Nuggets For The Noggin

The Gratitude Stone!
Article by: Jim “Gymbeaux” Brown, May 15, 2008

If you have not as yet seen the DVD “The Secret”, you are really missing out on something very special. Check it out by clicking HERE! I have spoken about “the secret” in several Nuggets of the past. What is the secret? It is the Law of Attraction. It really is not a secret, it just makes good sense and it can for you as well. Hardly a day passes where I do not experience some form of the effects of the Law of Attraction.

As said before, here is how it works. We tend to attract into our lives that which we think of most. Sounds simple does it not? But what we tend to think of most is usually what we DO NOT want in our lives. Think about the golf course. You are standing on the tee-box looking down the fairway and what do you see? You see the water on the left, the bunkers on the right and how could we not see the tree at the bend in the fairway. There is far MORE to see than what we SHOULD see and that is the spot in the fairway we want our ball to land. Instead, the last thought we mentally and physically see is probably the lake. That is why so many golfers hit the ball into the lake instead of the spot on the fairway that should be the target.

OK so you don’t play golf. Think about this real life situation. Several months ago I had a cap put a tooth and within a couple of days it had come off. No problem the dentist replaced it. Fast forward to just two weeks ago. I was driving to Austin Texas to attend a class and for whatever reason, I thought about the cap. In fact I think my exact mental words were, “I sure hope this cap doesn’t fall off while I am on this trip.” Why did I think of it? I have no idea. I had not given the cap one thought since it was replaced. And yes, you guessed it, while driving and not giving it another thought, it just suddenly popped off. Granted some will say it was a coincidence; I’m not so sure. There have been numerous times in my life when I have done nothing more than think about something only to have it happen in short period of time.

For example, I cannot begin to count the times I will think of my best friend only to have him call me within minutes of the thought. On at least one occasion I picked up the phone to call him and without the phone ringing he was already on the other end of the line when I started to dial.

Another title for this Nugget could have been “The Effects of Limiting Beliefs”. Again another example from my own life. There are approximately 550 real estate agents in our local Board of Realtors (there are more than 550, but they are outside our geographical area). So when the owners of my real estate company asked me how many agents I thought we could attract to our company? I said about 80 or 15% of the Board total. I actually believed what I had said. Then I met a fellow Team Leader who was a member of a 280 member Board of Realtors and her Keller Williams Market Center had 230 of the agents! 82% of the Board! 82%! Not taking anything away from her, I thought if she can do it, I could as well. Since I have taken off my blinders, we went from the 17 we started with to 75 when Hurricane Katrina struck. Katrina caused about 20 agents to leave the area with no intention of returning and another 8 are still pending departure. Nonetheless, we will hit 100 agents by the end of 2006! That is truly remarkable considering that I had originally thought we would have topped off at no more than 80! The only true ceiling regarding the number of agents is the actual number of agents available! Could we eventually get them all? Why not? At least we can “think” about it!

Napoleon Hill said “Whatever the mind can conceive and believe, it can achieve!” Jesus said, “Ask and you shall receive.” Henry Ford said, “If you think you can or if you think you can’t, you’re right!” There are many more quotes that say the same thing – think about that which you want most. What have you got to lose? NOTHING! You are going to think about something anyway so why not think about what you want more of in your life?

The movie The Secret suggests that achieving your goals and attracting more of what you want into your life starts with giving thanks for what you already have in your life. It seems like in today’s “fast food” life style we rarely stop to give thanks for what we have starting with our families, our homes, or even just waking up. On the contrary, we just seem to go at full speed. To make matters worst, we seem to go full speed without knowing or understanding where it is we want to go. In other words what are your goals? What do you really want in your life? What do you hope to achieve? What do you want people to think of you when they do find time to actually think of you?

There is a segment in The Secret that could go un-noticed if you let it and it involves the “Gratitude Stone.” It was suggested that you find a small stone – a Gratitude Stone – and you put it in your pocket. One of the first things we do each morning as we ready for another day is pick up the things that normally go into our pocket. When the Gratitude Stone becomes one of those things, stop for just a few seconds to remember to give thanks for what you have and the opportunity for another day in your life. Then in the evening as we empty our pockets, we will pull out the Gratitude Stone and at this time, just before you go to bed, give thanks for all you have at the end of the day. During the day, every time you see or feel the Gratitude Stone in your pocket, mentally give thanks for what matters most to you. Before you can begin to receive, you must first learn to give and giving thanks start it all.

Can you imagine how this simple action will make you feel if you are constantly giving thanks for what you have? Give thanks even for your problems you experience because without problems we would fail to grow. In most of our in our jobs we are actually being paid to solve problems so why should they come as such a surprise to us and usually greeted with anger. The next time you are presented with a problem – great or small – do what W. Clement Stone suggests by asking yourself this question:

HOW CAN I USE THIS EXPERIENCE FOR MY ADVANTAGE?

ACTION STEP

Find a small stone that you can carry in your pocket. Hold the stone in your hand and rub it every time you see or feel it. Do it first thing in the morning and last thing at night. And when affronted by a problem, rub your Gratitude Stone and give thanks for the experience that will create a learning experience for you and ask, “How can I use this experience for my advantage?”

Note: I have been carrying around my Gratitude Stone since watching The Secret because it truly seemed like “the right thing to do” and I can honestly say that my daily attitude has changed and so can yours.