Tag: love
Active Gratitude
Every month I answer questions from people in my Miracles Coaching program.
Been doing it for years.
The questions are always raw, in depth, fresh, sincere, and often surprising.
For example —
- How do I stay positive when people around me are negative?
- How do I discover my life purpose when I don’t know what I want?
- How do I attract money in this terrible economy?
- How do I attract my soul mate?
- How do I improve my self-image?
- How do I help others?
- What can I do when everything looks hopeless?
Every call is recorded, and the best of the questions and answers get put into a series of books called, The Miracles Manual. There are currently two volumes in the series with a third on the way. (All are free right here.)
Recently I had this question tossed at me —
“If you were forced to set all learning aside and could only teach one principle for the rest of your life – what one principle would host the most importance to you?”
“I can answer that question in only two words, ” I replied.
“Oh?”
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“Active Gratitude.”
“Active Gratitude?”
I went on to say, “If each of us would practice gratitude in the moment, all worries would vanish, all problems would resolve, all miracles would come easily — in fact, if we really were in gratitude in the moment, we’d realize we are already happy, already peaceful, and already living the miracle.”
Active Gratitude means noticing the good in every moment. When you actually come from gratitude, you wouldn’t judge the moment as good or bad because you’d realize the jury isn’t in yet and so every moment can be seen as good.
Active Gratitude means you live in a spirit of thankfulness, realizing all you have right now is a gift and a miracle in itself.
Active Gratitude means your meditation is gratitude, your process is gratitude, and your “technique” is gratitude.
Active Gratitude means giving thanks in each moment for the moment.
If each of us practiced Active Gratitude, we’d change ourselves and the planet and probably invite instant enlightenment.
We’d realize that in each moment the Universe is giving us so much that we rarely acknowledge — It is keeping us alive without our paying or doing a thing — that we would feel overwhelmed with love.
Active Gratitude would open our eyes to see the miracle of right now.
And from practicing Active Gratitude, we would have raised our vibration so all we attract in the future moments would be better and better, always raising the bar on the incredible beauty of the now.
Why don’t we practice Active Gratitude?
We are afraid.
We subconsciously think some version of this belief:
“If I’m happy and accept this moment as good, I won’t do anything to make my life better.”
But is that true?
I’ve discovered that when I am happy, content, and at peace, I tend to pursue my calling, my life path, and my life mission.
When I lived in fear, desperation and survival, all I attracted was more of the same.
The secret door to escape the mental torment of suffering is to begin the practice of praising.
In other words, look around and find what you are thankful for, and express it.
Yes, if I was backed into a corner and told I could only teach one thing, it’d be Active Gratitude.
And I’d be grateful for that, too.
Any more questions?
Ao Akua,
PS — Check out Miracles Coaching by clicking right here.
Member BBB 2003 - 2015
Stretch Yourself
I’m in the recording studio with Grammy nominated legend Ruthie Foster and award-winning singer and producer Daniel Barrett. We have joined forces to create an album together.
I’m flattered beyond belief that these two superstars want me on an album. After all, I’m relatively new to being a musician. And I’ve been a long time fan of both of them. To be in the studio with them is mind boggling.
I was so excited to record with them that I showed up for our first session thirty days early. (!)
But what’s really interesting is how we are all stretching ourselves.
For example —
Daniel Barrett, Ruthie Foster, and me
Ruthie is famous for her singing but not her lead guitar.
On our album, she is playing lead electric guitar.
Daniel does everything, from engineering to singing and more, but he doesn’t play the drums. Or at least didn’t.
On this album, he does.
I’m a newbie to music and don’t have all that much experience doing anything (even though I’ve released eight albums in over three years). I certainly am brand new and uncomfortable on the saxophone.
On this album, I am playing a baritone saxophone.
What’s going on here?
Ruthie Foster stretching
Each of us is stretching out of our comfort zones.
Why?
How?
When you stretch your comfort zone, you reach a new level of comfort and confidence.
“Ah, but a man’s reach should exceed his grasp, Or what’s a heaven for?” – Robert Browning
When Daniel, Ruthie and I go into the studio, we talk, share, joke, and play. Out of our openness, we come up with songs. Out of our willingness to take risks, and exceed our comfort zones by pursing our desires, we create new possibilities.
The result is magic.
And some pretty cool music.
This is an important lesson for each of us.
You have “comfort zone limits,” too.
When you find them and nudge them a bit, you extend your power and attract new results.
We aren’t doing daredevil stuff in the studio.
When you look in the mirror, what do you hear?
We are taking what we haven’t done before but want to do, and focusing on making something happen by doing it.
We are simply following our inspiration and taking action to create something new.
Yes, there is often fear involved, but we feel the fear and do it, anyway.
We turn the fear into fuel.
Here’s an example —
One day, while Ruthie was playing lead electric guitar (and truly wowing me at it), I received an idea for a song.
I jotted it down.
As she kept playing, I started singing the song in my head.
The lyrics and her melody seemed to work together.
When she was done playing, I did something daring.
I said, “I want to sing!”
This was a huge move on my part.
Singing at all, any time, any place, has been a challenge for me.
I’m new at it.
I’ve been insecure about it.
And to sing for Ruthie Foster — one of the best singers I’ve ever heard in my entire life — was a courageous even outrageous thing to suggest.
Even though Ruthie had mentioned just the day before, “I like your singing, Joe. You can sing with me if you want,” I didn’t feel ready to leave my comfy mindset and step into her arena.
But.
But I wanted to push out of my comfort zone.
My heart was racing but I knew I had to do this.
Daniel and Ruthie are loving and supportive, and urged me on.
After all, each of us was doing something new.
We were all stretching.
So I took a deep breath, got in front of the mike, and belted out my tune.
After I sang, Daniel said, “That was some of the best singing I’ve ever heard out of you.”
Really?
Adding Bari Sax
I looked over at Ruthie and she was beaming a sunny smile and nodding her head in agreement.
It was amazing.
Daniel’s drumming, Ruthie’s lead guitar, my vocals — it was a stretch for each of us but it all came together into a powerful new song that will be on our forthcoming first album.
And that song will probably be titled, “Stretch Yourself!”
All I’m reminding you here is do what you fear.
If you have a dream but feel nervous about it, that’s good.
It means you care.
The next step is to get up and do something about it.
Your comfort zones are invisible lines in your mind.
You can melt them with a little stepping forth.
I’m packing up my baritone saxophone and heading back to the studio right now.
It’s time for Saxman Joe to do his thing.
What are you going to do today to stretch yourself?
Ao Akua,
Saxman Joe
PS — Ruthie Foster told me she got an “Aha!” from listening to my song, ‘Reflection,’ off my latest singer-songwriter album of the same name. You can hear samples of all the tracks on that album and grab the CD (which comes with a collectible, limited edition booklet, and with a surprise gift) over at http://www.ReflectionCD.com
BONUS: If you’ve never heard Ruthie Foster sing, watch this…
Member BBB 2003 - 2015
A Formidable Partner
One of my greatest passions and ongoing commitments in life is Operation Y.E.S. (Your Economic Solution) – a platform to end homelessness by helping people create their own economic solution.
Fortunately, I don’t do this alone.
In fact, I have some formidable partners as committed as I am. One of them is the State Homeless Coordinating Committee for Utah.
They’re on it, you might say.
Since 2005, when they enacted their Ten Year Plan to End Chronic Homelessness, they’ve seen a decline of 74%.
That’s impressive.
In fact, it’s put Utah “at the forefront of the national effort to end chronic homelessness by 2015.”
Part of their success has come from their early adoption of the Housing First program, which offers housing without bias to the chronically homeless.
This means that instead of placing people into transition housing and requiring their participation in certain programs (such as for substance abuse or mental illness) before they can receive more help, Housing First recognizes housing as a basic right.
The homeless get off the streets first.
The homeless are given a place to live first.
What Utah discovered is that meeting this need increases stability – which in turn supports real change.
Oh, and it saves money — money the state (as taxpayers) would otherwise spend on emergency services and jail.
It’s a win-win.
But it’s not just the chronically homeless that benefit.
They’ve found that by focusing on this particular group it “improves coordination and planning for housing and services for all of the homeless.”
Call it a “trickle-down” effect.
Since families with children are often the victims of homelessness, I applaud this.
Unfortunately, it’s children who suffer exponentially when exposed to this kind of traumatic experience.
According to Utah’s 2013 Comprehensive Report on Homelessness, “Children are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of homelessness. Homelessness often interrupts schooling and the development of positive peer and mentoring relationships. Homeless children frequently experience dangerous or unhealthy environments and may be more likely to experience homelessness as an adult.”
I believe education is a key to ending homelessness, both for the ones experiencing it and those who are not. Having faced it myself, I know that a major stumbling block resides in the many myths surrounding it.
Not surprisingly, Utah’s got that handled, too.
In their report, they identified the top four myths:
Myth #1 – People who are homeless stay homeless for a long time.
False: Only about 3% are considered chronically homeless.
Myth #2 – Most are single men.
False: Only 29% – the largest number are parents and children.
Myth #3 – The homeless population is transient, migrating to cities with the best services.
False: Nearly 90% were in Utah when they became homeless.
Myth #4 – They are to blame for their situation.
False: Many come from situations of abuse, illness and trauma.
In my own efforts to end homelessness and help people become self-sufficient and empowered through education, I started “Operation YES.”
With the help of Craig Perrine, we did a series of interviews with some amazing people who offered their expertise and know-how towards this mission. This series later became a manual called Operation Y.E.S.: Your Economic Solution.
Yes we can end homelessness
Essentially, Operation YES is a 3-part formula designed to help people see beyond the limitations and the traditional categories. It’s all covered in detail in the manual, but the simple version is:
1. Raise or rebuild your self-esteem
2. Think like an entrepreneur
3. Leverage the Internet
If you have a desire to be a part of the solution to end homelessness, you can get your own copy of the manual at no charge at http://www.OperationYes.com
Oh, and if you’re traveling this summer, I hope you’ll stop in Utah.
Let them know they’re doing great things there…:-)
Ao Akua,
Joe
PS — If you prefer a printed copy of “Operation YES,” it is available at Amazon for a small investment: http://www.amazon.com/Y-E-S-Visionaries-Reveal-Economic-Solution/dp/1499615426/
Resource: http://www.impacthomelessness.org/resources/docs/eis/Utah-Report-on-homelessness2013.pdf
Member BBB 2003 - 2015
Brain Filters
“I’m not a fan of your books.”
“I’m not a fan of your saying that.”
“But your books don’t jell with my experience.”
“Of course they don’t. Your experience is based on your beliefs, and your beliefs don’t match my beliefs, so you naturally can’t be a fan of what you don’t believe.”
“Huh?”
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“Look. Your life has been one of struggle. So when you look around, you don’t see positive things. But you are looking around through a brain filter of limiting beliefs, and those beliefs are giving you the life experience of struggle you have.”
“See? You don’t make any sense!”
“Well, if you believed in positive thinking and positive doing, and began to see the positive in what’s already around you, you would attract more positive experiences, and then you would agree with my positive teachings.”
“But that’s not my experience!”
“Exactly. Your current beliefs are attracting your current experiences. You’ll get the same thing in the future as you have in the past until you change your beliefs.”
“You’re not in touch with reality!”
“I’m not in touch with your reality. But I was once. I used to think in terms of struggle, lack, limitation and victimhood. But I spent a lot of time, money and energy to retrain my brain, so today I see and experience miracles.”
“But even if that were true, how do I change my beliefs?”
“The first step is being open to a new view of reality.”
“I’m not sure I can do that.”
“That’s a belief, you know.”
“It is?”
“Yep.”
“Then how do I become aware of my beliefs, since I don’t seem to know what they are?”
“By looking at what you have and asking, ‘What might I believe to attract that into my life?'”
“Will your books help me with that?”
“You mean you haven’t actually read them?”
“I flipped through them.”
“Yes, start with my books.”
“Which one?”
“The one you are resisting reading.”
Ao Akua,
joe
PS – Of course, the faster way to see and change your beliefs is with a trained objective person. Maybe see Miracles Coaching.
Member BBB 2003 - 2015
