What You See is What You Get

Have you ever been in a near crash? I have. I have also gone all the way and totally smashed up my vehicle. There have been times driving in icy winter weather that all I could do was take my foot off the gas, and let go of the wheel, and HOPE that my car would set itself right. Sometimes the more you struggle, the more damage you cause. What you resist persists.

Long ago I heard a statement that totally resonated with me – and this was long before the “law of attraction” was a hip buzzword. The statement is this: “What you focus on is what you achieve”. The Rev. Beckwith of “The Secret” fame puts it this way, “Energy flows where the attention goes.” Let’s examine what that looks like in practice, sticking with the driving analogy.

Tony Robbins tells the tale of his adventures in learning how to drive race cars. As he was getting in to do a few practice runs, the instructor told him specifically NOT to look at the wall, especially if the car began to lose control. Sure enough, Tony recounts that as he began to circle the track, he lost control of the vehicle and saw the wall come spinning towards him – and although he could hear the instructor’s words in his mind, he could NOT take his eyes of the wall as it loomed dangerously closer and closer. Sure enough, he crashed into the wall.

Second try – again, as he took the corner, the car begin to spin. He could hear it… “Do not look at the wall…” Still, he could not shift his focus, and before you could say, “oops I’m going to crash”, he was once again, kissing the wall with his race car.

Third try – the mantra was rolling through his mind as he got behind the wheel. Better still, rather than telling himself NOT to look at the wall, Tony gave his mind new instructions: “Keep your eyes on the road!” So as he began his third practice run around the track and the car begin to feel like it was spinning out of control, rather than focusing his attention on the wall, he redirected it to the road. Surprisingly, he was able to maintain control of the vehicle, and keep it on the track!

Is this result really so surprising? I think not. Consider your bad days. What are you focused on? Are you thinking about how beautiful the world is or are you dwelling on all the things in your life that are going wrong? On good days, are you wandering around looking for reasons to complain, or are you setting your sights on all that is right in your world. Contrary to popular belief, happiness is not based on the things around you, but it is a state of mind. What you focus on is what you achieve. If you focus your thoughts on what is negative, you will achieve a state of negativity. Likewise, if you focus your thoughts on what is good, and feelings of positivity, that is what you will perpetuate in your life.

The same is true for anger. There are lots of things going on in the world that could contribute to feelings of anger – things beyond our comprehension or our control. Children being murdered by their parents and siblings; oil spilling into the ocean at rates so alarming we cannot fathom the ecological damage; David Beckham losing out on his opportunity to play in the World Cup… so much to be angry about!

Seriously folks: what you focus on is what you will achieve. If you focus on negativity, don’t be surprised when all you experience is a STATE of negativity! Rather than focusing on what gets your ire up, direct your attention to how you can generate solutions to those challenges in your life. And if the situation is completely out of your control, let go of the wheel, and relax. Things will straighten out on their own.

28 Days Left - The Final Push in the 80 Day Challenge

I'm curious to know how many of you have been sticking with the 80-Day Challenge that I started with you at the beginning of October. We are quickly winding down, and I have another installment in the process to help you continue to build momentum as we approach January 1st, 2009.

But first a review:
Our very first exercise came to us courtesy of Mark Victor Hansen, co-author of the Chicken Soup for the Soul Series as well as several other great works including The Aladdin Factor ( a must read for anyone wanting to set and achieve goals). You will remember that this exercise was about finding your "YOU ARE HERE" dot for your life. You asked yourself some key questions: what did achieve in 2008? Are you healthier? Happier? Wealthier? Wiser? What challenges were you still facing at the time of doing that exercise? What about now? Have you faced and overcome any of those challenges during this process? Have you created any wins for yourself over the last 60 days? What situations still exist in your life that you know you need to address in order to move forward?

Our second exercise was from the brilliant Morgana Rae, and focused on your relationship with money. What did you learn about yourself and your limiting beliefs around money? Have you re-defined what your relationship with money will be like from now on? Have you decided to make money a welcome visitor in your home - perhaps one that will take up residence in your business on a more permanent basis?

Our third lesson in the 80-Day Challenge focused on The Law of Seed and Harvest - and provided you with some tips on how to make the most of the time, energy, and money that you invest into your life or your business. What seeds have you decided to plant? What "gardens" are you currently nurturing, and what kind of fruit will they yield in the harvest? Have you begun thinking about the natural growing seasons in your life, and how you can make the best of the time you have to work with? Remember that the Law of Seed and Harvest relates to all aspects of our lives: work, love, family, pets, money, business, health, spirituality and faith. Nothing happens "instantly". You need to build skills to get that good job. You need to be willing to love and be loved in order for romance to blossom. Kids don't grow up overnight although it seems that way sometimes. Pets need to be trained and acclimatized to your family's routines. Money must be invested in order for it to grow. Businesses all start somewhere - none of them become overnight successes - there was work, planning, and investment of time, energy, and money long before the success came. If you want to be healthy, you have to sow good seeds - if you sow rotten seeds (drugs, alcohol, junk food, nicotine, etc.), you will reap a rotten harvest. And of course with spirituality and faith - to develop a relationship with your creator also takes time and attention on your part. Nothing comes from nothing - you have to plant, water, and nurture the seeds for the harvest you hope to reap.

That brought us to our T quadrant in the most recent lesson: Taking Stock. This is about isolating where exactly you want to plant those seeds as you move forward either in your career, job, or business. I have always believed that one should do what one loves, and the money will follow. I still think this is true. However, I have recently re-framed that concept - if we do what we love by following a proven SYSTEM, and sticking with the PLAN, the money will not only follow, it will FLOW. The Law of Seed and Harvest is about following a universal system that will lead to a harvest every time. The T quadrant is about clarifying your vision so that you can plan ahead to do more of what you really love - the stuff that is FUN and makes you money.

Where do we go from here?
With only 20 something days left in the challenge, it is time to move into action steps. By now you should have a clear concept of what you want to accomplish (work wise) in 2009. You have re-framed your ideas about money, and you know what challenges you are currently facing. You understand that you need to plant something in order to reap a harvest, and that what you plant matters. So I have TWO assignments for you to follow through on in order to get yourself moving into action.

First: Make a list of the things you want to accomplish in 2009. Break your list down into categories -
Work
Love/Family
Money
Business
Health
Spirituality and faith
Intellectual/Education
Community/Legacy

Now - Narrow your focus down to the first 90-120 days of 2009. Which of these goals must you begin working on immediately if you are to reach your major milestones by the end of the year? What seeds must you plant, and how long will it take for them to convert into a viable harvest? For example: if you want to find true love, what steps must you take NOW in order to be able to say, "Happy New Year Honey!" to your dream lover on Dec. 31st 2009? If you want to land that "whale" account for your company, who do you need to contact? How will you build the relationship with that potential customer? What limiting beliefs must you shed in order to make this desired goal a reality?

Lastly - make a list of action steps you can begin within the next 20 - 28 days so that when 2009 rolls around, you will already be on your way to materializing the vision you just described through the goal setting process.

I can't wait to hear from you! Please feel free to post you comments on this site, or email me directly with your results. There will be one final installment in this 80-Day Challenge - the wrap-up. Look for it closer to the end of the month.

The SIX Principles of the Law of Seed and Harvest

[photo: John Assaraf, Author of The Answer holding his new copy of Stress Less in 27 Days, with me at The Phenomenal View - Oct. 25]

As the next installment of our 80 Day Challenge exercises, I want to introduce you to a concept that will help you engage the Law of Attraction in a more tangible way. John Assaraf calls it "The Law of Gender" - I call it, "The Law of Seed and Harvest".

The law of seed and harvest is something that I have taught and embraced for many years, but within the context of current teachings about the Law of Attraction, I believe this concept has real value. There are certain elements of the law of seed and harvest that I believe you must understand and apply in order to get the results that you want.

First, you must understand and have a clear concept of WHAT YOU WANT TO GROW. If you want roses, you're not going to plant dandelions. Choose wisely, and focus your attention on the harvest you want to reap.

Second, you must apply what John Assaraf calls, "The Law of GOYA". This stands for "Get Off Your ____". The Bible tells the story of a sower and the story begins this way, "A sower went out to sow..." You actually have to get off your butt, and sow the seed. You will never reap a harvest if you don't do the work that is required first.

Third, You need to sow your seed on good ground. The biblical parable goes on to say that some seed fell on stony ground, on bad soil (weed infested), and some on good ground. Why not bypass the bad soil and focus your energy and attention on good ground? This is a topic that we could spend hours on, but for now, I just want you to think about what qualifies as good ground in your life or your business? Make a list. Now make another list of everywhere that you have been "sowing" - have you been using more of a scatter gun approach rather than focusing on your vision?

Fourth, You need to nurture the seeds you sow. Plants and crops require a certain kind of favourable environment in order to bring forth a good harvest - things like sunlight, rain or irrigation, fertilizer, and time. What can you do to cultivate the seeds you have planted?

Fifth, Remember that everything that grows has a cycle - a growing season if you will. Nothing - I repeat, NOTHING happens overnight. The other day a good friend to me said, "Wow, things are really happening for you - change is coming overnight!" My response to her was, "It's not really an overnight success story - It is more like a 10 year process - it is just that now, we are building momentum and change is happening more swiftly. In life and in business, you can find ways to shorten your growing season, or lengthen it as need arises; however, every growing thing has a natural growth cycle. Know your growing season, and work within it.

Last but not least, understand this: The more seed you sow, the greater your harvest will be. This in effect is the principle of working smarter, not harder. Sowing takes the same amount of effort if you sow 50 seeds or 150, or 1500. The degree of your success will relate directly to the amount of work you put in at the beginning, and what you do to cultivate the seeds during their cycle of growth.

What can you do to create an abundant harvest - the one you really want for your self, your family, or your business? Do me a favour, and write in. Let me know how this has helped you.

In our next newsletter I'm going to give you a great exercise to help you quickly evaluate every activity you engaged in this year - to help you clarify your vision of where you will focus your energy and attention in 2009.