• We average  1500 page views and 1100 unique visitors per month.
• The site is in the top 10% of all websites according to Alexa rankings.
• There are over 200 RSS readers.
• The blog is also promoted on Twitter where there are over 1,000 followers.

Pinnacle Balance has a growing and influential audience.  Most of our readers are young church members who are leaders in their churches.  You will be reaching individuals who are looking to grow and learn. They are not people who accept the status quo.

We have four types of advertising:

Main Sponsor

• You’ll receive a 250×250 pixel ad in the right sidebar.
• There is only one spot for a site sponsor each month.
• The cost is $30 per month.

Co-Sponsors

• You’ll receive a 125×125 pixel ad in the right sidebar.
• There are 6 spots each month.
• The cost is $15 per month.

Post Sponsor

• You’ll receive a written advertisement before the post  or a 486×60 banner
• There is 1 spot per month
• The Cost is $50

Product Review

• You get a three hundred word minimum review (You can decide if you like the review first)
• Page will be posted to all available Social Media sites
• There are 6 reviews per month (2 of which go to book reviews I do already)
• This is exchanged for the product or service

Email me if you have questions or need additional information. If you’re ready to go, let’s get your ad uploaded for the world to see.

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I have experienced many types of leaders through my life.  Many of them never really lead as much as they told those that worked for them what to do. They then went about taking credit for the good, and giving blame for the bad.  I worked with a man once that complained about Dr. John C. Maxwell’s writing on leadership, but never read any of it.  I would suggest he never learned to lead himself.

Discipline is hard, but discipline is a must for anyone who wants to be successful at whatever they do.  If you are always late, it is because you are not disciplined enough to be on time.  Not because your family is a late family and you always have been.   When I was in the Navy I learned this lesson first hand.  I was relieved from my watch every day by a man who was consistently late.  I reported the man several times and he was moved to other watch sections but his tardiness never ceased.  He was finally taken to Captains Mast and reduced in rank before being released from the Navy.  His inability to be on time cost him his job, and he never knew why.

Control your tongue. Swearing is one of the best signs of an  undisciplined mouth.  In the bible we are told that the tongue is like the rudder of a ship.  A rudder is small in comparison to the ship, but turns the thing.  Your tongue can lead you down roads you do not want to travel.  Swearing is not the only sign of an undisciplined tongue.  Arguing, sarcasm, complaining, and gossip are other signs.  No one wants to be around someone who complains all the time.  It’s just not fun.  Learn to control what you say and do by Forming Better Habits which can take some time, but pay huge dividends in the long run.

Discipline is more than being on time and controlling how you talk.  But being on time is a good start and controlling what you say is a good start.  Make a list of things you need to do and stick to the list this way you can be encouraged by you progress, and prodded when you slack.  Always remember, you can only accomplish something if you do it.   The minute you put it off, you will stop and lose your momentum.

From Mary Jo Asmus  Stuck? Admit It and Ask For Help

Chances are if you scrubbed the 401k and HMO  and began learning to invest your money you could make more of a return and start living off what you invested. The problem is that the majority of people will complain about their job, their health care, and 401K, but never do anything to change it because the refuse to take a risk.

Helen Keller said, “Security is mostly a superstition. It does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing.”

Think about the 9.7% of the American population that relied on their “job” for security.  Right now if the unemployed had just a couple of other income streams or had learned to manage their own money better we would not see so many foreclosures and bankruptcies.

Do you know how to invest your own money, or take care of your 401k so it does not lose all its value. Take the risk and learn to manage your own money, I use Investools (I get no money for telling you that).  While they do try to get you to upgrade their service, their basic service is fine, and the introductory class is great to help you get started managing your own money.

What can you do better than anyone else.  What little thing can you do on the side that will help you start to make an alternative income. Take a risk and start your own side business or find that job that you have always wanted but keeping up your current lifestyle won’t allow.  If your house is to big for your job, take the risk and get out of the house. Downsize to something you can afford.

Don’t stop taking risks because it is what someone your age is supposed to do.  Take a calculated risk and plan your steps so the risk is manageable.

Let Go of Some Stuff

The more stuff you have, the harder you have to work to try to keep it.  give away some stuff and downsize.  One blog I read is Mind the Beginner.  Christiaan Wrote a post last year outlining a 100 item challenge and then revisited it earlier this year. The minimalist view is that you can live with only 100 things in your life.  If we each only had 100 things imagine how much easier our lives would be. You would have to decide between socks and a vase to go on the bookshelf, or even a book itself.  In the second post he finishes with a method of getting rid of 100 things.  I know this will fill up some landfills but look at what we waste now.  What are you racing to keep and why?  My story is one of moving and having to down size due to less space.  We moved into a two bedroom condo from a three bedroom townhouse.  We still have stuff in piles but it is getting closer to being gone.

Race to Really Win

What can your life really mean?  If you can’t quit your job, what can you do to make an impact where you are?  If you go to work everyday with a bad attitude then you are going to be miserable no matter what.  Can you find 3 things every day to be thankful for, then share them with others at your job?  If you are bringing work home then get a cd series or audio book you can listen to on your way home to help you wind down.  Remember, the more you look at your spouse when you are angry, the more you will get angry when you look at him or her.  Think snowball.  You can roll it either way.  You can unwind the snowball making it smaller and more manageable, or you can roll it around and make it as big as you want until you explode.  The choice is yours.

Don’t let the race run you down.  You can control how you think and how you respond to work and to stress, and to that boss that is always on you.  The way you think begins with what you focus on.  If you hold your hand up to your face you only see your hand.  If you hold your hand out at arm’s length you may see your hand, but will be able to see the world around you as well.  You may have to run the race, but you don’t have to participate in the stuff that goes along with it.

What can you do this week to let go of some stuff and to get out of the rat race?

Image courtesy of http://www.flickr.com/photos/csatch/ / CC BY 2.0

Do you get pushed to the side because you get caught up doing things not related to your purpose and goals? Don’t lose your voice by getting caught up learning or doing items not related to your calling and gifts.

When I say, “Your Voice” I mean your influence and creativity in your area of expertise. Yes it is nice to be well-rounded, but don’t think you must know everything or do everything. Here are some helpful tips to maintain your voice.

1. Focus on sharpening the skills you are good at. Don’t work on what you are weak at all the time. Improve what you are already good at to become great in that area. Once you are an expert then people will seek you out in that niche environment. Spend at least one; preferably two hour’s minimum reading, listening to tapes or just creating in your niche area. This will greatly improve your voice when people are looking for an expert in your field.

2. Find someone to do the day-to-day stuff. No, I am not saying to hire out all the other aspects of life if you are not fiscally sound. What I am saying is, if you have a friend that is an accountant or ad writer or graphic artist; or whatever your needs are maybe he or she can help you if you are not good in one certain area. You could also find very reliable people to work 1 hour per day for you in larger cities and especially online. This could add time to your efforts to become an expert.

3. Listen to your voice. If you are starting to lose sight of where you were or where you want to be then you are not focusing on what you do well. You know in your heart what it feels like when you are on the creative edge and you know what it feels like when you are dull. Stay sharp and focus on what you do best.

I know it sounds like I am telling you to neglect the business “Stuff” that we all must do. There are items only you can do, but if you are worrying about answering the phone and not developing your gifts don’t answer the phone.  They will either leave a message or call back. Do what you do best and find others to come around you who are the best at what they do and you will  see your gifts take off.

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We all have full schedules, learning how to decide what is truly important can free us up to enjoy time together with loved ones. A close friend of mine is studying 6-Sigma, which means by default I am studying 6-Sigma. One of the items I have taken away is the “5 why’s.” The basic principle is to ask why five times to find the real reason you are performing a certain task. When we ask our selves why we really do something we can start to move into a direction of balance.

When something new comes across your desk ask why you must be the one to do it. If it can be delegated; delegate it. I know this sounds simple and you have heard this a thousand times but I bet like people I talk to every day you do things just because you; “Want them done right the first time,” or “Done your way,” or some other reason you must be the one to do the task. If you are a sole proprietor; skip to the next paragraph. If you run a business with employees then train one of them to be a substitute you. You need some one you can rely on to handle the task so you can cast the vision and lead the team. If you are running a business and you are the only one who knows how it runs-you will never be able to relax or take a vacation. If you have to be on 24/7 then you are not getting the rest your body needs and it will catch you sometime.

If you are like me and have no one to delegate to then you need a list of things to-do. I use no Day-Timer or calendar system I just lay out on a spiral notebook all the things I need to accomplish that week. Each night I list the thing to-do the next day in order from most important down. If something new comes in I put it on the list, and it may or may not get done that day depending on priority. I check and write email for thirty-minutes in the morning and evening. This gives me the freedom to do all email on my terms. I understand that phone calls come in from customers but do you really have to answer every phone call that comes in, can you get an answering service? I want you to look at all aspects of balancing your time. If you look you can find ways to free yourself up, I promise.

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Thank you city of Sacramento for making this right!

A Sacramento shoe shine man, A. Gee Executive Shoe Shine, has had to move his business inside because the city only allows food and flower vendors permits to run businesses outside.  Maybe Sacramento has not heard that the economy is down and people need to work.  Maybe they don’t know that small businesses are the heart of their economy.  You be the judge. Watch the news story here.

http://news.yahoo.com/video/sacramentocbs13-15751210/local-shoe-shiner-runs-into-permit-trouble-18480972

Let Sacramento Know How You Feel Here.

http://www.cityofsacramento.org/council/index.html

When Henry Ward Beecher was asked how he could do so much more than other people, he replied: “I don’t do more, but less, than other people. They do all their work three times over: once in anticipation, once in actuality, once in rumination. I do mine in actuality alone, doing it once instead of three times.”

How many times have you created a list; or just didn’t put something on a list; or maybe sat outside a customers office because you were playing out in your mind what would happen when you did the thing your knew you were supposed to do? Chances are you have procrastinated before. Nike gave us the phrase, “Just Do It.” I think they took Mr. Beecher’s sentiment and condensed it. If you want a balanced life you’ve gotta stop projecting your thoughts on something before it happens and quit worrying about what you should have done after it is passed.

Three good ways to stop procrastinating are:

1. Change your thoughts. I know this sounds over simplified but it is true. The best way to change your life is to change your mind. Think about people in your life that affirm you. Think about what made you happy when you were a kid. Think about what makes you happy now; wife, husband, family, art, music, football, whatever.

2. Change your heart. What you let into your heart is what stays in your life. If you are constantly playing out what the next business deal is or where the next sell is coming from or how the bills are going to get paid stop because these things are going to become habits then you may get stuck in a rut you will need more than coaching to get out of. I’m not saying don’t plan and set goals. I am saying quit playing in your mind and just do it.

3. Change your future. Find someone to come along side you as a coach or mentor that can help you set goals and keep you accountable to those goals.

Plan daily what you are going to do and do your most important things. Don’t spend time wrestling with the; “should I do this” or “I wish I had done that.” Make quick but solid decisions and trust your gut. Always focus on the task at hand.