You Are Here (and how to get over THERE)

I recall a time years ago when I drove into Austin and met with the staff who run my Miracles Coaching program and my Executive Mentoring Program. I had some exciting news to share with them, and some astonishing news arrived while I was there. In the morning The Today Show called, wanting information on my forthcoming book, Zero Limits. That's pretty big, but not as big as the news that came later. At lunch I handed out the recently completed bibliography of my life's work so far -- 45 pages of books, e-books, audios, videos, software, fitness formulas, and more -- an entire listing of everything I've created up to now. The heft of the document alone impressed even me. But that wasn't the biggest news of the day, either. At lunch with the staff, I stood up and told them something that I felt inspired to share. I put a dot on the whiteboard on the wall and circled it. "You are here," I said. I told them the whiteboard is like the map at the mall where all the stores are listed and a little box says "You are here" to give you your bearings. "Where do you want to go from here?" I asked. "Up," someone said. "Off the whiteboard itself," someone else said. "This is all good," I went on. "You all want to move up. You want more sales, more results, more wealth. Right?" They all agreed. I then put another dot on the board, way up at the top of it, and circled it. "That represents where you want to go," I said. I then asked the key question, "How do you go from where you are to where you want to be?" They were quiet for a moment, but then began saying things like "Take a straight line," and "Do one thing at a time," and "Make more sales calls," and so on. "That's all good," I said. "Those are all practical answers. But I want you to think in terms of the movie The Secret and my book The Attractor Factor." I added, "I'm going to tell you what I think is the greatest secret to manifesting whatever you want." They were quiet, not sure where I was going with all this. "Does anyone want to know what the secret is?" I asked. rnThey all burst out laughing. They definitely wanted to know. I pointed at the little "You are here" dot and said, "The secret to getting what you want is to totally appreciate this moment. When you are grateful for this moment, then whatever is next for you will bubble up out of this moment. You'll be inspired to take action of some sort. That will lead you up. But the only way to get to the upper dot is to live in this dot with gratitude." They've all heard this before, but I wanted them to truly get it. I then told them about my Maui friend who says my favorite line these days: "I'm totally satisfied, I just want more." That's the key to success, I explained. It's wanting more without needing more. I went on and on about being grateful, and how it leads to that upward climb. Most of us aren't happy right now, thinking we will be happy when we get to that other dot. But the great joke is that when you get to the other dot, you won't be happy. You'll be looking for another dot on the map. You'll use unhappiness to whip yourself forward. The thing is, it doesn't have to be that way. Just be happy now. Out of this now will come the miracles you seek. The group got the message. They shook my hand. Smiled. Showed light in their eyes. Walked away with a spring in their step. Now here's the really juicy part. I got a phone call right after that meeting. It was Suzanne, my assistant. She almost never calls me, and she knew I was in a meeting. So I knew this call had to be important. I took the call and to my delight I learned that Oprah's people wanted my media kit. And they wanted it by midnight. Oprah's folks are considering me as a guest for a show. Oprah! Now get this: I was happy in the moment. As I'm happy, the next moment brings it's own rewards. As I'm happy in that moment, it too gives birth to more joy. You can do this, too. You may not have Oprah call you, but you will get what is right for you. I explain all of this in the book, Zero Limits. But the essence of the message is this: All you have to do is embrace the dot that says "You are here" and do what it tells you to do. And when the phone rings, answer it!