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Most people in our culture are pretty far removed from the realities of what we generally think of as “warriors”. In a pop-culture kind of way, the idea evokes images of swords, shields and ancient wars.

I think it’s important to seriously embrace the concepts behind what it means to be a warrior, and not the part about swords and shields. I’m talking about mental preparation—focus and awareness of mind, body and spirit so the warrior can be optimal to do what needs to be done when the moment calls.

We don’t experience quite the same intensity in our daily lives, but on some levels we do. The point isn’t about what the “warrior” is going to do; it’s who the warrior will be that will direct the action.

The definition we use of warrior is “one who conquers oneself.” The path of the spiritual warrior is not about power over others, but power over yourself; being your true self. Only then can correct action follow, and the warrior’s way is the way of action.

It’s not just big actions in big moments. It’s about developing a habit; a bias toward action in your everyday life, and being able to reach your dreams because of this. Fear is what holds people back—fear of failing, or some perceived ridicule or pain for failing.

One of the most basic principles of the warrior is to be willing to make mistakes. The most successful people are willing to mess things up every now and then! They don’t take mistakes personally as an affront to their self-worth. They use mistakes as their primary form of learning.

You’ll get feedback based on action, and then you can make corrections. You go back to more action, maybe make more mistakes, and make more corrections until you get it right.

But what happens in the feedback loop for a lot of people? We make mistakes and beat ourselves up unmercifully for it. In our society we have such a stigma on “failure” that we’re not willing to do anything, especially anything big we really want.

Take action! Successful people trust themselves. They’re willing to take the chance.

Break out of the prison of the conditioned mind and come from true choice in the present moment. That’s power. Power is when you don’t have to be who you were yesterday, or two years ago, or whenever.

You have to be present in the moment and come from true choice. If you don’t come from the moment and can’t trust yourself, then you’re coming from your programs of the past.

Be whatever you have to be at the time. Being unattached to thoughts and beliefs means you can be free to be whatever you need to be right now. That’s the way of the spiritual warrior.

Now it’s your turn! What do you want to do in your life that you are waiting for the right situation? What would happen if you actually went for it right now? Do you have any experiences in embracing your “spiritual warrior”? Your feedback is very valuable so make sure to leave a comment with our community!

You can join just about any random conversation and ask, “Can you believe some of the things people think these days?” Who wouldn’t agree with you? There’s always a reason for us to think some other people are crazy just because we all have our own particular world view.

However, get a little bit more specific about your beliefs and things change. “I can’t believe people think XYZ.” Some people might agree with you. Some might give you a horrified look and respond, “Well, actually, I can’t believe people think ABC”. And then you’re either in for a lively debate or some seriously awkward moments.

We all believe in something, even if we’re not outwardly expressing it all the time. We’d like to think that we derive our beliefs based on “rational decisions.” That’s partly true, but the truth is that we still mostly act on what we believe rather than what we know. How long ago was it that people just “knew” the sun revolved around the earth?

Beliefs are only strong opinions at best. They color and filter our view of everything. The problem is we get used to these filters and forget that we have them on, then we believe that the way we see things is the way it is, which of course may not always be the case. Everybody’s got glasses on, yes? This game involves a bunch of people wearing glasses and making the whole thing up as we go.

In the end, our beliefs are neither true nor false—they can only be supportive or not supportive of our success and happiness. They can be empowering or non-empowering.

For example, how many times have you heard someone else or even caught yourself saying, “I have to work hard in order to earn a lot.” Not exactly the most motivating thought pattern, is it? While we rarely if ever get anywhere by being lazy, though, there are times when working smarter is better than pushing yourself to the brink of exhaustion.

Some of our beliefs get so iron-clad into our nervous system that they turn into inflexible conclusions about life, especially if they were unconsciously and often accidently imprinted into us as children, when we have far less experience to really draw educated distinctions between a temporary situation and something that seems permanent and irreversible. The problem is that most people never re-examine the map of life that they drew when they were children, or seek to revise it to reflect who they are today and who they want to be tomorrow.

If we’re making this all up as we go anyway, you might as well believe that you will get what you need to meet your goals, or that you will learn how. Then we go from feeling and thinking into doing, making mistakes, making adjustments, getting some successes and confidence, and then repeating the whole thing over and over.

Eventually, we move away from belief into full knowing—the knowing that comes from believing in something more than what may be evident on the surface, and the wisdom that comes from the experience of testing those beliefs in the “real world.”

Careful what you believe: it can do more than start a heated argument. It can stop you in your tracks before you’ve even started your journey.

What belief can you re-examine that is not serving you anymore? What are some new beliefs that you can create that are a better fit for the person you are today? Share them with our community, we want to hear from you!

There are two common questions that people who are getting into business tend to ask themselves.

The first is, “What if this doesn’t work?”

And the 2nd, which is what I want to discuss in more depth today is, “What if it’s not right for me?”

In other words, what if you start this venture, invest your money, make some money…or even a lot of money…but end up hating it?!?

When we say we want something that’s “right” for us we’re really saying we want to be successful and happy, down to our soul. We want to be doing something that feels right for us, for who we are at our deepest core, and to feel good about being successful.

So the question of what’s “right” for us isn’t some New-Agey wishful thinking. It’s deep. It’s about our lives.

But here’s the problem, people: if you keep waiting for the “right” thing at the “right” time, guess what? You’ll be waiting and waiting and waiting and you’ll never be successful. Why, because I have a crystal ball? Nope.

Because you’ll get into the habit of waiting for the “right” thing, and nothing will ever be right!

I used to say to myself all the time, “If I get in the right business at the right time, I’m going to make it.” But the problem was I kept on doing that, making that my criteria, and I never made it. I wasn’t successful.
So finally, I said “Eff it…I don’t give a shit anymore. I’m not happy. I haven’t been happy for ten frickin’ years. I’m just going to do what I enjoy doing, what I believe in,” and what I believed in at the time was running and fitness.

I used to run eight to twelve miles every day on the beach, sometimes twice a day. I enjoyed it. It made me feel amazing. Long story short, I ended up starting one of the world’s first retail fitness stores. I said to myself, “If I make money at it, great. If I don’t, at least I’ll be in something I enjoy for a while.” Sure as hell beat scrounging for coupons, or selling jewelry and pen watches and everything else I was trying to sell just to eat and pay rent.

The first and most important thing about considering an additional vehicle for income or a new vehicle is to look for something that’s going to be long-lasting. If it’s going to be long-lasting, it’s going to have to work. The only way it can work is if it works with you; if it fits who you are.

If the vehicle that you’re trying to create an income from doesn’t fit who you are, you will fail miserably. You will either do decently for a short time financially, then you probably won’t anymore because you don’t like it and you’re looking for something else, or you won’t do well from the get-go.

Look for a vehicle that suits who you are.

So what’s the clue?

It’s your perfect vehicle if your head and your heart are blending in balance. In other words, the head is the logic that asks the question: is there demand and viability for my idea? Could this work? Will people pay for this? Or if yours is brand new, it’s a perceived demand based on the problems that people have.

That’s why I always say I don’t like to be the very first in anything because I want to see that someone else has done something at least on a tiny basis that shows the demand. Or you do it yourself and you prove the demand. It’s got to work in the real world. It’s got to be wanted.

The heart portion of this piece speaks for itself. It means it’s got to be in your wheelhouse. It’s got to resonate with you. It’s got to be what you enjoy; what you want to help people with.

Don’t look for additional income opportunities. Look for something that suits who you are. How do you want to help people?

The shoe’s got to fit you. And is it viable? Can it work in real world application?

What’s your situation looking like? Are you looking to start a new business in something you love or something you think will make money for you quickly? Do you have any experience in this matter? Share your stories…we want to hear from you! Also, if you know someone who can use this lesson today, share this with them, I’d be honored.

Can success bring spiritual fulfillment?

Let’s start with the first element of enlightenment: it’s all the same damn thing! There is no duality. Everything is one. It’s all one thing with different looks and different energies. If it’s all oneness and everything is part of that oneness, then material success, i.e. getting rich, must be part of that oneness, unless we make success mean something else, something different rather than an expression of the oneness of all.

Separation is an illusion, so we cannot separate spirituality, or kindness, or generosity, from material success, or money, or relationships, or anything until we decide to separate them. As they are, they are one thing.

Does success lead to a form of happiness? Yes, but not pure happiness. When you’re not successful, it certainly leads to ill feelings, true or true? When you’re not successful, how do you feel about living your mission and your purpose on a daily basis? It’s very hard, isn’t it?

To me true happiness comes from a connection to your higher self, a connection to knowing that it will manifest itself regardless of success or failure, comfort or discomfort. When we get into the practice of connecting with this higher sense on a more and more consistent basis, we can only set ourselves up for success to come from that inner happiness and peace, and not expecting it the other way around–that is, waiting for success in order to be happy.

The most perfect situation in your life would be to live your purpose and get rich, and then use that money to help other people even more. What more could one ask for?

If you could spend 8 or 10 hours a day in your business, and that business–what you do for people, how you help solve their problem, is your true mission and purpose in life–what a blessing. When you don’t have to separate your mission from what you do every day, you’ve hit the golden grail.

Happiness leads to success. Success leads to money to be able to help others as well as yourself. If you’re successful for those reasons, and if you can put your focus on those reasons, what a beautiful life, yes or yes?

I think it’s my highest gift to be able to show people, motivate people, cajole people, persuade people, virtually drag people if I have to, into the understanding “I can be kind, generous, loving and spiritual and really, really rich!”

When you can believe this, your life will change. You are already a heart-based person. You want to be kind. You want to be loving. You want to be generous, and you want to be rich.

Be a good person in your business. Be a kind person in your business. Be a generous person in your business, and be intent on being loving in your business: to your clients, your customers, your employees, and the people that you work with.

Then do the things we teach you to do in terms of the strategies in the programs we offer in order to get rich. If you set up your business the way we teach you to set it up, you will be rich. I can say that with confidence because I’ve done it myself and have taught other people to do it successfully as well.

Rich is a result. It’s a result of being a good person. Do you think you could be a jerk and be rich? You can, but not for long, and that’s not really rich anyway, is it? You don’t have a rich life when you’ve got a dark heart.

Be nice. Be spiritual. Intend to continue growing your mind and your heart. And for goodness sake, be rich!

One of the best questions I’ve ever been asked, but rarely ever get asked is, “What is it really like to be rich?” You’d think I get asked that often but I don’t, so when I heard it, it seemed rather odd.

After thinking about it a little, my answer was and still is: being rich is the same as anything, or it can be way better if you want it to be.

What do I mean? You have a lot more money, and that gives you, usually, a lot more freedom if you allow that. It gives you a lot more time if you allow that. It gives you a lot less worry about money if you allow that.

It gives you the opportunity to help other people if you want to do that. It gives you the opportunity to do whatever you want during the day if you allow yourself to do that. It gives you all kinds of opportunities. It’s all great, yes?

Notice, what do I say with every one of these? If you allow that.

Plenty of millionaires still work, like it’s their job, because maybe they didn’t set their business up to be sellable and release them from key responsibilities. Or maybe they went nuts with their spending and now have to make more money to maintain their lifestyle.

So it’s like you have business success, but do you have freedom? You have lots of money, but do you spend your money wisely? You drive better cars, but do you still complain about traffic?

As I laugh about it with my friends now, we still have problems but we have what we call “rich problems,” or as my life partner Michelle puts it, “champagne problems.”

I mean that sounds pretty ridiculous, but it doesn’t matter. To the mind a problem is a problem. It doesn’t matter if you’re rich or you’re broke, middle-class or whatever. If you’ve got a problem, your mind makes it the end of the world, doesn’t it?

So my broke person problem was I didn’t know how I was going to pay the rent that month. Now, when I find out that one of the resorts that we’re planning on going to at Christmas time doesn’t have any ocean-front rooms left, my mind goes, “What the hell? I can’t believe it! Two days ago it did. What happened here?”

I know I sound like a jerk, but it’s not me that’s the jerk. It’s my mind that’s the jerk. You see, that mind is still the same. “I have to get what I want. I’m not happy if I don’t get what I want. I deserve it. I’m entitled. I should be this. I should be that.” Blah, blah, blah, blah.

All of these are just unhappy thoughts. So I notice it, and I think, “Wow man, okay, listen. There are hundreds of millions of people that can’t even eat tomorrow, and you’re worried about a frickin ocean-front room? Get a life, man.”

I take a breath and I get over it, but it doesn’t mean I don’t feel the problem right away.

A problem is a problem. My reaction to the problem is the same reaction. I just get over it a little more quickly, and I know in the back of my mind it’s not really a problem. I’m just making up a big deal out of nothing.

So what I’m saying is, rich is fantastic, but you have to allow rich to be fantastic just like you have to allow anything to be fantastic, so be now who you want to be later, especially if later is rich.

In other words practice being a person who doesn’t worry; a person who enjoys their freedom as it is now; a person who doesn’t let little things bother them.

We’re creatures of habit. You take yourself with you wherever you go. If you want to be a happy millionaire later, practice being happy now. Stop waiting to achieve a certain level of success to be peaceful, practice being peaceful now.

If you’re the kind of person that, even when broke, allows the best of a situation to emerge without it coming from a place of fear, or entitlement, or lack, then yeah, being rich will be awesome…if you let it be!

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