May 28, 2009: Ask and It Is Given by Esther and Jerry Hicks

Since I had finished reading this book, I was itching to present it to the group. So I am glad I was able to do so. I was surprised, although not totally, to find that many of the group members were already quite familiar with the book and its material which made it a pretty lively session.

As a teacher, I have always known that the best way to learn is to teach others. So thanks for being a part of this presentation and giving me the opportunity to deepen the understanding of this life-changing knowledge.

Looking forward to the next session.

Happy Success!
Bhavesh.

May 14, 2009: 80/20 Principle by Richard Koch

Thanks Michael for leading another great session!

I realized that the most deceiving thing about the 80/20 Principle, and other such principles, is their simplicity. We were taught to believe that we "got" something when we were able to grasp it intellectually. And yet, that's perhaps only a very small part of the learning process. The true "getting" of it happens only when we implement it.

There are three ways in which, I thought this principle is useful to me.

The first is in the marketing and prospecting of my business. I am so glad that I spent a few hours before the session figuring out the 20% of the marketing and prospecting activities that get 80% of my results. The 80% is not going away, but with the knowledge of what's really important, I can focus on the activities that really matter and not waste time doing things that don't.

Second, I realized that my "three businesses" actually intersect at their 20%. And I now have a pretty good idea of what that 20% is in each of the businesses. This helps me enormously in deciding what branding strategies to use and in which combination. It also allows me to focus on the most important and let the rest go for now.

Third, I am now using the principle with all of my tasks and projects. I even got inspired enough that I picked up a book I had abandoned some time ago, Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris, which is based on the 80/20 principle, and started implementing many of its concepts. For a guy like me for whom prioritizing tasks is a huge struggle, this help is godsend.

Thanks group for the insights, support and ideas. Looking forward to the next meeting.

Apr 23, 2009: Play Dirty by Sandra Brown

I have to admit, I was a bit nervous about this book topic. I mean, we had never taken up a fiction before, much less a romance novel! In the hindsight, I think Arlene Meilich made a provocative and yet a wise choice with this book. I also loved the story-telling format she chose for the discussions, which stirred up more relevant business discussion than we have ever had.

The challenge I had presented to the group was being able to stay focused with certain aspects of my business. I walked away with many important insights into that issue as well as with some other issues that had been bugging me for quite some time.

Some of these insights are:

1) We often have to make difficult choices in business and in our personal lives. In such instances, I need to trust my internal guidance system and do what I feel is right. And after having made the decision, trust that the decision I made was the best decision I made and move forward with confidence and ease. Second-guessing myself and my decision is a terrible waste of time and energy that I just can't afford.

2) With the din about economic problems getting louder, it's tempting to let some of my "terms" and rules loose. But staying true to my "terms" is even more important now than it's ever been. Instead of letting my principles and practices loose because of the "bad economy" excuses from prospects - setting strong up-front contracts, truly getting to prospect's pain, qualifying prospects for budget and decision making process - I need to commit to them even more. I need to be more gutsy up-front with such things to avoid wasting time with bad prospects.

3) There is a clear connection between being clear, being integrated (whole) and being focused. Without being clear, I can't be focused. Without bringing different pieces of my life into an integrated whole, being focused is very difficult.

Thanks group, for an insightful discussion. And thanks Arlene for leading such a thought provoking session!

Hope to see you all on May 14!

Happy Success!
Bhavesh.

Apr 9, 2009: Getting Things Done by David Allen

Thanks to Kent Howard, we had a lively and engaging session today with this book.

As I have shared with you all, my life is changing, growing, blossoming in so many ways with the lessons I have learned and insights I have gained. There is something very precious about doing this in a group. Sharing, discussing, reflecting. I don't know about you, but there is NO WAY I could have even come close to bringing about the changes that are happening in my life on my own. So I thank you, group, from the bottom of my heart for that.

I had read this book before. I have put a GTD system in place which I practice vigorously in managing my life goals on weekly and daily basis. And yet, I gained new insights today. I realized that I can either use this material to tie myself down and imprison myself in it. (I don't think David Allen meant it that way.) Or I can use it to free myself, let the system handle the details and and play my bigger game. (That's what David Allen had in mind, I think.)

In the last three or four weeks, I had detached myself from my GTD system, on purpose, so that I can gain a better perspective on my life and all the things I want to do in it. David Allen recommends, by the way, to take a break and go off the system every now and then and come back to it with a fresh perspective.

Today's session inspired me to get back to the system with this more elaborate intention of putting things in place to free myself up even more to do the things that I really want to do. To play my bigger game.

So that I can continue my process of peaceful and relaxed creation - of my business, my relationships, my health, my life.

Thanks again group, for the changes you are helping bring to my life.

Happy Success!
Bhavesh Naik.

Mar 26, 2009: Perfect Love, Imperfect Relationships by John Welwood

Thanks Werner for another powerful session where we learned not just how to show up in a sales call, not just how to show up in a personal relationship, but how to show up in a relationship that counts the most, with ourselves.

The most profound aspect of the session to me was the exercise that Werner led us through where I experienced Love first-hand, in a way I never had quite experienced before.

I learned that if I showed up with the Love, IN that Love in all my relationships, not only would each of my relationship improve substantially, but I would make much more money and be appreciated so much more.

The issue that I had put on the board was "being able to engage with my work not just cognitively but more emotionally, from my gut, more fully." I am realizing that the way to accomplish that is to show up with Love that I am capable of being. The rest follows.

Thanks Werner, for these insights!

Happy Success!
Bhavesh.

What Are Your All-Time Favorite Books?

Every now and then, we come acorss a book that knocks our socks off, perhaps changes our life in a major way. If you had to name one or two such books, what would they be?

Here's mine. OK, it's more than two. But you can do the same!

1) Seven Habits of the Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey
2) Conversations with God by Neale Donald Walsh (Books 1, 2, 3)
3) Getting Things Done by David Allen
4) The Power of Now by Eckhardt Tolle
5) Ask and It is Given by Esther and Jerry Hicks

Thanks for sharing!

Bhavesh.

Mar 12, 2009: Happy For No Reason by Marci Shimoff

Thank you Michael for a powerful session. I especially liked the exercises we did with partners.

As I reflect, one of my insights is how I/R applies to time management. I was reminded by Werner that there are things that “will never be done.” So I need to be OK with things on my plate that are undone. Time Management is a ROLE and if I let my performance in that role get to my "I," I am going to end up with a diminished “I.”

So today - it's day of my Weekly Review - I looked at all the things on my plate with the goal of reducing them to 20% BELOW what I think I can comfortably handle in a week. I went through my whole inventory and ruthlessly re-prioritized the things that can wait until next week or beyond (I have only two priorities for active things on my plate: things that need to get done “this week” versus those beyond). When I did this, my list of 30 things went down to 17!

I am learning that it's important for me to feel a creative control over my day while not feeling like I have wasted it. Being a right-brain-dominant, creative person, having a list of to-do things constricts me and “ties me down.” When I have a few things on my plate that I think I can easily get done, I can “risk” doing other things that I need to do as I am inspired and in-the-moment.

By the way, I am thinking that even 17 things is a lot, especially when many of them are the activities that weaken me rather than strengthen me. The next step for me is figuring out how to mostly do things that I like/want to do and get other things done by someone or something else.

Thanks for a great meeting. Hope to see you all March 26th.

Bhavesh.

Feb 16, 2009: The Art of Worldly Wisdom by Baltasar Gracian

Thank you for a great meeting on the 26th! Special thanks to Diana Adams for preparing and leading a substantive session. I loved the connections to the Sandler principles and was especially taken by the fact this book was written a few hundred years ago and is still so relevant to our world of business today.

As I reflect on three meetings we have had so far, I realize that the "take aways" I end up sharing at the end of the meetings do not often summarize the real impact they have on me.

The things that we discuss stay with me for a quite a few days after the meetings. This time, for example, I started thinking a lot about how I perceive some of the tasks I need to do in my business, bookkeeping for example, that I don't like to do or don't come to me naturally.

Yesterday, I went to my office to catch up with my bookkeeping and found myself surprisingly efficient and effortless. I also did not dread it as much as I normally did before. I found that a lot of the negative emotions that come up as I begin the task were much, much reduced. I actually ended up enjoying some portions of it!

So thank you again for making an impact on my work and my life. I am looking forward to the next meeting on March 12th - same time, same place.

Happy Success!
Bhavesh.