The First Pillar: Giving
"When people come together for the purpose of giving maximum, each receives maximum." This simple idea supports all success in life.
Yet you can only give what you have to give. Therefore, the first step to success is being clear about who you are: what you love to do, what you are good at doing, and what principles guide your life. This is the foundation of self-knowledge we discussed in the last issue.
This is your personal balance sheet. You are already a multi-millionaire in terms of the personal qualities and mental, emotional, and physical assets with which you have been gifted. Your job is to understand those gifts and then share them with others. When you understand the principle of abundance then you will create great wealth for yourself, and for others.
The Principle of Abundance
What is that principle? Simply put, we live in an abundant universe. The only limit to creating wealth is creativity, and since there is no limit to creativity, there is no limit to the amount of wealth that can be created.
The creation and expansion of the Internet is a perfect example. 50 years ago, the Internet did not exist. Through the application of creativity and the collaboration of many people, a worldwide network was created. Before the Internet, access to information was limited and therefore the ability to create was limited. Today the Internet has added literally trillions of dollars to our world economy. More importantly, the Internet has provided instant access to knowledge and information on any subject which allows anyone to use that information to create new products, services and programs.
How do you use the principle of abundance to create great financial wealth? The enlightened millionaire understands that abundance is based on the perpetual flow of value. Each exchange must increase the value of the product or service being provided.
Another way of saying this is that you must give in order to receive, and you must receive something that is of equal or greater value to you than what you have given. In other words, you must give to yourself, as you give to others. Otherwise, you will only be able to give until you have given all you have away, and nothing is left.
Two Effects Created by Giving
Giving has two effects. One is the obvious, the other is subtle, and often unseen. Buckminster Fuller described the subtle effects as “precession.” He said that the real effects of any action happen at 90 degrees to the action.
The example he gave was of a bee. The bee goes from flower to flower collecting honey. Collecting honey is the bee’s intent. Yet in the process, the bee collects pollen and then deposits some of that pollen with the next flower. Through this precessionary process cross-pollination occurs.
When you give to another two effects are created. The obvious effect is the benefit the recipient gains from your gift. The subtle effect is the influence created by the giving. When the giving is with an open heart, without expectation of receiving something in return, a subtle influence is created which produces results that can not be predicted in advance.
Notice this in your life and you will find that most of the good (or bad) things which happen to you are the result of the subtle influences created by your actions. When your actions are based on giving with an open heart and mind, then things show up which never could have been predicted in advance.
Enlightened Giving
The enlightened principle of giving is embodied in the popular notion of win-win. A transaction creates abundance when each party feels they have received equal or greater value from the transaction than what they had when they began.
But what happens if one person comes with the intention of giving and the other with the intention of receiving? Won't one get cheated? If you come with the intention of cheating, the only way you can really cheat me is if I am intent on giving to you without being equally aware of the need to give to myself. This comes under the category of "pleasing the other."
If my intention is to "please" you, then you can certainly cheat me. However, when my intention is to give fully both to you and to myself, then I will always be aware when our dealings seem imbalanced. A feeling arises in the gut or just inside someplace when something is not fair. Pay attention to that feeling and you can hold the intention to give while never being cheated.
Your success will be measured by how much you give. When your giving is balanced, giving to yourself as you give to others, then you will create the foundation for enlightened wealth.
Janet and Chris Attwood run Enlightened Alliances, a marketing company dedicated to creating relationships which improve the world. They work with some of the most successful people in America: Mark Victor Hansen and Jack Canfield of Chicken Soup for the Soul, Robert Allen who has written 5 NY Times best sellers, multimillionaire T. Harv Eker famed for his Millionaire Mind Intensives, Brian Tracy, Bob Proctor, Dr. Pankaj Naram, Rev. Dr. Michael Beckwith, Dr. Deepak Chopra, Jay Abraham and others. Visit www.thepassiontest.com for more details.
Contact: chrisandjanet@enlightenedalliances.com
