Q) John, on your website I found the page where you talk about a person's "acceptance level". What do you mean by that? -Jay

Our acceptance level is a part of our internal makeup that determines what we believe we can have in our lives... be that more success, more money, more love, etc. But sometimes life can get complicated, and we wonder what's stopping us from reaching our dreams.

Most of the time this has little to do with what our talent or our environment, but more to do with what we've bought to be true about ourselves. Do we deserve abundance, a great relationship, a rewarding career, etc? Connected to acceptance is the ability to receive, which is hard for some people. Receiving money. Receiving compliments. Receiving love. Receiving forgiveness.

We have to be willing to receive more, otherwise we won't. This can be a sticky issue when it comes to money. Some religions frown on greed to such an extent that people expand that out to mean "Don't receive too much money". And then they don't. The truth is, there is enough for everybody to receive abundantly. We haven't gotten that yet because some people on our planet have been using money to make bombs instead of developing positive business and ecological technology.

Unexpected plus: One surprising thing that occurs with an increase in one's acceptance level is that when we increase it in one area, other areas just start unfolding... often in unexpected ways. Recently I increased my acceptance level, and moved to a new business location. Since then, my web site business has increased noticeably. It interesting, because my website doesn't care where I work.

What to know: We have free will, and ultimately, our thoughts, words, and deeds create what we have. How we are being in our life makes the difference. If we want to have better guitar chops, we must *be* a person who is willing to practice and improve. If we want better sound out of our home studios, we must *be* the kind of engineer who listens closely and spends the time trying new things. To have a better love life, we can *be* honest, caring, a good listener, a good supporter.

And being a victim in life won't cause magnificence to flow to us. Being "at choice" enables us to steer our course with purpose and dignity. We are always at choice. When we choose unwisely, we can always re-choose. We can choose how we frame our circumstances and conditions by accepting our selves in greater ways.

Q) If I am capable of super success in the industry, but my acceptance level is low, is it true that I won't make millions because of self-sabotage? -Jay

You certainly could make millions, but if you have other factors going on in your psychological makeup, you could indeed lose it, and then be right back at whatever your level of acceptance was. But this concept isn't just about money. You could be a millionaire and go through 5 divorces before you were at a place of accepting love.

It's not always about self esteem either. Many famous (and wealthy) stars have low self esteem which has been a part of what drove them to success, but they also may have battled addictions, they may have abused people and things, won and lost love, you name it. Sometimes we learn heavy lessons before we figure out what's really worthwhile in life.

Wealthy people who have peace and contentment in their lives tend to be giving, caring, supportive of the success of others, and they have a favorite charity or cause that they give *time* to so that the world becomes a better place. So often their spiritual path brings them the rewards that their financial path only sets the stage for. So I would invite you to continue to seek reward in all areas, not just financial.

Madonna and many other rock stars often did not get where they are by integrity, compassion and caring.

So, does that make it right? Does that make it ok for all of us to ignore higher ideals? Personally, I steer my own ship, regardless of the behaviors of rock stars. And.... I like myself. I have peace about how I affect others.

On a personal note, I think Madonna's performance on "Live To Tell" relays a great deal of compassion and caring. There is soul in that woman. How she does on integrity, I couldn't tell you. Um, but if you use Phil Collins as an example, I would say that his enormous success *is* connected to his level of compassion, integrity and caring. His contributions to the cause of the homeless is well known.

Big Key: If you do it all from a place of "what will I get", it won't happen in the most pleasing way possible. We have to remember that the "getting" will take care of itself if the "giving" is the focus. So often musicians are so focused on what they want to get, that they don't put enough attention into what it is they are giving. Like the artist that wants to get a lot of sex by impressing the other gender via their stage show. They have forgotten that the other gender in the audience buys cds too! When an entertainer remembers to entertain and capture the *entire* audience, their on-site cd sales nearly double.

What to know: When we remember that the wealth we get is in direct proportion to the service or product we give, it gives us more focus and purpose behind what we do for people. It motivates us to be better so that we are giving more. It makes us want to show up for practice on time, to get enough sleep when we're on tour, to seek out quality management, quality companionship, etc.

We attract more money when we feel successful. But the catch is "How do I feel more successful if I'm hurting for money?" I discuss that further in my success series for musicians, but for now, the first step is to accept that everything is perfect just as it is. I know. How do we accept this when we're struggling? The answer is simple.

Our struggles are a part of the process we use to get from point A to point B to point C etc. My success in the studio business wouldn't have happened if I didn't "struggle" with the manager of the rock band that I was in. Our band lost $25,000 to this person, and it led to the breakup of the band. I chose to move on to the studio business instead of being in another group. So, here I am... the recipient of gold and platinum records, and a 24 year history of working with respected musicians and record companies.

No one likes to deal with personal or business disasters, but usually years later we will see that there were benefits that arrived out of the Synchronicity of it all. The key to creating a higher level of satisfaction along the way is to start accepting the perfection of everything as it is. This takes daily practice. It takes rethinking our thinking. It takes being open to expanding what we perceive to be correct and possible.

This is the way we exercise our muscle of acceptance, thereby increasing our acceptance level. We have it when we do it, and we do it when we think it. Our thoughts are always the beginning point of what we create. The highest amount of satisfaction comes from using thoughts, words, and deeds that honor our HIGHEST VISION OF WHO WE ARE. Bring compassion, caring, honor, enthusiasm, vitality, integrity and more into what you do and the rewards will far exceed what your talents alone will bring.

John's note: Jay (asking these questions) has more questions and I respond.
Check out his success story!