I have to admit, I’ve always been a fan of Sylvester Stallone’s Rocky movies – primarily because of their inspirational messages. This video highlights a message that I think is more pertinent today than ever before.

Rocky’s son blames his dad for not getting what he wants from life. We’ve all been there at some time in our life – looking for something to blame out of pure frustration because things are not going the way we want. I know I’ve been there on more than one occasion.

However, as natural as the inclination to blame other people and events is, it will never ever make any difference to our situation. Playing the blame game is like sitting in a rocking chair – it gives us something to do but it never gets us anywhere. In reality, it does not even make us feel good. The only solution is to take responsibility for the situation and move forwards, but why don’t we do that? Because that requires courage and true courage is rare commodity these days. As someone once told me, true courage is that little voice that says at night, “Tomorrow, I will try again… one more time!”

Stallone addresses this very smartly with his line, “If you know what you are worth, then go and get what you are worth – but you have to be able to take the hits.” This is just so true. He goes on to say, “There ain’t nobody who can hit as hard as life, but it don’t matter how hard you can hit. What matters is how hard you can get hit and keep moving forwards – how much you can take and keep moving forwards.”

Whenever, I’m going through tough times, I always remember these words: “Life is about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forwards.” One of my mentors says it differently – he says, “When you’re going through hell, keep going. Because if you stop, you end up in hell”. In other words, when you’re going through tough times, you must have the courage to persevere and get through. Otherwise, you’re just going to end up stuck in a rut, frustrated and looking for things to blame.

“Tough times don’t last but tough people do” – often the key factor determining your success in life is your resilience, your tenacity and your ability to persist. We’ve all heard the saying, “success is falling down 7 times but getting up 8”. The ability to be able to last through tough times is what separates the men from the boys – it’s often the single quality that is the difference between success and failure. Harrison Ford, star of the Indiana Jones and Star Wars Series said, “I knew that to succeed in this industry, I just needed to hang in there longer than everyone else.” Ford was paid $65Million for the latest Indiana Jones movie.

So go out there and strive to get what you want from life – but it is not always going to be easy and it is not always going to be smooth sailing. As J. Sidlow Baxter said, “Every opportunity has a difficulty, & every difficulty has an opportunity.” So get yourself ready for the hits and go forwards anyway!

Unfortunately, there is a whole movement out there which seems to suggest that if you just sit around and visualise success, then success will come to you easily. Nothing could be further from the truth – as Rocky says, “The world ain’t all sunshine and rainbows. It will beat you to your knees and keep you there if you let it.”

Everyone has had their tough times and tough times will come again – the question is what will you do when they come? Will you let life beat you down or will you aim to stand up one more time? Will you allow yourself to lie on the canvas or will you get up for another round? There have been times for me, especially when I was over $109,000 in debt with no income and people suing me for money that I wanted to throw in the towel. I have to admit, I was on the canvas and I felt like lieing there.

However, no matter how tough life gets, always remember that you and you alone decide how many times you want to get back up again. You can choose to quit or you can choose to persist. I have 3 strategies that I use whenever I feel like quitting:

1. I tell myself, “I can always quit tomorrow so why not just go another round today?” It’s a silly little saying but it keeps me moving forwards and ultimately that’s all that matters
2. Another strategy I use when I’ve had a tough day is I’ll take the day off and get an early night. When I wake up in the morning, I remind myself that today is a brand new day. Whatever happened yesterday is in the past and today is a clean canvas and I get to create it anew.
3. When things are going really badly, like when I was almost on the verge of bankruptcy and I felt like the whole world was against me, I remembered saying to myself, “I might as well quit now because things are not going to be any different tomorrow.” And then I remembered thinking, “Ok, let’s say I quit and I go back to just being like everyone else… and in 50 years time when I look back at my life, would I be happy that I quit just because a few people were trying to make my life hell or would I have wanted to keep going until I got through the tough times?  That was a very easy question to answer and I persisted and I fought and I got through. Let me assure, life looks a whole lot better today. So whenever you feel like quitting, project forwards a couple decades and look back on your life. Would you wish you’d continued or are you happy that you quit? The answer is often quite easy.

Many of us have seen great sporting feats where a team or an individual was down and out; yet they found something from deep within them that turned everything around. It is these stories that we find inspirational and Rocky is a classic example of this. But why not be your own inspiration? Why not reach deep down from within yourself and inspire your own revival? After all, what do you have to lose?

Remember, this thing called life has an end – but it ends when our hearts give out and not before. And as far as I’m concerned I’m going to keep striving for what I want from life until one of the following two things happen. Either, I’m going to get what I want or I’m going to die first – it’s just that simple. How about you? Are you willing to dedicate your life to achieving something glorious or are you going to allow life “to beat you to your knees”?

What strategies do you use to bounce back from adversity? Remember, “there ain’t nobody who can hit as hard as life but it ain’t about how hard you hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forwards. How much you can take and keep moving forwards.”

Leave me a comment below and let me know if you think Rocky’s advice is sound and what strategies you use to get back up again when life knocks you down. I’d love to hear from you.

And finally, if you ever feel like things are getting too much, remember the famous words of Winston Churchill:  “Never, never, never, never give up!”

To bouncing back from adversity,

Niro

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In life, many of us have a tendency to complain about our situation, about the fact that the deal we were dealt was unfair. Too many of us then focus on all the things that are wrong and bad, rather than the things that are good, positive and wholesome. Many of us also let the things we cannot do prevent us from doing the things we can do. We’ve all been guilty of this at some time or another – I know I have.

However, when I watched this video, it humbled me and brought me to tears. This is the story of a  boy who is crippled and blind and yet plays the paino amazingly well. This is a story of a father who will do anything for his son – and together, the two of them are making magic.

Watch this video now!

If you watched this video, then please do two things for me:

1. Leave me a comment below and let me know how this video touched you.

2. Share this video on Facebook, Twitter, Digg or even via email. Sometimes a few minutes of inspiration can be just the tonic someone you know needs.

Thank you and God Bless,

Niro

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We’ve all heard about the power of our attitude and that it’s our attitude that determines how much we succeed in life. Statements such as “It’s not just our aptitude but our attitude that determines our success” are often sprouted and I think we’d all agree that people with a positive attitude just seem to enjoy life more and are generally happier and more successful. But how do we change our attitude? Here are 7 simple tips I’ve used often that you can implement to change your attitude very quickly.

1. Be honest with yourself.

If you’re feeling bad or down and your attitude towards life or work is quite poor, then admit it to yourself. Don’t live in denial. Accept there is an issue because only once you’ve accepted something for the way it is can you make a change.

2. Get some rest

Have there been times when you’re overworked and stressed and you’re not getting as much rest as you should? How do you feel during those times? I bet you’re agitated and the smallest things can set you off. Often just getting some rest and forcing ourselves to take a break can be the best thing for our attitude. Adequate rest and sleep is a vital ingredient to maintaining a positive attitude.

3. Get clear on exactly what is causing you to have such a bad attitude

What exactly is bothering you? Is it your boss? Your partner? Your kids? There have been many times when I know I’m not quite feeling right but I can’t put a finger on exactly what’s bothering me and until I can figure it out, my attitude remains bad. However, once I figure out exactly what is bothering me (and that usually only takes a few minutes of quiet reflection), I can then do something about it and my attitude immediately changes.

4. Look at the Consequences of your Bad Attitude

For example, are you stressed at work because of impending deadlines? Is that causing you to snap at your kids and walk around the house with a bad attitude. If so, look at the consequences of that. Your poor kids and your partner have got nothing to do with how things are at work. So why should they cop the brunt of your poor attitude? If you continue with this, what’s going to happen? Things at home will only get worse and that will only make your attitude even worse. It’s a negative spiral which is very tough to get out of. So get clear on the consequences of your bad attitude. Who are you hurting as a result of being grumpy?

5. Do Something to change your attitude

What can you do to improve your attitude? For example, if you’ve had a bad day at work and you’re about to walk in the door and see the family with that same bad attitude, what can you do to change the way you feel? If I’m walking home, I will often take a longer route. The added exercise and fresh air often helps clear my head or I’ll start listening to some uplifting music which immediately improves my attitude. I might also go for a run or head to the gym. What can you do to change your attitude.

6. Change the way you are looking at the situation

We all have trigger situations that cause us to get into a bad mood and to have a bad attitude toward life. Remember it is not the event, experience or problem itself but rather the way we respond to it that makes us feel the way we do. For example, if you feel like you have too much to do at work, rather than complaining and wishing it will go away, take on your extra work as a challenge. Imagine how good it would feel to get through all this work and have your head about water again. Then, with your new positive attitude attack your workload with a new enthusiastic gusto. I guarantee that when you change the way you look at something, your attitude and your results will immediately change.

7. Have an attitude of gratitude.

When Sir John Templeton was interviewed and he was asked what the definition of wealth is, he replied, “Live with an attitude of gratitude”. Everyday, look for things to be grateful for. I don’t care how tough things get, there is always something to be grateful for, whether it is as simple as the fact that you have eyes to see things with, a roof over your head or a bed to sleep in. Look for 5 things to be grateful for everyday, seek to live with an attitude of gratitude and watch your entire attitude towards life change.

So there you have it – 7 tips you can use immediately to change your attitude. Remember, you have complete control over your attitude – you can choose the way you feel. So use these 7 steps to improve your attitude and you’ll be amazed at how much more relaxed and happier you feel.