Written by: Mark Sephton, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
In many ways, life can be made simpler by hanging our coat on this one principle I want to share. It’s a principle I have adopted in my life and business and has been the single most valuable principle I have embraced, and I have had the privilege and opportunity to see the true fruit of it in my life. It has become one of my keys to the kingdom of unlocking myself, and the great thing with this key is it will unlock you too.
Like with all things, it's not often that one principle will solve all our pains and discomfort, especially in the case of wanting to know what direction one is to take. What choices should one make, how do I live my life and show up in such a way that my very being? My energy and core serve this world and the people in it, that in such a way we feel in-tune with our core inner self and the bi-product of staying true and living out of our core. It results in a world and community around us being effected for their greater good by the very essence and trajectory of our life.
So what is this principle? Stephen Covey said it best "Start with the end in mind". I have a considerable strength and gift where I specialize in helping individuals find their purpose and create platforms which showcase their skills, strengthen their performance, and yet promote their own inner peace, which becomes so attractive to others around them, that they can't help but attract opportunities and people and situations which then create such a euphoria of excitement for both those who want to connect with you but most importantly how you end up connecting deeper with yourself, that what is offered cannot be ignored because we all only get one shot at this life.
I recently came across a man called David Abend. David is the founder of thebucket.com, the essence of David is found through his work. When he founded "the bucket "it was really to encourage people to look at their mortality, and by embracing their mortality, it can actually shape the direction you take in life, which is exactly my point. We only get one shot at this life, and when we consider our final end, it helps sharpen our ending, which helps us choose our beginnings more effectively.
So with the principle being “ Start with the end in mind“, why has this served me so well and why is the principle about to solve a heck of a lot of your frustration and confusion with how your life should look and what choices you should be making in order to have a life that makes sense to you? Which is true to your core beliefs and actually impacts and serves a world that desperately needs you to be showing up and creating such a wave through the energy you manifest by being so clear on your purpose that those around you can’t help but take notice.
You see, when you start with the end in mind, decision making becomes so much easier and so much more exciting. When I work with my clients, we spend a significant amount of time on this very principle, which is underpinned by my GPS system, which gages an individual's health based on 10 key fundamentals that make up a person's basic DNA. I established this GPS out of 3 years of case studies and notes that I discovered 10 common points of pain, challenge, opportunity, and success when I looked through. So I created a system that gages an individual's performance and health based on these 10 fundamentals. The findings are what formalize my client sessions.
The GPS is like an internal MRI. It looks at your beliefs, behaviors, actions, blind spots, efficiencies and deficiencies, it's through these findings that we can fine-tune, tweak, evolve and shape the next 12 months to really hit the nail on the head with regards to our life mission and ensure our business and our life represent something this world needs and solves one of a million problems that mankind is faced with. Let's be clear the essence of business is really solving a problem, the more people that are affected by a problem; the more impact your business will have on solving it.
It's so vitally important when considering "Start with the end in mind "for this principle to really serve you. You must get crystal clear on what it is you want your life to represent. What is it you want people to associate with you? What do you want to be remembered by when you leave this earth. I spent a year defining and sharpening what it is I want my life to represent. So I ask you, what do you want your life to represent? What do you want to be known for? What ignites and fires you up where you feel immersed in your sweet spot. If these questions are hard to answer, my GPS will shed some light on these questions you may have.
The seriousness of understanding and answering these questions will save you a lot of time and pain in trying to figure out. Too many people go to the grave without knowing who they really were and or being intentional about the life they really wanted to live. This is your life; this is my life. I want to impact as many people as I can, I want to start fires in the hearts of men and women, and for their purpose to be much bigger than themselves, the world needs kindness, it needs people to show up, it needs help, it needs you.
When you fully embrace starting with the end in mind, your decisions become easier to make. For example. Let's take relationships. We all have them. In most cases, we have all been involved In a romantic relationship. Suppose your heart is to get married one day. In that case, it is stupid to start dating a person when you know you could never marry them, of course, dating helps us build an understanding and reassures us of whether someone would have the ability to be a long term partner, but what I am cautioning you with through this example, is making sure what you commit to whether it's in a relationship or business opportunity that it will take you to where you want to go and most importantly will fan the flame of what you really want your life to represent and how you want to be associated.
My driver is influence, so when I consider any opportunity or when I am proposition with a business opportunity if there is no clear opportunity to influence human beings, I don't entertain the idea any further. The amount of people on LinkedIn who message me and say "Mark how would you like to have a 6 figure income doing this or that" really is hooking me with the wrong bait. I am not interested in how much money I can make. I am interested in how many lives I can effect for the greater good of them and those around me, period.
So if my backstop is influence, it certainly makes decision making a lot easier and actually a lot more exciting. I love helping people find their backstop and then using that backstop to make awesome decisions that shape your life's direction, which is where I feel my superpowers as a coach and mentor rest.
Outside of this guiding principle, I have 2 other keys that serve me in my choices. They are simple yet effective. Only commit to the things you love ( Key 2 ) and commit only to the things you are good at ( Key 3 ). Add this to Key 1, which is "start with the end in mind "and only commit to the opportunities and people which will take you to where you want to go, and when I say where you want to go, this is actually a place inside yourself, a place which is your internal sweet spot, then life will make more sense, and then your life and business will start to make the waves you so desperately want it to.
Feel free to follow Mark on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube, or email Mark at info@marksephton.com
You can buy his books Inside Job & Plot Twist on Amazon!
Mark Sephton, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Mark Sephton is a personal mentor to entrepreneurs. His mission to help others has seen him break into global markets while working with startups and millionaire entrepreneurs worldwide. Mark's love for entrepreneurship has been expressed through serving as TV host of the show "One More Round." When not on the big screen, Mark is a regular contributor to Entrepreneur Magazine and a speaker for corporate events, entrepreneurship summits, and major conferences worldwide. His expertise in personal and professional development has positioned him as an expert in the industry, resulting in transformational experiences for audiences, clients, and businesses alike.
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