Aha Moments That Changed My Life, Part 1

Life’s daily events shift from day to day, changes evolve and challenges occur, all serving a higher purpose.  Being open and learning the lessons in every situation is necessary for growth, ultimately to make it better going forward. My methodology has been to practice personal growth each and every day. We can grow immeasurably by learning from people around the world. Over the years I have learned from numerous motivational and inspirational speakers. Motivational and inspirational quotes are one of the most frequently ‘ReTweet’ tweets because so many people are looking for inspiration. 

As Zig Ziglar states, “People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing, that's why we recommend it daily”. 

Motivational speaker Jim Rohn notably said “Be so busy giving recognition that you don’t need it.” I have learned over time to replace the word, ‘recognition’ with anything else, whether it is love or respect, etc.

One huge lesson I learned was to put the needs of others first. When you love the other person first, recognize and validate them first, you will be absolutely amazed at how much will come back to you. For me, it was even more than what I ever expected. That is the ‘Golden Key’ to ‘Give First’, and love them the way they want to loved. Then you will wind up getting back all that you wanted and more. 

As an entrepreneur, a past lesson and challenge left a strong impression. It was during a period of time when I was doing massage work for people with disabilities. I loved the work because I was making such a striking impact, an influence on people’s lives. I was in people’s home, connecting with their families, helping people with disabilities. In addition to having a great client list that generated some revenue; more importantly, I received tremendous emotional support and gratification within that time period. In 2008, the Florida Legislators determined that massage for individuals with disabilities was not medically necessary and eliminated the program. So, 95% of my income and emotional support disappeared. I became frozen and crawled on the couch for months. 

In June 2008, I met Dave Lakhani at a Bob Burg event and he mentioned that I have to get on Twitter. So, I got on Twitter and I started out selfishly sharing motivational quotes to lift myself up and to get out of the mental state I was in. In sharing those quotes, I became the 1 in 5 people Jim Rohn referred to … “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with, including yourself.”

People started resonating with me, with my messages. They began responding and engaging with me. To expand further, I was able to coach. I had been a coach since 1999, but really wasn’t fully committed to it. Losing that massage position, going through that funk, turning to Twitter really showed me that my gifts and talents laid within communicating, building relationships, motivating myself so I could motivate other people. Sometimes what appears as a monumental change or massive challenge truly is a positive shift to an awakening. It was one of the many ‘AHA’ moments in my life. That shift brought my gifts to the surface . . . what I feel my calling was, what I was meant to do here.

My goal is to give value. Every day I get messages on how my quotes have impacted someone’s life or shifted their day. I have a social responsibility for the greater good because people resonate with these messages. At one point I got a note from a young lady who was contemplating suicide. She had a very debilitating disease due to the pain on several levels, and was contemplating ending her life. One of my affirmations that I set up in a program that auto schedules my tweets was delivered on the day she was contemplating suicide. With this program, I do not know when a specific message will be going out. It goes out randomly. That tweet showed up to her at that time she needed it the most and shifted her focus. She made a decision to work with people with the same disability, to make all of their lives better. 

This is part of what I teach in my Twitter trainings: to have that influence, to put something out there for the greater good that is not all about promoting yourself, but can enhance the lives of other people.

You never know how impactful your message will be. Stories like that just humble me and make me more committed to making sure those motivational messages get out every day. It is even more important to people then for people to see my Twitter classes or coaching programs.

What was your ‘AHA’ moment today?

If you would like to connect with Gary, or to learn more about his programs, drop him an email: Gary@garyloper.com