Blog | David M Masters

WIIFM “What’s in it for me?”

There is no doubt, that WIIFM is everyone’s favorite station. Residing at 98.6 on your body’s dial WIIFM is the default setting ever begging the question, “What’s in it for me?”

I don’t know who originally coined the WIIFM call sign. I first heard about WIIFM “What’s in it for me?” from Brian Tracy. Regardless of who originally came up with the catchy phrase, it has become a commonly used reference representing the basis on which the idea of cooperation is founded.

Whatever it is that you desire to achieve in life, you can increase your effectiveness and the speed at which you successfully launch your endeavor with the help of others by answering that silent pressing question in your audience’s mind, “What’s in it for me?”

Based on the African proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child,” likewise, it takes a village to accomplish a thing with style, grace, and a bit of competence and confidence. Anything we intend to see come to fruition is more easily and effectively accomplished with others supporting us.

But not everyone will be an active supporter of your idea, cause, program, project, or product. You would be miles ahead veering away from the Nay-sayers and keeping your ideas to yourself unless you are able to meet and/or attract like-minded people, who are potential encouragers and/or supporters.

Less than one out of ten people, like you, are open to the idea of increasing your potential in this life and are willing not just to talk about it but to take action. Keep that in mind as you scan the landscape for like-minded individuals.

When you meet them, immediately (if not sooner) offer your encouragement and support for their idea or project. Why? Because they are tuned-in to their own WIIFM frequency and you set yourself apart, clearly identifying yourself as a like-minded individual by encouraging them.

Consider offering to actually help others who are on their own individual paths. There is a more likely chance that they will be willing to help you on your path (you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours) in return.

As you are also tuned-in to the “What’s in it for me?” frequency, you may be keeping score in an effort to measure and match in an equal exchange of support. While this does make for a sound practice for effective business management, I prefer to give more than I receive.

Why might I like to, in a sense, over-deliver? Because I believe in universal reciprocity. That is to say, all my efforts will be rewarded in kind (or even ten-fold) if I give more than that which I am compensated or rewarded for on the surface. It’s as if I am building another account in an investment account with the universe, that pays me dividends at another time and place, sometimes when I least expect it, other times when I need it most.

In this way, you can begin to acquire the village necessary to support you and your growth and/or expansion and some of these people may be worthy of becoming members of your team or mastermind group.

You are one your way, be aware, seek out like-minded individuals, keep moving forward.

Meet Your Ego

Ego is that part of us that insists on being right, asserts our correctness over anyone else’s being wrong. The ego will persuade you to argue or fight for what is perceived to be “right” in order to defend or justify the ego’s position. It is the ego which is commonly in opposition to the “heart” or that more spiritual component that often lies dormant within.

As the heart begins to awaken, becomes empowered to expand and influence the host (our bodies) its energy field increases affecting not only ourselves but, others, the environment and the world around us. The heart honors you (the real, authentic soul being who you are), powers your yearning for growth, expansion, peace and harmony and accesses forces and data unattainable by logic or linear thinking.

All the attributes of the heart are often locked away deep inside you, but as you awaken it can permeate your whole being, including every cell of your body, if you could allow to release it and let it flow. The one thing that can thwart the heart’s efforts to expand is the ego, threatened by the idea of selflessness, and will stop at nothing to restrain the heart by any means to preserve itself.

When approached with ideas, methods and tools that could enhance the expansion of the heart or spiritual awareness, the ego steps in, asserting, “What a bunch of hooey!” or some similar thought, flooding your mind with ideologies, concepts and words that threaten you, make you fearful or susceptible to the ridicule of others.

While your heart is trying to break out of its locked box, not only your mind but the entire society which surrounds us will attempt to dissuade you from allowing this inner growth to take place, as this is the mentality of the herd of egos by which we are surrounded.

Deciding to go allow your individual expansion may make you the black sheep in the fold and even though you may feel more and more that you are less and less a sheep, it might be prudent to not draw attention to your burgeoning enlightenment.

And it is here, that the ego will attempt to pull a fast-one on you.

When the ego has felt that it has lost the war of itself to your insistence to allow the expansion of the greater part of you, the ego will begin a campaign to throw the entire process off-track by making you not only differentiated from the rest of the sheep (though it is true that you are becoming decisively “different” in deed) but “better” than anyone else.

If the ego can convince you that you are superior to others because of your enlightenment, then it has won. The ego is now back in the saddle and will do whatever it can to reduce your effectiveness to the greater community, while restricting your access to continued personal growth.

Enlightenment is allowing that loving, compassionate, selfless part of you to expand so greatly that there is very little (if any) self left for the ego to battle for.

If you are interested, there are ways to deal with the ego.

Revenge vs. Tolerance

Revenge vs. Tolerance begs the question, “What is your reaction when you are faced with a concept, situation, organization or person that you vehemently disagree with?”

You could have a strict and concise, completely opposite point of view, or feel as though you have been slighted, attacked or betrayed by an imposition or affirmative action.

What you do about it say a great deal about the kind of person you are.

Certainly there are many actions and reactions you can take, and like most things in life, the options vary among a spectrum of possibilities. At one end of the spectrum is Ego-fueled Revenge, on the other Love-inspired Tolerance.

Revenge

Revenge is the defense mechanism of the ego and is highly addictive. The ego responds negatively to any idea in contrast to its own individual position. The wider the chasm between what the ego holds dearly and the opposing force or idea, the more violently the ego demands restitution.

While on the surface, the idea of revenge might seem just, “an eye for an eye.”

You offended, hurt me or my feelings, now you must pay dearly.

No one disrespects me, like that.

And there’s a romantic appeal to exercising justice in this manner, and it may be a lifelong compulsion overshadowing all aspects of your life until the need for revenge is satisfied, not unlike Inigo Montoya’s, “You killed my father. Prepare to die.” © 1973 William Goldman “The Princess Bride.”

You see the idea reflected every day in the media headlines in newspapers, on television, the Internet, radio broadcasts and is often reflected in casual conversation among friends, in cafeterias and around the water cooler at work.

The problem with the ego, is that it is not just. There is no other more selfish or disrespectful perspective from which to launch any action. Unfortunately, Albert Einstein accurately depicted the result of any action with his, “with every action there’s an equal opposite reaction.”

For the spiritually-inclined, this confirms the idea that there is a Karmic debt which accumulates with every action we take (which may also include our thoughts).

Where justice represents an equal eye-for-an-eye point of view, ego’s revenge exaggerates the difference to include psychological damages far beyond just the facts, causing any reaction to also be exaggerated. Instead of being an equal response (which might seem reasonable or just) the over-enthusiastic response swings an energy-charged pendulum.

Once the pendulum has swung full force, there is an initial sense of relief that justice has been served… only, as we all know, the pendulum will return to the one who launched it to exert its Karmic energy. Not good for the person who launched the counter-attack, or those within arm’s reach of the initiator of the revenge.

Tolerance

Tolerance, on the other hand, is inspired by love and promotes peace. Love does not seek revenge and is not destructive. Love honors justice but does so selflessly with compassion and respect. Love does not demand compliance, nor does it encourage victimization on either side.

The perspective of someone who may be the recipient of an injustice who is motivated by love rather than ego will respond with a different frame of mind.

The tolerant individual is more likely to imagine what it might be like in the offender’s shoes, wondering, “What may have contributed to this?”

Often, when looking at the entire picture, from the perspective of the other person, organization or thought, you can see how the combination of logic, emotion and circumstance has led to this thought or action that opposes your own sense of truth.

Tolerance is not the condoning of an opposing view, only allowing someone else to have (and hold tight) to such a view.

A tolerant response would be not to defend your position (pushing the pendulum) but to pursue a separate course of action to promote your point of view not directed to the opposition.

This is the enlightened response of tolerance.

Taking the action to promote your position is far more effective than defending your position from an argumentative point of view.

Revenge vs. Tolerance

So, what it comes down to, is answering the question, “What will you do about it?”

Would you rather push the pendulum in defense or make a stand, promoting your position in love and allowing support to be attracted to you?

What Kind of Car Do You Drive?

I hope you’ve picked it well, because your choice of car that you drive tells more about you than you may think.

What does your car say about you?

It could mean,

You are a confident, well-balanced, trustworthy individual

If you drive a car that is not a burden and well within your means, congratulations, you are likely a confident, well-balanced, trustworthy individual and you’re in good company.

To qualify, your automobile will have a value of no more than ten percent of your annual gross income. If so, good job. You are driving a vehicle that is adequately suited for you, and may support the increasing of your income next year, or in the near future, thus raising your budget for an even nicer car.

This is the path of the confident self-supporter on track for increasing his or her personal wealth by not living beyond one’s means.

Financially, an automobile is far more than its adjusted value because there are many others costs of ownership which drive up the overhead for possessing such a vehicle. The monthly drain on your financial resources includes not just the car payment itself, but higher maintenance and insurance costs. And for whatever the reason (there are many ideas and conspiracies concerning) the nicer the car, the more parking tickets and traffic tickets you seem to attract, driving up the costs even more.

A local single mom who drives her kids to and from school in her new(er) Lexus who could afford the car payments, found herself not being able to afford much else. When the vehicle failed to work, the mom found herself fully swaddled in car payment with no reserves available to fix the now useless family ride. While she still had to make the payments, she could not afford to fix, nor replace it. Fortunately, she was able to raise enough money via crowd-source funding to have her car fixed after she and her family became stranded when it became inoperable.

What a disappointment, to have a nice vehicle that sits broken down in the driveway while you’re still paying the monthly freight of car payment and insurance.

That’s just one example of being upside down in your vehicle purchase, there are many stories including losing homes, families, job and investment opportunities due to possessing a car for which you are not well suited for, nor can adequately afford.

Nicer cars tend to attract not only the attention of law enforcement, but they attract other cars (either in accidents or in the driveway) and a sort of “keeping up with the Joneses” mentality, affecting your home, belongings and other creature comforts, adding even more financial and emotional stress to the purchase.

You might be surprised to find that almost three-quarters of all over $250,000-a-year income earners drive more modest consumer vehicles (Hondas, Toyotas, Fords and Volkswagens), leaving only twenty-five percent of them driving luxury vehicles that the rest of us covet.

Yet, nearly one out of every ten less than $100,000-a-year income earners are driving a luxury vehicle that is well beyond their means.

If you’re one of the unfortunate individuals who has fallen into the trap of being over-sold a luxury vehicle, it may indicate that you

Lack self-confidence, are easily swayed by what other people think or say and may likely to be headed for (or already up to your neck in) financial difficulties

Or alternatively,

A success and attention-seeking risk-taker, using the car as a status symbol, who aspires to become (or to persuade others to believe they are) a member of the nouveau riche

What Can I Do?

If you’re upside down in your vehicle, your best option is to get out from under it by selling it. Let it go and get something more moderate that is within your budget.

It’s probably not advisable to return it to a dealership, as that may not turn out the way you had planned.

If you really want that fancy car, no problem. You can use the money you’re saving every month, invest or grow it into raising your income to the point necessary to make your car choice make more sense, then finance it (or maybe even pay cash for it).

Personally, I don’t think its a good thing to try to judge (or categorize) a person by their appearance, source of income, their home or what they drive. Regardless, our society insists on doing so. (Which is good for business.)

Please Lie to Me

Lies. We hear them all day long, every day of our lives and they make us feel good.

Even if the lies are horrific tales, they make us feel better about ourselves… because, after all, it could be worse. We could have been the unfortunate subjects of the tragic lie.

Our parents lie to us about Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy. Disney – the hallmark of all fanciful lies – spins a yarn so incredible, we can help but believe any web they weave, and the liest don’t stop there… We’re just getting started.

Go to school, read a book, watch the news, do a Google search. We’re surrounded by so many lies you couldn’t possibly discern what is truth, even if it was staring you in the face.

Are we all living one big lie?

Ever look in the mirror and ask yourself, “Who is that?” or “Who am I?” and not have any clue as to what the real answer to questions, like that, might be?

But when you tell me good things about myself – even if they’re not true – doesn’t it make me feel better? And the bigger and more fantastic the lie is about me, the far better it feels. In fact, many of the happiest moments of my life were when I was surrounded and bathed in the most dishonest lies ever told.

Tell me lies: It makes me feel fabulous!

Let’s face it, being lied to makes you happy too.

Why am I happy when I am lied to? Because it feels so good to believe that the best things in life are not only possible, but it makes you feel like you are one of the lucky ones. So lucky, it’s as if you’ve just plucked the winning lottery ticket out of thin air. How much better does it get?

When people lie to me, it makes me happy. Tell me that I am amazing, that I look like a million dollars, that I am handsome or pretty, talented, unique, funny and/or brilliant and I will love it!

Please lie to me, it makes me happy. Don’t we all want a little bit of happiness? Sure, it may not last forever (or very long, for that matter) but in that moment we feel like we’re on top of the world.

Want to make me incredibly blissful? It’s easy; just tell me, “I will do anything to make you happy.” Aargh! You got me! Bull’s-eye! Right to the heart! I am yours!

Lie to me. Tell me that you love me, and make me the happiest person on this planet.

Please lie to me.
When you lie to me it makes me feel like I can do anything.
Please lie to me.
I will believe we can live in a world where we are free.
Please lie to me.
I will believe in true love between two for eternity.
Please lie to me.
I will believe we have a divine destiny.
Please lie to me.
So I can be happy.
Please lie to me.

Be a good liar

This doesn’t mean that you should be massively deceitful, though a high skill level in lying can be hugely effective if wielded masterfully.

What it means is

If you are going to lie, please do so with the best of intentions.

Narcissistic lies are simply destructive. While they may accomplish the desired results in the interim, the long lasting effects can be negative and can lead to the inability to ever be trusted by others.

On the other hand, if you have to lie – at the very least – make sure to make someone happy. There is a better chance of having a more meaningful social impact by telling what are commonly referred to as “white lies,” without malice of intent.

Take a moment to think, before answering,

How does my butt look in these jeans?

What is my life’s purpose?

Wandering through life you may ask yourself, “What is my life’s purpose?”

Depending upon the life that you’ve lived up to this moment, the answer may – or may not – be obvious. Fortunately for me, I have lived a life in harmony with my life’s purpose, which I have been aware of from an early age.

Others have lived a life unempowered by their sense of purpose, instead being coached by parents, family and friends to focus their efforts on a worthwhile career so they could have a reasonable chance of being able to survive in this rough and tumble world.

It’s not uncommon for someone to be able to remember what their purpose was early in life, only to have it regarded as fanciful folly, as they were urged to spend their time thinking more responsibly with feet placed firmly on the ground.

As you grow in age and responsibility, your sense of purpose slowly fades away…

Until the day comes when you realize that all the things you fought for, the money, the cars, the jobs, the relationships, all the things that you believed in and thought would bring you a sense of belonging and purpose, leave you feeling little fulfillment, as you discover happiness remains elusive.

Still, as you look back through your life up to this point, you’re likely to find clues and have endured a precise succession of experiences designed to reintegrate you with your purpose. In this case, you can see a higher power gently nudging and preparing you for this moment.

While you have not originally focused on your life’s purpose, your purpose has never left you behind and has attracted challenges and circumstances to align you with your purpose, having trained you for this unbeknownst to you.

Ever wonder why you started asking the question, “What is my life’s purpose?” now?

This is how the higher power works. It is no coincidence that you have come to this place at this time, as these moments have been divinely conceived and executed. You have trained and you are ready to fully engage in your life’s purpose.

As you begin to reorganize your life to accommodate answering the call and accepting your life’s charge, you begin to feel a growing sense of meaning which has eluded you until this time and place.

You have a knowingness that you are doing something meaningful with your life and as you take responsibility for singing your song, that song that is uniquely attuned to your mission and message, gratitude and joy begins to well up inside.

Your heart fills with love which spills out to the lives of those who are close to you and fuels your desire to contribute to the greater good and the community at large.

You discover the time has come to Live a Better Life, Your Best Life and Make the World a Better Place.

It’s never to late to start aligning yourself with your purpose, though it does take courage to do so, regardless of what the Nay sayers may have to say about it.

Why would people who appear to care about you not want you to pursue your life’s purpose?

The answer is this:

They, too, have neglected their life purpose. If they could allow themselves to concede that you – or anyone, for that matter – could possibly have a higher purpose in life.

Why?

Because that would mean that they, too, would have a higher purpose… and their conscious mind and their life could not accommodate such a thought (at this time).

It’s okay, you can do this without their approval.

Thank them for their support and have the courage to do that thing you were called to do.

The Student Becomes the Teacher

In the life of an educator, teacher or trainer, there is no greater honor than the moment when the student becomes the teacher.

The student has persevered, struggled through late nights, studied rigorously and may have isolated themselves somewhat from ordinary life while immersed in the learning process. No one ever told you it would be easy, but you knew on day it would be worth it.

It is one thing to complete one’s studies (it’s the alternative to dropping out, which in itself can be another learning process or continuing to study ad infinitum) but to put what you have learned into practice is where the satisfaction leads to action.

There is no greater action, or honor to the teacher than seeing the student become a teacher. It is the secret hope of one who bestows education to the learner, that one day the student will take up the gauntlet thereby multiplying the efforts of the teacher.

Life is the School

When you made you debut in this life, you enrolled in the University of Life and just like any other student, there are many responses and choices to be made throughout your course of study, and you will study under many teachers.

Will you drop out? Will you do that which is minimally necessary to get by? Will you put what you’ve learned into practice? Will you opt for higher levels of learning? Or,

Will You Become the Teacher?

Is it too difficult to stretch your thoughts just enough to include the possibility that there is a specific reason that you have endured certain scenarios in this life (or survived difficult but specific trainings) all to increase your expertise in your field of study?

Your individual curriculum has been divinely structured for you.

This could be preparing you to achieve personal growth imbuing you with certain tools, skills and ability to better navigate the remainder of your journey, or there could be an underlying higher calling beckoning you to teach others what you have learned – or better yet – you are so motivated to teach others while you are still learning.

There is no better method of learning than to teach others.

When you share what you are currently engaged in learning, you maximize your learning exponentially. You are also the beneficiary of new insights that may not have been gleaned by following your structured field of study. You have access to statistics, data and responses of students that you could have never experienced had you not become a teacher yourself. In this way, the learning process flows in both directions, the student learns from the teacher and the teacher learns from the student(s) also.

As a student/teacher your information processing kicks into high gear, because your students are relying on that which you can bring to the table for them to examine. You are more attentive while you are learning, and you look for unique perspectives while peering between the lines of structured study texts.

Your Calling

Ultimately, the greatest satisfaction comes from surviving a difficult field of study… a tragic life course that might devastate someone else. Yet, you, with your individualized abilities to do what is necessary to successfully manage the harshest circumstances have made it – or are making it – to the other side.

More often than not, when a client comes to me faced with tragedy it becomes clear that he or she has been selected to be the recipient of a full scholarship in this most complex field of study.

Have you suffered through a difficult learning experience or are you neck-deep in a personal course of study that seems like there’s no way out?

Then you may have been called to the ministry of teaching.

What’s your best course of action?

Reach out to others who may also be enrolled or struggling with the same classes, and teach. Answer your call, reach out to others and

Become the Teacher

Veterans Day

Veterans Day is the day that we honor those who have served in the United States Armed Services consisting of the military services of the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard.

To those who have served and continue to serve, we offer up a huge debt of gratitude and heart-felt honor from those of us, the citizenry of the United States of America, whom you serve in our stead.

There have been times when serving in the US Armed Services was not an option. Those of us who are old enough, saw our friends and family mandated to serve in the military, forced to fight on our behalf by law, sometimes against their will. Regardless, whether a veteran volunteered or was drafted, you were placed in a position – that for whatever reason – I and my fellow Americans were spared.

You, our United States Veterans are the true heroes of our nation and in my opinion deserve the highest respect and honor.

On July 4, 2009 PFC Aaron Fairbairn was called upon by the President of the United States and God Almighty to pay the ultimate sacrifice for our country.

Years have passed since then, and the pain of that day is still ever present, though my thoughts of what took place on Aaron’s fateful day have run the gamut. I have had other relatives who served, though they lived long enough to be honored on this day. I knew there would be times Aaron would be at risk, I expected him to return to American soil, as did my other relatives.

When I talked to him on the phone the evening of July third (after a period of imposed “radio silence” during which he was not allowed to call) he assured me that everything was okay. During that short phone conversation we talked and laughed before exchanging I-love-you(s) as he longed to phone other friends also while he had time. None of us had any idea that it was going to be the last time we would talk with Aaron.

Though we honor all who have served, are serving – and some are volunteering even as I type these words – some have made and will make the ultimate sacrifice carrying out their oath of service. For Aaron and all those who were called upon to deliver this fateful level of service, America honors them on Memorial Day.

I can’t help to imagine what it must have been like for Aaron and his brothers in arms in the Battle of COP Zerok Paktika in Afghanistan that ensued that day, but it must have been horrifying. As unimaginable as it is for me to think that Aaron was having to draw fire on the enemy, I couldn’t help but think the young man who was shooting at him was someone else’s son, who also made the same sacrifice for what he believed in that day.

No matter what you think of war or the military in general, it can be a very nasty business and thanks to Aaron and all who have served, the rest of us are able to have the freedoms we are offered by the USA while we are spared the potential horror and/or loss of life thanks to their service.

To all Veterans:

May God bless everyone who has taken the States Armed Services oath of service. I will be forever grateful for your courage.

Thank you for your service.

This day, I feel that we are blood brothers and I honor you.

What Are You Going to Do About It?

You gave it your best shot. You had faith, did the work and worked hard at it. You courageously supported, promoted and pushed all your chips onto the table in this deal in an “all or nothing” proclamation of your earnest belief that this was the answer.

Now, you realize – more than ever – sometimes things don’t turn out like you had planned.

You are mad, your feelings have been hurt, you feel betrayed, embarrassed even victimized.

As others are silently watching you, they are waiting to see how you are going to respond to this situation. After an uncomfortable state of shock, you react. Onlookers are taking note of the words that escape you mouth (or fingertips) in this moment.

Some people may unjustly mock, attack or ridicule you based on those first words acknowledging your pain or disapproval of seeing your hopes and dreams demolished. It is a brutal world, full of self-centered cynics who could care less about your emotional state in this tender moment, when you feel as though your world – undoubtedly the one that you so believed in – has crumbled to dust.

Inside each tragedy of life, there lies a hidden treasure chest. Only you have the key to see what’s inside. It’s in times, like these, that we can be empowered for massive growth and change.

there-is-treasure-in-your-tragedy-only-you-have-the-key-david-m-masters — There is treasure in your tragedy only you have the key

When I look back on my own setbacks, like the loss of a marriage and family, betrayal of family or friends whom I trusted, investments that evaporated or the loss of a son in a battle while he was serving offshore in Afghanistan, all of it – no matter how ultimately tragic it was at the moment – was an opportunity for me to grow and live a better life.

Many of us have suffered though what appeared to be insurmountable obstacles. Even though we may have felt as though life was so awful, we were able to push through and enjoy what life was holding for us on the other side.

So, after you’ve gained your balance, it comes down to this:

What Are You Going to Do About It?

This is where the rubber meets the road, or as my grandfather would say, it’s what “separates the men from the boys.”

Maybe you’ve expressed your feelings about your loss shouting from the rooftops, or you may have held your shattered dreams close to the vest, either way, following the realization that things didn’t turn out like you had hoped,

What are you going to do about it?

You could do nothing. You could play the role of the victim, or you could take action, determined to live a better life, your best life, and make the world a better place.

This is when you come face-to-face to the person you were meant to be. You can turn these inner feelings – that could ultimately destroy a normal person – into the fuel necessary to launch your new life or change the world in a major (or even some small) way.

You could talk about it, or you could rise up and take action. In times like these, you give birth or bolster the leader or warrior within.

Start evaluating your life. Look around and see who truly has your best interests at heart. Do some social housecleaning. Maybe it’s time for a change, possibly massive change of career, or location.

Is it time to leverage your skills, to assemble a team or mobilize a movement?

Once you’ve taken action, you realize what a powerful force for good you can be. Go forth in love, with understanding and benevolence, without judgment or disrespect and make the world a better place.

This is your moment.

This is your time.

It has all come down to this,

What will you do about it?

All Things Work Together for Good

In a world that appears to be so unstable, when life tosses you about like a rag doll, it’s easy to settle into the ol’ Charlie Brown line, “Why’s everybody always picking on me?”

As you begin to awaken, live more life and live it more fully, compassionately, enthusiastically and lovingly, you also begin to see this life through a new set of enlightened eyes. With these eyes you can see that even when you thought things were at their worst, looking back you can see those things were moving you toward something better.

Even in those deepest and darkest moments, something beautiful springs to life within you or around you and in retrospect you realize, though it was painful, it was necessary, in your best interest and may have been the only way, you could have redirected you to live a better life.

Enjoying the long distant vistas from the mountaintop of your life experience, you can see how all the events, the good, the bad and the ugly, were all perfectly conceived and enacted in such a way to bring you to this place as your heart wells up with gratitude and love for every inch of the journey.

In fact, on the map of your life, you can see each event – even those that you thought were accidents or coincidental – were perfectly precise pins, strategically placed leading you to where you are today. It’s almost as if, each step was divinely guided (you might be surprised to discover that each step was). In this way, we can rest in the assurance that,

All Things Work Together for Good

Then you ask yourself, “Is ‘good’ good enough for me?”

You believe there is more to this life. You desire more, and you begin to query as to,

What else is possible?

and/or

How much better does it get?

This is the moment you decide to take a proactive approach to creating your own experience in the world.

For instance, you can look around at the world to see it as it is. In your mind’s eye you can see the world as you might like to see it, not only for your own enjoyment but for the benefit of all creatures inhabiting our planet. And you ask yourself,

What can I do to make the world a better place?

While there is so much beyond your control, you reason there must be something you can do to make the world a better place, even if only in some small way. As you ponder these things your mind is quickened with ideas about how you can make a positive contribution, affecting change in the quality of your life, your community and/or the world at large, without having to fight.