The BOWA Blog

Your Why

by Bert Oliva

Why are you doing what you are doing? What is your motivation? I want you to take a few minutes and truly think about these questions. What is the primary reason you are working as hard as you are?

If the answer is anything but you, it is time to rethink your purpose and your choices. The only way that you will achieve true success, true contentment, and true satisfaction with anything that you do is that you are doing it for you.

Even if you are working on a task that on the surface appears to be for another, say for instance, helping your child with their homework, there should always be an underlying reason that goes back to you. The reason you are helping your child is of course so that they can do well in school, yet your true motivation is that helping your child succeed makes you feel good and successful as a parent. You should be the “why” for every single task that you work on.

If you can tap into your “why” for everything that you do, you will find extra power within you to achieve even more. You will push harder, work more diligently, and even do more. This is because you have your purpose—the reason that these tasks directly affect you—in your mind’s eye. You are focused on your why.

You are the most important person in your life. Start treating yourself as such. Find your why and you will fly. That may sound cheesy, but it is one of the most important lessons you can ever learn.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Let’s Grind

by Bert Oliva

Are you part of the “daily grind”? Do you dread going to work and tackling your to-do list?

Today I challenge you to change your view of the word “grind.” Instead of thinking of it as a monotonous routine that you “have” to do start thinking of it as being at your peak. Get your grind on. That is, get yourself in your peak state and push yourself to accomplish your goals to the best of your abilities.

Do not simply “grind” once in awhile. That habit will cause your productivity and success to literally grind to a screeching halt (pun intended). Instead, grind all of the time. Work at a rhythm within yourself that will enable you to achieve your best at all times in your life.

Remember, the more you grind, the more success you will have. So, what are you waiting for? Go get your grind on!

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

I’ve Fallen

by Bert Oliva

“Help, I’ve fallen and I can’t get up.” Depending on your age, you may remember that tagline from an old commercial about a product to help the elderly. However, how often do we find ourselves thinking a very similar thought in our daily lives? How often do you fail or “fall down” and feel helpless?

It is not how many times you fall that matters, but rather how often you get back up and get back at it. Many people will quit after the first, second, or third time they fall. However, you must keep moving. In order to tap into the greatness within you, you must stand up again.

Les Brown says, “If you fall down, make sure you land on your back, because if you can look up, you can get up.” This statement is so very true. The only way that we each learn is through our trials and failings, yet the only true failure is when we quit.

Do not live your life in “would have’s, could have’s, and should have’s.” Live your life in “I did, I failed, I got up, and I did it again until I conquered.”

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Accountability

by Bert Oliva

I recently read a book that stated there is one quality that all successful people share: they do not blame, justify, or complain. These three qualities are excuses and ways to let ourselves off the hook for things that have occurred in our lives. No matter what has happened, no matter what outside circumstances that have occurred that may have caused a ripple in your life, you and only you are responsible for every single aspect of your life.

What is the one thing that truly differentiates successful people from unsuccessful ones? They set goals and accomplish them.

If you think about this for a moment, you will see that this quality of achieving one’s goals is truly the only characteristic that sets successful people apart from others. Any other characteristic you can think of stems from this one important quality.

So, how do you become one of these people who accomplishes what they set their minds to? Simple—you start telling everyone around you what our goals are and what you will achieve. This simple act of being vocal about your goals will greatly improve your accomplishment rate almost instantly. Why? One word: accountability.

By telling people what your goals are, you have made a silent commitment to them that you will achieve your goals. And, because we as humans do not like to lose face, we will work at least twice as hard on those commitments than we would others we haven’t told anyone about because we do not want to look foolish to our peers. Being vocal about our goals is a great way to use peer pressure in a positive way.

Moreover, by telling others about what you want to achieve, you are also creating a group of “accountability partners” who will point out to you when you are not sticking to your plans and help you get back on track.

So, it’s time to be successful and tell the world what you are going to achieve. Leave me a comment below and tell me your goals this week.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Is This It?

by Bert Oliva

Do you ever find yourself asking, “Is this it? I’ve worked so hard and this is all I have?” It’s human nature to ask ourselves these questions once in awhile, but whenever we find ourselves asking these questions, it is time to change something.

Oftentimes the question of “Is this it?” stems from a disappointment mindset. One of “I’ve worked so hard, sacrificed so much, and this is all I have to show for it?” This mindset will only set you up for more disappointment. By focusing on the lack in your life you will only attract more lack. Instead, start focusing on what you do have in your life and you will attract more into your life.

Stop asking “Is this it?” and ask “What’s next?” Remember, this moment you are in is the beginning of the rest of your life, so stop acting like it is over. Start your life right now by asking yourself positive questions that will motivate you to achieve the life you are capable of.

What’s one positive question you can start asking yourself daily to get yourself closer to your goals? Leave a comment below.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

Life of Entitlement

by Bert Oliva

Entitlement is almost a buzzword nowadays. Millennials tend to be known as the entitlement generation—the “what’s in it for me?” group. However, entitlement is everywhere and if you really take a close look within yourself and at your life, I can almost guarantee that you have been touched by entitlement in some way, shape, or form.

Entitlement stems from the confusion of wants and needs. Our basic human needs are those of food, shelter, water, love, etc. Our wants are things like a bigger house, a better cell phone, a nicer car, etc. In our society of wanton consumerism, we are being told from every ad, TV show, and song that we deserve everything. That we can go into debt for that nicer car though we can’t afford it because we have “earned” it. By allowing ourselves and those around us to get everything we want without actually doing the hard work to get there, we are robbing ourselves of building the skillsets necessary to be successful in life: work ethics, responsibility, accountability, discipline, and patience.

When we constantly reward ourselves before we deserve it, we do not appreciate the reward like we do when we have truly earned it. Think about a time when you have scrimped and saved to buy something that you have truly desired—where you have waited months or even longer before you could get it. When you got it, it was probably something that you prized for a very long time and may still. Now, think about something you got yourself when you really shouldn’t have—we all have done it at some point—that new watch or piece of jewelry, the video game, etc., something you bought on a whim. How long did you prize that item before you lost interest in it? Probably a lot less than the first item. This is because by rewarding ourselves before we have earned it, we are conditioning our minds to think everything should come easily to us and we stop being willing to work for what we want. Then of course we always want more and the vicious cycle continues until we are just utterly lazy and totally overcome by entitlement.

Stop the vicious cycle now. Stop rewarding yourself before you have earned it. Realize that the process for working towards things is partly the reward itself. You will be rewarded with the skills you need to be utterly successful. All on your own.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva

The Blame Game

by Bert Oliva

I recently read a book that stated there is one quality that all successful people share: they do not blame, justify, or complain. These three qualities are excuses and ways to let ourselves off the hook for things that have occurred in our lives. No matter what has happened, no matter what outside circumstances that have occurred that may have caused a ripple in your life, you and only you are responsible for every single aspect of your life.

Everything that is currently in or not in your life is a result of choices you have made or did not make. I know that this may seem like a harsh statement, but when you really begin to think about it and take it in, that statement also has immense power. It means that you can always choose again.

Not happy with your career choice? Choose a new one. Not happy with your weight? Choose a new lifestyle. Not happy with your social life? Choose new friends. No matter what you are unhappy with, you can always choose again.

Stop blaming, complaining, justifying, and giving others your power. Own the power that is within you and know that you have the ability to always choose again.

Live Life,
Bert Oliva