The Best Years of Your Life… Now!

When the momentary “rush” that comes from “buying something” breaks its addictive hold on the population – the economy slows down.

Especially when it’s a consumer-based economy

All of a sudden the “hypnotic buying-trance” that new car dealers have well understood and manipulated is gone. So sales plunge 40-50%.

Because 40-50% of “sales” are hypnotically induced… The remaining sales are in fact the “real” demand based upon cars and trucks simply wearing out or no longer being economically viable to maintain.

Uh-Ohhh

The longer people go without the “need to purchase” – not falling prey to the “hypnotic rush to ownership” – the more they begin to realize they can do without.

“Hey, maybe I can get another year or two out of my car”…

It’s funny, the economic recession is actually large numbers of people –  who for whatever reason –  are temporarily not being swayed by the emotional need to own something new… For many it’s a “sea change” in their world view.

Suddenly life doesn’t revolve around the next thing you need to buy…

This may actually begin to expand the demand for items providing real value and quality… Products and services that can enhance your life experience and fulfillment are going to become the foundation of this transforming economy.

It should come as no surprise that the car makers who provide the greatest reliability and value are suffering the least decline in sales.

Easy credit empowers stupid emotional decisions

Like buying a new car that’s worth 25% of it’s original cost in less than 4 years – versus one that still maintains 60 -70% of it’s value…

Or buying a “new car” when the best deal may be one a couple of years old.

Those businesses and services which have relied upon the “hypnotic need to own” are in big trouble now… And it’s a good thing.

If a business is not delivering real value in this new economy  - the elimination of the emotional enabling known as easy credit –  strips away the thin veil of the false promise  and easy monthly payments – used to disguise poorly designed products and services.

The future of business opportunity and success –  is going to be based on delivering real demonstrable value.

The 30 – 40% of consumers who are victims of their own self hypnosis – the ones most vulnerable to being swayed by smoke and mirrors –  are no longer in the market.

The real economy is still there

The opportunity to “get real” has never been greater!

-Bob Baran

Creating new pathways – person to person relationships – may be one of the least understood and most powerful processes – essential to getting you from where you are now to where you want you life to be.

Opportunities are the result of your relationships

If your life is standing still you should first review your current day – to – day relationships.  Do you interact with the same people? Have you been interacting with only these people for the past few months – or years?

It’s too easy to become a victim of your status quo!

We all want to feel safe and comfortable – so it’s not unusual to create a network of relationships which is predictable and consistent.  The problem is there may be a very limited world view within your current network of relationships.

Especially when you all share the same interests, attitudes and opinions.

If you want to move your life into a new direction – the easiest way to accomplish such a transformation – is to create new relationships!

You need to begin to interact with people who may have a different world view than you have.  It will stimulate your thinking process and cause you to consider possibilities which may be out of the norm with your current network of relationships.

New relationships are the genesis of new opportunities

Changing your network of relationships will in time cause you to adjust your attitude about what may be possible for you – and the manner in which you will go about achieving it.

Think of  relationship building as a source of  fresh energy.

And more important –  a source of fresh inspiration!

Few things in life are more profound than meeting someone who has already accomplished the kinds of things you wish to accomplish. There’s a wonderful realization that takes place.  It’s the “I can do that too!” epiphany.

Having that realization about what is possible in your own life can be the very foundation upon which you will build your dream life.

Start making new friends...  You will be transformed and your dreams will be one step closer to being the life you’re actually living – not the life you wish or hope to have one day.

-Bob Baran

Back at the very beginning of this blog, Bob wrote this post about Warren Miller:

I happened to hear a radio interview yesterday with a man named Warren Miller. I guess anybody who ski’s or snowboards is going to recognize that name. He became famous creating movies which captured the excitement and the thrill of the experience…

When he started doing this there were only 6 ski lifts in the United States! He used to get the ski school instructors to do the actual skiing by telling them how famous they were going to become…

Often times he had to live in his car sleeping in parking lots…When he was able to finally show his movies…He narrated them live and played back his own music soundtracks…And this was the early 1950′s!

Many credit Warren with creating a grass-roots ferver about the joy of skiing in the snow back in those early days…

By the way his son took over the business about twenty years ago and it was recently sold as part of a package for a cool 300 million.

To paraphrase a couple of things Warren said in the interview that resonated with me:

1. Most people are tied down psychologically to their current financial situation…Instead of doing what they love they tell themselves that they can’t…When the radio interviewer expressed his own interest in snowboarding Warren said he should quit his job and go work for a small radio station so he could follow his joy…(the interviewer’s reaction was to change the subject)

2. Nobody plans the first half of their lives…and few plan the second half! Although Warren left behind film making about 18 years ago he has taught himself to become a writer…Essentially launching a new career…He started by writing a articles for the local paper at $10 a pop…Soon he was writing for 22 newspapers!

Probably the most impressive thing about Warren Miller was his mannerism on the radio…He had that no-nonsense energetic confidence and vitality of a successful man in his late forties or early fifties. He went on to say that he figured he still had another 25 productive years ahead of him and was excited about the future.

Then the radio announcer mentioned that Warren Miller was 83…

One of the basic assumptions of The Intentional Prosperity™ System is that you can find your passion and follow your dreams…Doing it is a lifestyle that unlocks your prosperity and abundance. Warren Miller is an example of someone who found his joy and fulfillment by following his passion…And continues to follow his passion!

Thank you Warren, you made my day!

-Bob Baran

Since this week I shared my skiing story with you, I thought you might enjoy reading the above post about how Warren Miller follows his passion.

Don’t let the news you hear keep you from finding and following your passion.

Gwen Baran

This last weekend I had an experience that reminded me of this post that Bob wrote way back in October of 2007.

The principle of an honest mistake is a phenomenon which begins with making a decision to do something. Then you throw yourself wholeheartedly into that decision only to find out that the information you based it on was wrong…

By the time you found out the information was wrong you were already committed and “down the road” with your time, energy and commitment… Did you just stop and give up?…Or did you face the reality, find a solution and continue to move ahead and still reach your goal?

In “The Intentional Prosperity™ System” I refer to this phenomenon as “the principal of the honest mistake”…

What it comes down to is this:

You are never punished or put at a disadvantage because you made an honest decision based upon faulty information…

Ask anyone who has succeeded in life by following their passion and they will acknowledge and verify this amazing phenomenon taking place in their own lives… read more…

Do you want to know what experience reminded me of this post?

Well, it had to do with skiing.  Yes, skiing.

I was up on Stemple Pass, in beautiful Southwestern Montana, with a friend and we had decided to take the outer loop to enjoy the sunshine and the views.  This was one of the easier routes.

When we came to the beginning of a more difficult route, we decided to be a little more adventurous.  We figured we could loop back by taking this trail rather than turning around and retracing our tracks.

No one had been on this path recently so we were breaking trail.  When we reached a junction that had been blown in with drifted snow, we had to choose a different trail by looking at the map and the trail markers on the trees.

When we’d gotten past the drifted in part, we found someone’s trail.  Yea, we thought!  We’ll just follow this guy’s tracks out.  This is the place were we made an honest mistake. We thought, we assumed, this person knew where he was going.

Long story — short… we had to back track a number of times and finally found the trail markers to get back on the trail.

Now,  if we’d been paying attention we’d have noticed that we hadn’t seen any trail markers in awhile.  On the other hand, we saw some incredible country and even though we made that honest mistake, everything worked out fine and we didn’t get lost in the wilderness.

If you’re feeling lost in the wilderness of life and the insanity that has  gripped our world – Let Bob show you some “trail markers” to get you back on the road to prosperity.

Don’t worry… everything will work out.

Take care,

Gwen Baran

Do you know what being present is?

Being present is being fully in the moment. You don’t have any other thought in your mind other than the experience you’re currently in.

It is very easy to live life in the past or future. It’s where most of us spend our time.

“Why did I do that?” “Why didn’t that situation work out the way I thought it should?” “When will I be living the successful life I deserve?” “What happened in the news?” etc…

Over the years, I’ve had periods of time when I was able to live completely in the present. During those times, I had amazing experiences and everything always worked out for the best. I was always in the right place at the right time. I could go on, but I’m sure you get the point. Being present is like being the luckiest person in the world. Everything falls away but the most important core issues. You’re in the “here and now”!

How do you become present? The quickest way is to breathe. Yes, breathe!

Right now, you’re sitting in front of your computer. Aren’t you? Then what you need to do is: take a deep breath. Now pay attention to how that breath feels. Can you feel it filling up your lungs? Now let it out. How did that feel? Did you let it out in a big huff or did you slowly release it?

Try it again.
Big deep breath.
Pay attention to how it feels.
Now let it out slowly and experience how it feels to be in control of your breath.

Wasn’t that empowering? Even though breathing is something that is automatic, it is also something that you can control! Oh, and by the way, you’re now present!

Hope this was a helpful exercise for you.  Take a breathing break at least once a day and watch how your stress level changes and how you deal differently with each challenge that comes your way.

To your success,

Gwen Baran