Tag: Intentions

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Reality Awaits


In our post, From Dream to…, we continued the journey we have embarked on to explore different dimensions of the realm of dream delivery.

It’s always good to have dreams, and it’s even better to let them see the light of reality.

We humans have been endowed with very special gifts. Two of those gifts are of inherent importance: Intention and attention.

The conscious human intention is attributed to awareness, something other species don’t have. In the animal kingdom, for example, efforts are solely driven by instinct. We, on the other hand, have the capacity to choose, and then act on our choices, sometimes clear of the influence of instinct.

For an intention to unfold, attention has to be on its side. We need to ‘see’ the way before us, and continuously align our advancement to our intentions. Otherwise, instinct takes charge, leading a way that is not necessarily the same one we set off to traverse. That’s what renders most intentions unrealized. A sure prescription for disappointment.

Our focused attention on the intention should be dynamic. As we keep the original vision clear, crisp and infused in the work we do, we consistently observe the activities, making sure they align and have a good potential of leading to our intention. Why a ‘good potential?’ Because the future is, by its very nature, uncertain. We need to keep our options open at all times in the face of the unpredictable.

No matter how big and far an intention seems, reaching the top of that mountain is simply a walk; one step at a time. As important as knowing our intention is figuring out what those ‘steps’ are.

Usually, at the beginning it might be difficult to know the steps and how they align to lead to the desired result. We need a good estimate of the main building blocks of the ‘project’ at hand. As we start taking action, more details unfold, helping us adjust our course.

Depending on the complexity of the undertaking, this might grow into a quite large web of interrelated activities. That’s where project management methods and tools would come in handy.

Pick the system that makes sense to you. As this may become a daily companion, try selecting something that is fun and exciting to use.

I use a tool called Quire. Simple and effective. You can start with a single idea, then grow it into a plan by breaking it down into smaller ideas gradually, nestling levels of complexity within each other, in a parent-child configuration. This helps you focus on one thing at a time without losing sight of the bigger context immediately above it, or all the way back to the original single idea.

At any given point in time, you can see what is due today, tomorrow, and later, as well as what is overdue from previous stages.

How can that lead to realizing a dream? What if we get swamped by the details and lose sight of what we really want to achieve?

It’s possible to get derailed, ending up in a perpetual cycle of to-do lists that do not seem to finish. A common reality of so many people all over the planet.

To effectively avoid that, we must have our attention on the intention at all times. For example, we can commit to weekly, monthly, and annual alignment reviews, making sure what we do on a daily basis does not sway our ship adrift from the destination.

In the next post we will conclude this series with an example that links the dots together, in a way that help streamline the implementation of the concept.

Stay tuned.

The Wealth Maker

Image Credit: Todd Quackenbush on Unsplash

 

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Moments of Change


We, humans, use time and space to measure change, or the rate of change. The units differ depending on what we measure. Astronomers use light years, builders use meters, and quantum physicists use nanoseconds. No matter the unit, change is constant, within and without us. Furthermore, time is a concept represented by space. Have you ever seen or touched a minute?

Some changes happen regardless of our observation. Others force us to listen and have our eyes wide-open. What change has made you stop and think deeply, lately?

Resisting change is a common human mental habit. Other creatures flow with change in the environment surrounding them. Have you heard of a tree resist shedding its leaves in October to grow new ones in March? Or a flock of birds decides to stay in Alaska after the first sign of winter?

Whether we see change as an opportunity and flow with it, or consider it a threat and strive to prevent it from happening, most changes are natural and inevitable.

In business, change always hit the three vital elements of a project or a venture: Time, cost and resources. These three are interrelated in ways that are sometimes mysterious. Shorten the time, and cost goes up. ‘Restructure’ the organization, and time extends on its own terms.

What we must stay fully aware of is the following:

When you plan anything, make sure all variables involved are on the table.

What does that entail?

  • Know your financial capacity
  • Have key resources present
  • Understand, right from the main stakeholders, the time limits placed upon what you’re planning

My intention in this post is not to give you a project management crash course. You can find ample resources online and off-line on that. The intention is to raise our awareness, in life and in business, of the changes passing through our lives without us noticing, appreciating and effectively utilizing them.

One way to approach this is to start a journey of raising our awareness of both attention and intention.

While one’s attention could easily sway and wonder, following the feed of the five senses, and the flood of unguided thoughts and feelings, this can dramatically change if that attention follows a well-thought-of intention.

Attention could be the most valuable gift we’ve been given. It’s like a beam of light that we can focus on anything we want, intentionally or unintentionally. And that is the key lesson here:

Let’s choose, as much as we can, to focus the beam of our attention intentionally.

However, to do that, we need to have intentions, to begin with, don’t we?

How to set good intentions will require its own post. For now, it suffices to say that each one of us needs to set aside enough time and positive energy to know, write, and commit to a set of intentions that spans the dimensions of his or her life and business (as if they are separate 🙂

As that evolves, and as we re-shift our attention to be more and more inline with the intentions we’ve set to ourselves, those passing changes I mentioned above will become visible and accessible.

In conclusion, accepting change as a fact of our being, and then using the energy it presents to reach higher levels of awareness and achievement, is a prerequisite to true success.

Post Photo by Jeremy Thomas on Unsplash

TWM

The image below shows a recent addition to our StoreFour‘s Digital collection (a positive change), in case you’d like to use a new technology to measure time in conjunction with your cell phone.

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Abundance or Lack?


 

“Whether we intend to make it on our own, or inherit a sum of financial wealth, our character determines how far we may go on that journey!“

Are we born rich or poor? Well, we’re born with no physical possessions, such as clothes, money, or investments. We come to this world fresh, new and empty-handed. Yet, we carry, within the vessel called “body,” what is more than enough.

More than enough to be loving, faithful, humble, courageous, and wealthy, a state which deserves pondering upon: Nothing physical (except the body), yet everything intellectual, emotional and spiritual. Then why do only few of us, 3% to be exact, become wealthy?

Yes, wealth is more than money and finances. However, those who enjoy wealthy hearts can extend helping hands to others, spreading their financial wealth beyond the small sphere of the self.

How does a newborn, with nothing on, transform? How does he or she become what they were born for? Despite the genes they carry, despite all the worry, within and without?

They see and believe. They resolve to take the higher path, even if it seems lonely, rocky, or dangerous.

What is that called? Courage!

Courage isn’t the absence of fear. Courage doesn’t fill in for knowledge, preparation and action. However, without it, all those become obsolete. Knowledge without application is a burden. Excessive preparation turns into obsession. Aimless action is a waste of time and energy. A hiker may slip back few steps here and there, yet, at the end of the day, he or she reaches the summit.

Long ago, I’d written about the courage to dream. It takes a healthy dose of bravery to see oneself outside the imagined, limited domain of roadblocks and obstacles. What had Edison seen before he discovered electricity? Light. What had Ford seen before building his first automobile? A horseless carriage.

Inspiration? Motivation? You bet! We always need those. Every moment of every day is a new creation, where you and I can start all over again. That takes courage to let go of the past.

OK. Where is courage sold? How can we get it? Can that kind of endowment be learned, cultivated, enhanced? Yes it can. Start by intending it. True, meaningful and effective intention emerges when the heart and the mind are in full coherence and resonance, for good or for worse. We intend both our joy and pain, unconsciously. To intend courage we must step out of the sleepwalking dream. We must awaken.

There is a kind of paradox here. Courage leads to action, and inaction diminishes courage. Where to start? Baby steps. Intend and take small action, then intend again and take a slightly “bigger” action (although there isn’t an inherent difference between the two).

Let’s put the pieces together:

  • We all start the journey on Planet Earth with the same amount of financial wealth, zero. This levels the playground
  • We are, nonetheless, given what it takes to complete the journey effectively
  • Only few of us utilize those bounties to the effect of enjoying True Wealth (spiritual, emotional, intellectual, and financial)
  • The single most important attribute to achieving that is courage
  • This endowment can be learned, enhanced and applied in ways that benefit both the individual and the society
  • Every moment presents a chance for a new start. Hence, letting go of the past and beginning anew is always possible
  • Intention and attention are our best friends. The first requires congruence between what the heart desires and what the mind sees. The second calls for awakening from the sleepwalking dream, living a life of awareness

We do have a choice. At the same time, our universe is governed by perfect principles. Finding our way through these two facts is both joyful and challenging! Facing a challenge to learn and grow turns it into an opportunity, and that what sets people apart…

 

The Wealth Maker

© Image Credit: en.wikipedia.org

 

 

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What is Wealth to You?


Everything is created twice: First on the screen within that reflects heart wishes and mind logic, and second, in the physical world, as a manifestation of what is reflected on that screen.

Now, the actual realization of one’s wishes and desires may or not precisely reflect what was within. Individual beliefs, self concept, and guided action, all, among others, determine what actually takes place before our eyes.

Wealth is no exception. In order to attain it, you’ve got to know what it means to you! Can you hit a target you don’t see?

I was inspired to write this article by a book titled “The Rules of Wealth” by Richard Templar. The 2nd rule in that book is “Decide on your definition of wealth”.

Templar has a good point there. It is not enough to tell yourself: “I want to be wealthy”. What does that mean?

If you couldn’t “define it”, then how would you go get it?

Once you finish reading this article, grab a pen and paper, your smart phone, tablet, whatever, and write down at least five things that would give your dream a meaning; something you can visualize, internalize and start moving towards.

It could be a list of possessions. Or, a combination of things to have, activities to do, and character traits to develop and sustain. No matter what comes first to the mind, and seems flowing from the heart, write it down. That’s how a commitment is shaped.

Use present tense, and avoid hoping and wishing. Here’s an example:

I intend to get a graduate degree in (fill in the blanks) by end of 20xx

I intend to create a residual income of ($$$) by June 20xx

By the time you finish writing down your intentions, you’ll have a “contract” with yourself. If you enjoy a high, healthy self-respect (which I’m sure you do), chances are you will attain those intentions, because the first, and most important, creation has already been taken care of!

The Wealth Maker

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Are you ready to start?


Why do most dreamers end up at the nearside of their dreamland?

Why do only three percent of the population, or less, make it, financially?

Is it lack of knowledge or lack of courage?

Or is it a main effect (not a side-effect) of a widespread disease called: Perfectionism?

How much preparation does one need in order to start? And what kind of preparation is that?

We tend to fall prey to our own predictions! Our own procrastination, which is, oftentimes, an implicit result of our fears…

So, when do we start? At the onset of the dream, or when the dream starts vanishing!

When the dream is ripe; clear in your mind and soul, and you take one action, just one simple action, something remarkable happens!

Trouble? Challenges? You bet! Yet, you got a huge advantage there; the image is still vivid behind your eyes and between your ears. Sometimes it’s even pounding in your chest.

While challenges mount up the moment you start, your momentum has been set in motion. Just before that one action, you had been in total inertia. Your own dream had been weighing you down.

Never wait till your plans are perfect. They will never be.

Dream vividly, intend purposefully, plan carefully, yet, start taking actions now!

The process is not linear. Always balance out your preparation and your action energy, even if you have to juggle between the two. Actions give you valuable feedback on your plans, so you would revise and improve them. Plans, on the other hand, guide your actions, so you wouldn’t shoot in the dark!

The Wealth Maker

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The Wealth Algorithm (2)


 

 

Hopefully you had a chance to “decide” what “you” really want. Let’s explore that a bit further.

If the main target was financial wealth, financial freedom, financial security, financial independence, or financial abundance, then we would need to make that crisp and clear to the subconscious. Why the subconscious? Because it’s the part of our minds that gets the work done. No matter how convinced we were at the conscious level, unless that conviction trickled down to the subconscious, to the engine that makes things happen, we would stop at that; a mere verbage!

Words have tremendous effect on our minds. Let me give you an example. Suppose you’re thinking about buying a new phone. Which statement has a better chance of getting done: “I’m not quite sure which phone I “might” buy “,  or “I intend to buy an Android (or I-Phone) N.x smart phone, next Saturday”?

I guess the point is now clear. Let’s use that in setting an objective. We already know the “What”. Now we will write that which we “want” in a language that gets the subconscious cranking! Here it is:

“I intend, and allow myself, to make (specify amount) dollars by the end of (specify year), or before”.

Notice that we did not say anything about the “How”. Never include that in your intentions. You shall figure that out as you start moving in “the general direction” of your intention. You want your intentions to be specific, and at the same time, flexible enough to grab better opportunities along the way.

I’m going to leave you with this statement till the next post. Once you reach a phrase that is believable to you, stick with it, write it down where you can see it at least once a day. Read it loudly to yourself. Feel the emotion and excitement behind every word. But don’t stop at that! Go to work on your intention. Your task would be more enjoyable and easier now that you “know” what you “want”.

Another observation is that we didn’t use the word “want”. Wanting implies a strong desire, which is a sign of weakness. It usually leads to moving targets. Since you “want” to be wealthy, you will stay in that state of wanting, as the target is pushed farther.

On the other hand, intentions are affirmative. They reveal confidence and belief. When an intention reaches the level of “knowing”, without any shred of doubt, it gets manifested for sure, one way or another. We’re not counting on miracles here, but rather, on the effective alignment of inner and outer forces.

The intention alone won’t make you a fortune. However, it sets the stage for you to start off your journey on the right footing, and that is exactly what you need!

The Wealth Maker

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Investment Strategy


 

So what is an investment strategy? It’s not an action plan, it’s not a mission statement, and it’s not a set of objectives.

Actually, these concepts are organized as follows: You start with a vision, then a mission to reach that vision, then a set of objectives to guide you through your movement towards the vision. Then comes the strategy, which defines “how” you’re going to achieve the objectives, how you’re going to carry out the mission, and how you’re going to reach the vision. Finally, an action plan is the actual set of steps you take to implement all the above within the framework of your intentions. In other words, the action plan is the manifestation of your intentions.

Let’s start with the vision.

A vision is what you see in the future. In the context of investing, it’s what you see yourself achieve, say 10 years from now.

Your vision is tightly related to your self concept. If having a million freaks you out, because you don’t know what to do with it, or because you worry about protecting it, then don’t worry. You won’t reach that amount! Wealth or poverty, both lie within, not without. Do you want a proof? More than 90% of those who hit the jackpot lose all the money within a year. Why? They are poor on the inside. They can’t handle prosperity, it’s too much for them.

On the other hand, truly wealthy people, stay wealthy, even if their bank accounts are clean and shiny :-). How? They have what it takes, on the inside, to create physical wealth again and again, all because they are full of non-physical wealth. Their minds and hearts are rich.

You always need to start with a vision. You actually do start with one even if you don’t notice consciously. “Everything is created twice” (to quote Stephen Covey): First in our minds, then on the ground. The better the first creation, the more robust and successful the second. So instead of delving into a life-changing experience like investing subconsciously, without being fully aware of your final target, I’m inviting you to sit down, grab a pen and paper, and chart some course.

Now along the path, you’ll face challenges and difficulties, or even unexpected success! Have you heard of the “fear of success”? You need to be prepared. And that where objectives come into play. They guide your march towards your vision.

Success is not only achieving “what” you set for to achieve, it’s also “how” you intend to achieve it.

In summary,  an investment strategy is your approach to investing. It’s your vehicle to reaching your vision.

In a following post, I may give some practical examples of the embodiment of a good investment strategy.

Till then, stay healthy, wealthy, and wise…

The Wealth Maker