Stable Awakening

Reality #1: Most of us need to make money.

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Reality #2: It can feel icky to ask for money in exchange for sacred work.

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A common worry people have is that asking for money would ruin what they love.

 

And that's something you should think about carefully.

 

(Remember: your sacred work should be something you would be happy to do for free!)

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But there are ways of making a living while doing our sacred work with integrity.

 

And that's important because it's not just about making money. We also need to feel good about how we do it.

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This key is about how to do your work honestly so that the exchange of money becomes an act of gratitude and reciprocity, not just a commercial transaction.

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The Golden Rule of Money-Making

 

You've probably already heard the rule before.

 

It sounds like a cliché.

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In fact, it is a cliché.

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But most people underestimate how powerful it is.

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(Never underestimate a good cliché!)

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If you use it well, it can make you lots of money, you'll feel good about it, and more importantly OTHER PEOPLE will feel good about it, too.

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Try to cheat this rule, and you'll feel slimy inside and make yourself lots of enemies. 

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The Golden Rule of money-making is this:
 

Give more value, get more value.

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Or another way to put it:

 

The profit you make is directly proportional to the perceived value of the service you offer.

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Why does this work?

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It's because it functions on the law of reciprocity.

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It's hard-wired into our most basic moral instincts as social creatures.

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It works in virtually any system of exchange whether it's a capitalist economy, gift-giving cultures, or the microbial root systems of forests.

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Find out what is valuable to people in your niche.

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Give them the value they want.

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They will happily pay you, and you'll feel honest and wholesome about the whole thing.

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That’s the white magic spell for money-conjuring.

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What about "Black Magic"?

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If our economy worked exclusively like that—give more, get more—the world would be a pretty swell place.

 

But (surprise!) it doesn’t always work that way.

 

Remember:

 

The profit you make is directly proportional to the perceived value of the service you offer.

 

“Perceived value” — That’s where the sleaze creeps in.

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It's the basic premise of every type of con, from street hucksters to Ponzi schemes to the TV ads that convinced you to buy all that junk in your garage.

 

If you offer something that SEEMS to offer value (but doesn't) people will still pay for it, but they'll likely feel cheated as a result.

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This is the "dark arts" of money-making. And unfortunately, people use it all the time.

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The "dark arts" do make money (and fast).

 

But they corrode trust, damage community, and hurt your own sense of integrity.

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And they just feel gross.

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How do you avoid going to the dark side?

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Get used to listening to the little voice in your head—your conscience.

 

It’ll tell you when you’re about to step off the yellow brick to grab some shiny thing sticking out of the mud.

 

Listen to that voice—listen to your gut—and take the slow, honest road to the top.

 

The view will be sweeter when you get there.

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The Dream Killer

 

A crucial part of serving others is knowing who you're serving.

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If you try to serve everyone, you might end up serving no one.

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Either you will burn out trying to take the responsibility of the world on your shoulder.

 

Or you will be so overwhelmed your journey will end before you even walk out your front door.

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Instead of trying to save the whole world, you need to know who you are best positioned to serve.

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Luckily, there’s an easy rule of thumb to get you started:

 

The person you are best qualified to serve is the person you once were.

 

You know this type of person, because you were once in their shoes.

 

You know their dreams, their pain, the difficulties they've gone through, and the struggles still up ahead.

 

When it comes to finding meaning in your career, I’ve been working on this in my own life for over ten years.

 

I know the terrain. I know the pitfalls. And I've come out on the other side.

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Those you serve can be older than you, make more money, and even have more life experience, but if you have something they need, or they are at an earlier stage of the same journey you're on, you can be of service to them.

 

So ask yourself: Where was I four or five years ago? What was I looking for? What have I found?

 

You don't have to be at the end of your journey. (In fact, it’s better to assume you’re never at the end.)

 

But you do need enough expertise to show your earlier self the next few steps on the path.

 

Which, if you haven’t noticed yet, is exactly what I’ve been trying to do for you. *grin.*

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The majors leagues

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You’ve got the keys:

 

1) Do NOT chase passion.

 

2) Do One Thing.

 

3) The Sacred Core.

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+ The Golden Rule of Money-Making.

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But knowing the basic rules of baseball won’t make you a major league player.

 

Knowing the basic rules of purposeful work won’t make you a happy, meaning-filled millionaire.

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There are plenty of pitfalls up ahead that will cause you to waste money, energy, and precious, precious time.

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So if you're sick of waisting your life doing meaningless work . . . 

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If you're ready to unleash your genius and live a life that matters . . .

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There’s one last page to go deeper into my world: