Achieve Success Academy | John Salkowski ~ Leadership in the Line of Duty™

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Successful Entrepreneurs: The Top 7 Mistakes Successful People Avoid

March 18, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy, John R Salkowski, John Salkowski, John Salkowski International No comments

Making mistakes is part of our success journey, however successful people avoid certain ones ~ John R. Salkowski

When you dream, dream big, when you think, think big, when you love, love big. Everything we do starts with a choice and ends with a decision. Success and happiness are choices and decisions we make. There are no excuses for not getting the very best out of your life. There are no excuses for living in a way that consistently makes you unhappy and unsuccessful.

The Top 7 Mistakes Successful People Avoid:

1) Losing track of your goals and ideals – Knowing who you are is one thing, but truly believing and living as yourself is another. With all the social conditioning in our society we sometimes forget to stay true to ourselves and the people that matter most. Don’t lose yourself to everything that is out there. In this crazy world that’s trying to make you like everyone else, stay true to yourself and continue your journey anyway.

2) Using failed excuses – Life doesn’t always introduce you to the people you WANT to meet. Life puts you in touch with the people you NEED to meet; to help you, to hurt you, to leave you, to love you, and to gradually strengthen you into the person you were meant to become.

3) Changing & sacrificing who you are to satisfy others – No matter how loud their opinions are, others cannot choose who you are. The question should not be, “Why don’t they like me when I’m being me?” It should be, “Why am I wasting my time worrying what they think of me?” If you are not hurting anyone with your actions, keep moving forward with your life. Be happy. Be successful. Be YOU. If others don’t like it, who cares and move on. The quickest was to fail in life is trying to please everyone.

4) Putting up with negative people and negative thinking – Get rid of all the drama and the people who create it out of your life. Surround yourself with those who lift you higher, make you better and make you happy. Love those who treat you right and pray for the ones who don’t. Forget the negative and focus on the positive. Life is too short to be anything but successful and happy. Making mistakes and falling down is a part of life, but getting back up, wiping off your knees and elbows and moving on is what life is all about.

5) Focusing your attention on another time and place – This day will never happen again. It will be gone forever. Enjoy it. Cherish it. Spend it with those that matter. It’s often hard to tell the true value of a moment until it becomes a memory. Someday you may just discover that the small things were really the big things. Learn to appreciate what you have before time forces you to appreciate what you once had.

6) Thinking that you have already missed your chance – Your life, with all its ups and downs, has molded you to where you are today. Your life has been exactly what it needed to be. Don’t think you’ve lost time. It took each and every situation you have encountered to bring you to the current moment. Every moment of your life, including this one right now is a fresh start. If you have the courage to admit when you’re scared, the ability to admit when you’re wrong, the boldness to speak up even if your voice is shaking, the confidence to ask for help when you need it and the wisdom to take it when it’s offered, then you have everything you need to get yourself to a better place.

7) Dealing with the stress of deceiving others – If you say you’re going to do something, DO IT! If you say you’re going to be somewhere, BE THERE! If you say you feel something, MEAN IT! If you can’t, won’t, and don’t, then DON’T LIE. It’s always better to tell people the truth up front. Live in such a way that if someone decided to attack your character, no one would believe it. Live so that when the people around you think of fairness, caring and integrity, they think of you.

Successful entrepreneurs are not prisoners in their own minds. They break free from all the negative people, concepts, choices and ideas that hold them back from truly living instead of just existing. They tell the negativity committee that meets inside their heads to sit down, shut up and get out of their way ~ John R. Salkowski

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15 year career who is now a Highly Sought-After Leadership and Motivational Speaker and Trainer. John has wowed audiences ranging from 20-20,000 sharing his unique Leadership strategies in his signature presentation:

Leadership in the Line of Duty™
Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires Want to Know ™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement experiences, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make Split-Second Leadership Decisions when the Direction and Success of your Organization depends on it!”

John has received numerous distinguished awards for Bravery, Merit and Unit Citations. He has also received media attention for serving as a leader within his community, including being featured in the Philadelphia Magazine as one of the area’s Top Business Leaders.

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Split-Second Decisions: 5 Secrets That Will Make You More Successful

March 9, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy, John R Salkowski, John Salkowski, John Salkowski International No comments

Making precise, articulate split-second decisions is one of life’s most important learnable skills ~ John R. Salkowski

When you hear about making split-second decisions who and what comes to mind? When ask this question, the answer I always hear is Police Officers have to make these types of decisions. The scenario I always get is “when to shoot or not to shoot”. Yes, this is true however making split-second decisions applies to everyone from all walks of life.

The skill that everyone must master is how to think on your feet regardless of whether it’s a life or death situation. Making precise split-second decisions is a skill that is learnable and if you want success in your life than you must master this skill.

Making precise decisions is a huge part of life and learning to ask the right questions in preparation for these scenarios is among the top ten life skills we must learn. We base most of our decisions in life on the answers we receive. This is because thinking people like to make informed choices. We like to weigh the information we gather so we can choose the best option. However, this is not always possible. There will be times that we need to make a decision in a blink of an eye.

Since leaving my police career some 7 years ago and entering the entrepreneurial world, these split-second decisions apply to this world just as much as the police world. The one thing I have learned is that decisive people, people that can think on their feet and make precise, articulate, accurate decisions are far more successful than those that cannot. If you ever studied the DISC Personality Assessment majority of the most successful people in the world are of the “D” and “I” personalities. Now of course there are exceptions such as Bill Gates and Warren Buffet who have high “C” personalities. To learn more about the DISC Personality Assessment go to http://www.discprofile.com/whatisdisc.htm

Here are 5 Split-Second Decision Secrets That Will Make You More Successful:

1) Create an Urgency of Readiness: When I think of readiness, I think of a gazelle that’s always on the lookout, excited and eager for that next attack. Readiness is that anticipation to engage and the willingness to make tough decisions on a continuous basis.

2) Use Your Unique Aptitude: Be aware of your surroundings at all times or as I like to call it situational awareness. Situational awareness is often studied in the context of leadership and roles involving time-critical applications.

3) Utilize Your Life Experiences: Put into practice what you have experienced throughout your life. We learn more from our failings than we do from our winnings. Put these experiences to use when making difficult decisions.

4) Adapt to The Environment: Immediately identify with the situation. Once the patterns are identified, analyze the data to identify the questions that must be answered in order to make the best decision.

5) Take Immediate Action: Now is the time to play out the decision and immediately engage with the information you have. Always, always maintain your situational awareness.

In order to dramatically increase the probability of your success, you must have the fortitude and willingness to make tough precise decisions quickly by implementing these 5 split-second decision secrets.

If you want long lasting success in your life, you must make powerful change during the make-it-or-break-it moments which come down to the split-second decisions you make ~ John R. Salkowski

About the Author, John R. Salkowski

He is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15 year career who is now a Highly Sought-After Leadership and Motivational Speaker and Trainer. He has wowed audiences ranging from 20-20,000 sharing his unique Leadership strategies in his signature presentation:

Leadership in the Line of Duty™
Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires Want to Know ™

He regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement experiences, he now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make Split-Second Leadership Decisions when the Direction and Success of your Organization depends on it!”

He has received numerous distinguished awards for Bravery, Merit and Unit Citations. He has also received media attention for serving as a leader within his community, including being featured in the Philadelphia Magazine as one of the area’s Top Business Leaders.

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Inspiring others to be Decisive and Take Action Now

February 18, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy, John R Salkowski, John Salkowski, John Salkowski International No comments

Make a decision, be decisive and take action. Indecisiveness breeds failure. Live by choice, not by chance. Make changes, not excuses. Get motivated, not manipulated. Work to excel, not compete ~ John R. Salkowski

This is the way to inspire people to make decisions, take action and make a positive difference in their lives. This is how you can grow into the best version of YOU! Listen to your inner voice, it’s always right and be selective on who you take advice from not the jumbled opinions of everyone out there.

Here are the Top 5 ways to Inspire Others to be Decisive and Take Action Now:

1) Care about Others – People don’t care about how much you know, until they know how much you care.

2) Challenge others to do their Best – As Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “Our chief want is someone who will inspire us to be what we know we could be.” If people know we expect great things from them, they will often go to great lengths to live up to our expectations.

3) Share Personal Experiences from your Failures to your Successes – Always be a resource to those around you. If you have access to essential information, don’t hoard it, share it openly. You have more to share than you realize. Mine the rich experiences of your life and share your wisdom from your unique point of view. Be vulnerable. Be willing to share your failures as well as your successes. Others will relate to you. They’ll understand that they’re not the only ones with challenges.

4) Express your Enthusiasm – Passion is something you must be willing to express if you want to inspire others. You will gain a lot of influence just by publicly expressing that you’re excited and passionate about a topic. Expressive passion is contagious. You’ll get people inspired by having them wonder why you love what you love so much. Most will and some won’t take the time necessary to understand what it is about the topic that moves you so much.

5) Be Authentic and True to Yourself – In this crazy world that’s trying to make you like everyone else, or as I call it “PC or Political Correctness”, find the courage to keep being your awesome self. Embrace that individual inside you that has ideas, strengths, wisdom and beauty like no one else. Be the person you know yourself to be – be the person you want to be – the best version of you – on your terms. Above all, be true to YOU, and if you cannot put your heart and soul into it, take yourself out of it. No it won’t always be easy; because when it comes to living as a compassionate, empathetic, non-judgmental human being, the only challenge greater than learning to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes, is learning to walk a lifetime in your own.

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”™
Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires Know ™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make Split-Second Leadership Decisions when the Direction and Success of your Organization depends on it!”

John has received numerous distinguished awards for Bravery, Merit and Unit Citations. He has also received several employee recognition awards for serving as a leader within his community, including being featured in the Philadelphia Magazine as one of the area’s Top Business Leaders.

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.
To request John speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Is Success truly found in our Struggle?

January 31, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Sometimes you have to get knocked down lower than you’ve ever been, to stand up taller than you than you ever were ~ unknown

Did you know that one of the most famous, well-known and respected men in American history at the age of 50 had never experienced success? In fact, what he had experienced was way too many struggles and disappointments. Here are just a few of the struggles and disappointments he had faced: Being forced out of his home along with his family at age 7, losing his mother at age 9, at the age 22 he lost a job as a store clerk and while wanting to attend law school, he was unable to because his education wasn’t adequate, losing a youthful love to an untimely death and at age 28 being rejected upon asking his next love to marry him, failing the first two attempts for Congress and upon being elected on his third attempt, losing his re-election two years later, suffering a nervous breakdown, losing a young son, and making two unsuccessful attempts at earning a seat in the US Senate.

One can only say, “Wow”. Quite a laundry list of struggle would provoke one to lose hope and even doubt his own ability. Yes, this entire list of struggle and disappointment is equated with just one person. After all of this contention, at the age of 51, Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th President of the United States, yet unfortunately, the heart-breaking moments didn’t stop there.

Why speak of such struggle? Why focus on all of the tough times? What can Lincoln’s life teach us? What lessons can each of us learn from his agonizing experiences?

Great leaders don’t just materialize as does great success, character and integrity appear out of thin air. As Lincoln’s life demonstrates, a life full of appreciation and something worth admiring occurs only after much struggle and disappointment.

True success, creating a life that achieves contentment and inspires those around you to soar as well is something that requires a person of inner strength which is fostered by persevering through challenging times. While there are many in our world who understand this, there are far too many who believe that success comes to those who put out their hand and ask politely for it, and upon being laughed at or ignored, stomp their foot and whine. But David Bly reminds us in his precise analogy, “Striving for success without hard work is like trying to harvest where you haven’t planted.”

The truth of the matter is, whining and pleading will achieve nothing of value and possibly some pity. So instead of blaming our troubles for our inability to achieve the success we had dreamt about, why not be grateful for them and turn them into something beyond our initial imaginative desires?

Why not take it on the chin? So you were rejected, so the job you’ve desired for years isn’t hiring, so your car breaks down, so you are faced with another struggle you hadn’t planned on – look deep inside yourself, find your strength, tap into it and burn the midnight oil to make a seemingly unfortunate situation into something that will leave people inspired and with you realizing the amazing strengths you may not have known you had.

Think about this for a moment, if everything in our lives ran smoothly and not one obstacle ever presented itself, would we truly ever realize our true potential? Absolutely not!

Don’t get me wrong, times of struggle and disappointment are not something I wish for nor want, however it is in those moments when you are being tested that you can either choose to fail and remain where you are, or take it for the opportunity that it is and turn into gold.

Things worth having don’t come easy, so I leave you with a quote from the very man who faced the utmost struggle: The probability that we may fail in the struggle ought not to deter us from the support of a cause we believe to be just ~ Abraham Lincoln

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”™
“Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires Know” ™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make Decisive Split-Second Leadership Decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.
To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Top Secrets of All Top-Performers & Self-Made Millionaires

January 20, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Decisiveness shapes our destinies. Be quick to decide! Our successes are shaped in the moments of decision ~ John R. Salkowski

All top performers and even self-made millionaires know that making decisive, accurate, quality decisions is the key to their success. You don’t rise to the top in your field or industry if you do not like making decisions. Decision making is a skill that is learnable. Top performers and self-made millionaires rise to the top when the pressure is on them. You’ve heard the saying, “If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen.”

During my police career, I was often called to situations that required immediate decisive action. Let me give you an example. One Sunday morning as I was on patrol I came across a parked Jeep Wrangler at one of our Township Parks. The lot was posted that no car was permitted to be parked in the lot before 8am. As I began to investigate, I noticed a white male sitting in the driver’s seat wearing no shirt. The man at this catatonic stare and his hair was disheveled. As I pulled into the lot, the Jeep began to pull away quickly as if he was trying to get away from me. At this point, I had no idea what type of situation I had. Thoughts began to race through my mind. It was cold out, he had no shirt on, his appearance was dissheveled, did he just commit a crime, was his vehicle stolen, was he doing drugs, did he have someone in the car that he was holding against their will. As you can see, I had to process my thoughts to make sure I was justified in pursuing this vehicle. More thoughts continued to race through my mind. If I pursued this vehicle over something minor and he crashed into something or someone injuring himself or someone else, was my decision in pursuing this vehicle justified. I had to be decisive and accurate in my decision making.

Due to the unknown situation and the potential severity of a crime being committed, I made the decision to pursue the vehicle. With the help of other Officers, the vehicle was eventually stopped just a few short miles from the original location. It was later determined that the man was in possession of heroin and was shooting up the drug just prior to me witnessing him in the parking lot.

Below are Top Secrets of All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires

Decisions. Top-performers and self-made millionaires are decisive in every area of their life. Decision + Action= Result. Becoming a top-performer and/or a self-made millionaire is a result of being a Champion decision maker that takes the action needed to achieve a huge level of success. We make decisions about our success in every area of life based on our Why not on how society labels us or what naysayers have to say about us.

Beliefs. The day that you realize that you must build your belief to change your life, you’ve made it! You may not yet be a top-performer or financially not yet a self-made millionaire, but the decision to build your belief and develop an attitude of belief-building sets you up to create top-performing capabilities or the physical wealth of millions of dollars. Have you tried to make a lot of money with no belief? Has it worked? I’m certain it hasn’t. You only become a self-made failure with no belief in yourself.

Gut Instincts. Top-performers and self-made millionaires have gut instinct. Being in business for myself for the past 6 years, I can within seconds tell you the character of someone and if I would do business with them. It takes more than education to become a top-performer and/or a self-made millionaire. Just like an animal acting on its instincts when catching its prey, you must rely on your gut instinct to successfully become a top-performer and to build a million dollar business as well as to survive in our cut throat society.

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”™
Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Top-Performers and Self-Made Millionaires Know ™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

The Decision Making of a Champion: Ray Lewis Decides to Retire After 17 Seasons

January 7, 2013 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

You will NOT become what you’re destined to become until you first make the DECISION to become – John R. Salkowski

After 17 seasons, Ray Lewis with the Baltimore Ravens who has defined the team’s defensive excellence announced his decision to retire Wednesday, telling teammates that “this will be my last ride.”

What made Ray Lewis’ decision to retire so easy for him? After 17 seasons and 37 years old he still has what it takes to play the middle linebacker position like an All-Pro.

Ray Lewis told his teammates and media, “I just feel so much peace in where I am with my decision because of everything I’ve done in this league. There’s no accolade that I don’t have individually but I’ve never played the game for individual stats. I’ve only played the game to make my team be a better team.”

“Now, God is calling,” Lewis said. “God is calling in so many other areas of life and my children have made the ultimate sacrifice for their father, the ultimate for 17 years. Whether it’s jump on the plane, jump right back, go to school, and I don’t want to see them do no more. I’ve done what I wanted to do in this business and now, it’s my turn to give them back something. It’s either hold onto the game or keep playing or let my kids miss out on times we could be sharing together. I promised my son if he got a full-ride scholarship, Daddy was going to be there. I can’t miss that. I don’t know if I could sit in a meeting room and fight with that war.”

Ray Lewis describes above his “Why” on making the decision to retire. It all begins and ends with our “Why”. His decision was made from his “gut” or as some call it, his “inter-voice talking” to him. If you want to be great at whatever you do, you must first have a “Why”. His “Why” 17 seasons ago was to be the best middle linebacker to ever play the game. He played every game with heart, enthusiasm, energy, passion and the will to win.

17 seasons later his “Why” is his children. He now wants to be there for them. After all the years of their sacrifice and adversity they have been through, he’s now saying it’s his turn.

Lewis, who had been the NFL’s longest tenured defensive player with his original team, leaves the Ravens and the sport with a résumé that puts him in the conversation as one of the best middle linebackers in NFL history, and a lock for the Hall of Fame.

He was selected for 13 Pro Bowl teams, tabbed as an Associated Press All-Pro 10 times, garnered NFL Defensive Player of the Year honors twice and was named the Super Bowl XXXV MVP after the Ravens’ triumph over the New York Giants.

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”™
Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Self-Made Millionaires Know ™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Here’s How to Make 2013 Your Best Year Ever!

December 31, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 2 comments

Making a decision and following through with it can and will move mountains ~ John R. Salkowski

Everyday life begins and ends with decision making. We become and transform into the people we are by the daily decisions we make.

Today, the last day of 2012 is the perfect time to take stock and reflect on the year gone by, the triumphs you achieved, the time you shared with family and friends, the good and bad decisions you made professionally and personally. But in order to grow and develop both professionally and personally, you also have to look back and acknowledge the things that challenged you, the things that did not go so well for you.

There is nothing wrong with setbacks, in fact, in order to grow professionally and personally we must face the obstacles, challenges, adversity and learn to overcome along the way in order to learn and grow. The only way to succeed at anything is to learn from our failures. The founder of IBM, Thomas Watson once said, “If you want to increase your rate of success, you better be prepared to increase your rate of failure.”

We all want a better life financially, professionally and personally. We all have hopes and dreams for our future. Today, right now, this very minute, is the time to clear the slate and start anew. In what areas do you want to grow? What is truly important to you? What challenges do you want to take on? Most of us don’t realize what we can accomplish when we unleash our hidden talents that we possess.

Here’s a little secret to unleashing your wrath on your 2013! Make a decision, stick to it, follow through and commit to achieving what you want in life. As I said above, it all begins and ends with our decision making ability.

Here are some thoughts for you to start your 2013 off on the right foot:

1. Make the Decision to Challenge Yourself

Have a clear vision and focus of what you want to achieve and set a time frame. Challenge yourself to be the best you can be at all times. Visualize what you want to accomplish. See it in your mind. Write down your goals, have a plan of action, and never doubt you will be successful.

2. Stretch your Mind and your Comfort Zone

Do at least one thing a day, which makes you, feel uncomfortable? Push yourself; you will be amazed how far you can go. Remember: on the other side of fear is freedom. To remain stagnant is not to grow. To stay comfortable is to settle for mediocrity.

3. Always Be Serving Others

Be a role model and mentor for people. Set great examples and help others achieve their goals. Your world will be enriched and a better place for sharing your talents and giving freely of your time.

4. Leave a lasting legacy.

People will sometimes forget what you do and say to them; however they will never forget how you made them feel. Commit, not only for having the best year ever, but to help others that you care about accomplish this goal as well.

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”™
“Split-Second Decision Secrets Revealed that All Self-Made Millionaires Know”™

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make Split-Second Leadership Decisions when the success and direction of your organization depends on it!”™

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.
To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

A Personal Message from Founder John R. Salkowski

December 24, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 2 comments

“You will have everything in life you want, if you will just help people get what they want” – The Late Great Zig-Ziglar

This holiday season I want you all to know that I am most grateful for your love, support and friendship. Please know that I appreciate you more than you know and hope that you enjoy your holidays as we look onward and upward to a fantastic 2013 filled with unlimited possibilities.

Resolve today to making 2013 your best year ever. Start by writing down what it is you want to achieve for the New Year. Remember to include being a mentor and friend to others that need you most.

Like Mr. Zig Ziglar said so eloquently, “You will have everything in life you want, if you will just help people get what they want”.

Here are the Top Strategies to Achieve More in 2013:

1) Planning Your Future- If you don’t know where you are going then any road will get you there. Your planning must be specific and measurable. You must take time to examine the details of every aspect of your life, personal and professional, to achieve unified success and happiness.

2) Decide the Who, Not the What- Decide who you want to be, not what you want to be doing. If you know who you want to be, you can detail what to do and the resources you will need.

3) Be a Giver- Help someone else achieve the success they so desire.

4) Be Honest with Yourself- You’ll need to challenge yourself constantly to get to the truth of who we are and who we wish to be.

5) Ignore the Naysayers- Constructive criticism is okay. But outside perspective that is baseless (think dissatisfied family or friends) is destructive for achievers. Put these people in a box where they can’t distract you from your ambitions. Find people who get it, and put them in your corner. Engage them in your chosen future, and help them achieve theirs.

6) Don’t Settle for Mediocrity- You should push yourself to the limits of your potential. Too many people settle for what is easy rather than engage their energy and creativity to create something different, significant and meaningful. Resolve for the New Year to pursue the “Awesome Experience”.

Happy Holidays to All and I wish for you all to experience the success you so truly deserve in 2013.

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

The Secret to Your Success is found in What You Do Everyday

December 17, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through ~ Zig Ziglar

Firstly, I want to dedicate this article to the innocent people that lost their lives on December 14, 2012 in Newtown, CT. This act of terror was senseless and horrible and my thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones during this difficult time. May God Bless you all.

Is there a Secret to Success?

You bet there is a secret to success. Keep reading on and you will find out what makes some successful and others, well not so successful.

The success that you desire is found in your daily routines and your attitude. What you do every day, what you feed your mind with will determine what you achieve in life. People that achieve extraordinary success do so because they invest in themselves every day. They take the necessary time to invest in their lives and are always learning. Because they invest into their lives, they add value to the lives of others as well.

It all starts the minute to you step out of bed until you lay your head down to sleep that night. What you do during this time, what you feed your mind will determine how successful you become.

How You Think is everything. Always be Positive. Think Success, Think Achievement not Failure. Be aware of and stay away from negative people and environments. Turn off the television. Don’t watch the news. Don’t pick up or dare open that newspaper. How you think is one of the most important things you must master. Your belief and mind-set that you can accomplish your goals must be unwavering. I’ve found that from time-to-time my attitude waivers. A mentor of mine once said “it’s ok to get down or feel sorry for yourself; however you must not stay there”. Immediately upon catching yourself in this mind-set, say to yourself, “Cancel these thoughts”. Remember positive things happen to positive people.

Take Action. Goals are nothing without action and a strategic plan. Seek out someone that is doing what you want to do. Be like Nike and “Just do it”. Every day I try to take some action towards my goals. It may be small, but it’s still an action. Have you taken action towards your goals?

Never Stop Learning. Attend a seminar, read a book, seek out a mentor or a mastermind group. Becoming a lifelong learner would benefit us all and is something we should instill in our children. Would you stick a garden hose into your cars gas tank and fill it up with water? Of course not. Then why would you put junk into your body and mind? You become what you feed your mind and body.

Never Give Up. Be Persistent. Working hard is not enough. Working hard at the wrong things will not bring you success. You must work right and hard at the right things. Success is a marathon, not a sprint. You’ve heard about the tortoise and the hare? Slow and steady wins the race.

Remain laser focused on your goals and surround yourself with positive people and environments that believe in you. Don’t get distracted by the naysayer’s or tasks that are not helping you achieve your goals. You must concentrate and stay laser focused on the goal at hand. This is what some of the most successful people in the world do. Why not follow their lead? Don’t reinvent the wheel.

Lastly, take responsibility for your daily actions and attitude. Invest your time and mind into worthwhile things. If you make a few adjustments into your daily agenda, you too can achieve whatever you set your mind too.

To read a newspaper is to refrain from reading something worthwhile. The first discipline of education must therefore be to refuse resolutely to feed the mind with canned chatter ~ Aleister Crowley

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

How a Leader turned Chaos into Triumph: A Penn State Story

December 10, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

“For five years, Bills outstanding work with our quarterbacks and entire offense has led to record-setting performances. His presence and command before our team has grown into that of an inspirational leader. This is a great match between a storied program and an old-school football coach.” — BILL BELICHICK, New England Patriots coach

Who is Coach Bill O’Brien?

So, who is this guy anyway? He was born in Dorchester, MA. and raised in Andover, a Boston suburb. He played linebacker and defensive end at Brown University from 1990-92, graduating in 1992 with a double concentration in political science and organizational behavior management. He started out his coaching career at his alma mater. He worked his way through the college ranks before landing a job with the New England Patriots in 2007 under the great Bill Belichick.

During a bye week with the New England Patriots, Coach O’Brien was permitted to speak with the Jacksonville Jaguars for their head coach position. Fortunately, this never happened but instead interviewed for the head coaching position at Penn State. On January 7, 2012 O’Brien became the 15th head football coach after the firing of Joe Paterno following the largest child abuse sex scandals in all of college football history.

So, after all the scandal and bad publicity that Penn State was going through why would anyone want to be the successor to the legendary Joe Paterno as Penn State’s football coach, you might ask? Just ask Dave Joyner, Penn State’s Acting Director of Athletics.

“We have found the man to take Penn State football forward,” said Dave Joyner, Penn State Acting Director of Athletics, at O’Brien’s introduction to the Nittany Nation. “Needless to say, we have been looking for someone with some very special qualities, beginning with a heart that beats to the values and vision of Penn State University and our Penn State football legacy and tradition. That was our starting point, and Coach O’Brien exemplifies those traits that Penn Staters hold so highly. In addition to his model characteristics as a man and a teacher, he’s all about producing winners, and doing so the right way. He will embrace tradition, demand excellence and pursue Success with Honor in every phase of our program.”

Despite all the negativity Coach O’Brien was faced with from the former players and fans, he was determined to lead one of the nation’s premier college football programs with true old school style leadership.

What we can learn from Coach O’Brien. He is an old style, in your face type coach, not afraid to voice his opinion or speak his mind. People must respect this. He is extremely detailed/task oriented with a system in place for just about everything. He is a very engaging person that loves people and wants to make a difference in the lives he touches. He’s an intense man with a vision for success. He loves a challenge and will not back down. He faces every challenge head on. He’s very intelligent and knows the game like the back of his hand. He has coached every position and had some of the best mentors the games have ever produced. Lastly, his has a strong presence and command about him. When he walks into a room, he has something about him that is instantly respected and admired.

Coach O’Brien is an ordinary man that gets extraordinary results in everything he does. His goal is to rebuild the image of a program and to recreate that aura of prestige and class. With an 8-4 finish, O’Brien brought that feeling back to the campus and its iconic football team. This was the reason Coach O’Brien was named “Big Ten Coach of the Year” over the likes of Urban Meyers, Ohio State Buckeyes and Brian Kelly, Notre Dame Fighting Irish.

In his last interview, he had to say this, “It was a tough, tough year here, especially if you go back to November, but I think these kids — and again it goes back to this senior class — they’re wise beyond their years,” O’Brien said. “As time went on they realized that it’s not about bowl games, it’s about making sure that we do our part to help put an end to child abuse but at the same time go out and play as good of football as we can and like every season we wish we had some plays back and some games back, but I think at the end of the day we played pretty good football.”

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15 year career who is now a Highly Sought-After Leadership and Motivational Speaker and Trainer. John can speak for crowds ranging from 20-20,000 sharing his unique leadership strategies in his signature presentation:

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Nick Saban: What makes this Great Coach, Mentor and Leader Tick?

December 3, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 3 comments

“It’s not going to get fixed until everybody takes responsibility for it. Like one of those old West Virginia proverbs that I always talk about. A man benefits directly from a mistake, relative to how much it bothers him. I can tell you I didn’t sleep very much, so it bothers the hell out of me.” ~ Nick Saban

If you want to figure out what makes Nick Saban tick, start with the little things. What really separates Saban from the crowd is his organizational modus operandi. Nick Saban calls it, “The Process”. It’s an approach he implemented first in turnarounds at Michigan State and LSU and seems to have perfected “The Process” at Alabama. He has a plan for everything. He has a detailed program for his players to follow, and he’s highly regimented. Above all, Saban keeps his players and coaches focused on execution – yes, another word for process – rather than results.

Thank “The Process”, which involves an almost inhuman work ethic, relentlessness and energy level.

“You see how he works day in and day out, every day,” says strength coach Scott Cochran. “And then you see how exhausted you would be, or you are, at that time and he’s still going hard, he’s still attacking. It doesn’t matter whether he was up all night or had to take a recruiting trip and come back. He doesn’t have a tired side. He doesn’t have a down side. And I’m the strength coach, so you think I can have one? No way!”

“Nick is all about focus –on one thing,” Belichick writes of Saban. “Whether it is the next opponent, the next practice, or the next recruit, he has the ability—at any given time to devote his absolute attention and energy to solving the problem or challenge at hand before moving to the next one.”

What amazes me about Saban is the process he uses for recruiting the top blue chippers in the country. He uses a precise mathematical equation for each recruit, their position such as their height, speed, flexibility and strength. Here’s an example: His offensive lineman have to be a certain height, weight and strength to be even considered. However, what is most important is the drills he puts his recruits through. If the recruit is in a 3-point stance and his heels are not on the ground, he doesn’t recruit them. No matter how good they are, he will not recruit them because of their flexibility.

Saban is a brain surgeon in a college head coaching role. Simply brilliant!

My research of Nick Saban reveals these top qualities that make him an All-Time Great Leader on and off the field:

1) Intelligent ~ Studies and masters at becoming great.

2) Relentless ~ He never gives in or gives up.

3) Intense ~ Losing is no option

4) Demands Accountability ~ Respects only those that take responsibility for their actions.

5) Driven ~ Wants to be the greatest of all-time.

6) Focused ~ Is all about his modus operanti.

7) Disciplined ~ Gets things accomplished at whatever expense.

What really separates Saban from the crowd is his organizational modus operandi. There you have it, follow in the footsteps of this great leader and start building your leadership qualities today!

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15 year career who is now a Highly Sought-After Leadership and Motivational Speaker and Trainer. John can speak for crowds ranging from 20-20,000 sharing his unique leadership strategies in his signature presentation:

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations. Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

To Make a Positive Difference it all starts with Sharing!

November 26, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

To share your knowledge with others is the real definition of living ~ John R. Salkowski

I thought I’d share this fantastic vitamin/mineral supplement I am taking. It’s called Vemma. The results I have seen have been unbelievable. I have had acid reflux very badly for the past 6 years to where I was taking 2 Prilosec’s a day. I’ve been taking Vemma for 3 months now and I must say, I do not take Prilosec any longer. My mother’s arthritic knee use to click every time she bent it, after taking this product for 1 month, she no longer has that problem. I have my entire family including my 10 year old (who has asthma) on this product and you should too! Continue reading to see why you need to start taking this great product NOW!

The World’s Most Powerful Anti-Oxidant

Check out this website: http://www.vemma.com/science/

The “Mangosteen Fruit” is one of the main ingredients in Vemma.

Vemma ~ an acronym for Vitamins Essential Minerals Mangosteen and Aloe ~ boasts a wide range of health properties, backed by double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials conducted by Brunswick Laboratories in Norton, MA. The liquid vitamin and mineral supplement carries a high ORAC value, which stands for Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity. Ronald Prior, the scientist who helped create the ORAC test, recommends you consume at least 3,500 ORAC units daily for optimum health. Vemma contains 115,000 ORAC units.

Immune Booster

An independent, double blind placebo controlled study conducted by Brunswick Labs in Norton, Mass., showed that people drinking Vemma showed a significant improvement in immune function. An active compound in aloe, called Acemannan, is an immune stimulant.

Cancer Fighter

According to the National Cancer Institute, oxidative stress throughout your body can lead to free radical damage that causes cancer. Vemma contains 12 full spectrum vitamins, including beta carotene, vitamin C, vitamin D3, and B vitamins 1, 2, 3, 6 and 12 and enough antioxidant power to minimize oxidation in your body. Some ingredients include mangosteen, aloe vera and organic decaf green tea blend. The term full spectrum refers to providing your body with all of the essential nutrients it needs in the right amounts.

Inflammation Reducer

According to the Brunswick Labs study, and reported in the August 2009 issue of the Journal of Medicinal Food, inflammation inside your body can be very dangerous. When your blood vessels and tissues become inflamed, blood pressure rises and your risk of heart attack and disease are increased. Inflammation in your joints can also result in painful arthritis. A protein called C – reactive protein is present when inflammation is present and this particular protein is reduced with consumption of Vemma.

BioAvailability

Bioavailability refers to the rate and extent to which the active ingredient in a particular formula is absorbed into your body. Brunswick Labs conducted a 24-hour test to see how bioavailable Vemma really is. Blood samples were taken, and then people were given either a Vemma drink, or placebo. After 24 hours blood samples were taken again, and showed the high bioavailability of Vemma. Twelve full spectrum vitamins and 65 essential minerals found in Vemma were absorbed into the subjects’ bloodstreams within that 24-hour period.

Xanthones

Xanthones are a biologically active plant phenol found in highest abundance in the mangosteen fruit. Consumption of xanthone’s can help you with allergies, infections, skin problems, inflammation, cholesterol and fatigue, according to xanthonesresearch.com.

If you have any questions regarding this product, please email my office directly at John@JohnSalkowski.com. Individual results vary. You may not do as well

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

It’s Thanksgiving week: What are you most thankful for?

November 20, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

In our everyday hustle and bustle we tend to forget about what really matters in our lives. Take a moment to sit quietly to reflect on all that you are most grateful for ~ John R. Salkowski

Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays. It’s a week where I tend to slow down and take the time to reflect on what I am most grateful for. We tend to forget about the small things in life. The truth is, it’s the small things in our lives that matter the most.

Here are the top things that I am most thankful and grateful for in my life:

My beautiful daughter

My daughter, Alexa is a fun loving, gentle, warm soul, intelligent and beautiful 10 year old. She is funny, loves to play hide and seek and loves to scare her daddy by hiding and popping out where I least expect it. Her presence can turn a stressful day into a day where nothing seems impossible. I have her to thank for my mental well-being and for keeping me grounded. She is my “Why”. She is why I work so tirelessly to be more and too achieve more. I’ve never experienced unconditional love before in my life—someone who expects nothing more from me than what I can give. She has my back in any moment of stress or heartache. I couldn’t imagine where I’d be without her, and for that, I’m so unbelievably thankful.

My Health

I’m thankful for realizing the importance of health by living a clean lifestyle which I teach to my daughter. I’m talking about all aspects of health from what you consume, how much sleep you get, brain health, and physical exercise as well as taking time for mental health. They’re all important. Without our health, what do we really have? Over the past 6 years, my life has changed so much for the better. It has brought me places where I’ve never imagined I’d be. I’m 43 years old now and I plan on living to be 100 year old, still as active and healthy as I am today.

My Time

This year, especially, I’ve grown very fond of how important time is as well as the concept of it. Time is the one thing you will never get back. Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever. You must spend your time wisely in all you do. I’m thankful of the time I’ve spent in every moment of my life—good and bad—because I know I wouldn’t be the same without having lived every single minute. I’m thankful that I have the time to tell everyone in my life who matters most how much they mean to me. What a shame it would be to leave such a simple, yet important, gratitude left unsaid to someone you care about. Tell someone today what they mean to you. It’s the greatest feeling on the planet.

My Solitude

Taking time to actively be alone is one of the most underrated forms of self-help. If you are not happy being alone, you will not be happy with someone in your life. My daily meditations are a time to check out and allow my mind to experience a period of no thought. Before I started this completely secular form of meditation, I don’t know if I had ever truly relaxed. This simple 20-minute time period has altered my outlook on the day ahead as well as my life ahead. I can be more positive and attentive because my mind doesn’t have to work as hard. When I spend quiet time alone, everything is put into perspective. You become more rational, more grateful for who you are, what you do and for the people that matter the most in your life. Solitude is the best form of a mental health day, which we all tend to need from time to time.

My People

I was going to put friends and family; instead I titled it, “My People” as the heading for this paragraph. I wanted to include everyone that has touched my life. And it’s “my people” that I’m really thankful for this year. I’ve met so many amazing people in my lifetime who have inspired me as mentors, leaders and role models. Some of those people have no idea how inspirational they are to me. It was the little gesture of kindness or the way they stared at their significant other when they thought nobody else was watching. I give thanks for everyone who has the courage to live their own life without fear of being themselves in every possible moment. You are inspiring to me whether you know it or not.

So there you have what I am most grateful for. All I ask of you is to take the time to do the same thing, whether it is in your gratitude journal or on a piece of paper. By placing your thoughts to paper there’s something magical that happens inside you. Give it a try and I bet you experience that same magical feeling I do.

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15 year career who is now a Highly Sought-After Leadership and Motivational Speaker and Trainer. John can speak for crowds ranging from 20-20,000 sharing his unique leadership strategies in his signature presentation:
“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

John regularly speaks for a variety of leaders (ranging from entry level to experienced executives) for corporations, business groups, associations, colleges, universities, youth groups and sports organizations.
Pulling from his 15 years of real world, in-the-trenches (and even life and death) Law Enforcement situations, John now teaches leaders one of the most important key components of leadership (that is often overlooked):

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Design your own life or someone else will

November 12, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

“If you don’t design your own life plan, chances are you’ll fall into someone else’s plan. And guess what they have planned for you? Not much.” ~ Jim Rohn

You have a better chance of your life turning out the way you want it to rather than leaving it in the hands of someone else.

I love the image of an architect designing a building by first laying out the blueprints. Or a writer, like I did, outlining a book by starting with the table of contents of what chapter titles you want to write about. The ability to create something from scratch is a powerful feeling.

The best way you can start your own life’s blueprint is by first writing down the things you want to accomplish. Let’s think about this for a minute? Everything that is built today started with a blueprint. Every pilot that is flying to a destination has a flight plan. A starting point and an ending point. A blueprint of a building and a flight plan for a pilot is one of the same. Laying it out on paper before you start is the best way to accomplish your life’s goals and design the life you’ve always dreamed of.

I’ve created 6 tools I think everyone needs to design the life they’ve always dreamed of.

1. Blueprint

The blueprint for your life should be like an architect’s building design, the author’s table of contents, or a pilot’s flight plan. You set out certain goals and map out a plan or a course of actions on how you will accomplish each one of them. A blueprint should be used in all aspects of your life from your personal life, relationships, friendships, children and whatever else you have in store for yourself.

2. Focus

After you’ve created your blueprint, and before you take action, you need to get into the right mindset. The power of your thoughts, your positive mindset, your committed focus on your goals and your plan will improve your chances of success in each area you take action in. You must believe in yourself and your ability to achieve your goals. You must become aware of your thoughts and maintain the ones that will support your getting what you want. You must eliminate distractions and negativity and focus on the end result. Start with the end in mind.

3. Action

With your blueprint in place and your mind set on success achievement, you’re ready to take the actions necessary to build your life as you desire it. Do the things necessary that will bring you closer to achieving your ideal life. You must keep following the action steps you have outlined in your blueprint.

4. Maintenance

Actions need to be monitored regularly to check on your progress. Keep monitoring your progress toward your goals so you can stay motivated. Celebrate the small successes on your way toward your bigger goals. Each success is one step closer to your ultimate life design.

5. Repairs

Make corrections, adjust for change, re-examine your actions and your goals. As you hit obstacles, find a way around them, through them or over them. Do not allow obstacles to stop you. Hitting obstacles should make you hungrier. Continually re-assess your goals to make sure it’s what you really want. Then establish some new actions steps that will get you back on the path even if it’s a different route. Never, ever give up!

6. Support

The architect designs the house; he or she doesn’t build it. He or she has a team of professionals that help accomplish this goal. As you design your life, your team should include coaches, mentors, teachers, trainers, associates and whoever else can help you achieve your goals and get you from where you are to where you want to be.

As you start working your plan, review it on a regular basis, adjust for changes, and always reward yourself for your progress. With these tools in your toolbox, you’re on your way to designing your own life. Good luck. You can do this! Stay on course, never give up and follow your plan!

About the Author

“Leadership in the Line of Duty”
Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations

“How to make split-second leadership decisions when the direction and success of your organization depends on it!”

Any organization that wants to develop their people into becoming “Extraordinary Leaders” needs to hire John for a keynote and/or workshop training.

To request John to speak at your next event, please email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Relentless Pursuit of Your Life’s Passion: 6 Tips to Achieve Your Dream

November 5, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

“As long as we are persistence in our pursuit of our deepest destiny, we will continue to grow. We cannot choose the day or time when we will fully bloom. It happens in its own time.” Denis Waitley

Believe In Yourself

It all starts with believing in yourself and your ability. It’s the first step to success. Without the faith and confidence in your own ability, fear sets in. Once fear sets in, people tend to stop pursuing their dreams and goals. The best way to reduce fear and to build your confidence is by taking action. As soon as you do, you’ll gain the experience and knowledge to continue onward. Everything is hard the first time. Everyone that is a master of their field was once a rookie. No one ever started as an expert. They worked their way to mastering excellence. Start off with baby steps and you will eventually build up your confidence until the fear of failure is manageable.

Have Clear, Specific Goals and be Committed to them

The ability to set goals and make plans for their accomplishment is the “master skill” of success. We become what we think about most. If you have a burning desire to be more and achieve more you must be committed to writing your goals and creating a blueprint for your future life and business.

The average people, the 97%ers as I like to call them are not committed to achieving great results. You must be committed from the onset that you will no longer accept being in the 97% tier. You must commit yourself to being in the top 3% of all successful people. Being committed takes focus and self-discipline which I’ll describe in my next tip.

Be Focused and Self-Disciplined

To be in the top 3% in your chosen profession it takes laser focus and iron-clad self-discipline. When your laser is on target, you’re able to burn your way to success far more efficiently and effectively than you otherwise could. Those with a natural inclination for self-discipline are generally able to put their heads down and plow through whatever it is that needs to get done, regardless of whether they feel like it or not. Self-discipline is a skill that can be improved with training and coaching. It’s like a muscle, with exercise you can build it.

Accept Failure

In order to succeed you must accept and embrace failure. Failure is an inevitable part of success. You learn far more from failure than you do from your successes. You will fail along the way, however you must learn from it, persevere through it and don’t quit as a result of it. Greatness is achieved through failure.

Study and Master Your Passion

To become an expert in your field, everyone starts at ground zero. Anyone that’s at the top of their game was once a rookie. To achieve greatness and make it to the top, it takes thousands of hours and years of studying and mastering what you’re passionate about. Don’t wait, the clock doesn’t stop. You must begin now.

Leave a Legacy

Your goal should be to leave a legacy, not only for your loved ones but for the people that you’ve touched along the way. Leaving behind something that is tangible, like a book or a journal can leave a stronger impression, longer shelf life because you can refer back to it over and over again. This is a great addition to the memories you’ll leave behind.

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is the Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident that eventually ended a successful 15yr career. He is an expert on Leadership, Success & Overcoming Adversity. John is a successful Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books: Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Amazon.com Best-Seller, Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

To have John speak at your next event, email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com.

To Recharge We Must Take a Break from Everyday Life

October 29, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

If you want to run at full capacity you must learn to take a break and recharge ~

Sometimes you have to detach from life, seek a place of solitude to get away to just rest and relax. Even though we may think we are unstoppable machines, we need to break the routine and take a break from the everyday life.

We have so much going on in our lives that sometimes we don’t take the time we need to free our minds and bodies from the stress that can occur during our busy schedules. If you don’t take time away from the everyday stresses you may be risking your health. Now, I don’t necessary mean you have to spend money on expensive vacations to get away. Getting away could mean turning off your cell phone, turning off your computer, turning off your televisions for a day or even a weekend.

Below are some tips that I practice to get away from our stresses that life may throw at us:

1) Turn off Social Media – Get away from reading or interacting with people and things that may heighten our stress and anxiety
2) Turn off cell phone for a weekend – Put a voice message on your cell phone that you are not available until a certain date.
3) Turn off the television – The television, especially the news can be very negative. Negativity can heighten your stress and anxiety.
4) Read a book – Sit in a quiet place without interruption to read your favorite book that you have been putting off.
5) Visit a spa – Schedule a stress relieving massage
6) Meditate – Lie quietly and listen to soothing music and think of your happy place.
7) Take a hot shower – Taking a hot shower can soothe and relax you like nothing else.
8) Go for a walk – Clear your head by taking a nice walk
9) Sit on the beach – This is one of my all-time favorites. I can relax on the beach like no other place on earth.
10) Take a nap – Taking a nap can take the edge off.

There you have it. My tips on recharging and taking your life back in full force. I would suggest you practice these tips as often as you feel the need too.

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is the Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident that eventually ended a successful 15yr career. He is an expert on Leadership, Success, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder & Overcoming Adversity. John is a successful Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Best-Seller of Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

To have John speak at your next event, email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com.

To Achieve Greatness You Must Seek out the Right Mentor

October 24, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

“People with clear, written goals, accomplish far more in a shorter period of time than people without them could ever imagine.” ~ Brian Tracy

Seeking out a mentor has been one of the most important things I could have done for my successes and my businesses. However, it wasn’t an easy choice for me. I was very skeptical about someone having an enormous amount of success in their chosen profession. You’re probably asking why? I believe, subliminally it was inbreeded into me from an early age that I was supposed to be mediocre, average blue collar, middle class American. Don’t get me wrong. The middle class is what drives our country; however my point is that I wasn’t taught how to succeed. If I wanted to succeed, I had to invest in myself. I believe that 95% of Americans are brought up by their families stressing get a good education, find a secure, decant paying job with a health benefits and retirement plan. This is what I was taught. If I wanted to be more, have more, achieve more I had to learn how to do so on my own.

I can remember being around 10 years old walking around my small town pushing a lawn mower. Offering to cut anyone’s grass for pennies. In the winter time, I walked around with a snow shovel offering to shovel their snow for pennies. I always had a strong work ethic. Hard work never scared me. My mother was and is to this day a strong, hard worker and I believe I inherited this trait from her.

When I left the rotating-shift working world, I made it a goal of mine to never work for anyone else again. My goal was to become a successful entrepreneur, to work for myself, to create my own wealth, create my own destiny, and build my own empire. I was always so passionate about people and in helping others that I wanted to do something where I could serve others that was beneficial to me and the people I would serve. Something called a “win-win” mentality. Not do as I say because I have the authority to say so. This type of mentality changed my thinking forever.

Becoming an entrepreneur wasn’t very hard for me. While in the working world, I always was busting my tail after hours or on my days off, whether it be landscaping, doing odd jobs around someone’s house or snow plowing. The reason entrepreneurship became a goal of mine was because I was tired of working for people that were bosses, not coaches. Bosses that didn’t deserve to be in a position they were in. Bosses that reached their position not because of merit but because of politics.

One day, I can remember looking into a magazine and seeing an article of a real estate agent that was selling over 500 homes a year making well over 3 Million Dollars a year. I read this article over and over again, saying to myself, “What does he know that I don’t?”, “What is he doing that I’m not”, “If he can do this, so can I”.

The article was inviting real estate agents to attend his seminar in Dallas, TX. I called the phone number listed in the article to learn more. I remember speaking to a very nice young lady about this seminar. I told her that I was very skeptical and if this was the real deal. After several conversations over the course of the week, I decided to pull the trigger and sign up for this seminar. I had no idea how I was going to pay for it, where I was going to stay, who I was going to meet. I hated to travel. I didn’t like being away from home and my daughter. I was pure green to all of this. What you are about to hear next, changed my life forever.

I arrived in Dallas, TX. and stayed at the hotel where the event was being held. I didn’t know anyone. I was on my own. The following day I can remember entering the seminar room and seeing about two thousands chairs behind tables. The room was enormous. Once the room filled up and the seminar began, I knew I had found a mentor to take myself, my life and my business to a whole new level.

My advice to anyone wanting to achieve greatness in their life is to not re-invent the wheel. Everything that we go through in business and in our lives, someone has already been there, done that and has conquered and found their way. You need to follow and model after someone, not just anyone that is doing what you want to do. Follow and model after someone that has learned from all their mistakes. If you can cut your learning curve in half, it will be all worth it in the end. What took someone 20 years, may only take you 5 yrs. if you do exactly what they teach you.

Below are some tips on choosing the right mentor for you. There are so many accounts that should be taken into consideration before hiring or choosing a mentor. I want you to know that the word mentor is not taken lightly with me. This is one word that I cherish, respect and admire too much to throw it around loosely.

Before you seek out a mentor, check out these tips:

1. Why do you want or need a mentor? You must be clear on this because hiring the wrong mentor could cost you money and more importantly valuable time you will never get back. Are you looking for someone to offer specific guidance and/or advice? Have you done your research? Is he or she the best in your chosen profession or industry? Do you just need a sounding board? These are all important factors that must be thought out strategically.

2. Define your personality and communication style. What kind of mentor would best complement you? You may choose someone who’s your opposite (an extrovert to your introvert, for example) or someone in whom you see yourself (and vice versa).

3. When asking someone or hiring someone to be your mentor, explain why you’re asking and what you’d expect out of the relationship (see No. 1). Name your reasons for approaching this particular person. Don’t be afraid to be flattering (e.g. “I’m asking you because you are the most successful person I know”).

4. A mentor is a powerful role model. Look for someone who has the kind of life and work you’d like to have. Choose a mentor you truly respect, admire and look up to for what they have accomplished. Don’t just go for the biggest name you can find. You must be the right fit.

5. Before asking someone to be your mentor, first consider asking for input on a single specific topic. How did that go? Was it good advice? Did the advice feel right to you? Was it delivered in a way that made sense to you? Did it fill you with confidence and energy? Ask to speak with others that are or have been mentored by them in the past. What were their thoughts? What were their successes and failures?

6. Show gratitude. Never let your mentors feel taken for granted! Also, supply feedback. If your mentor suggested something that really worked out for you, report back. People love hearing about their part in a success story.

7. When looking for a mentor, think beyond former bosses and professors. Look to older family members or friends, neighbors, spiritual leaders, community leaders, the networks of your friends and colleagues, or officials of professional or trade associations you belong to. Ask someone that you respect and admire for referrals?

8. Keep in mind that mentoring can be in many forms. It can be a monthly lunch or call, a quarterly lunch or call, a weekly mastermind session, or merely a steady E-mail correspondence. Your mentor does not even have to live in your city or region.

9. Many mentors derive pleasure from “molding” someone in their own images—great for them and great for you if you want to be molded. But beware of mentors who are too bossy, controlling, or judgmental. This is your path, not theirs.

10. Don’t become too dependent on your mentor. The idea is that one day you will take what you have learned and eventually be able to fly on your own. In fact, you may not take every bit of advice your mentor offers. Continue to think for yourself. Continue to research on your own learn from others. Keep an open mind. Don’t fall into the trap that your mentor is the only one you can learn from.

11. You’re allowed to have more than one mentor. In fact, you can have a whole committee if you want, and call it your Board of Directors. Choose different mentors for different facets of your professional and even your personal life.

12. Finally, if you ask someone to be your mentor and that person refuses, don’t be hurt or offended. Don’t take this personal. It may also be something that was meant to be. Maybe they wouldn’t have been a good fit after all. Things happen for a reason. You must believe this. Great mentors are very busy people. Thank him or her for the consideration and ask them to guide you in the right direction.

If you study the path of successful people, you’ll see that most, if not all of them had a mentor along their way. A mentor can change your course of direction both personally and professionally. Don’t deprive yourself of modeling after someone that has been there done that. If you truly want to achieve greatness in your life, go out and get a mentor of your own. You’ll be so glad you did.

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is the Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident that eventually ended a successful 15yr career. He is an expert on Leadership, Success, PTSD & Overcoming Adversity. John is a successful Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Amazon.com Best-Seller, Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

To have John speak at your next event, email his office at John@JohnSalkowski.com.

How to Achieve Greatness through facing Adversity

October 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

We learn more from tough times than we do from the good times ~ John R. Salkowski

We all have bad days. We all have days where we say, “could it get any worse” or “why did I have to run into that person” or “why did this have to happen to me or “why couldn’t I be born to someone richer and smarter.” Does this sound familiar to you? We’ve all said this at one point or another.

There is a reason why everyday cannot be the best day of our lives. Think about this for a minute. If every day was a good day, what would we learn? There is a reason why we don’t have good days all the time. Don’t get me wrong, every day we wake up is a good day. If we have our health it’s a good day. We have our loved ones, it’s a good day. However, there is a reason why we face challenges and adversity in our lives. The main reason is to learn from it, overcome it and achieve what we’re aiming for.

What would we learn if we had good day’s everyday?

Every adversity, every failure, every heartache carries with it the seed on an equal or greater benefit ~ Napoleon Hill

We learn so much by facing and going through tough times. We learn more from our failures and difficult times than we do from our successes. Here’s what we learn from facing adversity:

1) Resilience ~ ability to recover from or adjust easily to misfortune or change

2) Problem solving skills ~ The process of working through details of a problem to reach a solution. Engaging an individual’s critical thinking skills.

3) Being more positive & optimistic ~ The tendency to expect the best and see the best in all things

4) Greater appreciation for people & things ~ Recognition of the quality, value, significance, or magnitude of people and things.

5) Attitude of gratitude ~ The state of being grateful & thankful.

6) Your strength zones ~ The state, property, or quality of being strong, a source of power or force in an area or a region.

7) Your Big “Why” ~ For what purpose, reason, or cause; with what intention, justification, or motive

8) Who too count on during difficult times ~ The state of being a friend; to value a person’s friendship

9) Mental Toughness ~ Psychological attribute that separates greatness from mediocrity.

10) Perseverance ~ Steadfastness in doing something despite difficulty or delay in achieving success, continuance in a state of grace leading to a state of glory.

“The strongest oak of the forest is not the one that is protected from the storm and hidden from the sun. It’s the one that stands in the open where it is compelled to struggle for its existence against the winds and rains and the scorching sun.” -Napoleon Hill (1883-1970)

As much as we love smooth waters, an Arab proverb states that smooth waters do not make skillful sailors. In this journey we call life, the question is not, “Will storms arise?” Rather, the question is, “When will the next storm arise?” And even more important than that question is, “What type of person will I be when the next storm arises?”

About the Author

John R. Salkowski is the Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity, Fear & PTSD, Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

6 Essential Tips to Achieve Great Things while Living in the Moment

October 17, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

“Life is a journey, not a destination.” ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson

Have you ever thought, Do I live for today? Do I live for tomorrow? Do I live for yesterday? Have you ever stopped just to hear and feel your breathing? Have you ever been mindful of living in the present moment? Too often, we worry about things that don’t matter. Living in the moment involves mindfulness and being aware of which physical or mental state you are in right now.

Place Your Attention in the Now!

Too many of us are busy thinking about what has happened in the past or what is going to happen in the future instead of focusing on what is going on right now in their lives. Placing your attention in the “now” moment of time is a concept emphasized continuously in many Eastern religions and philosophies. The only time you have is right now. Trying to keep your focus on what you’re currently doing or to whom you’re currently speaking to is one way to start living in the “now” moment.

Have you ever held a conversation with someone that kept looking over your shoulder at something else, really paying you no mind? I recently had this experience. I ran into someone that I have seen in a very long time and it seemed he was more worried about what was going on around him than speaking with me. It made me feel that I wasn’t important to this person. It’s not only disrespectful but why spend time with someone that isn’t giving you the attention or the time you deserve. Does this sound familiar? Do you do this? Have you done this? If so, stop immediately and live in the present and make that person feel like they are the only person that exists at that present time.

Be Unselfconscious

Being self-conscious prevents many people from becoming successful and doing things they really want to do. They only wish they could act on their dream, but they feel unworthy, or they feel like they can’t, or someone has told them they weren’t capable–whatever the reason, they don’t try because of being self-conscious. Feelings of self-consciousness holds people back from accomplishing great things in their life. You must live in the moment; you must stop thinking about what you are doing and just go for it.

Overcome Adversity by accepting fear and pain

Acceptance is a key factor for living in the present moment. If something makes you fearful or if something is painful, you may struggle with it or try with all your might to avoid it. However, the chances may be that your struggling is only causing you more pain. Trying to accept what is in your life right now, even if it is fearful or painful will help you to live in the moment instead of struggling against it.

Stop Rushing and slow down

Your life can and will get very hectic and crazy at times, if you allow it to. It seems like everyone is always rushing around with something important to do or someone important to meet. I have close friends like this and it drives me mad. They have to feel busy or in constant motion all the time to feel productive. They never stop to smell the roses. I was once there. I used to be like that. This constant, frenzied pace of life prevents you from living in the now moment because you’re always concerned with what’s going to happen next. Don’t overbook your schedule, prioritize your schedule according to importance and make sure you take time for the things that matter most. I guarantee you that when you’re lying on your death bed, you’ll be thinking of what mattered most in your life. We all know what matters most in our lives.

Appreciate the Little Things in your life

I truly believe we must develop a feeling of gratitude for the little things that matter the most in our life. These are things you often overlook, whether it’s a smile and a hug from your husband or wife before he or she leaves for work or the smell of the flowers that have just started blooming in the garden or holding the door for someone or taking the time to say hello and thank you. Resolve today to make a list of the things you are most grateful for and try to cultivate a feeling of being mindful, aware and appreciative when you come across them.

Just forget what time it is

If you’ve ever been truly absorbed in a task, you may completely lose track of time. This may happen to you when you’re doing something you absolutely love to do. This happens to me when I’m writing, blogging, creating products for clients. In order to live in the moment, it’s important to stop worrying about the time and just engage in the activity you’re performing as fully as possible. This also applies to your loved ones. Spending time with someone that matters the most to you, simply forget the time and live in the NOW moment!

I’ll leave you with one of my all-time favorite quotes, “The purpose of life is to live it, to taste experience to the utmost, to reach out eagerly and without fear for newer and richer experience.” ~ Eleanor Roosevelt

About the Author:

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity, Fear & PTSD, Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

Undeniable Focus and Concentration is Key to Bringing Your Game to a Whole New Level!

October 5, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Undeniable focus and concentration is key to bringing your game to a whole new level ~ John R. Salkowski

Have you ever caught yourself moving from task to task, forgetting what you were doing or where you left off? Have you ever tried to read a book to catch your mind wandering about some other subject? Sure you have. We all have.

I had the pleasure of meeting up with a good friend of mine, John Brogan over a cup of coffee the other day. Whenever I’m around John, he has that special quality that brings out the inspiration and motivation in you. He’s a successful business man and brother to retired NBA player and mentor to professional athletes all over the country, Jim Brogan. John began sharing some game changing stories about how his brother has literally turned around careers for many professional athletes.

John shared that Jim is a mind-set expert and trains athletes on how to utilize both parts of their brain by using focus and concentration techniques. I cannot share Jim’s techniques with you because he has all his clients sign a non-disclosure clause. I was so enamored by his story and the successes that his brother has had over a 20 year period, I thought I share some of my own focus and concentration techniques with you.

How critical is focus and concentration to all of our success? It’s huge. Think about this for a minute, in order to get really good at something you must focus and concentrate single handedly on the task at hand until complete and/or until mastery. I immediately thought back when I was writing 4 books at once. Now, I don’t say this to impress you, I say this because it’s amazing what focus and concentration can do for you. I was working on a bio, success thoughts and quotes book, 50 leadership lesson book and finally a chapter in another. How did I get all this done in 14 months. Well, I focused and concentrated on one at a time, alternating days all while running two successful businesses. These tips can be used in everything you do not just writing a book. How did I do it? Check out these tips below.

Tips to Focus and Concentrate Single Handedly:

1) Turn off all unnecessary distractions completely:
TV, cell phone, computer, office phone, email alert. When I need to focus and concentrate I like to turn on classical music. Classical music has a way to bring out the creative juices in you.

2) Take short breaks every 60-90 minutes:
Be sure to drink plenty of water, eat healthy snacks and/or lunch, walk away from the desk, and clear your eyes and head. If you must, set a timer so you do not forget to drink and eat. This took me a while but I finally learned that sitting at your desk all day without drinking and eating is not healthy.

3) Practice Self-Talk:
Say to yourself when you mind starts to wander, focus, focus, focus. Get back to work, Get back to work, Get back to work. I know this may sound funny to some of you but it does work.

4) One thing at a time:
Do not multi-task. Work on one thing and one thing only until it’s complete.

5) Work off a To-Do list:
Most important to least important. In this order.

Remember, an unfocused mind is an unchallenged mind. You can do it!

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity & PTSD, Entrepreneur, Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

Professional Speaker and Leadership Expert, John R. Salkowski, Hits Amazon Best-Seller List

October 4, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Professional Speaker and Leadership Expert, John R. Salkowski, Hits Amazon Best-Seller List

John R. Salkowski, Leadership Spokesman, recently hit five separate Amazon.com best-seller lists with the new Health, Wellness and Success book, “Nothing But Net.”

Orlando, FL – October 3, 2012 – John R. Salkowski recently joined a select group of the world’s leading speakers, trainers and entrepreneurs to co-author the book, Nothing But Net! The World’s Leading Speakers, Trainers and Entrepreneurs Reveal Their Top Secrets to Increase Your Bottom Line Health, Wealth and Success!. The book was released by CelebrityPress® – a leading business book publisher.

Nothing But Net: The World’s Leading Speakers, Trainers and Entrepreneurs Reveal Their Top Secrets to Increase Your Bottom Line Health, Wealth and Success was released on Wednesday, August 22, 2012 and features proven secrets and strategies from some of the world’s leading entrepreneurs. These experts share new methods how to realize maximum sales and profits in an uncertain and changing economy. John R. Salkowski contributed a chapter titled “Top 10 Steps to Achieve Greater Success, Overcome Adversity and Win the Game of Life.”

On the day of the release, Nothing But Net! Reached best-seller status in five Amazon.com categories – reaching #2 for Direct Marketing. The book also reached best-seller status in the Marketing, Communication Skills, Entrepreneurship and Small Business & Entrepreneurship categories.

John’s approach to business is dedicating himself to helping others succeed. John founded his own company, www.JRSRealtyGroup.com in 2008. He has built a reputation as a motivated professional with unwavering integrity and honesty. As one of the top realtors in the country, John contributes a lot of his success to offering both buyers and sellers watertight guarantees.

John is a retired Police Officer after an impressive15- year career. He’s also a survivor of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from a shooting incident that eventually ended his career. John has been diagnosed with this illness since 2000. He has received numerous Distinguished Awards for Bravery, Merit and Unit Citations.

John has been featured in Philadelphia Magazine as the area’s Top Real Estate Expert several years in a row. John’s true passion is speaking. The topics he covers are on leadership, overcoming adversity, inspiration, motivation, success, and finding your why power. John speaks to business organizations, law enforcement agencies, colleges, high schools and youth groups. In 2010, John founded www.AchieveSuccessAcademy.com where he shares his passion in helping others find theirs. He is also an avid blogger. John also has two other books on leadership success that will be published in late November. In his free time, John enjoys exercising, reading, writing, blogging, traveling, and spending time on the beach with his daughter, Alexa.
To contact John for a speaking engagement please email him at John@JohnSalkowski.com

From CelebrityPress®:
Regardless of whether or not you are an experienced speaker, trainer or entrepreneur or you wish to review the most contemporary concepts in today’s health, wealth and success, the ideas that these Celebrity Experts bring to the table will be worth their weight in gold when you read and incorporate them into your daily life.

After such a successful release, John R. Salkowski will be recognized by The National Academy of Best-Selling Authors®, an organization that honors authors from many of the leading independent best-sellers lists.

To order a copy of the book, please go to http://www.celebritypresspublishing.com/publications/nothing-but-net.php

To learn more about John R. Salkowski, visit http://www.AchieveSuccessAcademy.com To have John speak at your next event, email him at John@JohnSalkowski.com

About Celebrity Press®:
Celebrity Press® is a business book publisher that publishes books from thought leaders around the world. Celebrity Press® has published books alongside Brian Tracy, Jack Canfield, Dan Kennedy, Dr. Ivan Misner, Mari Smith, and many of today’s biggest experts across many diverse fields.

If you’d like to learn more about Celebrity Press™ or to see if we’re a good fit for your book project, please visit http://www.celebritypresspublishing.com/contact-us

Keywords:
John R. Salkowski, Speaker, Leadership Expert, Leadership Success, Communication, Entrepreneurship, Bravery, Merit, Blogger, Achieve Success Academy, Overcoming Adversity, CelebrityPress, Nothing But Net, business book, marketing book

The Secret to Great Leadership: Act like a Coach, Not a like Boss

September 30, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Not all leaders are leaders. Great leaders are coaches and mentors, poor leaders are bosses and bully’s ~ John R. Salkowski

Not all leaders are leaders. We all have worked for a leader that led by, “Do as I say, not as I do”. These so-called leaders aren’t leaders. They are bosses or bullies. See, there is a difference between a coach and a boss. A coach has systems in place to systemically improve individual performance by giving constructive and developmental feedback. While bosses use discipline to improve performance. This is an oxymoron. How can you get improvement out of someone if you are only teaching them with discipline? This approach does not work. There have been numerous studies that have proved a direct correlation between the quantity and the quality of coaching a person receives and his or her level of performance improvement.

Just like world-class coaches, world-class leaders may not always have the best talent, but they always seem to get the best out of the talent they have.

In my past career as a Police Officer, I worked for bosses that led and instructed with discipline. The only way they believed to get productivity out of someone is by disciplining them. As a leader, one must know that constantly disciplining someone just creates poor morale and eventually turning productive workers into lazy workers. Your mindset changes from being a doer to why get involved. Let’s put this into perspective: If you constantly discipline a child without teaching them, what will you eventually get? You will get a child that turns into an angry, problematic, less than productive person.

Coaching and developing your people is a process, not an event. Coaching and being a mentor is not something you do, but rather something you must become.

Below are 4 essential steps to transform you from a boss to a great leader:

Step 1: Change Your Mindset and Belief System
Changing how you think (mindset/beliefs) controls how you behave. As a great leader, you must believe that your job is to coach and develop your people to constantly and consistently perform at high levels.

Step 2: Change the Environment that’s conducive to Winning
You must pull the weeds before your plant the seeds. As a coach, your job is to pull every ounce of potential out of your people. You must first start by asking, “How am I doing? What can I do better?” You, as the coach, set the standard for your people to follow. Lead by example.

Step 3: Transform the Conversation
After you change the environment, you must then lay your foundation for weekly coaching conversations. Your team’s long term success requires short term focus. The best way to help your team’s performance is to help them keep focused, set goals and keep them accountable.

Step 4: Embrace Mistakes as Coachable Moments
In order to build a highly productive, highly performance team is to make sure they are learning from their mistakes. We learn far more from failure, then we do by our successes.

However, the most important step of all is to not criticize and discipline when mistakes are made, it’s to coach.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™. Professional Speaker, Best-Selling Author of Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success & Entrepreneur. Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident. Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity, Fear & PTSD. Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and

Local Hero, Marine Veteran and Plymouth Twp. K-9 Officer Killed in The Line of Duty on September 13th 2012

September 14, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

For those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, we are grateful that such men and women were among us. For those who continue to serve, we honor their commitment. For those who return to civilian life, we honor their service. ~Author Unknown

There was something inside me pushing and pushing to write our local hero, friend, son, husband, father and brother, which gave the ultimate sacrifice of his life in the line of duty, a farewell letter.

When I heard this tragic news, I was overcome by a sick feeling in my stomach. My mind started to race with thoughts such as, was he alone, what did he go through, what are/will his fellow officers go through, his poor family and what they are/will go through for the rest of their lives. And of course, his partner, K-9 Nick who lost his best friend. It immediately brought me back 12 years ago when I was involved in my shooting. The thousand emotions that run through your body when you hear tragic news like this. No matter where it happens, however the feeling was different knowing that he was local and only lived 15 minutes from me in Gilbertsville, Pa.

There are approximately 800,000 Full-Time uniformed Police Officers that protect our country 24/7, 365 days a year. According to the Officer down Memorial Page http://www.odmp.org/search/year, so far this year (2012) there has been 83 in The Line of Duty deaths across the United States. However, when it hits close to home, it stops you in your tracks.

Officer Bradley Fox responded to a hit and run accident in Plymouth Township, Pa. where the suspect fled from his vehicle. Officer Fox confronted the suspect on a bike trail where he was shot in the head. Officer Fox’s K-9 partner Nick was also shot. Officer Fox succumbed to his injuries a day before his 35th birthday.

Officer Bradley Fox was a decorated Staff-Sergeant with The United States Marine Corp. He served two tours in Iraq protecting our country and freedom. He lost his life serving and protecting the citizens of Plymouth Township, Pa. He leaves behind an expectant wife of 3 months and young daughter.

This tragic event can and will cause effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder or PTSD for surviving family, friends and colleagues. I would recommend that you speak to a professional about how you’re feeling. Talk about it. Get it out of your chest. Do not allow anything to fester. My effects of PTSD didn’t affect me until 1-2 years later or at least that’s how long it took me to realize it.

Happy 35th Birthday to a great man who gave the ultimate sacrifice of his life in the line of duty. He was a great man, son, husband, father, Marine, Police Officer and friend . He will be sadly missed. May god bless him and his surviving family and friends.

My hope is that his name will live on forever in the hearts of his communities, fellow colleagues and Officers across this great country by changing the name of the Plymouth Township Police Department in memory of Officer Bradley Fox.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com™, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity, Fear & PTSD. Entrepreneur, Professional Speaker, Author of 3 books; Leadership in The Line of Duty™: 50 Leadership Lessons for Making Split-Second Decisions from a Cop Who Has Been in Life and Death Situations, Leadership in The Line of Duty™: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

To Achieve More, You Must Become More

September 10, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

“If you want to have more, you must become more” ~ Jim Rohn

Do ever feel like you are running as fast as you can yet you never feel like you’re getting anywhere? Have you ever thought about how you look at yourself and your life? Something very powerful rests at the core of all this: the lens through which we view our lives is known as our paradigms.

Old paradigm: Do so you can have so you can be. New paradigm: Be so you can do so you can have.

The old paradigm indicates that the belief we have determines who we will be. Have you ever met or even known someone that doesn’t have very much, yet they are the happiest and most fulfilled person? Have you ever met or even known someone who has an enormous amount of money and material goods, yet their life is hollow and unfulfilling. We all do.

How can someone have everything they’ve ever wanted and yet be so empty and unhappy? And how can one have so little and yet be so happy and content? Happiness and fulfillment are not created by material wealth or possessions alone but rather by whom we are being and what we are doing.

I’m not suggesting that we all take a vow to be poor. There’s nothing wrong with having things. The problems arise when we sacrifice who we are for the sake of having more. When we do that, we will never ever have enough.

The new paradigm embraces the belief that when our life choices are informed by who we are being (our values and vision), what we do (our mission) is a natural extension of this, and what we have (our possessions) is enough. When you operate under this new paradigm—be so you can do so you can have—you make a shift in your entire belief system. You are no longer willing to negotiate who you are being so you can have more.

“Everyone has a purpose in life, a unique gift or special talent to give to others. And when we blend this unique talent with service to others, we experience the ecstasy and exultation of our own spirit, which is the ultimate goal of all goals.” ~ Deepak Chopra

In November 2011-June 2012, when I began to write my first book, I ended up writing 4 books, all while operating 3 companies. I couldn’t get beyond writing the outlines. I continually tried and tried to carve out time to write my books, and yet nothing ever came of it. I was so determined to do this that it kept me up at night. I would have a note pad and pen sitting on my night stand and when I would awake with a thought, I’d write it down. I finally discovered that the reason I was having difficulty in writing my books was because of the way I was being (overwhelmed, unbalanced, poor time-manager) which was not congruent with the core message of my book. Once my life focus shifted from doing more things to being in peace, harmony and balance and aligning with my life purpose, my thoughts to keyboard started to flow so very smoothly. I blocked out every day from 5am-9am, 7 days a week until the book was complete.

Looking back, the past 4 years were huge personal development years for me and I was inspiring up a lot of my own beliefs. I was in the midst of making a huge paradigm shift. By November 2011, I felt compelled to write my book and I could not stop! I sat down at the keyboard and effortlessly downloaded the words from my brain onto my computer and I am proud to say that the one book turned into 4 books. If I can do this, so can you!

The power of making this shift applies to everyone, whether you are writing a book or building a business. Who are you being right now? If you are not currently living the life of your dreams what do you need to do right now to start?

Here’s a powerful question to ask yourself right NOW: Where do you see yourself in 5-10 years with your health, business/profession, marriage/relationship, family, finances, emotional/spiritual life etc.) If you continue to do what you are doing and being who you’re being right now?

Here are the Top Strategies to Achieve More, You Must Be More:

2) Decide the Who, Not the What- Decide who you want to be, not what you want to be doing. If you know who you want to be, you can detail what to do and the resources you will need.

3) Consider the Tools around You, Old and New- Every resource is important.

4) Be Honest with yourself- You’ll need to challenge yourself constantly to get to the truth of who we are and who we wish to be. Be honest with yourself.

Nothing Great was ever Achieved with a Negative Attitude

September 2, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 4 comments

Nothing great was ever achieved with a negative attitude ~ John R. Salkowski

Limited Belief System

Have you ever been around someone with a negative attitude and limited beliefs on just about everything? Sure you have. I know I have. Did you notice any changes in your attitude? You heard the expression, “You are who you associate with.” Being around negative people will most definitely limit your beliefs, change your attitude and ultimately limit your success.

The main cause of a negative attitude is wrong beliefs about life, work, relationships, money or certain aspects of each one. You see your life through your beliefs or through the beliefs of others and if your beliefs are negative, you will see your life as negative, worthless, unhappy or downright pointless. So to change your attitude you need to change your belief system.

Negative family/friends or associates

It has been said that no one can change your attitude but you. I agree and disagree with this. I truly believe that who you associate with can change your attitude and influence your behaviors. I know this may seem unreal to those who hear it for the first time, but you and only you can decide how to react to anything that happens to you. If you allow others to decide your attitude, you allow them to have control over you. This, my fellow achievers, will ultimately limit your success if you allow others to choose for you.

We have two choices. Those choices are positive or negative. I, personally have family members and friends that have the “glass half empty attitude.” I choose to limit my time and conversation with them. If their attitude is really that bad, I refuse to go anywhere near them. In order for me to stay positive and stay on my flight plan for achieving success, I refuse to allow them to reinforce any negative beliefs and thus cause my attitude to become negative. Remember this achievers, you were attracted to your friends for a reason, therefore you have the power to attract ones with more of a positive, success oriented attitude.

Limited beliefs=Limited successes ~ John R. Salkowski

Negative environment

You have the power to attract what environment to be in. We all know right from wrong. If your environment is negative and is making your attitude run the opposite way of success, you need to change it now. There are no accidents when it comes to what environment you choose to live in. Change your negative environment and attitude, you change your life.

Unfortunate circumstances

If you find yourself complaining about your unfortunate circumstances you were dealt, it’s exactly the reason why you have such a negative attitude. It may be hard at first to understand and accept this, however the quicker you do; the quicker you will be able to change your life for the better. Your complaining alone can and will keep you stuck in those circumstances. To change your circumstances you should stop complaining now and start working on changing your life for the better.

Let me give you a taste of the unfortunate circumstance that I was allowing my life to spiral out of control like a skydiver with no chute. In the line of duty in 2000, I had to make a split-second decision that would change my life forever. That split-second decision was to shoot or don’t shoot or get killed. I chose to shoot and terminate my life threatening situation. However, the aftermath of this shoot and kill incident was so horrific, I began to suffer post-traumatic stress disorder or PTSD. The nightmares, anxiety, stress, cold-sweats, vomiting, diarrhea, suicidal, homicidal thoughts were overtaking me and my life. In order for my life to change, I had to make a change. I had to change my negative attitude. You’ve heard me say this before, “You attract and become what you think about most”. I had my daughter to think about. So, I changed my attitude by determining what my biggest “Why” was. My “Why” was a little girl that needed a role model? That little girl is my beautiful daughter, Alexa. What’s your biggest “Why”?

A negative attitude will not only limit your success in life, it will also shorten your life span, creates an unpleasant future, harms others and produces negative effects in your life.

You can and will change from negative to positive if you commit yourself, however it won’t be easy. You must take baby steps with consistent progress each and every day. Here are some of the tips that I have used in my own life over a 6 year period: Turn off the television and pick up a self-help book, read a book a week, disassociate with negativity, turn off the car stereo and use your car as a traveling university by listening to cd’s that will assist you in reaching your goal. The sooner you start changing, the sooner you will reap the benefits. People will start treating you differently and you will notice opportunities everywhere you go. You will start seeing the world as full of happiness and possibilities. This, my fellow achievers, will pave your way to a more successful, positive life with endless possibilities. You can do it!

Fear, Adversity Holding You Back? Stop, Look, Listen & Overcome Fear of Failure

August 26, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. ~ Nelson Mandela

Did you ever hear the phrase, Stop, Look & Listen when you become afraid of something? Have you ever heard a noise that made you stop dead in your tracks, than made you look around to see where it was coming from, than listen to see if you could hear whatever it was that you heard again? This same phrase applies to the fear that’s holding you back from achieving your dreams, accomplishments, goals, desires & under takings.

Fear stops success dead in its tracks. It stops you from taking action. It stops your ideas and thoughts from growing larger.
The fear of failure is perhaps the strongest force holding people back from truly reaching their potential. The world we live in is full of uncertainty, a weak economy, and countless misfortunes happening all around us. It really is easy to see why most people are inclined to play it safe. But playing it safe can be deadly.

Playing it safe and failing to risk the uncertainties has enormous repercussions on success. If you never face your fear, or face whatever it is that is holding you back, your chances of succeeding are zero to none. See, what most people fail to understand is that failure is a huge part of succeeding. Failure is good. Failure makes you hungry. Failure should make you angry. Failure should keep you up at night thinking of and creating news ways to overcome it. Most people give up after their first failure. Most people underestimate their merit and ability to recover from failure, leading them to pass up on valuable opportunities. This, my fellow achievers, is the death of success. The ability to fail big and fail over and over again has been the pinnacle mark of the spectacularly successful throughout history.

These following tips will help you put risk and reward in perspective so you can overcome the fear of failure.

1) Take Action Now- The best way to reduce fear, build your confidence is by taking action. As soon as you do, you’ll gain the experience and knowledge to continue onward. Everything is hard the first time. Everyone that is a master of their field was once a rookie. No one ever started as an expert. They worked their way to mastering excellence. Start off with baby steps and you will eventually build up your confidence until the fear of failure is manageable.

2) Consider the risk of missed opportunities- The biggest risk that most people fail to consider is the benefit they lose by avoiding high risk/high reward opportunities. There is a saying, “You always miss the shot you never take”. Without taking risk, you can’t exploit any opportunities. You can live a happy, normal life, but you are unlikely to create something new, and you are most certainly unlikely to make your mark in this world.

3) Understand the benefits of failure- As Ralph Waldo Emerson said so eloquently, “What you constantly see, you stop seeing! You forget the wonders of your spouse, the reliability of your car, the warmth of your home, because you experience them too often. This is just a reminder, to stop, and marvel and the things you wouldn’t want to live without life”. Each failure is an experiment and an opportunity for growth.

4) Conquer something new daily- It has been said that if you are not doing something on a daily basis to overcome your fears you have not learned the secret of life.

I will leave you with this quote from the famous Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, poet, and philosopher from the mid-19th century: Life is a battlefield; to succeed you must “divide and conquer.” Conquer your fears daily; stretch yourself daily. Do something you don’t want to do, something you’re afraid of doing because you might get rejected or you might fail. Do that thing today, and then conquer another fear tomorrow. If you can create the habit of conquering your fear, you can move from the land of impossibilities to the land of possibilities.

The 5 Most Powerful Habits for Taking Action Now

August 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Action is the real measure of intelligence ~Napoleon Hill

Have you ever wondered why some people achieve success faster? Have you ever wondered why some people achieve financial abundance quicker and sometimes easier than others?

People that climb the latter of success and that are sitting on top of their profession share one distinct quality – they take action. This distinct quality supersedes intelligence, talent, and connections in determining the size of their bank account and the speed of your achievement.

Despite how simple this may sound there is an enormous shortage of people who excel at getting results. The reason why people fail at getting results is because they fail to take action. The action habit is the habit of implementing certain disciplines and ideas and putting them into action now. This is the most essential habit for achieving great success and financial abundance.

It was character that got us out of bed, commitment that moved us into action and discipline that enabled us to follow through ~Zig Ziglar

Here are 5 ways you can grow the action habit now:

1) Be a Doer and a Go Getter the same time: Practice walking the walk instead of talking the talk. Take action on things now rather than thinking about them. I had this very problem. I wanted to write a book and become an author so badly. So, one day I sat down, drafted an outline of the book I wanted to write. The outline sat and sat for months. Months and months had passed and no book. Why? Because I failed to take action. The longer an idea sits in your head without being acted on, the weaker it becomes. After a few days or weeks the details gets hazy. After a week it’s forgotten about completely. So, I decided to become a doer and walk the walk. So this is what I did: I blocked out every morning from 5am-9am to work on my book. I did this 5-7 days a week for over a year. My first book, “Nothing But Net” was published several weeks ago and I am proud to say it hit 5 best seller lists on Amazon. Now, I am not only an author, I am a best-selling author. Over the course of that year, I wrote 3 more books. Two of which are in the editing stage and will be published in late November of this year.

2) Taking action cures your fear: I have a saying, “Do the thing you fear and the death of fear is certain.” During my childhood, teenage and college years I was deathly afraid of public speaking. It has been said that public speaking is a greater fear than dying. I knew that if I wanted to become successful I would have to overcome my largest fear. So, what I did was put myself in situations where I had to speak in public. I am very proud to say, I love speaking in public especially when you are making a huge impact on others’ lives and success.

3) Its never the perfect time: There is no such thing as perfect timing. There are always conditions, obstacles and hurdles you will be encountered with. Go through, jump over or go around and create your own conditions because the time will never be right.

4) Success is in doing, not thinking: It has been said that the average human has over 100 ideas that could make them a millionaire. The reason there aren’t more inventors and/or millionaires is because people fail to act on their thoughts or ideas. Everyone always says, “Someone already has that idea” or “I’m sure that was already thought of” or “there must be something wrong with it if no one has bought that already”. Does this all sound too familiar?

5) Be Disciplined: There are days we just can’t get motivated. We all have these days. However, what separates the winners from the losers is the will to win attitude which takes discipline. Discipline is doing what must be done, when it needs to be done whether we feel like doing it or not. This, my fellow achievers, is what separates the successful from the unsuccessful.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Entrepreneur, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity & PTSD, Author of 3 books; Leadership in the Line of Duty: 50 Leadership Lessons for making split-second decisions from a Cop who’s been in Life & Death situations, Leadership in the Line of Duty: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker and Real Estate Expert John R. Salkowski Signs Publishing Deal With CelebrityPress to Release New Business Book, “Nothing But Net”

August 21, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Entrepreneur, Author, Speaker and Real Estate Expert John R. Salkowski Signs Publishing Deal With CelebrityPress to Release New Business Book, “Nothing But Net”

John R. Salkowski has recently signed a publishing deal with CelebrityPress, a leading business book publishing company, along with several leading speakers and entrepreneurs from around the world to release the book, Nothing But Net.

Orlando, FL. – August 7, 2012 –John R. Salkowski has joined with a select group of the world’s leading Speakers and Trainers to co-write the forthcoming book titled, Nothing But Net: The World’s Leading Speakers, Trainers and Entrepreneurs Reveal Their Top Secrets to Increase Your Bottom Line Health, Wealth and Success. Nick Nanton, along with business partner, JW Dicks, recently signed a publishing deal with each of these authors to contribute their expertise to the book, which will be released under their CelebrityPress® imprint.

John R. Salkowski is a retired Police Officer after an impressive 15yr career. He is also a survivor of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from a shooting incident that eventually ended his career. John has been diagnosed with this illness since 2000. He has received numerous Distinguished Awards for Bravery, Merit and Unit Citations. He has also received several employee recognition awards for his work within the community.

After his Police career, John got into real estate sales and entrepreneurship. John’s approach to business is dedicating himself to helping others succeed. John founded his own company, JRSRealtyGroup.com in 2008. John has built a reputation as a motivated professional with unwavering integrity and honesty. As one of the Top Realtors in the country, John contributes a lot of his success to offering both buyers and sellers watertight guarantees. John has been featured in the Philadelphia Magazine as the area’s real estate expert several years in a row.

John’s true passion is motivational/transformational speaking. John speaks to business organizations, colleges, high schools and youth groups on inspiration, motivation, success, overcoming adversity and finding their why power. In 2010 John founded, AchieveSuccessAcademy.com. He is also an avid blogger.

Nothing But Net: The World’s Leading Speakers, Trainers and Entrepreneurs Reveal Their Top Secrets to Increase Your Bottom Line Health, Wealth and Success features proven secrets and strategies from some of the world’s leading entrepreneurs. These experts share how to realize maximum sales and profits in an uncertain and changing economy.

For more information about John R. Salkowski, visit http://achievesuccessacademy.wordpress.com/tag/john-r-salkowski/

About Celebrity Press®:

Celebrity Press® is a business book publisher that publishes books from thought leaders around the world. Celebrity Press® has published books alongside Brian Tracy, Jack Canfield, Dan Kennedy, Dr. Ivan Misner, Mari Smith, and many of today’s biggest experts across many diverse fields.

My New Book Comes Out Tomorrow! And so do your bonuses!

August 21, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Dear Achievers,

As I announced yesterday, over the last 9 months I have been working on a book with some of the world’s leading speakers, trainers and entrepreneurs. The wealth of business information from Celebrity Experts ® make it a must read. By sharing knowledge from these proven business experts you will shorten your journey to success. They will help you avoid the mistakes they made along the way and move you towards your goal quicker than you could ever do on your own.
The great news is the book that we co-wrote together “Nothing But Net” comes out tomorrow!

Just for purchasing the book tomorrow on Amazon.com, and helping us get off to a great start, I’ve put together a huge bonus package for you!
I will send you a link to buy the book tomorrow on Amazon, but here’s a sneak peak at all the great stuff you’ll get JUST for spending $19.95! Click here to check out the bonuses!

Just for purchasing the book tomorrow on Amazon, and helping us get off to a great start, you’ll get all of these great bonuses!
I will send you a link to buy the book tomorrow for just $19.95, and once you buy it, just email your Amazon.com receipt to bonus@celebritypresspublishing.com and they’ll send the bonuses right over to you!
Until Tomorrow!

My New Book, “Nothing But Net” is about to be Launched!

August 20, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Bigger bottom line? !!

Yes, we’re all looking for bigger bottom lines. In today’s economic times we’re all struggling to find solutions to become healthier, wealthier and wise. This is your chance to get advice straight from the experts who have built their careers and triumph over insurmountable times.

During the last 9 months I have been working on a book with the nation’s leading experts on Health, Wealth and Success, including James Malinchak of ABC’s “The Secret Millionaire”. The great news is our new book “Nothing But Net” will be release this Wednesday August 22^nd. If you help us get the book off to a great start we will give you an awesome bonus package as our thank you!

I appreciate your support and I’ll get back with you in a couple of days to remind you about the launch and to tell you more about the bonuses I’m putting together!

Stay tuned!

John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Entrepreneur, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident, Expert on Leadership, Success, Overcoming Adversity & PTSD, Author of 3 books; Leadership in the Line of Duty: 50 Leadership Lessons for making split-second decisions from a Cop who’s been in Life & Death situations, Leadership in the Line of Duty: Success Thoughts and Quotes for Leaders and Nothing But Net: Top Secrets to increase your bottom line, Health, Wealth & Success.

The Leadership Success Factors! Do You Possess it?

July 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

The most successful people in the world get more accomplished before the average person gets out of bed. ~ John R. Salkowski

The most powerful leadership success factor of both personal development and lifelong success has to do with the “golden hour” of your day. So, what is the “golden hour” you ask? The “golden hour” is the time you spend in the morning before doing anything else which consists of flooding and feeding your mind with goal writing, reading or listening to positive, influential information. By doing this each morning, you start your day off in the right successful direction.

I once heard this saying, “You become what you think about, most of the time.” Whatever you think about most you attract into your life. You become the result of the information, associations, ideas and impressions you feed your mind, from the time you awake in the morning to the time you retire at night. However, what will have the strongest impact and influence on your mind is what you do during the “golden hour”.

Personal Development and Self-Improvement

In order to be successful, you must have good habits. Literally 95% of everything you do or say is determined by your habits, good or bad. Successful people have good habits that lead to being more productive and positive which in turn improves their overall personal development throughout their lives. People with bad habits are unsuccessful for they created bad habits that lead to under achieving, indecisiveness and ultimately failure.

The Leadership Success Factor

The #1 success factor you can develop is taking advantage of the “golden hour” each and everyday day. By doing this every day, you create good habits. Did you know that it take 21 days to make or break a habit, whether good or bad? Therefore, start your day off by feeding your mind and body with positive, productive skill sets that will ultimately lead to greater success in your life.

By implementing these habits into my life over past several years, it has created a life that I could only imagine of. Before you pass judgment on whether this will work for you, start by trying it yourself for 21 days. All I’m asking of you is to do this for 21 days and I assure you that your life will change in a more positive direction beyond your wildest dream.

Change Your Mind-Set in Just 21 Days

1. Starting tomorrow set your alarm for 2hrs before your normal wake up time. Invest the first golden hour in yourself and in your mind. Remember, your brain is a muscle. With use, it grows, without use it shrinks.

2. Before you do anything, take 30-60 minutes and read something motivational, inspirational and/or educational. Be sure that the first thing you put into your mind in the morning is positive, healthy and consistent with the kind of life you want to lead.

3. After you have completed your morning reading, take a spiral notebook and write out your top 10-15 goals in the present tense, exactly as if you have already achieved them. Write goals such as, “I earn $100,000 per year”; “I weigh 150 pounds and in the best shape of my life”; “I drive a brand new grey BMW”; “I live in a beautiful 3000 square foot home” and so on. Rewrite your list of goals every morning without referring back to the goals you wrote the day before. This is a very important success factor for you to practice in order to achieve your goals.

4. Plan every day in advance. After you have read something motivational, inspirational and/or educational, rewrite your goals, make a list of everything you have to do that day, and then organize the list by priority, value and importance.

5. Begin immediately to work on your most valuable and important task, before you do anything else. Focus single-mindedly on that one task until it is complete. When you start and finish your major task first thing in the morning during the golden hour, you will experience a surge of energy, elation and confidence that will propel you into your other tasks, and dramatically increase your overall productivity for the rest of the day.

6. Listen to educational audio programs as you drive around. Leave the radio off. Turn your vehicle into a University on wheels. Continually feed your mind with high quality mental nutrition that uplifts and inspires you to do your best. This is a great way to improve your personal development throughout your entire life.

7. Finally, develop a sense of urgency. Pick up the pace. Move quickly from one task to the other. Don’t waste time. The faster you move, the more energy you will have. The faster you move, the more you will get done, and the better you will feel. The faster you move, the more in control of your life you will feel, and the more you will like and respect yourself.

The “Golden Hour”

The golden hour is the most important time of the day. It sets the tone for the rest of your day. When you awake early and invest that time into yourself, you will be amazed at the difference in the way your feel and the results you’ll achieve. You will gradually overtime change the way you think of yourself and all that is possible for you. You will become a magnet to success and begin to see your whole world change before your eyes.

Do You Have What it Takes to Make Important Split-Second Decisions?

July 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

The better your skills and critical thinking are, coupled with training and quickness, the more prepared you will be to make sound split-second decisions.~John R. Salkowski

Making Split-Second Decisions, Do You Have What it takes?

Making split-second decisions in life and in business is a requirement. There are several important factors that must come together in order to accurately and quickly articulate your present situation. Your knowledge, experience, education, training, intuition, confidence and common-sense are all factors that play an important role in making split-second decisions.

When you are called upon to make a split-second decision what happens? Do you freeze? Do you panic? There are situations, such as life or death, which we may be encountered with where you cannot afford to freeze or panic. Split-second decision making requires all of the above factors to come together in order to make the right decision.

There will be times that you will be faced with an important decision where there is no room for error. You must make the right decision at the right time to avoid a catastrophe. Here are some examples: avoiding a car crash, pilots with mechanical failure, military combat, Police Officer faced with an armed and dangerous suspect or anything else requiring immediate decision making. You may think these examples are extreme but let me tell you this, if you are not prepared when that time comes, you are dead on your feet. You will be required at one time or another to make a blink of an eye split-second decision in your life.

Making split-second decisions requires “razor sharp” skill sets. You must continually work on your skills to better prepare for the “blink of the eye” split-second decision. What better way to prepare for situations such as this is to face real problems, facing the risks, making irrevocable decisions head-on. Stop avoiding these situations. Making important, split-second decisions separates the successful from the unsuccessful, leaders from the followers, etc. You get my point. Below, I will put split-second decision making into perspective for most of you.

Most likely everyone reading this has a child or a loved-one that they cherish. What better way to teach that person to make important decisions that could possibly affect the rest of their life is by honing your skill sets on making important, critical, blink of eye split-second decisions. We, as parents cannot be with our children 24/7. There comes a time when we must allow them to spread their wings and fly solo. What better way to prepare yourself for that moment in time is to face your most important decisions head-on so you can teach from example.

The 14 Most Impactful Tips to Achieve a Millionaires Belief System

July 17, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

It’s the repetition of affirmations that leads to belief. And once that belief becomes a deep conviction, things begin to happen~Muhammad Ali

A Millionaires Belief System

What is your belief system on achieving what you want in life? Did you know that values and beliefs go hand in hand? Your belief system is the building blocks of all your decisions making, your behavior and actions. Your beliefs will essentially determine the actions you take or refrain from taking when faced with adversity. Your beliefs will shape and mold you as you travel through life’s experiences. Your belief system can and will strengthen you if you allow it too.

It has always been my belief that a man should do his best, regardless of how much he receives for his services, or the number of people he may be serving or the class of people served~Napoleon Hill

Here are what I believe to be The Top 14 Belief Systems you must possess in order to be successful.

1) Believes anything is possible.

2) Believes that anything and everything is negotiable.

3) Believes in leading the pack.

4) Believes in trust.

5) Believes in integrity.

6) Believes in action over hoping.

7) Believes in respect

8) Believes in doing no harm.

9) Believes that business is fun and creative.

10) Believes in mentoring people.

11) Believes in being polite and honest.

12) Believes in leverage.

13) Believes in bending the rules and regulations.

14) Believes in creating your own destiny.

There you have it, the top 14 belief systems. Do you possess these? What would your life be like if you did?

Remember to work on your inner world before you project these beliefs out into the external world.

The Most Powerful 18 Success Secrets You Must Master To Achieve Great Things!

July 10, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

If you do exactly what other successful people do, you too will get the same results-John R. Salkowski

Have you ever wondered why some people are more successful than others? Have you ever driven by a mansion and said; “Wow” I wonder what that person does for a living? I have and I’m sure you have too. The study and mastery of self-made people is among one of my top interest. Meeting new people and learning about them fascinates me. However, what really gets my juices flowing is meeting someone that has started from nothing and has built an empire. This is what “self-made” means to me.

Now don’t get me wrong. The word “self-made” has a variety of meanings but for this article we are talking about self-made millionaires, multi-millionaires and even billionaires. Many of you reading this will say, “Money is not everything” and you’re right, but keep reading.

What’s amazing to me is that there are so many variables that must come together to reach that status of “self-made.” Below, I am going to explain what I believe to be the top 18 secrets that must come together to reach the status of “self-made.” But first, let’s not forget what it takes to get to this level. The mastery of these 18 secrets must mesh together with your mission, vision, values and goals.

The Top 18 Success Secrets You Must Master To Achieve Great Things:

1) Stepping outside Your Comfort Zone- You must continually step outside your comfort zone to face different and unique challenges that test your discipline, expertise and resolve.

2) Facing Problems Head-On- When a problem arises you must immediately and aggressively face it head-on to avoid it from getting larger. You must make sure that small problems don’t turn into big problems from the get-go.

3) Open To Change- You must be constantly aware that change will occur. Change is inevitable. Therefore, you must be open to changing your perspective and viewpoints in order to attain your goal and objectives in a more efficient and effective manner.

4) Making Every Second Count- You must be aware that every moment that goes by is an opportunity to do things better, to improve a process or to take the next step towards a bigger objective. Therefore, make every second count by mixing business with pleasure.

5) Be On the Hunt for New Opportunities- You must be on the look-out for new opportunities and ideas that will give you an edge over your competitor.

6) Ask Questions- You must constantly ask solution focused questions that clarify your thinking and help you overcome the challenges that confront you on a daily basis.

7) Challenge Yourself- Whether in business or life you must constantly challenge yourself. You must see everything as an opportunity to strengthen your resolve, expertise in order to grow your empire.

8) Enjoy Life to the Fullest- You must constantly seek out new exciting endeavors, adventures and experiences. In order for life to be lived to the fullest potential you must do this.

9) Have Fun- Turn things into a game. Lighten up and have fun.

10) Meet New People- You must be a passionate networker and people person. You have to find people interesting. It’s about them, not you. Find out what makes them tick. Build relationships that are reciprocal.

11) Try New Things- Step outside your comfort zone. Try something new and exciting.

12) Enjoy Your Work- You must mix work with things that bring you pleasure. By doing this, it will lift your spirits and strengthens your motivation to work for extended hours throughout the day and night.

13) Carry a Journal/Note Pad- Carry a notepad with you in order to capture ideas for new projects, gather feedback from customers and employees, and to write your goals, thoughts and experiences on paper. This will clarify your thoughts and provides you with guidance throughout the day.

14) Surround Yourself with Great People- Surround yourself with business coaches and mentors who act as sounding boards — helping to guide your decisions. Surround yourself with reliable colleagues and co-workers who have similar goals, values and interests. In addition to this, surround yourself with supportive family and friends who believe in your mission and vision.

15) Take Calculated Risk- Take calculated risks in your business and life. You must understand where the boundaries lie and be careful not to over-extend your personal and professional capabilities and capacity to move intelligently through the emotional roller coaster.

16) Take Time to Read and Learn- You must fully understand that lessons are often learned through mistakes and experience. However, lessons can also be experienced within the pages of a book. And it is these book-experiences that will save you an ample amount of time, energy and money.

17) Take Time to Re-Energize Your Body and Dream- You must do what you need to do in order to re-energize your body and mind. Like me, I spend time on the beach daydreaming about my passions. This invigorates my creative mind and strengthens the flow of new ideas.

18) Take Time to Think- Set time aside to plan new projects and create new ideas.

If you implement and master these 18 success secrets, you too can be a “self-made” person.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Entrepreneur, Leadership/Overcoming PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Expert, Author and Speaker on Leadership, Success and Overcoming Adversity. Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident. Passionate about making a difference in the lives of others and leaving them better than I found them.

Are You Truly a Grateful Person? 10 Lessons for Living a More Grateful Life!

July 4, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 2 comments

In daily life we must see that it is not happiness that makes us grateful, but gratefulness that makes us happy ~Unknown

Are you grateful?

Have you ever sat quiet for a few moments or even a few hours to let your mind wander? To reflect on things? What do you think about? Do you wish you had a bigger home, nicer car, money in the bank, better job, being thinner, more vacation time, larger salary and the list goes on…right?

Some of my best thinking is done on the beach watching my little girl have the time of her life? Watching her make friends, running into the water, boogie boarding or body surfing. As I sit there watching I allow my mind to wander, “Wow if I only had my daughter’s life when I was growing up.” What if I did? Where would I be now? Have you ever thought about this? We always want a better life for our children than what we had. Do you ever remember being grateful for what you had instead of what you didn’t have?

I am grateful for what I am and have. My thanksgiving is perpetual… O how I laugh when I think of my vague indefinite riches. No run on my bank can drain it for my wealth is not possession but enjoyment ~Henry David Thoreau

We all know someone that has to keep up with the Jone’s. Is it the society we live in to always want something that someone else has? Have you ever noticed someone’s attitude change when they see someone that just may have more than them? Why do people begrudge someone that has more than them or something a little nicer? Why not be happy for someone that may be more successful, richer, better looking or all the above? Instead of begrudging someone for what they have, how about we abjure and are happy for them. Give credit where it’s due! When you show people that you are genuinely happy for them, it comes back to you in more good ways than one.

When people look back on your life, what do you want to be remembered for? This is the question you must have on the forefront of your mind at all times.

Here are 10 tips to help you live a happier, healthier and more grateful life!

1) Realize how truly blessed you are- Be happy with you. Accept yourself as you are. You’re born into this world the way you are. Be grateful for what you are and have, you will end up having so much more!

2) Surround yourself with positive people- It will be hard to be happy and grateful if you associate with negative people. So NO to the Losers and YES to the Winners!

3) Maintain a “Gratitude” journal- Take 15 minutes each night to write what you are most grateful in your life. For example, I’m most grateful for my health, my family and friends, my career, my spirituality. It’s okay if you repeat yourself over and over again.

4) Look for the good in people- We as a society are drawn to the drama and negativity of others misery. Stop that at once! The small things in life matter. Start doing them more often. Turn off the radio and television.

5) Realize the good health and prosperity you have- Our standard of living is by far the best in the world. Treat your body like the temple it is! Eat right, exercise more often, drink enormous amounts of water and get the proper sleep.

6) Realize how rich you really are- We often think that we need more money. This is one of the main reasons why we are not grateful. But do you realize how rich you are now? Just go to Global Rich List, enter your annual income, and see the result. Chances are you are richer than billions of other people. In fact, you most likely sit in the top tier of the world’s richness ranking.

7) Practice how grateful your are- In order to be really good at something you must practice, practice, practice. Take a few minutes each to think about all that is good in your life.

8) Realize you are free and live in peace- There are countries that are being bombarded with bombs. There are people that are scared to death to walk outside of their home. We are blessed that we don’t live in fear and misery.

9) Be a giver instead of a taker- By focusing on giving it just makes more sense that you will be more grateful. Your mind focuses on what you have instead of what you don’t have.

10) Commit today to be more grateful- The above 9 tips can only help you become a more grateful person but in order to be truly grateful you must commit yourself to changing. It starts with you. It starts today. No one can do this for you. If you resolve today to make a commitment on being a more grateful person, your life will change for the better forever!

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Entrepreneur, Leadership/Overcoming PTSD Expert, Author and Speaker on Leadership, Success and Overcoming Adversity. Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident. Passionate about leaving people better than I found them.

Do you possess the Success Attitude? Do you have what it takes to truly be successful?

June 26, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude. Thomas Jefferson

Do You Possess the Success ATTITUDE?

What is your attitude like? Is it positive or negative? Is everything a disaster in your life or is everything a success in your life? You determine what attitude you wake up with. You’re either a positive or a negative person. Being positive is so much easier. I believe being negative takes work. Let me explain: Being negative puts you in an angry mood. Think about this for a minute: negative people generally are bitterer and less successful. I can honestly say that out of all the successful people I know, not one of them looks at the glass as being half empty. It just feels good being positive. Having a positive attitude makes you happier which in turn attracts better things in your life.

I can remember back in the early 2000′s, after my shooting incident, my attitude started getting worse and worse. I became more cynical. Everything was an uphill battle. I hated being around people. I felt my life spiraling out of control. Nothing was going my way. I knew that if I wanted to crash and burn, I had to change something and I had to change it fast. So, I committed to working on my attitude. I began to slowly weed out everything that caused my attitude to be negative. Let me give you some examples of the things that gave me a negative attitude in a blink of an eye. Watching television, reading the news, watching the local/national news, being around people that were negative. Once I cut these things out of my life I started feeling better, more positive, and healthier. I consider these things that I just described like cancer. It was eating me from the inside out.

Weakness of attitude becomes weakness of character. Albert Einstein

In order to be a positive more optimistic person you must surround yourself with positive people and things. I know, you’re probably thinking easier said than done, right? Wrong! If I can do this, so can you. Below are lists of things you must do in order to change your negative, unsuccessful attitude into a positive, Successful Attitude.

1) Negativity- Whatever makes your attitude negative, stop it at once. If you feel your attitude changing for the worst, for example watching the news or hanging with a friend whose always crying about their problems, cut them out of your life immediately.

2) Do things that make your happy- Whatever makes you smile, do it more often. If it’s buying someone behind you in line at your local coffee shop a cup of coffee, do it.

3) Exercise- Just about everyone hates to exercise. Exercise is a prerequisite for a happier, healthier life. Start out slow and work up to your pace. You will see almost instantly what this does to your attitude.

4) Get 8hrs of sleep- If you want to be refreshed and feel alive you must get enough sleep. Sleep is as important to your attitude as a boat is to water.

5) Stay Hydrated- Drink a lot of clear fluids. No soda, coffee, tea. This is okay in moderation but you must drink plenty of water throughout the day. It will keep your brain hydrated and make you feel energetic all day which in turn will make your attitude more positive.

6) Eat Healthy- You must eat a rainbow a day. You must eat plenty of vegetables along with a protein at every meal. Eat your biggest meal in the morning. The saying goes like this, eat breakfast like a king, eat lunch like a prince and eat dinner like a pulper. Eat nothing after 6pm but do drink water.

7) Love what you do- You must love your profession. You have to wake up every day knowing that you are doing what you are passionate about. Do not choose a career for the money. Choose a career that you are so passionate about and believe me the rest will follow.

8) Read/Watch positive things- Take 30 minutes when you wake up and 30 minutes when you call it a night to read something that makes you happy.

9) Have a gratitude journal- Take 15 minutes each night to write in a composition book of all the things you are grateful for. Remember, it’s the small things in life that matter.

10) Write down your goals- Before you begin to read something positive when you awake each morning, be sure to write down your goals on the things you want to accomplish, short term and long term. By writing your goals each day, you have something to look forward too, something to work towards. By doing this, you’ll see your positive attitude and success go through the roof!

A Great Leader Never, Ever Quits and Here is Why?

April 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

Before success comes in any man’s life, he’s sure to meet with much temporary defeat and, perhaps some failures. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and the most logical thing to do is to quit. That’s exactly what the majority of men do~Napoleon Hill

“Leaders Never Quit”

Leaders never quit. They persist through any challenge they are faced with. Great leaders have the ability to stick with a difficult task or situation and work through it. They cope with the frustration that is brought upon by challenges.

The importance of never quitting and persisting through difficult times is one of the most important qualities a great leader must possess. They take every measure to bring their challenges to fruition. We are all faced with the naysayers who tell us to give up or forget about it and move on. This can be very demotivating. We cannot allow ourselves to be faced with people like this. These are the people that do not belong in our lives. We are better than this. We must persist and never quit.

“If you live long enough, you’ll make mistakes. But if you learn from them, you’ll be a better person. It’s how you handle adversity, not how it affects you. The main thing is never quit, never quit, never quit.” — Bill Clinton

Achieving success through leadership cannot be done overnight. It takes long hours and tons of hard work. There will undoubtedly be hurdles and obstacles that we must overcome. We, as great leaders, must hold the vision of our destination in mind and inspire others by rolling up our sleeves and continue to work on making progress. Someone must lead so why not let it be us.

Never quitting and persisting through difficult times takes a positive attitude, strong belief system and the confidence to continue our fight. Great leaders realize that without these qualities one can never be a great leader.

What separates a Great leader from others is the will to never stop persisting onward and upward. Great leaders do what the others won’t. Continuing to push and fight through the difficult times will take will power. The stronger your resolve, the more you will persist and the greater chances of your success.

“Never, never, never, never give up.” “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never – in nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honor and good sense” ~Winston Churchill

Below are some of the qualities that a Great leader should never quit or stop persisting at:

Integrity is the integration of outward actions and inner values. A person of integrity is the same on the outside and on the inside. Such an individual can be trusted because he or she never veers from inner values, even when it might be expeditious to do so. A great leader must have the trust of followers and therefore must display integrity.
Honest dealings, predictable reactions, well-controlled emotions, and an absence of tantrums and harsh outbursts are all signs of integrity. A leader who is centered in integrity will be more approachable by followers.

Dedication means spending whatever time or energy is necessary to accomplish the task at hand. A leader inspires dedication by example, doing whatever it takes to complete the next step toward the vision. By setting an excellent example, leaders can show followers that there are only opportunities to achieve something great.
Magnanimity means giving credit where it is due. A magnanimous leader ensures that credit for successes is spread as widely as possible. Conversely, a good leader takes personal responsibility for failures. This sort of reverse magnanimity helps other people feel good about them and draws the team closer together. To spread the fame and take the blame is a hallmark of effective leadership.

Leaders with humility recognize that they are no better or worse than anyone else. A humble leader is not self-effacing but rather tries to elevate everyone. Leaders with humility also understand that their status does not make them a god. Mahatma Gandhi is a role model for Indian leaders, and he pursued a “follower-centric” leadership role.

Openness means being able to listen to new ideas, even if they do not conform to the usual way of thinking. Great leaders are able to suspend judgment while listening to others’ ideas, as well as accept new ways of doing things that someone else thought of. Openness builds mutual respect and trust between leaders and followers, and it also keeps the team well supplied with new ideas that can further its vision.

A great leader never, ever quits, however he or she must remain integral, dedicated, magnanimous, humble and open.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Entrepreneur, Author, and Speaker on Leadership, Success and Overcoming Adversity. Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) stemming from a shoot and kill robbery incident.

6 Steps in Overcoming the Fear of Success

April 17, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

Fears are nothing more than a state of mind. Napoleon Hill

The one quote that resonates with me that has changed my mindset in overcoming fear is, “Do the thing you fear & the death of fear are certain. We all have a fear of something. The majority of the population fears success. Why? I believe people fear success because it not only takes hard work, discipline, dedication and perseverance it also takes courage to overcome the 6 Fears of Success. Below are the 6 Fears that play an iatrical part in NOT achieving great things. Follow the solutions, work on them, implement the strategies and encourage failure. You will fail along the way but know that failure is a stepping stone to your success. Once you conquer the 6 Fears of Success, your success is virtually guaranteed.

The Six Fears of Success and How to overcome them.

Determine which Fear is holding you back and resolve to take it back.

1. Fear of Failure. This is the greatest of all fears. Fear of failure keeps people from trying new ventures. The fear that they may fail therefore choosing not to take risk.
Solution: Do your homework, however do not over analyze to where it causes paralyzes. Once you learn more about it, be decisive in your actions. It requires a reframe that failure is a normal stage in achievement.

2. Fear of Embarrassment. People who fear embarrassment have typically experienced a time in their childhood that was humiliating in which they filed the memory and said to themselves, “I will never feel that way again or put myself in that position.” Solution: Practice self-talk, self-affirmations. “I can do this, I can accomplish this, I can achieve this”, are a few examples.

3. Fear of Rejection. People who fear rejection have experienced the feeling therefore resulting in low self-esteem. Solution: Realize that rejection is about the other person. It’s about their own insecurities. Know that you are a great person and that rejection is a part of life. Do not let rejection stop you from achieving your dreams. It takes a healthy ego to know that rejection is a normal part of life.

4. Fear of Hurting Others. There is a saying, “If you fail to plan, your plan will fail.” Solution: People who fear hurting others need to plan so that they can continue to meet the needs of others and still pursue their dreams. Make sure the people in your life know how much your Goal(s) mean to you. Do your homework.

5. Fear of Success. Some people have low self-esteem for whatever reason and may fall into the category that they aren’t worthy of success. They fear how their life will be different if they succeed. They decide to stay in the same old place to avoid their own potential for greatness. Solution: Positive Self-Affirmations, Self-Talk can do wonders in reprogramming your thoughts and mindset.

6. Fear of the Unknown. I call these people the “half empties”. There glass is always half empty as opposed as half full. People who fear the unknown usually catastrophism and fear the worst instead of counting on the best. Solution: I am a true believer of what will be, will be. Things happen for a reason. Place your fears in the hands of a higher power and understand what is meant to be will be.

Was Captain Edward J. Smith a Natural Leader?

April 16, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

A tribute to Captain Edward John Smith that marks the 100th Anniversary of the Titanic’s Fateful Voyage.

What Makes a Natural Born Leader?

“The Olympic is unsinkable, and Titanic will be the same when she is put in commission.” He continued, “Either of these two vessels could be cut in halves and each half would remain afloat almost indefinitely. The non-sinkable vessel has been reached in these two wonderful craft.” “I venture to add,” Concluded the Captain, “that even the engines and boilers of these vessels were to fall through their bottoms, the vessels would remain afloat.” ~Captain Edward John Smith

Captain Smith was viewed as the stereotype of how a brave captain should act, working to the last to save lives before going down with his ship, yet he is also blamed by many for causing one of the worst maritime disasters of all time.

So why does the public continue to be fascinated by the captain of the Titanic, Captain Edward John Smith?

The son of a pottery presser and grocer rose to become ‘the millionaire’s captain’, the number one choice for the aristocrats of the day, many of whom chose to sail with him because of his reputation for safety and affability.

Captain Smith rose through the Edwardian social classes which was seen as an achievement in itself but he went on to captain some of the biggest ships of the day, including Titanic’s sister ship the Olympic.

Forceful Leader

“Confidence was quickly restored; all being convinced that the Titanic could not founder. Captain Smith nevertheless appeared nervous; he came down on deck chewing a toothpick. ‘Let everyone,’ he said, ‘put on a lifebelt, it is more prudent.’ Soon after midnight, Captain Smith gave the order to prepare the boats, but still no general alarm was raised.” ~Captain Edward John Smith

There were several books written about the Titanic Captain. Among the many myths surrounding the captain, the most famous and ominous is that he ignored ice warnings.

However, ice warnings were just that, simply warnings that ice was seen at X coordinates at a certain time which Smith may have registered rather than reacted to.

Captain Smith was undoubtedly a forceful leader who pushed his ships hard in conditions that may have scared other captains, it was a fact of history that the weather was calm and clear that very fateful night – it was not unusual for any captain to sail ships into ice regions at high speeds and several captains from other shipping companies testified to this.

I believe Captain Smith lived up to the stereotype, perhaps one that he himself helped to create, as to how ships’ captains should behave when disaster strikes, namely that they should stay with their vessel and either be the last man off, or go down with it.

Captain Smith’s actions were not far from the thoughts of many observers when the Costa Concordia cruise ship ran aground on January 13th off the western coast of Italy with more than 4,200 passengers and crew.

Its Captain, Francesco Schettino, now faces possible charges of manslaughter, causing a shipwreck and abandoning a ship in which 32 people were either killed or are missing.

Captain Smith’s leadership taught us all something. He left a yardstick not only for sea captains to live up to but for all leaders to live up to.

There’s no doubt that Captain Smith made mistakes. However, in the end there is one thing you cannot take away from him. He did not skirt his responsibilities or try to weasel his was out of them. He did what any great leader should do. He went down with his ship. In fact, there was witness testimonial that he dove into the frigid sea as the bridge went under water. Captain Smith paid the ultimate price as a result. How many of our leaders today would be prepared to do the same?

What Caused Staff Sgt. Robert Bales to Commit Murder?

March 23, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 3 comments

If you watch the news, have read articles I’m sure you’re familiar with Staff Sgt. Robert Bales. Staff Sgt. Bales is being charged with 17 counts of murder, assault and a slew of other charges from what’s being called a massacre of Afghan villagers by U.S. officials.

Staggering Statistics from Studies and the Veterans Affairs

Did you know that 1 in 5 returning Afghan and Iraq war veterans suffer from PTSD or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or Major Depression according to VA (Veterans Affairs).

Nearly 20 percent of military service members who have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan — 300,000 in all — report symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder or major depression, yet only slightly more than half have sought treatment, according to a new RAND Corporation Study.

In addition too, researchers found about 19 percent of returning service members report that they experienced a possible traumatic brain injury while deployed, with 7 percent reporting both a probable brain injury and current PTSD or major depression.

Many service members said they do not seek treatment for psychological illnesses because they fear it will harm their careers. Being subject to ridicule. Being considered unfit for duty. But even among those who do seek help for PTSD or major depression, only about half receive treatment that researchers consider “minimally adequate” for their illnesses.

In the first analysis of its kind, researchers estimate that PTSD and depression among returning service members will cost the nation as much as $6.2 billion in the two years following deployment — an amount that includes both direct medical care and costs for lost productivity and suicide. Investing in more high-quality treatment could save close to $2 billion within two years by substantially reducing those indirect costs, according to RAND study.

Here’s another staggering statistic. Suicides among returning soldiers are up 26% according to the VA (Veterans Affairs). There are an estimated 30,000 suicides in this country alone and 20% of those suicides are committed by our veterans according to the VA.

We Have an Epidemic on our Hands

We all know that there is a major health crisis facing those men and women who have served our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan. Unless they receive appropriate and effective care for these mental health conditions, there will be long-term consequences for them and for our nation. Unfortunately, there are many barriers preventing them from getting the high-quality treatment they need.

Researchers concluded that a major national effort is needed to expand and improve the capacity of the mental health system to provide effective care to service members and veterans. The effort must include the military, veteran and civilian health care systems, and should focus on training more providers to use high-quality, evidence-based treatment methods and encouraging service members and veterans to seek needed care.

Since October 2001, about 1.6 million U.S. troops have deployed to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, with many exposed to prolonged periods of combat-related stress or traumatic events. Early evidence suggests that the psychological toll of the deployments may be disproportionately high compared with physical injuries.

The epidemic that is running wild among our returning troops is PTSD and Major Depression. More of our troops are suffering mental illnesses than physical injuries. This is not the first time you have heard one of our returning soldiers committing homicide, suicide, turning to drug & alcohol abuse, marital problems, unemployment, homelessness, committing crimes etc.

Is Staff Sgt. Robert Bales a Killer or a Victim of War?

Is Staff Sgt. Robert Bales a murderer? Is he really a cold blooded killer? Is he a true menace to society? Or is he a victim of circumstances? Did he wake up one morning and say, “I’m going on a murder spree? Who knows? Please understand something, I’m not condoning what Robert Bales did by no means, however you have to stop and think about something. There is definitely something going on with this soldier. You have just read the staggering statistics above. This is a man that has done numerous tours in Afghanistan & Iraq. To be exact, Staff Sgt. Bales served (1) tour in Afghanistan and (3) tours in Iraq. This is a man that has seen more violence, been in involved in more violence than anyone you can imagine. Yes, there are thousands of others that have been exposed to what Robert Bales has been exposed too as well. However, everyone is different, therefore what they experience and how they handle that experience is different as well.

This is a man that is a victim of our war. A victim in the sense that he suffers a major case of PTSD and/or a traumatic brain injury. He was experiencing stress beyond explanation. This is a man that was pushed to his breaking point. Yes, he turned to committing murder on innocent Afghans. People that didn’t deserve to die. But what if Bales would have taken his own life? Would he be considered a hero or another victim of circumstances? This is a man that should not have done (4) tours of war.

As a retired Police Officer and suffer of PTSD myself for shooting and killing a man in the course of a robbery & defending my own life, I can only imagine what Staff Sgt. Bales and the rest of the troops have experienced. I was second guessed, Monday morning quarterbacked, my past picked apart just as Bales’ past is being picked apart. This is unfair. Bales served his country in war not just once but four times. Enough is enough. There should be limits and guidelines on how many tours our troops serve. Where are our Commanders, our Leaders? There in the background not doing what the front-line is doing. Their not in the trenches like they are. Do they really care about them? One can only wonder what their mindset is. Understandably, the job needs to get done but it shouldn’t be at the expense of our fellow men and women. It not only affects them, it affects hundreds of thousands of others. Their families, friends, co-workers.

Staff Sgt. Robert Bales is not a killer. He is a victim of war.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), and Author, Speaker on Leadership, Success and Overcoming Adversity.

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com

You Can Do anything you want if You Believe You Can

March 2, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Everything Passess At Par, Temporarily; Truth Alone Remains Permanently~Napoleon Hill

“You Can Do It If You Believe You Can”

Are you self-confident? Do you believe in yourself and your abilities? You must because no one else will. It all starts from within you. With out self-confidence no one can become an efficient leader or take the self initiative in any great undertaking without the belief in yourself.

The Power of Initiative

There is no security on this earth, there is only opportunity~General Douglas MacArthur

Initiative and Leadership go hand in hand. Leadership is essential for attaining success and Initiative is the foundation upon which Leadership is built. Initiative is as important to success as the wings to an airplane.

Initiative is that rare quality which impels a person to do what ought to be done without being told to do it. This is what Initiative is to me. Do you possess this quality? You must because it’s paramount to your success.

A powerful example of initiative is found in one of the greatess successes of all time. Founders of Microsoft Bill Gates and Paul Allen. Two individuals that were so obsessed with programming the computers we have today that they thought of nothing else.

A great philosopher once said, “Initiative is the passkey that opens the door of opportunity.”

Becoming a Person of Initiative and Leadership

What helped you over the great obstacles of life was asked of a highly successful man? The other obstacles, he replied.

Are you a procrastinator? The habit of putting off until tomorrow what should have been done yesterday, last week, last month, last year will hold you back from true success. You will not accomplish anything until you eliminate this deadly disease of procrastination.

Would you like to know how to overcome procrastination? This, well-known and scientifically tested principle is called Auto-Suggestion. I want you to copy this formula, put it in a conspicious place in a room where you will see it upon retiring for the evening and arising in the morning.

If you do this, this will start forming a habit of you taking action each day that will carry you one step closer to attaining your Definite Chief Passion or DCP.

Here is it: The Lesson for Eliminating Procrastination

I know that procrastination is a deadly disease of all who want to become leaders in any undertaking and I will eliminate this very bad habit from my personal being.

1-Doing that one thing each day, that very something that ought to be done without anyone telling me to do it.

2-Finding that one thing that I can do each and everyday that I have not beeen doing that will bring value to others without exceptation of reward or payback.

3-Sharing this habit with at least someone in your life that you trust of the value of practicing this habit of doing something that ought to be done without being told to do it.

The muscles of the body become strong with repeated use. Understand that the habit of Initiative also becomes strong with repeated use. It takes only 21 days to make or break a habit. You CAN DO THIS!

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of AchieveSuccessAcademy.com, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), Author, Speaker on Leadership, Success and Overcoming Adversity.

I can reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Top 10 Must Have Characteristics of a Great Leader

February 21, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

A good objective of leadership is to help those who are doing poorly to do well and to help those who are doing well to do even better~Jim Rohn

Do you have what it takes to be a great leader? I bet you do. I believe everyone can attain the great qualities and characteristics needed to be an effective leader. The objective behind being a great leader is this: Helping people and/or organizations who are doing poorly to do well. Helping people and/or organization who are doing well but want to get better. The whole idea of great leadership is to get results. To bring them to a whole different level of success.

The task of leadership is not to put greatness into people, but to elicit it, for the greatness is there already~ John Buchan

Being a great leader means bringing out the best in people. Everyone wants to be the best they can be. It’s our job as leaders to do that. We need to find and focus on the strengths of people not their weaknesses.

In my previous career of Law Enforcement, I was surrounded by good and bad leaders. The good leaders focused on making people better while the bad leaders would focus on making people worse. It was astounding to me that the bad leaders would come to work everyday and do nothing but negative leadership. What do I mean by negative leadership? They would focus on the mistakes of people. Instead of making them learn from their mistakes they would punish them and never give good advice and/or training to make that person better. They would lie in wait like a lion hiding from a zebra getting ready to attack. This would happen day in and day out. Just waiting for their people to make mistakes. Being totalling reactive instead of proactive. They would focus on the negatives and not the positives in people. This type of leadership is a sinking ship. This will make any organizations morale go into a tail spin. And if you were ever part of an organization withe horrible morale, you know exactly what I mean. If you want a successful organization, no matter what industry, you need to have great leaders that focus on the strengths and not the weaknesses. To learn, grow and achieve results a great leader must focus on making their people successful by focusing on their strenghths.

Leadership: the art of getting someone else to do something you want done because he wants to do it~Dwight D. Eisenhower

Here are the TOP 10 Must Have Characteristics of a Great Leader:

1) Be a Role Model- You must lead by example. You should never ask someone to do something that you wouldn’t do yourself. You must be seen by your people, and the public as being an expert in your field and an expert in leadership.

2) Have a Mission-Leaders know what their mission is. They know why the organization exists. A great leader has a well thought out (often written) mission describing the purpose of the organization. That purpose need to be descriptive, clear and understandable. Every employee should be able to identify with the mission and strive to achieve it.

3) Have Vision-Where do you want your organization to go? A vision needs to be descriptive enough to encourage people to imagine it but concrete enough for followers to see it, understand it and be willing to climb onboard to fulfill it.

4) Be Goal Oriented-How is the organization going to achieve its mission and vision and how will you measure your progress? Like a vision, goals need to be operational that are specific and measurable. If your output and results can’t be readily measured, then it will be difficult to know if you have achieved your purpose.

5) Have Integrity- Do the right thing all the time. Not sometimes but all the time.

6) Be Passionate in all you do-You must love what you do. You must want success for the organization and the people more than you want the air you breathe.

7) Be Compassionate-Successful leaders are comfortable relating to other people; they easily create rapport and are more extroverted than they are introverted. These factors help leaders seem approachable, likeable, and comfortable in their position. Those qualities contribute to staff wanting to interact with their leader. They also help motivate employees to do a better job. When workers can relate to their boss, they believe that their boss is more concerned about them, with their performance, and with their output. Furthermore, they believe that they can go to their boss with problems they encounter on the job without fearing consequences for not knowing how to resolve issues.

8) Great Communicator-It does little good to have a strong mission, vision, and goals if the leader cannot easily and effectively convey his ideas inside and outside of the organization. He must regularly be in touch with key individuals, by all forms of communication. Of course, the best way to ensure other people receive and understand the message is with face-to-face interactions.

9) Be Inspiring-Employees need someone to look up to for direction, guidance, and motivation. A great leader needs to be that person. Nevertheless, there are times, when many employees need the boss to inspire them by word or action.

10) Be Ambitious-Nothing builds a picture of success more than achievement, and achievement is the number one factor that motivates just about everyone across all cultures. When employees see that their leader can lead and direct, has a clear vision and attainable goals, and actually gains results in a timely manner, then that person’s credibility increases throughout the organization. Great leaders must modestly demonstrate their skills to give their constituents valid reasons to appreciate and value their efforts.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Leadership Expert, Author, Speaker, Entrepreneur, Retired Police Officer and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Survivor.

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com

Top 5 Ways To Stop Feeling Like Your in Prison Monday Through Friday!

February 13, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy One comment

America is the land of the second chance – and when the gates of the prison open, the path ahead should lead to a better life~George W. Bush

Feeling Like Your in Prison

Do you feel your anxiety level going up before your work week starts? Do you sleep really sound on Sunday night knowing that Monday morning is just hours away? Do you stress all week wishing it were Friday?

I know exactly how you feel. I’ve been where you are. I, too was a slave to the clock. I, too was trading time for dollars. It came a time that my anxiety level was so high that I had to make an urgent decision whether to stay or leave. It was affecting all aspects of my life.

My mind was like directing traffic in a busy intersection in downtown New York City in rush hour. It kept me up at night. I was bombarded by different thoughts such as what will I do, will I make it, can I earn the same amount, will I be happier, will I lose everything that I worked so hard for.

If you know me or have read my previous blogs then you know that I am a huge proponent of listening to your inner-voice. It is spot on every time. Period. If you choose to listen to it. Some people choose to ignore it. Some choose to over-ride it. I choose to listen to it.

A fear of the unknown keeps a lot of people from leaving bad situations~Kathie Lee Gifford

Scared to Death

The fear of the unknown is the scariest of all. Not knowing how things will turn out. Not knowing where you’ll end up. Will you lose everything? Who will I let down? People want to see you fail. It’s a fact of life. People love negativity. They love to hear gossip of others. Mostly negative gossip. Very seldom will you hear of anyone talking about your successes. Face it, it’s a fact of life that negativity sells. So what! You don’t have to be a part of it. Who cares what others think. No one is paying your bills. No one is putting food on your table. No one is providing you shelter. So who cares about what people have to say. You must do what’s best for you and only you.

The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows~Buddha

Failure Is No Option

I made a conscious decision to leave a secure job with health benefits and 5 weeks of vacation after 15yrs. So many people ask me Why are you doing this? How can you do this? Isn’t it scary leaving security?

They are all valid questions. However, I personally believe security breeds comfort. Security breeds not fully living up to your true potential. You see, I am driven by success. I push myself to unbelievable limits. I am extremely discliplined. It’s the way I am made. Everyone is different. Everyone has their own opinion about security. There is no right or wrong answer. It’s truly based on ones personal ideologies.

Your personality must be conducive with leaving security. If you long for the security of having a solid job, making a living, having health benefits and vacation than this blog isn’t for you. Again, there is nothing wrong with wanting these things. Frankly, I believe the general population is brought up this way. It boils down to what makes you happy. Period!

Here are the Top 5 Ways to Overcome Your Prison Sentence:

1) Do What You Love

It is hard to argue with this one. Have you ever found anyone that is successful doing something they hate? I guess you can take the definition of success to any extreme, but I have a hard time accepting that anyone living in misery doing something they hate can be called successful. Naturally, doing what you love gets you the motivation and the excitement required to achieve success. In fact, for many, doing what you love is success in and of itself.

2) Follow Your Passion & Perfect Your Game

If your definition of success is being great at something then studies have shown that the secret to success is to practice at perfecting your game and following your passion. These studies even argue that natural talent is irrelevant and that it’s all about practice and passion.

3) Be Unique

It’s hard to imagine a clone being a symbol of success. Success is about bringing your own unique ways into the world, adding diversity and value. Most experts will agree that if you want to be successful you have to find your niche, you have to find ways to leverage your own unique gifts.

4) Believe in Yourself

I have yet to find a successful man or woman who does not believe in themselves. If you don’t believe in yourself, who will? Studies have shown that success is influenced by your mindset. If you want to be successful, start believing in yourself at once.

5) Never Ever Give Up

Last but not least, you must never ever give up. Every successful guru will tell you this. To be successful you must persist through your failures, criticisms, rejections and all the other negative things in life. Success is a journey, not a destination. In your journey of success, the only time you can say you are not a success is when you give up on your journey.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder), Leading Authority on Conquering your Fear, Overcoming Your Adversity & Achieving Greater Success in Your Life. Speaker, Entrepreneur and Self-Made Man.

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com.

Achieving Success: Your #1 New Years Resolution Should Be To Do This Everyday!

January 20, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Why You MUST Set Goals?

Goal setting is used by top-level athletes, successful business-people and achievers in all fields. Setting goals gives you long-term vision and short-term motivation. It focuses your acquisition of knowledge, and helps you to organize your time and your resources so that you can make the very most of your life.

By setting sharp, clearly defined goals, you can measure and take pride in the achievement of those goals, and you’ll see forward progress in what might previously have seemed a long pointless grind. You will also raise your self-confidence as you recognize your own ability and competence in achieving the goals that you’ve set.

SMART Goals

A great way of making goals more powerful is to use the SMART mnemonic. SMART stands for:

S – Specific (or Significant).
M – Measurable (or Meaningful).
A – Attainable (or Action-Oriented).
R – Relevant (or Rewarding).
T – Time-bound (or Trackable).

For example, instead of having ”To earn $100,000 this year” as a goal, it’s more powerful to say ” I earn $100,000 by December 31, 2012.” Obviously, this will only be attainable if you have a plan and action steps in order.

Staying The Course

Once you’ve decided on your first set of goals, keep the goal process going by reviewing and updating your To-Do List on a daily basis. This is a MUST.

Periodically review the longer term plans, and modify them to reflect your changing priorities and experience.

Goal Setting Tips

The following Tips will help you to set effective, achievable goals:

State each goal as a positive statement – Express your goals positively
Be precise: Set precise goals, putting in dates, times and amounts so that you can measure achievement.
Set priorities – When you have several goals, give each a priority. This helps you to avoid feeling overwhelmed by having too many goals and helps to direct your attention to the most important ones.
Write goals down – This crystallizes them and gives them more force.
Keep operational goals small – Keep the low-level goals that you’re working towards small and achievable. If a goal is too large, then it can seem that you are not making progress towards it. Keeping goals small and incremental which gives more opportunities for reward.
Set performance goals, not outcome goals – You should set goals over which you have as much control as possible. If you base your goals on personal performance, then you can keep control over the achievement of your goals and draw satisfaction from them.
Set realistic goals – It’s important to set goals that you can achieve. If not, you are setting yourself up for failure.

Goal setting is an important method of:

Deciding what you want to achieve in your life.
Separating what’s important from what’s irrelevant, or a distraction.
Motivating/Inspiring yourself.
Building your self-confidence based on successful achievement of goals.

Set your lifetime goals first. Then set a five-year plan of smaller goals that you need to complete if you are to reach your lifetime plan. Keep the process going by regularly reviewing and updating your goals. And remember to take time to enjoy the satisfaction of achieving your goals when you do so.

If you don’t already set goals for yourself, you need to do so starting NOW. Making this part of your daily life, you’ll find your career/life/realtionships accelerating and you’ll wonder why you didn’t do this years ago.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Retired Police Officer, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Leading Authority on Overcoming Adversity, Finding Your WHY Power & Achieving Greater Success. Entrepreneur, Speaker and Self-Made Man.

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com for questions, comments and speaking engagements.

A Must Have Value of a Successful Person

January 20, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 3 comments

Achievement of your happiness is the only moral purpose of your life, and that happiness, not pain or mindless self-indulgence, is the proof of your moral integrity, since it is the proof and the result of your loyalty to the achievement of your values.
Ayn Rand

Integrity is a value, like persistence, courage and industriousness. Even more so, it’s the value that guarantees all the other values. You’re a good person to the degree for which you live your life consistent with the highest values that you espouse. Integrity is the quality that locks in your values and causes you to live consistent with them.

Integrity is the foundation of character and character development is one of the most important activities you can engage in. Working on your character means disciplining yourself to do more and more of those things that a thoroughly honest person would do, under all circumstances.

To be impeccably honest with others, you must first be impeccably honest with yourself. You must be true to yourself. You must be true to the very best that is in you, to the very best that you know. A person who is living consistent with his or her highest values and virtues is really living a life of integrity. And when you commit to living this kind of life, you will find yourself continually raising your own standards, continually refining your definition of integrity.

You can tell how high your level of integrity is by simply looking at the things you do in your day-to-day life. You can look at your reactions and responses to the inevitable ups and downs of life. You can observe the behaviors you typically engage in and you’ll then know the person you are.

The most important rule you’ll ever learn is that your life only becomes better when you become better.

Your life should be lived from the inside out. At the very core of your personality lie your values about yourself and life in general. Your values determine the kind of person you really are. What you believe defines your character and your personality. It’s what you stand for, and what you won’t stand for. That tells you and the world what kind of person you really are.

Napoleon Hill, in his book, The Master Key to Riches, tells about how he created an imaginary board of personal advisors made up of great figures of history. He chose people like Lincoln, Jesus, and Alexander the Great. Whenever he had to make a decision, he would relax deeply and then imagine that the members of his advisory council were sitting at a large table in front of him. He would then ask them what he should do to deal effectively with a particular situation. In time, they would begin to give him answers, observations, and insights that helped him to see more clearly and act more effectively.

You can do the same thing. Select someone that you admire very much for their qualities of courage, tenacity, honesty or wisdom. Ask yourself, What would they do in my situation? You will find yourself with guidance that enables you to be the very best person that you can possible be.

Your integrity is manifested in your willingness to adhere to the values you hold most dear. It’s easy to make promises but very hard to keep them. However, if you do, every single act of integrity will make your character a little stronger. As you improve the quality and strength of your character, every other part of your life will improve as well.

Integrity has to do with your commitments to others. Always keep your word. Be a man or a woman of honor. If you say that you will do something, do it. If you make a promise, keep it. If you make a commitment, fulfill it. Be known as the kind of person that can be trusted absolutely, no matter what the circumstances.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Retired Cop, Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) Leading Authority on Overcoming Adversity, Finding Your WHY Power & Achieving Greater Success. Entrepreneur, Speaker and Self-Made Man.

I can be reached via email at John@AchieveSuccessAcademy.com for Speaking Engagements.

Achieving Success: Top 6 Steps in Overcoming The Fear of Success

January 2, 2012 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 2 comments

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Fears are nothing more than a state of mind. Napoleon Hill

The one quote that resonates with me that has changed my mindset in overcoming fear is, “Do the thing you fear & the death of fear is certain. We all have a fear of something. The majority of the population fears success. Why? I believe people fear success because it not only takes hard work, discipline, dedication and perseverance it also takes courage to overcome the 6 Fears of Success. Below are the 6 Fears that play an intrical part in NOT achieving great things. Follow the solutions, work on them, implement the strategies and encourage failure. You will fail along the way but know that failure is a stepping stone to your success. Once you conquer the 6 Fears of Success, your success is virtually guaranteed.

The Six Fears of Success and How to Overcome them.

Determine which Fear is holding you back and resolve to take it back.

6. Fear of The Unknown. I call these people the “half empties”. There glass is always half empty as opposed as half full. People who fear the unknown usually catastrophize and fear the worst instead of counting on the best. Solution: I am a true believer of what will be, will be. Things happen for a reason. Place your fears in the hands of a higher power and understand what is meant to be will be.

I’m John R. Salkowski, Founder of Achieve Success Academy, Real Estate Entrepreneur, Leading Authority on Achieving Greater Success and Overcoming Adversity, Retired Cop and Survivor of PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder)

I can be reached via email at John@JohnSalkowski.com for questions and Speaking Engagements.

The Hunger For Success: Are You Hungry? Then You Need To Stay Hungry?

November 29, 2011 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy 2 comments

Are you hungry for what you want in life? Do you wake up everyday starving to accomplish great things? Ask yourself this question: What is my Why? If you can answer this question then you’ll wake up every morning hungry. Starting each and everyday on an empty stomach knowing you have to find your next meal. Of course I mean the success you want in life.

Staying HUNGRY

If you’re not hungry than you don’t want to be the best you can be. You don’t want to be the best in your field, no matter what profession you’re in. If you don’t want to be the best you can be rest assured there is someone out there that does. If you want to be the best that you can be day in and day out then you need to start everyday wondering where your next meal will come from. Think about this: According to the University of Michigan back in 2005, there were 11.5 million entrepreneurs in the U.S. Some of these entrepreneurs didn’t know where their next pay check, customer, prospect was coming from. This can be very stressful for a lot of people. This is not just directed to the business owners of the world. This is directed to the employees that want that promotion or raise. You can sell someone a plate of food but you can’t make them eat if their NOT hungry.

Success doesn’t come easy. If it were easy there would be a hell of a lot more successful people in the world. Success is a choice. It’s a mind set. You must want it as much as you want the air you breathe. This might sound crazy but it’s the truth. Look at some of the most successful people in the world. Most of them don’t have MBA‘s from Harvard. Some never even graduated from college. Some never went to college. But the difference was that they were hungry for success. They wanted it just as much as they needed the air they breathe.

Hard Work

We bust our asses for the things we want, right? We work extra hours for the vacation we so desperately need, the car we want, the shoes we want to buy and so forth. Anything worthwhile having requires hard work. It requires getting up every morning starting from ground zero. Having the mentality that you are starting each day with NOTHING! You must hustle to get want you want. You must figure out a way on how to attain what you want. Are you busting your ass for the success you deserve?

It all boils down to how bad you want something. Are you willing to do whatever it takes to make it? What are you willing to sacrifice to get it? I think back when I was a cop knowing that my career was coming to an end. I had to ask myself do I have what it takes to make it out in the world without an employer. I had to ask myself over and over again was I willing to do whatever it took to be successful. Thinking of all the adversity that I was about to face. The truth is that you will only be as hungry as you want to be. If you want success as bad as you need the air you breathe, you will stay hungry.

Masterminding: The Success Principles Behind It

November 26, 2011 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

What is a Mastermind? How can it help you in succeeding?

A mastermind group is simply an alliance of two or more individuals dedicating themselves to a specific goal. The mastermind model is the power of organized knowledge expressed through intelligent efforts. Masterminds facilitate this power.

But is information organized power? Surfing the web for a particular answers can cause a deluge of conflicting, ambiguous information that does nothing to increase one’s knowledge.

A Mastermind is a “coordination of knowledge and effort, harmonies in spirit, between two or more positive, success-minded people, for the attainment of a definite purpose.”

Some of the smartest people in all walks of life from CEO’s, Realtors, Police Officers, Alcoholics, Small Business Owners, Suffers of PTSD and such have attributed all of their success due in part to this term we call ‘Masterminding.’”

Masterminding has been around since the early 1900′s. This idea of mastermind groups has grown and evolved to become a successful tool of successful individuals. A Game-Changer if you will.

The benefits of having a supportive mastermind group are plenty:

1.You have a group of people available to help you succeed.

2.You get the benefit of differing perspectives, input and feedback.

3.Your mastermind team can bring resources and connections to the table you might not have had on your own.

4.You receive accountability and inspiration from the group, thus enabling you to maintain focus in achieving your goals.

It was once said by the famous founder of success principles, Napoleon Hill ,“No two minds ever come together without, thereby, creating a third, invisible, intangible force which may be likened to a third mind.” In other words, your ability to create great things in this world we live in is increased by having that invisible “third mind” or what we call, “ The Mastermind Group”.

Creating a mastermind group does not have to be difficult. But I will share this, being in several mastermind groups myself, you must have people in this group that want the same thing you do. No matter what it is. The key ingredient is “Like-Minded, Positive, Goal Oriented/Goal Achieving, Motivation, Inspiration, Failure is No Option mentalities.

There are two basic types of mastermind groups:

1) One focused on the success and vision of one individual

2) One focused on helping everyone in the group.

When creating/building the perfect mastermind group both in mind.

You would be amazed at how willing many like-minded people are there to help you when asked. I believe it’s an honor to be asked for advice or an opinion. It means that you are trusted, respected and admired. Did you ever ask someone for advice and feel in your “gut” that they were mis-guiding you? I have. Steer clear of these individuals. Ask the people that have already accomplished what you so desire to accomplish.

When someone mentions that a mastermind group is forming, they mean a group of dedicated people who want to see themselves and others succeed and achieve great things in their lives. These groups can meet in person, over a free tele-conference line, online chat rooms or webinars.

I contribute 85% of my success to the power of masterminding. I pay thousands of dollars a year to surround myself with like-minded, success oriented, goal achieving, positive people. By taking this step, it has created a life I never thought I could have.

However, you must act! Your actions will educate yourself in the laws of success. Take action today and start creating the life you truly want and deserve. I don’t care who you are, we all want the great things this wonderful life has to offer us.

Remember this Quote by the great Napoleon Hill, “Analyze the record of any man who has accumulated a great fortune, and many of those who have accumulated modest fortunes, and you will find that they have either consciously, or unconsciously employed the ‘Master Mind’ principle.”

PTSD: Overcoming Tragic Events or Thoughts to a Fulfilling Successful Life

November 13, 2011 AchieveSuccessAcademy.com Achieve Success Academy No comments

The more and more I learn about our returning Troops, the more and more I resonate with how they’re feeling. They are coming home from the battlefield, the front line if you will, where they confront, see and hear tragedy day in and day out. Witnessing their fellow comrads being maimed or killed. Witnessing death and destruction as if it were just part of normal life.

They are immediately rushed back into society or the normal life as we call it. How are they suppose to transition from a KILL zone to the supposely NORMAL zone? Are they being properly prepared for their arrival back home? Is their brain being re-wired/re-trained for the normal world? Is there protocol on re-inventing these young men and woman so they can enter society as a civilian?

The latest article I read was about a tragic murder of a 19 year old Southern California girl by one of our Troops. In the article it said, ” I was trained to kill. I come home. I can’t adjust to regular civilian lifestyle.” “I spun out of control. I needed help.” Unfortunately with the way I was trained, you know to react to threats is to neutralize threats. …Even with someone I love.”

The tragedy of it all is that not only did an innocent yound woman lose her life, a young man lost his as well.

Why isn’t PTSD on the dashboard of the minds of the men and women in charge of our returning troops? Why isn’t there more of an impactful debriefing process? This MUST change! If it doesn’t, we are going to hear more tragic stories of suicides and homicides by our protectors, our heros.

In my estimation, I would venture to guess that the suffers of PTSD are soothing their emotions by drugs and alcohol as opposed to other more positive outlets.

My mission is to change this. Suffering PTSD myself, undiagnosed and diagnosed for more than 10yrs, I too experienced the horrible thoughts, nightmares, anger, depression, anxiety, heightened alertness, physical and emotional torment that our HEROS are experiencing today.

It was a battle everyday to stay on course. However, I refused to allow this to take hold of me. To allow this to destroy my life. To allow me from achieving the great things that this world so desperately needs.

I took it upon myself to re-wire/re-train my brain to block out the the negative thoughts and everything else I was experiencing. There are so many things that I have done to overcome PTSD but what we are experiencing with our returning troops is an epidemic. This MUST change and if I have anything to do with it, it WILL!