Did you fail at something in 2013?

The honest answer for most of us is YES!
The important question, however, is: Did you let that failure stop you?
Regardless of your answer, I have something that will help you SOAR in 2014!
On February 4th, I am beginning a 13-week in-depth study (Mastermind Group, or MMG) of John Maxwell’s Sometimes You Win, Sometimes You Learn. We will meet every Tuesday for 13 weeks, from 8-9 PM EST, via conference call (all calls will be recorded so you may listen to them, again). 
Every one of us has experienced loss, defeat, disappointment, mistakes, even slips in judgment, during our journey to greater success and higher levels of leadership. This MMG will focus on how we use those experiences as learning opportunities that can help us accelerate our future growth and progress towards our goals.
We will study a variety of principles and concepts including: Humility, Reality, Responsibility, Teachability, Adversity, and much more. We will learn from each other’s experiences. We will develop a support network upon whom we can call as we work towards our 2014 goals. We will emerge from the experience better equipped to deal with the struggles, obstacles, and challenges we inevitably face as we strive to be, do, and have more in our lives.
If you’re ready to invest in yourself and make 2014 the remarkable year it should be, don’t hesitate!
Spots are limited and the MMG will fill up.
The investment is $250 per person, or $475 if two register together.
The first 8 people to register will receive a complimentary copy of the book.
It’s easy to get started! Just send me an email at lauraprisc@gmail.com or call me at 304-916-0348 to register and save your space in this life-changing study.
Please, share this with your colleagues, relatives, and friends. Invite them to join you on your journey to success!
I look forward to hearing from you. In the meantime, have an intentional day!
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Change is all about process…One woman’s story

Changing anything, if you want the change to be sustainable, requires a process. While it would be delightful (and nothing short of miraculous!) to be able to not eat any sweets for one full day — for example — and lose all the weight you want to drop and look amazing in your clothes the next day, we know it isn’t possible.

Making the change begins with an idea, a desire…to do, be, or have something different than your current conditions and circumstances allow. Once the idea has grown and developed and taken root in our minds, we must then make the DECISION to act. Action requires forethought, intentionality and commitment to continuing to act, DAILY!

Here’s an example. It’s the story of an Australian woman who recognized the need to make some significant changes in several areas of her life, and she started with one small, simple act: Gratitude posts on her Facebook page. Some days they were pretty mundane, some days more significant. The point is, she looked for reasons to be grateful, and found them! When she found them, she considered them and shared them. These are small, daily steps in the right direction.

I would imagine that on some days it was pretty challenging, other days might have been easier — with the challenge being more about which one thing to focus on out of many reasons to be grateful. As her year progressed, she made other changes in her behaviors, sometimes enlisting support from her friends (think — inner circle — those people who should support, encourage, and complement you).

It’s a process. Process begins with a single step, followed by more single steps, and before you know it, you’re on track and moving forward.

What is it you want to change about yourself or your conditions and circumstances this year?

What is the one simple step you can start with?

What will you allow to get you off track once you’ve started?

Whose support can you enlist to help you along the way?

Start today! You’ll be better for it.

Then come back and tell me what you did and how it felt. Looking forward to hearing your stories!

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Change your thinking, change your life

I recently awoke from an odd dream, that got me thinking about how we think and its impact on our lives.

In the dream, I was walking through a train station, filled with people, as you would imagine. There was a young woman (in her 20’s I would guess) asking people for money. She asked a woman who was walking near me for money. The second woman said she didn’t have any cash. The first woman said “That’s ok, your bank is right here. Let’s go in and you can get some.”

Looking a bit bewildered, the second woman was ushered into the bank and I followed (curious to see what would happen next). The woman approached the teller and said she needed some cash from one of her accounts. The first woman, overhearing this — ‘one of her accounts’ — demanded the teller write down the balances in all of the woman’s accounts…presumably so she could determine how much money she could extract from her confused “benefactor.” The teller wrote the amounts out on a chalkboard (yes, things are sometimes strange in dreams!) and the account holder stood there silently, while the first woman decided how much money she should be given. She came up with some number, and the teller began to do what he needed to do, while the second woman looked on.

This was when I felt the need to step in and object. It was a ridiculous scenario to be sure…and it was certainly none of my business what some other person chose to do with their own money.

My objection sprang from the fact that simply giving this young woman money would not solve her problems. When you have a dysfunctional relationship with money, having more of it will not solve anything; you will simply blow through it as you usually do. It’s only when you are able to change your thinking about what money really is — a tool — and how you use it that you are able to make changes in your circumstances.

I felt compelled to explain this to the first young woman, although it would probably have fallen on deaf ears. Here is just one story of a person who came into a cash windfall, and it didn’t miraculously “fix” her life…in fact, it led to a lot of other issues and challenges, and wouldn’t you know, she is no longer a millionaire!

Here’s the bottom line. If you have the yearning to become a millionaire, great! But simply acquiring the money will not make you different. If you focus on the journey and invest in the process, the more important outcome is who you become on the way to earning the money.

It’s the same principle with anything else you desire to achieve, have, do, or be…the wisest people understand it’s not about actually accomplishing the goal, it’s about who you become on your way there. If you truly want to change your life…you must change your thinking. More specifically, you must actually ENGAGE in THINKING, not simply resorting to habitual ways of thinking or allowing others to think for you.

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