The Power of Commitment

by Jackie Lapin

Most of us are a paralyzed at the fear of making change, of letting go of what we know, of taking a risk. It is the nature of our ego to hang onto what's familiar...what we can be sure of. Why let go of a sure thing for something far less sure? And when we reach the precipice that requires us to jump, we fall back, afraid of that unknown future. Noted motivational coach and speaker David Neagle calls this The Terror Barrier.

Now you can waffle all you want. And just not decide. It's OK to assuage yourself with a life lived in fear, complacency or downright misery. Whether it's only one aspect of your life –relationship, career, addiction, personal development, etc.-- or all of it. And you can feel alone and stuck.

Or you can MAKE A COMMITMENT and watch the magic happen!

Here's where the ride gets fun! The Universe Rewards Commitment. Once you make a Commitment, all of the doors will open in your favor--in sequence! You may not know exactly how you're going to get where you've planned to go, but once you make The Commitment, you will be guided to the next step. And then the next. And the next one after that.

It's like that scene in just about every Indiana Jones or jungle adventure you've seen in the movies. The hero arrives at the chasm with no means across, and some wizened character says, "Trust—Just take the first step." And sure enough, a hanging bridge appears just as the hero's foot steps forward and with each step, more of the bridge appears.

That's the Power of Commitment. I'll bet that if you look back on your life, you can see this Universal Law in action. When you were passionate about something and you made the Commitment to move forward, all of a sudden the doors started to fly open, people you needed showed up, synchronicities appeared, everything just fell into place.

So what Commitment are you avoiding? Is it a big one or a little one? Does it involve habit change, career change, financial investment, home change, relationship change, releasing a co-dependent person from your life, addressing an addiction, or avoiding confronting a health challenge, for example.

So here's a good exercise to start getting you comfortable with the idea of Commitment. Write your Commitment at the top of a page of paper. Then make a list of pros and cons. Make sure to add on the "cons" such things as: "I'm unhappy. I'm afraid. I can live with what I'm making even though it's poorly paying and I hate my job. I don't feel well, but if I have the operation, I could be worse."

Then on the pros, write the upside: "I am so happy. I feel free. I have more money. My kids are benefiting because I feel radiant and can give them more of my time. I'm loving life. I have a great new home that I love. I'm living addiction-free. I don't have to worry any more now that I've had the operation.".... you get the picture.

Most of us focus on the risks, but hopefully this exercise reminds you of the extraordinary upside—and how could you miss when the whole Universe is lining up to help you once you Make The Commitment!

So stop waffling! Engage the Power of Commitment to create your dream and free yourself to move forward!

Just remember however, that once you reach the next level, you will likely again find yourself at a crossroads. You can fall back to fear, or Commitment and trust again because you know the exhilaration of succeeding through Commitment. Take that first step!


Jackie Lapin tours the world teaching Conscious Creation and Personal Frequency Management. She is the author of "The Art of Conscious Creation; How You Can Transform the World." Sign up to receive Jackie Lapin's life-changing fr*ee ebook: Beyond The Law Of Attraction: How Conscious Creation Can Help You Create The Blueprint For Your Future by going to http://www.theartofconsciouscreation.com/blueprint-ebook.html. To explore more books on Conscious Creation, go to Jackie's online bookstore for the Conscious Creator, www.manifestbooks.com, where you can also sign up to receive a Manifesting Tip a Day.

Three Steps to Your Quantum Leap

by David Neagle

I’ve been sharing with you some of the wisdom from Price Pritchett’s book, You2. Last time, I said that when you want to make a quantum leap, you have to quit trying harder.

More effort is not the answer.

If you want to completely change your outcome, you have to change your approach to the outcome. You have to shift gears, follow new patterns of thought and action.

Pritchett offers several strategies to help you make your own quantum leap. Here are three:

1. Ignore Conventional Approaches

Pritchett writes that we achieve conventional growth because we think along conventional lines. We make modest improvements because we’re not looking for anything more than that.

Quantum leaps require you to abandon the status quo, to ignore the usual.

I’ll be the first to admit that bucking convention is easier said than done. Unconventional approaches are going to bring to the surface any emotional issues or pain you may have around being unusual.

For example, you may fear being embarrassed or being considered “weird.” Perhaps, in addition, “big shots” were ridiculed in your family and neighborhood, so you fear losing love if you excel.

To counteract those fears, you have to recognize them when they come up for you, and then move through them. Take the action regardless of the fear. After you do that a couple of times, you’ll realize that your subconscious can scare you, but it doesn’t have to stop you.

You also have to become more solid in who you are. That way, your results won’t derail you either. If you fail, it’s okay. You’re not devastated by the failure because it doesn’t define you. And if you succeed, that’s okay too.

2. Get Ruthless About Doing Something Different

Pritchett writes that the you-squared approach requires an abrupt change in behavior. You have to get ruthless about trying something different. Look for a paradoxical move. Be illogical. Use finesse instead of effort.

For example, unlike the fly I told you about, if you’re banging your head against the glass, stop and look for an open door. If you’re pushing against the river, try going with the flow.

It’s crucial that you do something new. Faith in the familiar blinds you to better pathways. You may not know what that better pathway is yet, but as long as you rely upon what you’ve always done, you’re not going to find it.

However, if you break out of your rut, second-guess your routines, overcome the reliance upon your old methodologies, you will open yourself up to receive new, inspired ideas. And with those new ideas and actions can come the solution for your quantum leap.

3. Seek the Elegant Solution

While you’re experimenting, keep in mind that you’re seeking an elegant solution, an approach that is simple, precise, efficient and neat, less demanding of your energies and emotions. As Pritchett writes, it will be a deft move or a path of less resistance.

You really can accomplish more by doing less. But in order to do that, you have to think beyond what common sense would allow.

Do you recall my exercise from last time? I wanted you to ask yourself how you could accomplish ten times more in your business by doing less. What ideas did you come up with? Did you get discouraged because they seemed unrealistic? Or, did you trust, like I said, that if you have the idea, the way to do it will show up as well?

Go find your list and keep those ideas alive. Allow brilliance to strike. It may not come in the way that you expect, but it will come.

Solutions exist all around you. Open up your mind, experiment in your actions and let yourself leap.

© Copyright 2010 – David Neagle’s Life Is Now Inc., All Rights Reserved Worldwide.

David Neagle, Million Dollar Income Acceleration Coach, mentors entrepreneurs to quantum leap their current businesses past the 7-Figure income level in just 12 months. David invites you to download—as his GIFT to you—his legendary “Art of Success” 4-hour audio program. This audio series is a tremendously compelling and comprehensive program that demonstrates—once and for all—that Success has nothing to do with “getting” or “achieving”, and everything to do with WHO we must BE to manifest our hearts’ true desires. For an additional bonus, Join our Text for Success mobile messaging program! Simply Te xt: success to the number: 85800

Expand Your Prosperity Consciousness

by Jack Canfield

Understanding the relationship among consciousness, action, and prosperity is crucial to your success.

In my seminars I sometimes stand in front of the room and hold up a $100 bill, state that I’m wiling to give it away, and ask if anyone would like to have it.

Usually lots of people raise their hand – and do nothing else. I keep waiving the dollar bill until someone finally jumps out of his or her chair, walks or runs all the way up to the stage and reaches up to take the bill.

There are two lessons here. One is that money goes to the person who takes the necessary action. The other is that a certain state of consciousness makes it possible to take action – or to avoid it.

When I ask people what kept them from walking up to the front of the room to claim the money, I always get the same answers: they felt shy. They worried about what other people would think. They thought it was a trick. Those answers come from a consciousness dominated by fear, scarcity, and cynicism.

The same forces can operate in our daily lives. In each moment we either feed those forces – or replace them with something better. Following are some essential ways to expand your prosperity consciousness and claim the wealth you deserve.

Monitor Your Conversations

We swim in a sea of conversation. Every time you attend a meeting, make a phone call, or send an email, you start up a conversation. Whenever you listen to an audio recording or pick up a book, you start a conversation with an author. And whenever you write in your journal or just a take a few minutes to sit and think, you start a conversation with yourself.

Consider the combined effect of those conversations. My friend Jim Rohn liked to say that we are the average of the five people with whom we spend the most time. The quality of our conversations creates the quality of our lives.

Who are the five people that dominate the “conversation space” in your life? What did you talk about the last time you saw each person? And did that conversation build up your prosperity consciousness or tear it down?

Stay in Prosperity Conversations

Make it a point to drop out of the “aint it awful” club – toxic conversations with people who dwell on resentments or complaints. Instead, get engaged in conversations that support your path to prosperity.

For example, spend more time with the people who are already doing the kind of work you want to do. Ask them how they entered the field and what it takes to succeed.

In addition, read at least one book per week. Focus on uplifting stories and biographies of successful people. Read more and learn ways to build your skills at managing money, raising happy children, creating loving relationships, and maintaining your health. Feed your prosperity consciousness with a constant stream of useful, positive ideas.

Keep Catching Your Dream

Have you ever shared your dream with someone who then doubted your ability to achieve it? This happened to Mark Victor Hansen and me during a conversation with the publisher of Chicken Soup for the Soul. We asked him how many copies of the book we should expect to sell. The publisher said that we’d be lucky to sell 20,000 copies.

Believe me, that was NOT our dream! Our goal was to sell 150,000 copies in six months and 1.5 million in 18 months. Our publisher just laughed out loud and said it was impossible.

We ended up selling 135,000 copies in six months and 1.3 million in 18 months. We didn’t quite meet our initial goals, yet we sold much more than our publisher estimated. That first book went on to sell over eight million copies in America and 10 million copies around the world.

Whenever you have a dream-killing conversation, you have two options. Give up your dream or return to your original intention with even more energy and commitment. Focusing on your original intention sends an urgent message to your mind: I am going to persist until my dream manifests. Starting right now!

Support this deeper level of intention with affirmations, such as:

• I always attract the perfect people to work with me.
• No matter what is going on in the economy, I attract people I can help – and who can help me.
• Our customer base is expanding.
• Repeat business and referrals keep coming my way.
• Then add supporting visualizations. See yourself holding bigger paychecks, rent checks, or royalty checks in your hands. Visualize people handing you cash.

Give Back

Round out these images with visions of sharing the wealth. Many of the world’s wealthiest people are dedicated tithers, meaning they give 10 percent of their income to charitable organizations.

Visualize yourself doing the same thing. Those who give also receive, and service always comes back multiplied.

© 2010 Jack Canfield
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Are you "stuck" in this area?

If you'd like me to personally help you clarify your vision for the year, align your goals with your purpose, and develop a detailed action plan to turn your dream into reality...
www.TheSuccessPrinciplesWorkshop.com

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Jack Canfield, America's #1 Success Coach, is founder of the billion-dollar book brand Chicken Soup for the Soul© and a leading authority on Peak Performance and Life Success. If you're ready to jump-start your life, make more money, and have more fun and joy in all that you do, get your FREE success tips from Jack Canfield now at: www.FreeSuccessStrategies.com

"Women Entrepreneurs - The Secrets of Success" for Wednesday, May 26th

Dr. Barnsley Brown is a self-proclaimed "steel magnolia" in a long line of strong Southern women. She brings the storytelling skills passed on from her mother and grandmother and the business smarts of her entrepreneurial family (her grandfather was a super-successful entrepreneur) to her work with individuals and groups.

Dr. Barnsley graduated magna cum laude from Wake Forest University and studied in France and England before earning her MSc from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland and her PhD from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Prior to launching Spirited Solutions™, she taught at Wake Forest University, Duke University, and UNC-Chapel Hill.

Dr. Barnsley began taking business courses on the side while finishing her PhD and teaching, and made the leap into running her own purpose-filled business on September 11th, 2000.  She hasn't looked back, and wants to share with you the vision, steps, and strategies that enabled her to create a powerful, passionate, and profitable business that integrates all of her passions and talents into a unique mission.  You can do the same, and Dr. Barnsley would like to show you how.

It's not enough to be 50% or 75% satisfied with your life.  Dr. Barnsley decided long ago when she was about 75% happy in her professorial career that this was not enough.  Our vision DEMANDS that we take action and create something as unique as our fingerprints.  Come learn some tips and tools to nourish and nurture your unique vision in this interview with Dr. Barnsley Brown.

12:00 pm EDT
Listen to the live or archived show at
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/CoachDeb

Today on Women Entrepreneurs -The Secrets of Success

Guest Host Elena Camp interviews Monica Thakrar, President and CEO of Joyful Soul Coaching, a coaching firm that specializes in holistic coaching focused on body, mind, and spirit alignment. Monica's mission is to help people live joyfully and authentically by finding their true passions and taking the risks to go after them. She believes that when people's actions are in alignment with their true heart's desires they can achieve their greatest dreams.

Monica's own journey began when she began to soul search to figure out what she wanted to be when she grew up so that she could live more joyfully. Externally she looked successful, but inside she knew she was not living her best life. She always wanted to help people and she found Newfield Network (or it felt like it found her!). She realized that the holistic approach to living was the most effective way of living a balanced, connected, and joyful life.

Before becoming a coach, Monica worked in the Financial Management
Program at General Electric. She also worked as a Manager in BearingPoint's Organizational Change Management group for over 7
years. As a consultant Monica worked with Executives and mid-managers in large public sector, commercial, and international organizations to prepare them and their organizations to adopt large scale technology or process changes.

Monica is also a graduate of the ICF certified Newfield Network
coaching program as well as is a certified Soul Coach through the
Denise Linn Soul Coaching Program. Monica has worked with numerous
coaching clients in order to live their most joyful lives possible.
www.JoyfulSoulCoaching.com

How to Make Positive Changes in Your Life

by Deborah A. Bailey
What are you attracting? Years ago a career coach told me that I had to work on becoming "irresistibly attractive." I didn't completely understand it at the time, but now I do. When we hear the word, "attractive" we usually think of physical appearance. That's what makeovers usually focus on, don't they? Changing the outside and expecting that the inside will just fall into place.

If you don't think you deserve a better job, a rewarding career or a successful business, how can you achieve it? How can you reach something if you don't feel you can have it? If I don't believe in my business, then it's not likely that I'll attract clients who want to work with me. It's also not likely that I'll be successful if I don't believe it's possible for me.

Even though I'd been dreaming of my own business for years, once I started it I didn't completely believe in it. I wondered how I could compete with more experienced entrepreneurs, and how I could attract people who saw value in what I could do for them. What I have learned is that if I don't think my work has value, I'm going to attract people who don't see the value either - and I certainly can't build a business that way.

Instead of complaining about what you have, think about what you want to accomplish. Do you want a new job, or to return to school or move to a new place? What steps are you taking to make those things happen?

1. Write down your ideas for the future. If you're going back to school, what courses do you want to take? If you want to move, where do you want to go?

2. Look at where you are now and write down the things you'll need to move forward.

3. Consider your everyday thoughts - do you go from believing you can reach your goals to being discouraged? You won't be able to move forward if you don't believe that that you can.

If you want to change for the better, then you have to believe in it. You have to be there on the inside long before you see the outside results.

Deborah A. Bailey is author of two non-fiction books including, “Think Like an Entrepreneur: Transforming Your Career and Taking Charge of Your Life.” She's also the creator and host of Women Entrepreneurs Radio, a weekly internet talk show. Her fiction work includes a short story collection and a novel, available on Amazon.com. 

For more information, visit http://www.BrightStreetBooks.com.