Ultimate Prosperity Goddess

Material and Spiritual Prosperity

Here’s something I almost never do–respond to any type of chain email even from good friends. You know the type, pass this on to seven of your friends and untold good fortune is yours. And I really hate the ones that say if you don’t pass them on, bad luck will arrive. But the one I got yesterday was different, in that it didn’t say anything bad would happen if I just enjoyed the picture of the Mother Goddess Lakshmi, but perhaps lots of wealth would arrive if I did pass it on. And actually the only reason I responded was because, in one of those amazing serendipitous events that have been occurring in my life, I was just reading up on this fascinating symbol of true prosperity consciousness. You see, Lakshmi is the household goddess of most Hindu families. My landlord and friend, Anand Singh, has a small statue of her on a shelf in the hall outside my bedroom. And I was curious, and as I read up on her, realized it was no accident.

Lakshmi is considered a Mother Goddess of Prosperity, Wealth, Purity, Generosity, as well as the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm. Quite an exalted package, wouldn’t you say? How can you not worship her, or at least what she symbolizes, at least just a little?

Her four hands represent four primary aspects of life:

1. Dharma or righteousness–the universal laws of nature.

2. Kama–meaning our desires, the Sanskrit word for love and the Hindu God of Love.

3. Artila–wealth. Material prosperity is considered to be a worthwhile and noble goal as long as it follows the path of morality dictated by Dharma.

4. Moksha–liberation from the cycle of birth and death, similar to the Buddhist concept of Nirvana.

These four aspects are known as the Purusharthas, and October is their special month, though Lakshmi is worshipped on a daily basis. The lotus buds she holds stand for beauty, purity and fertility. You can Google much more information about her and many images are available.

For nearly a year, I passed that small statue without paying any attention to it. And now I touch it every time I pass. It is not a religious or worshipful thing for me, but merely acknowledging another being, a symbol, of prosperity being about much more than mere money and material assets.
Jerry

Success Master Or Success Slave?

Who’s In Charge Around Here?

This was inspired at first by my experiences with a very successful, rich and famous former friend. Or maybe I should say “limbo friend” as he is in some bizarre and ambiguous category not so clearly defined. We were once very close–my girlfriend and I even accompanied him on his honeymoon, and we co-led a few workshops together. But for the past several years of my incarceration, three letters to him went unanswered. When I recently talked to his gatekeeper, she informed me that he got the letters but was just so swamped with work and activity that he didn’t have time to respond. I’m sure the gatekeeper was reporting his response or lack thereof accurately, but it seemed pretty lame and maybe a bit disingenuous to me. There’s probably an unspoken truth or hidden issue here. Perhaps he’s been advised that it would not do his glistening reputation any good to stay friendly with an ex-convict.

But what it started me thinking about is how much busier many successful people seem to be nowadays. Many don’t have time, or rather, take time, for the leisurely activities once considered a major perk of financial independence. And how can it be independence if you don’t exert a degree of mastery over your own life?

The question I ponder, therefore, is whether I want to be the master of my success, or a slave to it. And, for me, the answer has always been easy. As part of this process, and I know this revelation will drive some of you crazy, I have given up my cell phone. If someone wants to reach me when I’m not at my computer desk, they can leave a voice mail or email. If it’s something so urgent it won’t wait a few hours, then I’m not sure I even want to hear about it. I’m not suggesting this attitude will work for you, but I do think it’s important to have a guiding principle about this subject. Do you drive the events in your life, or are you driven by them? Are you piloting your own vehicle, or has it gone into a rogue state and about to run you over?

The Yippie Turned Yuppie

I’m reminded of the late Jerry Rubin, an old friend of mine I got to know quite well, along with his wife, Mimi, after his worldwide notoriety as a member of The Chicago Seven and co-founder, with Abbie Hoffman, of the Yippie party. Later he became a very successful entrepreneur, and the term Yuppie was coined to describe his transformation. We worked together in a network marketing nutritional company in the early 1990s, and he was making over a million dollars a year. But his marriage fell apart over issues like his living at the beach but not being able to find the time, even on a weekend, to take his young twins for a walk along that beach. I think he believed that someday he would take time to relax and enjoy his success. But sadly that day never came. Leaving an evening meeting, one of many he scheduled at his office on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, and being in a hurry, as usual, he jaywalked across the busy street, was hit by a car, and died of his injuries at the age of 56.
The two of us once did a seminar on the coming trends as we approached the new millenium. It was called simply, The Two Jerrys. The one trend we didn’t cover at that time was time itself–how filled it has become, and how the more successful we become, the more filled our days and weeks seem to be. I remember sometimes shocking friends by a habit of spontaneously taking a day off in the middle of a week. They would tell me how hopelessly behind they would get in their work if they did the same. Well, that belief is exactly why they needed to take that extra day off. And when was the last time you did something so shocking?
Jerry

Five Prosperity Reasons This Is The Best Of Times

A Time Of Exciting And Profound Opportunity

I am aware that though I write this with a lighthearted tone and even with a smile on my face, for some readers it may be the most profound and important page they’ve read during this period of our economic history.

I’ll go beyond all those old platitudes like, “Behind every cloud there’s a silver lining.” “Darkness comes before the dawn.” “When life hands you a lemon, make lemonade.” I’ll say it simply: This turbulent and unpredictable economy presents more opportunities than any period in recent memory.

FIVE REASONS THIS IS THE BEST OF TIMES TO BECOME MORE PROSPEROUS

1. A Time Of Great And Unprecedented Change

Right now we are experiencing the culmination of a multi-decade period of change from a manufacturing/industrial society to an informational/service society. The computer and the Internet have a lot to do with this, but it also results from the most brilliant people focusing their attention on designing new technologies and new software rather than ways of making new spark plugs and dustmops. Changing times are always the best times to create something new in the way of a profitable venture. And as it finally dawns on some slow learners that we have moved into a whole new way of life and a whole new economy, there will be tremendous opportunities to market the knowledge, products, and services to enhance those new paradigms.

2. You Can Be A Therapist During This Economic Nervous Breakdown

One way to succeed way beyond average levels of success is to become what I call, “A calm center of
assurance,” when everyone else is going crazy with fear and anxiety. The more people who are immobilized by fear, the more the person who transcends that fear with confidence and positive energy will garner great financial and other triumphs. Two prime examples of this were FDR and Ronald Reagan. The first brought an air of confident assurance during The Great Depression, the second came with an optimistic, jaunty cheeriness that belabored the “malaise” Jimmy Carter said the country was in. Whatever you feel about their respective political viewpoints, they brought something necessary at exactly the right time. And you can do the same in whatever business or profession you offer. Becoming a calm center of assurance will not only make you more attractive to more anxious others, but will enable you to reach your highest levels of creative achievement no matter what is going on outside your calm center.

3. Lots Of Free Stuff Is Available

Because of the high unemployment rate, and erratic movement in the marketplace, many people with high quality services and products, courses and books and DVDs to help you move in new directions,
are offering valuable information absolutely free. Of course, they are all trying to get you to buy their products and services down the road, but as long as you pay attention to the deadlines they set up–for example, cancelling a trial subscription before they start charging your debit or credit card–you can explore a lot of possibilities at no expense whatsoever, except sometimes a small shipping charge if they are sending you a CD or DVD. And this has not only to do with the current economy, but with the fact that so much information overload occurs, and there are some outrageous scam artists out there. People are becoming more skeptical, and more discerning, and rightly so. Entrepreneurs offer free premiums to build credibility and trust. It’s a great new development in entrepreneurship whereby everybody wins.

4. Much More Potential For High Quality Team-Building

Many really dependable, competent, even brilliant people are being fired, laid off, or quitting their jobs because conditions and compensation are becoming untenable. This means there are more people to choose from, and with the Internet, much easier, faster ways to choose them, if you want to build a strong and effective team for whatever you are doing in the world. And with so much going on all the time, so many directions and places you can go with your business, a team is almost mandatory for success.

5. Multilevel Marketing Becomes Respectable And More Profitable

Twenty years ago, multilevel or network marketing was considered by many as less-than-legitimate or even fraudulent, with the term “pyramid scheme” often thrown around. And it is true that, as the Internet is today, MLM was often a place that attracted scam artists. But the industry has cleaned up its act, and many notable names in the business and financial world now sing its praises. People like Warren Buffet, Donald Trump, even Bill Clinton, now endorse and recommend this industry that often defies downward economic trends. For someone who is either good at networking, or training and recruiting others, it offers a solution to economic challenges at relatively low cost. There is no other opportunity that allows someone to start their own business, with huge potential profits, for a few hundred dollars. If you don’t have another kind of business or profession that excites you, and have limited capitol to invest, and can find a product or service you can get passionate about and enjoy telling others about, MLM may be a perfect solution for you–either as a long term business, or as a transitional venture while you explore your other options.

And you really are in charge of whether five years from now you will look back on this period in your personal history and be able to say either, “It was the worst of times.” or: “It was the best of times.”
Jerry

Abundant Action Rather Than Abundant Talk

Prosperity: Positive Action In A Positive Direction

I have listened to dozens of audios and watched many videos from “prosperity teachers”, some quite famous. And almost all of them have a big part of the equation missing: some specific action the listener or viewer can take and put into immediate action to create some new perspective and momentum in their lives.

Why do I think this is so vital? And why do I have such a strong commitment, as exemplified in The Moneylove Manifesto, to giving readers specific tasks and exercises requiring action?

Inspiration Leading To Action

Well, you’ve probably heard that old adage that success is 50% inspiration and 50% perspiration. I would change this to say it’s 100% inspiration leading to action. And the perspiration is up to the individual. You can work hard or you can work smart, or a combination of both–but for me the most important thing is you work with a sense of joy and passion–loving what you do, doing what you love. And that involves taking some action immediately.

I’m reminded of my old friend John Lee, one of the foremost speakers and consultants in the field of time management. He had a very simple formula on how to deal with any issue, major project, or challenging obstacle facing someone. He called it The Four Ds. They were:

Do It.

Delegate It.

Delay It.

Drop It.

I said it was simple–and just knowing there were these four solutions to any issue or goal or desire in my life changed the way I operated in the world forever. Taking John Lee’s formula in and seeing how it fit so perfectly and deciding to immediately start using it–that was taking action. Whatever John then said or did or taught or talked about, he had already had a major impact on my life.

Prosperity Awareness Instruments

The ten Prosperity Awareness Instruments I feature in The Moneylove Manifesto are designed for one thing and one thing only–to get the reader to take some immediate action with a specific task, exercise, strategy, or technique. I am using one of these ideas in my life right now. I won’t tell you which one, as I don’t want to play favorites–it’s not that it’s any better than the others, it just happens to fit what is going on in my life right now. And I invite you to do the same. Choose some action to take that feels right for right now for you. In today’s world of instant access, instant information, and instant communication, it’s not about being in the right place at the right time.
That’s already a given. It’s now about:

Taking The Right Action In The Right Direction

Here’s a formula in the form of a question to ask yourself whenever reading, listening to, or watching a “prosperity teacher” or “success coach”:

Do I Have Something I Can Start Doing Right Now To Move Forward?

And if the answer is “Yes!”, embrace that teacher and keep reading, listening, and watching.

Jerry

Prosperity Action Is Focused Prosperity Consciousness

Taking Prosperity Action

I’ve been thinking a lot about this subject since the publication this past week of my podcast interview with Barry Dunlop on IncomeDiary.com , the publication of my new 39 page report, The Moneylove Manifesto, and the introduction of this new blog.

An exhilarating number of listeners and readers have responded with positive comments on all of these, and some have indicated this information is already making a difference in their lives. This is humbling, deeply satisfying, and more important than money or fame to any conscious writer or teacher.

But what really matters is the answer to the question I put to all of you:  ”What specific strategy or idea have you already begun to put into practice in your life?”  In almost forty years of reading self-help books, attending workshops, lectures, classes, and in conversations with world-class teachers, mentors, friends and colleagues like Louise Hay, Wayne Dyer, Susan Jeffers, Leo Buscaglia, Ray Bradbury, Norman Cousins, Rachel Harris, Rupa Cousins, Susannah Lippman,  Jack Canfield, Mark Victor Hansen, Terry Cole-Whittaker, Edwene Gaines — I must confess that there were many times I heard ideas and learned practices that would have impacted my life in extremely positive ways. And there were many times I just went on with my old patterns and habits and did not apply these new ideas and tools, as much as I admired them and applauded them on my introduction to them.

No matter how interesting, inspiring, exciting, or useful anything I share is to you, it doesn’t amount to a shredded page of a bad book in your life if you don’t take action.

One of my mantras has always been: Action Diminishes Fear, but I could easily go on and say,   Action Creates Success.  And not just action, but focused action–meaning you have a sense of the direction in which you are heading when taking that action.

Action Diminishes Fear, Action Creates Success

You may have an abundance of prosperity consciousness, but until you focus that energy in some actual action you take, it isn’t enough. You may remember, if you read the original Moneylove, that I cite pioneering psychologist William James’ admonition to “start immediately” as the first step toward any change in one’s life. He didn’t say that after careful consideration and deliberation, weighing all the possible outcomes, you take cautious initial steps. He said “start immediately,” and then followed that with his second step, “do it flamboyantly.” What does that mean?  Well, the dictionary definition of “flamboyant” is “something done in a fancy, colorful, elaborate manner.” I think what William James was saying was don’t hide behind a curtain when making your big changes, when creating your positive prosperity momentum.

The third part of James’ instructions on changing your life was “no exceptions.” This is one of the reasons I came up with The Ninety Day Trial Period Prosperity Awareness Instrument in my new Moneylove Manifesto. Starting immediately, doing it flamboyantly, and not allowing any exceptions might be daunting tasks with no timeframe, but anyone can take this kind of action for ninety days to see how it turns out.

start immediately, do it flamboyantly, no exceptions

I’ve had people tell me, believe it or not, that they got positive results by just having a copy of Moneylove on their nightstand, or even under their pillow. And I’m not saying symbols and magic amulets don’t work, but for real change you have to commit to taking action and then take it. So I challenge you here and now.

If you like what I have to say, take one suggestion, strategy, or idea and start immediately using it. I love the comments and compliments–they are like precious gems suddenly appearing in my life. But even more, I would love to hear your positive results from taking positive prosperity action.

Jerry

Prosperity Parade – Abundant Fireworks Included

And here it comes, my first post on the brand new blogsite. There’s been a lot to celebrate this week, the launch of this site, the launch of my new e-book, The Moneylove Manifesto, which you can download free by clicking on that phrase on the BlogRoll on the right below or just click on the cover of the manifesto to the right. And my podcast interview with the amazing Barry Dunlop on Michael Dunlop’s incomedairy.com website, which you can access by clicking on that site on the blogroll.  It’s cause for at least a modest parade, which I’ll get back to in a moment. But also, I think fireworks are an appropriate way to celebrate the multiple premieres.

Fireworks

I love this fireworks display you can manage to your own mood–it’s a great way to commemorate and celebrate any success. In The Moneylove Manifesto, one of the strategies I’ve talked about that worked for a lot of people who attended my workshops in the past is my Joyful and Triumphant Fund, where you use a hundred dollar bill to mark every impactful success, every specially joyful and triumphant event in your life. But I now like to add-on the personal fireworks display above.

And here’s a new thought for you to ponder–consider your financial success as a pyrotechnical event, a wonderful and beautiful and majestic fireworks display that will explode you into a new world of amazing prosperity, abundance, joy and satisfaction. Now prosperity teachers such as myself can set up the display, even light the fuse, but when it comes to having it go off without a hitch, without a fizzle, you have to be ready and willing to let it happen. Your participation in your own prosperity fireworks show is essential. And you must not let fear or doubt lead you to stomp out the fuse before it goes off.  And once it’s lit, that fuse is vulnerable. You can easily stomp it out with inaction, indifference, or indecision. Like the fireworks display you get by clicking on the link above, you are in charge of how it turns out.

And back to the other metaphor, the parade. Try this one on for size. Everytime you have a major success, a breakthrough, an “Aha” moment, imagine a parade to celebrate it. Who would you want to make sure is included in that parade?  Which friends and mentors and teachers and supporters have been so much a part of what led to this success, that they absolutely have to be in the first marching contingent, or maybe each one sitting up in a luxury convertible, waving to the throngs enjoying the parade. Who would you insist be there, and who would you, if you’re honest with yourself, leave out?  This can tell you a lot about where your support lies.

In the meantime, I’ll end this first post on my new blog  by wishing you many fantastic fireworks displays and prosperity parades in the future.

Jerry