By Patrick Cahillane – Life, Executive & Business Coach with One Source International Coaching & Training and Founder of the One Source Personal Development Network.
You Are Here! –
Wow! I’m impressed. You have gotten yourself to act and read past the first chapter or post. As of this
very moment, you are among the small percentage of the individuals who read past the first
chapter of a self-help book. You have just dramatically increased your chances of success, and I’m
going to do my absolute best to ensure you have the tools you need to achieve your goal of creating
a better life.
Before we get started on exactly how the One Source Personal Development System works, allow
me just a moment to explain how to get the very most out of this program. It’s important to note
that my major objective in putting this wordbook together was to structure it in a format that is easy
to follow and implement while avoiding what can only be referred to as all the fluff that is found
in the greater majority of self-help books today.
As you progress with your reading, I urge you to highlight any and all sentences, paragraphs and
pages, which you find particularly interesting. This book was not designed to keep in perfect
condition. Instead, I would much prefer if you took the time to mark, take notes and highlight areas
so you can review or reference key information quickly in the future.
In addition, you will notice that this workbook is just that. A workbook. It contains several exercises
to assist you in your journey to direct your focus, create a balanced life and discover your true
purpose. I cannot stress strongly enough how important it is that you do each exercise down to the
smallest detail. These exercises have been designed to help you get the absolute most out of the
One Source Personal Development System.
Okay, let’s begin. Similar to mapping out any journey you are about to partake on, there are two
key elements that are required. You must know exactly where you are; and you must know exactly
where you want to go. Let us begin by determining exactly where you are at this point and time.
As discussed in chapter one, there are four key areas that we all need to focus our attention on a
consistent basis to create balance in our life.
They are as follows:
● Your Relationships
● Your Level of Health & Fitness
● Your Personal Growth
● Your Business/Career & Your Finances
Let us start with a brief exercise to determine exactly where you are in your relationships at this
moment in time. Take time now to answer as openly and honestly as possible the following
questions on a blank piece of paper.
Exercise One – Relationships
Are you currently in a relationship?
If not, would you like to be in a relationship?
If you are in a relationship, how would you rate the relationship?
If you’re not in a relationship, why do you think that is?
If you are in a relationship, can you honestly say that you take the time on a consistent basis to
improve your relationship?
If you are not in a relationship and would like to be, can you honestly say that you are consistently
trying to pursue one?
If you are in a relationship, list four actions you can take daily that would improve the quality of
that relationship. For example: Tell my partner that I love her/him or give my partner a passionate
kiss every day before I leave.
If you are not in a relationship, name four actions you can take on a daily basis to increase your
chances of meeting someone. For example: Always take time to dress my best. Always make eye
contact and smile more. (Write them down in your notes)
Take some time to list the other key people in your life. Take a moment to rate your current
relationship as either poor, fair, good, great. Some examples of people to include on your list are
the names of your children, your parents, siblings, friends, co-workers, and any other individual
you have regular contact with. Write them down on a piece of paper and give them a rating based on how you believe the quality of these relationships are at the moment. Rate them a scale of 1 to 10 (1 meaning terrible and 10 meaning amazing) rate your current level
Now take a few minutes and review your answers. Take your time and really try to get a good
understanding of where your key relationships are at this point and time.
Did you do it? Did you really take the time to answer all the above questions openly and honestly?
Equally as important, did you take the time to review your answers?
If not, please do not continue until you have completed the above exercise. This is critical to
determine exactly where you are in your relationships.
Now that you have completed the first exercise, have you learned anything about your
relationships? How do you feel about the way your relationships are at this moment? Can you
honestly say that you are happy with the way things are?
If you are anything like the majority of individuals who have taken part in this exercise (including
myself), you most likely have noticed that in at least some of your current relationships, that there
is room for improvement. Or perhaps you are 100% satisfied that all your relationships are in good
shape, which is fantastic.
The main object of this exercise and the remainder of the exercises in this chapter is to do one thing,
help you identify potential problems in key areas of your life. Now it is important to note that as
we continue and you begin to identify some potential or even real problems in your life, you may
begin to feel what is best described as pain. Believe it or not, this is a good thing.
Pain can motivate us to take action, and action is exactly what is required to create balance in our
lives. Now without getting into too much detail or getting into the science behind the system, allow
me to introduce to you the two major forces behind all your actions:
Pleasure and Pain
Believe it or not from the moment your eyes open in the morning until they close at night, each
action you take is based on your internal need to gain pleasure or avoid pain. Take a moment to
think about it, or better yet, allow me to give you a few examples.
If you are like the millions of people around the world who wake up most mornings to the sound
of an alarm clock, what do you think motivates you to get out of bed?
For many individuals, it is because of the pain that they link to the idea of being late and the trouble
it will create for them.
However, have you ever had the experience of shutting off the alarm clock
and simply going back to sleep?
If you have it was because at that point in time, the pleasure of going back to sleep was more of a
driving force than the pain of being late.
As I already mentioned, I am not going to go into too much detail about the science behind the
system yet. However, if you are interested in learning more about the power of pain and pleasure,
I suggest you Google Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) or the science of Neuro Associative
Conditioning, which was created by Tony Robbins and is the driving force behind his Personal
Power Programs or Seminars.
For the moment, all you really need to know is that the system is designed to use these two driving
forces to assist you in creating balance by linking up pleasure in your mind whenever you take
positive action and pain to not taking action.
In addition, we are going to incorporate these two driving forces into one of the steps of our system
that you can do in under five minutes per day.
Now let’s get back to the business of discovering exactly where you are so we can start working on
getting you where you need to be. Hopefully, you now have a fair idea of what shape your
relationships are really in. Again, it does not matter what condition your relationships are in at this
particular moment. All we are doing is attempting to identify a clear starting point based on where
you are right now.
How about your health and fitness? Take a moment now to do the following exercise in order to
get a better understanding of where you really are in the area of your health and fitness.
Please note that I am in no way, shape or form attempting to persuade you to lose weight, quit
smoking or join a health club. You and only you know if you are truly happy within your own skin.
All I ask is that you be honest with yourself.
Exercise Two – Health & Fitness
On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 meaning terrible and 10 meaning amazing) rate your current level of health & Fitness. Now please answer the following questions:
Do you currently take any medications and if so, what are they?
If you are currently taking medication, do you believe it would be possible to get off them over a
period of time if you took better care of yourself?
How often do you exercise?
Do you feel you get enough exercise?
List four things that you feel you could do on a daily basis to improve the quality of your health.
Similar to what you did with your relationships, I want you to take a few minutes and review your
answers. Were you really honest with yourself? If not, go back and change your answers and be
brutally honest with yourself.
So now you should have a general idea of what type of shape your relationships are in and how you
rate yourself in your level of health & fitness. We are halfway there. The next exercise is short and
should be fun. We are going to discover what your passions are and where you are in the area of
personal growth.
Exercise Three – Personal Growth
Do you have any hobbies and if so, what are they?
Do you have any hobbies that you would like to pursue, and if so, what are they?
What is your highest level of education?
Are you happy with that level?
Have you ever thought of returning to school or furthering your education? If so, what level would
you like to achieve or what would you like to study?
Do you enjoy learning new things?
Do you enjoy traveling and experiencing new cultures?
Is there anything that you feel you are passionate about, and if so, what is it?
How often do you read?
What do you enjoy reading?
Can you play a musical instrument and if so, which one(s)?
Is there a musical instrument you would like to learn to play, and if so, which one?
List as many things as you can that you would like to learn before you die.
The point of the previous exercise was to get you to think of some of the things or activities that
can assist you with your personal growth. All too often we get so caught up in making a living and
doing what we must do to survive that we lose sight of our passions or simply stop investing in our
personal growth.
Sadly, the area of personal growth is without a doubt the most overlooked area of the four. So many
times, I have come across individuals who want to change careers, however, they have never
managed to learn the skills required to go into the profession they desire. Or would love to write a
book, however, never seem to find the time to do it. Simply put they get caught in the trap of
everyday life.
If you take one thing away from this book, let it be this. Do not allow yourself to get caught up in
the trap of everyday life. Learn a new skill or improve an existing one each day of your life. As the
saying goes, ‘A mind is a terrible thing to waste.’
As I am sure you have figured out by now, I have saved the area of your finances for last. Hopefully,
this is an area that you have already mastered, however, based on what I know from the national
average few of us ever really do.
As with the previous exercises, please answer the following questions as honestly as you possibly
can.
Exercise Four – Business/Career & Finances
If you had to, could you live for one year on your savings without going into debt? If not, how long
do you feel you could get by?
How well do you feel you perform in your job or profession?
What percent of your weekly pay do you save for your retirement?
Have you been late paying a bill within the last 12 months?
Do you feel you are a good credit risk?
On a daily basis, do you feel you give 100% to your job or your profession? If not, what percentage
do you believe you give?
Are you happy with what you do for a living?
Do you feel you earn what you are worth?
Do you feel you are paid too much?
Name four skills you have acquired in the last 12 months, which enable you to perform better in
your job or profession?
Do you have a hard time paying your bills each month?
Are you satisfied with your current standard of living?
Are your annual earnings higher 10K than your age? For example, if you are forty years old, do you earn
more than fifty thousand per year?
If you use credit cards, do you pay off the balance every month?
Do you own or rent your home?
Do you consider yourself successful in your career or profession?
Are you satisfied with your current income?
If you are an employee, how would you say your boss or employer would rate you?
If you are self-employed or a business owner, how do you think your customers/clients and/or
employees would rate you?
Now that you have completed all the exercises, you should be in a strong position to evaluate
exactly where you are in all four of the key areas, and that is exactly what I want you to do right
now.
Take a few minutes to review your answers in each of the four exercises. Then I want you to rate
yourself in each of the key areas based on your answers and using the following scale:
1 = Poor
2 = Fair
3 = Good
4 = Excellent
If you believe you fall somewhere in between the above ratings in any or all the key areas, feel free
to round up or round down to the next rating, however, include a minus or a plus symbol after the
number.
For example, if you believe you are doing a little better than ‘Fair’ but not well enough to deserve
a rating as ‘Good’ you can put down a 2+ as your rating. Or if you believe you are closer to
deserving a rating as ‘Good’ then you are to the rating of ‘Fair’, feel free to put down a 3- as your
rating.
Take note of how you have rated yourself in each of the four key areas below.
Relationships , Health / Fitness , Personal Growth and your Business/Career & Finances
In the next chapter or post , we are going to begin the process of bridging the gap between where you are now and where you want to be in each of the above four key areas.