Dr. Joe Vitale’s Blog

P.T. Barnum was just discovered today by the New York Times, or so it seems. I wrote an entire book on the great circus showman and marketing genius in There’s a Customer Born Every Minute (Barnum never said, “There’s a sucker born every minute.”) It’s good to see Barnum get some recent and accurate attention, and by the NY Times at that. See the whole article, complete with sidebars, at www.nytimes.com/2007/11/09/arts/09expl.html?_r=1&oref=slogin It’s excellent.

 I admit it: I don’t always feel great.

Yea, I’m surprised, too.

You’d think the author of such self-help books as The Attractor Factor and The Key, who stars in the inspiring movie The Secret, would have it together by now.

Sorry to disappoint you.

I still have my “moments.”

At least today they are only off moments where in the past they were bad days.

But if Boston can transform a prison into a luxury hotel called Liberty Hotel, then you and I can transform our mood.

So let me give you an early Christmas present by sharing ten self-help tips I do to shift my emotions which may help you, as well:

1. Pet a cat. I look into the eyes of my pets and I begin to feel more relaxed. They purr and my world changes. Ahhhhh…

2. Walk a dog. Just moving can make you feel better but having an excited dog tug at you to move you along faster is even better.

3. Play loud music. Nothing like hearing great music from Michelle Malone — or AC/DC or Stevie Ray Vaughan or Bruce Springsteen — playing at ear ringing levels to make me forget my woes. Dance to the music and unhappiness doesn’t stand a chance of surviving.

4. Make a decision. As I say in the movie The Secret, and in my books The Attractor Factor and The Key, setting an intention for how you want your day to go will realign you and your day. How do you want to feel? What do you want to achieve? Focus on that and you’ll begin to go toward it.

5. Help someone. Feeling unhappy is a selfish experience, so share it with someone you love. Just kidding. You can lift your own mood by looking for someone who is sad and comforting them. Listen to them. Buy them a cookie. Anything to take the focus off of you.

6. Feel grateful. Look around and find something, anything, to feel truly grateful to have. Gratitude is a powerful attractor of more to feel grateful for. Compared to people in the past and people in third world countries, you have it made.

7. Watch a movie. Movies shift your feelings and thoughts and can be a powerful way to improve your mood. Watch The Marx Brothers, The Three Stooges, etc. I liked the Bruce Willis movie 13 Blocks. Watch The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. Watch Donny Deutsch’s The Big Idea. Watch cartoons. Whatever flips your switch.

8. Eat something. Yes, it’s comfort food when you reach for a meal when you aren’t really hungry and feel like crap, but food helps put you in the moment, shifts your serotonin levels, and makes your blood rush from your head to your stomach. Just don’t make this a habit.

9. Detach. Consider this a spiritual exercise and learn to detach from your thoughts, feelings and body. As I write in Zero Limits, you are the witness behind it all. Enjoy the show. Life is a play, my friend. It just seems real.

10. Smile. Look in the mirror and create a dozen different ways to smile. How would a kid do it? Go ahead. Be silly. No one is watching. You might start laughing at yourself and sooner or later, son of a gun, you’re really smiling.

Bonus Tip: Take action. Nothing beats simply diving into a project, preferably something you’ve been wanting to do anyway. Getting lost in the doing is a smart way to transcend your mood and get something productive done, as well. Forget avoiding. Start doing.

Finally, remember what comedian George Burns said —

“Happiness is having a large, loving, caring, close-knit family in another city.”

Well, are you happy now?

Ao Akua,

Joe
www.mrfire.com

PS – My Miracles Coaching program is accepting new applicants. Want a miracle or two? Want to feel happy and excited every day? See www.miraclescoaching.com Hey, no charge to go look.

Note: Photo by Lola Jones of www.lolajones.com 

 A crowd of maybe 8,000 people stood and screamed their lungs out as legendary self-help teacher Tony Robbins led them through a three-hour dynamic whirlwind of entertaining transformation.

It was the usual high-energy talk by Robbins, with cheerleader activities, inspiring stories and reflective questions.

But Tony did something he’s never done before at this event.

I was there. This was the Chicago Wealth Expo sponsored by Learning Annex. I would be speaking the next day, before Donald Trump.

At one point Tony stood only a few away from me and talked about the movie The Secret.

He said it was good but not the whole story.

He said there were other laws besides the Law of Attraction.

He said sometimes you don’t get what you want right away because there’s a greater lesson to learn first.

I agreed with everything and used Tony’s comments as the lead to my own presentation the next day, when part of the same crowd yelled and screamed and stood on its feet to greet me.

(The picture is of my friend Peter Wink being overly impressed to see Joe Vitale listed on the same bill as George Foreman, Alan Greenspan, Donald Trump and Tony Robbins.)

I told the crowd about three other laws besides the Law of Attraction:

• The Law of Love
• The Law of Action
• The Law of Clarity

People scribbled notes as I explained the laws and asked them questions to help them engage the laws.

I ended my thirty minute turbocharged presentation by explaining how they could “get clear” to get faster results by using the Zero Limits method.

Apparently the message connected as I got a standing ovation at the end, which Nerissa caught on video.

But Tony’s comments about The Secret wasn’t the thing he did for the first time anywhere.

When I got off stage, I was instantly met by Bill Zanker (pictured), founder of Learning Annex.

He and I met months ago, right before my second appearance on Larry King’s television show.

Bill raved about my talk, shook my hand and signed a copy of his book to me: Think Big and Kick Ass!, coauthored of course with Donald Trump.

Bill said he’s been working with Tony more than thirty years, but he’s never heard Tony mention God before.

During Tony’s talk, he asked, “Who is the toughest personal trainer?”

He answered, “God.”

I’m told Tony went to India and had a change. I’m not sure what occurred yet but it may tie in with Tony now talking about God as the source of some of your greatest lessons.

Tony has always been focused on cognitive and behavioral change. He’s never gone deeper than that, to my knowledge. His mentioning God is a step up for him, and refreshing to hear.

Who knows, maybe he’s ready to read Zero Limits or The Key now. 🙂

Donald Trump spoke later in the day after me, but I didn’t stay for him. 

Instead, my friend Peter Wink and his wife Stephanie took us to the Volo Car Museum, where we saw 300 classic cars, movie cars, and early cars.

Even Homer Simpson was there, who Nerissa seemed to like.

It was far better than seeing Trump. (Sorry Donald.)

If you were at the event and I missed you, I apologize. I was often surrounded by people, and tried my best to let everyone have autographs or photographs with me.

If you ever get a chance to attend a Learning Annex Wealth Expo, please do. (The next ones are in New York and then Toronto.) They are high energy events with some great speakers, one of the best being Tony Robbins.

Ao Akua,

joe
www.mrfire.com

PS — Learning Annex started “one minute videos” a few weeks ago. They get speakers, such as George Foreman or Lisa Nichols or me, to teach a method or insight in under one minute. I filmed two while in Chicago. I’ll let you know when they are posted.

Note:  My Miracles Coaching program is currently accepting new applicants. See www.miraclescoaching.com 

You can ask me anything you like about my latest book, The Key: The Missing Secret to Attracting Whatever You Want by going here www.AskJoeTheKey.com No charge, obligation or expectation. Just an invitation. Go see.

 I just finished the Chicago Learning Annex Wealth Expo, where I spoke after Tony Robbins and before Donald Trump, and will give you a report on it once I get home. For now, here’s a quick report about a different recent talk I gave. http://senseitristan.blogspot.com/ Enjoy.