299 – October 26
“The trouble with many of us is that we just slide along in life. If we would only give, just once, the same amount of reflection to what we want out of life that we give to the question of what to do with a two-week vacation, we would be startled at our false standards and the aimless procession of our busy days.”—Dorothy Canfield Fisher
People fit amazing amounts of activity into their schedules. When you really are committed to your vision or your dream, somehow you find the time. It is almost like time literally expands and you accomplish incredible feats in nano-seconds instead of in hours. Days elongate as your focus and concentration put you in “The Zone,” that space where everything flows naturally, easily, effortlessly. After spending time in “The Zone,” you sometimes return to consciousness, amazed at what you’ve produced, half the time not even recognizing it as your own.
Mystery writer Sharyn McCrumb told of her experience with this in Writer’s Digest. She said that in 1986, she sold a four-page book proposal, but with a catch: The editor needed the completed novel in six weeks. Gulp. She was working full-time, teaching a night class, and taking two graduate classes that both required research papers. She was also the mother of an eight-year-old daughter, with another child on the way. She had lots of “yeah, buts” to choose from.
Instead, she wrote the book in six weeks. Not only did she do it, but she did it so well that it won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Paperback Novel in 1987!
This is a great example of a life “sprint.” Sprints are wonderful, and you can do anything when a fantastic goal makes the sprint worthwhile. Just a small caution: Don’t make sprinting a full-time habit. And make sure to take a time-out when you’ve finished one.
Today’s Affirmation:
“I have abundant time to manifest my abundant riches!”

Time for some R&R!
Life is short. Take time off to relax, play, and visit with friends and family!
People often ask me about my workshop and teleclass schedule. I teach classes on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays.
“Are those the best days for doing workshops?” they ask. “Did you research what are typically the best days and times?”
Nope.
I teach on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays because I like to have 4-day weekends. So many coaches and seminar leaders have 3-day weekend seminars…but I never wanted to work weekends. When you teach in small mastermind group formats like I do, you don’t have to make it convenient for very many people. Living in Los Angeles with 9 million people, I always figured I’d find 10-20 people whose schedules matched mine, you see?
So I just schedule 4-day weekends every month for R&R getaways with my buddies. I love looking forward to them almost as much as I like going on them!
I like to think of myself as a role model for having a fun life. Wouldn’t it be great if everyone did that? Yes, I know, some people are going through hard times right now, in different circumstances and different parts of the world. I hope they live through them successfully and find themselves in better situations soon. And then, they’ll get to have time off to play, dance, sing, and be joyful with their loved ones. Shoot, even when we’re going through difficult times, we need to take time off to do that! That’s what encourages us to keep going, to hang on, to have faith in the future.
That reminds me of a poem I heard many years ago:
“The Phoenix is a female
Rising out of her own ashes
Shedding bad experience
Like a tired skin
Rejuvenated by the hope
That something better is coming
She creates that possibility
And so, more often than not
Something better comes.”–Dao Tsim
Rise again, all ye phoenix! Something better is coming! Dance and play today!