Joe Vitale Discusses the Need Zone

I like to read the blogs of other LOA masters. One in particular is Joe Vitale ("The Attractor Factor", "Zero Limits", appeared in "The Secret"), aka Mr. Fire. Today, he discussed the concept of The Need Zone, something I hadn't yet heard about.

It threw me for a loop. It had my mind grappling to understand the concept, just as Joe said had happened to him when he first heard about it. The idea that one would attract what they need by upping your need for it? Please. I agree with Joe—that's not what one wants to hear when they are already in dire financial straits. As the song says, "I'm already there!"

Besides, isn't needing something counter-intuitive to getting it? Need equals desperation. Need equals lack, and focusing on need/lack only attracts more need/lack. Right?

According to Joe's post, which I encourage you to pop over and read lest I become redundant here, it's possible to attract the resources needed when you stretch yourself into the need.

I thought about it. Then I remembered a time when I first had my horse, and despite a beautiful beginning, within a few months we'd had a major parting of ways on a trail ride and it became very apparent that I hadn't a clue how to read or communicate with my horse. I had no idea how to predict what he may or may not do, never mind what to do about it, and that created fear.

I needed someone to teach me how to understand horses, fully and completely, and I needed it NOW. It seemed impossible. Nobody at my barn seemed all that savvy; I didn't know any horsemen other than Dad and he was beyond the age where he could show me. I was on my own and lost.

Then I found a training program that said it would teach me exactly what I needed to know. I bought it... and it worked. Far better than skeptical me had anticipated.

There were more memories of similar incidents where needs were met once I determined I needed them. But I still didn't quite get it.

Then I smacked myself. I just had one this week. While I have some money in the bank, my pocket money was running low. Pocket money, in my book, is the extra cash I make for small jobs that I don't put in the checking account—I get paid in cash, and use that for little things like going out to dinner, buying milk and lotto tickets, entertainment. That way I avoid draining the checking account paying for incidentals. I had a stray thought that I needed to get more pocket money.

The temp agency called last week to let me know that one of the part-time positions I've occasionally taken was starting back up again. The job is doing phone surveys. Not terrible, but not great pay.

But I've put off calling to commit because I have serious reservations about going back. It is VERY hard on the voice. Nine weeks of calling people and wrestling them into doing 200-question surveys left me hoarse. As a vocalist, I knew I was on the road to nodes and permanent vocal damage despite using my voice properly and caring for it. In addition, it's loud in the room, hard to hear, and I'd turned up the volume to the max. I've noticed the hearing loss in that ear has become a tad more pronounced in certain note ranges. Not good. After my last stint with them, I'd decided I was done with phone surveys, and had already made up my mind that I wasn't going back ever.

I was very surprised by the call. I'd been intending for a completely different type of work. Why was THIS making a re-appearance?

Oh.

DUH.

Because I'd asked for it.

I'd declared a need for more pocket money. And that job is the easiest way to snag some. I inadvertently put myself directly into the Need Zone for pocket money. I didn't have to stretch very far to have the resources walk up and meet me (if I wanted to take them).

So... perhaps I need to restate my need. Think bigger, so I attract bigger. Instead of needing pocket money, my need should be more expansive.

If I'm understanding this correctly, then theoretically, were I to say, "OK, I AM going to graduate school, and the money for tuition and living expenses is coming from somewhere (stipend or not)" and really put my foot down... then it would happen?

Meaning, I might not win the lottery just because I declare I need money. Where is the REASON? Just to have the money?

If I declared I was winning the lottery and had a very good reason for it then stretched into the reason while awaiting the outcome, would that put me into the Need Zone and finally attract that win?

If I declared that the vacant home I still have IS sold, and I have a very good reason for attracting a buyer out of thin air (no matter what, despite the economy/housing market), then stretch into the reason for the sale while awaiting his or her arrival, does that put me into the Need Zone?

Maybe the trick is to have a very good REASON for needing the money or resource—then declare it, then stretch into it by performing the steps toward the goal (registering to take the GRE, preparing essays and portfolios—conscious, concrete efforts), and expect the money/resource to arrive.

Or declare your intent to start a business, and have a REASON for the partner to show up. And so on.

I think this is what Joe is talking about. Who knows? Maybe he'll come by and read this and tell me if I'm on the right track. I could sure use the added insights!

If What We Resist, Persists... Is Resistance the Key?

It seems that the more I dislike something, the more it persists and continues to show up in my life.

I've also realized I have a habit, when I like something, of becoming fully involved in it, almost obsessively for a time, then one day, the enthusiasm wanes. Once this occurs, I'm able to easily let it go—just drop it. Remove my hand, so to speak, and allow it to fall without emotion of any kind. OK, I'm done with that.

This doesn't mean I don't like it—just that I've gotten to a point where I have lost the intense emotional involvement with it that the novelty of newness brings with it. I've reached the saturation point of the event or interest. Obsession is similar to the desperation one feels when negative circumstances persist; only obsession can feel more likeable.

It seems the moment I'm able to reach this point, the more "normal" it becomes for my life, and the easier it is to keep it around. It shows up in my life without bidding, and I'm always quietly pleased, almost a bit blasé, to have it arrive again. Which it does. Consistently, without effort on my part.

The thought occurred to me today that to change my life, perhaps I either have to figure out a way to fully despise the desired life changes (so the conditions arrive and persist) OR fall fully and completely in love with the desired life changes to the obsession point. Then when they arrive, embrace them, obsess over them, throw myself into them headlong until I reach the saturation point and am able to let go.

Perhaps then they will settle in and BE.

Or...

Maybe it's about loving the Now. Loving what IS. Even if it isn't very lovable.

Maybe, if I were to have two full-time jobs (a concept that causes extreme cringing and a big NO to rise up), and if they were the kinds of jobs I would never love...

Maybe I should embrace them fully, and LOVE them. Maybe loving them to the saturation point will make it easier to drop them one day. Just, done. No longer need this in my life; now something better comes along.

Hmm.

I'm not sure I've quite figured out this one, but I feel like I'm on the verge of a breakthrough.

Minding the Gap

As everyone who has studied the Law of Attraction knows, there are certain steps required in the manifestation process:

• figuring out what you want
• figuring out what you don't want
• clearing limiting beliefs
• paying attention to the language we use when setting the intentions because the Universe does not interpret meaning and cannot process negatives (as in "I don't want to do this anymore"
• acting on the nudges the Universe provides us once we've set our intentions
• learning to let go of the "how"
  

There is one step I've yet to see explored in any LOA materials, that I have determined is a critical part of successful manifestations.

I'm calling it Minding the Gap—the time between setting the intention/taking action steps and seeing the resulting manifestation.

This is a dangerous time in anyone's journey. Intentions are like missiles—we fire them off without knowing it, and they are already in progress. Then we set a conscious intention without being aware of the previously-set unconscious intentions we'd made before we knew better.

What happens is this. Let's say I am in the midst of awaiting the arrival of my consciously manifested result, and a completely different event occurs. My initial reaction?

Whoops! I tend to feel thrown off-course, and this is when I run the biggest risk of messing up. I think "Oh no, I made a mistake" or "Uh-oh, it doesn't look like it's going to work out after all!". This causes me to focus on the wrong outcome! I focus on the Oh No part.

What we focus on, expands, so the manifestation result shifts. Instead of focusing on the outcome I prefer, I allow my focus to shift to the outcome I didn't want and wasn't aware I'd called for. Then I get that outcome, and think the LOA doesn't work.

Ah, but it DID. :-) I just wasn't expecting that outcome because I wasn't aware I was setting the intention to manifest it.

The trick is, when an unexpected event occurs or something happens that seems to be the opposite of the preferred outcome, take it as a sign that your preferred outcome is on its way.

Why? Because manifestations, like intention-setting, happen in sequence. I'd unconsciously set an intention, and it manifested; since I'd set a conscious intention in between, this means my conscious manifestation is next in line!

No matter what happens, stay focused ONLY on your preferred outcome, knowing that anything random or unexpected that occurs between intention-setting and manifestation is just fallout from previous subconscious intentions, and the LOA WILL WORK for you. Every time.

Word of the Year 2010

Christine Kane has a better idea for resolutions. Rather than preparing a long list of vague things to do, she suggests choosing one word to set the tone for the year, and to use as your intention for the year.

Last year, I chose Improvement. However, I didn't really follow through with focusing on the word throughout the year. Did I enjoy any improvements? Sure; but probably not as many as if I'd really focused on it.

This year is different. For the past several days, I've been writing down words trying to hone in on the ONE WORD that will lay the foundation for the changes I need most in my life, the changes that will propel me into the now that I wish to experience.

Several words are on the list: courage, brave, now, re/solved, focus... but none of them really hit home. I needed a word that encompassed every area that needs an overhaul: finances, clutter, decision-making, plans for my future, the path I'm on, removing obstacles—to name a few. How could one word sum up the change needed?

And then I found it.

CLEAR.

It's a verb, an adverb, a noun. The path can be clear. I can make clear decisions, have a crystal clear idea about my future. The clutter can be cleared. Clear sailing. Clear a lot of money in a deal. Clear, focused thinking. Joe Vitale talks about "clearing" limiting beliefs before setting intentions. Clear has so many variations, and they all apply to my life.

I looked it up on dictionary.com, and the definitions are astounding. Too lengthy to post here—if you're curious, here's the link to the entry.

Yes. My word for 2010 is CLEAR. It's the clear choice.

What Are You WHYning About?

What are you WHYning about today?

We all do it. We all find ourselves saying, "Why me?" or "Why did that happen again?" Some say the cure is to ask "Well, why NOT me?" I say we can probe deeper and make permanent changes. You see, I've noticed something.

The interesting thing about our complaints is that they tend to answer the very questions they ask.

Beliefs generate thought energy that attracts situations and circumstances that are in alignment with the belief. Whatever we believe, we speak aloud to others as statements—or as complaints. If the situation is favorable in our opinion, we proclaim it as a statement. But if the situation is not to our liking, we complain about it, and it usually comes out as a WHYne.

Here is an example of a standard WHYne:

Why does it always seem like every time I get close to getting ahead, something comes along to undo it?

Well... it's because this is what your belief IS!

Just remove the "why does" part and turn it into a sentence/statement, and the belief hidden within the complaint is revealed.

(Why does) it always seem like every time I get close to getting ahead, something comes along to undo it(?)

Becomes:

It always seem(s) like every time I get close to getting ahead, something comes along to undo it!

So why does it seem this way? Because it just does! Because YOU believe that it does.

What is the positive opposite of this belief? Well, there are a lot of options. One possibility is this:

It always seems like every time I get close to getting ahead, something comes along to make it even better.

Or, you could try:
I'm so glad that I seem to be getting ahead now.

You could even go so far as to turn a positive opposite into a tongue-in-cheek WHYne, but with a positive aspect:

Why does it always seem so easy for me to get ahead?

I mean, if we're going to complain, at least we can get into the habit of complaining positively, right?

Change the belief that is hidden within the WHYne, and you will change your life. Now—what have YOU been WHYning about today?

**Podcast Update: It's coming! Life happened along with a few technical glitches, but stay tuned.***

Quick Update

Stay tuned... podcast and eBook on their way!

Do You Know Why Your Outcome Derailed?

I'd like to take an informal poll. Please post your answers in the comments.

1. How long have you been studying the Law of Attraction?
2. Do you understand the concepts of clearing limiting beliefs?
3. Have you done the work of clearing your limiting beliefs through EFT, Ho'oponopono or other methods?
4. Do you feel completely clear before you set your intention?
   
5. Have you had any success manifesting small, unimportant things?
6. How about bigger, more important things?
7. Have you noticed a difference between the ease of manifesting smaller, less important things versus manifesting bigger, more important things?
8. Do you seem to have more difficulty manifesting the bigger, more important things, despite having a strong intention, all the right affirmations and language, and being completely clear?
9. Do you have any idea why the bigger, more important outcomes are more challenging?
10. Do you have issues with doubts and fears that arise between the time after you set the intention and before the outcome manifests?
    

If you answered YES to numbers 8 and 10, and NO to number 9, stay tuned.

I have the answer for you, and this is the only place you will find it presented in this much detail.

This information will be available in two formats:

• I'll be posting my first hour-long Podcast for download very soon
• I'm finishing up my first eBook, Navigating the Gap. This will contain the transcript of the Podcast, but will be an expanded version of the topic being discussed

If you would like to be alerted via email when the podcast and eBook become available, send an email with the subject line "Podcast" to jb@mentalmanifestation.com. Thank you for listening, and Manifest Great Things™!