I know that at the beginning of 2008 I thought… “THIS was going to be the breakthrough year for me.” I’d done the hard yards over the previous few years and it was “my time”, 2008 was time for a breakthrough for me!

Was that your take on 2008 for you? I know it was for a lot of friends and family.

It turned out to be a tough year though- economically and emotionally it was a tough one… for a lot of people.

Here’s the thing though.

What are we going to do differently this year to actually make it different?

At a business ‘connect’ group that I’m a part of we have an equation, I’ll draw it for you.

Responsibility
—————————–
Lay Blame & Justify

This is what most people do – find a reason why things are the way they are and lay blame for that and then justify it.

If things are so tough then how come some people in business are doing fine?

You do know that don’t you? Not everyone is suffering; In fact, some people have positioned themselves well and are actually prospering as a result of these ‘bad’ times.

The short story version without being all soft and fluffy is because they took responsibility for their affairs and business and took some action and made it happen.

We really are masters of justification us humans. So many times we’ll find a reason for ‘why this happened’ or ‘why that didn’t happen’. We’re good at it, like I said, masters. By the same token there’s no use beating ourselves up about stuff. We just need to recognise it and be prepared to do something about it.

It’s like the definition of insanity – doing the same thing and yet expecting a different result. We all know this definition right? Thing is… most of us still get caught.

So what’s your take for 2009?

Are you going to operate on the definition of insanity model? Where do you stand with the

Responsibility
—————————–
Lay Blame & Justify

ABOVE the line? …or

BELOW the line?

You know what the ‘correct’ answer is right?

Obviously above the line because you know damn well it’s the only way that you will come even close to making 2009 the Year for YOU!

But what are you actually prepared to do to make it happen?

I just want to backtrack for a moment on the last few years for me.

In mid 2006 I’d sold a business that I’d built up over the previous 10 years and I did well out of that, I was a happy chap but it was time for a new quest, a new venture. I knew what I didn’t want to do in business but wasn’t 100% sure of exactly what I did want to do.

I spent 2006 and 2007 checking out a few different options, managed a few projects for people in different businesses and created a business marketing system. I started to see a few gaps in the market place.

There was a definite need for niche lead generation in certain industries.

So I started laying down the tracks as it were and I gotta be honest here, a couple of hundred thousand dollars later and a couple of years of some really long days and nights of hard slog, study and sharp lessons on direct response marketing and creating business building products and it all started to come together.

I’d found my niche. Lead generation that would work in pretty well any business. But I knew the power was in specialising to a specific industry or niche. A niche within a niche as it were.

The second revelation for me was that in my previous business I could very well have created this niche within a niche and achieved a new business which was my original goal.

The moral of the story is like the story of the diamonds in the field. Don’t go looking too far from home before you change what you do. Maybe you just need to change how you go about your business rather than change the business too much.

That’s why the business owners and mortgage brokers we help are rapt. With all the changes that have gone on in 2008 most are feeling discouraged and totally frustrated, some are seriously pissed off even.

It’s time for a breakthrough and with direct response marketing and the right lead generation techniques there is no reason why you can’t take that command position in your area.

To find out how you can apply those same principles in your business right now so you get off to the best start ever This Year click here to find out more.

Don’t go insane and make sure YOU stay ABOVE the line for 2009!

With the right amount of focus, new knowledge and the right systems in place you can most certainly make 2009 YOUR YEAR!

What action will you take?