Thinking Magically™ | How I Discovered Instant Fearlessness (and What You Can Learn From It)

There are two basic motivating forces: fear and love.
When we are afraid, we pull back from life.
When we are in love, we open to all that life has to offer with passion, excitement, and acceptance.
We need to learn to love ourselves first, in all our glory and our imperfections.
If we cannot love ourselves, we cannot fully open to our ability to love others or our potential to create.
Evolution and all hopes for a better world rest in
the fearlessness and open-hearted vision of people who embrace life.
– John Lennon

As we start this new year, we all automatically do two things — we bring with us the favor of our dreams and the baggage of our fears from last year. And here’s the interesting thing: you can’t have one of those without the other. For in your dreams, your fears are born and carried. In your wanting, you have already recognized what is lacking and deficient and must be avoided. And in your fears, you can identify and thus desire the ambition that is needed or the desire that must be followed to soothe you.

Here’s the interesting thing — if you will understand and admit to and accept and digest your fears rather than run from them, they carry the keys to set you free.

Unfortunately, most of us let fear dictate how our decisions are made, the relationships we have with people, the concessions we make, and the aspirations we follow. That type of baggage has more handling charges than you can imagine.

Here’s a novel thought for you for 2015 — let your decisions, relationships, lines in the sand, and ambition be driven by your desires. Start asking — for everything and everyone you encounter: Does this trigger happiness? Does this trigger magic? Does this trigger abundance?

To put it another way, I’m not asking you to be without fear. I’m not even sure that’s possible.

I’m asking you to be fear-LESS.

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Your fear carries the keys to your freedom
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During the course of my career as a litigator, I have had to face down some pretty powerful, egotistical, and larger-than-life human predators. And despite the threats, the bravado and swollen heads, my clients have called me unflappable. Does that mean I haven’t been afraid?

You bet I have. And I’ve learned from those timid times.

My clients often face the potential loss of millions and life-changing decisions made by others and they have had their fates turned over to the hands of a broken legal system and the pillagers who’ve learned to play the system. And if my clients lose — I lose because I handle their cases as if I was the client.

Oh yeah . . . I hate to lose!

Because I am such a eager competitor and very aggressive . . . I used to be afraid of losing. Until I learned something —

You can’t make fear go away. Because fear means you want something. And we all want things all the time. If you tell me you don’t want anything, all I have to do is ask you what you’re afraid of. When you tell me that fear, I can instantly tell you what you want (even if you don’t know it yourself).

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You always have fear so long as you want something
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But you don’t have fear when you KNOW something.

There’s the mighty distinction for you to take into 2015.

When you focus on what you KNOW, there is no fear.

Think on that.

What are the things you truly know? Notice now that there is no fear attached to what is fixed in your heart and soul.

But what about facing the things you don’t know?

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How to have instant fearlessness
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Here are the 6 Steps to being bold, unintimidated and intrepid for the rest of your life:

1. Be mindful when you feel fear and just what it means. Fear is an emotion. And it comes and it goes on the tide of your physiology and chemical makeup. When it pops up, it usually means you want something. That’s the question to ask: WHAT DO I WANT?

2.  Stay emotionally stable — ‘cuz Shit Always Happens. Nothing is permanent. Change is inevitable. It is one thing to have something and someone. It is quite another to hold it or them. When you “have,” that’s when you know. There is no fear. When you attempt to “hold,” that’s when you want and fear is born. Just keep telling yourself: This too shall pass. It always does. And it always will.

3.  Follow your passions with an “abundance” mindset. Let’s face it — it’s challenging to be fearless when you see scarcity around you and you feel inadequate. It’s time to reconstruct your life so that it’s all about having the bounty and richness you know you were born to have. Follow your passions — not just because they bring you an emotional high — but with the determination that those passions will be lucrative.

4.   Fear doesn’t happen. But you do. Fear is a state of mind. Fear isn’t a tangible object or event or person. If you want to be a massive success, you must take massive (and informed) risks. So you’re scared. Get over it! General George S. Patton once said: “The time to take counsel of your fears is before you make an important battle decision. That’s the time to listen to every fear you can imagine! When you have collected all the facts and fears and made your decision, turn off all your fears and go ahead!”

5.  Prepare. Prepare. Prepare. Some fear arises when you say to yourself, “I’m not ready.” Or “I’m not good enough.” Trusting in your own abilities and having confidence in who and what you are comes from experience. And experience is collected over time. Every consistently successful magician knows that powerful magic happens when you prepare, train, and practice ALL THE TIME. Success is not only a habit, it is something for which you prepare. Here’s a challenge for you: Start planning for your future abundance right now.

6.  Better your world and you will better yourself. Gratitude and giving are important elements to the alchemy of fearlessness. There’s a charming side-effect of sharing and being generous and being bigger than life, itself — you come to KNOW that there’s something bigger than just you out there. And with that knowledge and understanding, the fear takes a second seat to what’s truly important. And fear is never truly important (unless it shows up to keep you out of a physical danger).

A real magician will never let the fear of anything overpower their obligation to be successful and their natural and sacred essence. You were born to be a success. How dare you to allow fear to ruin all that?

Want to take this conversation further? I’d love to hear your thoughts and feelings and action items after reading this. And, if you enjoyed this, I’d be grateful if you click below to share this with others. That’s right, go ahead and help spread this information by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+.

And make sure to sign up for my blog mailing list so you get all future postings delivered directly to your inbox.

© 2015 by Scott Grossberg. All Rights Reserved. thinkingmagically.com

Thinking Magically™ | Magical Intentions for Dealing with the Ordinary

You have to learn the rules of the game.
And then you have to play better than anyone else.
– Albert Einstein

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You don’t learn to live in the world by being a magician
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You learn to live in the world by being in the world.

Your magic — your personal power — might sustain you. Your magic — your confidence — might bolster you. Your magic — your wizardly prowess — might guide and even protect you.

But, in the end, we all need to live together.

“Now wait . . .” you must be saying. “Scott, you’ve told us to be rebels, nonconformists, and habitually restless. Now you’re telling us all to just get along. What’s up with that?”

Oh, relax. Take a breath.

I didn’t tell you to all just “get along.”

I said we all need to “live together.”

Also, magic really isn’t very interesting if you’re only entertaining yourself. That’s actually called something else . . . and although they both start with “m,” don’t ever confuse one for the other.

Part of being a consistently successful magician involves meeting, managing, and manifesting the expectations of those around you. That can only happen when you pledge to take responsibility for everything you say and everything you do.

I want you to be rebels because I know, in doing so, you will be morally responsible for the effects of your choices and actions. I want you to be nonconformists because I know you will not tolerate convention and prescripts that are offensive. And I want you to be habitually restless because, as a magician, you already know that nothing is permanent and everything changes.

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Some magical intentions for dealing with the ordinary
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Doing and being all this, however, can be made a little simpler by having some strong, foundational magical intentions already in place. Here are some to consider as you make your way into and through the world —

The world deserves to be left in a better place than when you found it. And the people in it deserve your best intentions and attention and kindness.

Everyone has an opinion. But those opinions are not rules. Only you get to choose the rules that apply to you.

Start realizing that “no” is just a suggestion. And everything is negotiable.

When someone asks you how you’re doing,  tell them “Spectacular!” Then watch their reaction. As an added bonus, feel free to tell everyone, “I do magic,” and then watch what happens.

If you want people to believe in you and your magic, start by actually living like a magician. Authenticity matters. No one likes a fake.

Keep the mumbo-jumbo and magical gibberish to a minimum. Otherwise, it’s kind of like trying to teach a pig to dance. You’ll only waste your time and annoy the pig.

Learn to speak to yourself better. Only then will you learn to speak to others better. And, above all else, say and do.

When people find out about your magic, they will ask you to share it with them, do it for them, use it to get something for them, and cast it to create change for them. This is a perfectly natural response from those who are moving from the material to the magical, themselves.

Despite the fears of many and the wishes of a few, it’s not possible to over-use your magic. Use it early. Use if often. But . . . you don’t always have to be so in-their-face about it.

You will make mistakes. Get over it.

The people around you will make mistakes. Get over it.

There are always more effective and efficient ways to get things done. Keep tweaking your personal system for success.

You are here and now for a reason. The people around you are here and now for reason. That’s not a coincidence.

Always, always, always mind your manners. Say, “please” and “thank you” and “you’re welcome”  with abundant joy.

Honor your fans, followers, and friends. Remember . . . they have a choice, too.

Not everyone likes to be surprised or entertained or have wonder forced upon them. If what you want to do isn’t going to advance someone, it might be a good thing to reevaluate what you plan to do.

You get what you pay for. They get what they pay for. Value yourself accordingly.

Design your illusions and effects and manifestations for them. Not for you. Your illusions don’t work on you.

Stop being a doormat and being afraid of what others will think of your magic. Be bold.

A good magician is a good observer. A good magician is a good listener. A good magician is a good fixer. Observe. Then listen. Then fix.

There are times when you will need to walk behind someone with a broom. Don’t expect, however, that there’s someone sweeping up behind you. Clean up your own crap.

You don’t need to do everything to get everything you want. It’s okay to ask for help.

You don’t have a monopoly on anything. Nothing’s new. Others will replicate your success at one time or another. Therefore, your biggest assets are your relationships with others.

Do epic magic or go home.

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We end as we began
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You learn to live in the world by being in the world.

And you learn to be in the world by putting into place systems of success which will allow you to rely on their rules and their processes and their blueprints for success. Take some or all of the “rules” from above and start putting your own system to work for you.

And make certain you let us know of the successes that flow from this powerful magic.

If you enjoyed any of these articles, I’d be grateful if you click below to share this with others. That’s right, go ahead and help spread this information by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+. Thank you!

And make sure to sign up for my blog mailing list so you get all future postings delivered directly to your inbox.

© 2014 by Scott Grossberg. All Rights Reserved. thinkingmagically.com

Thinking Magically™ | The Top 15 TED Talks For Magicians

As you navigate through the rest of your life, be open to collaboration. Other people and other people’s ideas are often better than your own. Find a group of people who challenge and inspire you, spend a lot of time with them, and it will change your life.
– Amy Poehler

“Ideas worth spreading.” That’s the tag line for TED – a now-ubiquitous, coveted spotlight, and overly-imitated conference that, since 1984, has offered the world 18-minute “short, powerful talks.” At TED you get to hear from the likes of Dan Pink, Steve Jobs, Sir Ken Robinson, J.J. Abrams, Seth Godin, and Al Gore. Famous people cramming their big lives into a small amount of time. And there are the not-so-famous people expanding their reach will such clarity and passion that you want to know them better.

If you haven’t done so already, you can discover TED Talks here:

http://www.ted.com/

Everyone has their favorite TED Talk(s). The interesting thing is that that choice says more about you than you might otherwise be willing to admit. Because I’m devoted to providing you with resources to turn you into the success you desire for yourself, I thought it might be fun to find what I consider to be the Top 15 TED Talks For Magicians.

You’ll have heard of some of the people I list. But there are those who will be new to you. The idea behind this list is to get you motivated, keep you inspired, provide you with figments of someone else’s imagination that you can capture for your own use, and suggest that there are better, more efficient, and more effective ways for you to reach your success than you might have daydreamed on your own.

So here’s my personally cultivated list of those videos that I know will teach you a little something about the magic that’s needed to be the success you’ve always wanted:

THE TOP 15 TED TALKS FOR MAGICIANS
(in no particular order, at all,
so you’re forced to explore and enjoy)

Derek Sivers – How to Start a Movement

Founder and former president of CD Baby, Derek Sivers (a musician and circus clown) shares with you an amazing video on how to start a movement and what has to happen for it to succeed.

Sir Richard Branson – Life at 30,000 Feet

The founder and CEO of the Virgin Group talks to you about his life running his companies, competing, sustaining your dreams, and what motivates him.

Brene Brown – The Power of Vulnerability, Courage, Authenticity, and Shame

Scholar, author, and speaker, Brene Brown, and author of “Daring Greatly: How the Courage to be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead, More” shares her insights on being vulnerable and how to be transparent in order to be powerful.

Simon Sinek – How Great Leaders Inspire Action

The author of “Start With Why” and “Leaders Eat Last” gives you his model for inspirational leadership and shows you the importance of constantly asking and answering one question: “Why?”

Tony Robbins – Why We Do What We Do

Arguably the world’s top motivational coach, Tony Robbins talks to you about motivation, passion, and the reasons behind what you do what you do.

Martin Hagger – Sport Psychology – Inside the Mind of Champion Athletes

Professor of Psychology at Curtin University, Martin Hagger, explains what being a champion – meeting success and dealing with failure – means from an internal programming perspective.

Benjamin Zander – The Transformative Power of Classical Music

The author of “The Art of Possibility: Transforming Professional and Personal Life” and the conductor of The Boston Philharmonic Orchestra will show you how to be a leader, how to manifest greatness, and how to bring a “shine” to someone else’s eyes.

Dan Pink – The Puzzle of Motivation

Bestselling author, Dan Pink, talks to you about management, engagement, self-direction, and providing employees with autonomy.

J.J. Abrams – The Mystery Box

Massively successful producer, writer, actor, and director, J.J. Abrams, talks about how “mystery” inspires and motivates him. You will want your own “Mystery Box” when he’s done with you.

Elizabeth Gilbert – Success, Failure and The Drive to Keep Creating

The author of “Eat, Prey, Love” becomes transparent and talks to you about moving forward after you obtain success and surviving past and through other people’s expectations.

Seth Godin – How to Get Your Ideas to Spread

Marketing guru, Seth Godin, talks about the importance of spreading the idea of success – not just inventing something successful.

Gary Vaynerchuk – Building Personal Brand Within the Social Media Landscape

Entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk, spoke at the Web 2.0 Expo and passionately talks to you about your users, fans, customers, and doing what you want to do for the rest of your life . . . and monetizing it. Hustle, folks!

Chris Hadfield – What I Learned From Going Blind in Space

What’s the scariest or most dangerous thing you’ve ever done? Col. Chris Hadfield tells you about his career as an astronaut and what he learned about the power of being prepared and dealing with danger, fear, and stress.

Kevin Roberts – The Power of Love

The CEO of Saatchi and Saatchi and author of “Lovemarks” shows you how the power of love drives marketing. You will learn a new role for your business.

Steve Jobs – Stanford Commencement Address – How to Live Before You Die

Not a formal TED Talk, but part of the TED library of offerings. The title speaks for itself.

BONUS VIDEO – The Crazy Ones (actually narrated by Steve Jobs)

If you don’t watch any other video . . . watch this one.

Enjoy!

If you enjoyed any of these articles, I’d be grateful if you click below to share this with others. That’s right, go ahead and help spread this information by emailing it to a friend, or sharing it on Twitter, Facebook, or Google+. Thank you!

And make sure to sign up for my blog mailing list so you get all future postings delivered directly to your inbox.

© 2014 by Scott Grossberg. All Rights Reserved. thinkingmagically.com