6 Keys to Unleash Your Inspired and Unstoppable Life

 Life is a choice.

Your choices each day determine what outcomes happen in your life. It is by choice, not by chance, that will determine your life. An Unstoppable Life begins by taking responsibility for your choices.

• Choose to believe in yourself
• Choose to live on purpose
• Choose to live your values
• Choose to live your faith
• Choose to live with courage and confidence
• Choose to create your outcomes
• Choose to live with integrity

You are accountable for how you make your choices in life, how well you prepare yourself in life, how you persevere and persist against the odds, but moreover, you are accountable for your outlook or attitude about your life. You need to own your decisions, choices, and mistakes and be ready and willing to take the essential steps to learn from them. You must take accountability for your life or someone else will.

 LIFE MATRIX

               The Unstoppable Life Matrix describes four quadrants of living an Unstoppable Life. The vertical axis measures your personal insight and self-awareness. The horizontal axis measures the degree of personal mastery or self-control you have in your life.

Quadrant 1 (Low PI/Low PM) this is the Undefined Life quadrant and characterized by uncertainty and ambiguity. This is a person with low personal mastery coupled with a low degree of personal insight or awareness. This is a person living an uninspired, indecisive, and directionless life. This person lacks a personal vision for their life, has no established personal goals, and lacks a disciplined approach to living life.

Quadrant 2 (High PI/Low PM) this is the Uncontrolled Life quadrant and characterized by strong self-awareness and lack of self-control. This is a person with a high degree of personal insight and self-awareness but a low degree of self-control and personal mastery. This person understands who they are and understands their purpose in life but lacks the self-mastery to live an unstoppable life. They do not have a disciplined approach to life development, lack control of their life, and allow outside influences to control their outcomes.

Quadrant 3 (Low PI/High PM) this is the Unaware Life quadrant and characterized by strong self-control coupled with lack of personal insight or incomplete understanding of their full capability. This is a person with a high degree of self-control and personal mastery coupled with a low degree of personal insight or self-awareness. This person understands their capabilities and abilities but lacks a personal vision, purpose, and character development. They do not have a disciplined approach to self-discovery and reflection.

Quadrant 4 (High PI/High PM) this is the Unstoppable Life quadrant and characterized by a strong self-mastery and strong personal insight. This person has a disciplined approach to living life. Anything is possible when you choose to believe in yourself, your life’s purpose, and your talents, skills, and abilities. Your life purpose unleashes you to live your life and allows you to be unstoppable. Your greatest power in life is the liberty to choose. It is the liberty to choose what you want to do with your life, where you want to go, and what you want to become. No one can take this power away from you; it is yours alone. You can do what you want to do; you can be who you want to be. You can live an empowered life through your decisions and choices each day. Your choices determine your attitude and your altitude. When you follow a strong and empowering purpose, you will.

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THE 6 KEYS

  1.   FOCUSING

 

• Planning – To shape your unstoppable life you must know what you want to accomplish to make your dreams your reality. Therefore, the very first step in designing your unstoppable life is to plan it. You need a map and guide to your growth and development and planning that helps you chart the course of your life. You must be consciously committed to a disciplined approach to mastering yourself.
• Preparation – Ben Franklin said, “Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.” You must prepare yourself for the journey and prepare yourself for opportunities and challenges. You need to prepare yourself for opportunities and possibilities in life by preparing yourself before they show up in your life. Through training, education, development, and experiences, you prepare yourself for whatever life throws at you.
• Performance – You need to take action and perform to your utmost each day to live unstoppable. Your success in life is not by accident, but by design. You must strive each day to live your life and achieve your goals and dreams. Goals achieve nothing unless you take action. It must be an “all-in” approach to your life–100% of your heart, mind, body, and soul. Nothing else will do in order to achieve your unstoppable life. It is your life…Own it!
• Passion – This is the core power that you have in your life. You must have passion or “fire in your belly” to live unstoppable. Passion is the spark that ignites you each day to live your life to its fullest and on purpose. It is the lynchpin of an inspired and unstoppable life.
• Persistence – You must constantly press forward in life no matter the struggle. You stand in the face of adversity and choose to weather the storm. Persistence is your willingness to keep your eye on the prize and keep moving forward on your journey. Persistence is critical in forging your unstoppable life.
• Perseverance – You must never quit on yourself or your dreams. You must never give in on achieving your dreams. You must never give up on creating the life you want to live. Perseverance is the lodestar of an unstoppable life.

 

2. DISCOVERING

The FORGE Discovery Process

              Everything starts with you. You are the one that brings your dreams to creation. You are the founder of the past, present, and future you. You possess the unstoppable power to create a positive and amazing life. There is virtually no limit of who you can become and what you can do with an unstoppable belief in yourself.

With an unstoppable belief in yourself and your abilities, you can dream bigger dreams, set greater goals and action plans, and commit yourself to achieving your vision and purpose in life. The truth is that, if you develop an unstoppable life, your whole world will be different. Your life gets better when you change your life to live an unstoppable life. The FORGE Discovery Process allows you to define the outcomes that you choose to bring to reality in your life. The process begins with six defining questions that you need to answer before you can start authoring your unstoppable life.

By answering these six questions you can make a positive and amazing difference in your life. The FORGE Discovery Process guides you to start authoring your unstoppable life and achieving your life’s goals. It also helps you define your purpose, your vision, and your life. When you understand your past and your present life then you can define the outcomes of your future.

Without a clear understanding of your life, you will continue to remain in the same state of being as you are today. Without changing the outcomes of your life, you will continue to get the same results and never achieve your unstoppable life. When you change your outcomes, you will change your circumstances in life.

The FORGE Discovery Process is about the choices you need to make in your life. It is about being proactive, taking charge, and leading your life. The FORGE Discovery Process is about making the choices each day to determine your destiny and future life.

 3. FORGING

The F(X) Forge Process

 The F(X) Forge Process is a detailed and proactive way of thinking about your life and its direction. It is focused on your end-state goals and the effects that are required to achieve your desired outcome and to produce a masterpiece of your life.

The outside area contains the three phases of the Forge Process. The first phase is SHAPE YOUR LIFE and is the planning and preparation phase of your life. This phase is about knowing who you are, what you are capable of doing, and what actions you need to do to shape your unstoppable life.

The second phase is LIVE YOUR LIFE and is the passion and performance phase of your life. This phase is about the passion, enthusiasm, and energy you have in life and how well you are living your unstoppable life. This is the execution phase of your life plan and you begin to move from the “as-is” to the “to-be” you.

The third phase is FORGE YOUR LIFE and is the persistence and perseverance phase of your life. This phase is about reevaluating your growth and development life strategy, incorporating new growth in your life, and pressing forward in living your unstoppable life.

Finally, in the very center or core of the model lies the Eight Disciplines of Self-Development. Each discipline adds value to your life and allows you to mold and shape.

 4. CHARACTER

    Character is the single most important factor in living an Unstoppable Life. Your character is a set of values and beliefs that you live by and define who you are to others. It defines your unstoppable life and profoundly shapes how you engage with the world, how you form your opinions, what you support, what actions you choose to take, and what choices you make.

Nothing is more personal or important than your character. What this means simply is that, if you want to have an Unstoppable Life, you must continually strive to build your character. Your character is your greatest unstoppable effect in your life.

In Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Polonius is providing advice to Laertes, “And this above all, to thine own self be true. Then, it must follow as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.” You must be your true self and live a genuine and congruent life. To fulfill this statement your inner integrity must shine inside you in order for your integrity to radiate on the outside.

You cannot live two lives if you want to be unstoppable. Living one life is hard enough. When you put on different masks in order to please other people, you separate yourself from your true self, your values, beliefs, and worldview. You start living a lie. Your true life becomes distant and inauthentic. To thine own self be true.

Character authenticity is living on purpose, keeping true to your values and beliefs, and not compromising them at the altar of society. Your character is tested in the crucible of life and is forged through adversity. Your character is important for many reasons.

First, without a solid character foundation, the critical link of trust between leaders and followers will not exist. As an authentic leader, your personal integrity should be at the very center of your core.

The second value of integrity is your outward expression. You must be trustworthy for people to believe in you. Integrity is the trust factor in life. Integrity refines and defines your character each day. Authentic integrity allows your character to stand the test of time and challenges.

Character is the outward expression of your purpose, values, and beliefs. Your character is comprised of your beliefs, motives, values, desires, behaviors, and principles that drive and shape your actions as a leader.

Examine the areas of your life that are not congruent with your purpose. Look for evidence in your life that supports or contradicts your initial thoughts, assumptions, opinions, and beliefs of your life. Adjust your opinions as you reflect on your thoughts and when new information changes your opinion.

Don’t settle for good enough, achieve your very best, achieve your greatest life.

• Refuse to compromise your character
• Refuse to compromise your values
• Refuse to compromise your beliefs
• Refuse to wear a mask to be accepted
• Live your life with integrity
• Live congruent to your values and beliefs
• Live your life honestly and truthfully
• Live your life with courage and trustworthiness

5. DECISIONS

     You make decisions in your life each day. Even if you abdicate your decision to someone else, you still have made a decision. You can choose to be proactive and take control of your decisions or you can react to them like a victim of circumstance. Your decisions are the single most important factor that drives your unstoppable life. Your decisions are the A.I.R. (Action, Impact, and Result) or the breath of life you take each day to live. Each decision is made from your action, the impact of the action, and the results of that action.

 

You are responsible and accountable for your decisions. No one is responsible for the consequences of that decision, only you. Each time you make a decision you need to make sure the outcome and result is what you want. If your daily decisions are in alignment with your values, beliefs, and worldview, then you are moving forward in your dreams, aspirations, and goals achievement.

  

Your choices determine who and what you are and can become. C.S Lewis, English professor and author of The Chronicles of Narnia, stated,

“Every time you make a choice, you are turning the central part you – the part that chooses – into something a little different than what it was before. Taking your life as a whole, with innumerable choices, you are slowly turning this thing into a heavenly creature or a hellish creature.”

Each morning ask yourself this questions before you begin your day: How will I live my life today? How will I use today to live out my purpose? What life decisions will I make today? How will those decisions impact my future? What effects do I need to put into my life today to live an Unstoppable Life?

Why should you ask these questions? You need to understand what you are going to do so you design your life versus allowing it to happen. Abraham Lincoln said;

“There are no accidents in my philosophy. Every effect must have its cause. The past is the cause of the present, and the present will be the cause of the future. All these are links in the endless chain stretching from the finite to the infinite.”

 

 Lincoln understood the Law of Cause and Effect. If you want to live an Unstoppable Life you must understand the Law of Cause and Effect and then create the effects you want in your life to produce the outcomes you desire. By creating the effects, you start to remove the ambiguity and uncertainty in your life. Ultimately, you are responsible and accountable for your success in life.

Take minute and visualize yourself standing beside a still lake surrounded by aspen and pine trees. The air is crisp and clean and a slight wind rustles through the trees. You bend down, pick up a smooth small stone, and throw it into the lake. The first thing you notice when the rock hits the is the impact of the stone on the lake’s still surface and the immediate effects that it creates.

•  The first order of effect will be the splash the stone creates.
• The second order of effect is the ripples the splash creates.
• The third order of effect is the stone landing on the bottom of the lake.
• The fourth order of effect is the reverse ripples created as the second order ripples hit the shoreline.
• An indirect effect occurs when your decision creates a direct effect that produces additional ripple effects. An indirect effect of your decision to throw the rock is a flock of birds fly out of the trees after hearing the splash of the rock.

That simple decision to throw a rock into the lake created direct and indirect effects that changed the kinetic energy of the lake. Each of your decisions has that same kinetic effect on your life, the people around you, and your desired decision outcomes. Your decisions will usually have both direct and indirect effects and 2nd, 3rd, or 4th order of effects. When making your decision you need to understand the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th order of effects that your decision will have on your life.

 “All of us are living with the decisions we made yesterday, last year, and years gone by. The choices we make determine who we are, what we are, and where we are today. All decisions have consequence.”  Thomas Narofsky

 6. DEVELOPMENT

Triad of Transformational Growth

Continuous Development

              The first way you improve your C4 is through Continuous Development or CD. You must continually develop your eight disciplines of development to stay on the leading edge and moving forward in life. This type of development hones your life competencies and builds resiliency into your life.

Continuous Growth

The second way is through Continuous Growth or CG. Coupled with your continuous development of your internal and external capabilities and abilities is the continuous growth process. Growth is your self-discipline and self-commitment to apply and incorporate the lessons learned during your development to your character and leadership abilities. Without growth, you will never become the leader you want to be or need to be.

Continuously Reinventing Yourself

Finally, the last part of the model is CR, which stands for Continuously Reinventing Yourself. As you grow and develop your character, competence, leadership abilities, and your capabilities, you will continually reinvent or rebrand who you are and what you are capable of accomplishing. Everything in your personal change management (Continuously Reinventing Yourself) is driven by a change in your vision, values, mission, experiences, and the need for you to align your goals and effects to achieve your desired outcomes. A good way to remember this: as you grow and develop, you are expanding your mind and changing your life.

 Eight Disciplines of Personal Development

                   Every year you need to develop a personal development plan in the Eight Disciplines of Personal Development. These areas of development help you grow and develop holistically and congruently.

 Personal

                  The Personal Discipline is the C4 of your life. This area has been developing since you were born and never truly stops growing and developing. However, it can become stagnate if you stay in your comfort zone. This discipline is the most important to develop and grow because it is the foundation of your professional and leadership discipline areas.

The Personal Discipline is You the Person. This discipline is focused on who you are—your purpose, values, character, and worldview. This discipline is also focused on how you communicate, show respect, extend dignity; build relationships, live with integrity and trust, and how resilient you are in your life.

Professional

The Professional Discipline is about your career and professional life. It does not define you as a person but it is the area of your learned expertise. It is a vital part of your life as it helps you meet areas in Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs Model.

The Professional Discipline is concerned with you, your career, and the skills needed to succeed. This discipline focuses on your experience, technical skills, management skills, talents, and aptitudes. This discipline also focuses on the necessary education, training, and development you need to keep you competent in your expertise.

 Leadership

The Leadership Discipline is about you as a leader and your leadership ability and capability. You must continue to develop this area of expertise as you grow your professional expertise. This discipline is concerned with both your self-leadership and your team and organizational leadership.

This discipline focuses on your leadership skills, attitude, aptitude, leadership experience, and overall development. This discipline also focuses on your leadership opportunities, building alliances and partnerships, leadership authenticity, selfless service attitude, talent development, and culture creation.

 Spiritual

The Spiritual Discipline is about you as a spiritual person. This discipline is concerned with your faith, resiliency and your ability to believe in a higher purpose. This discipline focuses on you seeking and finding personal meaning and purpose for your life through soul-searching, prayer, and mediation. This discipline also focuses on strengthening your beliefs, principles, and values to sustain you as a person through self-awareness and self-discovery.

 Emotional

The Emotional Discipline is about you and your emotional intelligence. This discipline is concerned with your ability and understanding of how to manage your stress, emotions, and moods and will help you to be an effective person and leader. This discipline focuses on managing life’s challenges in a positive, optimistic way by demonstrating self-control, personal fortitude, and moral character. It is about harnessing the power of managing emotions.

 Physical

The Physical Discipline is about you and your health. This discipline is concerned with your physical wellness and wellbeing. This discipline focuses on improving your participation in regular physical activities, which improve cardiovascular strength and endurance, flexibility, and muscular strength. This discipline also focuses on your understanding of how your personal wellness and wellbeing effects your personal growth, development, and ability to function daily.

 Mental

The Mental Discipline is about your intellectual and mental health capacity. This discipline focuses on your intellectual growth, mental activities, and your creative and critical thinking. This discipline also focuses on healthy brain function as a major component of wellness and peak performance.

 Social

The Social Discipline is about your social awareness and social intelligence skills. This discipline focuses on the skills necessary to be accepted and happy socially. This discipline also focuses on developing and sustaining trustworthy, valued relationships and friendships.

Many of us make choices without a clear understanding of the kinetic impact the 2nd, 3rd, or 4th order of effects of that decision will have on our futures. You need to identify and evaluate the information and then use the information to make a decision, take action, and critically analyze the outcome

LIVE YOUR INSPIRED AND UNSTOPPABLE LIFE EACH DAY!