Good Luck

Good morning!

It's really quiet in my apartment right now. I am tempted to turn on the TV or something but instead I'm going to just open the window and write until 9am at which point I can listen to every talking head debate whether the Dems are going to lose the House in a few weeks. For what it's worth, I did hear a woman interviewed recently on NPR who said that if the Republicans had 8 years to destroy the country then the Democrats should have at least 4 to fix things. I agree.

Stay tuned for my newest blog, Lindspolitics, an unabashedly left-leaning internet rag that will display my favorite Daily Show clips and Tina Fey Sarah Palin impressions while avoiding any serious editorializing and commentary. This, because (I admit) I have a slightly outdated viewpoint of American politics. I only recently learned how much tea kettle steam the Tea Party has and would probably need to call a lifeline if someone asked me to defend the national healthcare bill. Maybe I should have a new political blog to bring myself up to speed.

Ok, back to this morning. My day yesterday had some really wonderful highlights, including two great intenSati classes (one inside Equinox, one outside in Central Park) that brought me a lot of joy and fulfillment. I've been thinking lately about fulfillment versus pleasure, and the kinds of longer term investments and commitments that ultimately bring in more of the former over time. What brings you fulfillment?

For me, it's when I know I am having a real impact on people's lives. Do you appreciate how you are doing something to help or inspire someone else? Whether you are an artist whose work reaches fans, a teacher helping someone learn a new skill, a student giving a teacher the chance to do her work or a parent whose devotion makes the ultimate difference in your child's life, take a moment to cultivate awareness that, Yes, it's true that I am making a difference and for that I am grateful. It may seem obvious but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that if you make a list of how many people you really do touch, you will see how you are an intricate part of many people's lives...

The theme of my classes yesterday morning was closing the gap between who you are and who you want to be through changing how you feel. There is a basic "Act as if" principle of manifesting and a key way to deepen belief in one's dreams coming true by pretending you have what you want now. :) It's pretty amazing because lately I've been doing some of this work around my life as a writer and then at two separate dinner parties I went to last night, I met one person who is going to introduce me to her talented and accomplished singer/songwriter friend and another woman who is a published poet and willing to look at some of my writing. I'm not saying visualizing and affirming is necessary for everybody. It is certainly not a requirement, as I'm sure there are plenty of writers who never took the time to see themselves in a more advanced stage of their work, they just put their head down and wrote, come what may, but for me, it keeps me moving.

Scott Adams, the cartoonist who created Dilbert and keeps a great blog, had this to say about the power of affirmations in helping his career. He wrote down that he'd have a syndicated column 15 times a day, every day, until it happened. I edited down a few excerpts from his post on the subject of affirmations and creating your own luck:

"If you only hear the objective facts, it sounds as if I believe in some sort of voodoo or magic. That's not the case. While I do think there is something wonderful and inexplicable about affirmations, I have no reason to conclude it is any more than a pleasant hallucination. But if it is a hallucination, it's a totally cool one. When I have flying dreams, I know they aren't real, but it doesn't stop me from enjoying the hell out of them. And so it might be the same with affirmations. Affirmations might be nothing more than a wonderful illusion that you can control your own luck."

"There's a book called The Luck Factor, in which researcher Richard Wiseman describes studying people who considered themselves lucky...people who expect luck have a more powerful ability to notice opportunities in their environment. Optimistic people's field of perception is literally greater. And the best part is he discovered that when you train people to expect luck, their field of perception increases accordingly."

"I think part of the mystery of affirmations has to do with the fact that it improves your ability to notice an opportunity. And when you do, it seems like a lucky coincidence. In my case, about half of my seemingly miraculous results with affirmations could be traced back to my noticing something important."

Let me know if you want to join me -- 15x/day every day in the area(s) of your choosing. I am going for it. Eaaaaaasy and it will help you stay focused on creating your own good luck...

Best, xo

Lindsay