Taking Money

This might turn out to be the longest post I have ever written--or ever will write. But it is likely the most personally important one I have ever written, either. So please bear with me as I share a major major major revelation I had yesterday.

You know how you have these little breakthroughs (and if you're doing your Beyond Freedom, you have them all the time), and you think they're so exciting, until you have a GIANT breakthrough, and you realize those other things were nothing? Like people digging for gold and getting all excited because they found little strains here and there. Woo hoo! We're rich! Until they come upon the mother lode, and those strains suddenly seem really insignificant.

Well, this breakthrough is the mother lode and will no doubt have a powerful effect on the rest of my life.

THE STORY

Every Monday is cleaning day at our house, and the first Monday of every month is "super cleaning day"--just an extra boost for a few things we don't clean regularly.

I think that no matter how much money I make, I will always clean my own house.

I just love it.

Even though it is hard work, I am consumed with gratitude while I do it--gratitude that I HAVE a house to clean (I always wanted a house of my own and am so grateful that my husband had the foresight to buy this one before we were married) and gratitude that it's so big (five bedrooms, four baths, finished basement) and gratitude that I found some natural cleaning products so I don't have to worry about getting sick or poisoned from the chemicals.

And I just love the moment when everything is clean and orderly. It resonates with the deepest of my core values: order and simplicity.

It's hard work, but the results are so worth it!

Anyway, one of the sections in Beyond Freedom is about the subconscious mind. And in one of the lessons, we are asked to write down where we were and what we were doing when we had our greatest ideas. Of course, most people find that the ideas came when they were doing something completely unrelated--when they were in a moment of relaxation (such as drifting off to sleep) or focussed on something else (like driving down the highway).

My lesson came while I was cleaning the shower.

I'm not sure why it popped into my head--perhaps my subconscious had been trying to send me a message for some time and I was always to preoccupied to hear it. Regardless, here was the message:

I have a history of refusing to take money from others.

In case the significance of that didn't quite sink in, let me say it again:

I have a history of refusing to take money from others.

When this thought popped into my head, I thought of ALL the times in my life when I had an opportunity to take money--even when I really and truly deserved it--and I turned it down.

I went back ages ago to a time when I was a kid and I helped an old lady with her groceries. She offered me a quarter, and my mother said not to take it--I should do things out of the goodness of my heart.

When I was in college, I tutored a number of other students for free--out of the goodness of my heart. Today, tutoring has become its own industry--I could have made a killing.

When I was newly in the work force and most of my friends did not have any money, I would often pay for things for them--like dinner out--and I wouldn't accept repayment. I just wanted to do it...you guessed it...out of the goodness of my heart.

Throughout my years in corportate America, I never once asked for a raise or a bonus. I just gratefully took whatever they gave me, and it wasn't until years later that I learned I had been severely underpaid. But even after I found out, it didn't bother me! "Money isn't important," I told myself. "I did the job because I loved it, not for the money," I said.

When I started my first business, I spent tens of thousands of dollars and hundreds of hours getting it going. And then I provided the service FOR FREE. When I eventually realized I could start charging, I charged a ridiculously low amount. Everyone told me that, but what did I say? "Well, I'm really just providing this service (can you guess?) out of the goodness of my heart. It's not about the money."

In my last business, I spent hours and hours and hours and hours developing a (you guessed it) FREE training program for people who were struggling in the business. Since there were so many struggling, I developed a following of over 200 people--people who loved me, listened to me, respected me, looked up to me, followed me, and paid me nothing.

I guess somewhere in my pysche, as evidenced by the patterns I developed and the results I got, I must have thought the money would just miraculously appear!

How stupid is that???

Every time I said NO to money, I was telling the Universe I didn't really want it.

The result? I didn't get any!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

THE LESSON

Awhile back, I wrote about being in Receive Mode--about making a conscious effort to accept the things that come into your life, whether it be a compliment, an act of service, or something of material value.

But what I realized is that this is only half of the picture.

Being in Receive Mode is about me. It's about willingly accepting things that come into my life--getting rid of the "knee-jerk" reaction of "no, I'm OK, I'm fine, I don't need any help, I can do it by myself."

But accepting these things can raise an internal conflict if you don't believe you deserve to have or that somehow it is wrong to have. For many of us, this idea is a major major component of our religious, social, and cultural beliefs. And I think, for me, this was a huge part of my programming--all stemming back at least as far as the incident with the woman at the grocery story.

What I realized yesterday, and what I'm still reeling from today, is that being in Receive Mode does not mean receiving and keeping. In fact, I am a conduit.

I simply provide safe passage for the money (blessings, compliments, service, etc.) to flow from one place to another.

And I don't mean giving it all away to charity.

Even if I use the money to buy a BMW, I am paying for the food on the table of the thousands and thousands of people who made that car possible.

When I use the money to remodel my house, I am providing jobs for the people who manufacture the materials, the people who sell the materials, the designers, and the contractors who do the work.

Even if I don't spend the money at all and just invest it, I am playing a part in the viability of banks, public companies who have stocks, and the people that work for them. I am putting my money in a place where it will be used for the good of others--loans for buildings and businesses and other things that create a thriving economy.

And my reward for being this conduit is a life that I enjoy and a happiness that is my birthright!

When I don't take money, I am not being good or noble. I am blocking the passage of all of these good things into the lives of countless other individuals--and it is shameful.

So, no more!

I hereby declare that I will step up and take my place where it belongs as an instrument of bringing good in the world. I will open the gates and be a conduit for money to pass through me and into the hands of others so that we can ALL enjoy prosperity and abundance!

TAKE ACTION

• If you like what you read in this blog and would like to find out more about the Beyond Freedom program, please contact the person that sent you here. If you found this blog by accident (knowing, of course, that there are no accidents), you may contact me at beyondfreedom@theremmersfamily.com
• What are you saying no to in your life? Start paying attention to your "knee-jerk" reaction when someone pays you a compliment, provides service, or even offers to pay you for something. Remember, your job is not to say no. Your job is to say yes, and pass it on!

Which is Worse?

THE STORY

I have a cavity.

It's not just any cavity--it's a big gaping hole in the side of my tooth.

I have had it for months, and it bothers me every single day.

But it doesn't bother me enough to fix it.

Some days I get something stuck in the cavity, and it is really painful, and I say, "That's IT! I'm going to the dentist RIGHT now!"

Then I brush my teeth, or I put Orajel on it, or it just goes away, or whatever, and I'm back to living with it, being annoyed by it, but not really doing anything about it.

THE LESSON

The sad truth is that this is how most people live their whole lives.

There is something not quite right--something annoying--something unpleasant--but it's not bad enough to change.

I call this "acceptably bad."

It's the "well, it's not perfect, but it will do" mentality.

I'm not sure where this comes from. Well, let me clarify that I know where it comes from--I'm not sure why.

Obviously, it comes from our parents, our culture, our conditioning.

But why? Where did we get this twisted notion that we should settle? That we don't have a right to demand better?

At what point do we rise up and say, "This has to change! I can't stand it anymore! I WON'T stand it anymore!"

I believe it's this: We have conditioned our minds to play the "which is worse" game, instead of the "which is better" game.

Here is what this game looks like.

Which is worse:

1. Calling the dentist, making the appointment, getting in the car, spending the time at the office; or
2. Living with the pain in my tooth.

Well, number 1 is a lot of time and hassle. Number 2 is pretty simple--I've done it all this time.

So, until the pain gets so bad that it is actually worse than the thought of number 1, I'm not going to do anything about it.

Here's another one.

Which is worse:

1. Spending the time learning how to become an entrepreneur, making mistakes along the way, risking money, changing habits; or
2. Living with the way things are now, trading hours for dollars, not having time to spend with the kids, living paycheck to paycheck.

Again, until right now gets so bad that it is actually worse than the thought of number 1, you're not going to change.

So let's all start playing the "Which is Better" game instead!

Which is better?

1. Having no pain in my tooth, or
2. Having pain in my tooth

Which is better?

1. Having loads of money in the bank, or
2. Living paycheck to paycheck

Which is better?

1. Being in control of your life
2. Being controlled by your life

I'll let you decide.

TAKE ACTION

• If you like what you read in this blog and would like to find out more about the Beyond Freedom program, please contact the person that sent you here. If you found this blog by accident (knowing, of course, that there are no accidents), you may contact me at beyondfreedom@theremmersfamily.com
• Is there a decision you are trying to make in your life? Forget making a list of pros and cons. Play the "which is better" game and just make a list of pros!

Creating Your Life

What an amazing, awesome, wonderful day!

I had the most amazing breakthrough during my morning meditation today--I had to write!

THE STORY

So this morning I was meditating on the idea that we create our own life and what that means exactly.

You see, I believe in God. More specifically, I believe that I am a child of God--we all are. Paul said to the Romans, "The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God." (Romans 8:16, KJV)

And I believe this quite literally--not as an allegory.

Now I'm going to take this a step further, and here comes the fear of falling--the fear that I am going to alientate and offend any super religious folks who may be reading this blog. But, as I said when I started out, if we don't feel like we're falling, we are not walking by faith!

So here goes.

I believe that we have within us God's "DNA," so to speak. Like God, WE ARE ALL POWERFUL. (Anyone offended by my blasphemy yet?)

Christ himself said, "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do." (John 14: 12, KJV, my emphasis)

So what did God do when He created the earth? He spoke, and it was so.

What did Christ do when He was on the earth? He spoke, and it was so.

And we have the very same power. We have the power to create anything we want just by "speaking" it into existence. In Proverbs, we read, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue." (Proverbs 18:21, KJV) and Christ told his apostles, "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard seed, ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place; and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible unto you." (Matt 17:20, KJV, my emphasis)

Nothing shall be impossible to you. NOTHING.

So why is it that we struggle so much? Why is it that we don't just fly around or heal people at will or all become instant millionaires?

I believe that it is because we don't know yet how to use the power. Just like when we were born we had to learn how to move our arms and legs, and then we had to learn how to walk and run, and then we learned how to talk, and then had to learn how to control our bowels, and then we had to learn how to read and so on...

We need to constantly learn how to use what we have been given.

We are all powerful, but we need to learn how to use our power.

I like to think of it like those superhero stories--you know, that moment they discover they have this power. But they have to learn how to use it. In modern stories (like the X-Men comic books and movies, the mega TV hit Heroes, or one of my favorite, lesser-known TV shows, 4400), the characters are actually afraid of this power--afraid they can't control it and it will harm somebody, or afraid of being different.

THE LESSON

Anyway, this morning I had an amazing revelation. A powerful insight into what this power is really like.

You see, we are constantly creating everything around us. As Lisa Nichols said in The Secret, "there is no stop or pause button."

So how is it that things seem so messy? I couldn't explain it...until now.

What I realized this morning is that we are like a giant paintbrush, oozing paint out of every pore. As you can imagine, everything we touch gets paint all over it--all the time--whether we intend it or not.

If we put our hand on a canvas, we might like what we see, but when we go to sit on the couch--look out! Mess. Mess everywhere.

And have you heard the term, "What you focus on expands?"

Well if we are giant paintbrush, and whatever we touch gets paint on it, what happens if we touch something a LOT? You guessed it--lots of paint, lots of mess.

Have you ever tried to clean up a paint spill with a cloth that already has paint on it? The spill expands. And that's what happens when you focus on something in your life--whether it is good or bad, it gets bigger.

So here's what we need to do. We must first acknowledge that we are this giant paintbrush. We simply have to stop denying it. No matter how hard you try to ignore it or pretend it's not true, you can't change the fact that you are what you are (a child of God--i.e. a giant paintbrush).

Once you stop resisting the idea, you realize that you are very powerful. In fact, you can paint whatever scenery you want. Don't like it? You can change it! You are the painter--you are in control!

Of course it takes time and practice to learn to control and really refine your power. In fact, I believe that you will never truly perfect it in this life.

But the more you practice, the better you will get. And before you know it, you will be able to create whatever you want with relative ease.

The real trick will be to discover what you want to create. But that's a lesson for another time.

TAKE ACTION

• If you like what you read in this blog and would like to find out more about the Beyond Freedom program, please contact the person that sent you here. If you found this blog by accident (knowing, of course, that there are no accidents), you may contact me at beyondfreedom@theremmersfamily.com
• Did you know that you are creating your own life? What have you created so far? If you're not sure, look around--that's your painting. The great thing is, YOU are in control. T. Harv Eker wrote in his book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind, "Most people don't get what they want in life because they don't know what they want in life!" Get out a piece of paper right now and write what you would like your life to be like. Write it in positive terms--avoid the word "not," because that just conjures up the unpleasant thing. Each day, write down one thing you did to come closer to what you want your life to be like.