Animal Instincts in a Human World

My boyfriend and I recently started watching the BBC special, Life, which is absolutely amazing and I hands down recommend it to anyone and everyone, especially if he has it available on blu-ray. WOW!  I find facts and realities of wildlife culture and survival intriguings (and the visual aids of said explanations beautiful).  Animals have developed such brilliant and vital survival tricks that you almost can't help but be in awe and even a little jealous at their ability to adapt and evolve so perfectly.

Therefore, this morning, while on a business call for my Arbonne business, you can imagine my intrigue when I learned that the guest speaker would be discussing the book Survivng Your Serengeti: 7 Skills to Master your Business and Life by Stefan Swanepoel.  Its business application is not the only niche for the book and can be applied to various aspects of life including work, personal growth, and, dare I say, relationships.  Having not read the book myself, I will impart a quick overview as relayed to me by today's guest speaker, however I would highly recommend, having now heard the overview, reading the book in its entirety.

So, (*drum roll please*), the much anticipated 7-steps to success and survival:

1. Endurance -
• this is you continuing to move you forward even when your body might say no.  It's a matter of the brain's ability to convince you to keep moving even when your body might be pulling a Betty White twix commercial.
2. Strategy - 
• this includes organization, goal setting (who are you? what do you want? Where are you going? how will you get there? and what you'll do when you get there?)
3. Enterprise - 
• show initiative, go against or stand above the crowd. 
• do you have a strong desire for success and achievement, energy, creativity, and ambition? 
• are you passionate and do you understand your own weaknesses and strenghts?
• ...and no, it is not related to the car company...
4. Efficiency- 
• break down your goals into attainable steps.  
• don't waste time on unnecessary things!  Get your priorities in order!
5. Grace - 
• display dignity, honor, respect, finess, and seek to make others feel important.
• (Dear Grace Kelly...It's not fair.  You cheated.  My first name is not one of these seven steps.)
6. Risk Taker- 
• review your goals and the different routes to that destination.
• have courage to step into uncharted waters
• MUST have a POSITIVE attitude!
7. Communication- 
• receive feedback openly, hear what people want, match your gestures with what you're saying, and ensure your visual communication is effective

Again, these are life survival skills, not just business ones, but they are so incredibly vercitile that their applications span across different outlets.  Whether you own your own company or are involved in a corporation, are a stay-at-home parent or just want to work on personal growth for you and not for some outside reason, these lessons are applicable.  Hey, nature knows what it's doing.  Don't get muddled into the real-life distractions we've created for ourselves and become a passive participant in your own life.  If you want something, go get it.  You want something to change?  Make it happen.  These steps, though, are the "cliff notes" of how to help ensure your success so you don't feel so alone and lost along the way.  And who knows? Maybe I'll even pick up the book and read it here in the near future, but I'll definitely keep you posted if any of the other animal stories from Life have additional tips to add!