11/23/1995(Yes really, 26 years ago)

I recently came across my 1995 Mastermind Journal where I wrote:

"All I'd like to do.

 All I'd like to see.

 All I'd like to have.

 All I'd like to be."

Then I spent the next 21 days creating a story that would answer those questions-- what would I like to do and see and have and be?

Over the next two years I was stripped of all my material trappings. But I kept on writing in my Mastermind Journal a story that asked the questions: "what would I like to do and see and have and be?"

As my reality worsened, my dreamquest continued to be bright and optimistic. The life I live today, 26 years later, is far greater than anything I could have imagined in 1995. 

Positive visualization coupled with positive affirmations, and a host of mastermind friends helped me to visualize a life that was only limited by my imagination.

I thank God that nobody told me not to dream.

JHM 2021

Dreamquest Template for 21 days

My Spiritual Day

Dear G-d (or dear diary)

What a wonderful day this is. June 15 of 2026 (or any other date 5+ years in the future) I am continuing my spiritual journey. I will begin today with prayer, even before my feet hit the ground. Cup of coffee in hand, I'll next go to my room where I read inspirational material. Then I write my gratitude list. One of the things I write about is my intention to be calm at all costs. Let's go!

My Emotional Day

I am calm by spiritual discipline and I am calm in my manner. Because of this my world is changing for the better. I am in harmony with my family, friends, employees, and customers. My positive and calm demeanor is attracting good fortune to me every day.

Mentally

I have started two new classes this year. I am taking a Spanish class and my Spanish speaking is getting sharper. I am taking a course in Hebrew, and I read the Bible in my new language. And my music! Oh my goodness, my music has come along. Guitar lessons have helped me immensely. I thank my teacher often.

Physically

I have been at this weight loss/new maintenance journey for over three years and the results are fantastic! From 185 pounds I am down to 155. My blood pressure is in normal territory 130/80 and my cholesterol count is perfect. My health is improving each day. Now I am off to Pilates for new classes. Walking daily, stationary bike riding, and working with weights—I am changing into the person I have always wanted to be.

And all these things that have come to me as if by magic!  I started my new business this year. Just jumped into it and the results have been fantastic! New earnings coming my way, new employees to hire, new advertising to do as the bounty rolls in. We just closed on our new home. Who would have imagined owning two houses? One right  here on the hill and the other at the lake. And to think that they are all debt-free. Who would have imagined! 

These are the kinds of dreams that I have been writing about for the last 37 years. Possibilities not probabilities. I am creating intentions rather than setting goals. I am here to exercise my dream muscles.

And as I write about these dreams, I also find pictures that represent my fantasies-my intentions. I cut them out and put them in a box. I will later use these pictures to create a collage that represents my fantasies-the life I intend to attract over time.

And I write about these perfect days as if they have already happened. Wait—read that sentence again. I write about these days as if they have already happened.

Starting with the spiritual I then go on to write about the emotional life, the mental life, the physical life, and the material life that I will create in the future. And I never miss a day for 21 days.

Probable? Not really. Possible? Absolutely. And today as I look around me, cup of coffee in hand, I go back to the pages that I wrote 20, 25, 30 years ago and be in awe at the similarity of my material realm to the ones I shaped by dreaming.

21 Days to a Perfect Life

The great Rabbi, Israel Baal Shem Tov, commented that God created the world from nothing. From nothing came something.

The way I see it is, If God created man in his image, man too can create something from nothing. Hence, the Dreamquest. A discipline that has allowed me to attract a life of health, joy and wealth.

In James Allen’s book, As a Man Thinketh, he wrote that man is the sum of his thoughts.

I see it this way:

"lf you can dream it, you can see it. 

If you can see it, you may attract it to you over a time well spent."

So, what do you want your life to be? How you shape it, and what will you attract? And just how do you do all of this? How do you make your something out of nothing? Here is a bit of the process I go through, every year.

Day one. 

A day of awe. On this day I define and write about five areas of stewardship: spiritual, emotional, mental, physical and material. And I meditate on the bounty I have received, the growth I have enjoyed, and my surroundings that I love. I then list all that I have received over the years. All that has come to me as if by magic (AIBM). I am in awe.

Day two through Day 21.

For the next 20 days I write stories about a fictitious life sometime in the future; Five, 10, 20 years out. I fill the page like this:

Spiritually: dear G-d (or any power you choose), "what a perfect day this is. I'm spending each morning in prayer and meditation until I create a perfectly calm morning." Each day I write something about the spiritual journey.

Emotionally:  I write about my relationships and how they have blossomed. I might write a pretend conversation with someone that I have trouble with. I solve it in my imaginary world. Beautiful outcomes, always beautiful outcomes in this world. 

Mentally. I write about a world filled with music I am playing, blogs I am writing, and language (Spanish) that I am learning. Learning of all sorts--all of it in my imagination.

Physically: I write about a healthy future. Good weight, blood pressure, strength, and flexibility. All there in the world I imagine for myself.

Materially: In my perfect world I write about my lovely surroundings. My successful business and my bountiful philanthropy. I cut out pictures of this wealthy and bountiful future that I've built In my mind.

I will practice this exercise for 21 consecutive days. I won’t miss a day.

Next blog I will share with you a template to help you exercise your dream muscles. 

Dream on!

Service.

Service is prayer in action, and the key that allows us to keep the spirit foremost in our lives. I start each day with a prayer or two, and to that I add a list of things for which I'm grateful. This sets the stage. For in this very moment I am calm and in a state I would like to retain throughout the day. But that never happens. Daily meetings, the rush of traffic, all these distractions take me away from the calmness of the spirit-the calmness of the morning. So a dedicated time – five minutes will do, to turn off the media and breathe. Ten breaths . In and out. Then a simple prayer. "Whatever you have in mind G_d is quite all right by me. Guide me through the day."

Now service. Help someone else. No matter how insignificant the task might seem, every day help someone else. Pick up a first responder's meal. Nursing homes are always a place of opportunity. Your church can guide you. And keep track. Give yourself a Kudo, write it down, do  something for someone else every day. Yeah, and spouses count.

I know your life is busy. 20 minutes in the morning, 10 minutes after lunch, help someone, somehow every day. Write it down. Make this a daily habit. You'll find, over time, a  sense of calmness will ensue. And this will make you more attractive. More able to attract. 

More about that next month.

Money Won't Bring You Happiness, But Happiness May Bring You Money.

Bill Wilson in his book Alcoholics Anonymous once wrote "...you must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress. If you persist,  remarkable things will happen. When we look back, we realize that the things that came to us when we put ourselves in G-ds hands were better than anything we could've planned."

Let's dissect that sentence.

1."You must walk day by day in the path of spiritual progress."

I take this to mean that we must place spiritual service and spirituality at the base of our life. If we seek spirituality first then over time remarkable things will follow.

The second part of the sentence suggests that things will come to us. That is, we may receive more than we can achieve if we place the spirit first; as we seek to align our will with G-ds will we may find all that what we received is far greater than anything we could've achieved in a self will driven manner.

I believe the spiritual  pursuit creates emotional well-being, and emotional balance is happiness. Emotional balance is contentment. And contentment and joy are magnets for material well-being.

And just how you might ask will all of this be done?

More in October's blog.

I'll be Happy When…

Let's suppose, for a minute, that life is like a triangle. Most important on the bottom, least important on the top. Let's arrange the triangle like this: (bottom Up)

1. Material

2. Mental

3. Physical 

4. Emotional

5. Spiritual

Our happiness will arrive when the blocks are all complete.

So we attend to the material; I'll be happy when I get enough stuff.

I'll be happy when I finish my schooling,

I'll be happy when I drop all this weight.

Then we discover, (usually late in life), that having wealth, being thin, and all that schooling leaves us unfulfilled.

So now what?

Next blog

White Privilege. White, Red, and Blue that is…

In 1968 my guitar playing, flower power, banner waving life came to an abrupt halt.

Like a drill sergeant's bark "Platoon HALT!"  

I returned from Vietnam having been gravely wounded on the inside.

Best way to stop the demons of anxiety? 

I took to pills, booze, and toke. Lots of pills, booze, and toke.

My white red and blue privilege included this right: the right to fail completely. 

By 1974 I had broken sacred vows, and wrought havoc on an unsuspecting family. I had become a complete, no I mean complete, failure. 100% disability income checks my only source of income. 

I stood at the cross roads.The red white and blue cross roads that is: take permanent disability and a guaranteed stipend or take on the permanent risk of the musical entrepreneur and have a chance for stardom or complete failure.

I chose the latter. Rather than  lean on a known power that guaranteed mediocrity and discouraged entrepreneurial risk, I chose to lean on some unknown power that guaranteed nothing and allowed for complete failure.  

For the last 48 years I've taken  the privilege of failure, the privilege of study, the privilege of prayer and meditation, and yes the white red and blue privilege of unimaginable rewards. Rewards beyond my wildest dreams. God bless the Red White and Blue.

Calm at All Costs

I talked last blog about spiritual persistence. The discipline of creating spiritual harmony in the morning. At one with God. A moment spent seeking to attain gratitude and a glimpse of an inspiration that brings me awe. This spiritual space is a platform of perfection for me. The way I'd like to be. An emotional state of calm.

Then comes the challenge. The challenge of remaining calm at all costs. Never ruffled, never angry, avoiding negativity every step of the way. The discipline looks like this. First I must recognize that I have a negative thought, a bout with anger, perhaps a little jealousy. Then I must decide against it. And finally I have to decide to return to that moment of calm that I grasped early in the day.

Sometimes the exercise is merely keeping a smile on my face even when I'm ruffled. Other times the exercise might call for me finding a place to be alone for a second so I can meditate and calm down.
If I'm angry it might call for an apology.
But the beginning of a positive emotional outlook must begin with the determination to be positive.
And it's helpful to remind oneself of the payoff for positivity. The payoff is this: positivity makes one an attractive personality, gradually attracting good fortune over time. Really? Yeah really.