All living things come hardwired with certain traits and characteristics that are part of our nature, meaning that these things come naturally to us: they're what we're meant to do, and they're how universal intelligence flows though us best. Birds gotta fly, fish gotta swim, etc.
— Jen Sincero
Awareness is the first key step in breaking the spell of your not-so-awesome financial 'reality.'
Perfectionism and procrastination have such a fine line. You say, 'Well, I want it to be good. I want it to be perfect.' But what you're really doing is not doing your work. You're putting off showing up and being visible because then you're going to be judged, and it might suck.
Will you lose everything you've got if you open your own restaurant? Who knows. Will unleashing your secret desire to teach tap dancing ruin your reputation as a professional wrestler? Who knows. And who cares? Unless your unknown puts you at risk of death, prison, or bodily harm, you have nothing to lose except living a dull, uninspired life.
We are on this planet but once, and to spend it holding back our gushing appreciation of the things that light us up is a shameful waste.
One of the biggest obstacles to making lots of money is not a lack of good ideas or opportunities or time, or that we're too slovenly or stupid: it's that we refuse to give ourselves permission to become rich.
At times, I find a degree of inflexibility in the more traditional homosexual community that seems to me to be every bit as 'straight' as straight.
If something bothers you, focus on the solution or the desired outcome, not the part that has you spinning out in the middle of the night.
If you're in a ditch, and you're looking down, you can see where you're going but you can't see the way out.
So many people live lives of silent mediocrity, convinced that what really matters to them is out of their reach. So they settle.
Acknowledging that there's something you desire, not going after it, and deciding that, 'You know what, it's fine; I'll just focus on what I do have, make myself a ham sandwich, and call it a day,' isn't happiness. It's denial.
This is part of what makes me, ahem, an excellent houseguest: I'm game. I'm flexible. I'll make you feel okay about eating an entire chocolate cake in one sitting because I'm right there by your side with my own fork.
Take lots of walks. It's the best way to discover your world, both inner and outer.
I got my first real job, one that didn't involve wearing a hairnet or bending over the hood of a wet car with a towel in my hand, in the early '90s working for CBS Records. While there, I started my first of several rock bands and eventually wrote my first book, the semi-autobiographical novel, 'Don't Sleep With Your Drummer.'
Basically, I chose not to identify with being broke any longer. I realized I deserved a beautiful life, and abundance was something that I needed to welcome into my life.
We live in a fearful society that has perfected the art of doubting, weaned us on worry, and trained us to focus on everything that can or has gone wrong.
We love to commiserate and troubleshoot and prepare for the worst, and gratitude yanks us out of that and reminds us of the ridiculous amount of infinite blessings that are around us at all times.
Yes, there will be challenges, and things will blow up in your face, but learning experiences are different from wasting your life pushing a boulder up a hill.
Write down everything you feel about money - 'I love you;' 'I wish I had more of you;' 'I don't trust you;' - Then, look at the ones that aren't quite so pretty and figure out how you can shift them to be in a more positive, grateful space.
People love to tell you what you should and shouldn't want, regardless of what you have to say about it.
The key to growth is acknowledging your fear of the unknown and jumping in anyway.
I have a theory that people tell you everything you need to know the first week you meet them. And often even on the first date.
For the vast majority of my adult life, I was a freelance writer, forever scrambling for work that paid an insulting non-amount.
I'm in trouble with some activist women because I refuse to say I'm bisexual.
Pay attention to how you think and speak, and if it turns out that you're sounding snide or crappy or doubtful, make the conscious decision to change.
The good news about being full of crap is that once you're willing to admit that you're full of crap, you can de-crap yourself.
People who truly love their lives are the most inspiring people of all.
Treat everyone on Earth like you're staying in their home. Because you are.
Make an effort to do the things that you enjoy instead of being lazy about it. Life is worth the hassle.
We humans can get used to anything. It really is remarkable. The problem is that we often use this glorious ability of ours to stay stuck in mediocrity. Oh, the years we waste adapting to lousy marriages, soul-sucking jobs, being friends with people who are rude to waitresses.
Overwhelm is, most often, a mindset. If you think about all the things you have to do, you'll be face down on the floor. It really helps to break it down into smaller pieces.
People tend to create drama and make things far worse than they are in reality.
If your entire relationship with money is devoid of fun, money becomes something you fear and loathe rather than something to celebrate and enjoy.
If the point of an activity is to be relaxing, changing that point to money isn't a great idea. Then you have to show up for it differently, and that can take the fun out of it, absolutely. I'm a big fan of turning your hobbies into businesses, but not if it's the hobby you do to relax and unplug.
When we push against who we naturally are, we feel stress, things don't progress easily, we beat ourselves up for getting crappy results, and everything is an effort.
Get practiced at taking deep breaths before you speak. This will give you the space to stop, notice what was about to come out of your mouth, and course correct if needed.
Pick the one thing that you've really been putting off, that seems too big or too scary or too whatever, and do it this week. You might be very pleasantly surprised.
Getting a compliment, even if you need a cooty shot afterwards, is still a compliment.
A healthy desire for wealth is not greed. It's a desire for life.
Sexuality has become much more fluid, and you no longer have to be locked up into a convenient compartment.
You must go after the things you desire like your life depends on it, because guess what? Your life does depend on it. The life you truly want to live does.
I grew up in suburban New York, and my family wasn't much on traveling, so when I arrived at my alma mater, The Colorado College, I'd never been out West before, seen a 14,000-foot mountain, experienced snow in 70-degree weather, or come into contact with something called a 'dude.'
Bravely going out into the world and trying, yet still deep down believing you're ruled by your past circumstances, is like forgiving someone but still hoping they sit in something wet.
The good news is that you have everything you need to lift yourself off the couch to start kicking butt. You just have to decide that you're going to do it, not that you're too lazy to.
If you'd rather spend the holidays with your friends or your dog or digging wells in Kenya than with your family, do it.
Talk to strangers. They're never who you think they are at first.
When my plans to become a world-famous rockstar didn't pan out, I decided to try being a lesbian instead, didn't pull that off either, and wrote my second book, the national bestseller, 'The Straight Girl's Guide To Sleeping With Chicks.'
If you're taking a risk and you are not scared in some way, you're doing something wrong.
Gratitude is one of the strongest and most transformative states of being. It shifts your perspective from lack to abundance and allows you to focus on the good in your life, which in turn pulls more goodness into your reality.
Even though most of us love, love, love it when we're flush with cash, and we fantasize about what we'd do with more of it, we'd feel gross saying 'I love money' out loud.
