Keeping Your Mind Alive and Well

A New Experience Near The Place You Are Living Now

One of the primary foundations of any success we have in life is a curious, active, and always expanding mind. You don’t retire from being a creative thinker.

Chances are there are opportunities for a major booster shot to your imagination all around you. So here is the exercise I propose:  Imagine that you will be leaving the geographic area where you now live permanently in the near future. Now look around and think about what resource or adventure or fascinating sight or site is nearby that you have never yet explored. And simply go there, perhaps spend a day soaking it in. Living, as I do, in the San Francisco Bay area, for me that might be a visit to the campus at Stanford University, or taking a walk across the Golden Gate Bridge, or spending a day in Santa Cruz, which I hear is lovely, but have never visited. Suppose, for some reason, I decide to relocate in Central America and never come back this way again. What would I regret never having done or seen?  There are neighborhoods in San Francisco itself I have never walked around, which is a shame in what many consider the best walking-around city in the world.

Just the other day, I had dinner with a new friend who lives in a neighborhood I had never known existed before. It’s known as Cow Hollow, for the dairy farms that used to be plentiful in the good old days. Her home was originally owned by her great-grandparents and has a magnificent view of the bay. I’m sure there are other parts of the city equally interesting and perhaps downright breathtaking. When is the last time your breath was taken away by some new place you visited or came upon? This is what keeps us young and alive, and what stimulates that part of our brains that helps us manifest prosperity.  After all, if you believe (as I do) that prosperity is a state of mind, the nourishment of your mind is an activity you want to keep replenishing with new stimuli.

Things change–which is the one constant we can always depend on in our lives. There was a restaurant called Spork that I experienced a few months ago in San Francisco. There was one dish I was looking forward to trying on one of my future visits. But suddenly Spork was out of business, and that specialized meal is something I may never ever get to taste. If I do leave this area, a real possibility in the next year or so, there are many things I will have missed out on. One I didn’t even know about until last year was The Marsh, home of the theatrical solo performance, where I took a class with Charlie Varon, their artist-in-residence, and performed a brief workshop version of my one man show in their theatre. Another opportunity unique to this area is the San Francisco Comedy College, where I am now enrolled in a class and exploring a completely new career in stand-up. Whether or not I am successful at this, the impact on my brain will be hugely beneficial. In a few days, I debut a five minute stand-up bit at the famed Purple Onion club. I am already finding myself bursting with new ideas funny and serious.

Even though I will never get to explore all the possibilities in this part of the world, I can honestly now say I am soaking up some powerful local stimuli. Wherever I may or may not settle in coming years, I can feel that I have “done” San Francisco in some creative and most satisfying ways.  And if you can’t even think of something interesting and stimulating to do in your area, then you’ve probably overstayed your welcome and your time to move on is long overdue.

Jerry

Hurray For The Unemployed!

The Optimum Goal Is Not Getting A Job

None of the economists or politicians really have a grasp on the central issue of the current historically high unemployment rates. This is simply that we have moved past the point where working for someone else is the best option for being successful. Thirty years ago, in my prosperity seminars, I pointed out that in order for you to be worth the salary and benefits an employer paid you, your labor had to create five times that amount for the employer. I suggested it was time to cut out the middleman and get to keep a much higher proportion of your daily bread.

It’s not the deficit, unrest in the Middle East, stringent government regulations, higher taxes or higher oil prices that are shrinking the job market. And it is not only that we are not educating and training people for the skill sets needed in today’s information-oriented economy. It’s that we are not teaching students to be out on their own, creating their own wealth without the dubious benefits of an employer hiring them. Instead of teaching how to create an attractive resumé or be impressive during a job interview, we should be teaching entrepreneurship–how to thrive without the faltering crutch of a job, without the co-dependence of the employee-employer relationship. When the average CEO earns 400 times what his or her average worker earns, we should have gotten the message years ago. Of course, many have gotten this message. This is one of the reasons fewer people are actually looking for work. This is often cited as part of the problem, but it actually is part of the solution.

The  Ultimate Economic Disconnect

Here’s where we have it essentially wrong: At a time when Americans are at the height of productivity, and more and more jobs that were once performed by people are now performed by machines, robots, and computers, we are reacting by bitching about the lack of jobs. Instead, we should be celebrating the freeing up of former working drudges and drones so that they can more creatively and joyfully earn a living by being self-employed.

I know the argument is that not everyone is equipped by education, skills, or temperament to be out on their own. And it is true that worker bees will always be needed. But not nearly as many as in the past. And it’s time politicians told the truth about the massive changes in our education/preparation system required to deal with the realities of the 21st Century.

I’m amazed that I hadn’t realized the following truth before, and a bit embarrassed that I never thought it completely through. It’s simply that of all the thousands of people who have written or spoken to me over the past thirty years about the positive prosperity changes they’ve made after reading Moneylove, or listening to my tapes or audios, or attending my talks or workshops–I can’t think of a single one who attributed their success to being able to get a job, or a higher salary or promotion. In fact, the ultimate phrase that indicated to me that they really were on a path to more prosperity in their lives was simply, “I finally was able to quit my job.”

Jerry

The Female Factor

Success Comes From Giving Women What They Want

Some years ago, I learned one of the most valuable lessons of my life–that the best way to have a successful love relationship is to give the woman whatever she wants. The premise is simple but potent: a happy woman is at the heart of any successful relationship. For dubious and skeptical men, I have this one suggestion:  try it out as a sociological experiment and see if the results don’t amaze you in terms of not only getting back what you want, but wondrous female gifts beyond your fondest dreams.

I see now, however, that the terms of this knowledge have to be extended well beyond the realm of relationships and into business and politics. We see some of the Republican presidential candidates getting into trouble by not being willing to give women what they want, like control over their own bodies. And what triggered this essay was a news item I saw on Politico.com:

Carly Fiorina, National Republican Senatorial Committee Vice-Chairman, on Friday condemned Rush Limbaugh for calling law student Sandra Fluke a “slut.” Fiorina said, “That language is insulting, in my opinion. It’s incendiary…”

What I find amazing about this item is that Carly Fiorina is the first Republican of national prominence to come out so strongly against Limbaugh’s insensitive, bullying attack on an articulate and attractively smart young Georgetown law student. Arguably, Carly Fiorina is the most successful business person now in politics, as the former CEO of Hewlitt-Packard. While she did lose her Senate bid in California to incumbent Barbara Boxer, she is an upcoming political force to be reckoned with. And her putting Rush Limbaugh in his place as a small-minded blowhard won’t hurt her future aspirations.

More importantly, however, this got me to thinking about a number of reports I’ve seen in the past few years about women in business, especially in the upper realms of business. There is much information, including a research study at Harvard, that shows having women on corporate boards increases profitability and stock prices. But the most provocative part of this involves the idea–backed up by some solid statistical data–that suggests testosterone may be a negative factor when an overabundance of it is present in the boardroom. The bottom line is that the information suggests that higher levels of the male hormone lead to bad decision-making. Women on a board may be just the ameliorating factor needed to counter this negative effect. Of course, a lot more research is called for. However,  just the fact that time and again it has been demonstrated that giving woman more upper management status leads to more financial success should help change their under-representation on corporate boards.

And it goes well beyond this. Men, we can be more successful at whatever we do in the world if we focus on giving women what they want. Especially in whatever skills, services, information, or products we offer and expect or hope to receive money in exchange for. Women have more money than men, and tend to be more loyal customers.

In terms of having women as business colleagues, just the fact that they have not received the antiquated business model indoctrination most men get at an early age makes them more able and willing to think outside the box. I admit I am biased in this, having come to the conclusion at a very early age that women are not only equal to men in many endeavors, but often superior. And I’ve acted on this belief by usually choosing women literary agents, doctors, dentists, and coaches. All other things being equal, I would always prefer to partner with a woman in any project requiring innovation and rational decision-making. Not to mention how much better it makes the workplace look and smell. (Okay, I apologize for that one–I just couldn’t resist!)

Jerry

75 Years of Think And Grow Rich

The Ultimate Prosperity Book’s Diamond Jubilee

It was 1937 and we were in the midst of The Great Depression. Americans were broke and many were homeless and going hungry. Imagine an author saying that someone’s economic status had to do with their mental attitude. I imagine what prevented Napoleon Hill from being ridden out of a town on a rail was that his ideas about creating wealth were inspired and mentored by the richest industrialist in the world, Andrew Carnegie. In the past 75 years, the book has been constantly in print in many languages and has sold tens of millions of copies. It almost singlehandedly spawned the self-help book and motivational business.

I like to wait until about a week before my newest audio for the Moneylove Club gets recorded to come up with the theme, and I like to come up with some new idea or format for each edition. It was just by accident that I came upon some quotes by Napoleon Hill, and then realized that Think And Grow Rich was published in 1937, so this was its 75th anniversary. What better subject to talk about than some of Napoleon Hill’s wealth creation ideas with my own comments and suggestions on how to apply them to today’s economy.

I always like to read the first sentence in a book I am about to read or study. In the case of Think And Grow Rich, the first sentence really sets the tone for the whole book, and just by itself could constitute an entire prosperity seminar. Read it a few times and see if you don’t agree:

“Truly thoughts are things, and powerful things at that, when they are mixed with definiteness of purpose, persistence, and a burning desire for their translation into riches or other material objects.”

I enjoy speculating on what might have happened if certain circumstances had occurred in a slightly different or even opposite way from how they actually happened. I wonder what impact it would have had if Andrew Carnegie hadn’t built those nearly 3000 libraries, where millions of children over the years, many of them before the invention of television or computers, gained knowledge and imagination and inspiration roaming those buildings. And what impact would it have had if the millions of people who read Think And Grow Rich actually put the ideas and strategies into practice in their lives, so that a huge wave of prosperity consciousness swept over the nation and across the world.

What if the above opening sentence from the book became a universal mantra that every man, woman, and child said and believed as they woke up every morning? Of course, we could speculate on and on–but one action rooted in the physical world and the present moment would be for you to start memorizing that sentence and sharing it with others and repeating it over and over again to yourself. And you don’t have to speculate–you’ll actually be there to see the results.

Jerry

Prosperity Equilibrium

Is Cash Really Worth Pursuing?

If I were asked for a quick one word answer, I would have to say, “Yes!” We live in a world where cash is the main medium of exchange, and life with restricted cash flow can become difficult in the extreme.

At the same time, a total dedication to building wealth, excluding all other human values and joys, is a pretty empty endeavor. It isn’t the pursuit of wealth or capitalism that is the evil force in this equation, but rather the imbalance that a devotion to accumulating wealth produces in many people. Obviously, multi-billionaire Warren Buffet has his head and values screwed on straight. For him and Bill Gates and the late Steve Jobs and some others of immense wealth, there is a wisdom and balance in how they handle it. But these are exceptional people, and even a larger number of the wealthy haven’t had the training, education, or upbringing that gives them the tools to maintain their prosperity equilibrium.

I just came up with that term as I was writing this, and immediately decided it was the perfect title for this post. Equilibrium is described as the condition of a system in which competing influences are balanced. Capitalism and entrepreneurship are what made our nation great, and are good forces for enriching and even ennobling. But not when they are tainted with greed, selfishness, pathological obsession, lack of human compassion and lack of any uplifting vision.

What set me off on this tangent in the first place was a question posted on a religious blog someone sent me:  ”Can cash console you at 1:00AM?”  And my answer there, too, is an emphatic “Yes!” If I am feeling lonely, depressed, upset, or anxious at one o’clock in a dreary morning, having access to lots of discretionary funds can console me a lot. And I don’t have to even go the route of that poor emotionally disturbed creature, Charlie Sheen, and buy hookers and cocaine to do the job of making me feel better. If I have piles of cash put aside, I can invite a bunch of friends to visit me from all over the world, fly them in from London and Panama and South Africa and Hawaii and all across the United States–put all of us up in a beautiful resort and just visit and play together for several days or a week or two. Or I can fly myself to a poor village in a third world nation and dispense gifts that would mean something, like a good water system, a medical clinic, computers for all the children. I guarantee, either of these expensive ventures would take me out of myself and whatever real or imagined troubles or anxieties I had. But even simpler and smaller exchanges of money could do the job. I’m sure you can think of many ways you could use some extra money to console yourself at 1:00AM no matter what was happening. And even some that wouldn’t take cash.

A basic rule of human existence that we all learn in one form or another is that if you are having a good life, money can do things to make it even better–and if you are having a bad life, money alone can’t help. But it certainly can console us in many of life’s travails.

If I haven’t convinced you of my basic premise, then I will make you a special holiday offer. In this time of generous good cheer, I will be happy to receive any extra cash you want to send to me, and I will use it to console myself in very positive, enlightened, and highly pleasurable ways–and send you a full report of how I used your cash so you might learn what to do with it in the future.

Jerry

Occupy Your Own Mind

What You Can Learn From the Occupy Wall Street Movement

I think a lot of people observing and commenting on the current protests, which have happened in over 100 American cities, as well as hundreds more overseas, have gotten it wrong. The demonstrations don’t have strong individual leadership at the top, nor did they start out with a specific agenda–other than bringing attention to the disparity between the haves (or the 1%), and the have-nots (the 99%) in economic poverty or stagnation. Looking at former such demonstrations, however, this has been the most remarkably disciplined and focused series of mass rallies ever organized. Almost no violence, other than when a few police have been less disciplined than the demonstrators and responded to rude comments with ruder behavior, (and some of these involved non-police, security toughs brought in by the very corporations being picketed.) In New York, these were the guys in the white shirts, one of whom was shown to shockingly slug a female occupier, knocking her to the ground. But all of that is not what’s really essential about Occupy Wall Street.

The Results So Far–And How You Can Internalize

I think the biggest and longest-lasting result is and will be for some time, the increased discussion of the great disparity between the highest earners and the middle class and low income Americans. The figures just released show middle-class income went up 40% in the past thirty years, while the highest income levels increased 275%. And I don’t think we would even be paying much attention to that shocking figure if it weren’t for this new movement. Nor would there have been such discussion of the deficit and spending cuts if it weren’t for the Tea Party. Both these movements have demonstrated that demonstrations work. If the Occupy Wall Street people can come up with a political agenda, and considering that from 75% to 90% of the population agrees the financial gap has to end, we could be looking at a wave election that will totally confound all current predictions about next year’s election.

So what do I mean about occupying your own mind and internalizing it? Well, I suggest you imagine a demonstration going on in your mind. First make a list of everything you would like to see changed in your life, everything you want, everything you want to eliminate. And then picture a group of demonstrators holding signs to describe these aspirations. Signs like:

A Bigger Audience For My Creative Efforts

Someone to Market My Products and Services

A More Supportive Relationship

It doesn’t really matter what you choices are, and they can be changed as you continue. To take it further, imagine all your brain cells are watching these demonstrations inside your head and being impacted by them. In other words, you are campaigning directly to the audience that will most likely help you change your results. It may feel strange or silly, but try it anyway. The great thing about an internal process like this is that no one else knows you are doing it. And what you are doing with this exercise is what the Occupy Wall Street protestors have done with the economic disparity issue, brought into a glaring spotlight the major issues holding you back. A discussion started is the first step toward effective resolution.

Jerry

How’s Your Empire Doing?

“The Empires of The Future are The Empires of The Mind.”                                                                                       Winston Churchill

It seems to me that today a lot of thinking in politics, economics, international relations, and many other areas of life is rooted in old paradigms and remnants of the past. We are imprisoned by the stone walls of our limited imaginations and aspirations. The world is facing perhaps its greatest challenges in history, and countless so-called leaders are bogged down in discussions about how big or small government should be, whether climate change or evolution are fact or opinion, and whether taxing billionaires is class warfare when the gaps between rich and poor are greater than ever before in human history. I’m not taking sides here, just suggesting that we are discussing the wrong things, asking the wrong questions, not recognizing that a new reality has dawned and this is the 21st Century.

In preparing my most recent Moneylove Club audio, I went back to one of those books that changed the way people viewed the world, Future Shock by Alvin Toffler. He wrote it in 1970 and it was filled with some truths about the changes facing us–and the amazing thing is that some people are still stuck in the world that existed then, making a lot of what Toffler said as relevant today as it was back then.

Alvin Toffler said that future shock was:

The shattering stress and disorientation that we induce in individuals by subjecting them to too much change in too short a time.

Do you see where some of this is happening right now, forty-one years after publication of the book?  Or how about this Toffler quote:

Idea assassins rush forward to kill any new suggestion on the grounds of its impracticality, while defending whatever now exists as practical, no matter how absurd.

This certainly sounds like an up-to-the-moment description of many members of Congress. But perhaps the Toffler quote that has the most relevance today, particularly with all the current talk about the lapses in our education systems and how to remedy them:

The illiterate of the 21st Century will not be those who cannot read or write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.

This sounds very much like what Melinda Gates was describing  just today during a TV discussion on Morning Joe about education.  The fact that students need more great, dedicated teachers to prepare them for life in this new era. The Gates Foundation has put its money where its mouth is on this issue, pouring millions into various school systems to affect positive change. And where are most politicians on this issue? Arguing about the merits of teachers’ unions versus non-union teachers. Melinda Gates says their extensive research shows no difference in learning results between states with strong teachers’  unions and right-to-work states. It’s about the quality of the teaching. Did you have at least one great teacher you still remember fondly, who inspired you to reach higher than you otherwise might have? Most of us have had that powerful experience, but many students today can’t even relate to that situation.

We need to expand the empires of our minds in many ways and many new directions, or else end up future shocked into oblivion.

Jerry

Jerry

Prosperity Conscious View of U.S. Economy

Finally, Some Adult Opinions On The Way Things Really Are

Thank goodness for some sensible information now coming at us from Forbes, The Daily Beast, and Newsweek.  Victoria Pynchon at Forbes called the Daily Beast article, Stop The Panic, It’s Not 2008, the “best economic news in several months.” I would have underlined “news,” as this is just what it is rather than all the doom and gloom opinion we’ve been getting from all sides of the political spectrum.

http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2011/08/14/economic-recovery-is-on-the-horizon.html

Let’s Put An End To Psychological Poverty Conscious Warfare

The significant news in our economic history isn’t the first downgrade by Standard and Poor’s–what is significant and much more dangerous is the first time the nation’s economy has been used as a political football by politicians, both liberal and conservative (are there any moderates left in Washington?). Over 35 years ago in Moneylove, I said that the economy is not so much about facts and figures as it is about emotions. Today that translates into confidence, confidence in our ability to pay our bills, confidence in the U.S. dollar, confidence in our ability to continue to provide and support the American Dream. But when politicians threaten that confidence, either to defeat Barack Obama’s second term bid, or to demonize the Tea Party and other Republicans, it verges on serious psychological warfare against that confidence.

This is childish and self-defeating, and while it may not meet the definition of sedition or treason, it does smack of serious disloyalty to our nation. I think President Obama was way out of line when he threatened the fiscal sanctity of Social Security checks and military paychecks. I couldn’t believe it when I heard those remarks, and immediately wondered if any seniors with heart conditions would just keel over in anxiety and panic over not getting their monthly check.  And Obama knew very well that these payments were never in real danger–it was a foolish and irresponsible statement at the very least. But of course the Republicans, never ones to miss an opportunity to demonstrate foot-in-mouth disease, then took us to the brink of default with their stupid machinations over the raising of the debt ceiling.  Their action in sabotaging the Boehner-Obama “Grand Plan” that would have reduced the deficit by $4 trillion was a perfect example of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

Almost complete consensus from economists on all sides of the political spectrum said that we needed to raise the debt ceiling. Playing games with that truth was an act of immature spite. Now understand, I am not saying we didn’t have to deal with the deficit, but it is far from the primary current concern that Washington has made it seem. I can also understand the frustration of Tea Party members of Congress, in not making any real headway on the promises they made to get elected–but holding what had been a bipartisan automatic activity of government as hostage was risky business, and produced some major dents in worldwide confidence in the U.S. economy. This counts a lot more than how much we owe to China. Frankly, with the high unemployment rate, who cares how much we owe to China? They certainly haven’t lowered their confidence in U.S. Treasury bonds as the safest investment in the world.

It’s time to stop blaming the other side, whichever side you are now on. Both sides contributed to the psychological warfare, both sides have to change. The good news is that things can only get better in Washington. And we should start by stopping the continuing debate about whose fault the debt ceiling fiasco was, and stop declaring one side or the other was the “winner.” The nation wasn’t a winner in this, and we have the opportunity with the so-called Super Committee to come out ahead of the game. We all should put pressure on our legislators to come up with a strong, positive solution and not just reach a stalemate again and let the default position be activated.

And it wouldn’t hurt to give yourself a personal affirmation to repeat often, something like:

“No matter what the economy is doing, or anyone else says it’s doing, my personal economy is improving every single day, with robust prosperous expectations for my future.”

Jerry

Your Last Chance For Success!

You’ve Got 2 Hours To End Ultimatums!

The Longman online dictionary defines Ultimatum as: ‘a threat saying that if someone does not do what you want by a particular time, you will do something to punish them.’ The recent debt ceiling debate was an example of ultimatums run amok, and neither side was ennobled by the rhetoric.

I’ve always hated ultimatums and usually refuse to respond to them. It is a bullying tactic–”You do what I want when I want you to do it or else.” But the most insidious and annoying example out there in today’s online culture is the marketing ultimatum. And it greatly diminishes those who use it, and mildly diminishes anyone who responds positively to such an approach.

So I am suggesting an Ultimatum On Ultimatums. And two hours seems reasonable to me, but you are welcome to make up your own deadline. Here is my personal pledge, which you are free to borrow, modify, use in any way that serves you. “From now on, I will not respond to any ultimatum given me by anyone trying to talk me into or sell me or enroll me in anything.”

One thing we often see online is perhaps the most egregious use of the ultimatum, the phony deadline. This is the ploy whereby someone says an offer is absolutely going to end in one week and you will miss your opportunity forever if you don’t take advantage before that deadline. This is almost always a blatant lie. Usually, the marketing “genius” behind this campaign has already prepared the extension to the ultimatum before its first appearance. A particularly annoying form of this is the pop-up window that appears when you attempt to leave a web page or marketing email. You know the one I mean, that says something like, “Before you leave this page, here’s an even better discount if you respond right now.” And then you are almost forced to read the copy in the window to figure out how to get rid of the damn thing.

You’re right, I am being rigid in my prejudice against this practice. I find it condescending in the extreme, as if the person giving the ultimatum thinks I am too stupid to take advantage of a really interesting or beneficial or useful offer without the threat of it being withdrawn by a specific time–in other words, without an “or else.”

Let’s face it, if someone is trying to sell you something with an ultimatum attached, do you really think it’s possible they will have taken their marbles and gone home if you come back to them one day past the deadline and offer to buy their product or service?

There are, of course, some legitimate deadlines in marketing. These are usually found, however, more in retail sales than online. They often involve companies or stores having to get rid of merchandise to make room for new inventory, and are always date specific. These deadlines are usually firm, except for the fraudulent “going out of business” sales that drag on for months and sometimes years. One store in Times Square in bygone years had a GOING OUT OF BUSINESS! banner flying for over forty years.

I recently had a deadline for the Moneylove Club audio subscription series. I offered a substantial discount for three weeks, to be cut off on a specific date. And it was cut off on that date.  One of the reasons I did not extend the offer is my basic commitment: I will say what I am going to do and then do it. It’s about personal integrity and self respect. In a time and culture of less and less people sticking to their word, honoring their commitments and promises, I want to stand out. And a very simple way to do this is, again, saying what I am going to do and then actually doing it.

Not that I want to become too rigid, or be in a place where I stick to something that just isn’t working. But I think in our fast-paced, short-attention-span environment, there is much value and much to be gained by being persistent, consistent, and resistant to wishy-washy flip-flopping. And this is particularly true now that our leaders have abandoned their position as role models in this area.

So I am giving you two hours to eliminate ultimatums from your life, or else. Or else you will no longer be allowed to read this blog.  See how silly it can get?

Jerry

The Success Stretch

Dreaming the Impossible Dream

There are two areas in which I think it’s essential that we stretch beyond our belief systems and comfort zones. One is what we ask for, the other is what we go for.

For many years I have talked about the fact that you rarely will find anyone offering you $100,000 when you are asking for $50,000–whether we’re talking about a salary, or a price for something you are selling. Though some members of the Moneylove Club have told me they think it’s worth a lot more than $47 a month, not one of them has sent me a check for two or three times that amount. It’s just not in human nature to enjoy paying more for something than the advertised price. I think we need to have this in mind when we ask for what we want.

I have also talked about the fact that many people order short. This is often true for women in relationships, who are afraid to ask their man for what they truly want, whether it’s out of fear he won’t give it, or a belief that they don’t deserve it, or that they just have developed the habit of settling for less. Men do this in areas other than relationships.

I think it’s important to aspire to something you feel it is unlikely you will actually get or achieve. Knowing how unlikely it is to have a national bestseller as an author, I nonetheless always visualized myself being on that NY Times list when I wrote a book. And I’m still doing it as I am working on my next book. Limited imagination always shuts down possibilities. The exceptional people in this world, the peak performers, always stretch beyond not only what is expected of them, but what they can realistically expect for themselves. Limited thinking hardly ever produces unlimited results.

Your Name In Lights

One of my fondest memories is arriving at a theatre in Louisville, Kentucky where I was presenting a Moneylove Seminar back in the 1980s, and there was my name in bright lights on the theatre marquee! I’m sure most people passing that theatre hadn’t the foggiest notion of who I was, or what I was doing, but it nevertheless had a major impact on me. An interesting exercise you might explore is to picture your own name up on a marquee, and then write the next line in your mind (or you can even design it on paper or on your computer). What exactly would you be doing or offering that you would want to put up on that theatre sign to attract people?

Of course, that negative little voice of yours, the one Zen masters call “monkey mind,” is probably already chattering away about how you are not talented enough, or deserving enough, or successful enough, or young and beautiful and rich enough to deserve your name up in lights. But if that voice gets too strong, do a reality check and examine some lists, like the ones TIME puts out on the 100 most influential or most promising people in the world. A lot of them didn’t start out with all those advantages, and most of them had to do a lot of success stretching well beyond their comfort zones to get where they are today.

My Own “Possible” Dream

Ever since I saw solo performance stars Rick Reynolds and Spalding Gray twenty-some years ago, I’ve had the aspiration to do a one man show, incorporating humor and hopefully inspiring and entertaining segments from my varied life experiences. This seemed pretty farfetched as an aspiration when I came out of prison broke and looking to put my life back together. But then, because my dear friend Bonnie Weiss took me to a show at The Marsh Theatre in San Francisco for my birthday earlier this year, I discovered this amazing venue, probably the best ever for the development, nurturing, and presenting of solo performance. I signed up for a class with one of their star performers and directors, Charlie Varon. Rather than covering my entire life, we decided that my first effort should be focused on my prison experience, told with humor as well as revealing a lot of what people don’t know or suspect about  prison. I am now aspiring to have my one man show presented at a theatre in New York by the Fall of 2012. Another farfetched stretch. But, on the other hand, I know I have a story to tell that fascinates many people. This is also going to be the theme of my upcoming prison memoir, a book that will be much easier to write as I co-create my theatre piece.

As a motivational/inspirational speaker and author, I am always looking to the events in my life in terms of what lessons they contain that I can pass on to others. One that I think my prison adventure strongly reconfirmed for me is how rich an internal life we can create when our external world is crumbling or simply not giving us what we want. People seeing the initial workshop presentations of my solo performance seem to find that aspect impactful, thought-provoking, and inspiriting. Part of my theatrical aspiration therefore includes my telling people, once I actually have my name up in lights, how I accomplished it despite the obstacles, despite it being at the very least, an unlikely if not impossible dream.

This is one of the great satisfactions in my life, and I felt it keenly years ago, when I would tell aspiring authors how I had my first book accepted for publication just a few weeks after submitting it to one of the world’s most respected and successful publishing houses, Doubleday. I cannot count the number of people who told me not to expect too much, how hard it was to get published, how it took years to accomplish this. And one of many lessons I learned for myself (and the best lessons are always those we learn for ourselves) was that even failing to achieve something that seems beyond the possible is a lot better than achieving less than you really want. And, of course, we can also fail at what seems much more likely. How terrible is that?–to try for the modest or mediocre success and still not make it–Yuck! There are times when I have gone for the big win and fell just short of victory–but the knowledge that I gave it my all, that I went beyond the complacent and comfortable, greatly diminished the disappointment and accelerated the recovery.

The bottom line is:  I think it’s vital for each of us to have at least one thing we are going for in our lives that is possible but not very probable to achieve. Chances are it’s much more likely than you or the naysayers around you believe.

Jerry