Improvement

We have a lifetime of improvements to make.

What is perfect? We say that there is such a thing as the perfect circle. But no circle created by humanity has ever been perfect. The only perfect circle is the concept of one that exists in our minds.

We shouldn't worry about perfect. But we can, and should, improve.

We've heard about the earliest electronic computers of the 1930s. They filled the better part of a room and did basic arithmetic. Today, we carry them in our back pockets and they talk to us, take pictures, and so on. Sometimes we may want to throw our phones out the window, but our lives are almost unimaginable without them. This is thanks to improvement. And as we know from ceaseless smartphone updates, the improvements continue.

To the uninitiated, this level of endless growth can be intimidating. A never-ending battle to grow seems like a nightmare scenario.

As awakened millionaires, we smile at the thought of that. Because, for us, our growth fuels our souls and fills us with meaning. It gives us joy and meaning.

Even in the moments when our self-improvement stretches us through discomfort, or exposes internal challenges that make us wonder…we embrace the discomfort. We embrace the wonder. We embrace it, because we know the fruits of our labor are worth every ounce of the stretch.

1. And we love the journey.
2. Because it's fun.
3. Because it's thrilling.
4. Because it's fulfilling.
5. Because it is empowering. Because we want to make a difference.

Reinvention

Reinvention is the hardest of all forms of growth. It is the most challenging, as it tackles the parts of us that have been etched deep into our minds, emotions, and souls.

On the face of it, it seems a nearly insurmountable task. When we have patterns that have been reinforced for years, if not decades, we have gut responses that immediately pop up. The power of the subconscious mind.

But here is where we must persist. We must persist every time the old way tries to stand its ground and save itself from extinction.

We must persist. And we will be rewarded for that persistence.

There is a special way to confront reinventions like this we can take from the Taoist philosophies in martial arts like Tai Chi. Tai Chi has a remarkable form of sparring called push hands.

Two people, standing in front of each other, poised in a deeply rooted posture, lightly rest the tips of their fingers on the other. Their mission is simple: push the other off of their balance so they take a step.

But it's not achieved by the way we think of pushing.

It doesn't use brute force.

It uses the secrets hidden in the yin-yang symbol common in Taoist literature. When your partner pushes with force, we don't meet with force. We empty ourselves—the exact opposite. Where your partner expects your resistance, you offer emptiness, and their own momentum topples them.

A complete transformation, an effortless victory.

When we reinvent ourselves, we don't fight it. We don't apply force. We state our intention, plant ourselves firmly on our feet, as if roots grew out of our soles into the ground, and sway with the wind, the rest of our bodies moving without resistance to the forces around us, like trees in a storm.

This requires advanced thinking and a mature spirit. The rule of thumb is, whenever you get upset, you've gone unconscious. That means a hidden belief was pushed and you reacted emotionally. This is how fights, wars, divorces, and more begin.

As Awakened Millionaires, we need to become highly sensitive to our own thoughts and behavior. If someone says something that irritates us, we stop and look at what is in us that got triggered. It's not about the other person or even what was said; it is about the unconscious triggered response.

The typical response is to push back with force: You hit me? I hit you back!

We don't do this as Awakened Millionaires. We empty and bend with the wind. When we empty, there is no force that can knock us over because we are not there to be forced down. Empty yourself and you will transform.

Discovery

Discovery, the third form of growth, is always the most fun. We look at ourselves and ask what's possible? What kind of Awakened Millionaire are we going to be?

While no Awakened Millionaire is ever the same, there are so many similarities that bond us together. And it is our journey into discovery that builds us into the unique powerhouses we're capable of becoming.

Think of us in our raw forms. Think about how much potential energy we have. Think about what we're capable of becoming.

When we put ourselves there, we begin to taste what it would feel like to activate greater depths of our potential. We begin to feel what that power would feel like. We begin to see the world the way our more powerful selves would see the world—and it feels good.

This is just one of the drives towards discovery. Behind it is the power of a single word: curiosity. Curious about tomorrow. Curious about how to solve a problem. Curious about how to profit from passion. Curious about creating, discovering, inventing new ways of being, seeing, serving.

When a man couldn't get a taxi to make it to the airport, he was curious how a service could be invented to be better than waiting endlessly for a cab. His curiosity created the app-driven, popular service called Uber. If you want a ride, tap the Uber app and a driver can be near you in only minutes..

In 2009, a driver was locked out of his car. He couldn't find his keys. He turned his complaint about lost items into a mission. He invented TrackR, a device that you put on your keys (or cat or anything you don't want to lose) and you can track it with an app you download onto your phone.

Behind every Awakened Millionaire is the desire to make an impact. A desire to bring good to the world, change to the world, healing to the world, elevation to the world, evolution to the world.

And we can. But how much? How far can we take our powers for good and transform them into tangible impact?

It all depends on what we're able to become. It depends on how deeply we commit to ongoing discovery. The more we discover about who we are and what powers we have, the more impact we can make. And I know that for every Awakened Millionaire, the idea of bringing more positive impact is enough, by itself, to push us into high gear.

How can we grow without first expanding our own horizons?

How can we have new ideas without continually educating ourselves?

How can we discover new in this world without the insatiable desire to explore?

Without the Awakened Millionaire's commitment to self-growth, there is a greater chance that we will become misguided, lose the path, or even leave ourselves open to corruptibility.

It's very easy to give in to temptation when it comes to money. Whether it's to take a job that we aren't in love with, or to skirt the edges of ethics or legality, being desperate for money often drives people to do things they regret.

One man accepted the assignment of coauthoring a book for an aspiring speaker. The man didn't believe in the book or the speaker, but he accepted the job for the money. Despite his intuition urging him to pass, he accepted. Within weeks the man became disillusioned, had an argument with the speaker, and parted ways. He also returned the money. Had he followed his heart, he would never have taken a job not in alignment with his own mission.

In our personal lives, in our businesses, at home, in our relationships, with our families…in all of it, we must be open, willing, and listening. If we do this, good things will come. Growth will come.

But we must come from faith, not fear.

We must grow, stretch, evolve.