Tammy's Tips

Tip 51 is on Manifestation.  Some definitions of the word "manifest" from the Webster's New World College Dictionary are, "palpable, evident; to make clear, show plainly, reveal; to show itself." Sounds like magic, but it is as simple as this quote by Henry Ford, "Whether you think you can or can't you are right." I don't know about you, but I would much prefer to think I can all of the time.  I can create my own reality and I choose that reality to be one that revolves around the basic concept of "I can".

The first step in manifesting your dreams is to write them down. Once you commit your dreams to paper they become a real goal that you can now break down into steps necessary to achieving your dream. Remember this quote by Napoleon Hill, "Whatever your mind can conceive and can believe, it can achieve." What is it that you want to manifest in 2011. Even Pablo Picaso once said, "Everything you can imagine is real." Is it a new job, a new relationship, more income, or better health? Sit down and think of your dream situation and then commit it to paper.  Goals are really just dreams with a time line. Mark Victor Hansen said, "You control your future, your destiny. What you think about comes about. By recording your dreams and goals on paper, you set in motion the process of becoming the person you most want to be. Put your future in good hands - your own." If you really want to up the ante I recommend that you share your written dream with at least one person. I am a firm believer in the more people you tell the more chances for success. Another great thing about sharing your dreams is getting feedback from those that support you. Ignore the naysayers at all costs and fill your world with those who are there to offer positive feedback, suggestions, and key connections for helping you manifest your dreams.

Anything is possible. Wayne Dyer has said, "The power of intention is the power to manifest, to create, to live a life of unlimited abundance, and to attract into your life the right people at the right moments."  When I decided to go back to work I knew exactly the type of job I wanted. I decided I wanted to do marketing for a law firm, work from the house, work 25 hours a week, home by 3:00 so I could help my son with his homework, and work with a firm who had a stellar reputation. I knew exactly who to call, founding partner, Ronda Ellis, who was thrilled to have me on board. Not only did I get exactly what I wanted, I love what I am doing and love the people I work for at Ellis, Ged & Bodden, P.A. The power of intention is amazing if you truly believe that you are worthy to reap the rewards. This year I want to work on getting more paid speaking engagements, finalizing my divorce, and figure out a way to stay in my home. All things are possible if you believe them to be so. Carl Sandburg said, "Nothing happens but first a dream."

There will be obstacles in your path. There will be naysayers who tell you that you can't succeed, won't succeed, and the best one, you will never make any money doing that. Don't listen to those people. Most of them never believed they could reach their own dreams, so why should you be able to reach yours. James Allen said, "A man sooner or later discovers that he is the master-gardner of his soul, the director of his life." Don't let others rip away your dreams. If you are passionate about something, if it brings you great joy, then follow your true desires and miracles will happen. Watch out for past history playing a part in your future. You may have tried other things in the past that may not have worked out as you expected. Use those as learning experiences to succeed in the future, not as reasons to stop you from following a new dream. I love this quote by Eckhart Tolle,"The past has no power over the present moment."  Unless you try, one shall never know. It is better to try and fail that to never have tried at all.

I wish for you all that you wish for in 2011. 

Tip 49 is on Words of Encouragement.  This weeks tip starts and ends with a quote from Louisa May Alcott, a respected author who made a huge difference in my young life when I read Little Women.  When I speak to students one of the first things that I tell them as a key to their own success is to make sure that they are following their own dreams.  So often our own dreams are quashed by our parents, family and friends when we are told that what we are dreaming isn't realistic or will never earn us any income.  Webster's New World College Dictionary defines the word Encourage as "to give courage, hope or confidence to; to give support to; be favorable to; foster; help."  What a wonderful great thing it is to offer encouragement.  Christopher Reeves once said, "Once you choose hope, anything is possible."

I just returned from a visit with my family up north.  What a great Thanksgiving it was to spend time with my brothers and their beautiful and amazing children.  I am dedicating this Tip to my niece Ilana and my nephews Allen, Michael and Max.  I am so proud of those kids and I just loved to sit and listen to what they are dreaming for their future here on planet earth.  How great it is to even have a dream.  Imagine what life would be like if we didn't have any dreams for ourselves.  Theodore Roosevelt said, "Believe you can and you're halfway there." Most young adults thrive when they have a plan, a goal or a dream.  I have seen the lack of motivation in my own adult children when there is no plan and they have no dream.  It is really hard to get through the day unless there is something better that we can reach for.  Wherever it may take us and whatever it may be. This is a great quote by Henry David Thoreau, "If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours."

Tip 47 is on Multiple Streams of Income. Exactly what that means in today's society depends on what is is you are doing.  Many business people in this world are now realizing that how they earned their living in the past may not be able to support them moving forward.  It could be that you are currently getting divorced, your hours were cut back at work, or you were a realtor or mortgage broker and can no longer make the same kind of money you once made. It could even be that you just graduated from college and can't find a job in the field of your choice.  Whatever your reason many of us are now scrambling for multiple streams of income so that we can support ourselves and our families.  This anonymous quote says it all, "Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up.  It knows it must run faster than the fastest lion or it will be killed... every morning a lion wakes up.  It knows it must outrun the slowest gazelle or it will starve to death.  It doesn't matter whether you're a lion or a gazelle... when the sun comes up, you'd better be running."

The best example is always me - the queen of reinvention.  I've sold mens and boys clothing, beepers, sesame seeds, legal services, title services, speaking services and coaching services. One thing that carries through to every single opportunity is selling. I am always selling myself. The product is irrelevant.  So when the title business crashed in 2007 I closed my company and started a consulting firm to help train young attorneys how to build their book of business. I was so concerned that after 10 years in the title business it would be hard to start marketing myself as a trainer. The transition was easier than I thought. Everyone wanted to learn my secrets to success. From there came my own speaker platform and the beginning of TammySaltzman.com. When I got separated in January I decided to go back to work in a law firm so that I had steady income to help support my son. I was concerned about taking the job after marketing myself for 2 years as a speaker and trainer, but the transition went great and I love what I do.  I created my dream job working 25 hours a week and have a firm that supports me in growing my speaking career too.  Rich Devos once said, "The only thing that stands between a person and what they want from life is often the will to try it and the faith to believe it's possible." 

Many of the realtors I once knew from my title business have found themselves looking for new ways to earn income.  Some of them are now mortgage brokers in addition to realtors, some are working in the mall, some have started multi-level marketing opportunities while others have found full-time employment in completely different fields.  Does this mean they are no longer realtors?  Does this mean they are any less experienced as realtors?  I think not - to both questions.  They are looking for new opportunities and not just sitting around waiting for the market to recover.  I love this quote from Richard Branson, "Business opportunities are like buses, there's always another one coming."  (my grandmother used to say that about men!!) The statement is true - don't just sit around "waiting" for things to improve. Go out there and create new opportunities.

My daughter is another excellent example.  She just graduated from Florida State University with a degree in English and a minor in Education.  She dreams of being a High School English Teacher and eventually a High School Principal.  She graduated in August when most positions for teachers were already filled.  She signed up to be a substitute.  Took a part time job doing phone sales for a friend of mine and also got herself a job as a waitress here in town at a great restaurant that closes early and is always packed.  She just signed up to take her GRE with the goal of entering a local master's program.  She is one busy girl looking for opportunities every where she goes.  Wayne Dyer said, "There is no scarcity of opportunity to make a living at what you love; there's only scarcity of resolve to make it happen."  My daughter knows that she is not going to be a waitress for the rest of her life, but for now this is what she needs to do to make a living.  Needless to say, I am very proud of her.

Don't be afraid to broaden your horizons and take on something new.  You never know what the future will bring, who you may meet, or how much fun you can have trying something new.  It may take you a few tries to find a good fit, but if you trust your instincts and stay true to your own desires and passions you are sure to find opportunity where you least expect it. I wish you all good luck.  Remember this quote by Peter Drucker, "The entrepreneur always searches for change, responds to it, and exploits it as opportunity."

Tip 44 is on true confidence.  True confidence comes totally from within.  We all know our own true worth and it is up to each and every one of us to let our true selves shine through. Confidence is not something that someone else can give to you it is something you give to yourself.  More importantly, no one can take away your confidence no matter how hard they try. One of my favorite quotes by Eleanor Roosevelt is, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent."  There are several excellent psychotherapists that can help you realize your lack of self confidence, perhaps identify why there is a lack of self confidence, and even help you to discover your own personal value.  This takes acknowledgment, commitment, and lots of hard work.  But as they say, "practice makes perfect."

Spiritually, we are all children of G-d and perfect in our own ways.  There will always be someone who is smarter and someone who is not as smart.  There will always be someone who is better looking and someone who is not as good looking.  Regardless of where we fall we are each perfect in our own way.  We all make a difference as long as we make the effort to try. Henry Ford once said, "Whether you think you can or can't - you are right." I would rather be right about the fact that I am special and I can make a difference.

Peter T. Mcintyre once said, "Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong."  Going off to law school was a huge endeavor for me at 34 years old.  I wasn't really sure that I would get in and when I did I was thrilled.  I will always remember the first grade that I got back in Legal Writing, it was a D.  I was convinced that D's were for dummys and I was no dummy.  I went to the professor's office after class that day and explained to her that I needed to learn what it would take to write an A paper.  I knew that she couldn't give me an A on the actual paper, but I wanted to re-write that paper until I had learned what an A paper looked like.  Never did I realize that I would have to write that paper 5-6 times.

Many of my readers have sent me emails pointing out to me the typo's and grammatical errors in my Tips. Les Brown often says, "Other peoples opinions of you does not have to become your reality."   I make no excuses other than I speak much better than I write. Writing is not my strength, but I do not let it stop me from writing this BLOG called Tammy's Tips every single week.  44 weeks and going strong.  Thank you so much for sending me the corrections because when the first 52 Tips are completed I plan to put it into book form for readers to purchase.  You are saving my eventual editor a lot of work - so keep the corrections coming.  My Tips are like my weekly diary to my readers.  They are not written in advance they are usually written the night before.  While I could prepare them way in advance and certainly have someone edit them I don't.  The value in the Tips is not in the proper grammar but in the meaning of the message. Bruce Bartone said, "Nothing splendid has ever been achieved except by those who dared believe that something inside of them was superior to circumstance."  Just to clarify, the message is what counts to me.  The message is superior to the proper grammar.

If I were to allow a few grammatical errors to stop me from sending these messages, my loyal readers would be very disappointed and the book I plan on putting together eventually would never come to fruition. I am willing to take a leap of faith and ask all of you to forgive my slight errors in grammar that I make from time to time and try to get past it and look for the message in the Tips.  Enjoy and have a great weak.  (lol)  week.