Affirming Success

By Timothy Rose

Affirming Success is a collection of anecdotes. Each chapter starts with a inspiring quote and ends with an affirmation. They reveal principles used by the author to establish organizations and manage teams. The collection originated from various workshops on sales, success, and personal growth. The overall theme encourages a new understanding of success. There are no hard and fast rules to guarantee success. There are “notions”—concepts or ideas, not rules. Personal success is discovered when you apply your own combination of ideas.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Publishdrive
• Release date: Aug 12, 2023
• ISBN: 9798891848382

Book preview

Preface

The desire for success is a a fire burning in every soul.

I want my children to enter adulthood prepared.

I want my education to have purpose and meaning.

I want my career to reflect my skills and talents.

I want my recreation time give me pleasure and satisfaction.

I want my life to have been something worth living.

That want is a force of will. It can be good or evil. Whatever success means to you, it is driven by your values. What you value the most will determine the outcome.

Affirming Success is not a textbook. It is not a course of study. It is a collection of notions. Notions are concepts or ideas, not rules. This book is a gathering of success principles. They were discovered through personal application. They are presented through anecdotes, illustrations, and challenges that reflect learning by trial and error.

Affirming Success is by no means a how-to book. It is not a step-by-step guide to personal growth. I certainly do not claim to have definitive answers on this topic! I do claim, however, that the secrets are contained in Scripture.

The content of this book was not overtly Christian when first published as 56 Notions of Success. It was, however, layered with spiritual principles. In this reprinting, I have divided the four parts with reference to the Bible verse that inspired its division (Joshua 1:8):

Part 1: Observe to Do

Part 2: All that Is Written

Part 3: Make Your Way Prosperous

Part 4: Have Good Success

Affirming Success derives it title from lesson 1. In the opening lesson, you are introduced to the idea of affirmations. Affirmations are not necessarily Christian. Christians, however, memorize and quote scriptures as an equivalent. Non-christians use affirmations for self-empowerment.

Christianity is not concerned with self-realization: it is concerned about relationship with Christ. Christ is the source of power, but power is not the goal. Relationship with Christ is the goal. Power for success, either way, is obtained by aid of affirmations or its equivalent.

Christianity would further clarify the concept of divinity within (lesson 24) as something with limitations. It teaches inner power is the Holy Spirit given those who accept Jesus Christ as their personal Savior.

Affirming Success recognizes a practical wisdom. It is a type of thinking learned through practice. It is most powerful in relationship with God. However, lesson 2 limits the language to a higher power. The remaining lessons also share inclusive principles not limited to Christianity. It is written for a wider audience drawing upon principles shared by the wider Western Church with Eastern Spirituality.

Affirming Success originally targeted people new to sales. Sales is an unique industry universally despised yet equally required for nations to operate their economies. The content is intended to inspire people entering that age old profession knowing it has universal application across all walks in life.

The theme of this book is best described by the late Zig Ziglar’s definition of success:

Success means doing the best we can with what we have. Success is the doing, not the getting; in the trying, not the triumph. Success is a personal standard, reaching for the highest that is in us, becoming all that we can be.

Part 1

Observing to Do

1

Words Create What Thought Imagines

Act is the blossom of thought, and joy and suffering are its fruits (James Allen)

I

t is a privilege to empower persons from different cultures. At the time of this writing, I am contracted as a Corporate Trainer to a major Insurance Corporation. It is wonderful to empower persons from all backgrounds, equipping them with tools for success.

Being based in Auckland, New Zealand, it is rich in culture. One out of every three persons living in Auckland was born outside of New Zealand! It is also home to the largest population of Polynesians in the world. Every week I have new persons from different parts of the world united before me. They all want to be successful.

English is a second language for many of these aspiring business owners. This fact alone challenges me to be ever learning as to how best communicate success principles. My favorite way to get their attention is by using the following statement:

This is where Christians and Witches agree!

Polynesians in particular are embedded with a culture of Christianity. The statement arrests their attention—and even more so the attention of the many Christian ministers sitting in my workshops.

I love it!

The context of my statement is introducing the concept of magic numbers.

Sales is a numbers game. You work out how many prospects you contacted; calculate the ratio of presentations given; and then count how many closes you made. Learn those three numbers and then put pressure on the system. It takes the pressure off your prospects and yourself.

Where I am currently contracted, the magic numbers are 30-20-10. 30 appointments each week produce 20 presentations of the products. 10 of the 20 presentations average out to be sales. Those three numbers work like magic.

I appreciate Disney and Harry Potter might have tainted our idea of magic. We expect to wave a wand to receive instant results. True magic, however, promotes belief and intent as key to results. Your intentions are of utmost importance! And, of course, whether or not you believe there is a power within you or beyond you to produce the results. That is why I say Witches and Christians agree: both accept faith and heart attitude are required to move mountains.

There is a mutual understanding that created results begin in the mind.

Christians teach God desired to create the worlds and thus spoke them into existence. Creation, by their teaching, is a direct result of spoken words that were first conceived as the Creator’s intent.

The first notion of success begins inside of you. What is it you want to create? What is your idea of success? How will you define success? What is the project you wish to complete? You are already thinking about what you want to create. Your intention is to do it. Now believe you can!

This is why daily affirmations are so important. Every day you should audibly affirm something positive about yourself, your intent, and your belief. Christians do this by memorizing texts from their bible. Affirmations are encouraged by Jesus where he taught:

Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Mark 11:23

This eternal mother principle of fertility, beauty, happiness and productiveness begins inside your heart. It proceeds from your heart out through your mouth. It leaves your mouth and becomes a reality. It works like magic!

Each notion of success you read ends with a related affirmation. You are encouraged to adapt them for yourself. Every morning state them audibly. You’ll be amazed what it does for you inside and out. Ornament 12 Ornament 12

Affirmation: I am abundant with unconscious power.

2

Tap into Higher Powers

He who thinks half-heartedly will not believe in God; but he who really thinks has to believe in God (Isaac Newton)

T

his notion is not new. It definitely is not original—and it still must be emphasized.

You are inspired about certain ideas, projects, goals, and opportunities. You daily remind yourself of your dreams and aspirations. You want to bring to life those things alive in your heart and mind. You are conscious of these inner desires.

Success follows those who acknowledge personal limitations. That is why it is so important to embrace this notion: success is found when tapping into a Higher Power.

I appreciate you may not believe in God as a Person. In the least, consider there is a Power greater than your Self. Recognize even Nature has powers beyond you. The strength of a cyclone and power of a king tide ought to create awe. To create what you imagine, depend upon the support of Higher Powers.

Business has come to embrace two key concepts related to personal growth and indirectly related to tapping into outside sources: synergy and interdependence.

Synergy is the interaction of elements that when combined produce a total effect that is great than the sum of the individual elements. In other words, 1+1=3 or even 4,5, or 6.

This phenomenon is recognized in biochemistry and pharmacology. They have learned that two different drugs which have a particular effect on an individual can be enhanced once combined. So the result is greater than just one drug’s benefits put together with the other drug’s benefits. It is by combining the drugs that additional benefits are created.

Synergy comes from Greek language into English. Even back in 1827 the English term (synergy) meant combined activities of a group. Working together to create more than each person can on their own is why interdependence works in relationships.

Dependent relationships are not healthy unless you are a baby. It is understandable that a newborn must depend on its mother for nurturing and protection. As the child grows it reaches the stage of independence. The classic catch 22: I love the fact my baby is grown up; I enjoyed the time of dependence.

I am not suggesting you become dependent on a Higher Power; only to tap into that Power. When two adults have a dependent relationship, it is not normal. The same can be said about a dependent relationship on God. Relationships are about mutual respect and growth, not about one domineering over the other.

Many assume that successful relationships are when each respects the independence of each other. However, that is merely a stepping stone. True success in relationships comes when there is synergy. When your child becomes an adult, there are two adults living independently who draw strength from each other. It works the same in marriage. It works the same in business. And that is why it works when you tap into a Higher Power. There is synergy.

To accomplish all you dare, you must have the support of an outside Force. As a visionary, you learn to mediate between the worlds of your mind and the place you want to accomplish your goal. When you master this unseen tide through daily communication, you become a surrogate for others. Your business product becomes more than a means to obtain a profit: it becomes a manner for others to fill a need or desire.

As a father, mother, husband, wife, and/or business owner, you are a leader. It is important that you find a well to draw fresh water that is outside of your Self. For you to communicate strength, passion, and commitment; for you to guide others to something more than just profit; you must possess an insight and force with which to be reckoned. That force comes from tapping into a Higher Power. It comes from the act of praying. Tap into that Power and become a Godfather to many.

 Ornament 12 Ornament 12

Affirmation: I am a loving visionary leader.

3

Its Okay To Love Yourself

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection (Gautama Buddha)

B

eing reared inside of Fundamentalist Christian circles, I was taught it was evil to love yourself. For many years I obediently propagated this falsehood. Joy was taught as the acronym: J.O.Y. The acronym was made of three words: Jesus, Others, and You. The teaching is that in order