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Archive for the ‘Money and Spirituality’ Category

One of my business goals for 2010 is to deepen my local network. Poet and corporate consultant David Whyte is fond of saying, “Sometimes the truth depends on a walk around the lake.” Having a trusted a colleague to stroll around the lake with can be just the thing to take things to the next level. Besides, hugs over Skype aren’t the same.

Last night, I put this intention into action by going to a new networking event.  I walked into a noisy crowd of over 70 people with only a few familiar faces.  As a relative introvert, this was a bit overwhelming.  Recognizing that overwhelm wasn’t going to lead to the results I was hoping for, I took a few moments to get centered.

As soon as I did, I noticed a friend I hadn’t seen and made my way over to her table.  When she saw me she said, “Oh my goodness!  We were just talking about you and EFT!“  Turns out, she was sitting with a colleague who has a consulting business.  This consultant had recently began experimenting with using EFT in her business and was thrilled to meet me. We spent much of the night having a high energy conversation about EFT and applying energy psychology in business settings.

Synchronicity is VERY Attractive

Back in the 1930’s, Carl Jung created the term “synchronicity” for events like what happened last night.  He observed, “when coincidences pile up in this way, one cannot help being impressed by them.“  Imagine being the woman I met last night and having someone who has experience with something that is a leading edge in your business manifest before your eyes.  How likely is it that you would forget that?

As I have increasingly cleared my own limiting beliefs, these type of ‘coincidences’ have been happening more and more often. And, my experience is that Jung is absolutely right – each time it happens, people are deeply moved.

How to Attract More Everyday Miracles

Now I don’t know anyone who can walk on water or conjure up a 7 course meal at the wave of her fingertips.  At the same time, I do see that conscious business owners often share this experience of marvelous surprises happening increasingly more often.  Are these accidents or is there anything we can do to increase how often they happen?

Let me be clear that I don’t think we can MAKE things like this happen.   What I think we can create are the conditions in our lives for synchronicity to happen more often.  Here are 3 strategies for infusing your success plan with more everyday magic:

1. Clear the beliefs about having to MAKE your success goals happen. In most business thought, there is an underlying belief that for you to succeed, you have to MAKE it happen.  Think of the term, “Self-made millionaire”.  When we buy into these understandings of success, we are setting ourselves up for stress and struggle.  My favorite way to clear these kinds of beliefs is with EFT, Money Matrix and other energy psychology tools.
2. Appreciate the synchronicity that has already happened in your life. Every one of us has had some experiences of synchronicity in our lives.  Prime your everyday miracle pump by bringing these experiences to mind with as much sensory details as you can.  Re-member literally means “to re-embody”.  Writing or drawing these experiences are a great way to do this. Also, be on the lookout for any little magical events that happen each day and appreciate the heck out of them.  Don’t limit yourself to the area of success and money – notice it in all areas of your life.
3. Invite More Magic Into Your Life. My favorite way to do this is with Law of Attraction tools like the Focus Wheel.  For instance, after last night’s experience, I did a Focus Wheel this morning on the theme of “There’s more and more everyday magic in my business.”  We can deliberately attract more of what we want in our life.

For thousands of years, spiritual people have observed that it is possible for us to increase our ability to be in what athletes call “The Zone”.  When we are in this state, both the number and the magnitude of the synchronicities in our lives go up.  Infusing your success plan with more of this energy is both fun and effective.

As I write this post from my favorite cafe, there’s snow coming down and the weather guy tells us were in for two more days of it. It has me thinking about my current lifestyle.  I’m one of those lucky folks that can work from anywhere. I almost never HAVE to go out.

It hasn’t always been this way.  8 years ago,  I was the director of a small, innovative non-profit.  While we were doing great work, the organization was barely making it financially and I was only earning about $30,000 per year.   Given my experience and my responsibilities as a new dad, this was source of great frustration.

Is staying stuck costing you?

Part of me was ready for a change.  I remember buying a book called, The Therapist as Life Coach. With my experience, I knew I had what it took to be a great coach.  However, I couldn’t wrap my brain around how to attract clients.  I started looking into coaching for this.  I realized it was going to take thousands of dollars plus time to learn what I needed to know.

Staying the Same Costs $100,000’s

At this point, I did what many people do – I said, “I don’t have the money or the time for this.“  I tried to put my dreams on the shelf and go on living the same small life.

When we really have a dream, it isn’t easy to sweep it under the rug.  My abandoned intentions of helping more people and making an authentic 6 figure income festered.  The energy came out in the form of frustration towards my then wife.  I turned into one very unhappy camper.

My ex soon got tired of living with this negative guy.  She kicked me out and started divorce proceedings.  Over a short period of time, I lost EVERYTHING. I found myself alone in an efficiency apartment in a new city.

From my new perspecitve, I realized that my limiting beliefs around money had been operating my entire adult life – more than 20 years.  I could see that if I had made a relatively small investment of money and time, I would likely have made a HUGE financial return in addition to the spiritual, physical and emotional ones.

In fact, multiplied over the period of my adult life, I could see that my decision to stay the same was the most expensive decision I had ever made.

What are the TRUE Costs?

Fortunately, the mess I describe above has had some incredible benefits.  For instance, I was introduced to energy psychology tools like EFT – I don’t know how I would have survived the divorce without it.  And, I finally sought out several coaches that helped me learn the mindset and marketing skills that I use in the work I do now.

In my work with clients today, I often hear about their thoughts and fears upon adding up the costs of what learning new skills are going to cost.  In truth, I want you to do this figuring. I don’t want you to blindly commit to a process that is a major investment of time and money.

At the same time, I also want to you to honestly ask yourself the question, “What will it cost me if I stay the same?“  Too many people add up the costs of change carefully while completely ignoring the fact that staying on the same track will also impact your life financially and otherwise.

How do the costs of change compare to the costs of staying on the same track you are on?  Five years from now where will you be if you stay on exactly the road you are on right now? I’d love to hear your thoughts in the form of a comment below.

Lately, I’ve been seeing the issue of impatience pop up in a number of sessions.  As in, “Why is it taking SO LONG for things to change?!?“  When a theme repeats like this, I know it’s time to write about it.  If you’ve ever felt like your success plan was taking too darn long, I encourage you to keep reading.

How Listening to A Park Bench Made One Man Wealthy

One of my favorite stories about the energy dynamics of change comes from the spiritual teacher Eckhart Tolle.  Today, many people know him as Oprah’s friend and best selling author.  Many people don’t know that before he became famous, Eckhart Tolle was stuck and confused.  He didn’t have a stable home or job.

Eckhart knew he wanted a different life, but he didn’t know how.  One day sitting on a park bench, Eckhart had a realization that changed his life and brought incredible success.  He realized that he was spending a great deal of energy fighting the circumstances of his life. Though he didn’t want to be confused and jobless, he was.

Eckhart understood that the only way things were going to really change is if he could “surrender” and “walk through the doorway of NOW”.  That insight lead to a feeling of profound well-being so strong that people started to approach him for guidance.  His career as a spiritual teacher was born.

What’s Your Park Bench?

You don’t have to have to be almost homeless to have this stuck energy operating in your life.  For me, it was being in position of going through a divorce and being “just over broke” doing work I didn’t like.

In fact, there is a basic energy equation when we are feeling frustrated.  It is:

I’m frustrated that I’m here (in a place I don’t want to be) when I want to be there (in a place I want to be more).

Wanting change and success is a good thing.  At the same time, it’s difficult for success to flow smoothly with this kind of tension in your system.

Easing Into Success with EFT

Energy intelligent people will recognize that being in this state of tension and having your focus on what’s not working is going to attract more tension into your life.  Let’s take a look at how to shift into a place of being more ready for change with EFT (if you want to learn EFT basics, click here).

Frustration Sequence – The Problem

Karate Chop: Even though it feels like things are taking too long to change and I’m feeling impatient, I’m willing to be a little kinder and gentler with myself anyway.

Eyebrow: I don’t know why things in my life aren’t changing faster.
Side of eye: I’m feeling impatient with the pace of change in my life.
Under the eye: I’ve been working on change for some time now.
Under the nose: Why aren’t I further along?
Chin: It’s taking SO long.
Collarbone: I feel lots of pressure to change things NOW.
Under the arm: I don’t like how long this is taking.

Take a deep breath and give a moment for this tapping sequence to settle.

Frustration Sequence – The Solution

Karate Chop: Even though in the past it feels like things weren’t changing fast enough, I’m choosing to find a more relaxed relationship with change now.

Eyebrow: In the past, I was focusing on what wasn’t going well in terms of change.
Side of the eye: No wonder I was feeling so frustrated.
Under the eye: What would happen if I could find a way to release that pressure?
Under the nose: What if I COULD relax about the pace of change in my life?
Chin: I wonder if I could actually change faster if I didn’t feel so much pressure?
Collarbone: I give myself permission to experiment with releasing this pressure.
Under the arm: I’m excited to work towards my success goals in more relaxed way.

Take a deep breath and give a moment for this tapping sequence to settle.

Summing it up

One of the great paradoxes about life changes is that they tend to happen the fastest when we are in a state that athletes call “The Zone”.  Pushing gets in the way of this.  Instead, use your favorite clearing tool to release the frustration and struggle patterns.

Next, allow yourself to experiment.   What would it be like to allow yourself to work from the Zone more?  How are you already doing this?  I’d love to hear your thoughts in the form of a comment below.

As I write this post, there’s snow on the ground and the sky is grey with possibility.  In the Northern Hemisphere, we’ve just passed the longest night of the year.  Little by little, the light is returning.

The new year is on many people’s minds.  While I don’t have any magical devices to show me exactly what the coming year will bring (sorry to disappoint you), I do believe that 2010 is going to be an awesome year for many readers of this blog.  Right about now, you’re probably asking, “What the HECK is he talking about?!?”

3  Reasons Spiritual Success Seekers Will Love 2010

1) It’s almost impossible to succeed without a clear sense of purpose. In the past, making money and things like purpose were hard to put into the same paragraph.  One of the things that has changed over the past year is that most people are spending money very differently.  They are asking more questions and exploring more deeply before they buy.

For spiritual people, this is GREAT news.  We know about intentions and purpose and the energy that lives underneath the surface of things.  While yesterday’s leaders with the old “pound them with advertising until they buy” mindset should be scared, our ability to have deeper conversations about what is truly valuable is an essential strength in today’s economy.

2) Spiritual people understand the power of NOW.

Nothing ever happened in the past; it happened in the Now. Nothing will ever happen in the future; it will happen in the Now.

Eckhart Tolle

These days, many people are trying to figure out how to get back to a point they were at in the past.  Similarly, many people – some with very important titles – are trying to figure out how to rush into a “new future” as fast as possible.   As a spiritual person, you know that both these efforts are wasting tremendous amounts of energy.

Right here in this moment – right now – there are TREMENDOUS opportunities. However, the person whose mind is clouded by fear, regret or a desire to rush into the future is going to be unable to take advantage of them.  As a spiritual person, you are more equipped to see the current opportunities.  You also are more able to take mindful actions that will birth these opportunities into the world.

Keep in mind that, because this moment is like no other, your opportunities may look very different than those that were present for your parents or even those in your life a few years ago.

3) We’ve practiced the art of mindful community for generations. About 8 years ago, I heard a prominent Buddhist teacher talk about the important of what the Buddhists call Sangha – the community one practices in.  It was one of those talks where you could feel the power of his words vibrating off the walls.

In sum, what this teacher said is that we humans are deeply relational critters.  Nothing impacts us more than the thoughts and feelings of those we are surrounded by.  So, one of the surest paths to ongoing spiritual growth is to surround yourself with others who are on a good path.

Unless you’re a recent transplant to planet Earth from some other corner of the universe – in that case, let me say WELCOME – you know that we are in the midst of a networking revolution.   For instance, there are currently over 50 million registered users of LinkedIn.  A FREE social networking site dedicated to the business user with 50 million subscribers – our grandparents had nothing like this.  Online and off, there never been more options for spiritual success seekers to tap into the power of mindful communities.  And no one is in a better position to make skillful use of the power of the Success Sangha than the readers of this blog.

What is 2010 going to be like for YOU?

Your success is very important to me.  In fact, it’s the reason I’m here on this beautiful planet.  I’d very much like to hear what you see ahead of you in 2010.  Please share your thoughts and questions in the form of a comment below.  And, thanks to all of you who make this community such a vibrant place to be part of.

I have a confession to make.  I have been resisting creating an EFT product even though I get asked for one frequently.   After hearing myself yesterday explain to Till Schilling, the creator of Tappy Bear, why I’m best working with people and need to interact to shine (Resistance.  Blah, blah, blah.), I decided it was time to do some inner work.

There is an old folk saying that “curiousity killed the cat”.  It’s wrong.  Curiousity doesn’t kill cats – it melts resistance. So, I asked myself, “What is up with the fighting?”  I tapped on the feelings.  It turns out that EFT founder Gary Craig was right.  The results I got  made my jaw drop.

EFT can be fun!

Turns out, I had a belief system that went like this:  “Products are B-O-R-I-N-G.  I don’t want to be boring.  So I can’t create a product.”

As I released my “I don’t want to be boring” issue, new thoughts started flowing.  EFT is a very funny looking yet very effective thing we use to clear up some of the stickiest issues in our lives.  Lots of material for playing with the paradox there.   What if I wrote an EFT manual that was fun and effective? I instantly noticed one of the best indicators of high vibrational states of being – a smile.

Then a new limiting belief popped up (goodbye smile).  Would anyone actually want to buy my irreverent EFT manual? I’ll spare you the details of the self-worth issues behind that question.  I’ll give you the 140 character, Twitter version.  I tapped some more.  Darn EFT stuff worked again.

I remembered this really cool thing called a blog where I could get feedback from cool people like you.  I am thinking of writing a manual called From Chaotic to Clarity: How to Use EFT and Humor Attraction to Clear Overwhelm.  It would start out something like this:

What you hold in your hands is the world’s first highly irreverent and effective EFT for Overwhelm manual.  And, the truth is, this manual almost never got written.

From there, I would go on to share how I combine EFT and humor to help clients shift from feelings of overwhelm into states of being much clearer and more able to create the lives they want.   I would love to hear your thoughts in the form of a comment below.  Thanks in advance!

One of my main goals for creating this site is to advocate for authenticity – I want you to believe in your bones that it is possible to be a fun, authentic and spiritual human and make plenty of money.  What does this have to do with sugar water?  Let me explain ..

This morning I met with Sejual Shah, a wonderful EFT practitioner – her site is www.healthyinmind.com – for our weekly Mastermind session.  It was my turn and I brought up fear I was feeling about a project I’ll be announcing soon.  This project is going to mean MUCH more visibility for me and my business.

Sugar Water, Money and Spirituality

I couldn’t quite put my finger on this fear.  Sejual helped me clarify and clear what was going on.

When I was a kid, we lived a few miles from the headquarters from one of the largest soft drink companies in the world.  Also as a child, my father worked in a company whose major source of income was tobacco products. Many of my friends parents worked in environments like this.

Even then, I felt strongly that making tons of money selling soda (yep, that’s the sugar water)  and other products that damaged peoples health was out of integrity.  Looking back from today’s vantage point, I realize that early in life I took a spiritual vow to value integrity over money.

While I have done LOTS of work on allowing money and my spiritual beliefs to live well together, this new venture I’m embarking on brought up this theme at a new level.  While most of me is excited and aligned with increased success, I realized that there was a part of me feeling afraid I might “step out of integrity as I step into the limelight.”

Four things I learned about the dynamics of increasing success from this experience:

1. At the threshold of each new level of success, we are likely to experience new issues. This is normal – when we come to the edge of our known world, it’s our nervous system’s job to send out a signal.  It’s a sign saying, “You are leaving the known, are you sure you want to do this?”
2. Spiritual people often take vows that impact our relationship with money. My mostly unconscious vow had been to value integrity more than I value money.  Thanks to today’s session, I now believe that I can continue to find more and more ways to make money with the power of my integrity.
3. Without clearing, #1 and #2 often sabotage our success. My own life story prior to energy psychology is a tale of good intentions sabotaged by the above.  Most of my clients have similar stories.
4. Support is essential. Tiger Woods had a coach before he became a golf sensation and having great support is significant part of why he became the golfer he is.   Successful people almost always have a combination of mentors, coaches, mastermind groups, prosperity buddies, etc.  I would like to invite you to explore the level of success support you have in your life.

No matter where you are in your success journey, understanding these 4 dynamics will increase your ability to manifest success.  I’d love to hear your thoughts about how you have seen these and other dynamics work in your life.  Please comment below and thank you in advance for sharing.

Let’s face it, spiritual people can get pretty off center when it comes to money.  Many traditions have strong teachings about the dangers of money.  Even those of us who don’t follow a particular path are influenced by powerful archetypes like the begging monk and the rich person who lost her soul (remember Scrooge?).

An example of this tension in the Judeo-Christian tradition is this line from the Book of Mathew in the Bible:

And again I say to you: It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven.

These kinds of sentiments exist in most spiritual traditions.  When spiritual people begin to look at increasing the success and abundance in their lives, there are almost always limiting beliefs like these to clear.  The question is – how?

Money and spirituality

Tailenders and your  success dreams

Those of you who have been following me for awhile know that I’m a big fan of the energy psychology tool called Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT).  If you don’t know EFT, you can learn more about it at the post called EFT Tapping Points or by going to the main EFT website, www.emofree.com.

In EFT, there is a energetic dynamic called the “tailender”.  Tailenders are self-sabotage messages that usually live below conscious awareness.  You can also think of them as the hidden, “Yeah, but ..” part of affirmation statements.  Because they have been operating for a long time and often get passed down through the generations, they are usually often more powerful than consciously chosen positive thoughts.

How EFT can heal the divide

The problem for spiritual people is that we often have tailenders that limit our ability to allow financial abundance into our life.  Here’s a tapping sequence for clearing this:

Karate Chop: Even though I have this message that spiritual people can’t be wealthy, I’m willing to be a little kinder and more gentle with myself anyway.

Karate Chop: Even though my spirituality is very important to me and I don’t know how to be both spiritual and have abundance, I love and accept myself anyway.

Karate Chop: Even though I don’t know how to have both a deep spiritual life and plenty of money, I’m open to the possibility that there is way I could have both.

Eyebrow: This divide between money and spirituality.

Side of the eye: I don’t know how to have both.

Under the eye: I learned that it’s difficult to have both money and spirituality.

Under the nose: No wonder this has been a source of struggle for me.

Chin: I haven’t known how to have plenty of money and still be spiritual.

Collarbone: I’m choosing to forgive myself for my past struggles about this.

Under the arm: I’m curious if there is a way I could have an easier relationship between and money and spirituality in my life.

Once you’ve tapped on limiting beliefs that create the tension between money and spirituality, you’re ready to tap on opening up to a different kind of relationship between them.

The Solution Sequence

Eyebrow: I’m starting to open up to a new relationship between money and spirituality in my life.

Side of the eye: What if there is a way that I can have plenty of both in my life?

Under the eye: It would be nice to have more ease around money.

Under the nose: I’m curious if there was more ease between money and my spirituality, what would happen in my finances?

Chin: I wonder if I could find more ease between money and spirituality?

Collarbone: I’m choosing to explore a more harmonious relationship between money and spirituality in my life.

Under the arm: It feels good to know that I can have both more money and a deep spiritual awareness in my life.

One of the more exciting spiritual developments recently is that there are a growing number of teachers that feel that a harmonious relationship between money and spirituality is allowable.  Some even teach that it’s fun.  Two books – from very different traditons – that explore this are Geshe Michael Roach’s book The Diamond Cutter and Ester and Jerry Hick’s book, Money and the Law of Attraction.   If you have found other resources that have helped you heal the money and spirituality divide, I’d really appreciate it if you’d mention them in a comment.

Most of my clients are small business owners wanting to grow their business.  To help you do this, I want you to understand a little about the numbers behind success.  Keep breathing now – I’m not going to throw out spirituality and turn into a raving number cruncher.  Think of this post as what spiritual people need to know about the numbers behind a successful business.

Your business is about being of service to the world.  And being of service requires someone to be of service to. In other words, clients sustain your business and sustainability means serving enough people to have a viable business.   What do the numbers look like for a viable mircobusiness?

The Biggest Mistake

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