January 5, 2011

In This Issue
Featured Article: Create What You Truly Want in 2011
Announcements
Daddy's Little Girls



Happy New Year!  I hope you enjoyed the holiday season and that you're excited about 2011.

Last week's article, "Complete The Year Consciously," got some great feedback.  If you'd like to re-read that piece, feel free to check it out on my blog.  You can also read it on The Huffington Post.  And, if you'd like to listen to the audio podcast from last week, click here.

This week's article is my annual "create the new year" message...

Have a good one.  Here's to a year filled with gratitude, abundance, peace, and fulfillment.

With Appreciation,





Create What You Truly Want in 2011

(For this week's audio podcast, click here.)

As we embark on another new year of life, I find myself experiencing a mixture of emotions about 2011.  I'm excited about the possibilities of this New Year and inspired by the energy of creation that exists at this special time.  Similar to last week, there is a magical quality to this first week of the New Year - lots of hope and positive anticipation.

At the same time, especially given the nature of 2010 and all the twists and turns last year took for me personally, so many people around me, and in the world, I find myself feeling a sense of trepidation about setting new goals and jumping right back into the mix of life and work.

As it relates to New Year's "resolutions," most people I know and have worked with over the years, including myself, have a somewhat funny or disempowered relationship to goal-setting for the New Year.  Whether you spend lots of time and energy creating your New Year's intentions or you decided years ago that you wouldn't bother (since in years past by mid-January most of them have gone off the rails or out of your mind anyway); I don't know too many people who are genuinely inspired, motivated, or empowered by their New Year's resolutions in a sustainable and real way.  How about you?

Here are some of the main reasons I think we aren't authentically inspired by our goals or truly empowered to manifest them:

• Our "goals" are often about fixing what we think is wrong with us
• Once we set them, we feel a sense of pressure to make them happen
• We worry that we won't accomplish or achieve what we want, and then we'll feel like failures
• We don't get the kind of support we really want and need
• We forget that our intentions are designed to support us, not stress us out
• We get too focused on the outcome and forget about the experience
• We allow competition and scarcity take over
• We get all excited about them at the beginning of the year, and then forget about them

For these and other reasons many us either don't set powerful intentions for the New Year or we do so out of fear in a way that creates more stress in our lives.  One of the best things we can do to shift our perspective about this and create an empowering relationship to our process of setting goals for 2011 is to understand some key distinctions - intentions, goals, and actions.

Intentions - Our intentions are states of being and authentic desires.  In other words, we may have an intention to be peaceful, grateful, joyous, loving, successful, healthy, wealthy, or more.  Our intentions are our high ideals and are usually at the root of our motivation for any of our specific goals (i.e. "why" we want to do, accomplish, or experience something).  Most of us don't really want goals like a new relationship, more money, or a fit body simply for the sake of those things themselves - we want them (or others) because of what we believe we will experience by having them in our life.  By starting with our intentions, we get right to the source of what we truly want.  Intentions are the core and the magic of all of our goals and desires.

Goals - Effective and powerful goals are ones that are specific and measurable.  We want to be able to track our progress and know for sure if we are reaching our goals or not.  This doesn't have to be a competition (with others or ourselves) and doesn't have to be filled with stress, pressure, shame, or guilt (which is sadly how we often relate to our results).  Having our goals as specific and measurable just makes them clear and more likely to manifest.  And, the paradox we have to always remember when setting and working on our goals is that we can’t be attached to the outcome - which will make us crazy and can take us off course with our real intentions.  Our goals simply take our intentions and focus them on tangible outcomes in the world.

Actions - Creating action-oriented practices that support us in manifesting our goals and intentions is an essential daily, weekly, and monthly process of our success and fulfillment.  Coming up with action plans that inspire us, connect to the goals we're working on, and fulfill our intentions is vital to all of this.  This is where the rubber meets the road, and is often the place where things break down for us.  The breakdown with actions usually has more to do with a lack of support and accountability (which then allows us to let circumstances take over and causes us to lose focus) than it does with any “failure” or “weakness” on our part.  Having practices that support us and help us take the baby steps needed to manifest our goals and intentions is such an important piece of puzzle.

Here is an example of how this could look in a specific area of life.  Let's say you have a desire to make more money (which is a very common one that many of us have, especially these days).  Start with your intention.  For example, "My intention is to experience a real sense of abundance, peace, and freedom with money and to easily manifest income."  Then create a specific measurable result-oriented goal.  "I will generate $100,000 by 12/31/2011."  The next step is to come up with a few related actions/practices.  "I will read three or more books this year on manifesting money. I will set up two or more meetings per month to talk to people about new money-making ideas. I will make a plan each month for specific things I can do to increase my income."

The final piece of the process is creating some kind of regular accountability and support structure for this.  You can hire a coach, join a mastermind group, create a success/ accountability partnership with a friend, and more.  Having someone or a group of people you make commitments to and whom you empower to hold you accountable will make all the difference in the world.

Have fun with this.  Don’t take it or yourself too seriously...it's just life, you're allowed to make mistakes, screw things up, and fall down (which we all do and always will).  Be kind to yourself in this process and in this New Year.  And, when we remember that our intentions (those states of being and authentic desires) are what we are truly after (not the specific outcomes or actions), it can allow us to take the pressure off of ourselves, have more fun, and trust that things will manifest as they are meant to - especially if we open up and let them show up!

What are your most important intentions for 2011?  How can you create empowering support and accountability for your goals and actions in this New Year so that you can manifest what you truly want in 2011. Share your thoughts, ideas, insights, actions, and more on my blog here.

To listen to this week's audio podcast, including additional thoughts, ideas, and tips, click here.

Coaching Session with Me to Create 2011

I still have a few slots available for coaching sessions this month to help you get 2011 off to a successful start and make this a year of authenticity, appreciation, and fulfillment of your goals and dreams.  In our coaching session, we'll discuss your top lessons from 2010, your main intentions for 2011, and design an action plan and strategy for you to manifest your most important desires in the New Year. To schedule a session with me, reply to this email (mike@mike-robbins.com) to inquiry about remaining slots.

Great New Books for the New Year:

The Prosperity Plan, by Laura Berman Fortgang

My friend, Laura Berman Fortgang, has a new book out that can help you launch your Prosperity Plan.  It's aptly named The Prosperity Plan. It's hard to flip on the TV or open a newspaper or web browser without encountering bad news about the economy these days. With so much doom and gloom everywhere we look, the odds of achieving prosperity can seem downright dismal. However, according to my friend Laura (one of the top life coaches in the country over the past twenty years), we can beat those odds by changing the way we think about our finances and ourselves. The Prosperity Plan is a remarkable guide to building both financial and emotional security. Laura makes the case that the most powerful currency in the world today is not the dollar, Euro or yen, but a deep and unwavering belief in your own potential. This powerful new book will show you how to re-program yourself for prosperity and make powerful changes in the new year.  For info about the book, the free bonuses you'll receive when you order copies today, and to get copies for yourself and others, click here.

The Soulmate Secret, by Arielle Ford

Have you ever wondered what it takes to find the love of your life?  Is it your dream to find a life-partner who will love, cherish and adore you?  You can learn how in The Soulmate Secret: Manifest the Love of Your Life With the Law of Attraction by my friend Arielle Ford.  This powerful book just came out in paperback and is a perfect book for anyone who wants to manifest a relationship into their lives this year.  Finding true love is possible for anyone at any age if you're willing to prepare yourself to become a magnet for love. Arielle knows this from experience. She used the techniques in this book to bring her soulmate into her life at age forty-four. They were engaged three weeks later and have been happily married for over ten years.  The techniques, rituals, and projects found within The Soulmate Secret will allow you to prepare your home, body, mind, and spirit for the soulmate your heart truly desires.  The Soulmate Secret works for men and women of all ages.  It even worked for Arielle's 80 year old mother-in-law, Peggy.  For more information and to order copies of this book today, click on this link.

The Worry Solution, by Martin Rossman, MD

Do you sometimes have trouble turning your mind off at the end of a stressful day? Do you worry too much, or suffer from high levels of anxiety or stress?  Do you feel like your life is out of control?  You are not alone. Hundreds of millions of other people just like you suffer from out of control worry and stress.  Unrelieved stress is a significant risk factor for many physical, mental, and emotional conditions.  The good news is that a unique combination of brain science and mind/body processes can help you greatly reduce all of these risks. Do yourself a favor and read The Worry Solution by mind/body expert Martin Rossman, MD. Can you even imagine the difference in your life if you didn’t need to worry so much?  To find out more about this book and purchase copies, click here.

"Happy New Year!"

- Samantha and Rosie