive traits in a better light.<br />
  5052. 2. When people are down, use encouragement.<br />
  5053. What better way to lift people up than by lifting them up with your words? People have so many great qualities within them, and sometimes they might just need a friend to show them what they are. Encouragement lifts the spirits of others and helps them see the hundreds of good things going on around them and in their lives, instead of the one bad thing that they are focusing on.<br />
  5054. 3. When people are hesitant or unsure, use encouragement.<br />
  5055. Again encouragement is that thing that gives courage when people are feeling unsure. Encouragement builds bridges to people’s fears. It helps them see that they can actually do it and encourages them to take the first step. Of course in encouragement, you aren’t telling lies or just telling them things to bring false hope, In encouragement, you are simply telling the person the best things you see in their life and presenting the positive traits they obtain. When people are in bad situations, they can sometimes only see the negativity going on in their lives, and you can be there to help them begin seeing the positivity all around them.<br />
  5056. Of course we will use positivity over negativity any day of the week, so always use encouragement. The opposite of encouragement, which is discouragement, tears people down and fails people when they need a friend. Of course there are times we may disagree with what people are doing, but discouragement isn’t the answer. In times like these, options are the answer. If you oppose something, you should always bring what you see as a better option to the table. Without options, your words are just negativity. Be a friend and be a light with the life you live out. Always bring positivity and encourage others every step of the way.<br />
  5057. Go and encourage, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5058. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5059. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5060. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5061. <itunes:duration>4:48</itunes:duration>
  5062. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5063. <item>
  5064. <title>#025: Forgiveness</title>
  5065. <link>https://asmithblog.com/025-forgiveness/</link>
  5066. <pubDate>Tue, 17 Jun 2014 06:01:19 +0000</pubDate>
  5067. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14097</guid>
  5068. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses just how important forgiveness really is.&lt;/p&gt;
  5069. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/025-forgiveness/"&gt;#025: Forgiveness&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5070. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14097-17" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-25.m4a?_=17" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-25.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-25.m4a</a></audio>
  5071. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5072. <p>Forgiveness is a thing that is hard to do sometimes. We sometimes want to hold onto a grudge and make the person who wronged us pay for what they did to us. If you have ever held onto bitterness though, you know that it is a terrible feeling. You know that it will burden and destroy you. It has a way of creeping in almost undetected until you realize that it has a hold on you. Now, whether it creeped in or you knew that you didn’t want to forgive, there is hope. You can decide right now to let go of the past and hold onto the future. Hope is a beautiful thing. I am not demeaning what you went through, as it probably was a big deal, but let me encourage you to seek out help.</p>
  5073. <p>I would encourage you to search your heart and if there is anything there that you are holding onto that isn’t healthy and that would keep you from pursuing relationships, get rid of it. If that means going to a person that you are holding something against, go to them and straighten it out. If that means that you are finally done once and for all with what happened years ago, then great! When you are able to let go, you are able to move forward. If you are holding onto the past in a negative way and not to learn from, then it is impossible to move forward. Don’t give others the opportunity to hold you back. Forgive, be free and love people. That’s what we are all called to do.</p>
  5074. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/025-forgiveness/">#025: Forgiveness</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5075. ]]></content:encoded>
  5076. <enclosure length="3782788" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-25.m4a"/>
  5077. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses just how important forgiveness really is.</itunes:subtitle>
  5078. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5079. Forgiveness is a thing that is hard to do sometimes. We sometimes want to hold onto a grudge and make the person who wronged us pay for what they did to us. If you have ever held onto bitterness though, you know that it is a terrible feeling. You know that it will burden and destroy you. It has a way of creeping in almost undetected until you realize that it has a hold on you. Now, whether it creeped in or you knew that you didn’t want to forgive, there is hope. You can decide right now to let go of the past and hold onto the future. Hope is a beautiful thing. I am not demeaning what you went through, as it probably was a big deal, but let me encourage you to seek out help.<br />
  5080. I would encourage you to search your heart and if there is anything there that you are holding onto that isn’t healthy and that would keep you from pursuing relationships, get rid of it. If that means going to a person that you are holding something against, go to them and straighten it out. If that means that you are finally done once and for all with what happened years ago, then great! When you are able to let go, you are able to move forward. If you are holding onto the past in a negative way and not to learn from, then it is impossible to move forward. Don’t give others the opportunity to hold you back. Forgive, be free and love people. That’s what we are all called to do.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5081. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5082. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5083. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5084. <itunes:duration>7:42</itunes:duration>
  5085. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5086. <item>
  5087. <title>#024: Giving Is A Principle</title>
  5088. <link>https://asmithblog.com/024-giving-principle/</link>
  5089. <pubDate>Tue, 10 Jun 2014 06:01:15 +0000</pubDate>
  5090. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=14037</guid>
  5091. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you why giving is a principle that works.&lt;/p&gt;
  5092. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/024-giving-principle/"&gt;#024: Giving Is A Principle&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5093. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>&nbsp;</p>
  5094. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-14037-18" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-24.m4a?_=18" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-24.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-24.m4a</a></audio>
  5095. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5096. <p>This episode may not be what first comes to mind when thinking about the idea of giving. Maybe you thought that financial resources were all that you can give, but there is so much more to life than that. You have resources to give right now, no matter where you are at today:</p>
  5097. <p><strong>1. Time</strong><br />
  5098. How can you give more time to others in your day? Time is just as important as money, if not more important. You have some time to give, so make it count. Who can you pour your time into this week to make a difference in? How can you use your time effectively this week to show love? Your time matters.</p>
  5099. <p><strong>2. Emotionally</strong><br />
  5100. Who needs you this week emotionally besides your family? Who do you need to uplift this week who recently went through a tragedy? Who can you listen to this week who needs a friend? Give yourself emotionally to people this week and lift others up through their trials. Be a friend to someone.</p>
  5101. <p><strong>3. Physically</strong><br />
  5102. When I am talking about physical resources, I am talking about work. How can you bless others through your work this week? How can you go above and beyond expectations at your place of work and give more this week?</p>
  5103. <p><strong>4. Financial</strong><br />
  5104. This might be where your mind went first when you saw the title of this podcast. The thing is it doesn’t have to be huge. You can see a need and fill a need with $5 or less. I promise it’s the thought that counts.</p>
  5105. <p>Giving of your resources is a principle that works, because it is always given back to you, but that&#8217;s not why you do it. It works because it blesses other people. Giving changes things. It opens doors into the lives of others, takes the focus off of you, and puts the focus where it belongs; on others.<br />
  5106. <em><strong>Use your time, emotional resources, physical resources and financial resources to bless others this week. </strong></em></p>
  5107. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/024-giving-principle/">#024: Giving Is A Principle</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5108. ]]></content:encoded>
  5109. <enclosure length="2470392" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-24.m4a"/>
  5110. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you why giving is a principle that works.</itunes:subtitle>
  5111. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5112. &nbsp;<br />
  5113. This episode may not be what first comes to mind when thinking about the idea of giving. Maybe you thought that financial resources were all that you can give, but there is so much more to life than that. You have resources to give right now, no matter where you are at today:<br />
  5114. 1. Time<br />
  5115. How can you give more time to others in your day? Time is just as important as money, if not more important. You have some time to give, so make it count. Who can you pour your time into this week to make a difference in? How can you use your time effectively this week to show love? Your time matters.<br />
  5116. 2. Emotionally<br />
  5117. Who needs you this week emotionally besides your family? Who do you need to uplift this week who recently went through a tragedy? Who can you listen to this week who needs a friend? Give yourself emotionally to people this week and lift others up through their trials. Be a friend to someone.<br />
  5118. 3. Physically<br />
  5119. When I am talking about physical resources, I am talking about work. How can you bless others through your work this week? How can you go above and beyond expectations at your place of work and give more this week?<br />
  5120. 4. Financial<br />
  5121. This might be where your mind went first when you saw the title of this podcast. The thing is it doesn’t have to be huge. You can see a need and fill a need with $5 or less. I promise it’s the thought that counts.<br />
  5122. Giving of your resources is a principle that works, because it is always given back to you, but that&#8217;s not why you do it. It works because it blesses other people. Giving changes things. It opens doors into the lives of others, takes the focus off of you, and puts the focus where it belongs; on others.<br />
  5123. Use your time, emotional resources, physical resources and financial resources to bless others this week. <br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5124. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5125. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5126. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5127. <itunes:duration>5:02</itunes:duration>
  5128. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5129. <item>
  5130. <title>#023: Communicate More Effectively</title>
  5131. <link>https://asmithblog.com/023-communicate-effectively/</link>
  5132. <pubDate>Tue, 03 Jun 2014 06:01:39 +0000</pubDate>
  5133. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://asmithblog.com/?p=13957</guid>
  5134. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows you how you can communicate more effectively. &lt;/p&gt;
  5135. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/023-communicate-effectively/"&gt;#023: Communicate More Effectively&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5136. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13957-19" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-23.m4a?_=19" /><a href="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-23.m4a">http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-23.m4a</a></audio>
  5137. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5138. <p>How many times have you thought that you communicated what you needed to and it ended up that the person you thought you communicated the details to misunderstood you? Either you didn’t say it right, the person on the receiving end didn’t listen well or the importance of it wasn’t communicated and it just didn’t end up being done. Whatever the case may be, we have all been there. We have all had instances in which we could have communicated better or should have listened better to another person.</p>
  5139. <p>Communication is a two way street. Communication in relationships is one of the most important things in it, because it is where we release what we need in that relationship. It is a way to openly and honestly give feedback as to where we are and what we need. It is a lifeline to get others to take note and to express these feelings in the right words. Communication done correctly is well thought out and received in a good way.</p>
  5140. <p>Yes, communication is really this important. Here are the people who you communicate with the most and how you can communicate more effectively to each of them:</p>
  5141. <p><strong>1. Your Spouse and Children</strong></p>
  5142. <p>These are who you impact the most in your daily life. These are the people you as a spouse are most responsible for. Whether we realize it or not, even our body language, our silence, the joy that we bring and the words we speak all play into our communication as a whole. Your spouse and children look to you for direction and even look forward to you communicating with them. Where would you be if you or your spouse didn’t talk to each other? You both would be clueless, right? Without communication, there is no updates to the status of your relationships. Even as an onlooker from the outside, you can tell where relationships are at through not only verbal communication, but also body language. Everything speaks volumes within a hug and a kiss or silence and a cold shoulder. Your communication leaves wakes in the atmosphere you bring into a room. Make it memorable for all the right reasons. Love your family with everything you have, including the communication that you give.</p>
  5143. <p><strong>2. Your Boss and Coworkers</strong></p>
  5144. <p>In a work environment, communication is vitally important as well. It causes the work environment to run more smoothly or when communication isn’t where it should be, people aren’t on the same page. When communication is bad here, things aren’t running smoothly and productivity comes to a halt. Communication brings honesty and vulnerability to the forefront. One of the best ways to deal with your bosses is to communicate to them where you are at in your projects and your plan, especially if you work for micromanagers. This way everyone is happy. You are given room to breathe and work and your boss is happy because they know what is going on and what you are doing with your time. With coworkers, it is important to communicate with them because you are all playing for the same team. When you communicate with them, everyone is on the same page and you can teach each other things to help each other become better. Another way that everyone can communicate with each other at work is about their lives outside of work. If all you talk about is work with each other, then that is the depth of the relationship. But when you talk about more than work, these relationships will flourish and the bond between each other will grow even more.</p>
  5145. <p><strong>3. Your Friends</strong></p>
  5146. <p>When life begins to happen, relationships with friends sometimes dwindle. These friendships go away because communication stops, but it doesn’t have to. You can  call each other up, put dinner on the calendar once a month so you make sure it happens, shoot each other texts, make out of the blue phone calls, or write each other hand written letters. There are so many ways to keep the communication alive with these friends and all you have to do is commit. Commit to one way to communicate with friends to keep the relationship alive. Communicating with friends not only keeps those relationships alive, but it allows you to communicate with people outside of your direct circle. Friends usually have a different perspective than those that you hear from everyday. Friends are like a breath of fresh air and we all need these relationships to stay close to us through the good times and the bad.</p>
  5147. <p><em><strong>Begin with implementing these points in your relationships at home, at work and with friends to communicate more effectively and start seeing better results, today.  </strong></em></p>
  5148. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/023-communicate-effectively/">#023: Communicate More Effectively</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5149. ]]></content:encoded>
  5150. <enclosure length="3017356" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Episode-23.m4a"/>
  5151. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows you how you can communicate more effectively.</itunes:subtitle>
  5152. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5153. How many times have you thought that you communicated what you needed to and it ended up that the person you thought you communicated the details to misunderstood you? Either you didn’t say it right, the person on the receiving end didn’t listen well or the importance of it wasn’t communicated and it just didn’t end up being done. Whatever the case may be, we have all been there. We have all had instances in which we could have communicated better or should have listened better to another person.<br />
  5154. Communication is a two way street. Communication in relationships is one of the most important things in it, because it is where we release what we need in that relationship. It is a way to openly and honestly give feedback as to where we are and what we need. It is a lifeline to get others to take note and to express these feelings in the right words. Communication done correctly is well thought out and received in a good way.<br />
  5155. Yes, communication is really this important. Here are the people who you communicate with the most and how you can communicate more effectively to each of them:<br />
  5156. 1. Your Spouse and Children<br />
  5157. These are who you impact the most in your daily life. These are the people you as a spouse are most responsible for. Whether we realize it or not, even our body language, our silence, the joy that we bring and the words we speak all play into our communication as a whole. Your spouse and children look to you for direction and even look forward to you communicating with them. Where would you be if you or your spouse didn’t talk to each other? You both would be clueless, right? Without communication, there is no updates to the status of your relationships. Even as an onlooker from the outside, you can tell where relationships are at through not only verbal communication, but also body language. Everything speaks volumes within a hug and a kiss or silence and a cold shoulder. Your communication leaves wakes in the atmosphere you bring into a room. Make it memorable for all the right reasons. Love your family with everything you have, including the communication that you give.<br />
  5158. 2. Your Boss and Coworkers<br />
  5159. In a work environment, communication is vitally important as well. It causes the work environment to run more smoothly or when communication isn’t where it should be, people aren’t on the same page. When communication is bad here, things aren’t running smoothly and productivity comes to a halt. Communication brings honesty and vulnerability to the forefront. One of the best ways to deal with your bosses is to communicate to them where you are at in your projects and your plan, especially if you work for micromanagers. This way everyone is happy. You are given room to breathe and work and your boss is happy because they know what is going on and what you are doing with your time. With coworkers, it is important to communicate with them because you are all playing for the same team. When you communicate with them, everyone is on the same page and you can teach each other things to help each other become better. Another way that everyone can communicate with each other at work is about their lives outside of work. If all you talk about is work with each other, then that is the depth of the relationship. But when you talk about more than work, these relationships will flourish and the bond between each other will grow even more.<br />
  5160. 3. Your Friends<br />
  5161. When life begins to happen, relationships with friends sometimes dwindle. These friendships go away because communication stops, but it doesn’t have to. You can  call each other up, put dinner on the calendar once a month so you make sure it happens, shoot each other texts, make out of the blue phone calls, or write each other hand written letters. There are so many ways to keep the communication alive with these friends and all you have to do is commit. Commit to one way to communicate with friends to keep the relationship alive.]]></itunes:summary>
  5162. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5163. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5164. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5165. <itunes:duration>6:09</itunes:duration>
  5166. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5167. <item>
  5168. <title>#022: Be Available</title>
  5169. <link>https://asmithblog.com/022-available/</link>
  5170. <pubDate>Tue, 27 May 2014 06:01:47 +0000</pubDate>
  5171. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13897</guid>
  5172. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam gives you four ways to be available.&lt;/p&gt;
  5173. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/022-available/"&gt;#022: Be Available&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5174. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13897-20" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-22.m4a?_=20" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-22.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-22.m4a</a></audio>
  5175. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5176. <blockquote><p>&nbsp;</p></blockquote>
  5177. <p>Being available is the most important thing you can be for others. Why? Because people need you more than you could ever imagine. The problem is we all get busy and stuck in our routines without ever looking outside our own issues. We get lost in our daily activities and the idea of being there to help others isn’t one of our main priorities. To live a life of purpose, this has to change.</p>
  5178. <p><em>Here are four ways to be available right now:</em></p>
  5179. <p><strong>1. Realize that when you make a difference in the lives of others, it comes back to you and it is passed on.</strong> It’s contagious! When you do something, it doesn’t just stop with the person you are doing it for. It always finds it way back to you and when you do something for someone else, it will be passed on to others as well.</p>
  5180. <p><strong>2. Fill yourself up with so much, that you have to give it away.</strong> Read, study and listen. All of these things will fill you up with information, so that you will be ready to give it away. When you hold something so good in that it has to come out, it will bless others.</p>
  5181. <p><strong>3. Get rid of the unnecessary in your schedule.</strong> We have covered this point before in a previous episode, but it is really that important. If it has to do with people it is necessary, but anything that doesn’t, get rid of it. This way you open yourself up to make an even bigger impact in the lives of others.</p>
  5182. <p><strong>4. Be open to change.</strong> If you are at a point where you have things in your life that need to change, you will have to be open to change to move forward. Don’t be someone that is stuck in their ways and stuck in their ways. Move ahead when you are open to good change in your life.</p>
  5183. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5184. <p><em><strong>Do these four things, be available and make a bigger difference, today.</strong></em></p>
  5185. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/022-available/">#022: Be Available</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5186. ]]></content:encoded>
  5187. <enclosure length="2713432" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-22.m4a"/>
  5188. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam gives you four ways to be available.</itunes:subtitle>
  5189. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5190. &nbsp;<br />
  5191. Being available is the most important thing you can be for others. Why? Because people need you more than you could ever imagine. The problem is we all get busy and stuck in our routines without ever looking outside our own issues. We get lost in our daily activities and the idea of being there to help others isn’t one of our main priorities. To live a life of purpose, this has to change.<br />
  5192. Here are four ways to be available right now:<br />
  5193. 1. Realize that when you make a difference in the lives of others, it comes back to you and it is passed on. It’s contagious! When you do something, it doesn’t just stop with the person you are doing it for. It always finds it way back to you and when you do something for someone else, it will be passed on to others as well.<br />
  5194. 2. Fill yourself up with so much, that you have to give it away. Read, study and listen. All of these things will fill you up with information, so that you will be ready to give it away. When you hold something so good in that it has to come out, it will bless others.<br />
  5195. 3. Get rid of the unnecessary in your schedule. We have covered this point before in a previous episode, but it is really that important. If it has to do with people it is necessary, but anything that doesn’t, get rid of it. This way you open yourself up to make an even bigger impact in the lives of others.<br />
  5196. 4. Be open to change. If you are at a point where you have things in your life that need to change, you will have to be open to change to move forward. Don’t be someone that is stuck in their ways and stuck in their ways. Move ahead when you are open to good change in your life.<br />
  5197. &nbsp;<br />
  5198. Do these four things, be available and make a bigger difference, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5199. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5200. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5201. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5202. <itunes:duration>5:31</itunes:duration>
  5203. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5204. <item>
  5205. <title>#021: You Need A Mentor</title>
  5206. <link>https://asmithblog.com/021-you-need-mentor/</link>
  5207. <pubDate>Tue, 20 May 2014 06:05:51 +0000</pubDate>
  5208. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13799</guid>
  5209. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you why you need a mentor. &lt;/p&gt;
  5210. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/021-you-need-mentor/"&gt;#021: You Need A Mentor&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5211. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13799-21" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-21.m4a?_=21" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-21.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-21.m4a</a></audio>
  5212. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5213. <blockquote>
  5214. <p style="text-align: center;"><em><strong>The definition of a mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. </strong></em></p>
  5215. </blockquote>
  5216. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5217. <p><em>Being A Mentor</em></p>
  5218. <p>I like how it says “and often younger person”, because it doesn’t have to be. Your experience trumps age every time. So, if your excuse has been that you have been too young to become a mentor, my challenge to you would be to look at your passions and see where you can help others in specific areas of their own lives that you excel in. You can live tons of life and still be young if you pursue life to the fullest. Most people have valuable information within them waiting to be unleashed and their own fears of self-doubt begin to plague them enough to keep quiet. When we second guess our talents and gifts, we begin to give the upper hand to living a mediocre life. This keeps us holding in valuable information and keeps others going down the path most traveled; mediocrity. The thing is that most people are ok with living out this lifestyle. Well, you don’t have to be.</p>
  5219. <p><em>Finding A Mentor</em></p>
  5220. <p>The first realization in the mentoring process is that you don’t have all the answers. There, I said it. Once you realize this, you are ready for a mentor. You can’t do life well while taking it on all alone. You just can&#8217;t. I have tried to do this many times before and have learned that this isn’t a possibility if you want to live a life of greatness. When it comes to accountability, you need people in your life who have already been where you are at. You need mentors who have seen what you have seen. You need accountability from trusted mentors that bring motivation and direction along with these relationships. When you allow for these mentors to speak life into you, your life begins to flourish.</p>
  5221. <p>You can begin leading better today by opening up your life and being open to mentoring. For the mentoring system to work efficiently, you need to be open and honest, to bring about helpful guidance. Pride needs to be pushed aside and the desire to become better has to be at the forefront. I mean, you wouldn’t be reading this, listening to the podcast or seeking out mentors if you did not wish to become better, right? You need this inside advantage that mentoring gives to help you through life. Again, doing life on your own is single-minded. Why wouldn’t you take the opportunity to have multiple great minds bringing knowledge and experience from the past and the present and putting it to work?</p>
  5222. <p><em>So, where do you begin to actually make this happen in your own life?</em></p>
  5223. <p>Before you get started and know exactly what you need, you should begin with a self assessment. Where are you really at? What do you really need help with? This way, you know how to select the mentors that you need in your life. There isn’t one person who knows everything you need. If you need help with your finances, then select a person who can give wisdom in the area of finances. If you need help spiritually, select a mentor who lives a deep, spiritual life. If you need help with your marriage, be mentored by someone who lives the ideal marriage. If you need help with your business, be consulted by someone who runs their business with sound principles and produces results. Of course this isn’t difficult to figure out, but it is amazing how many people become complacent and don’t put these ideals into place in their own lives. I am a big believer in the fact that people live out their lives showing their fruits. Pay attention to what people live out well and those are the people that you will want speaking into your life.</p>
  5224. <p>Now that you have done this, the mentoring process first takes someone who cares about making a difference. And then it requires you to know what you need help with. For me, I will always have a marriage mentor. I refuse to go back to living with complacency in my marriage. I literally would rather fail in any other area, but that area. That is how serious I feel marriage is. It took me almost losing it to realize it, though. Don’t let that happen to you. Put the necessary safeguards in your life today to prevent complacency. Achieve greatness not only in your marriage, but in every other area of life, too. How? Let’s look at where you are.</p>
  5225. <blockquote><p><strong><em>Rate yourself with a Poor, Good, Better or Best in the following areas:</em></strong></p>
  5226. <p>Marriage &#8211; This one relationship dicates more in your life than any other relationship.</p>
  5227. <p>Other Relationships &#8211; They get you where you want to be.</p>
  5228. <p>Career &#8211; This is how you extend your influence even further.</p>
  5229. <p>Financial &#8211; Make more and bless others by giving more away.</p>
  5230. <p>Spiritual &#8211; Live a life of purpose and use sound principles that work repeatedly.</p>
  5231. <p>Physical &#8211; Live healthy so you can give more for a longer period of time.</p></blockquote>
  5232. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5233. <p>How did this turn out for you? Even if this didn’t turn out exactly how you wanted it to, you now know where you are and we can now move forward.  The next step in finding a mentor is to begin asking. That&#8217;s it. Most people will be flattered that you are asking them and will probably say, &#8220;Yes.&#8221; If they don&#8217;t because they have a busy schedule, don&#8217;t be discouraged. You know more than one person that you would want to speak into your life.<em> Just ask.</em></p>
  5234. <p>A little about my mentoring story. My life needed a mentor and still does. You see, it doesn’t stop at some magical point where you have it all together. Life doesn’t happen that way. Life happens in baby steps. You begin along your journey with curiosity and you see ideas you want to discover and maybe one day will implement in your own life. You see people who have achieved so much and you wonder how they got there, but currently you are stuck in the daily grind. You pick up learning moments along the way in the middle of your busyness, seeing people who you admire and you decide to take some valuable lessons and attributes from them. If you are smart, you will neglect the bad qualities they have and continue to learn from people who have embraced a life of greatness. But until then, you find yourself in moments of discovery.</p>
  5235. <p>You like to assess the environment around you, taking things in and growing with every chance you get. Mentors are there for that. They help you grow, show you the way and are there not only to direct you, but to celebrate with you. Don’t you want your own cheering section? Life is best done best with guidance and motivation. Wise counsel helps you sift through the noise and find your “sweet spot”. Mentors help you find your momentum and they help you see potential in your area(s) of greatness. This is the easiest way you will begin finding success in your own life through a mentor. Sometimes you need someone else close to you to recognize your strengths within. Yes there are strength tests that can identify these strengths, and I have personally taken a lot of them, but it is discussion between two or more people that creates direction. Talking things out not only brings clarity, but it reduces stress. Getting it out helps every area of life.</p>
  5236. <p>Maybe you are at a point in life where you don’t feel that you need mentoring, but I can guarantee people who have been right where you are before can and will increase your chances of success. This is something to look for in your mentor(s)- a life full of wisdom to impart on your life. You don’t have to do life alone. Even the greatest people we look up to have had mentors. It is one of the reasons they are where they are at today.</p>
  5237. <p><em><strong>You need a mentor.</strong></em></p>
  5238. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/021-you-need-mentor/">#021: You Need A Mentor</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5239. ]]></content:encoded>
  5240. <enclosure length="6602676" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-21.m4a"/>
  5241. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you why you need a mentor.</itunes:subtitle>
  5242. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5243. <br />
  5244. The definition of a mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. <br />
  5245. <br />
  5246. &nbsp;<br />
  5247. Being A Mentor<br />
  5248. I like how it says “and often younger person”, because it doesn’t have to be. Your experience trumps age every time. So, if your excuse has been that you have been too young to become a mentor, my challenge to you would be to look at your passions and see where you can help others in specific areas of their own lives that you excel in. You can live tons of life and still be young if you pursue life to the fullest. Most people have valuable information within them waiting to be unleashed and their own fears of self-doubt begin to plague them enough to keep quiet. When we second guess our talents and gifts, we begin to give the upper hand to living a mediocre life. This keeps us holding in valuable information and keeps others going down the path most traveled; mediocrity. The thing is that most people are ok with living out this lifestyle. Well, you don’t have to be.<br />
  5249. Finding A Mentor<br />
  5250. The first realization in the mentoring process is that you don’t have all the answers. There, I said it. Once you realize this, you are ready for a mentor. You can’t do life well while taking it on all alone. You just can&#8217;t. I have tried to do this many times before and have learned that this isn’t a possibility if you want to live a life of greatness. When it comes to accountability, you need people in your life who have already been where you are at. You need mentors who have seen what you have seen. You need accountability from trusted mentors that bring motivation and direction along with these relationships. When you allow for these mentors to speak life into you, your life begins to flourish.<br />
  5251. You can begin leading better today by opening up your life and being open to mentoring. For the mentoring system to work efficiently, you need to be open and honest, to bring about helpful guidance. Pride needs to be pushed aside and the desire to become better has to be at the forefront. I mean, you wouldn’t be reading this, listening to the podcast or seeking out mentors if you did not wish to become better, right? You need this inside advantage that mentoring gives to help you through life. Again, doing life on your own is single-minded. Why wouldn’t you take the opportunity to have multiple great minds bringing knowledge and experience from the past and the present and putting it to work?<br />
  5252. So, where do you begin to actually make this happen in your own life?<br />
  5253. Before you get started and know exactly what you need, you should begin with a self assessment. Where are you really at? What do you really need help with? This way, you know how to select the mentors that you need in your life. There isn’t one person who knows everything you need. If you need help with your finances, then select a person who can give wisdom in the area of finances. If you need help spiritually, select a mentor who lives a deep, spiritual life. If you need help with your marriage, be mentored by someone who lives the ideal marriage. If you need help with your business, be consulted by someone who runs their business with sound principles and produces results. Of course this isn’t difficult to figure out, but it is amazing how many people become complacent and don’t put these ideals into place in their own lives. I am a big believer in the fact that people live out their lives showing their fruits. Pay attention to what people live out well and those are the people that you will want speaking into your life.<br />
  5254. Now that you have done this, the mentoring process first takes someone who cares about making a difference. And then it requires you to know what you need help with. For me, I will always have a marriage mentor. I refuse to go back to living with complacency in my marriage. I literally would rather fail in any other area, but that area.]]></itunes:summary>
  5255. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5256. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5257. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5258. <itunes:duration>13:27</itunes:duration>
  5259. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5260. <item>
  5261. <title>#020: Take Permission</title>
  5262. <link>https://asmithblog.com/020-take-permission/</link>
  5263. <pubDate>Tue, 13 May 2014 06:01:23 +0000</pubDate>
  5264. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13663</guid>
  5265. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam tells you why you need to take permission. &lt;/p&gt;
  5266. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/020-take-permission/"&gt;#020: Take Permission&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5267. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13663-22" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-20.m4a?_=22" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-20.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-20.m4a</a></audio>
  5268. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5269. <p>A lot of times people aren’t accomplishing more because they aren’t taking permission. Stepping out and taking permission to do what you need to do to be who you want to be is one of the scariest things you will ever do. Why? Because it’s something you haven’t done before, it takes courage and it makes you better.</p>
  5270. <p><em>Here are 3 specific things that taking permission actually does for you:</em></p>
  5271. <p><strong>1. It takes care of fear.</strong><br />
  5272. Before we step out and do something, our minds can play out scenarios in our heads, and it usually the worst-case scenarios. Once we step out it takes care of all that. Fear goes to the side and the more we step out, the more comfortable we become with it. Anytime fear comes up, step out in faith and immediately conquer it. That’s what starting does for you. It takes care of over-thinking it and says, “I’m in.”.</p>
  5273. <p><strong>2. It gives you authority.</strong><br />
  5274. Once you take permission to do something, there is nobody that can take that away from you. You have now taken a huge step. You are saying that whether or not you are fully ready for it, you’re going for it. That’s the thing… If you wait for when you are fully ready for something, you will never go after it. Authority comes when you step out, no matter where you are at in the process.</p>
  5275. <p><strong>3. It forces you to commit.</strong><br />
  5276. There have been a few times where I have feared the unknown, but I stepped out anyways. Maybe you know what I am talking about. It forced me to commit before scaring myself out of it. Sometimes this is the very thing we need. Committing before chickening out. When you commit to something, the first step is done and perseverance has begun. You can’t strengthen perseverance, dedication and will until you are given a chance to. Taking permission is your first step in the journey and helps instill other qualities along the way.</p>
  5277. <p>To review this, taking permission takes care of fear, gives you authority and forces you to commit. Maybe you have a situation where you need to apply taking permission right now. You have been afraid to take the first step and you just need to begin. You have had this desire burning in your heart and you need to do something with it. You need to take the first step because you need to do something. Let me encourage you to step out, move on and keep going in the process. We all have something to give, but we have to take the first step. Go and take the first step, today.</p>
  5278. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/020-take-permission/">#020: Take Permission</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5279. ]]></content:encoded>
  5280. <enclosure length="2543388" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-20.m4a"/>
  5281. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam tells you why you need to take permission.</itunes:subtitle>
  5282. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[&nbsp;<br />
  5283. A lot of times people aren’t accomplishing more because they aren’t taking permission. Stepping out and taking permission to do what you need to do to be who you want to be is one of the scariest things you will ever do. Why? Because it’s something you haven’t done before, it takes courage and it makes you better.<br />
  5284. Here are 3 specific things that taking permission actually does for you:<br />
  5285. 1. It takes care of fear.<br />
  5286. Before we step out and do something, our minds can play out scenarios in our heads, and it usually the worst-case scenarios. Once we step out it takes care of all that. Fear goes to the side and the more we step out, the more comfortable we become with it. Anytime fear comes up, step out in faith and immediately conquer it. That’s what starting does for you. It takes care of over-thinking it and says, “I’m in.”.<br />
  5287. 2. It gives you authority.<br />
  5288. Once you take permission to do something, there is nobody that can take that away from you. You have now taken a huge step. You are saying that whether or not you are fully ready for it, you’re going for it. That’s the thing… If you wait for when you are fully ready for something, you will never go after it. Authority comes when you step out, no matter where you are at in the process.<br />
  5289. 3. It forces you to commit.<br />
  5290. There have been a few times where I have feared the unknown, but I stepped out anyways. Maybe you know what I am talking about. It forced me to commit before scaring myself out of it. Sometimes this is the very thing we need. Committing before chickening out. When you commit to something, the first step is done and perseverance has begun. You can’t strengthen perseverance, dedication and will until you are given a chance to. Taking permission is your first step in the journey and helps instill other qualities along the way.<br />
  5291. To review this, taking permission takes care of fear, gives you authority and forces you to commit. Maybe you have a situation where you need to apply taking permission right now. You have been afraid to take the first step and you just need to begin. You have had this desire burning in your heart and you need to do something with it. You need to take the first step because you need to do something. Let me encourage you to step out, move on and keep going in the process. We all have something to give, but we have to take the first step. Go and take the first step, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5292. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5293. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5294. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5295. <itunes:duration>5:11</itunes:duration>
  5296. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5297. <item>
  5298. <title>#019: Create More Momentum</title>
  5299. <link>https://asmithblog.com/019-create-more-momentum/</link>
  5300. <pubDate>Tue, 06 May 2014 06:01:03 +0000</pubDate>
  5301. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13614</guid>
  5302. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the best ways to create momentum in your life. &lt;/p&gt;
  5303. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/019-create-more-momentum/"&gt;#019: Create More Momentum&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5304. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13614-23" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-19.m4a?_=23" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-19.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-19.m4a</a></audio><br />
  5305. Being in rut is an awful feeling. Going after things and never seeing an end to it is frustrating to no end. When this happens we spend our time trying to make one thing work when it seems everything in life is working against making it happen. This squanders momentum. We need building blocks, not road blocks to make momentum work. We all need momentum in our lives, because it gives us more confidence.</p>
  5306. <p><em>Here are 3 ways to create more momentum in your life right now:</em></p>
  5307. <p><strong>1. Create more “Wins”.</strong></p>
  5308. <p>These will act as building blocks that will stack on top of each other. When life brings you more progress, it is easier to reach out and try new things. When you have a lot of losses, timidity ensues and trying new things looks daunting. Nothing will deflate confidence like a consistent stream of losses in a row. Stepping out isn’t easy when you don’t have momentum. It starts mentally. Do more that brings momentum into your life.</p>
  5309. <p><strong>2. Create realistic deadlines and goals for yourself.</strong></p>
  5310. <p>To get things done, set deadlines for yourself to help you finish. But, one of the most important aspects here is to first set realistic expectations for yourself to not find yourself defeated before you even begin. Once you do this, the most important thing to do is to stick to your plan. So often, these big, lofty dreams intimidate us and we find ourselves hiding from them. Don’t let this happen. Bite your goals off into daily chunks that will help you not only create more wins, but will it decrease stress and will create momentum.</p>
  5311. <p><strong>3. Create a team.</strong></p>
  5312. <p>Like-minded individuals form cohesiveness and pushes ahead to achieve more. Whether this means hiring virtual assistants, forming a better team at work that helps each other accomplish more, or getting your family more on board to support you emotionally and with your goals physically, getting others on board helps with achieving more. The support alone moves you to do more well. Create a team to help with moving you forward.</p>
  5313. <p>In other words, confidence and creation shapes momentum. The more you can do well, the better your outcomes will be. Confidence and momentum work well together because you will eventually venture out to try new things and succeed at them.</p>
  5314. <p><em><strong>How do you create momentum in your own life?</strong></em></p>
  5315. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/019-create-more-momentum/">#019: Create More Momentum</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5316. ]]></content:encoded>
  5317. <enclosure length="3030728" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Episode-19.m4a"/>
  5318. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the best ways to create momentum in your life.</itunes:subtitle>
  5319. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[Being in rut is an awful feeling. Going after things and never seeing an end to it is frustrating to no end. When this happens we spend our time trying to make one thing work when it seems everything in life is working against making it happen. This squanders momentum. We need building blocks, not road blocks to make momentum work. We all need momentum in our lives, because it gives us more confidence.<br />
  5320. Here are 3 ways to create more momentum in your life right now:<br />
  5321. 1. Create more “Wins”.<br />
  5322. These will act as building blocks that will stack on top of each other. When life brings you more progress, it is easier to reach out and try new things. When you have a lot of losses, timidity ensues and trying new things looks daunting. Nothing will deflate confidence like a consistent stream of losses in a row. Stepping out isn’t easy when you don’t have momentum. It starts mentally. Do more that brings momentum into your life.<br />
  5323. 2. Create realistic deadlines and goals for yourself.<br />
  5324. To get things done, set deadlines for yourself to help you finish. But, one of the most important aspects here is to first set realistic expectations for yourself to not find yourself defeated before you even begin. Once you do this, the most important thing to do is to stick to your plan. So often, these big, lofty dreams intimidate us and we find ourselves hiding from them. Don’t let this happen. Bite your goals off into daily chunks that will help you not only create more wins, but will it decrease stress and will create momentum.<br />
  5325. 3. Create a team.<br />
  5326. Like-minded individuals form cohesiveness and pushes ahead to achieve more. Whether this means hiring virtual assistants, forming a better team at work that helps each other accomplish more, or getting your family more on board to support you emotionally and with your goals physically, getting others on board helps with achieving more. The support alone moves you to do more well. Create a team to help with moving you forward.<br />
  5327. In other words, confidence and creation shapes momentum. The more you can do well, the better your outcomes will be. Confidence and momentum work well together because you will eventually venture out to try new things and succeed at them.<br />
  5328. How do you create momentum in your own life?<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5329. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5330. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5331. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5332. <itunes:duration>6:10</itunes:duration>
  5333. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5334. <item>
  5335. <title>#018: Know What Is In Your Control</title>
  5336. <link>https://asmithblog.com/know-what-your-control/</link>
  5337. <pubDate>Tue, 29 Apr 2014 06:01:17 +0000</pubDate>
  5338. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13531</guid>
  5339. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam shows you four things that are within your control in every situation. Know what is in your control.&lt;/p&gt;
  5340. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/know-what-your-control/"&gt;#018: Know What Is In Your Control&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5341. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5342. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5343. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13531-24" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-18.m4a?_=24" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-18.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-18.m4a</a></audio>
  5344. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5345. <p>How many times have you hit walls during your journey and wanted to quit? Maybe you are there now. But before you are stopped in your tracks, take a moment to actually see what you can control in the situation you are in and have a different perspective on it.</p>
  5346. <p>Now, you might be in a situation that is out of your control, but I am sure there is one thing out of this podcast you can apply to your life and see things differently. Here are four things that are well in your control that you need to evaluate and move forward:</p>
  5347. <p><em><strong>1. Your attitude.</strong></em><br />
  5348. If you are going through something rough right now, I can guarantee that the last thing you want to hear is that you can control your attitude. Sometimes we can convince ourselves that having a bad attitude towards things and people will somehow “show them”.</p>
  5349. <p><em><strong>2. Your outlook on life.</strong></em><br />
  5350. Things aren’t usually as bad as you see them. You can change your perspective by seeing your current circumstances in a different light. Take a moment to use positivity in each area of life that you could use more of it in. Cut the negativity and think on what brings joy.</p>
  5351. <p><em><strong>3. What you consume.</strong></em><br />
  5352. When you feed yourself with junk, that is usually what ends up consuming you and is spilled out onto others. We have talked about it in a previous episode, but it really is that important. I also believe that we can never be reminded of this simple truth enough. Good in, good out. Junk in, junk out. Start filling up with more positive, life-building thoughts and begin making a bigger difference.</p>
  5353. <p><em><strong>4. The impact you make in the lives of others.</strong></em><br />
  5354. You were put here to make a difference. Now, act like it. I am convinced you can do more for other people no matter what you are doing right now. This is what really matters.</p>
  5355. <p><em><strong>So, how are you doing in these four areas? Maybe you are doing great in all of them or maybe the opposite. Maybe you need to apply one or all of these to your life and begin to see life differently. Know what is in your control, today.</strong></em></p>
  5356. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/know-what-your-control/">#018: Know What Is In Your Control</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5357. ]]></content:encoded>
  5358. <enclosure length="2798480" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-18.m4a"/>
  5359. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam shows you four things that are within your control in every situation. Know what is in your control.</itunes:subtitle>
  5360. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5361. &nbsp;<br />
  5362. &nbsp;<br />
  5363. How many times have you hit walls during your journey and wanted to quit? Maybe you are there now. But before you are stopped in your tracks, take a moment to actually see what you can control in the situation you are in and have a different perspective on it.<br />
  5364. Now, you might be in a situation that is out of your control, but I am sure there is one thing out of this podcast you can apply to your life and see things differently. Here are four things that are well in your control that you need to evaluate and move forward:<br />
  5365. 1. Your attitude.<br />
  5366. If you are going through something rough right now, I can guarantee that the last thing you want to hear is that you can control your attitude. Sometimes we can convince ourselves that having a bad attitude towards things and people will somehow “show them”.<br />
  5367. 2. Your outlook on life.<br />
  5368. Things aren’t usually as bad as you see them. You can change your perspective by seeing your current circumstances in a different light. Take a moment to use positivity in each area of life that you could use more of it in. Cut the negativity and think on what brings joy.<br />
  5369. 3. What you consume.<br />
  5370. When you feed yourself with junk, that is usually what ends up consuming you and is spilled out onto others. We have talked about it in a previous episode, but it really is that important. I also believe that we can never be reminded of this simple truth enough. Good in, good out. Junk in, junk out. Start filling up with more positive, life-building thoughts and begin making a bigger difference.<br />
  5371. 4. The impact you make in the lives of others.<br />
  5372. You were put here to make a difference. Now, act like it. I am convinced you can do more for other people no matter what you are doing right now. This is what really matters.<br />
  5373. So, how are you doing in these four areas? Maybe you are doing great in all of them or maybe the opposite. Maybe you need to apply one or all of these to your life and begin to see life differently. Know what is in your control, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5374. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5375. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5376. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5377. <itunes:duration>5:42</itunes:duration>
  5378. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5379. <item>
  5380. <title>#017: Take Creativity To Your Life</title>
  5381. <link>https://asmithblog.com/take-creativity-your-life/</link>
  5382. <pubDate>Tue, 22 Apr 2014 06:01:42 +0000</pubDate>
  5383. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13442</guid>
  5384. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the three areas of your life that you need more creativity in. Take creativity to your life, today.&lt;/p&gt;
  5385. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/take-creativity-your-life/"&gt;#017: Take Creativity To Your Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5386. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5387. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5388. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13442-25" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-17.m4a?_=25" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-17.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-17.m4a</a></audio>
  5389. <p>Are you feeling stuck? Like Life is the same all the time? Have you been doing the same thing for quite some time and life just isn’t giving you the results that you want? It is probably time for a change. It is time to implement creativity into your life and begin doing something different.</p>
  5390. <p>Here are 3 areas to look at and think about how you can become more creative with them starting today.</p>
  5391. <p><strong>1. The Two Most Important Priorities.</strong></p>
  5392. <p>Relationships and Work. You have to spend time with your family if you want it to be a good relationship. Bring some creativity to the everyday to make life extraordinary, instead of ordinary. Maybe you don’t want to do movie night every single night, and it is time to change it up a bit. It is time to get out of your rut, because the people around you need you. It is time to wake up a bit earlier to get the things done that you need to. Some of the best advice I have ever received is to go to sleep when my wife does. When I stayed up later than my wife there was a disconnect, because I was staying up late and waking up early and consumed myself with work. This left a huge disconnect! When I learned to get more creative with my schedule, my wife appreciated it and our relationship grew! This way the work that I need to get done is taken care of and my family is to. Time management and prioritizing come into huge importance.</p>
  5393. <p>Friendships are also important in life. Cherish them and hold on to them. You impact others through relationships and in return create friendships along the way. Hold on to your friendships and grow together through life.</p>
  5394. <p><strong>2. Your Huge Dreams</strong></p>
  5395. <p>Most of us live busy lives, but we still have dreams. that’s the thing, though. Busy can no longer be an excuse. Busy is everyone’s excuse and you are better than that. Use creativity to make your dreams happen. Creativity creates a freshness to the way you are doing things and brings a new found momentum to your life. Dreams fuel dreams in the lives of other people, because success in your dreams inspire others to dream big. Be the inspiration someone else needs.</p>
  5396. <p><strong>3. The Just Because</strong></p>
  5397. <p>I want to impact the world, but not always because I have a reason to. Sometimes I just want to blow people’s minds because it’s fun to do. Sometimes I have the urge to go help people in need just because. Sometimes I want to take Colbie to nursing homes and brighten some people’s days just because. Sometimes I want to go listen to people’s stories at hospitals and hand them balloons just because. Sometimes I want to be the light in someone’s life just because. I know you have the urge to “just because”, so go do them this week. That’s my challenge to you…</p>
  5398. <p>When we do the “just because” with no motive or hidden agenda, it means more.</p>
  5399. <p>Go be more creative in life, just because. Don’t let life become stale and boring. It is time to begin allowing creativity to take place, start seeing the big picture and making a bigger impact. Work on making these three areas of your life better by being more creative on a daily basis.</p>
  5400. <p><em><strong>Go be more creative in life, just because. Work on making these four areas of your life better by being more creative on a daily basis.</strong></em></p>
  5401. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5402. <h6><em>Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/12836528@N00/3121844717/">kevin dooley</a> via <a href="http://compfight.com">Compfight</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">cc</a></em></h6>
  5403. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/take-creativity-your-life/">#017: Take Creativity To Your Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5404. ]]></content:encoded>
  5405. <enclosure length="3369880" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-17.m4a"/>
  5406. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the three areas of your life that you need more creativity in. Take creativity to your life, today.</itunes:subtitle>
  5407. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5408. &nbsp;<br />
  5409. Are you feeling stuck? Like Life is the same all the time? Have you been doing the same thing for quite some time and life just isn’t giving you the results that you want? It is probably time for a change. It is time to implement creativity into your life and begin doing something different.<br />
  5410. Here are 3 areas to look at and think about how you can become more creative with them starting today.<br />
  5411. 1. The Two Most Important Priorities.<br />
  5412. Relationships and Work. You have to spend time with your family if you want it to be a good relationship. Bring some creativity to the everyday to make life extraordinary, instead of ordinary. Maybe you don’t want to do movie night every single night, and it is time to change it up a bit. It is time to get out of your rut, because the people around you need you. It is time to wake up a bit earlier to get the things done that you need to. Some of the best advice I have ever received is to go to sleep when my wife does. When I stayed up later than my wife there was a disconnect, because I was staying up late and waking up early and consumed myself with work. This left a huge disconnect! When I learned to get more creative with my schedule, my wife appreciated it and our relationship grew! This way the work that I need to get done is taken care of and my family is to. Time management and prioritizing come into huge importance.<br />
  5413. Friendships are also important in life. Cherish them and hold on to them. You impact others through relationships and in return create friendships along the way. Hold on to your friendships and grow together through life.<br />
  5414. 2. Your Huge Dreams<br />
  5415. Most of us live busy lives, but we still have dreams. that’s the thing, though. Busy can no longer be an excuse. Busy is everyone’s excuse and you are better than that. Use creativity to make your dreams happen. Creativity creates a freshness to the way you are doing things and brings a new found momentum to your life. Dreams fuel dreams in the lives of other people, because success in your dreams inspire others to dream big. Be the inspiration someone else needs.<br />
  5416. 3. The Just Because<br />
  5417. I want to impact the world, but not always because I have a reason to. Sometimes I just want to blow people’s minds because it’s fun to do. Sometimes I have the urge to go help people in need just because. Sometimes I want to take Colbie to nursing homes and brighten some people’s days just because. Sometimes I want to go listen to people’s stories at hospitals and hand them balloons just because. Sometimes I want to be the light in someone’s life just because. I know you have the urge to “just because”, so go do them this week. That’s my challenge to you…<br />
  5418. When we do the “just because” with no motive or hidden agenda, it means more.<br />
  5419. Go be more creative in life, just because. Don’t let life become stale and boring. It is time to begin allowing creativity to take place, start seeing the big picture and making a bigger impact. Work on making these three areas of your life better by being more creative on a daily basis.<br />
  5420. Go be more creative in life, just because. Work on making these four areas of your life better by being more creative on a daily basis.<br />
  5421. &nbsp;<br />
  5422. Photo Credit: <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/12836528@N00/3121844717/">kevin dooley</a> via <a href="http://compfight.com">Compfight</a> <a href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/">cc</a><br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5423. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5424. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5425. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5426. <itunes:duration>6:52</itunes:duration>
  5427. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5428. <item>
  5429. <title>#016: Self-Discipline</title>
  5430. <link>https://asmithblog.com/016-self-discipline/</link>
  5431. <pubDate>Tue, 15 Apr 2014 06:01:48 +0000</pubDate>
  5432. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13390</guid>
  5433. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses why self-discipline is so important.&lt;/p&gt;
  5434. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/016-self-discipline/"&gt;#016: Self-Discipline&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5435. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5436. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5437. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13390-26" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-16.m4a?_=26" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-16.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-16.m4a</a></audio>
  5438. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5439. <p style="text-align: left;">I believe in this idea of discipline in your life, that I wrote an eBook on it and I believe in the message so much, I want it to spread so I give it away for free on my blog just for signing up.</p>
  5440. <p>Self-discipline is one thing missing from most people’s lives that will get them further than they could ever dream of. It’s what creates better habits and forms these principles continuously, rather than a “one-and-done&#8221; mentality. Self-discipline is what sustains you through times of doubt and busyness. Once you make daily routines and set self-discipline as a priority, success will come.</p>
  5441. <p>Yes, as you are implementing self-discipline in your life there will be pushback. There will be resistance, but just as anything worth having, the journey is difficult to get there. But, the reward is worth it. Whatever area of life you need more discipline in, this journey is worth it.</p>
  5442. <p><em><strong>What are some benefits that self-discipline can bring into your life? Please leave your comment below.</strong></em></p>
  5443. <p><a href="http://asblog.co/disciplinebook">You can also sign up for blog updates sent directly to your email inbox by clicking here and receive my free eBook on discipline. </a>It goes into more depth on self-discipline and gives you a free tool to evaluate where you are and will help you implement good change.</p>
  5444. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/016-self-discipline/">#016: Self-Discipline</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5445. ]]></content:encoded>
  5446. <enclosure length="2373048" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-16.m4a"/>
  5447. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses why self-discipline is so important.</itunes:subtitle>
  5448. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5449. &nbsp;<br />
  5450. &nbsp;<br />
  5451. I believe in this idea of discipline in your life, that I wrote an eBook on it and I believe in the message so much, I want it to spread so I give it away for free on my blog just for signing up.<br />
  5452. Self-discipline is one thing missing from most people’s lives that will get them further than they could ever dream of. It’s what creates better habits and forms these principles continuously, rather than a “one-and-done&#8221; mentality. Self-discipline is what sustains you through times of doubt and busyness. Once you make daily routines and set self-discipline as a priority, success will come.<br />
  5453. Yes, as you are implementing self-discipline in your life there will be pushback. There will be resistance, but just as anything worth having, the journey is difficult to get there. But, the reward is worth it. Whatever area of life you need more discipline in, this journey is worth it.<br />
  5454. What are some benefits that self-discipline can bring into your life? Please leave your comment below.<br />
  5455. <a href="http://asblog.co/disciplinebook">You can also sign up for blog updates sent directly to your email inbox by clicking here and receive my free eBook on discipline. </a>It goes into more depth on self-discipline and gives you a free tool to evaluate where you are and will help you implement good change.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5456. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5457. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5458. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5459. <itunes:duration>4:50</itunes:duration>
  5460. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5461. <item>
  5462. <title>#015: Your Work Can Be Better</title>
  5463. <link>https://asmithblog.com/015-your-work-can-better/</link>
  5464. <pubDate>Tue, 08 Apr 2014 05:00:38 +0000</pubDate>
  5465. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13298</guid>
  5466. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses how to let work bring more benefits into your life.&lt;/p&gt;
  5467. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/015-your-work-can-better/"&gt;#015: Your Work Can Be Better&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5468. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5469. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5470. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13298-27" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-15.m4a?_=27" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-15.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-15.m4a</a></audio>
  5471. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5472. <p><strong>We need to work with a happy heart.</strong></p>
  5473. <p>When we are happy while working, it doesn’t seem like work. It feels as if our day just began and time flies when we are having fun. One thing that can help us be happier is finding our strengths in our daily work. When we are working in our strengths, we make a bigger impact and are happier about it.</p>
  5474. <p><strong>Honor everyone.</strong></p>
  5475. <p>Honoring people that are above me or those that are older than me is something my parents instilled into me as a child and I am so glad they did. it is about appreciation and respect.</p>
  5476. <p><strong>Relevance: Know that we are impacting others by what we do.</strong></p>
  5477. <p>Find who these people are and keep them front of mind. We have to know what our mission is to know the goal of who we will reach. If you don’t know your vision for your occupation, you have to find it to know who you are impacting each day. This will give you more satisfaction for a job well done.</p>
  5478. <p><strong>Make your job measurable.</strong></p>
  5479. <p>If you don’t know your daily, weekly, monthly or yearly goals, you will become lost. Again, you have to know what you are working towards to have a full appreciation for your work.</p>
  5480. <p><strong>As always, it comes back to relationships.</strong></p>
  5481. <p>Who can create bigger and better relationships with at work? It may be time to grow personal relationships with those around you.</p>
  5482. <p><em><strong>Use your work to make a bigger impact, today.</strong></em></p>
  5483. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/015-your-work-can-better/">#015: Your Work Can Be Better</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5484. ]]></content:encoded>
  5485. <enclosure length="3248188" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-15.m4a"/>
  5486. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses how to let work bring more benefits into your life.</itunes:subtitle>
  5487. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5488. &nbsp;<br />
  5489. &nbsp;<br />
  5490. We need to work with a happy heart.<br />
  5491. When we are happy while working, it doesn’t seem like work. It feels as if our day just began and time flies when we are having fun. One thing that can help us be happier is finding our strengths in our daily work. When we are working in our strengths, we make a bigger impact and are happier about it.<br />
  5492. Honor everyone.<br />
  5493. Honoring people that are above me or those that are older than me is something my parents instilled into me as a child and I am so glad they did. it is about appreciation and respect.<br />
  5494. Relevance: Know that we are impacting others by what we do.<br />
  5495. Find who these people are and keep them front of mind. We have to know what our mission is to know the goal of who we will reach. If you don’t know your vision for your occupation, you have to find it to know who you are impacting each day. This will give you more satisfaction for a job well done.<br />
  5496. Make your job measurable.<br />
  5497. If you don’t know your daily, weekly, monthly or yearly goals, you will become lost. Again, you have to know what you are working towards to have a full appreciation for your work.<br />
  5498. As always, it comes back to relationships.<br />
  5499. Who can create bigger and better relationships with at work? It may be time to grow personal relationships with those around you.<br />
  5500. Use your work to make a bigger impact, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5501. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5502. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5503. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5504. <itunes:duration>6:37</itunes:duration>
  5505. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5506. <item>
  5507. <title>#014: Stop Worrying About Your Calling</title>
  5508. <link>https://asmithblog.com/014-stop-worrying-about-your-calling/</link>
  5509. <pubDate>Tue, 01 Apr 2014 06:19:51 +0000</pubDate>
  5510. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13213</guid>
  5511. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses why you don't need to worry about your calling.&lt;/p&gt;
  5512. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/014-stop-worrying-about-your-calling/"&gt;#014: Stop Worrying About Your Calling&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5513. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5514. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5515. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13213-28" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-14.m4a?_=28" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-14.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-14.m4a</a></audio>
  5516. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5517. <p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Lately I have been thinking about the word &#8220;calling&#8221; and what it actually means. </span>The Bible actually speaks on it quite a bit<span style="line-height: 1.5em;">. Where I think a lot of people miss the meaning of the word &#8220;calling&#8221; is associating every part of this word with their profession. I just don&#8217;t see this being the case. I actually don&#8217;t think it has much to do with it at all. </span>Now, I am not demeaning where you are at in life and if you are right where you feel you are called to be and in your called profession, then I will be the first person rooting you on. The only thing I am debating here is having the wrong focuses in the pursuit of our &#8220;calling&#8221;.</p>
  5518. <p>Again, I believe that somehow we have learned the idea our professions somehow define us, but I see calling being entirely associated with the idea of being available for others. Calling and the relationships we have are one in the same. Can our professions help create relationships and give us more opportunities to make an impact? Absolutely.</p>
  5519. <p>But, I believe the biggest opportunity to lead is through being available to pour into the lives of others and to love them. Again, the first step in impacting the lives of others involves us first being available. Then and only then can we be a true friend and fully love. How many times have we come up with the excuse of being too busy to care for those we come in contact with? Probably more than we would like to admit. Well, I am exhausted and embarrassed of repeatedly making this popular excuse.  Can we all commit to being more available for one another?</p>
  5520. <p>To make this happen, don&#8217;t worry so much about your &#8220;calling&#8221; that you are heading towards and focus more about today. Focus on how you can make a difference in the lives of those around you today. Live each day the way it was intended to be, as your calling. You are called to make an impact in the lives of others. Stop putting life off until you someday reach what you are &#8220;called&#8221; to do. You are called right now.</p>
  5521. <p><b>Make an impact and start leading TODAY.</b></p>
  5522. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/014-stop-worrying-about-your-calling/">#014: Stop Worrying About Your Calling</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5523. ]]></content:encoded>
  5524. <enclosure length="1789744" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Episode-14.m4a"/>
  5525. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses why you don't need to worry about your calling.</itunes:subtitle>
  5526. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5527. &nbsp;<br />
  5528. &nbsp;<br />
  5529. Lately I have been thinking about the word &#8220;calling&#8221; and what it actually means. The Bible actually speaks on it quite a bit. Where I think a lot of people miss the meaning of the word &#8220;calling&#8221; is associating every part of this word with their profession. I just don&#8217;t see this being the case. I actually don&#8217;t think it has much to do with it at all. Now, I am not demeaning where you are at in life and if you are right where you feel you are called to be and in your called profession, then I will be the first person rooting you on. The only thing I am debating here is having the wrong focuses in the pursuit of our &#8220;calling&#8221;.<br />
  5530. Again, I believe that somehow we have learned the idea our professions somehow define us, but I see calling being entirely associated with the idea of being available for others. Calling and the relationships we have are one in the same. Can our professions help create relationships and give us more opportunities to make an impact? Absolutely.<br />
  5531. But, I believe the biggest opportunity to lead is through being available to pour into the lives of others and to love them. Again, the first step in impacting the lives of others involves us first being available. Then and only then can we be a true friend and fully love. How many times have we come up with the excuse of being too busy to care for those we come in contact with? Probably more than we would like to admit. Well, I am exhausted and embarrassed of repeatedly making this popular excuse.  Can we all commit to being more available for one another?<br />
  5532. To make this happen, don&#8217;t worry so much about your &#8220;calling&#8221; that you are heading towards and focus more about today. Focus on how you can make a difference in the lives of those around you today. Live each day the way it was intended to be, as your calling. You are called to make an impact in the lives of others. Stop putting life off until you someday reach what you are &#8220;called&#8221; to do. You are called right now.<br />
  5533. Make an impact and start leading TODAY.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5534. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5535. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5536. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5537. <itunes:duration>3:38</itunes:duration>
  5538. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5539. <item>
  5540. <title>#013: Stop Doing Things for The Wrong Reasons</title>
  5541. <link>https://asmithblog.com/013-stop-doing-things-for-the-wrong-reasons/</link>
  5542. <pubDate>Tue, 25 Mar 2014 04:30:39 +0000</pubDate>
  5543. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13135</guid>
  5544. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses the benefits of doing things for the right reasons. Stop doing things for the wrong reasons. &lt;/p&gt;
  5545. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/013-stop-doing-things-for-the-wrong-reasons/"&gt;#013: Stop Doing Things for The Wrong Reasons&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5546. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5547. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5548. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13135-29" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-13.m4a?_=29" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-13.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-13.m4a</a></audio>
  5549. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5550. <p>Doing things for recognition or because you have to or because someone toldyoue to try it isn’t the way to go. It has to be more than that. For something to stick we have to buy into the reason behind the reason. In whatever we do, The real reason to do something is for the reward in doing it and for the help it brings to others. Do good things for other people because it is the right thing to do, don’t do everything for you and your feelings. Stop doing things because someone told you to do them a long time ago. Do what you do because you fully believe in it. When you do things with heart behind it, you get more out of it.</p>
  5551. <p>The two things that you can do by yourself that brings help &amp; health to you is exercise and quiet time. Other than that, others need to be included to make a bigger impact.</p>
  5552. <p>In my own life, when I have done things for the wrong reasons, I become disenchanted with them very quickly. Here is what I have learned along the way and the “Whys” of starting to do things for the right reasons.</p>
  5553. <p><strong>1. Start something bigger than you.</strong></p>
  5554. <p>This involves more people and makes an impact in the lives of more people. When more people are involved, it causes motivation for everyone else, too. This cuts selfishness out and lets you see the bigger picture. Start thinking now- What is that one thing I can do to help others? I will give you a few seconds to think about that.</p>
  5555. <p>Alright. Hope you came up with that one thing you can begin doing now to help others. How often you do that one thing is completely up to you.</p>
  5556. <p><strong>2. Be aware of the needs around you.</strong></p>
  5557. <p>When you are in tune with your surroundings, you are able to make a bigger impact in the lives of others and others become your true reason. Going back to last episode, when you create more margin in your life, you have more time to impact others as well.</p>
  5558. <p><strong>3. Do it for the satisfaction of becoming better at something.</strong></p>
  5559. <p>When you keep at something and you practice doing it, you will become better at it, no matter what it is. When you practice good, you will become better at doing good for others and it will become an even bigger habit for you.<br />
  5560. <b><i><br />
  5561. </i></b></p>
  5562. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/013-stop-doing-things-for-the-wrong-reasons#disqus_thread"><strong>What one thing do you need to put on your Stop Doing List?</strong></a></p>
  5563. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/013-stop-doing-things-for-the-wrong-reasons/">#013: Stop Doing Things for The Wrong Reasons</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5564. ]]></content:encoded>
  5565. <enclosure length="3356900" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-13.m4a"/>
  5566. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses the benefits of doing things for the right reasons. Stop doing things for the wrong reasons.</itunes:subtitle>
  5567. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5568. &nbsp;<br />
  5569. &nbsp;<br />
  5570. Doing things for recognition or because you have to or because someone toldyoue to try it isn’t the way to go. It has to be more than that. For something to stick we have to buy into the reason behind the reason. In whatever we do, The real reason to do something is for the reward in doing it and for the help it brings to others. Do good things for other people because it is the right thing to do, don’t do everything for you and your feelings. Stop doing things because someone told you to do them a long time ago. Do what you do because you fully believe in it. When you do things with heart behind it, you get more out of it.<br />
  5571. The two things that you can do by yourself that brings help &amp; health to you is exercise and quiet time. Other than that, others need to be included to make a bigger impact.<br />
  5572. In my own life, when I have done things for the wrong reasons, I become disenchanted with them very quickly. Here is what I have learned along the way and the “Whys” of starting to do things for the right reasons.<br />
  5573. 1. Start something bigger than you.<br />
  5574. This involves more people and makes an impact in the lives of more people. When more people are involved, it causes motivation for everyone else, too. This cuts selfishness out and lets you see the bigger picture. Start thinking now- What is that one thing I can do to help others? I will give you a few seconds to think about that.<br />
  5575. Alright. Hope you came up with that one thing you can begin doing now to help others. How often you do that one thing is completely up to you.<br />
  5576. 2. Be aware of the needs around you.<br />
  5577. When you are in tune with your surroundings, you are able to make a bigger impact in the lives of others and others become your true reason. Going back to last episode, when you create more margin in your life, you have more time to impact others as well.<br />
  5578. 3. Do it for the satisfaction of becoming better at something.<br />
  5579. When you keep at something and you practice doing it, you will become better at it, no matter what it is. When you practice good, you will become better at doing good for others and it will become an even bigger habit for you.<br />
  5580. <br />
  5581. <br />
  5582. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/013-stop-doing-things-for-the-wrong-reasons#disqus_thread">What one thing do you need to put on your Stop Doing List?</a><br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5583. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5584. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5585. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5586. <itunes:duration>6:50</itunes:duration>
  5587. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5588. <item>
  5589. <title>#012: You Need More Margin In Your Life</title>
  5590. <link>https://asmithblog.com/012-you-need-more-margin-your-life/</link>
  5591. <pubDate>Tue, 18 Mar 2014 03:30:31 +0000</pubDate>
  5592. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=13035</guid>
  5593. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam discusses how you can create more margin in your life.&lt;/p&gt;
  5594. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/012-you-need-more-margin-your-life/"&gt;#012: You Need More Margin In Your Life&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5595. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<h6></h6>
  5596. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-13035-30" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-12.m4a?_=30" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-12.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-12.m4a</a></audio>
  5597. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5598. <p>To create time for the people and the things in your life that matter most, you need to create more margin in life. That’s the problem with people’s schedules these days. They don’t leave any room for thinking, let alone making a difference in the lives of others.</p>
  5599. <p><em>Here are three ways to create more margin in your life:</em></p>
  5600. <p><b>1. Get rid of the unnecessary.</b></p>
  5601. <p>This is sometimes hard to accomplish. People want to hold onto as much as they can. Why is this? People don’t like letting anything suffer. People have work, church, family, friends, kids, activities and the list goes on and on. Before we know it, we are at a point where life has control over us instead of us controlling it. The truth is though that there are still 24 hours in a day and we all have to sleep at some point. If you put time into something, anything, there will be an area that suffers. Something has to give. So, “What will it be that suffers?&#8221; is the question. Take back your life when you begin getting rid of the unnecessary things that clutter up your life.</p>
  5602. <p><b>2. Maximize your day.</b></p>
  5603. <p>After you get rid of the unnecessary, there still might be a lot on your plate, and that’s ok. It is time to learn how to manage it well. The way I deal with this, is to put the most important things first in your day. This way you know they will get done. To get things done, you can&#8217;t compromise on this either. Learn to maximize your day and learn how to do more.</p>
  5604. <p><b>3. Plan as much as you can.</b></p>
  5605. <p>Some have argued with me on this step, but it is what works for me. I know some people who don’t make appointments and want to get everything done right away, but for me this hasn’t worked in my own life. I have found that the less I have to think about and just go ahead and get it out on my schedule, there is mental space that opens for other more important things. It allows me to move on.</p>
  5606. <p>When I started putting these 3 points in to my routine, more time became available for family and friends. These 3 things will help you create more margin in your life and will get you to open your days up more often to make a bigger impact in the lives of others.</p>
  5607. <p><a href="http://asmithblog.com/012-you-need-more-margin-in-your-life#disqus_thread"><em><strong>How do you create more margin?</strong></em></a></p>
  5608. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/012-you-need-more-margin-your-life/">#012: You Need More Margin In Your Life</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5609. ]]></content:encoded>
  5610. <enclosure length="3321112" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-12.m4a"/>
  5611. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam discusses how you can create more margin in your life.</itunes:subtitle>
  5612. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5613. &nbsp;<br />
  5614. To create time for the people and the things in your life that matter most, you need to create more margin in life. That’s the problem with people’s schedules these days. They don’t leave any room for thinking, let alone making a difference in the lives of others.<br />
  5615. Here are three ways to create more margin in your life:<br />
  5616. 1. Get rid of the unnecessary.<br />
  5617. This is sometimes hard to accomplish. People want to hold onto as much as they can. Why is this? People don’t like letting anything suffer. People have work, church, family, friends, kids, activities and the list goes on and on. Before we know it, we are at a point where life has control over us instead of us controlling it. The truth is though that there are still 24 hours in a day and we all have to sleep at some point. If you put time into something, anything, there will be an area that suffers. Something has to give. So, “What will it be that suffers?&#8221; is the question. Take back your life when you begin getting rid of the unnecessary things that clutter up your life.<br />
  5618. 2. Maximize your day.<br />
  5619. After you get rid of the unnecessary, there still might be a lot on your plate, and that’s ok. It is time to learn how to manage it well. The way I deal with this, is to put the most important things first in your day. This way you know they will get done. To get things done, you can&#8217;t compromise on this either. Learn to maximize your day and learn how to do more.<br />
  5620. 3. Plan as much as you can.<br />
  5621. Some have argued with me on this step, but it is what works for me. I know some people who don’t make appointments and want to get everything done right away, but for me this hasn’t worked in my own life. I have found that the less I have to think about and just go ahead and get it out on my schedule, there is mental space that opens for other more important things. It allows me to move on.<br />
  5622. When I started putting these 3 points in to my routine, more time became available for family and friends. These 3 things will help you create more margin in your life and will get you to open your days up more often to make a bigger impact in the lives of others.<br />
  5623. <a href="http://asmithblog.com/012-you-need-more-margin-in-your-life#disqus_thread">How do you create more margin?</a><br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5624. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5625. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5626. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5627. <itunes:duration>6:46</itunes:duration>
  5628. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5629. <item>
  5630. <title>#011: You Need To Capture A Captivating Story</title>
  5631. <link>https://asmithblog.com/011-capture-captivating-story/</link>
  5632. <pubDate>Tue, 11 Mar 2014 07:00:34 +0000</pubDate>
  5633. <guid isPermaLink="false">http://www.asmithblog.com/?p=12951</guid>
  5634. <description>&lt;p&gt;In this episode, Adam covers why you need to capture a captivating story. Life will pass you by if you don’t take the time to embrace moments. &lt;/p&gt;
  5635. &lt;p&gt;The post &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com/011-capture-captivating-story/"&gt;#011: You Need To Capture A Captivating Story&lt;/a&gt; appeared first on &lt;a href="https://asmithblog.com"&gt;Adam Kirk Smith&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description>
  5636. <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;">
  5637. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5638. <audio class="wp-audio-shortcode" id="audio-12951-31" preload="none" style="width: 100%;" controls="controls"><source type="audio/mpeg" src="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-11.m4a?_=31" /><a href="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-11.m4a">http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-11.m4a</a></audio>
  5639. <p>&nbsp;</p>
  5640. <p>Life will pass you by if you don’t take the time to embrace moments. You need to capture a captivating story. <a href="http://storylineblog.com/">Donald Miller</a> encourages this in his book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Million-Miles-Thousand-Years-Learned/dp/1400202981/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1394405536&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=donald+miller">A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: How I Learned to Live a Better Story</a> and since I read it, I have been trying to do this more often. Apps like Evernote make this much easier to document by text and attaching a photo to it so you can remember moments better and tie it to a date.</p>
  5641. <p>I realized how important this is and that we needed to take more notice when we had Colbie. She is now 3 years old and there are a lot of things in the first year of her life that we have a tough time remembering because we simply didn’t take time to capture them. In my own life, I also didn’t take time to capture what happened 10 years ago, because I simply didn’t see it as important. But, if we don’t take the time to write it down, time and our life will pass us by leaving us no trace and no special moments to remember. There are many books out there that capture the feel of the times and let us see into a window of time. When moments are captured, this allows us to catch a glimpse into the lives a previous time.</p>
  5642. <p><em><strong>Apply this to your own life. </strong></em></p>
  5643. <p><em><strong>If your life was a book, would people want to read it? </strong></em></p>
  5644. <p><em><strong>Would people be captivated by your story? </strong></em></p>
  5645. <p><em><strong>Would people want to know more about the main character, you?</strong></em></p>
  5646. <p>When we live life for making life full of special moments, we write a captivating story. When we make our own lives about the lives of others, we create a legacy that will be read about for years to come and shared with others. Once you live your life this way, capturing your story will not only be easier, but more fun to live and tell others about. Everyday is a sentence added to your book that make up your chapters of life. Make your story count and make it captivating, today.</p>
  5647. <p>The post <a href="https://asmithblog.com/011-capture-captivating-story/">#011: You Need To Capture A Captivating Story</a> appeared first on <a href="https://asmithblog.com">Adam Kirk Smith</a>.</p>
  5648. ]]></content:encoded>
  5649. <enclosure length="3053764" type="audio/x-m4a" url="http://www.asmithblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Episode-11.m4a"/>
  5650. <itunes:subtitle>In this episode, Adam covers why you need to capture a captivating story. Life will pass you by if you don’t take the time to embrace moments.</itunes:subtitle>
  5651. <itunes:summary><![CDATA[<br />
  5652. &nbsp;<br />
  5653. &nbsp;<br />
  5654. Life will pass you by if you don’t take the time to embrace moments. You need to capture a captivating story. <a href="http://storylineblog.com/">Donald Miller</a> encourages this in his book, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Million-Miles-Thousand-Years-Learned/dp/1400202981/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1394405536&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=donald+miller">A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: How I Learned to Live a Better Story</a> and since I read it, I have been trying to do this more often. Apps like Evernote make this much easier to document by text and attaching a photo to it so you can remember moments better and tie it to a date.<br />
  5655. I realized how important this is and that we needed to take more notice when we had Colbie. She is now 3 years old and there are a lot of things in the first year of her life that we have a tough time remembering because we simply didn’t take time to capture them. In my own life, I also didn’t take time to capture what happened 10 years ago, because I simply didn’t see it as important. But, if we don’t take the time to write it down, time and our life will pass us by leaving us no trace and no special moments to remember. There are many books out there that capture the feel of the times and let us see into a window of time. When moments are captured, this allows us to catch a glimpse into the lives a previous time.<br />
  5656. Apply this to your own life. <br />
  5657. If your life was a book, would people want to read it? <br />
  5658. Would people be captivated by your story? <br />
  5659. Would people want to know more about the main character, you?<br />
  5660. When we live life for making life full of special moments, we write a captivating story. When we make our own lives about the lives of others, we create a legacy that will be read about for years to come and shared with others. Once you live your life this way, capturing your story will not only be easier, but more fun to live and tell others about. Everyday is a sentence added to your book that make up your chapters of life. Make your story count and make it captivating, today.<br />]]></itunes:summary>
  5661. <itunes:author>Adam Smith - Live Life With Purpose</itunes:author>
  5662. <itunes:episodeType>full</itunes:episodeType>
  5663. <itunes:explicit>false</itunes:explicit>
  5664. <itunes:duration>6:13</itunes:duration>
  5665. <author>adam@asmithblog.com (Adam Kirk Smith)</author><itunes:keywords>leadership,relationships,family,greatness,better,lifehack,lifehacker,how,to,Bible,God,goals,spouse,marriage,kids,children</itunes:keywords></item>
  5666. </channel>
  5667. </rss>

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