Dear Success Seeker,

Recently I participated in a great one-day event called Speed Coaching. The organizers brought in a group of highly qualified coaches including business coaches, life coaches, real estate coaches, etc. Guests paid a mere $35 to have a 20 minute private coaching session with three different coaches of their choice. It was fun and completely life changing for many of those who received coaching.

I personally coached eight self-employed entrepreneurs who wanted to accelerate their business results. They were very nice people. They were smart and clearly good at what they did. But I saw one consistent characteristic in them that was clearly blocking them from achieving their goals and dreams. It may be holding you back as well.

The obstacle? Plain and simple, they were being ordinary!

Don't get me wrong - there is nothing wrong with being ordinary. By definition most people are. Here is the problem. The goals these people had and the results they wanted to achieve were far beyond ordinary. They wanted to earn a six-figure income. They wanted to increase their business revenues significantly in a difficult economy. They wanted to be financially free. All of these things are totally achievable but not to people who are being ordinary.

There is only one way to achieve extraordinary results. You must be extraordinary! Very few people earn a 6-figure income. Those who do take actions that ordinary people don't. I have coached many people to achieve financial freedom however I can assure you that in most cases what they did to get there was not even close to ordinary! They were obsessed with their goal and pursued it persistently and single-mindedly.

I see this disconnect with almost every person who comes to me for coaching. They want and even believe they deserve extraordinary rewards. But they are acting ordinary. If I have learned one thing in 20 years of coaching it is that people who are being ordinary do not achieve extraordinary levels of success.

Here is the good news. Extraordinary results are totally available to anyone. You see, there is also no such thing as an extraordinary person. Those who get extraordinary results are just ordinary people doing extraordinary things. You can be extraordinary in any situation. It is a moment by moment choice. Being extraordinary is all about who you choose to be and what you choose to do in any given situation or time.

The standard of performance at which most people operate is so low that it does not take much to be extraordinary. I once had a coach named Dan Sullivan who said, "It only takes three things to be extraordinary in your business. 1) Show up on time; 2) Do what you say you will; and 3) say 'please' and 'thank you'." He's absolutely right. If you just do those three things it puts you head and shoulders above most people!

Here are three characteristics that people who achieve extraordinary levels of success all have in common:

1) Extraordinary people are masters of their chosen profession. They are passionate about what they do and seek to become expert. Their fascination with their area of expertise drives them to develop the crucial knowledge and skills that make them professionals instead of amateurs.

2) Extraordinary people dig deeper and work harder. In most cases ordinary people actually know what they need to do to achieve their goals; they just aren't willing to do it. Instead they follow the path of least resistance and become one of the masses. Years ago I was in a business partnership with multi-millionaire success guru T. Harv Eker. He used to say, "When you do what is hard, life becomes easy. And when you do what's easy, life very quickly becomes hard." You make thousands of decisions every day. Do you tend to do what is easy, fun and low risk in the moment and thus become ordinary? Or do you keep your end goal in mind and make decisions that advance you towards what is important to you?

3) Extraordinary people take action. Ordinary people have ideas, goals and dreams. But they also have a long list of reasons why they can't or won't take action. Many of their reasons are completely valid. However extraordinary people don't get stopped by reasons and excuses. They always find a way. They consistently get into action and do what it takes to achieve their goals.

I encourage you to observe yourself and notice where you are extraordinary; pat yourself on the back for that. More importantly, notice where you are being ordinary and ask yourself if those behaviours are helping you create the business and life you want. Tape a sign to your mirror or put up a screen saver that says, "Am I being ordinary or extraordinary in this situation?" Keep this question in the front of your mind and make decisions that lead you to the life you really want!

The choice is yours. Just remember, you will never achieve extraordinary results while being ordinary. Unfortunately it just doesn't work that way.

Your Coach,

Andrew Barber-Starkey, Master Certified Coach
Founder and President, ProCoach Success System


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