Hellen and the two yellow pads

Several people in the Executive Suite had told me that Hellen was a bit strange but I ignored their warnings. Then one morning she approached me and engaged me in conversation.
“I’m supposed to share something with you” she said. “Have you got a few minutes?”
“Sure” I replied.
“Let’s go to the conference room” she said beginning to walk in that direction.
The warning from John flashed through my mind but now my curiosity was peaked. I had to find out for myself. As we entered the small conference room I noticed that she was carrying two yellow pads. She gestured for me to have a seat at the end of the conference table. As I sat down I noticed she was wearing an unusual all-knowing smile. My curiosity was growing rapidly. What did she know that I didn’t?
She sat down beside me and began to explain what was about to happen. I was staring intently at her but for some reason I was only half-listening. She was saying that I was going to hear voices and that I was to write down on the yellow pad whatever I heard. She was very persuasive. I could tell that she really believed what she was saying. I nodded politely. She explained the format the information would take and how I was to write it on the pad. Again I nodded, still staring at her intently. She said that she would sit at the other end of the table so as not to disturb my concentration. She moved to the other end of the table and sat down.
I waited in silence, not really expecting anything to happen. A smile crept across my face as the warnings about Hellen flashed back into my mind. And then I heard it. For a moment I was frozen. I forgot completely about writing down what I heard. Then there was more and instinctively I began to write. The flow of words was such now that I had to struggle to keep up. My mind began to race. What was happening? Where were these words coming from? They could not be coming from the person who identified himself as the sender at the beginning of the message. It could not be. I raced to transcribe the words.
My mind was trying to figure out what was going on? Was this some kind of telepathy? I had read about the experiments at Duke University, guessing playing cards or identifying circles, squares and triangles, but never anything like this. The words just kept coming. Somehow I could hear the words, transcribe them and have a conversation with myself all at the same time. I was already on the second page. How long would this continue?
Now I was on the third page and I seemed to be writing faster and faster. I was still talking to myself. No explanation made any sense. I finally just surrendered. And then there was silence. My hand had stopped moving. It was over. I felt an enormous sense of relief. I don’t know how long I sat there. I flipped back through the three pages. The words were there. It had really happened. I suddenly realized that my heart was pounding at a frightening rate. Something beyond my ability to understand had just happened. My response to it was somewhere between amazement and fear.
Then I remembered that Hellen was in the room. I looked up and there was that pleasant, all-knowing smile. She stood up, picked up her yellow pad and began to walk toward me. She placed her yellow pad carefully beside mine and silently gestured toward the two pads. I noticed that she had also written on her pad. At first glance a few words seemed to be the same. Then I looked more closely. I read back and forth from her pad to mine and back again. I flipped to the second page… then the third page. Now I was truly stunned. The words on her yellow pad were exactly the same as mine. She had heard the same voice! I was paralyzed. I couldn’t move or even think. I just sat there staring at what appeared to be a miracle.
She picked up her yellow pad and started toward the door. With her hand on the door knob she turned and said quietly “Maybe we can get together again sometime soon?” I nodded politely and the door closed behind her.

I'VE GOT IT!

I am going to be a writer. Finally, I know how. I will write about everything. I will write about cars, where they have been and where they are going. I will write about the people in the cars, what they are thinking, saying and doing. I will write about the people I meet.
When I do this, I am a writer. I will write at least 1000 words per day about something. Because I write at least 1000 words per day, I am a writer and because I am a writer, I write at least 1000 words per day. I’ve got it! Now I am a writer. How do I keep motivated to continue to write?
Some of what I write I put into my blog, Lane-A-Gram.blogspot.com. I visualize people reading my blog and communicating with me about my stories and my ideas. I see them telling other people about my writing and those other people coming to my blog. I see the people who read my blog becoming interested in Patternology and the work I do. Therefore, I am able to help more and more people. Marriages are saved. People are more successful financially. Chronic stress related health problems disappear. People are happier. In my blog I share the success stories of my clients. Since we teach our clients to do 80% of the work, the success stories are their stories. The more I write, the more people I am able to help. The more people I help, the more people talk about my work and my writing and therefore, the more I want to write.
Soon I have more clients than I can handle personally and I add more people to my team. With more people on my team, I help more people and now there are even more people reading what I write. I write about the successes clients experience when using Patternology. Their stories inspire others to undertake the process of change. Therefore, we enjoy a continual flow of referrals from people who have changed their lives with Patternology. People who read my blog invite us to speak to their groups and even more people are touched by Patternology. And so the cycle goes – more writing, more exposure, more inquiries for information, more clients and more staff.
Now I have a clear picture of the benefits of my writing and now I am motivated by that picture. I carry that picture with me everywhere I go. I look at that picture morning, noon and night. I internalize that picture. I am in the picture and the picture is in me. Soon the picture begins to direct my feelings and my thoughts and my actions. I feel like a successful writer and I think like one. I am becoming the picture. In the picture I am a writer. I’ve got it!
Why did I pick a goal of 1000 words per day? That does not seem like a big accomplishment. We need to learn from those who have gone before us. We need to benefit from their experience. One of my early mentors was Paul J Meyer, the founder of Success Motivation Institute. Goal setting was an integral part of his success in building an empire of 40 companies. A number of these organizations were international in scope.
Paul was one of the first (if not the first) to teach the importance of setting “smart” goals. He used the acronym SMART to describe goals that were specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and tangible. Writing 1000 words per day meets these criteria. Also, this was the habit developed by Jack London who was one of the most prolific writers of all time, so it is a tried and tested formula. No need to reinvent the wheel. Find someone who is or was successful at what you want to do and model their attitudes and behavior.
One of the main benefits of this picture I carry with me is to keep me focused. Most successful people have the ability and habit of staying focused. Thomas Edison is supposed to have made 10,000 attempts before he created the light bulb. Imagine how long it would have taken if he could not stay focused. Learning from Edison’s experience, I guess it is OK for me to make a few mistakes as a writer. If I try a few combinations of words that don’t work, the world will not come to an end. Temporary failure is our friend if we learn from him.
Now how can you use this process to fulfill your dream? What one thing could you do that would have the greatest impact on your life? If you were guaranteed that you could not fail, what would you be doing? Imagine that you have a magic wand that will help you discover your passion and achieve it.
Take out a yellow pad and begin to write. Touch the paper with the magic wand. What will change your life the way writing is changing mine. What are you avoiding due to a fear of failure? What if God told you that you were going to fail five times before you succeed? What would you do? Probably get started right away so you could get those five failures out of the way! What if the number you were given was ten? Your answer would probably be the same. Get the failures and mistakes out of the way as soon as possible. What a refreshing new perspective: Eliminate the ways that don’t work and you are left with your light bulb, your great new idea. That was clearly one of Thomas Edison’s keys to success. He was not afraid to fail temporarily. You never really fail until you quit trying. Remember that the only people who never make a mistake are the people who don’t do anything. It has been suggested that those who fail the most also succeed the most. Babe Ruth held both the strike out and home run records simultaneously.
Take out a piece of paper and begin to write. What have you got to lose? I’ve got it. You can get it too.