MKMMA Week 11 – New Thinking

Are you one of the many people who has experienced this? You buy a new car and suddenly it seems like EVERYONE has that same car! Regardless of what car you may have bought, you start to see it over and over again…everywhere.  You see it when you’re driving on the highway. You see it at the grocery store parking lot and at the Doctor’s office. You see it on television shows or in movies…..EVERYWHERE!

So what happened? Did someone find out that you got a new car and told everyone to buy the same car? No, of course not.  All those people already had their car, it’s just that we don’t notice those cars until they became relevant to us when we owned the same model. Once the thought of that car was in our minds, we saw it more often. Makes sense, right? Well, that’s how I’m feeling about the MKMMA program and how it’s changed my thinking.

I’ve always been a big fan of music and, like most people, have my favorite artists and favorite songs. Interesting, I probably know the lyrics to very few of my favorite songs and always thought that I was more attracted to them because of the music and rhythm, the sound of the piano, guitars and drums and less attracted because of the words. Well, I’m starting to see a change in that.

Would you agree that you’ve heard your favorite songs many times and maybe even played them over and over again? I sure have and it shocked me to find that the lyrics have recently begun to “jump out” at me more than they ever have before. Here are a few pieces of two examples, but there have been many more for me.

“Easy” by the Commodores

Why in the world would anybody put chains on me?
I’ve paid my dues to make it
Everybody wants me to be what they want me to be
I’m not happy when I try to fake it, no ooh

I wanna be free to know the things I do are right
I wanna be free just me oh baby

Very simply, these words acknowledge the realization of being confined by others and their ways of thinking. They also show the desire to become independent and self-confident.

“Take Hold of the Flame” by Queensryche

We see the light of those who find
A world has passed them by
Too late to save a dream that’s growing cold
We realize that fate must hide its face
From those who try
To see the distant signs of unforetold
Oh… oh, take hold

From a haze came a rage of thunder
Distant signs of darkness on the way
Fading cries scream of pain and hunger
But in the night the light will guide your way

So take hold of the flame
Don’t you see life’s a game
So take hold of the flame
You’ve got nothing to lose, but everything to gain

Queensryche is talking about a life unfulfilled. The pain and hunger of not having reached your dreams…..but the light (of the MKMMA) guiding your way.

It’s truly amazing to me that it’s only since the MKMMA program that I’ve begun to hear these lyrics in and understand their relevance to me. Like the person who buys a new car and only then sees it everywhere. I have a new way of thinking and have begun to see it everywhere….even in songs that I’ve listened to for year, but never really “heard”

Remember everyone, “Take hold of the flame. You’ve got nothing to lose, but everything to gain.”

Peace,

Jerry B

MKMMA Week 10 – I heard that differently

Self-improvement…self-help…these are two very clichéd words that may mean very different things to different people. Let’s throw those words away and agree to talk about what most people are really looking for. Most people simply want tomorrow to be better than today. “Better” will be very specific and personal to each of us and may apply to being better emotionally, spiritually, physically, financially or, most likely, a combination of those and perhaps many other things.

One of the attractions to the Master Key Master Mind Alliance program is the promise of becoming “better” in whatever area of your life you decide to. The key is changing your thinking which, in turn, changes your beliefs, your actions and, lastly, the results you achieve. That makes sense. After all, isn’t it true that two people can share the same experience and come away with two totally different perspectives? Learn different things? React different ways?  Of course…and the difference lies in how they think. Charles R. Swindoll said it very well, “Life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.”

The burning question after 10 weeks….Is this working for me? Let’s take a look…

I’ve been struggling for the last couple weeks with some pretty painful back spasms that have kept me more horizontal than vertical and significantly changed how I would have normally spent my time. For example, I missed my Week 9 blog post because of this! With little more to do than lie on the floor to rest my back, I tried to make the best of it by catching up on my reading. A good idea and productive, but that couldn’t fill each and every day and I ultimately turned to movies.

I found it very interesting that even though I had seen some of these movies before, I noticed things a little differently than I had in the past.

Have you seen the original Matrix and the scene with the woman in the red dress where Morpheus explains the Matrix to Neo? Let’s take a look.

I had seen it before, but I was surprised to see it differently this time. This clip resonated with me in a way that it never has before. It resonated in a way only made possible through my involvement and “work” from the MKMMA program.

The Matrix is my old way of thinking. I have not been ready to be unplugged. I have fought myself to protect my old ways and my old blueprint (aka. my old way of thinking). Now I am fighting against the agents (my old blueprint) who prohibit me from being “as strong and as fast” as I can be.

I heard the last few lines of this scene in a new and exciting way. Neo asks, “What are you trying to tell me. That I can dodge bullets”? To which Morpheus responds, “No Neo, I’m trying to tell you that when you’re ready, you won’t have to.”

I am Neo and the MKMMA system, the trainers and fellow participants are Morpheus. Through the readings, sittings, affirmations and other techniques and exercises, I am being prepared to no longer need to dodge the bullets of my old thinking. I am being prepared to be “as strong and as fast” as I can be. I am being prepared to be what I will to be.

Let’s re-visit that burning question…Is this working for me? Yes….Yes!….YES!!!

Peace,

Jerry

MKMMA Week 8 – Reaction is a Choice

Reaction is a choice…what a wonderful follow-up to the Week 7 lesson of squashing negative thoughts with positive thoughts!

I’ve often heard the suggestion (and I’d bet that you have too) to focus my time and energy on the things I can control and to not worry about the things I cannot control. It made sense to me the first time I heard it and it still makes sense to me today. Have I done a good job at it? Um, no, I haven’t…SHAME ON ME! Although I understood and agreed with the concept on an intellectual level, supporting it on an emotional level just wasn’t happening. I don’t think I realized very much that I was allowing that to happen, but after becoming aware of my negativity last week, I’m realizing in a BIG way that I had lost control of myself emotionally.

Stimulus –> Choice –> Response. There it is, plain and simple. I live with the shame of now knowing that, more often than not, my choices were wrong and my responses were even worse.  I’ve been allowing my negatively to run around unchecked….to seep into my responses and reactions….to be less of a person than I really am.

Change begins with awareness. Well, now I’m aware…and very excited to have begun applying my new-found awareness into a change for the better.

Mandino’s Scroll Marked II: “I greet this day with love in my heart”. I think I get it…I really think I get it!

Peace to all, Jerry B

MKMMA Week 7 – Discovering My Negativity

Just when you think you know someone, you learn something new about them that surprises you. The person I thought I knew was…me!

I thought I knew who I was and how I thought. When I was younger, I was the eternal optimist. On the job, I felt like I could do anything and get it done within the time that the boss wanted it. Over time, I found myself becoming unable to do that on a consistent basis….but I worked through it. I begin asking more questions, clarifying the request and figuring out what the obstacles to meeting the request might be. My performance got better and my life got better.

I found that as I progressed down the path of questioning and clarifying, I had become (in my mind) an EXPERT at clarification, expectation setting, planning and prioritizing. I became a leader in my field because I was able to effectively challenge requests and meet executive expectations for both myself and my corporate team.

Then Week 7 of the MKMMA program arrived and I was challenged to think only positive thoughts for an entire week. I was educated on the principle that someone can only focus on one thought at a time, and that when a negative thought enters our mind we must identify it and replace that thought with more positive thinking. Each time we do not replace the thought within a few seconds, we needed to start counting our week from Day 1 again. NO SWEAT, I’ll CRUSH this exercise!

You know what…I’M GETTING CRUSHED! Until I focused on this concept, I had no idea how negative I had become. My confidence in clarification and expectation setting had morphed in cockiness. I came to realize that any thought or suggestion that didn’t come from me was wrong. I had put up a wall against others’ thinking and had gone down the wrong path….and way far down that path.

I still haven’t made it through an entire day without having a negative thought, but I’m getting closer. I’m excited to see that I’m getting better at catching and replacing my negative thoughts.

Who is that “Guy in the Glass”? Still not totally sure, but getting to know him better on a daily basis.

Keep growing and improving everyone…what a wonderful ride!

Jerry B

MKMMA Week 6 – Kaleidoscope of Dreams

The world is, no doubt, filled with color. There are colorful people, colorful places and colorful things. There are more colors than you can even imagine. Want a little proof? Find a box of 128 Crayola crayons and you’ll see a LOT of colors….and those 128 are just scratching the surface.

What I find very interesting in my journey through the Master Key Master Mind Alliance program is that even with all the color in the world, I’m really only seeing 4 colors these days. You guessed it, they are the 4 primary colors of Red, Blue, Green and Yellow and they are “carrying the flag” for my dreams, aspirations and the future for me and my family. They seem to be everywhere….and that’s because they ARE. I just never noticed them before.

Just as my subconscious has narrowed my visual/mental acuity to focusing in on the 4 colors of my dreams, it has also narrowed my mental focus on obtaining those dreams, pushing aside distractions and the negativity of nay-sayers…I’m turning dreams into reality.

Peace,

Jerry

MKMMA Week 5 – Is 90/10 the new 80/20?

Are you familiar with the 80 / 20 rule? It’s also know as the Pareto Principle. My guess would be that have probably heard of it. In fact, I’m pretty sure that you have. How can I be so sure? It’s because the 80 / 20 rule seems to have been applied to virtually every statistical measurement known to man. Want just a few examples? Try these out for size:

• 20% of the people account for 80% of the wealth
• 20% of employees produce 80% of a company’s production
• 20% of customers account for 80%  of the sales / revenue
• 20% of the people you know provide 80% of the support you need

To sum up this idea, the 80/20 rule means that the relationship between input and output is rarely, if ever, balanced. As I look back on this concept, it seems logical. It seems like a good thing to keep in mind while planning your week through your OATS . It seems to make sense….a lot of sense. This is not a new idea for me. I’ve been applying the 80 / 20 rule in my life for quite a while.

Guess what….80 / 20 is only a small piece of the puzzle. With no disrespect to the 80 / 20 rule, what about the 90 / 10 rule?   The 90 / 10 rule is that 90% of our mental life is subconscious and only 10% is conscious. You know what that means???  I’ve lived my life applying 10% of my reasoning to determining what 20% of things I should be focusing on. Does that mean I’ve only been 2% effective…I sure hope not!

But what if my “fuzzy math” is right? What if I’ve only tapped into a small, almost unmeasurable portion of my ability and talent because the 90% of my mental life has been allowed to run unchecked and uncontrolled? What if the 90% has literally been sabotaging the 10% of my conscious which I have been relying on to guide my life and make me successful?

Have I been successful? Well, I used to think so. Now I’m not so sure. How much have I “settled for” in life? How many dreams have I made smaller than they should have been because my subconscious put doubts and limits on me.

You’ve heard the expression “coulda, shoulda, woulda”? No more of that is being allowed! No more regrets! I’m 5 weeks into gaining control of my subconscious, gaining control of my life and gaining control of my future and the future of my family.

I’m proud and honored to be sharing these 26 weeks with my extended family within the MKMMA community.

Peace to you all as we continue our journey together,

Jerry B

MKMMA Week 4 – Today I Begin a New Life

“Today I Begin a New Life” – Those are the first words from The Scroll Marked I in Og Mandino’s “The Greatest Salesman in the World”. That would have been a perfect title for my blog for Week 1 of the Master Key Master Mind Alliance program since that’s when I started reading that chapter of Og’s book daily. In fact, reading that chapter THREE times daily…out loud, with passion and enthusiasm. In addition to Og’s book, I’ve been engaging my mind in several other positive re-enforcing ways. (If you want to know more about that, check out my earlier blog entries)

I find it interesting that I’m choosing to use “Today I Begin a New Life” for my 4^th blog entry….do you? Well…here’s why….

I had a VERY BUSY weekend with commitments starting from Friday evening and running all the way through Sunday night. I missed my readings. I missed my 15 minutes of sitting still. I missed my Sunday afternoon MKMMA webinar. To be honest, I didn’t think very much about it. Let’s face it, I had been very consistent up to that point, I was feeling very confident with my progress and, after all, I was VERY BUSY.

Today is Thursday and I still hadn’t gotten back to my consistent routine.  I was noticing more negatively creeping back into my mind…more doubt. I was getting a little slower in making decisions…starting to second guess myself.  Then it REALLY hit me hard when I watched the recorded reply of Sunday’s webinar. I learned the science behind why we are being asked to do all these readings….all these positive affirmations.

It’s about the brain! It’s about the Frontal Lobe, neuropeptides, the fact that “Thoughts that fire together, wire together”. It all made sense and I could see the changes from having lost my consistency. I felt ashamed for having deprived myself of the greatness of the MKMMA program by not doing the work.

I’m not ashamed anymore…I’M BACK ON BOARD!  It’s Week 4 and “Today I Begin a New Life”!

Jerry B

MKMMA Week 3 – Hitting the Books

Another week “in the books” for the Master Key Master Mind Alliance Program. Books such as Scroll 1 of “The Greatest Salesman in the World” and the first three chapters of the Master Keys. More importantly, “books” such as the new one being written about my life, my attitude, my opportunities and my future.

This book is not for sale and cannot be found in your local bookstore or antique shop. It’s a book being authored in my mind by my new favorite author, my sub-conscience. A book which is uncovering my hidden abilities. The abilities which have always existed, but which have been beaten down by years of self-doubt and discouragement. A book which is working like a piece of heavy equipment to rip away the layer upon layer of muck which has weighted down my abilities to move forward and grow.

It’s a new day. The sun is shining. Time to get to work!

Jerry B

MKMMA Week 2 – Got Goals?

Let me be honest, before having been blessed with the opportunity to participate in the MKMMA Program…I had “goals”. In fact, I had very good goals. I read them twice a day and they moved me. They drove me forward.

I no longer have goals, now I have a Definite Major Purpose and Personal Pivotal Needs…..there is a HUGE difference.

Goals, to me, were targets which I was looking to achieve. Although they moved me, they always felt like something “outside” of me. I saw them as an external motivator…something to help me through the times of doubt and lost motivation.

My DMP, on the other hand, has been infused with passion, emotion and my Personal Pivotal Needs. My DMP doesn’t just motivate me and drive me…it has BECOME me….or to say it better, I have BECOME it. My DMP is not external, it has become internal….it is what I am and do.

Only 2 weeks into the program and feeling different already.  I can’t imagine what experiences and changes lie ahead over the next 24 weeks for me and all the other fortunate MKMMA participants.

Keep Growing,  Jerry B

MKMMA Week 1 – The Journey Begins

MKMMA (aka. the Master Key Master Mind Alliance) is a 26 week journey of self-discovery. Within all of us lies greatness….TREMENDOUS GREATNESS!

If you are like most people, you’ve had successes in your life….probably many successes. Be proud of those successes, they are a glimpse into your GREATNESS. I have had successes. I have been GREAT. Have I been TREMENDOUSLY GREAT? Have you?

We’ve all had dreams and aspirations when we were young. We could be anything we wanted to be…a police officer, fire fighter, astronaut or even the President of the United States. We all wanted to be heroes! Somehow along the way, we’ve been dragged down by the circumstances of life. Doubt creeps in, fears develop and our dreams become less than they originally were. We’ve all been created for GREATNESS, we can all be heroes!

I’ve started my journey toward TREMENDOUS GREATNESS through the MKMMA program.

As Week 1 is beginning to draw to a close, I must say that it has been AMAZING!  Although I expected to see a change in myself over the course of the 26 week program, I never really expected to see any change so quickly.

By simply following the program, I’ve been stuffing my mind with positive thoughts contained within the required readings.  Starting each day by reading the Blueprint Builder, Scroll 1 of “The Greatest Salesman in the World” by Og Mandino, Chapter 1 of the Master Key System and my own personal Definite Major Purpose (DMP) gives me a very important ‘kick-start’ to my day. Sitting perfectly still for 15 minutes immediately after that further helps clear the garbage from my mind. More mid-day reading and finishing up the day with my DMP and Scroll 1 just before bed actually makes we WANT to hear the alarm go off so I can do it all again! (Isn’t that just SICK!!!)

My biggest hurdle so far had been sitting still for 15 minutes. Physically, my body is not used to it, so it gets to be uncomfortable….but “Mind over Matter”, I’ll clear this hurdle with persistence and patience.

I am forming good habits and becoming their slave.  Bring on Week 2!

Peace and success to all, Jerry