“When you know what you want to do, how do you move from knowledge to action? Even though the path feels totally right, how can you be sure?”

As long as you are excited by the path, as long as the path continues to pull you happily along, as long as you continue to make progress on the path, you can be sure that you are on the right path.

While there is no guarantee of success in any of life’s endeavors, excitement and that sense of it feeling totally right, are signs from your higher self and your spirit guides that the path is important, has merit, and will fulfill you.

When the path feels wrong, it means you’ve taken a misstep. Stand still, take stock, and figure out how to get back on the path. You may need to back up a step. You’ll know you’ve rediscovered the path when the excitement builds up again.

If you can jump right to taking action on the new path, do so. If you need to make preparations first, make preparations. The path will wait for you. It’s okay to make logical preparations, which can help ensure a smooth sail on the new path.

For example, if this new path involves a career change, you may need to make sure you’ve got enough education, finances, and skills in order to make the leap. That’s alright. Do what’s necessary to get walking on your new path. If you can leave your current job right now and start a new one, do it. If you can’t, don’t sweat the wait. Use the time to build up momentum like a race car driver revving his engine at the starting line. When the starting gun goes off, you’ll rocket out of the gate.

But you’re asking the right question. Excitement is the best clue you can get. No one can guarantee success, but your excitement is the gas in the tank. Follow your bliss.

The Mindfest is completely free. If you like the program, you have the option to buy the recordings afterwards. But you could also listen to the whole thing for free when it broadcasts if you like, and you have plenty of leeway for that — you don’t have to listen at a set time of day, just within a particular day’s window.

The Mindfest is once again hosted by Paul Scheele, who co-founded Learning Strategies 32 years ago. Paul is an acclaimed expert of human performance, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), accelerated learning, and preconscious processing. Paul is very passionate about understanding how the mind works and helping people improve their lives. And he’s very good at teaching what he knows.

Over the course of 6 days, Paul will share the following lessons:

Day 1 – Make More Money: Clear away blocks to having plenty of money

Day 2 – Sharpen Your Memory: Overcome uncertainty and forgetfulness

Day 3 – Attract What You Want: Make the Law of Attraction work for your success

Day 4 – Be Free of Anxiety: Be fearless, strong, and successful

Day 5 – Kick-up Your Instincts: Use your intuition to make better decisions

Day 6 – Improve Your Health: Reduce stress and avoid illness

Bonus – Get to Your Ideal Weight: Use your inner mind to help you lose extra pounds

For each day of the course, you actually get two programs — one lesson from Paul and one Paraliminal to listen to.

The Mindfest is free, so it won’t cost you anything. You’ll have two new programs each day that you can stream from your computer, tablet, or phone. If you miss a day, that’s no problem since each day of the Mindfest is designed to stand on its own. Feel free to listen to whichever sessions most interest you if you’re short on time.

The Mindfest officially begins on Monday, March 18th. I suggest that you register for it now (which takes about 2 seconds). That way you’ll get a reminder email when the Mindfest is about to begin. There’s also a contest with some nice prizes you could win.

Visit the Ultimate You Mindfest website to get started. I’m signed up for it myself.

I responded back to him and we went back and forth a bit and I decided that other people probably have the same question, so I’m going to share.

First of all, it is true that before you incarnate you select your parents. But before that happens, you figure out what your intention is for this life. You decide what you want to experience. And then you go about finding a family that will give you the best chance of experiencing what you want to experience.

Yes, sometimes the family happens to be poor. And yes, sometimes the family happens to be rich. Usually that is not a deciding factor for a soul before it incarnates because while you are in the ether you remember, realize and know that money is man-made and is simply a by-product of an earthly incarnation.

More important than money, however, is whether or not your chosen family will be able to help you accomplish your intention.

When I told him this, he came back with, “But life is so hard for some. Who would ever choose to have a hard life?”

Why don’t marathon runners simply get in a car and drive to the finish line? Because they like to run, they want the challenge, they want to see if they can run a marathon.

Why don’t hikers just get in a helicopter and soar to the top of the mountain in minutes instead of climbing for hours or even days to get to the top? Because hikers want to hike, they enjoy the journey, the struggle, the challenge.

Imagine if you were playing a video game. You make your character and hit “start” and when you pop into the town as your character someone comes along and says, “Here is 1 billion gold pieces, here is a level 80 sword, and here is an infinite supply of food and healing potions. Have fun!” Boring! You want to go questing. You want to see what your character is capable of.

There’s no doubt that some people have it very rough on this earth. Maybe they’re here to test humanity’s compassion. Maybe they’re here because they love a challenge. Maybe they’re here to overcome adversity, rise to the top, and make things better for those back at home.

As for disabled folks… some of them know they will be disabled before they incarnate and some don’t. Remember that free will trumps everything once you incarnate. By your actions or the actions of others, your beautiful, easy, rich life can become hell, and your poor, miserable existence can become heavenly.

The secret is your attitude. If you read my last article, A Good Cup of Soup, you’ll see that a very financially poor man is one of the wealthiest people I’ve ever met. And we all know about rich people who kill themselves because they don’t carry internal happiness.

Ultimately, your life circumstances are defined by your attitude. No matter what circumstances you’re in when you arrive, you can change them completely if you desire it strongly enough. There are thousands of examples of people who have.

I don’t know if the guy who emailed me will accept what I’ve told him, but that’s his choice too. No matter where you think you are, you can think your way out of your situation. It’s all about attitude.

And when you cross over and go back to the ether, your compadres will clap you on the back and say, “Well done! I thought you were a goner there a few times, but you pulled through. You were magnificent!”

And you’ll smile, knowing that although the journey was hard, it tested you and you prevailed. And you’ll say, “Damn straight! Now when can I make another character and go back and play?”

As I began asking him questions, it came to light that he had an annual income of less than $10,000, he lived alone, and walked with a cane. I could also see that he was happy. I’m talking about that internal happiness that few achieve. He was completely at peace and content.

As we exchanged dialogue, one of the questions I had to ask him was how he planned to recover from his loss. He said, “I haven’t lost anything. You see, young lady, while it may look like all my possessions burned up in the fire, I haven’t lost anything of real value. As long as I am alive, I am grateful. And that gratitude can never burn up in a fire. That can never be taken away from me.”

I was speechless for a moment and then said, “That’s an amazing attitude, sir.”

He said, “I can see from your eyes that you are kind, and I can tell from your energy that you sincerely care about me, and I’m grateful. I carry gratitude in my heart. It’s the most valuable thing I own. I’ll carry it until the day I die. Every day on this earth is a blessing, and every moment I live is a pleasure.”

We continued on with the interview. He was the most positive, carefree, happy person I’ve sat in front of in a long time. Finally near the end of the interview I said, “I can tell you have this inner peace and you radiate joy and contentment. Have you always been this way?”

He said, “Oh no, young lady. I’ve been homeless, I’ve been addicted to drugs and alcohol. I’ve even served time in prison. But one day I was done living in the dark. I invited the light of love and gratitude into my soul and it has never left me and it has never let me down.”

I said, “How did you do it?”

He leaned in and said, “It was like flipping a switch. I just decided one day that going forward I was going to leave people alone, stop hurting myself, stop hurting others, and spread happiness and joy wherever God let me. And I’ll tell you one of the secrets to being happy.”

I couldn’t wait to hear it.

He said, “I stay away from people who are living in the dark. If they are negative, mean, nasty, lack compassion, or are trying to hurt or control me, I just say goodbye. You gotta be careful who you let into your energy. Darkness of the heart is a contagious poison that can make your soul sick. You stay away from toxic energy.”

I spent about 20 minutes talking to this man. All he owned was his cane and his attitude, and it was more than enough for him. Before I concluded the interview, I asked him if there was anything he needed.

He said, “Well, all I really want right now is a good cup of soup. Give me a good cup of soup and a heart full of gratitude and I’ll walk this world a happy man.”

When I left him, I felt so humbled and grateful myself. By all of society’s standards this man was poor, but in reality, he’s one of the richest men on the planet. To carry happiness in your heart, to be grateful when you have almost nothing, is wealth indeed.

But sometimes people fear they have no purpose. So I want to explain what I’ve encountered so you get a better understanding of this thing we call “the life purpose.”

I have found after reading for thousands of people that some people incarnate with a specific purpose, and it’s practically encoded in your DNA. Growing up you’ll have a strong inkling or predilection for achieving your directive. Everything you attract into your life will support the drive towards this purpose. So much so that once you achieve it you’ll look back on life and say things like, “Yes, I always knew I was going to be a ….” Or “It never once occurred to me that I wouldn’t achieve this goal. I’ve just always known.”

Drive. Passion. Talent. Skill. Opportunities. It will be like heaven and earth aligned perfectly and you achieved your goal.

And that’s great. I see this with folks who are teachers, healers, communicators, scientists. There’s an unstoppable energy, like a stampede, towards a goal. Not only are they capable of achieving it, they’ve also seemingly “lucked out” in some way and been propelled towards their goal at light speed. That’s because the universe, their higher self, and their guides are all behind them pulling strings and getting things done.

But what if you aren’t one of these people? What if you’ve been drifting, passionless, unable to even figure out what you want to do or even what you’re good at. You squeak by, you try lots of different jobs and nothing excites you. You fail a lot. You meander. Your life is sometimes up and sometimes down. You’re just wandering through life, unknowing of your purpose, no drive and seemingly no opportunities.

Well guess what? You have a life purpose too.

Life is meant to be experienced. You’re here to have fun and explore. Your job is actually to simply be happy. It’s society and convention that drill into you that you have to find a career, settle down, have passion and drive. We’re taught it’s the only way to succeed.

But the truth is that some souls incarnate simply to play in the sandbox of life. They’re not here specifically to have an impact or change the course of the world. They’re here to experience life. To share, to learn, to grow. And honestly, that’s purpose enough.

Do not let society judge you. And don’t judge yourself.

Yes, some people decided to incarnate to have an impact, to change the world, to get their hands very dirty. Let them. Sit back with your bucket and shovel and just play in the sand. Along the way you will learn, grow, and experience. And your life will be just as purposeful as anyone’s.

Put joy, love and compassion into the world. Share the journey. Do what you enjoy. Drift from one joy to another. Don’t hurt other people.

Make your own personal castle in the sand. And if the wind or the water knock it down, build another.

Whether you came here for some grand purpose or to simply experience what life has to offer, you are an important and valuable piece of the greater puzzle.

Do you offer something of value to the world?

Not to be confused with “are you of value” because you’re totally of value to the world just the way you are. You are a piece in a vast puzzle and a necessary component of the Whole.

However, I’m talking here about the value you want to be paid for. Do you offer something that other people want? And will they pay you for it?

One of my clients was upset because he’d written a book of poetry, put it up on Amazon, and had gotten no sales. He reworked the poetry and released it again, but still, no sales. He tried ads on Google to generate business. Nothing. He was frustrated and fed up with his lack of success and decided there was no way for him to succeed as an entrepreneur. He was bitter and angry.

When I asked him what the poetry was about, he proudly and promptly replied it was about random, crazy, mixed up things that made almost no sense.

Hmm.

I asked him what need that filled. He said, “I don’t know. But I liked writing it and I poured my heart into it.”

That’s not enough, my friend. Write that on your own time.

If you want to be paid, you must offer something of value. And value is defined as something people are willing to pay you for. By all means, write your poetry all you want. But if it’s of no value to others, then don’t expect to make money off of it. Pure and simple.

Maybe it’s not fair. Maybe you should be able to put into the world what you want to put into the world and have other people see the value in it. But the world is vast, and competition is fierce. If you can’t help someone solve a problem or offer them something they want, you don’t get paid.

Now this doesn’t mean you should ONLY put into the world something you can earn money from. You could if you want to. I know many people who have gotten rich simply filling the needs of others, even when it was something they themselves didn’t personally care for.

But I believe that when you’re passionate about something, and you have a talent for it, AND other people want it, then you’ve got the winning formula.

So if you’re not succeeding right now with your product, idea, or service, ask yourself the hard question. Is there a market for this? Does it fill a need or solve a problem? If the answer is an honest no, then find another way to offer it so that it IS valuable.

My client received advice from his guides about ways to channel his creative energy into drama and acting. He ended up becoming a college drama teacher, writing his own plays, and inserting his own unusual style and brand of creativity into all of them, with great success. And he was a lot happier too. People were finally paying for and appreciating his unusual creative style.

If your passion isn’t profitable, see if you can rework it so that it is. You don’t have to give up on your passion, but if you want to eat, you’ve got to find a way to make it of value to others.

The topic: If you are currently unhappy with your job, you will want to attend. That’s all I can say right now because that’s all they’ve told me.

You can participate publicly or privately. But if you post answers to the guides’ questions publicly, they will provide personal answers for as many people as they can.

This will not be a public broadcast. Only those who are friends with me on Facebook will be able to see the posts.

Also, according to them, there will be four posts. I don’t even know what they are yet, but I’m going with the flow.

So if you want to participate and you want to get out of the job you hate, make sure we are friends on facebook and make sure you tune in to my Facebook wall on Monday, January 14, 2013 at 9:15am Pacific time.

This is new to me too, so we’ll see how it goes. But I trust my guides. This is their show, I’m just the relay. I hope you will join us.

And if it goes well, I suspect we’ll be doing this again with another topic.

Are you in the same situation?

You followed a dream, you had a passion, and you made it happen. You’re living the dream! And then one day you realize it’s become a chore, or maybe it’s just not exciting anymore. You don’t bound out of bed like you used to.

You feel like you failed the dream. “Why aren’t I happy? I got exactly what I wanted, what I asked for. I feel so ungrateful.”

But what you must realize is that dreams can change, and there’s no shame in that. In fact, it’s progress. Once you achieve a dream and live with it for a while, guess what happens next? A new dream comes to take its place.

But so many people aren’t aware that the old dream is stale and that a new dream is knocking on the door. They feel obligated to stick with the old. Maybe it’s how they were raised. You work for something, you get it, you stick with it, possibly for decades.

That’s not how it works though. A dream dangles like a carrot in front of your face, urging and enticing you to follow it until you get it. But after you’ve eaten of the carrot, you get hungry again. That’s normal.

I’m here to reassure you and encourage you. Dare to dream again. What do you want NOW? What would make you wake each morning in the throes of excitement and eagerness? Once you figure that out, go after that dream like you went after the first one. And don’t stop until you get it.

Often it’s not an entirely new dream. Often it’s the same dream you had before but simply expressed differently.

In 2006 I was living a dream. I was doing intuitive readings for people all over the world. Every single morning I would look forward to my day of readings, doing between 8 and 12 a day sometimes. For years, this was exactly what I wanted to be doing. I was helping people, and talking to the spirit guides and deceased people was a total high for me.

Then the excitement started to wane. I was worried. What did it mean? How could something that was a lifelong dream suddenly feel… not quite enough to get me excited. So I tuned in and realized there was a new dream. I wanted to teach. I wanted to share my knowledge and wisdom with others on this path.

So I started creating products, and I started teaching and training others to become professional intuitives. And that got me super excited again. And I realized that this was simply evolution. A natural and necessary movement in a new direction aligned with my joy and my mission.

I didn’t stop doing readings, but I cut back on how many I do each week, so that I could explore my new dreams.

So now it’s your turn. Ask yourself if you’re living your dream. If so, great, keep on going. Good for you.

If not, take time to explore what your new dream may be. Is it a different way of expressing what you’re currently doing or is it something new altogether? Don’t be afraid to let go of an old dream if it no longer excites you. Move on to the next dream. It’s waiting, right there in front of you, dangling like a carrot.

And it’s yours to have, if you dare to dream.

One thing I’ve learned after being a solo-entrepreneur for the last 12 years is the importance of goal setting. If you don’t have clear goals, you can’t achieve them. If you don’t decide what your focus is going to be, you will not achieve it, because you will meander, get side-tracked, or distracted by other opportunities that come your way.

What generally works best for me is to pick 2 or 3 big goals each year. My 2012 goals were to relaunch my website with a better design, and add workshops to what I was currently doing. At first you might think, “Well did it really take you a year to accomplish just those two goals?” Well yes.

It took me a while to decide what I wanted to include in the new site and what I wanted to get rid of. It took me a while to design the site the way I wanted it to be. And it took me two tries to get a web designer and programmer who could get the job done. While I was doing all of that, I was still blogging, doing readings, doing trainings, and selling and marketing my products. But it got done and I’m super happy to be able to check that off my list. I will be making tweaks to my site over the coming year, but no major overhauls.

I did two workshops last year. Again you might think, “Two weekends? That’s it?” Nay. First there was deciding what the workshop would be about, then there was finding a suitable venue on the right date at the right price with the right size room. That took a lot of leg work and phone calls and meetings. Then I had to design the workshop. That took an entire month. I had to get volunteers to help me. I had to print out scads of materials. I had to practice and carefully consider what material stayed and what had to go. I consulted with other teachers since I’d never done a 2 day workshop before. All of that added up to me doing two workshops in 2012. If I do more workshops, it will be easier since the material is solid and the venue I chose would work again.

So those were my two big goals and I achieved them. In the past, I would set 10 goals and probably achieve 2 or 3, and at the end of the year I’d feel like I didn’t succeed. So I learned a while back to ask myself this question, “At the end of the year, what one thing will I wish was done?” Once I pick that item, I ask again, “What other thing will I wish I had accomplished?” That becomes goal number 2. If there is a third major goal, I’ll add it in. But honestly I’ve found, at least with the goals I’ve chosen, that 2 or 3 is the absolute limit.

Now this doesn’t mean you don’t get other smaller goals done. You totally can. In the past year I also began researching teleseminar and webinar software. I began thinking about home study courses. I formed a new company with an awesome partner, which is in limbo at the moment. I made a list of books I want to write. I began learning how to get those books into the right hands. I explored coaching. I explored a reality show idea. I explored a tv show idea or two. But because none of those were my major goals, they never got my full focus or attention.

Consequently, I wasn’t seriously side tracked, and my major goals were accomplished.

In addition to business goals, I also set a couple of person goals each year. Sometimes I discuss those publicly and sometimes I don’t. These goals are usually related to health, relationships, and family.

If you run your own business and you don’t already set goals each year, I recommend you try it. You’ll see your focus become much sharper, because each time an opportunity comes up you can measure it against your goal and ask, “Will doing this bring me closer or further away from one of my major goals?” If the answer is closer, you do it. If the answer is further away, you decline.

It is only by staying sharply focused on your goals that you will achieve them.

If you find that you achieve your major goals too quickly, set bigger goals, or simply select a couple more. Perhaps you have quarterly goals. Or even monthly goals. Find the amount and the timing that works best for you.

When you get ready to start the new year, also ask yourself if there is anything on the plate that needs to go. Were you doing something this past year that no longer has a place in your long term strategy or plan? Be brutally honest. Do an assessment. Let go of anything that you hate doing or that isn’t serving your business. This will make space for new things you want to do, that you are good at, and that people want or need.

When you focus on just two or three goals a year, you build a stronger business. You lay a foundation that is solid and supportive of your infrastructure. If you meander or work on too many goals at the same time, you may find yourself standing in a pile of half completed projects, none of which are serving your customers because they’re all incomplete.

So ask yourself, what can you do over the next year that will take your business to the next level or help you accomplish more of what you want to put into the world. Pick two or three things to focus on, and make sub goals for each one. Then get busy gettin’ busy!

You are here to shine your light, to be a beacon. You are not here to chase people down and force your light upon them.

Some will be attracted to your light, and some won’t. It is not your job nor your responsibility to seek followers.

Just be a beacon, and those who want to step into the glow of your light will.

There is nothing for you to do. Your job is to be. Be who you are at your core. Remember who you really are, and be that person.

All of your actions will stem from your inner light.

When you are in alignment with all that you are, then all your actions will be so aligned. And those who are attracted to your light will receive benefit.

As you struggle to define yourself, to figure out what you’re supposed to do, try to remember that much of this world was crafted by those who have forgotten their higher selves. What you see in the world today is in many ways a contrast to what it could be.

The more you can remember who you really are, and the more you can align yourself with that person, the more change you will see in the world, because it will be a reflection of your higher self.

The world today is a reflection of the light we are casting. Is your light casting fear or is it casting love?

As you beacon, so shall the world be. So be a beacon. But be a beacon of your highest self.

Awaken to your light. Remember who you really are. And love.