Why are many people motivated for only a short time and then lose it? One reason is that every one of us has standards, and these differ from person to person. These standards are backed up by our rituals or actions that we perform every day. If you have low standards and low expectations, then the results you achieve will be low too.  Are you failing to reach for the stars because others tell you that your dream is impossible? Do not live your life by what others expect from you. What if you didn't need the permission of others to create your idea of the dream life and not theirs? How would that feel? You are ready to change when the pain of not becoming a writer is worse than the commitment it takes to complete your book. You must raise your standards and back this up with daily rituals.

Rituals are the actions we take. The rituals we do shape the outcome. If you have a ritual of watching television instead of writing, your consequence will be no completed novel, it is that simple. But, if you set yourself a target of writing every day for one hour, can you imagine how much of your novel would be completed in 365 hours of writing? If you want to achieve any goal, start changing your ‘shoulds’ into ‘musts’. When you use the word ‘should’, it means you will do something when it is convenient for you, in other words, when you have nothing better to do. However, when it is a ‘must’ you will find the time, no matter what. Think about the times you use the word ‘must’, you can bet your life the rituals are met. 

Stop procrastinating out of fear. So many people never achieve their goals because they spent their life doing the 'right' thing by pleasing others or listening to those negative people with negative thoughts. We all know people that are so negative that if they won the lottery, they would find a reason not to celebrate. The glass is always half empty. They spend their life complaining about their situation, but do nothing to change it. They thrive on the ritual of complaint. They see the bad in everything. When they enter a room, the light goes out. Cut the ties with those people. We all know what happens to an apple if it is placed next to a rotten one. 

Make the following exercise part of your new daily ritual. Before you go to sleep at night for 5 days a week, make a list of 10 things you must do the following day to make it great. To make your day happy, fulfilling and moving you towards the direction you have chosen to go. For example, create a great villain, write a great plot twist, or complete that engaging logline. Remember to write ‘I must’ before every goal you set yourself. 

What do you think power is? Strength? Power is actually having the ability to change the way you see your life. Power is a specialized knowledge found in the minds of the successful, happy and wealthy. Power is to be spiritually aware of who you really are, and not what others want you to be. Why are we not all successful and happy? Power is available to us all - we live in a free country, where we can achieve whatever we desire. Most of us get bogged down in the fear that we are not capable enough, that we could fail and look stupid. The commitment it takes to succeed is too much effort, so we procrastinate and slip back into the comfort zone of what we know.

Successful people have the ability of an inner voice that pushes them forward and wills them to succeed. There are only two instincts you are born with, and they are fear of falling and reacting to loud noises; the rest is learned. Do you have the right to be happy and successful?  Are you ready to start making new rituals and say goodbye to the old destructive ones? What are you willing to sacrifice to achieve it?