Drew's Story

5 years ago (Aug 2012), I remember it very well. It was my last day as a Director at the world’s largest beverage company. I had been let go due to an organization restructure. I wasn’t scared. I wasn’t angry. I was just me. I actually saw it coming so it was no surprise. What I had come to realize is that I had created this situation with my mind. Before I made it to Director I had one recurring thought that I had said over and over in my head. That thought was “if I ever make director I will get a one year severance package if they ever let me go”. That fact was important to me because I thought it would make me safe. Anytime a Director position became available that I thought I was qualified for I would at some point have that thought. Yes I had other thoughts about how exciting the role could be or what kind of work I would get to do or who would be on my team. However, the one year severance was always the dominant consistent thought.

And why not? I am a father of 3 and although my wife works, I am the primary bread winner. I wanted to protect my family and our lifestyle. I was determined to do so. I felt pride in the fact that I could. But as I walked out of that office for the last time I promised myself I would never make this mistake again. I would never let my thoughts create a situation that I didn’t want.

That is how my journey began. That journey consisted of hours and hours of listening to podcasts. I made a conscious decision to stop listening aimlessly to the radio and I started listening to podcasts to feed my mind. I wanted to learn as much as I could. Actually before I started with the podcast I started listening to a CD set called the Making of a Millionaire Mind by Steve Siebold. This was an interesting set of CDs given to me by a highly successful friend of mine as a gift. On these CDs the speaker would give a lesson and then say affirmations about that lesson repeatedly. It was like a programing tool. I actually felt as though I was being brainwashed and I liked it. After I felt the CDs had done their job then I moved to the podcasts. At the same time I sprinkled in some books as well. I was really enjoying the learning experience.

Then one day it happened. I was listening to the Life Coach School podcast by Brooke Castillo and heard something that I had to rewind. I had found this podcast searching for more podcasts on Life Coaches. I had grown to really enjoy her lessons. After I rewound the statement I thought to myself “wow” this is fantastic. What she said made so much sense to me. To set it up I had already learned a lot about limiting beliefs. I was a student of the Law of Attraction so I knew my beliefs played vital role in the future success I wanted to obtain. I had also learned a tremendous amount about the power of Gratitude. I had read The Magic by Rhonda Byrne and completed the 28 day gratitude exercise within it. Practicing gratitude was a habit that I planned to keep for a lifetime. I knew how gratitude made you feel and how important it was to align your feelings so that you get great results. I had also learned a great deal about taking action. I knew that I couldn’t just read books or listen to podcasts. I knew I had to take action if I wanted anything to happen in my life. I had also learned a lot about affirmations and how they could program your subconscious thoughts. This programming was important for times when you weren’t consciously thinking. But what I heard from Brooke that day put it all together.

You see, I have a degree in physics so I have affection for equations. That day I heard the equation that I was looking for and I’ve been practicing it ever since. So what does everyone want? I will go out on a limb and say everyone wants success. Success is in itself a result. As I mentioned before you can’t get the results that you want without taking action. So far this is nothing new to you and it wasn’t to me either. Have you ever thought about how you feel when you take an action? In the same situation you will take one action when you are mad and a different action when you are happy. But what determines how you feel in any situation is what you are thinking in your mind. Every feeling you have is based on how you are thinking. Finally the way that you think about any situation is based on the beliefs that you have within you. If you believe something to be possible you are going to think a certain way. If you believe something to impossible you are going to think a certain way. This made so much sense to me. So when she said it all in one breadth I was amazed. “Your beliefs determine your thinking; your thinking determines how you will feel; your feelings will determine the actions you take and your actions will ultimately determine your results. I had my equation Beliefs – Thoughts – Feelings – Actions – Results.

Now that I had this new learning I decided I wanted to put it into practice and never forget it. After a few attempts at finding a best practice I decided to use my journal as the tool to do just that. My ultimate result that I want to achieve is to Live the Dream. I’ve always loved that phrase and I have dreams within me that I want to live so it stuck. Because I have many dreams I developed a reminder that would help me achieve any one of them.

So inside my journal I have the following content. On every page I remind myself of what I should believe, how I should think, how I should feel and what actions I should take every day. If I follow these reminders I will have successful results and lots of them. Because of these reminders I am having successful results and I love it. Here’s how the reminders flow:

First I believe two things.

I am Reborn. When I wake each morning I am one day wiser. Yesterday is gone and tomorrow is not guaranteed. All I have is now and I must live in the moment.
I am Powerful. I am powerful because I was born in the likeness of my creator. God, Allah, Buddha, the Universe or whatever you believe in is within you. This makes you powerful.

Next I Think Abundance. The world is an abundant place. Nature shows us that every day. There is more than enough for all of us to share. When you come from a place of scarcity you create your own demise. When you come from a place of abundance you know that it is always possible to find a way.

Then my favorite portion of the reminder comes. How I want to feel is Grateful so I remind myself to Be Grateful.

Finally there are two actions I want to focus on every day.

Decisively Intent. I refuse to walk aimlessly through life so I set defined goals for what I want to accomplish. This is the foundation for the actions I will take today.
Creators Create. I have the extraordinary gift of creation and it would be a tragedy not to use it. The more I create the more gifts I share with the world.

I have grown to love this process. I choose to follow it every day when I get into work and when I wake up on the weekends. I open my journal and reflect on the two things I should believe. I smile at those beliefs. I then reflect on what I should think. This gives me comfort that all things are possible. For my feelings I decide to write five things that I am grateful for which cements my feelings of gratitude. Then I write down what my intentions are for today. This decision sets my intentions. Lastly I write what creation I want to work on today. This can be material or not but every day I want to create something. That’s my process but the beauty of the journal is that you can use it any way you want. We are all unique but these reminders will work for everyone. Especially since everyone is trying to Live the Dream. This is my story that I felt compelled to share. Take from it what you like but always remember that I wish you the best and remind you to enjoy the journey.

With Gratitude,

Drew