|

Most people want to know, "What should I do to make more money fast?" This is a good question, but the interesting thing is that doing is the slow way to make more money. Huh? Let me explain.

We usually think that this is how we proceed to success:
1. Think of an idea
2. Do what it takes [action]
3. Have [rewards, money]
4. BE [happy, successful, wealthy].

This formula can work, but it can require a lot of effort and time and struggle. The faster method for prosperity is:

(1) BE [happy, successful, wealthy]
(2) Think positive and creative thoughts
(3) Do what comes naturally as a result of those thoughts
(4) Then you'll have rewards as an automatic result of steps 1, 2 & 3.

The reason this way is more effortless is because all of the having is the natural, automatic result of the first 3 steps.

But am I off my rocker? How can you BE wealthy if you aren't yet!?! Start off with the understanding that your experience of wealth is relative to something else. In other words, making $1,000 a month is "just scraping by" compared to (relative to) a millionaire that makes $1,000,000 a month. However, your $1,000 a month is HUGE compared (relative) to a starving person who can barely afford a used bike (retail value... $10.00). You can't be confident about who you are if you are caught up in feeling less than the millionaires around you. Comparison causes much unhappiness. If you stay stuck in thinking "I don't have enough." you will stay there longer.

When you unlock your comparative thinking you begin to structure a new experience of wealth. Why? Like attracts like. Being confident attracts people who are confident, and they usually have more money that they can confidently spend. When you have a determined energy, you will attract more determined people who themselves attract opportunity. This attraction works together and positive results occur faster.

So let's figure out how to get to this place of being...

Step (1) Simply get out a piece of paper and write down a list... write out how you would be if you were, in fact, wealthy... in the way that you want to be wealthy. How would you be? Happy? Relaxed? Excited? Healthy? Peaceful? Creative? Passionate? Generous? Giving? Loving? Supportive? Appreciative? Good lookin?!

Now, start being that way. Erk!?! How can I just pop out there and be happy if I don't have the money I want? Easy. Wanna be more excited? GET more excited about what you're already doing. Just stop being blahhh anymore about stuff. Wanna be more giving? Start finding ways to give... it doesn't have to be money... just help your neighbor trim their tree, or lift an extra PA cabinet at the gig. Send a card to someone. Give a homeless person a quarter... Wanna be more appreciative and supportive? Go for it. Just do it.

BIG KEY: If you want more wealth, be supportive of the wealth of others. You don't have to give away your money. You don't have to work for free. Just find ways to support others. Turn someone on to a new nightclub where they can play. Share information on self-promotion. If you dig the info on this web site, don't keep it from your competition.... share it with your competition.

It is the most shocking thing when someone who thinks you're their competitor gets support from you! Think about how that changes their mind about you... and that's the whole point... you can effortlessly improve the regard people hold for you with a new way of being, and that will start to turn the tables instantly. This is one way that successful studio players succeed. They help other studio players connect with high-paying gigs when they (themselves) are out on tour or can't schedule a session. This is one of the reasons the Internet is so powerful. People are linking together, supporting each other in a team-oriented way, and it's stimulating the movement of money in a very positive way.

Step (2) Think in a balanced way. Well, that's much of what my tape series is all about, and here are some of the principles from it that can help you:

• Balance your money circulation. Money circulates in and out.... watch for the out... My issue for a long time was about spending and being in debt. Being in debt is just spending, over a longer time.

Our culture encourages us to spend and go into debt. We are shown the ease and convenience of credit cards and quick loans, and no payments till June. We're told that credit is a measure of our success, a symbol of being financially established. But if we get out of balance, we'll have a feeling of desperation and stress instead of confidence. The less confident we are, the less attractive we become to highly successful people who find it effortless to pay you the kind of money you want.

• Associate with people who are wealthier than you are. Study how they think. Be around them. Listen to them. Ask them how they do it. Ask them if they'll help you with some ideas or contacts. Be around the energy of successful people - it will rub off onto you.

One of the disadvantages of having a home studio is that you are not forced to record in big-time places... where you just might bump into a star who just might listen to one of your songs...

• Ask to be paid, and paid back regularly, and on time! Don't be so "nice" that you let everyone slide on giving you what you deserve. (That isn't being balanced.) Getting your money regularly and on time respects the law of circulation. Remember, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease!" The other side of respecting financial circulation is making our own payments regularly, and on time! Paying our bills promptly moves money back to us faster!

• Clean up all unfinished business. Another set-up for failure is something that is dangerous to creativity and friendship, and is dangerous to maintaining healthy financial circulation. It's called "Unfinished business." Unfinished business is the loan payment that's late. It's the phone call that hasn't been returned yet. It's the bar tab from last week, the unreturned video cassette, the unpaid traffic ticket, the four-month old broken tail light, the five bucks we forgot to pay back, the speaker that's still buzzing, the unwritten thank you card, and the apology left unsaid. Be responsible. It just works in your favor.

• Maximize your gain, instead of minimizing your loss. This doesn't mean take advantage of someone. It means staying out of being fearful.

If we ever have a choice to go one way or another in any situation, we can simply ask ourselves, am I maximizing my gain, or am I minimizing my loss? Am I looking at what I want, or what I want to avoid? Am I acting out of my determination to have abundance, or am I acting out of my fear of scarcity?

Instead of going into the recording studio fearing flat notes, be determined to produce lyric, and melody, and emotion like you're in there to make recorded history! Are we resolved to make a CD that expresses our passion and will get Grammys, or are we calculating our riffs because we're afraid that other musicians will think we're lame? Are we working to maximize the gain of our customers, or are we minimizing the amount of effort we must put into the job? Thinking how can we maximize our gain is an easy way to shift a decision toward a better outcome.

• When something isn't working, do something different! Mistakes, issues, or situations that we feel pain or depressed about, are all warning lights going off telling us something. These warnings tell us that one or more of our needs are not being met. We need to do something different so our needs do get met, in order to change those feelings. If you are starting into a new business venture, and it's not making money after the third or fourth year, let go of it, and move on to something else. Be aware of when things work, and when things don't work.

The third and forth steps in this process will just come naturally. Your method of doing things will shift and improve as your way of being does. What you have will effortlessly increase as your "doing" shifts.

The other thing that will change within you, once you come from "being," is that you will internally know the difference between goals and intentions. Here's how I put it into words, but just to let ya know, really knowing this is a distinct feeling that boosts your confidence 150%. Here goes: Goals are targets you shoot for - you may hit them, you may not. They can be very specific and timed. They can feel great to achieve, but they can also limit things down to a specific, rather than being unlimited in potential. Intention is when you have decided to make something happen (with a knowingness of your unlimited power of creation) and nothing in the world will stop you in it's actualization. It can be specific or it can be an umbrella covering an overall result that encompasses many goals, and the process of the intention (with no regard for time) is as fulfilling and motivating as the achievement of the outcomes.

Here's a layout of being-directed thinking: Let's say you want a new mixing console. It's gonna cost you $10,000:

	Old method		New method
1	You're thinking "How can I afford that? What if I can't make the payments? What if I don't have enough customers? This is the most expensive thing I've done yet!" You're nervous and afraid, but really feeling like this is your next step.	1	BE confident. Be determined. Be unstoppable. Know that you will succeed with this new console. Be the kind of person who people love to work with. Be accessible. Be committed to excellence. Acknowledge how much you have and how far you've come. You feel good about who you are.
2	You're doing what it takes to make it happen. You're calling banks to get a loan. You're talking to people who might loan you money, or customers who might advance you some cash. You're also stressed and nervous... what if it doesn't work out... but you keep sweating and working at it...	2	You are spending your time thinking about the new things you can do with the console. You're thinking how more clients will benefit from your services, and you think of ways to promote yourself and your new capabilities. You ask for assistance with ease and opportunities find you. You feel a sense of growth.
3	Now you have the console and indeed there are new clients, things are getting better... but kinda slowly... you're still nervous...what if I have a slow month, what if someone doesn't want to pay more even though I've just scraped every nickel to get this puppy... what if... what if...	3	You're doing things confidently. When you ask for money, people sense your growth, confidence and capability. The look in your eye is solid and people are happy to help you. You have more energy to work things out and make things happen. More opportunities show up that are easy for you to take advantage of. Things fall into place.
4	You're happy on one level because you've got the console, but on other levels, you're still nervous. It still feels like you have to do even more, because the money comes and goes. You're happier working on better gear, but you're stressed at bill time. People around you like your new level of service, but they themselves pick up on your stress a little bit...	4	You have the console and the new clients to go with it. People refer you and send you business because of the excitement and positive energy you give off. People know you'll make great recordings for them and so you automatically have more business. You also need another engineer to work for you, because when you have time off, more sessions can be going on at the studio, thereby earning you passive income.

Keep coming back to the writing exercise I've described here (be willing to try it) and discover your own new approaches in your music career and in your life. As Nelson Mandela said, "The biggest job of all is changing yourself."
...remember... we have it good...

© Copyright 2001 - 2006 John Vestman Created 01/26/01 • Modified 03/13/03 Back to Life Success For Musicians Site Map Network for Good is a resource for non-profit organizations. Pick your passion - Tsunami relief to Art & Culture drives. Support the trade justice movement and the drop the debt campaign. Amnesty International (AI) is a worldwide movement of people who campaign for internationally recognized human rights. Coast-to-Coast AM is the most amazing talk show program I've ever heard. Not for the faint-at-heart or closed-minded person. It's on late at night so you have to want to hear George Noory or Art Bell discuss their controversial topics. I like it!

JV highly recommended movie: "What The Bleep Do We Know?" Quantum Physics connected to your power to create the reality you want!