They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I’ll let this video do the talking. Sometimes it’s important to remember money is not the most important thing.
Truly amazing…
Christian the lion
At least to AgentSully (Kris) over at Lifelearningtoday.com!
I had a fun interview with Kris about my experience writing “When Money Talks, Listen!”.
Please take a look at the interview, and check our her great site while you’re there…..(tell her Myster Money sent you!). Link below…
Ok, I made a slight edit, but with good reason which I’ll explain. This was a headline I saw on Yahoo today: “Oil prices plunge at fastest rate in 17rs!”
I couldn’t help but think of all the doom and gloom headlines regarding oil that have been coming out daily for months and months.
“Gas prices could hit $7 a gallon”
“No end in site to runaway oil prices”
“Economy teetering due to skyrocketing oil prices”
Think back even just a week ago. Would you have imagined seeing the headline today, “Oil prices plunge at fastest rate in 17rs”?
Gee, what could next week bring?
“No bottom in site to falling oil prices”
“Experts predict a free-fall to $1 a gallon”
“Stock market explodes to record highs as oil prices collapse”
No, I am not making this prediction (at least not as soon as next week), but I am trying to point out that we say similar negative headlines to ourselves every day, don’t we? And we believe them to…
“We’re slipping into a recession, I’ll never find a job now”
“My money problems are skidding out of control”
“My life is a disaster, and things are about to get worse”
Oil goes up, and it goes down. As does the stock market, the housing market, and our problems.
You see, the media have known for decades that the key to catching our attention is a great headline…especially one that scares the daylights out of us.
Well, our crafty old minds have picked up on this little gem of a strategy. It’s called “Sensationalizing”…a quick look at Dictionary.com and I found, “Sensationalizing: To cast and present in a manner intended to arouse strong interest, especially through inclusion of exaggerated or lurid details”
So, the moral of the story is this. The next headline you read that scares you, remember the above definition, especially the word “exaggerated”. And more importantly, do the same thing the next time you hear that little sensationalizing headline writer inside your head. Since we attract what we think about, it’s probably time to promote yourself to Editor and Chief and redline your “head”-lines.
Rich
Many of us walk around looking for the answers that will make us happier, healthier, or more successful. Wandering, but not finding, we end up feeling tired and depressed, like the dog chasing his tail. But just like the dog who doesn’t realize that the tail belongs to him, we fail to realize that the answers we seek belong to us. So I’ve created some fun and thought provoking questions to ask that special person who holds all of your answers…you!
This is a great exercise to do in the morning by yourself, or the evening before bed. But, it’s also a fun thing to do in a group setting, or just go around the table at dinner. Some questions have a follow up which I have denoted as part (a).
1. I would be happier if I had?
1 (a). I’ll bet if I just did this (fill in), I would probably get it.
2. I’d be willing to try this new good habit (fill in)for the next 21 days.
3. I’d have a much better day tomorrow if I just did this today.
4. I’ll bet that this belief of mine (fill in) isn’t even true after all.
5. I’d be willing to believe this (fill in) for the next week.
6. I’d probably like myself more if I just did (didn’t) do this.(fill in)
7. Probably the number one reason I don’t have more money is this (fill in)
7 (a) I’d be willing to try this (fill in) to help change #7.
8. I’d be willing to stop trying to control (him, her, or this)
9. I would be most disappointed if I died before having done or accomplishing this? (fill in)
10. I’m really good at? (Fill in)
10 (a) If I’m not, should I be doing #10 for a living?
11. I’d be willing to stop doing/believing this (fill in) for the next month.
12. Rather than getting upset, the next time this (fill in) happens, I’m going to do this (fill in) instead.
13. I’d be willing to give up wanting to be, do, or have this (fill in)
14. I really love (fill in)
15. If I just did this (fill in) today, I’d be happier.
16. I’ll be this person (fill in) would love to hear from me.
17. Does anyone else make a good living at doing what I do well?
17 (a) Why don’t I do #17?
18. I’d be willing to do this (fill in) to be in better shape.
19. It seems whenever I do this (fill in), everything gets better.
20. If I just did this (fill in), the way I do that (fill in), I’m sure I’d be successful at it.
21. Ok, I give up trying to figure this out (fill in); I’m now turning it over to God.
22. Rather than simply preaching this (fill in), I should probably practice it.
23. If I just stopped procrastinating on this (fill in) everyday, my days would be so much better.
24. If I got this much money (fill in), I’d feel so much better.
24 (a) List 10 ways it’s possible to get #24. Stretch your mind.
25. My life is so much better whenever I do this (fill in)
26. I should probably make this (fill in) a goal of mine and go for it, rather than thinking about it.
27. I’d do this (fill in) if I wasn’t afraid.
27 (a) Have you ever tried to face rather than run from the fear in #27?
28. If I had this much money (fill in), I’d help out (fill in)
29. I’ve been thinking and worrying about this (fill in) for way too long, it’s time to just do it.
30. If I did nothing else to improve my life other than this (fill in), I’ll bet I’d feel great.
Please feel free to share some of your favorite answers or some additional questions that you came up with.
Wishing you all the best,
Rich
I just finished reading “Happy For No Reason” by Marci Shimoff, and now I have a good reason to be happy. For a little background, Marci has co-authored Chicken Soup for the Woman’s Soul, and is one of the featured teachers from the movie, The Secret.
The book teaches a 7 Steps to Being Happy, which she lays out in a clever analogy of building a home, a Home for Happiness as she calls it.
The Happy 100
We’ve all seen many top 100 lists, but here is one truly worth aspiring to make. Marci interviewed people from all walks of life and from around the globe and compiled a list of her Happy 100. (No, she didn’t call me)
The book is filled with some remarkable stories from these Happy 100. Each story I read became my favorite, just long enough until I reached the next one.
Sip A Fine Wine
This is not the type of book you want to hurry through and finish in a couple of sittings. I began reading a chapter at night while in bed. I figured it would be a nice way to head into sleep..and it was. I found myself looking forward to each night knowing that I had another chapter to read, a new favorite story to enjoy, and another night of sweet dreams. So I am a little saddened now that I am finished, and a tad envious to those of you who have yet to begin.
I don’t know Marci personally, but I found myself wishing I did. I guess that’s the sign of a good writer….and perhaps just a good person.
So if you are looking for a reason to be happy, buy the book…(Link to Marci’s Website) …. and then you can learn to be happy for no reason. And hopefully one day we’ll all be on her Happy 1 Billion.
Rich
“We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give”. Sir Winston Churchill
Ok, here is your chance to be put into the history books. Quotes can come from anyone, even our friend “anonymous” has his or her share out there. Today it’s your turn. I am going to compile a list of “new” quotes, and they will come from all of you. Anyone who reads this has their chance of being quoted for the rest of time. The 10 best will be listed as “The 10 Best Quotes of the 21st Century” in a future post, and hopefully on tv. Below are the rules.
1) Authentic: This is an opportunity to strut your stuff! Please, no plagiarizing. If you choose to be anonymous, sign your quote as “anonymous”.
2) Submit: Write your new, awesome, soon to be classic quote as a comment to this post on www.mystermoney.com/blog
3) Spread to word: Digg it. Stumble it. Blog it. Email it. Whatever your method, make sure you do your part to increase the number of entries so you can see how you compare to the best of the best.
4) Number of Entries: You may submit one quote per day for the duration of the contest. Contest ends Feb 29th, 2008.
5) Judging: I will be putting together a list of judges to determine the 10 best quotes. The judges will include yours truly, some fellow bloggers, authors, and perhaps even a celebrity or two! (sshh).
Oprah
Ok, I can’t promise this, but we will attempt to get the new “10 Best Quotes of the 21st Century” announced on Oprah. You never know.
To get us started…
“Should we fail to reach any of our hopes and dreams, it will be due to only one reason. All the time we spent trying to find that reason” Richard Ezzo, author, “When Money Talks, Listen!”
Best of luck to you, and here’s to seeing your quote referred to in the 22nd century!
Rich
Allowance: The act of allowing: Permission
Isn’t it funny that the word allowance, which most of us link to receiving money from our parents, has the word “allow” in it? And, according to Merriam-Webster dictionary (above), one of its meanings is to “allow”, or give “permission”!
This is the key to the law of attraction. I know that many, many people are struggling attracting the things that they desire using some of the tools and techniques that are suggested for the law of attraction. They get frustrated and give up. The main reason for this is that the last step is usually to “let go”, or just “allow” it to happen. And this is where people fail. Thus, no results are had.
Let’s first agree that the law of attraction is real. Feel free to change the wording, and call it belief, faith, ability to attract, etc. But, look around you. Do you seem to always “attract” money problems? Or, do you always “attract” the same type of person as a partner? What issues consistently come into your life? How can every guy/girl you date treat you the same way?? Are you attracting this? Yes. Ok, enough convincing. I assume if you’re here you already know it works.
Change the Game!
Ok, so you’ve tried to attract money, a better mate, a better job, but all you seemed to attract was depression from failing to attract them. So, let’s change our game plan and get this to work for us. Instead of focusing on the desire outcome, such as an amount of money, or whatever you desire, focus on living in a state of allowance. Just being in this state will bring your desires to you. Let’s face it, you’ve already “asked”, right? Haven’t you asked enough? Now let’s give ourselves the permission to receive.
Try and identify that feeling you get after you’ve received something you wanted. A great gift, you won some money, you were asked out by that certain someone, you got the job offer, whatever it may be. Isn’t there a lightness? Doesn’t it feel like a pressure valve has been opened, and your whole body just relaxes? This is the state I’m referring to, not necessarily the excitement, but the relief feeling. That’s being open. That’s what it feels like to not be in the state of “wanting”. Once you’ve identified that feeling, welcome it. Then, catch yourself when you feel stress in your body. This means your mind has just thought about something you don’t have and has gone into wanting again. Fear is the same thing. The tightness will usually hit your chest, your stomach, or your neck and shoulders. Go inside and look at it. Then imagine a valve on the outside, and just open it. Let that pressure out. Hear it come out if that helps.
Then say to yourself, “Ahh, I love being so open”. Use reminders as you go about your day. When you open a door, remind yourself to open up and let go of any pressure. When you see a green light, do the same. When you open a bottle or can, just pause, and let it all go.
Taking your mind off of what you’re lacking, and focusing more on being open will make you feel great, and will allow your blessing the chance to come to you. A good habit is to remind yourself each morning that you will be open today. Try and do this with each bite you take of your breakfast. Your mouth has to “open” to receive the food. So open yourself up too with each bite, and decide that today you will be open. At night when you go to bed, think back on your day and remember how many times you remembered to open up and allow.
Your allowance is waiting!
Rich
When nice things happen to us, I think we need to stop and say thank you. And mean it of course.
Yesterday I was fortunate to have my book reviewed on a very popular blog, Self Help Daily.
Joi (pronounced Joy, as it should be) wrote such a nice review of my book that I am truly humbled. No, we are not friends, or even acquaintances. We’ve never even spoken.
But I do want to stop and say thank you, Joi.
She’s put together a great site, so please stop by and browse, it will do your mind good. She also is encouraging us to help those who are much less fortunate, as she has done by sponsoring a young boy named Theoneste. I think I’ll go do the same.
Thank you , Joi…
Rich
As many of you know who read my book, “When Money Talks, Listen”, I mention the existence of “mystery money”. In fact, I have a chapter devoted to it, and wrote an article regarding this, myster (y) money.
Another story just popped up out of Japan, and I thought I would share it with you. Nice to know that people still give, and it is even more impressive to see it done with the commitment and anonymity of the person in this story.
Some news is good news! Have a look and forward along…
Rich
What do you want?
Sometimes we find ourselves asking questions such as… Do I really want this job? Do I really want this relationship? Do I really want to be rich? Well, I have a very simple answer to these, and all other “what do I really want” questions.
Look around. Whatever you “have”, you “want”.
Yes, ask and it is given. Now I know this doesn’t feel good to hear, but it is true. If you are broke, you want to be. If you are alone, in a bad relationship, overweight, or stuck in a dead end job, that’s what you want! Still reading? Good. Intuitively, this is tough to grasp. It reminds me of a great line from the movie “The Breakup”, with Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn. In the scene, she asks him to help her with the dishes right after dinner. But he has just plopped down on the couch, and wants to just relax and play a video game. An argument ensues, and finally he reluctantly gets up and agrees. She’s not happy now, and he asks why. She says, “I want you to want to do the dishes”. He looks at her as though she’s grown a third eye and brilliantly replies, “Why I would I want to do the dishes?”
Because I Said So!
As a kid I would often pester my father with “why” questions. Especially whenever he said no to one of my many requests. After much deliberation, he would finally put an end to the discussion with the famous line, “because I said so”. I am certain I am not the only kid who ever heard that one. And how many of you who used to hear that as kids are now using it on your kids?? But, this is a good example of how our mind works. When it came to voting rights, I’d say my father had 90%, to my 10%. Ok, he had 100%. Does that mean I was powerless? No. I could decide how to react to his decision. Perhaps I could spend time figuring out why he decided that, rather than fighting against the decision. Or, I could just accept it, and go back to playing with my electric train.
This is how the mind works. In the end, the subconscious mind has 100% voting rights. We can argue, fight, want, wish, beg, but we will lose every time. So, are we powerless to it? No. Again, we can accept it and go on enjoying our “electric trains”, or better still, we can figure out why we want that. I say “we”, because in the end, that is what we really want. And that’s the good news. We do get whatever we want.
The best way to work with this is to figure out why. Our minds like to manage and figure things out. Use this to your advantage, and play Sherlock Holmes for a while. Let’s use the example of my father and me, assuming he is taking the role of my subconscious mind. I want a mini-bike. The kind with a motor. He says, no! I beg, cry, whine, scream, pound the couch, threaten to run away, you know em all. Still, no mini-bike. Frankly, my chances have diminished with every move I make. Does any of this sound familiar? Is this still how we are behaving as adults, but asking God instead of our parents?
My Dear Watson…..
So let’s say instead that I decided to figure out why he didn’t want me to have one. I take out a sheet of paper and a crayon, and scribble “me” on one side, “Dad” on the other, and then draw an almost undetectable picture of my mini-bike above. On my side I write that it would be fun. On his side I right that I would crash. Break my arm. Break my nose. Bleed. Go the hospital. Get hit by a car. Get hit by a tree. Chased by neighbors dog. Caught. Bit. Bleed. Back to the hospital….Ok, thanks Dad!! See. I didn’t “truly” want the mini-bike in my mind, so I wouldn’t allow myself to get it.
Try this with whatever it is that you want. If you are broke, figure out why you want to be. Yes, you want to be, for some reason. Could be you want to rescued, you want others pity, you want to feel the need for God. Any number of psychological reasons that I don’t dare try and figure out, but they are there.
The Good News!
Yes, there is good news. As soon as you figure out why you want what you think you don’t want, the safe has been cracked. You are now in alignment, and the situation will reverse itself. Imagine this….”Dad, I figure that you don’t want me to have a mini-bike because you think I will get hurt or hit by a car. Thanks for worrying about me. Ok, I promise that I will only ride it in the field where there are no trees or potholes. I will walk it whenever I am on the road, and I will only ride it when Mom can come and watch. And I’ll always have my helmet on”.
I’ll bet my chances of now getting the mini-bike just went way up. The same is true for you. Just identify the bully, say I’m not afraid of you now, and away he goes.
Until I walk in the garage and see that mini-bike with a ribbon on it, I’ll be here enjoying my electric train!
Rich