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October 2018

Aaron Sansoni - Gratitude Header

How Gratitude Can Change Your Business Mindset
560 315 Aaron Sansoni

Let’s take a few minutes to talk about gratitude. We’re all familiar with the concept. Some of us practice it regularly. The question, however, is whether or not we practice it correctly.

If I asked you to create a gratitude list right now, what would be on it? I’d guess your family. Friends. Shelter. Job. But when you’re an entrepreneur you need to take it one step further than that. How many of you are thankful you woke up this morning? How many of you are grateful that you are capable of reading this article? What about the fact that you have an amazing opportunity to change your own situation?

One of the biggest things I am grateful for as an entrepreneur is the chance to pursue opportunities on my own terms. Even if I fail, I will forever be thankful that I failed my way. I didn’t have to lose on someone else’s terms. I’d take that opportunity over the alternative each and every day, so I try to remember that gratitude as I continue to pursue success, because, when you get right down to it, gratitude is all about perspective. As entrepreneurs, it is important to think about gratitude not only in terms of what we have and what we’ve achieved, but also in terms of what we could do.

There’s a common misconception among the general public that to be successful is to be a bad person. Somewhere along the way, making a lot of money became synonymous with being evil. I’m here to tell you that this is an extremely inaccurate generalization. You can make money and be a good person. Take a second to think about those things you are grateful for. Take a few more seconds to think about how you might be able to provide those things to someone else.

Let me demonstrate my point with a personal story. Through my nonprofit group, The Aaron Sansoni Foundation, we were able to donate 50,000 meals to hungry citizens of Australia. 50,000 is no small number. That’s a lot of food and a lot of food requires a lot of money. I am grateful that I chose to pursue and achieve goals that allow me to contribute to such a worthwhile cause. And make no mistake — it was my choice and I made it on my terms, and for that I am thankful.

Looking at your gratitude list has the potential to make you feel a bit more alive. It can change the way you think about your problems or the way you choose to approach life as it comes at you. If you begin each day thinking about all of the things you are grateful for, and all of the things you have the opportunity to be grateful for in the future, would that not impact your decision-making process?

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Aaron Sansoni - Live By Design and Not Default

Live By Design. Not Default.
560 315 Aaron Sansoni

I spend a lot of time discussing business tactics and leadership skills, but it all means nothing if my audience hasn’t made the conscious decision to show up, pay attention, and accept the fact that this could be the life-changing catalyst they’ve been waiting for. If there’s one thing that I want people to take away from my seminars and classes it’s that there are two ways to go about life: default and design.

When you live by default, you aren’t actually living at all. You’re merely going through the motions. People that live by default wake up every single day and let life happen to them. They do whatever it is they do because they have to, or because that’s the way they’ve always done it. Most don’t actively recognize what is going on. They just react and, one day, they will wake up from a life on autopilot and it’ll be too late to go back and change things.

Conversely, when you live by design, you are taking an active role in your life. You meet mornings with important questions like “What do I want to accomplish today?” and “How do I want to be as a leader/employee/parent?” They choose to prioritize their actions, placing significance on the ones that better align with who they want to be.

To achieve your goals and reach an entirely new level of happiness, you must live by design and not default.

Now, let’s go one step further and relate the concepts of design and default back to your business. If you’re looking at a graph of company profitability, it should not look like a roller coaster at an amusement park. There should be no major ebbs and flows. There may be fluctuations, but they should appear minor in comparison to the scope of your graph. To put it simply, you should not make $100,000.00 one month and $0.00 the next. That is the result of default— reacting to individual situations as they come without any concept of your goals or processes. Business is happening to you. You’re not happening to the business.

When you approach your business by design, you have the capability to troubleshoot key areas contributing to the major fluctuations in profitability. You can step back and analyze your funnel, determine the area with the biggest bleed, and begin the process of correcting it. Clearly define what you’d like to accomplish in relation to that sales funnel, and then act in a way that is conducive to accomplishing that task. Once you’ve succeeded, you’ll be able to re-evaluate your process and set out to improve the second biggest bleed. With time and concentrated effort, you should be able to decrease those ebbs and flows and you’ll have done it by design, not default.

I’ll leave you with one last thought about design and default. I know it is sometimes difficult to think or behave a certain way when our brains are biologically programmed to resist. They are meant to be a survival mechanism and, when you get down to it, surviving is not the same as thriving. We need to trick or trigger the brain to agree with our goals. The best way to do this is by leading with your body.

If you don’t want to get out of bed, do pushups. If you are having trouble paying attention to a lecture, lean forward in your seat and make eye contact with the speaker. Your body will understand your intent and communicate the message to your brain.  Lead with your body and your mind will follow. The same holds true with design and default. Live by design and you’ll be amazed and what follows.

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Aaron Sansoni - Profit Purpose Passion Blog Header

Profit. Purpose. Passion
560 315 Aaron Sansoni

The world is full of people working jobs that they neither like nor consider valuable. They work them because they feel that they need to, or that they are stuck in a field chosen when they were young. Sadly, many of these people feel no connection or sense of enjoyment at work— almost as if they are living a lie. It is my goal to help them find their truth.

In order to live your truth, you need to understand three basic concepts: profit, purpose, and passion. Each of these items is important is important in its own right, but together they create a unified sense of mastery over your profession. 

Defining profit, purpose, and passion.

Profit – This is term is relatively self-explanatory. It’s what makes you money. If something is bringing in cash or supporting you financially, then it’s profitable.

Purpose – The term purpose has several different meanings in everyday life but, in this case, it refers to what you are good at. If you are naturally good at something, if you feel like you were born to do it because you’re that good at it, then that is your purpose.

Passion – Your passion is what you love. It is the the thing that makes you happy. I don’t mean your children or your husband. Your passion is something that you do that brings you joy.

Practical Applications

Now, a lot of people get by in life by choosing one or combining two of these things and calling it a day. Those people aren’t living their truth. They are merely surviving. Here’s why.

  • If you are good at what you do and you make money doing it, but it isn’t what you love, then you’re bored. If you combine purpose and profit but not passion, you get boredom.
  • If you are good at what you do and you absolutely love doing it, but it doesn’t make you any money, then you’re broke. You cannot sustain yourself on purpose and passion alone.
  • If you make money doing what you love, but you aren’t necessarily good at it, then doing that thing becomes more difficult. You might start to feel like you’re missing out on your greater purpose

It is only when we can combine passion and purpose and profit that we are able to realize our truth. When all three of these concepts align in your day, in your life, or in your business, you will be happier than you have ever been. You will be living your truth!

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