Life will pay you exactly what you ask of it.  The Bible says, "Ask and you shall receive."  Great formula.  

I'm sure what it meant was "ask intelligently," not "bitch and you will receive," "whine and you will receive.'

Asking intelligently means this:

First, ask specifically.  Don't ask in a general way.  People will say, "I want more money."  "Fine.  Here's a dollar.  Get out of here."  You get what you ask for.  You are just not aware of how general you are asking.  Clarity is power.  The more clear you are about exactly what you want, the more your brains knows how to get there.  Your brains knows exactly how to get what it wants.

Successful people know what they want.  If you don't know exactly what you want, you are not going to achieve anything.  Clarity is power.  If you can't answer the question, "What do you want in your personal life, your body, in your relationships, in your finances, in your spirituality," then you are not going to be as fulfilled as your want to be.

Second, why are you doing it?  If you want to make a billion dollars or bring peace to the earth, ask yourself, "why?"  Because as soon as you come up with a goal, obstacles show up.  Unless you've got enough emotional pride to break through that, you are never going to discover what it really takes.  

You've got to get yourself past it.  Have enough reasons - reasons come first, answers come second.  

To ask intelligently, you have to ask specifically.  To ask intelligently, you have to know why you want it and enough drive to make it happen.  If you do not have enough reasons, you will not make it happen.  

Third, what is your massive action plan?  What is going to get you to follow through?  You've got to have enough plans in case the first and second one don't work.  Otherwise, you are going to be having excuses as to why it doesn't work.  

I took a golf lesson.  I do really well the first day and out power my instructor.  I'm feeling really proud.  The next day, I'm not feeling so proud.  I keep putting the ball in the water and I'm so frustrated.  Finally, I said to my instructor, "You are a terrible instructor, because I should at least be consistent at whatever shooting level I can achieve.  I know I'm not Tiger Woods, but I should be able to be consistent.  Telling me this is difficult is not helping.  Tell me what to do."

He said, "Actually, you are only a little bit off.  He said if you approach the ball and change the angle you are attacking just one or two millimeters in the beginning, it changes the arc.  One millimeter off and you are in the green or in the water. "

I thought what a great belief system.  When all hell is breaking loose and nothing's working, you are only one millimeter off.  Cause most people think, "It's impossible," and then they give up.  

The best thought you can have if nothing's working, "I'm only one millimeter away.  There's only one little thing I can change and it will change everything."

Here's the difference between being certain and being uncertain - standing straight up.  I mean straight up.  When you drop just a little bit in your chest, feel it, and bring it back up.  It's just a tiny difference.  

I'm a 17 year old kid from California with no real education, with no background, with parents who did their best, always, with no money, but I did one thing -- I loved people and I had an enormous demand I made upon myself, I sculpted my mind and my emotions to get me to do whatever it takes to achieve.  I did it by using my body and changing my focus.  I put myself in peak physicality and used incantations.

Can you train yourself to believe in something?

Absolutely.

Do you have that voice in your head that doubts you can do it?

What you want to do is train a new voice.

Start doing incantations.  Not affirmations.  Affirmations are saying something you don't believe.  You haven't changed your physiology.  If you don't change your physiology, you can't change anything.  

Using incantations, you not only speak it, but you embody what you are saying with all the intensity you can.  You do it with enough repetitions that it sticks in your head.  Then, conversation in your head is always the same and it gives you what you want.  So, you use your body and your voice.  

When two people meet, the person who is most certain will always influence the other person.  

Successful people do what failures won't.  

If someone is taking care of their old clothing and they are that fastidious and are that careful with old stuff, they will be treating things that are new with a lot of care as well.  

Take care of what you have right now, even if it isn't perfect.  If your clothes are taken care of, people will feel an energy from you.  

Your car, inside and out, is a reflection of your internal workings.  If your life is a mess internally, your car probably is as well.  It will look like you don't respect it at all.  

Here's the thing, even if you can afford to have your stuff cleaned, do it yourself.  When you put the effort into your car, inside and outside, you are paying attention to your world.  It forces you to live in the moment.  It will give you a greater appreciation for it and slow you down.  It will make you be in a greater appreciation of what you have.  

Take care of what you have now in order to get something greater in the future.  If we don't take care of what we have now -- our mind, our body, our finances, our cars and our shoes, we can't expect to be drawing something new in the future.  

It is so easy to get into limit thinking.  What the market says about anything.  What are the odds of falling in love at the age of 50, 60, 70, 80.  We play the odds which is a bunch of crap.  In the world of personal growth.  Odds are a bunch of crap.  

When you decide what you want to do.  Tell your friends.  Why?  Because it's about accountability.  Making it real.  It's not just something screwing around in our head.  

If you want to lose 50 lbs.  Tell all your friends.  Hold yourself accountable.

JJ Virgin told all of her friends that she was going to receive $500,00 for an advance on a book and she ended up getting more.  

Where are you limited in thinking?  Where are you playing the odds?  

You need to hold yourself accountable.  Let people know what you want to accomplish.  Tell them what changes you are going to make and exactly how you are going to do it.  

When you start going after your goals or the things you think you can't do, the odds are the people around you will be inspired.  

State what you want.  Then create it.  

Go after what you desire.

Be bold.

Be positive.

Be strong.

Act now.

I'd like to say this picture was taken on my mom's 60th birthday, but I'm not 100% sure.  It was close though.

I love this picture of her - not because she looks amazing - but because of the look on David's face as he looks at her.

Why do they say a picture is worth a thousand words?  All you need to do is look at this one for the answer.

I always knew David loved her.  But, until I came across this picture, I didn't realize how much.  What I knew for sure was how much she loved him.

I hope he knows.  

Most of us have a monster on our back right now that is so freakin heavy.  That monster is a belief system that's frustration over addiction or financial problems or health problems or body problems.  It's this monster that's been sitting on us.  It's this monster that is holding us back.  

We can find that monster.  Call it out.  Hold it in front of you and give it a name if you want.  We need help to eradicate the power and grip it has over our life.  

First step is to look for the monster.  What area of life is your monster living in?  

Number two - personalize it.  Call the monster a name.  Call it out.  Tell it you are sick to death of it and it's not going to rule you anymore.

Step number three - get help.  Ask your friends to help you.  Write about it.  Then, develop a plan to get rid of it.  

The monster is kind of like the shadow side.  It's hidden.  Until we pull it out, we can't deal with the shadow side.  We can't reconcile with it.

Then the very last step is to thank the monster.  You know why?  Because the monster finally got your attention to make the changes you always needed to make.  

It's been trying to get your attention about lack of finances, love savvy, addiction savvy, etc.  So, we need to thank the monster because the monster has slowed us down.  It's brought to our attention what needs to be changed and then we can be free.  

I'm friends with the monster
That's under my bed
Get along with the voices inside of my head
You're trying to save me
Stop holding your breath


                Eminem

What's the secret to success - going from homeless to a millionaire?

Joe Vitale from "The Secret" has written over 50 books.  He says anyone can become a millionaire.  I loved his attitude.  He communicates so effectively.  He says there are very simple steps to take.  He loves positive thinking.  Visualization is important.  Cutting out pictures you want - dream board, vision board, etc.  

But, he said number one, above everything is -  are you willing to take the action steps to do what it takes to make money.  Are you willing to ask for help?  Are you willing to tell people you don't have the answers?  Are you willing to join a mastermind group?  Are you willing to do whatever it takes day after day after day?  

Joe Vitale lost all his money, was homeless in the streets of Dallas and he made it back big.  He continues to make it big today.  

I want you to think big.

I want you to talk big.

It's about acting smart and being smart.

Write your affirmations.

Look at your vision board.

Do whatever you need to do first thing in the morning and then work your tail off.

Expect miracles.

And, most important, act big.

Do the work that very few other people do and you will rock on to success.  

Where do we take it next?  How do we get even more involved with the one thing?  At first, it's going to seem pretty simple.  The definition of the one thing is the thing that we have denied, delayed or procrastinated on.  The thing we haven't wanted to deal with.  

The subconscious mind knows that if we truly find the thing we have denied, delayed and procrastinated on, it's going to take work and effort and it's going to make us uncomfortable through it.  So, as a protection mechanism, it sort of shuts us down and goes, "let's go after the obvious goal."  

But, you need to fight that urge and go after the one thing holding you back from your goal.  Then, the goal will become tangible.  

Write down whatever category you need to work on from this list:

1.  Relationship with self;

2.  Relationship with others;

3.  Health;

4.  Career;

5.  Spirituality; or

6.  Finances.

Then write down subcategories underneath on what exactly you want to change.

I want to change my career.

So underneath "career" I am writing:

1. Write more.

2.  Read more.

That's what I want to do.  I want to read and write.  I haven't figured out how to make that a career, but I know it is my passion and if I spend at least a couple of hours every day doing both, it will happen.

Then, you make a plan of action to go after what you need to do to accomplish your goal.  Five days a week for 90 days.  

In 90 days you can prove to yourself that you can stick to your plan and your goal becomes crystal clear.

My goal is to spend at least 3 to 4 hours a day, 5 days a week for 90 days reading and writing.

On October 22nd, I will see where it leads me.

Do you really want something different?  If you get focused and you follow this simple program, you can change your life in 90 days.

How do you find that one thing to focus on?

Whether someone is a celebrity or athlete, they are just people.  They are just like you or I.  When they get focused and follow system, they become successful.  And, you can do the same thing.  

Here are the six categories to find your one thing:

1.  Relationship with self;

2.  Relationship with others;

3.  Health;

4.  Career;

5.  Spirituality; or

6.  Finances.

Of these areas, which is the one you are creating the most havoc in?

Notice I said, "you are creating," because there is no one else creating this havoc in our life.  There are millions of people making money in this economy.  There are millions of people losing weight who have genetics against them.  So, it's not the outside issues.  It's the inside ones.  

Which area is creating the most difficulty in your life?

Which one is holding you back?  What is the anchor in your life?

That's your one thing.

When you find it and create a simple plan and focus for 90 days, your life will radically change.

What do you do when you find the one thing?

This is where you make a commitment.  Five days a week for 90 days you commit to one to two hours a day you focus on the thing you want to change.  

You can find a mentor or coach to help you.  

All it takes is 90 days.

It's all about focus.  It's all about having a plan.

It's all about going after, just one thing.

Is unconditional love real?  Is it really possible between two people to experience unconditional love?  Isn't that what all the books are telling us that we should be able to love our partner unconditionally?  Is that really possible in a love relationship?

What does unconditional love mean?  It means whatever you bring to the table, I love you.  I support you no matter what you bring.  

Here's the biggest problem with unconditional love.  Many times what people are bringing to the table could be there for our demise.  It could be part of our downfall.  

I have concerns with that concept because a lot of times unconditional love means co-dependency.  For instance, if your loved one is an addict, loving them through their addiction is many times co-dependency.

In other words, someone could be emotionally abusive, emotionally absent, physically abusive, or physically absent and we stay with them for unconditional love.  That could be something that tears us down.  

Maybe true unconditional love when you are with someone who is draining your bank account is to say I love you so much, I have to let you go. I love you so much that your behaviors or beliefs or actions are destroying our love and our life.  

Maybe that's a part of unconditional love that the fairy tale books don't want to share with us or talk about.  

There may not be a correct answer here, but I know over the years that my belief system has changed.  I think that it is really healthy to have conditions in a love relationship where we have expectations on both sides.  When if those conditions are met, we may very well end the relationship and we wish the person the best out of loving them so unconditionally.

I can love you so deeply that I will no longer be damaged by your actions.  Maybe that's the new form of unconditional love.