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The more I gain, the more I realize I can live without what I have. As you said, asceticism isn't any more the answer than becoming and materialistic ego maniac.
The key is appreciating things for what they are, but not making them part of your identity.
@Vered: Yeah, less is the new more. People are still slaves to $$$, but at least they have less stuff. It's a good first step.
Yeah, I agree with you, Clay. I'm cool with the Secret these days, because it really can show a lot of people that they are not victims of life. You don't have to live life always stressed to the max about money. Good message. But is it just me, or did many of the people in the Secret feel like used car salesmen?
To my way of thinking, Abundance 2.0 is to live in harmony with life, to live in the flow of life. The way I see it, the Universe is an abundant place. A famous spiritual dude observed that God provides for the lilies of the fields. We can have a life of harmony, of flow, of enjoying life free of material want AND excess. That's Abundance 2.0.
We think a like, my friend. We certainly do.
I learned a new word from you - Hubris.
Thanks for sharing this post. :)
This article has a lot of sense to me. In fact, it captured the essence of my downfall in the past few years, prior to realising what is wrong with becoming too attached with my goals. In a way, I'm glad it happened because without having gone through some of my darkest moments, I would not have sought inner healing so intensely.
I've also wrestled with the issue about abundance versus simplicity and have come to the same conclusion, such as yours. Clearly, abundance affords us more options to lead the life we want.
Love and light,
Evelyn
Clay, you should "do" this interview project, I'd love to see your answers to those questions.
This is wonderful. I am so glad that someone else is finally raising a flag about all this abundance and law of attraction stuff. I wrote a post a little while back called, "Are Your Goals Destroying You?" about how goals are meant to be a means, not the ends in themselves.
I realized after spending some excessive time on a few goals that there must be definite priorities...some goals have to come first before others. How do I decide this? I ask, "In what areas am I irreplaceable?" For me this includes being a husband, father and worshiper. So these areas always come before any other goals.
Anyway, I'm so glad you wrote this, I'm becoming a very big fan of this blog, keep it up!
Cameron
A lot of people wonder what it's like to have [INSERT NAME OF MATERIAL RICHES HERE], but once they've experienced that, the novelty wears off. That's why there's a lot of rich people who're discontent and seeking spirituality, a simple life
@Cameron: I like what you say about priorities. Things like owning an outrageously expensive car might be nice, but when such goals appear on goal top 10 lists it seems to point to someone being out of touch. But that's just my opinion. I'm glad that you like this post, Cameron, as I really enjoy your blog and am glad you stopped by.
@Adam: Thank you for this very nice comment. Yeah that gold goblin's definately a bad one.
Anyway, how's this for abundant living: I went kayaking yesterday instead of worrying about work, or goals or anything else for that matter! So much fun!
This was done in a very interesting and unique way! I liked it!
The Secret has brought me a lot of clients. People who are trying to apply the "Law of Attraction" and failing miserably at manifesting whatever they have set their sights on in that moment. The problem being,the Secret, in my humble opinion, is just one huge piece of propaganda that gets one's hopes up but doesn't include any of the fine print necessary to get the tool of LOA to work. And while I love all the clients The Secret has brought to me, I am a little miffed that so much of my time is spent re-teaching my clients how to feel good and know their own hearts - they've been spending so much time retraining themselves to think positively yet they have no idea how they feel about any of it.
Clay cleverly illustrated this in his post: You have to know what you truly want. If what you are asking for doesn't move you to tears, if you can't follow up your wants with a logical reason as to why you want it - Chances are you don't REALLY want it, it's just another thing you think you should want. (should - a word that is used almost exclusively as a way to solicit guilt - either from yourself or someone else)
What I've found most in my coaching of recovering followers of The Secret is that most of them don't want the Mansions and Millions of dollars they thought they did - most people just want a happy human connection with others, or to find a way to live comfortably doing what they love.
My reaction to the book "The Secret" when it first appeared was a loud unmitigated groan. It's all just a repeat of books I read years ago and it still doesnt' work until you know who you really are and what you really want in life.
Of course, one could argue that attempting to live by these philosophies might get you there, 'cause "pain is the touchstone of all our spiritual growth!"
We make what seem to be incredible sacrifices to remove ourselves from restrictive conventional situations, and damn it, after all that sacrifice, it better result in something breathtakingly amazing. So we start setting unrealistic and ego-driven goals (as opposed to the unreasonable authentic goals that bring us alive and cause us to wreak havoc on the world in beautiful ways).
TOTALLY.
Also, several of your commenters made really astute observations about needing to really understand what you want and why you want it. I've been really struggling with this lately.
And you weren't kidding about that first video being vomit-inducing! The comments alone nearly had me hurling. I think there's definitely some truth to the idea that thinking positively brings rewards, but I think it's because happy, confident, focused people are more likely to be well-liked and to get things done.
(Ok, back to your regularly scheduled non-gardening discussions. :) )
I hate it for other reasons. I have had several clients come to me and say something like this:
"My life is shit and I know it's all my fault because I've seen The Secret"
That creates a problem, let me tell you.
I've no idea about the LOA and I have an open-mind about it. What I do know though is that there are enough holes in the rationale that the movie offres that you could drive a truck, two tanks and an aircraft carrier through it and still lean over the edge without risking banging your head on the sides.
It's not a 'Law' it's a theory and should be accpeted and be debated as such in my humble opinion.
Great post Clay!
Check this out if you like http://thomrutledge.com/secretantidote/default.asp
This is a very thought-provoking post. I especially enjoyed reading what you said about goals. "Goals should keep us anchored to our own realities. They
Huckleberries are in the Vaccinium family and thus are closely related to (sometimes considered one in the same with) blueberries. And we know you can have fabulous blueberries in Maine!
Usually, the distinction between them is that blueberries have numerous tiny seeds, while huckleberries have 10 larger seeds (making them more difficult to eat).
So, perhaps planting a few blueberry bushes instead of huckleberry might suit you (and your clime) better.
>Clay: great post, great blog ~ tracked you over here from Leo's Zen Habits site, looks like I'll now have two must-read-daily blogs on my list. :-) Keep up the great writing!
I've been thinking a lot about optimization, as opposed to maximization, and ecology--in the context of personal development.
To optimize one's finances, for example, one might aim to make as much money that is best for happiness, and then stop striving for more. Happiness studies have shown that this is around $36,000 for most people. More than that doesn't correlate with increased happiness.
Too often personal development gurus advocate for maximizing one's finances, health, relationships, etc. I used to have very few friends. After listening to too much Tony Robbins, I set a goal to have 50 friends. I got close to achieving my goal and realized that I hated having so many friends, because I couldn't possibly maintain all those relationships.
Optimize, not maximize.
Ecology has to do with balancing all aspects of a system. What will happen to the rest of your life when you have a private jet? Or 6 girlfriends? Or a high-flying career (where you work 80 hours a week)? Is it worth it? What are the side-effects of success?
I live a queens' life of happiness and fulfillment in New Mexico, including raising 2 kids, on less than most peoples' entertainment budget. I wouldn't trade places with anyone.
Keep up the good "Anti-Secret" work.
Blessings!
Thanks for another excellent post.
Figure out what is right for you, do that. Ditch the internal/external guilt or shame and live your life to its fullest.
Materialism is short-lived happiness...
Unique site +_+